As we had the reading of the chapter, you may have picked up that the fifth and the six angels sounded their trumpet.
So the title for the sermon this morning is the fifth and six trumpets.
The fifth and six trumpets.
Now a very quick reminder, these trumpets are the wrath of God, supernatural events that have fallen upon the earth during this time.
If any of these verses that we've read, especially last week and what we're about to read now,
if any of these trumpets have given you fear and concern, look, don't worry, you're not going to be here for it.
Okay, we already saw that the rapture takes place before God begins to pour out his wrath, but it does take place, the rapture does take place after great tribulation.
And so you're not going to be here for it.
And look, I'm not saying, well, you're not going to be here for it, so don't worry about it.
Hey, we ought to be concerned about the people that are going to face this.
If we can pull people out of the fire, if we can pull people out of the wrath of God by preaching the gospel,
then that's our responsibility before these things take place, before the day the Lord falls upon the earth.
So let's understand what's going to take place.
Now you may recall in Revelation, let me just grab my Bible here, Revelation chapter 8.
Let's just go back to Revelation chapter 8 first.
Revelation chapter 8, we had the standing of the first four trumpets.
And at the end of Revelation chapter 8, it said in verse number 13, the last verse there, it says,
And I beheld and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice,
Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels which are yet to sound.
So each of these woes, you know, this stress and anguish is going to be greater than the four first trumpets that were blown.
Okay, so we're not going to see three in chapter number 9, but we are going to see the next two in chapter number 9.
So let's have a look at what takes place here in Revelation chapter 9 verse number 1, it says,
And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth.
Now this is not the only time we've seen previous trumpet sounds that a mountain has fallen to the sea or a star has fallen.
But this time, this star is actually given a personal pronoun, it says here,
And to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.
So the star falling from heaven here is a him.
Okay, it's a person, it's a personal pronoun used to describe this star and it starts being the key, being given the key to the bottomless pit.
And it says in verse number 2,
And he opened the bottomless pit.
And like, so when you're reading that, where is the bottomless pit located?
Well, if the star fell from heaven onto the earth, the bottomless pit is located on the earth, if that makes sense, okay?
So he opens 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.
So when we see the sun be darkened here, this is not a direct impact on the sun,
like we saw when the sun and moon were darkened, the stars fell from heaven before Christ appears in the clouds.
The reason the sun is being darkened here is because the smoke coming out of the pit is darkening the sky.
And so from the perspective of the earth, it appears the sun is darkened, but it's due to the smoke.
I'm sure we've experienced, maybe not long ago, when there were bushfires in Landsborough,
and there was smoke in the air, and didn't that give the sun a bit of a glazed look, a bit of a funny colour?
Well, you know, if you've got this great smoke coming out of this bottomless pit, it's going to have that effect on the sun.
Now let's try to identify what this bottomless pit is.
I don't think it's too complicated. I don't think, you know, we need to worry too much about it,
but, you know, some people, I've had, you know, conversations with people over the years about what this bottomless pit is.
Some people believe it's a separate compartment that no one's ever heard about before,
but I believe this is just a reference to hell, okay, reference to hell.
Now let me prove to you why I believe that.
Keep your finger there and come with me to Matthew 13.
Come with me to Matthew 13, please, in verse number 38.
Matthew 13 and verse number 38.
Matthew 13, verse number 38.
The Bible reads,
The field is the world,
the good seed are the children of the kingdom,
but the tares are the children of the wicked one.
So the tares are the children of the devil, okay.
Verse number 39.
The enemy that sowed them is the devil,
the harvest is the end of the world,
and the reapers are the angels,
as therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire,
so shall it be in the end of the world.
So you can see that the unbelievers,
especially specifically the children of the devil here,
are going to be burnt in the fire,
and I think we all acknowledge that,
it's a reference to hell.
But if we continue in verse number 41, it says,
The son of man shall send forth his angels,
and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend,
and them which do iniquities.
Them that do which iniquity are those that are not saved, obviously, right?
And look at verse number 42.
And shall cast them into a furnace of fire,
there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
So this location, this hell that they cast into,
is referenced here as a furnace of fire.
And we saw the bottomless pit in Revelation chapter 9,
referred to that, the smoke of a great furnace, okay.
Also, if you continue there in Matthew 13, look at verse number 47,
it says, Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net,
that was cast into the sea, and gather of every kind,
which when it was full, they drew to shore,
and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels,
but cast the bad away.
