Revelation of John 9:12-21 · Bible study
Revelation 9:12-21 Commentary: Sealed for Slaughter
Greek · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
The second woe: four bound angels freed to kill a third of mankind, a vast demonic cavalry, and the tragic stubbornness of human hearts refusing to repent.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The second woe releases four bound angels who command an immense cavalry from the Euphrates, killing a third of mankind, yet the survivors still refuse to repent.
- Key words: ἐξουσία (authority/power) governs the horses' mouths and tails; μετανοέω (to repent) appears twice in the negative, the core tragedy.
- Main debate: Historical fulfillment (Muslim invasions of the Eastern Empire) vs. future eschatological battle (end-time demonic army).
- Theological theme: Divine sovereignty over judgment and the depth of human rebellion, even catastrophic warning does not guarantee repentance.
- Best use: To teach that God's judgments are precise in timing and scale, and that only the Spirit can produce repentance; judgment alone cannot change the heart.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
12The first woe has passed. Behold, two woes are still to follow.
13Then the sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God
14saying to the sixth angel with the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”
15So the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind.
16And the number of mounted troops was two hundred million; I heard their number.
17Now the horses and riders in my vision looked like this: The riders had breastplates the colors of fire, sapphire, and sulfur. The heads of the horses were like the heads of lions, and out of their mouths proceeded fire, smoke, and sulfur.
18A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke, and sulfur that proceeded from their mouths.
19For the power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; indeed, their tails were like snakes, having heads with which to inflict harm.
20Now the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the works of their hands. They did not stop worshiping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk.
21Furthermore, they did not repent of their murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, and theft.
WEB World English Bible 2000
12The first woe is past. Behold, there are still two woes coming after this.
13The sixth angel sounded. I heard a voice from the horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Free the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates!”
15The four angels were freed who had been prepared for that hour and day and month and year, so that they might kill one third of mankind.
16The number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million. I heard the number of them.
17Thus I saw the horses in the vision and those who sat on them, having breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow; and the horses’ heads resembled lions’ heads. Out of their mouths proceed fire, smoke, and sulfur.
18By these three plagues, one third of mankind was killed: by the fire, the smoke, and the sulfur, which proceeded out of their mouths.
19For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails. For their tails are like serpents, and have heads; and with them they harm.
20The rest of mankind, who were not killed with these plagues, didn’t repent of the works of their hands, that they wouldn’t worship demons, and the idols of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood, which can’t see, hear, or walk.
21They didn’t repent of their murders, their sorceries, their sexual immorality, or their thefts.
KJV King James Version 1769
12One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
13And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.
15And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.
16And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.
17And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.
18By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.
19For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.
20And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:
21Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
12The first Woe is past: behold, there come yet two Woes hereafter.
13And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14one saying to the sixth angel that had the trumpet, Loose the four angels that are bound at the great river Euphrates.
15And the four angels were loosed, that had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, that they should kill the third part of men.
16And the number of the armies of the horsemen was twice ten thousand times ten thousand: I heard the number of them.
17And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates as of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone: and the heads of the horses are as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths proceedeth fire and smoke and brimstone.
18By these three plagues was the third part of men killed, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone, which proceeded out of their mouths.
19For the power of the horses is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails are like unto serpents, and have heads; and with them they hurt.
20And the rest of mankind, who were not killed with these plagues, repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and the idols of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood; which can neither see, nor hear, nor walk:
21and they repented not of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
12The first woe did go forth, lo, there come yet two woes after these things.
13And the sixth messenger did sound, and I heard a voice out of the four horns of the altar of gold that is before God,
14saying to the sixth messenger who had the trumpet, `Loose the four messengers who are bound at the great river Euphrates;'
15and loosed were the four messengers, who have been made ready for the hour, and day, and month, and year, that they may kill the third of men;
16and the number of the forces of the horsemen is two myriads of myriads, and I heard the number of them.
