Revelation 9:12-21 – The sounding of the sixth trumpet

The first woe that the fifth trumpet released was already a horrendous nightmare. The second woe, about to happen at the sounding of the sixth trumpet, would be equally nightmarish if not more terrifying. Just imagine the thought of one’s country being invaded by brutal and heartless enemy, congregating at the boundary, ready to progress to swallow up vulnerable towns and cities along its way. What can be more frightening? For the longest time the Western world had been haunted by political and military nightmare. For a while communism was that force that threatened world peace. But since the fall of the Berlin wall and the crumbling of Russia, it is not tough to replace communism with another world threatening force. ISIS is a modern menace. This plus the rising tide of radical Islamic terrorists has brought great fear to many governments and countries.

Under the conquest of the Romans, lands at the upper stretches of Euphrates also became the boarder of the Roman Empire. It extended as far as modern Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, and even into Pakistan. At the sounding of the sixth trumpet, John’s vision saw four angels tied up by the great river Euphrates ready to be released to lead their massive armies into battle. Everyone from Jerusalem to Rome knew that this would be their worst political and military nightmare. Bear in mind that like the sight of the menacing, torturing locusts, what John said here is also symbolic. So from one horrifying imaginary to another, John was presenting intensifying scenes of terror and torture. All these done with the aim to challenge and bring about repentance.

In the plagues, released by the fifth trumpet, mankind suffered severely but were not killed. Now in this sixth trumpet, one third of mankind tasted death. This death comes from the throngs of military troops from the boundaries of the west, the Euphrates. They are fearsome in appearance and like what happened at the last trumpet, there is also a release of demonic forces. The vision is hard to explain but suffice to say, the message is plain. Mankind will be suffering and a significant percent of mankind will be killed. Yet there is no repentance.

These verses tell us that the human plight comes from idolatry. We become like what we worship. Worship something other than God, will distort our true image, which Genesis tells us is made in the “image and likeness of God.” When mankind worships idols that verses 20-21 say are blind, deaf and lifeless, they would become like their idols. They also become blind, deaf and lifeless as well. The passage shows us that murder, sorceries, immorality and theft are all the different forms of blindness, deafness and deadliness. They make a person go for quick gain to achieve power and pleasure. In so doing, that person will be giving up part of his or her humanness. Repentance is a radical change of heart and mind. It is deploring our past and embracing God’s offer of true life. God wants such kind of repentance. God will do anything, even by drastic means, to coax His image bearers out of their rebelliousness. Let’s seek never to break the heart of God! Let us think right, speak right, and act right and thus be God’s true image bearers!