So shall it be at the end of the world,
the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
and shall cast them into the furnace of fire,
there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
So the first thing that you see about this bottomless pit,
is that it's referenced as a furnace of fire.
And we can see in other passages of the Bible,
the furnace of fire referenced in hell.
Come with me to another passage now,
come with me to Isaiah chapter 14 in the Old Testament,
Isaiah chapter 14 please,
Isaiah chapter 14.
Another reference of course is that it's called the pit,
or the bottomless pit, okay.
And when you turn to Isaiah 14,
Isaiah 14 verse number 12,
Isaiah 14 verse number 12 speaking of the devil,
How art thou fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning,
how art thou cut down to the ground,
which thou weak in the nations?
So we know this is speaking of the devil, of Lucifer,
drop down to verse number 15,
yet thou shall be brought down to hell,
to the sides of the pit, okay.
So what is hell referred to here as the pit, okay.
And we see that in Revelation chapter 9,
it's referred to as the bottomless pit,
the furnace of fire, the bottomless pit.
If you, actually I won't get you to turn there.
If you can just come back with me to Revelation chapter 9,
come with me back to Revelation chapter 9,
I'll read one more passage to you in the book of Ezekiel.
Now this is a reference to Nineveh,
which is at the time was the capital city of the Assyrian kingdom,
the Assyrian empire.
And about Nineveh specifically in Ezekiel 31 16,
it says,
I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall,
the fall of that capital city.
And then it says,
when I cast him down to hell with them that descend into the pits.
So another reference of hell referring to the pits, okay.
So with these references that we've seen in the Old Testament,
New Testament, the pits, the furnace of fire,
I believe your natural inclination as you're reading through Revelation chapter 9,
you're going to conclude that the bottomless pits is hell, okay.
It's a location of hell.
Now you might say, well, why is a bottomless?
Well, there are many references in the Bible that refer to hell being in the centre of the earth, okay.
And if we have the idea of our gravitational pull,
obviously we're pulled down toward the earth, okay.
And that's why if you jump, you come down.
Well, the earth being spherical, of course,
it doesn't matter where you stand on the earth,
you're going to be pulled into that direction.
So if you're sent into the bottomless pits,
there never is a bottom because you're going to,
as you continue to fall, you're going to remain in that centre period of hell.
And so I assume it has this sensation of continual falling,
even though you're not actually exiting earth.
You know, you're still remaining centred within the earth.
So that might be the reference why it is referred to as bottomless,
because you never will get out once you enter into that area, okay.
Now back to Revelation chapter 9, Revelation chapter 9 and verse number 3,
Revelation chapter 9 and verse number 3.
So this angel has a key to the bottomless pits, okay.
Keep that in mind.
And we already saw in Revelation chapter 1, I believe it was,
that Jesus Christ is said to have the keys of death and of hell.
Remember that?
Jesus Christ has the keys of death and of hell.
And so let me just quickly ask you the question,
and you don't have to answer it, but who owns hell?
Who does hell belong to?
You know, if you watch the cartoons, if you watch Looney Tunes,
or I grew up watching Looney Tunes, you know, hell belonged to,
what was it, Daffy Duck?
Like dressed up as a devil and he was like, you know,
tormenting souls that are cast into hell.
I also grew up reading Chick tracts.
I don't know if you've ever seen those in the,
many Baptist churches read Chick tracts.
And the big problem with those Chick tracts,
it shows the devil and demons tormenting souls in hell.
And the idea that they portray is that hell belongs to the devil,
or that the devil has authority in hell.
But no, if you read your Bibles very clearly,
hell was prepared for the devil and his angels.
Like the primary beings to be tormented in hell fire was the devil.
The devil has no authority in hell, is what I'm trying to say.
Okay?
No authority whatsoever.
It's his destination for torment, okay, that God has created.
And of course, what enlights the fires of hell is God's wrath.
It's a place of God's wrath.
It's a place of God's judgment, okay?
Hell belongs to God, is what I'm trying to say to you, okay?
Now, if you've got an angel unlocking hell,
well obviously that key has come from Jesus Christ.
And look, I'm not trying to say that it's some spiritual key.
It could just be a reference to authority, okay?
So Christ has given this angel the authority,
the power to open up hell on earth, all right?
And what comes out of this bottomless pit?
