(tm)The fifth trumpet
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And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from the heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. (Revelation 9:1)
Now will the denizens of darkness be released from the pit so they may torment the inhabitants of the earth.
And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. (Revelation 9:2)
Since the bottomless pit is a spiritual place not found on the earth, it follows that the smoke from the pit also is spiritual.
We notice here the converging of the spiritual and physical realms in the last days. The pit and its smoke are found in the spirit realm. The sun and the air are found in the physical realm. How much the physical realm may be affected as to an actual darkening of the sun and the air we are not certain. We have had the experience of walking down a sunlit road and having the Lord speak to us about the darkness filling the earth. The natural environment did not match what the Lord was emphasizing. This has happened to us on several occasions.
But it is our opinion that eventually the two realms will coincide. Ultimately the darkness filling the spiritual atmosphere must affect directly the physical realm. We do not see this as yet but have no doubt it will take place in the not too distant future.
And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. (Revelation 9:3,4)
We understand from the above passage that the judgments are not in chronological sequence. The locusts were commanded that they should not hurt the grass of the earth. But in the first trumpet "all green grass was burnt up." The judgments of the trumpets do not take place in sequence. Rather they are various aspects of the spiritual fulfillment of the Old Testament Blowing of Trumpets. They are the messengers preparing the way of the King.
The locusts are not permitted to touch the sealed remnant. The Lord’s servants will be exposed like everyone else to the withering hand on the earth and on human fruitfulness and beauty, to the fiery judgments on self-will and on the love of money, to the making bitter of the waters of human life, and to the diminishing of the manifest Presence of the Lord. The sealed remnant will experience the darkness.
But the Lord’s servants will be protected from the excruciating torments of the great tribulation.
The locusts come out of the bottomless pit. Locusts ordinarily would attack the green growth of the earth. But these are locusts whose task is to torment people. There will be a stinging, burning pain like the sting of a scorpion.
And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. (Revelation 9:5)
The torment that will follow the sting of one of these locusts must be intense for people will seek to escape the pain by dying.
And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. (Revelation 9:6)
Physical death, like sleep, is one of the blessings God has provided for sinful man. Through death we can escape agonizing physical pain and the extreme weariness of old age.
But during the great tribulation there will be periods when people will not be permitted to die. Escape through death will be denied them. This is a horrible nightmare. Here again we behold the converging of the spiritual and physical realms. The torment of the locusts comes from a spiritual army and people are locked in the physical realm by supernatural forces.
It is difficult to conceive of men not being able to die. If someone leaped from a tall building, or blew away part of his head with a shotgun, what would he be like if he remained alive?—if he could not die?
It has been suggested there is a spiritual application here. Perhaps it means also that after sufficient torment there will be some believers who then will be ready to die "in the Lord," that is, they will be ready to turn over their life to Jesus; but He will not receive their offering.
To a greater extent than most of us realize, the ability to seek the Lord is a gift given to us by God. No man can come to Jesus unless the Father draw him, and this is true at all levels of Christian experience. No man can repent or seek after God except as God permits. Repentance is a gift (Acts 11:18; II Timothy 2:25)!
Our ability to draw near to God, to overcome, to die in the Lord, to enter into the rest of God, to be transformed in personality and behavior, are gifts from God. Salvation is held open to us for a short period of time. There are seasons of opportunity (Acts 3:19; John 6:44; Hebrews 3:13).
It may be true that in the near future it will be impossible for us to make the decision to die in the Lord, to enter the rest of God, to find our place of refuge in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This is a distinct possibility, a probability. The wise reader will not delay but will give himself to the Lord immediately. He will come to the Lord now, seeking to enter into the marvels that have been prepared from the creation of the world for the closing days of the Church Age.
Many that are last will be first. The door to glory is open and neither man nor devil can close it. But the individual believer indeed can choose not to go through that door, judging himself to be unworthy of the Kingdom of God, by neglecting that which God is offering to him. Fearful indeed is the fate of the person to whom God has entrusted much but who chooses to neglect His Divine calling and follow his own path.
The period of time allotted to the locusts (five months) reveals that God will keep this particular torment under His strict control. In fact, all the plagues and torments with which mankind will be visited will be executed by Satan. But they remain under the careful supervision of the God of Heaven. God is in control—always! Mankind and the earth are God’s creation. God controls everything that happens to people on the earth.
The description of the army of locusts may be symbolic, or literal, or may set forth their appearance in the spirit realm. They may or may not be visible to human beings—we do not know at this time. It is possible there will be a material counterpart of this torment, such as a sickness, or a physical weapon of war of some sort. Perhaps the disease known as AIDS falls under this category.
In any case, the locusts are a woe to the inhabitants of the earth. This is a terrible plague indeed.
And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon. (Revelation 9:8-11)
The angel of the bottomless pit will be leading whatever creatures or instruments these are. The inhabitants of the pit are coming forth to wage war against mankind.
The locusts of the fifth trumpet remind us of the fiery serpents God sent among the Israelites (Numbers 21:6). The Lord Jesus Christ has been lifted up so whoever looks on Him may be delivered. But in the last days men will seek death rather than Him who was lifted up for the healing of men.
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