17And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and those sitting upon them, having breastplates of fire, and jacinth, and brimstone; and the heads of the horses are as heads of lions, and out of their mouths proceedeth fire, and smoke, and brimstone;
18by these three were the third of men killed, from the fire, and from the smoke, and from the brimstone, that is proceeding out of their mouth,
19for their authorities are in their mouth, and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents, having heads, and with them they do injure;
20and the rest of men, who were not killed in these plagues, neither did reform from the works of their hands, that they may not bow before the demons, and idols, those of gold, and those of silver, and those of brass, and those of stone, and those of wood, that are neither able to see, nor to hear, nor to walk,
21yea they did not reform from their murders, nor from their sorceries, nor from their whoredoms, nor from their thefts.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
12The first woe has passed. Behold, there come yet two woes after these things.
13And the sixth angel sounded [his] trumpet: and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which [is] before God,
14saying to the sixth angel that had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound at the great river Euphrates.
15And the four angels were loosed, who are prepared for the hour and day and month and year, that they might slay the third part of men;
16and the number of the hosts of horse [was] twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number.
17And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and those that sat upon them, having breastplates of fire and jacinth and brimstone; and the heads of the horses [were] as heads of lions, and out of their mouths goes out fire and smoke and brimstone.
18By these three plagues were the third part of men killed, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which goes out of their mouths.
19For the power of the horses is in their mouth and in their tails: for their tails [are] like serpents, having heads, and with them they injure.
20And the rest of men who were not killed with these plagues repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and the golden and silver and brazen and stone and wooden idols, which can neither see nor hear nor walk.
21And they repented not of their murders, nor of their witchcrafts, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
12One woe is past: and behold there come yet two woes more hereafter.
13And the sixth angel sounded the trumpet: and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before the eyes of God,
14Saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet: Loose the four angels who are bound in the great river Euphrates.
15And the four angels were loosed, who were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year: for to kill the third part of men.
16And the number of the army of horsemen was twenty thousand times ten thousand. And I heard the number of them.
17And thus I saw the horses in the vision. And they that sat on them had breastplates of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone. And the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions: and from their mouths proceeded fire and smoke and brimstone.
18And by these three plagues was slain the third part of men, by the fire and by the smoke and by the brimstone which issued out of their mouths.
19For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails. For, their tails are like to serpents and have heads: and with them they hurt.
20And the rest of the men, who were not slain by these plagues, did not do penance from the works of their hands, that they should not adore devils and idols of gold and silver and brass and stone and wood, which neither can see nor hear nor walk:
21Neither did they penance from their murders nor from their sorceries nor from their fornication nor from their thefts.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Koine Greek)
New Testament · Koine Greek · Revelation of John 9:12
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree this passage depicts the second woe unleashed under the sixth trumpet, a judgment so severe that a third of humanity is killed. The four angels released at the Euphrates are widely seen as fallen beings or demonic forces, bound until God's appointed moment (the hour, day, month, year). The army numbering two hundred million is understood as supernatural or partly human, with horses that breathe fire, smoke, and sulfur and strike with serpent-like tails.
Barnes and Gill read the sequence as historical judgment upon the Eastern Roman Empire by Saracen and Ottoman armies. Clarke similarly connects it to Turkish invasions. But Jamieson-Fausset-Brown and the Cambridge commentary see it as a purely eschatological scene, the final outpouring of wrath before Christ's return. Thomas Worcester in his work on the Apocalypse notes the voice from the golden altar indicates the connection to heavenly intercession and prayer.
Despite these differences, all note that the survivors refuse to repent. They persist in idolatry (worship of demons and man-made idols), murders, sorceries, sexual immorality, and theft. The passage forces readers to confront the depth of human rebellion, judgment does not automatically produce repentance; it can harden the heart instead.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Historicist view: Links the four angels and cavalry to the successive Muslim conquests (Saracens, then Turks), arguing that the colors of the breastplates match Turkish uniforms and the Euphrates location points to the region from which these armies emerged.