In verse number three it says,
So out of hell come these beings, these locusts, okay?
Now, these locusts get a lot of description as we keep reading here.
But the primary thing I want you to be thinking about as we read through this is they are locusts.
They are insects.
They are creatures.
But these are creatures that can function within the bottomless pits.
So they come out of this area.
Now, when it says that,
So if we understand how a scorpion on the earth has power,
we'll better understand how the locusts in the bottomless pit have power, okay?
Now, when you look at what the deadliest scorpion on the earth is,
does anyone know what the deadliest scorpion on the earth is?
What it's called?
Yes?
Sorry?
So my question is, what is the most, well, let me rephrase it.
What is the deadliest scorpion on the earth?
Does anyone know what it's called?
Okay.
I had to look this up, okay?
The deadliest scorpion on the earth is called the deathstalker scorpion, okay?
So what power does a scorpion have?
Well, obviously we know that scorpions are venomous
and they use their tails to inflict pain and venom into their prey.
And I'll just read an article that I read about this deathstalker scorpion.
It says,
So that is the power of the scorpions.
And the locusts have the same type of power.
You know, to inflict great pain and cause paralysis.
And then it continues about the scorpion.
Its venom contains a very small protein chain called chlorotoxin, only 36 amino acids long.
This tiny protein has a very powerful effect.
It is perfectly shaped to block chloride channels and stop chloride ions from entering muscle cells.
Without these ions sending signals telling your cells to relax,
the muscles in your body all flex at once and paralysis sets in, okay?
So if you're stung by this scorpion, by this venom, it causes your muscles to tense up
and you're having a hard time to move, okay?
It causes paralysis.
And so if that's the power of scorpions on the earth,
you can see that these locusts coming out of boneless pits have the same power.
They have the power to inflict pain.
They have the power to tense your muscles to cause paralysis, all right?
Now let's continue the inverse of a fall.
And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth,
neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only, so this is the only thing they're going to hurt,
but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
So if you don't have the seal of God in your foreheads at this point in time,
you're going to be hurt by these locusts on the earth.
Say, who are these men that have the seal of God in their foreheads?
Well, just as a quick reminder, come back with me to Revelation 7.
Revelation 7 and verse number 4.
And Revelation 7 contains the passage, of course, of the great multitude in heaven,
those that came out of great tribulation, worshiping God, praising God.
But before God begins to pour out his wrath, remember what we read in Revelation 7 verse 4.
It says, and I heard the number of them which were sealed,
and these were sealed and 144,000 of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
So remember that 144,000 Israelites, you know, from each tribe,
they received this seal of God in the foreheads,
and so these locusts will attack all men on the earth except the ones that have the seals in their head.
Now the question that was brought up maybe last week or a couple of weeks ago was,
you know, can these men that have the seal in the forehead,
can they be hurt by these locusts?
Okay, and my immediate answer to that is obviously not.
And the reason I would answer that in that way is because the rapture has already taken place.
Okay, the rapture, the resurrection is when we receive our new resurrected bodies.
O death, where is thy sting?
Okay, so we receive from mortal, receive immortal bodies, receive bodies that cannot be hurt,
that cannot receive pain, and so this 144,000, you know, aren't going to be affected by the locusts.
They can't even be hurt.
They've got immortal bodies walking the earth.
They're servants of God, and I believe during this time,
they're most likely preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ,
and for those that have not received the mark of the beast,
they still have an opportunity to call upon the name of the Lord and be saved,
and that's probably the job of that 144,000 Israelites, okay?
But the other thing here is that, you know, why would God bring up the,
well, look, I think the answer is already in verse number four,
that these 144,000 can't be stung.
They can't be hurt.
Let's read it carefully again.
Read it carefully.
It says, verse number four,
And he was commanded them about the locusts that they should not hurt the grass of the earth.
Now, obviously, the grass is growing back at this point in time.
Remember, the old grass was burnt up after the first seal.
Well, the fact that it says should not hurt the grass of the earth,
doesn't that mean that the grass of the earth can be hurt?
Right? Like, follow that logic.
So don't hurt the grass because it can be hurt, okay?
Then it says neither any green things, so maybe trees, whatever, right?
Other vegetation, all right?
So, yeah, don't hurt other green things because they can be hurt as well.
Neither any tree, when that was a tree.
Okay, shrubs and stuff, okay.
So that means that trees can be hurt.
