Revelation 9:10: Meaning Explained
And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five...
Creatures have tails that hurt people like scorpions do. They attack people for five months.
What’s Happening Here
John describes strange locusts from the pit that look like horses but have scorpion tails. They are very dangerous.
Key Words
Why It Matters
This teaches that evil will eventually face limits. God decides how long harm can happen, and then He stops it.
Did You Know?
In John's vision, five months matches the normal locust season, showing God's control over timing.
Tradition Spectrum
Word Study
Cross References
Frequently asked questions
What does Revelation 9:10 mean?
Creatures have tails that hurt people like scorpions do. They attack people for five months.
What is the context of Revelation 9:10?
John describes strange locusts from the pit that look like horses but have scorpion tails. They are very dangerous.
Why does Revelation 9:10 matter?
This teaches that evil will eventually face limits. God decides how long harm can happen, and then He stops it.
What's a surprising detail about Revelation 9:10?
In John's vision, five months matches the normal locust season, showing God's control over timing.
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Abbott-Smith, G. (1921) A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. [Public Domain]
- Brown, F., Driver, S.R. and Briggs, C.A. (1906) A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press. [Public Domain]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]
Commentary on Revelation 9:10
By the “tails” he speaks of the leaders who have fallen away from the Head of the church, that is, from the Lord, and so those who were the first have become the last. This is as God thought it worthy to say through Isaiah, “The elders who are honored and admired are the head; and the prophet who teaches iniquity is the tail.” Therefore, the “power” of the locusts refers to the character of the false prophets who never desist from attacking the true church by their lying and venomous doctrines.
[The noise of their wings was like the sound of chariots] signifies that the few who were in the lead as the horses have now been multiplied in the chariots [that follow]. This suggests either an increase in the diversity of new opinions or the increase in the number of those who have been led astray. Moreover, they rush into battle because the preachers of error rebel against the truth and fight against unity. The apostle described such persons in a similar fashion, “As Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith,” and following. … [That they had power in their tails] reminds us of what Isaiah wrote, “The elder and the hono…
Their iron breastplates show their hardness of heart.… We think that the sound of the wings of these spiritual locusts is said to resemble the sound of war chariots because of their speed in the air. For, as the blessed David says, “They make war upon us from on high.” And their tails which are like those of scorpions symbolize the result of sins, the producing of spiritual death. For “sin when it is perfected brings forth death.”
After this, the divine evangelist vividly and fearfully describes to us the nature of the worms. In each of the descriptions concerning them, one would marvel at the precision of the account; for he did not say that they had the "teeth of lions", the "tails of scorpions", or the "faces of men", but rather, in each case, he presented a figurative and parabolic representation of what was situated there, not the literal reality. Therefore, either their terrifying and astonishing nature is indicated through these images, or he truly sketched their form.