- Futurist view: Places the second woe in the end-time tribulation period, connecting the army to demonic spirits released before Christ's return (Rev 16:12-14). The two hundred million corresponds to apocalyptic symbolism, not literal history.
- Symbolic/moral view: Reads the passage as a symbolic description of God's judgment on idolatrous civilization, regardless of era. The details (fire, smoke, sulfur) evoke Sodom; the refusal to repent highlights the universal pattern of human rebellion.
What is clear: God sovereignly controls the release of judgment at a specific appointed time, and even catastrophic punishment does not force repentance from the human heart.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Identity of the four angels | They are supernatural beings (angels) bound at the Euphrates, prepared for a specific time to execute judgment. | Historicist interpreters (Barnes, Gill) identify them with Saracen or Turkish leaders; futurists see them as fallen angels released at the end. Both sides agree they are under God's control. |
| Nature of the army | The army is overwhelmingly large (200 million), described with horse-like forms and riders, causing death by fire, smoke, and sulfur. | Some read it as literal cavalry (Parthian or Turkish), others as demonic spirits (the horses are symbolic, the riders may represent human or demonic forces). The passage itself blurs the line. |
| Timing of the second woe | The second woe comes after the first (locusts from the abyss) and before the third woe (seventh trumpet). It represents a phase of judgment. | Historicists (Wesley, Clarke) tie it to historical periods (Saracen conquests, Ottoman expansion). Futurists (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown) place it late in the tribulation period. Preterists see it as fulfilled in the Jewish-Roman war. |
| The survivors' response | The survivors do not repent of their idolatry and sins; they continue in the same practices despite experiencing judgment. | Why they do not repent: some emphasize the hardness of the human heart, others see this as a judgment on those already given over to sin (Romans 1). All agree it is a tragic indictment. |
Historical & Cultural Context
In the first century, the river Euphrates marked the eastern boundary of the Roman Empire, a frontier where the great power of Parthia threatened invasion. For John's original audience, armies from beyond the Euphrates meant unstoppable foreign cavalry, the Parthians were famous for their mounted archers. The mention of breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow (vv.17) matches the colors of Parthian armor: scarlet uniforms, blue ornamentation, and yellow trim. The number of the cavalry, two hundred million, is hyperbolic, not literal enumeration. It conveys overwhelming, immeasurable force. John heard the number but could not count it (v.16).
The voice from the four horns of the golden altar (v.13) recalls the altar of incense in the Jerusalem temple (Exodus 30:2-3). That altar was overlaid with gold and had a horn at each corner; the horns were grasped in supplication (1 Kings 1:50). Here a voice speaks from the altar's horns, a direct connection between the place of prayer and the unleashing of judgment. The incense altar in Revelation 8:3-4 is linked to the prayers of the saints. Now, from that same altar, judgment comes. This suggests that God's judgment is somehow a response to the pleas of His people.
The four angels are described as bound at the great river Euphrates. Throughout the Old Testament, the Euphrates was the northern border of the Promised Land (Genesis 15:18), but also the source of invading powers (Isaiah 8:7, Jeremiah 46:6-10). The binding of these angels implies that until God's appointed time, they are restrained by divine sovereignty. The precise language, prepared for the hour and day and month and year, indicates perfect divine timing, not a general period but a set moment.
The plagues themselves, fire, smoke, and sulfur (vv.17-18), recall the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24). The horses' tails are like serpents with heads (v.19), a detail that may reflect ancient war technology: horse archers whose bows were carried on saddles, giving the appearance of striking from both front and rear. Whether literal or symbolic, the image is of complete, devastating weaponry from which there is no escape.