But notice that it doesn't say don't hurt the men that have the mark in the seal in their foreheads.
It doesn't say don't hurt them.
Because if it said don't hurt those that have the seal in their foreheads,
then I can understand your natural conclusion to be, well, that means they can be hurt.
But that's not how the Bible phrases it.
The Bible phrases are that,
but only those men which have not the seal have got it in their foreheads.
So locusts have been told, hurt the ones that don't have the seals.
It doesn't say don't hurt the ones that don't have the seals because they can't be hurt.
They've got the new resurrected bodies.
There's no point.
But these locusts, they're insects, they're creatures.
They're being given direction by God or by this angel that's opened its bottomless pit
to hurt those that obviously are not saved, that are walking the earth,
that have not received that seal in their foreheads.
All right, so I hope that answers that question that I received a couple of weeks ago.
All right, verse number five.
And to them it was given that they should not kill them.
So these locusts, they have the power to sting, hurt, to cause paralysis,
but they don't have the power to kill human beings.
Okay?
It says that they should be tormented five months.
So how long does trumpet number five last?
Five months at least.
At least five months.
Okay?
At least five months.
So can you imagine, you've got this locust coming out of the bottomless pits.
You know, they're inflicting pain and torment on people on the earth.
And look, I'm sure we've all inflicted pain on ourselves.
And you know, sometimes, like to me, when you get burnt,
that's like one of the worst pains that I've, you know,
because it can last like all day long or even a second day long.
But eventually the pain passes.
You know, it may cause damage on your body, but eventually the pain passes.
But can you imagine just having the torment of the pain
and the paralysis for five months long?
I mean, at some point, you're going to still see that at some point,
you're like, look, it's better that I just die.
It's better that I just die and don't feel this pain in my body.
You can understand that thought coming in the minds of people.
It says, let's continue, I didn't finish verse number five, it says,
and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion when he striked for man.
And in those days shall men seek death and shall not find it
and shall desire to die and death shall flee from them.
So the pain is so great, the paralysis is so bad,
they just rather die than continue having this pain,
this affliction for five months long.
Now again, when people read, when you read that, you know,
men shall seek death and shall not find it.
You know, if a man throws himself off a building, for example,
does that mean he's just going to bounce off the floor?
Like, he's trying to commit suicide from the pain,
he's going to jump off a 10-story building or something
and then he just bounces off the floor, I didn't die.
I don't believe that's going to happen.
Like, obviously, I believe if someone literally did that, they'd die, okay?
But I believe the paralysis is the answer to this.
They can't, they can't, you know.
I mean, probably all they can do is move to have a bit of water
and a bit of food, but they can't do anything.
They're so paralysed.
That's what the power of the scorpion is supposed to represent, all right?
And so I don't, like, I think they're trying to seek death.
They're probably trying to load their gun to shoot themselves
in the head or something.
They just can't do it physically, they just can't do anything.
They're probably very limited even in their physical movements
and just being stung over and over again by these locusts coming from hell.
It's a horrible, like a horrible experience to go through.
Then in verse number seven, we have a description of these locusts.
In verse number seven, it says,
And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle,
and on their heads were as it were crowns of gold, like gold,
and their faces were as the faces of men.
I mean, these are creepy locusts, okay?
They almost look like horses, okay?
And then they've got these crowns of gold faces that almost look
as it were the faces of men.
They don't look like insects on the face.
They are insects, okay?
Like the primary description of these creatures are the locusts, okay?
But these are locusts from hell, okay?
And they appear to have these as it were the faces of men.
And verse number eight, it says,
And they had hair as the hair of women, meaning that they've got long hair, okay?
Meaning that they've got long hair, okay?
And their teeth were as the teeth of lions, okay?
So just think of sharp teeth, lion's teeth in the face of a man with long hair.
Verse number nine,
And they had breastplates as it were breastplates of iron.
So you know how scorpions and like crabs, they've got an exoskeleton.
Like they haven't got like a skeleton like us on the inward.
You know their skeleton as it were is on the outside to give them safety, okay?
Now obviously if I see a scorpion, you know if I were to step on a scorpion on the earth,
we'd be able to crush that under the weight of our feet.
But what if that locust or what if that scorpion, if its exoskeleton was as it were iron,
the strength of iron?
Like I don't think you're destroying this thing.
You know I don't think you can go to Bunnings and get a bomb spray and just spray the house and they can disappear.
You know I don't think you're able to get a hammer and just smash these things and kill them.
Look, they're like iron. They're built like iron, okay?
That's how powerful these things are.
And so there's no getting over, you know, this attack of these locusts.
It says,
And the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses run into battle.
You know just yesterday I was walking past my house and I heard this buzzing.
It was really loud.
I was like, where's that coming from?
Then I saw just a single bee, just a normal bee, just a single bee just flying around.
I was like, whoa, that's super loud.
Try these locusts, like horses prepared to the battle, okay?
And it says like, it's like the sound of chariots.
I mean it was just going to be this rumbling.
The sound of those locusts, I mean just be overwhelming.
The sound of it alone.
Verse number 10.
And they had tails like unto scorpions.
So you know your average locust on the earth doesn't have a tail like a scorpion.
Well this one does, okay?
And there were stings in their tails and their power was to hurt men five months, okay?
The power was to hurt men, again, just reinforcing that this single trumpet blow is a period of five months long.
Now, I asked brother Matt, I looked online to find the best image.
So brother Matt, if you can put up the image that I sent you.
Now there's a lot of images online.
There's a lot of images online.
But I felt this one gave justice more to what I was reading, okay?
Because some images online, the face is very human-like.
And it doesn't look like a locust.
Obviously, again, the locust is the primary description of this creature.
So it's got to look like a locust, okay?
And its antennas, if you were, as they were, that crown of gold that was on its head.
You can see that it's got some, it looks like braids in this picture.
But it's got some hair that is longer, the hair of a woman.
Its teeth are sharp like a lion.
It's got the tail, the sting of a scorpion there as well.
And it's got its exoskeleton of iron, as it were, like flying.
And then if you look in the background as well, you've got the shadows of many of these locusts coming out of the bomber's pit.
And they almost look like horses.
I like this description because I felt like within this picture, I could see all the elements, all the descriptive nature that we see in Revelation 9.
But it's still kind of insect-looking.
Whereas other pictures, they look almost like a horse or they almost look like a human being.
Half human being, half scorpion or something like this.
But this one still has that insectoid look to it.
So I just thought this picture, you know, kind of represented what we just read.
But like, okay, if it's just something like this, how freaky would it be just to see one of these things?
You know, I'm on these, because we live in Melania, there's a lot of creatures, a lot of insects.
And I'm on this Facebook group, Melania Facebook group.
And every now and again, someone posts a picture of an insect.
Whether it's a caterpillar or some bug.
It's like a creepy looking one.
And people are like, does anyone know what this is?
And they're almost like creeped out by the look of this bug.
Well, I mean, those bugs look nice.
In comparison to some, could you imagine something like that?
Just, you know, like, you know, during the night when you got your lights on and you see bugs, Christmas bugs start hitting your window.
Can you imagine something like this suddenly hitting your window, trying to break through to sting you?
Like to attack you specifically?
I mean, that would be a frightful sight.
You know, there's a reason why the angels say, whoa, whoa, whoa.
This is horrible.
These locusts coming from hell.
You know, like, they're meant to operate in hell.
And God says, all right, it's time to bring some hell on earth.
All right, I mean, this is just mind blowing.
I think this is just, and we still have two more trumpets to go.
You know, this is, and this goes on like we saw for five months, five months.
Okay, brother, you can take off the picture now if you want.
All right, back to Revelation chapter nine, verse number seven, sorry, verse number 11, verse number 11.
Let me just stop there for a moment.
Another teaching that's out there, some people say these are demons.
Again, the idea of devils or demons is that idea that hell kind of belongs to them.
That they've got authority in that area.
Okay, now these are insects.
Okay, I don't know how big they are.
I assume they're probably bigger than the average locusts.
Okay, but these are insects that operate in hell.
You know, it's not uncommon even today for people to continue finding creatures that they've never discovered before that live in the harshest of environments.
Like in the deepest of waters, in the hottest parts of the earth where there might be volcanic activity.
Scientists are constantly just finding new creatures that somehow survive in these harsh climates.
Okay, so these locusts, I mean, look, if they can survive in the harshness of hell, you're not going to have a chance wiping them out on this earth.
There's no way, you know, these things are going to just torment people for those five months that we saw.
Now look at verse number 11.
It says, and they had a king over them.
So there is someone that has authority over these locusts.