Textual Notes
Two textual variants appear in the manuscripts for this passage. First, in verse 13, some manuscripts (such as codex Sinaiticus and codex Alexandrinus) omit the word "four" before "horns", reading simply "the horns of the golden altar" rather than "the four horns." The Majority Text includes "four," and it is followed by most English translations. Second, in verse 18, some manuscripts (A, B, C, and Aleph) add the word "plagues" after "these three", reading "by these three plagues" rather than just "by these three." The translation in the WEB follows the shorter reading. Neither variant substantially changes the meaning of the passage.
Reception History
The second woe has been the subject of intense interpretation across church history. Many Protestant Reformers and their successors (Mede, Bengel, Wesley, Clarke, Barnes) identified the four angels at the Euphrates with invading Muslim forces, Saracens and then Ottoman Turks, whom they saw as God's instrument of judgment on the corrupt Eastern church. John Wesley, in his Explanatory Notes (1754), connected the loosing of the four angels to the historical rise of Islam, specifically naming the four caliphs after Muhammad. Catholic interpreters, while sometimes reading the same events, placed them within a broader framework of judgments on heresy.
In the 19th and 20th centuries, dispensational futurism (influenced by Darby and the Scofield Reference Bible) shifted the reading forward to a yet-future end-times war, often linking it to the battle of Armageddon. Other interpreters, such as the Cambridge Bible (1880), noted the difficulty of identifying specific historical events and favored a more spiritual interpretation. Throughout history, the refusal of the survivors to repent has been a consistent point of pastoral application: judgment alone cannot produce repentance.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God's appointed time, The four angels were prepared for a specific hour, day, month, and year (v.15). Divine judgment does not come randomly. God holds the calendar of history, and even demonic forces move on His schedule.
- The terror of demonic warfare, The cavalry is not human but supernatural. Fire, smoke, and sulfur from their mouths (vv.17-18), tails like serpents with heads (v.19), the description emphasizes that the enemies of God ultimately answer to Him, yet they are fearsome instruments of wrath.
- The stubborn refusal to repent, After a third of mankind is killed, the survivors do not repent of their idolatry, murders, sorceries, sexual immorality, or thefts (vv.20-21). Judgment itself cannot force the heart to change; only the grace of God can bring true repentance.
Five-point outline
- Divine sovereignty over evil, The angels were bound (v.14) and then loosed. God controls the release of destructive forces.
- Judgment is partial but severe, One third killed, two thirds spared. Mercy still remains, but the devastation is real.
- The alliance of human and demonic power, The riders are human in form, but their horses and weapons are nightmarish. Evil uses human structures to accomplish its ends.
- Plagues echo earlier judgments, Fire, smoke, sulfur connect to Sodom and to the Exodus plagues. God's judgments follow patterns that His people should recognize.
- Repentance remains the only response, The contrast between the victims and the survivors is not just physical but spiritual: even survivors persist in rebellion. Judgment alone does not produce holiness.
Illustration hooks
- Waiting for the green light, The four angels bound at the Euphrates are like cars at a stoplight, held back until the light turns green. God's timing is precise, He knows exactly when to release judgment.
- Fire extinguisher training, You can know how to use an extinguisher, but if the fire is huge, it's overwhelming. The scale of the army, two hundred million, matches the feeling of total helplessness in the face of disaster.
- The locked door, A person who will not repent after a near-death experience, after loss, after hardship, reveals something inside themselves: hardness that can only be healed by God.
Questions your congregation is asking
- "Why would God kill a third of humanity? Isn't that cruel?"
- "If judgment is so terrible, why don't people repent when they see it?"
- "How can we be sure this is future history and not just symbolic language?"]
Leading a Discussion
Revelation 9:12-21 describes a judgment of massive scale, an army of two hundred million from beyond the Euphrates, killing a third of humanity. But the most haunting detail is not the fire, smoke, or sulfur. It is the response of the survivors: they refuse to repent. This passage forces us to confront the deep mystery of human rebellion and the sovereignty of God over judgment.
Discussion questions
- What do you make of the four angels bound at the Euphrates? Why are they described as both prepared for God's timing and yet needing to be loosed?