And then it says this, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue has his name Apollyon.
Okay, so who is the angel of the bottomless pit?
We already introduced him in verse number one, right, when the star from heaven, okay, and to him was given the key to the bottomless pit.
Okay, so the angel of the bottomless pit is the same angel which has the key to the bottomless pit.
He's the one that's been given authority.
He's the king. He's the one that's directed his locusts.
Okay, here's the one, hey, go there, go there, go to Europe, go to Asia, go to Australia, wherever direction this king is given them authority.
And we see that this king, this angel has the name Abaddon and Apollyon.
Okay, Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek.
Now when we look at these words, when we go back to the, I don't normally go back to the Hebrew, okay, but because this is a kind of reference here, we will go back to it just quickly here.
So if we go back and look at when the Hebrew word used the word Abaddon, okay, it's going to further cement that the bottomless pit is hell, okay.
So for example, and in fact, actually before I keep going, the first thing I want to prove is that this angel, this king is not the devil.
It's not Satan.
Because I think that's the primary teaching in many churches that Abaddon, they'll say one of the devil's name is Abaddon or Apollyon.
Okay, I don't know where that really comes from.
Like I don't, I don't really know where that teaching comes from, but I know that's kind of what I've heard over the years that this is the devil.
But it doesn't make any sense to me because they're hurting the people that worship and love the Antichrist, whom the devil has given power.
So you got the devil attacking the devil's people, doesn't make a lot of sense to me, just that in of itself, okay.
But if you can come with me to Revelation chapter 20, come with me to Revelation chapter 20,
because this is not the only time that we see the angel of the bottomless pit in the book of Revelation.
In Revelation chapter 20 and verse number 1, Revelation chapter 20 verse number 1, it says,
And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit, and a great chain in his hand.
So again, who was given the key to the bottomless pit? Well, the angel, right, the angel of the bottomless pit.
You can see that he's got the key again, all right.
Now, what is this angel doing? He's going to use the key to open up the bottomless pit once again, which is in verse number 2,
And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is a devil, and satan, and bound him a thousand years.
So the angel of the bottomless pit is taking satan and throwing him in the bottomless pit.
So is the angel of the bottomless pit the devil? No, because the devil is not casting himself into the bottomless pit.
This is an angel of the Lord doing that. In verse number 3, it says,
And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more,
till the thousand years should be fulfilled, and after that he must be loosed a little season.
What I love about this verse, that passage that we just read, is that there is no competition to God.
Like, satan is no competition to God. People think, oh, it's the devil versus God.
God doesn't take, God doesn't, the devil is nothing to God.
You know, whenever you see the devil being attacked, you know, we have an angel.
And we know how many millions of angels God has.
And all God has to do is take, allow one angel, hey, this angel, you go and you cast the devil into the bottomless pit.
And he's got the power to do so.
So if an angel can defeat the devil, is a devil any competition to God?
Not even close. Not even close.
But again, I want to show you that the angel which has the key to the bottomless pit is not the devil,
because he's casting the devil into the bottomless pit.
Alright, so back to, back to, actually no, let's just turn away from there.
Come with me to Job 26.
Come with me to the Old Testament, the book of Job.
Remember, the name that this angel has is Abaddon in the Hebrew tongue.
Okay, Abaddon in the Hebrew tongue.
I just did my own little research with an online software, not online, but a computer software that I have for the Bible.
And I can look up English words, I can look up Hebrew words, I can look up Greek words.
Not that I normally do, but just for the sake of this passage here.
And this is where Abaddon gets brought up a few times.
I'll just give you some examples, okay, the name Abaddon.
In Job 26 verse 6, Job 26 verse 6, it says,
Hell is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering.
The word destruction there is Abaddon, okay, in the Hebrew.
Okay, so what I want you to notice, what I want you to read that verse is that hell is naked before him and destruction.
Again, showing that Abaddon has some power over hell.
Kind of just reinforcing the fact that Abaddon's pit is hell.
Come with me to Job 31, Job 31 verse 12, Job 31 verse 12.
And if you just did a definition, look up the definition of the word Abaddon, people say it means destroyer.
That's why destruction there is used as the Hebrew term, okay.
In Job 31 verse 12, it says,
For it is a fire that consumeth to destruction, and would root out all mine increase.
Now, destruction, once again, Abaddon.
But notice it says, For it is a fire that consumeth to destruction.
Again, a reference to fire there.
Okay, fire, hell, destruction, okay.
Now, come with me to the book of Proverbs, Proverbs 15.
Proverbs 15, Proverbs 15.
I'm not saying that, as we're reading, I'm not saying that is Abaddon the angel.
I'm just showing you Abaddon in the Hebrew tongue and how it ties into hell, okay.
So it would make sense that an angel called Abaddon would have power to open up hell and to throw people in or let the locust out of hell, okay.
Proverbs 15 verse 11, Proverbs 15 verse 11,
Hell and destruction are before the Lord.
So destruction again, Abaddon.
Hell and destruction.
Proverbs 27 please, Proverbs 27 verse 20, Proverbs 27 verse 20, Proverbs 27 verse 20.
Again, the same thing.
Hell and Abaddon.
Hell and destruction are never full.
Again, just showing you the many ways the Bible is associated in Abaddon with hell or Abaddon with fire, okay.
So it would make sense that the angel of the bottomless pit has the name Abaddon.
He's got that power in that realm.
Now, let's look at the word Apollyon in Greek, okay.
Come with me to Matthew chapter 7, Matthew chapter 7 verse number 13.
Matthew chapter 7 verse number 13.
Now the Greek word is not exactly Apollyon, but it's a variation of that word, okay.
So it's essentially the same word, okay.
But it's just a variation of the spelling, but it's the same thing.
In Matthew chapter 7 verse number 13, the Bible says,
Enter ye at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, or Apollyon, okay.
And many there be which go in thereat.
So the broad way that leads to destruction is obviously a reference to hell, okay.
And you can see that it leads to destruction, leads to Apollyon, alright.
Let's keep going there, Romans chapter 9 verse 22 if you can.
Romans chapter 9 verse number 22.
Actually, can you go to, um, can we meet to 2 Peter chapter 2 instead?
Sorry, I'll read the other references to you for the sake of time.
Go to 2 Peter chapter 2, 2 Peter chapter 2.
Go to 2 Peter chapter 2, and I'll read to you from Romans 9, 22.
Romans 9, 22 says, What if God, willing to show his wrath, and to make his power known, and do it with much longsuffering,
the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction?
Again, or Apollyon, referencing the wrath of God, okay.
Again, what is hell? Satan's kingdom? No, it's God's wrath.
It's the fires of God's wrath, okay.
Philippians 3, 18, I'll just read it to you quickly.
For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ.
Speaking of false prophets, then it says, whose end is destruction.
Again, go back to the Greek, it's Apollyon, whose end is Apollyon.
Whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.
So Apollyon, their end is destruction for the false prophets.
You're there in 2 Peter chapter 2, 2 Peter chapter 2 verse number 1, another reference to false prophets.
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies.
By the way, damnable there, Apollyon.
But not only that, even denying the law that brought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
Apollyon, again, okay.
So again, you can see the term destruction is the term that's mostly used.
Of course, damnable heresies are destructive heresies, okay.
But it's a term that is mostly used to translate into the English word destruction.
And again, you go back and you look this up, Apollyon and Abaddon in both these languages, they'll say is the destroyer.
That's the name of this angel, the destroyer.
Alright, now, we've seen the Greek and we've seen the Hebrew.
Now we believe that we have the King James Bible, a perfect translation in English, don't we?
Okay, and so if this angel is the destroyer, I want to show you some other references, okay.
This time using the English Bible as our source.
So look at 1 Corinthians chapter 10, 1 Corinthians chapter 10, 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse number 5.
1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse number 5.
1 Corinthians chapter 10, verse number 5.
Now, context, the first part of 1 Corinthians 5 is we're being taught how the Old Testament Israelites made some major mistakes and that they were judged by God.
And then the outcome of that is that we as believers should learn from those mistakes and not make the same mistakes ourselves.
Now, one of the mistakes that is mentioned here in 1 Corinthians 10, 5, it says,
But with many of them God was not well pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
Well, as you can see, this is about God not being pleased with the people of Israel.
Drop down to verse number 10, what's one example here?
It says, Neither murmured ye, as some of them also murmured, look at this, and were destroyed of the destroyer.
The destroyer destroyed some of the Israelites because they murmured.
You say, Pastor Kevin, what's one of your most hated sins in life?
Murmuring, complaining, I hate it.
I can understand why God was so sick of the murmuring that would send his angel, the destroyer, to wipe them out.