- The cavalry has power in their mouths and in their tails (v.19). What does this tell us about the nature of the judgment, is it human warfare, demonic attack, or both?
- How does the description of idols in v.20, gold, silver, bronze, stone, wood, unable to see, hear, or walk, echo Old Testament passages like Psalm 115 or Isaiah 44?
- Why does John list the specific sins in v.21: murders, sorceries, sexual immorality, thefts? How do these sins connect to idolatry?
- The survivors witness the death of a third of mankind. Yet they do not repent. Why does severe judgment sometimes harden hearts rather than soften them?
- What does this passage teach about the relationship between prayer (the golden altar) and judgment (the released angels)?
- If you were teaching this passage, how would you help someone see both God's holiness (in judgment) and His mercy (in giving time to repent)?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Revelation of John 8:13 | I saw, and I heard an eagle, flying in mid heaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe! Woe! Woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the other blasts of the trumpets of the three angels, who are yet to sound!” |
| Revelation of John 9:2 | He opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke from a burning furnace. The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the pit. |
| Revelation of John 11:14 | The second woe is past. Behold, the third woe comes quickly. |
| Exodus 30:2 | Its length shall be a cubit, and its width a cubit. It shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. |
| Exodus 30:3 | You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, its sides around it, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding around it. |
| Hebrews 9:24 | For Christ hasn’t entered into holy places made with hands, which are representations of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; |
| Hebrews 10:21 | and having a great priest over God’s house, |
| Revelation of John 8:3 | Another angel came and stood over the altar, having a golden censer. Much incense was given to him, that he should add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke reads the trumpets as prophecies of specific historical events, particularly the Ottoman destruction of the Greek church and the later corruption of the Latin church. He identifies the horsemen’s fire, smoke, and brimstone with cannons and gunpowder, and treats the unrepentant idolatry as referring to Catholic veneration of saints and relics.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes interprets the sixth trumpet as the rise of the Turkish power from the Euphrates region. The four bound angels represent Turkish forces held in check until God’s appointed time, then loosed to devastate a third of mankind
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This commentator regards the Muslim conquests as at most a partial fulfillment of the sixth trumpet, not a precise one. The army’s tricolored armor represents the three plagues of fire, smoke, and brimstone, and the vision targets idolaters specifically, not unfaithful Christians or refined unbelievers.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill identifies the four angels bound at the Euphrates as the Ottoman Turks, restrained by divine decree until God's appointed time. The fire, smoke, and brimstone issuing from their mouths represent the newly invented guns and cannons that destroyed the Eastern Roman Empire. He observes that even this judgment failed to bring the Western church to repentance.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB reads the sixth trumpet as a future judgment immediately before Christ's second coming, not a past historical event. He agrees that the locust attack is confined to the land of Israel, with only the sealed Israelites excepted from the visitation. The four angels loosed at the Euphrates are ministers of God's appointed judgment, unleashed at the exact hour, day, month, and year God had fixed.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange reads the fallen star as a spiritual condition rather than a person or angel. He identifies it with repentance separated from faith, a faithless remorse that becomes religious self-torment and opens the abyss within the human soul. This
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry observes that God holds back the forces of judgment until He specifically authorizes their release. When a people's sin reaches its full measure, these restrained agents are unleashed as instruments of divine wrath. Even after such severe plagues, the survivors harden their hearts and refuse to repent.
Vincent's Word Studies Evangelical 1887
Vincent corrects a common misreading of the time phrase: the hour, day, month, and year are not combined into one period. Instead, the angels are prepared for the specific hour God appointed, and that hour will fall on its own appointed day, month, and year.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley identifies the four angels of Revelation 9 as evil angels, loosed to carry out slaughter. He connects them to the first four caliphs after Muhammad, and ties the prophetic times to the Saracen conquests that followed the first woe involving Persian power, with specific historical dates marking each stage.