You say, when did this take place?
Obviously, that reference in 1 Corinthians is not very clear.
But most people, myself included, believe it's from Numbers 16.
I want to show you Numbers 16 very quickly.
I know there's a lot of verses, but it's a deep book.
Numbers 16, verse number 11.
And of course, if you know your Bibles pretty well, you might be familiar with the rebellion of Korah.
Korah's rebellion against Moses and Aaron.
And in Numbers 16, verse number 11, it says here,
But which cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against the Lord?
So again, this group of Israelites are against the Lord in what sense?
And what is Aaron? Because he was the high priest.
And what is Aaron that ye murmur against him?
You're murmuring against Aaron.
God chose Aaron to be the high priest.
And these people are like, we want to do it too.
No, no, God's chosen Aaron, so that they're murmuring against him, right?
And look at Numbers, drop down to verse number 31.
So the consequence of those that stood against the Lord and stood against Moses and stood against Aaron,
it says in Numbers 16, 31,
And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speak in all these words,
that the ground clave asunder that was under them,
so the ground opens up, and the earth opened her mouth,
and swallowed them up, and the houses, and all the men that appertaineth unto Korah, and all their goods.
Look at verse number 33,
They and all that appertaineth to them went down alive into the pit,
and the earth closed upon them, and they perished from among the congregation.
And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them,
for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also.
So the destroyer came against those that murmured.
And what do we see?
They're murmuring against Aaron, and the destroyer,
and we don't see the destroyer, but the earth opens up, they fall into the pit.
Once again, doesn't that show you?
I think it shows you again, Apollyon, Abaddon is already, you know, in action I guess in the Old Testament days.
Okay, destroying the people, opening once again the pit, and they're falling straight into it alive.
Alright, just another reference, I'll just read it to you quickly.
You guys know the story of the ten plagues that fell upon Egypt when the Israelites came out of that land, okay?
And the tenth plague was the death of the firstborn, okay?
And God says in Exodus 12-23,
For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians,
and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel and on the two side posts,
the Lord will pass over the door and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.
So who killed the firstborn in Egypt?
The destroyer, okay?
Abaddon, Apollyon, okay?
So I'm just going to show you that there is a very strong consistency with how this angel is used.
I wouldn't want to get on the bad side of Apollyon, alright?
Or for God to send Apollyon, Abaddon, to open up the ground or anything like that.
I don't want anything to do with that, okay?
But he's an angel of the Lord, is what I'm trying to show you.
Okay, he's receiving instruction from God.
It is not the devil, it is not one of the devils, no, no, no.
Apollyon is able to cast the devil into the bottomless pit himself, okay?
Back to Revelation chapter 9, Revelation chapter 9, and verse number 12.
I hope this is all very interesting for you.
Revelation chapter 9, verse number 12.
So after these locusts affect men for five months, it says in verse number 12,
One woe is past.
Okay, you got through one, now you got two more, that's right.
One woe is past, and behold, there come two woes more hereafter, and the six angels sounded.
And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar, which is before God.
You may recall that before God's throne, we saw it earlier in Revelation, there's an altar, you know?
And the souls of men who were killed were under the altar.
And the prayers, the fires of the altar, then burned the incense and the prayers of the incense,
like the incense and the prayers of saints, that's all kind of contributed all together amongst the altar.
I don't know what exactly, what voices are coming from the four horns of the golden altar.
This might be other angels, this might be God himself, these might be the prayers of saints, I'm not sure, okay?
But it says here, verse number 14,
So, right now, in the river Euphrates, according to the Bible, there are four angels bound in that river.
Like there, there, under the water, okay?
And you're like, well Pastor Kevin, are you saying that if we go into the Euphrates River,
and we send a scanning team, right?
We scan the bottom of the ocean, we're going to see these four beings just sitting there, right?
Is that, no, no, no, no.
This is why not long ago we went through teaching on angels.
Angels are ministering spirits, okay?
Spirits can be on this earth, but they don't have a physical form, okay?
Except on the rare occasions where God has allowed his spirits to have a physical form,
but the ministering spirits, remember Christ said that spirits don't have flesh and bone like he has, okay?
So no, you're not going to see them, okay?
But are they active? They must be, okay?
Because I believe God's word to be true.
And so we've got these four angels in the river Euphrates, and then it says in verse number 15,
To slay the third part of men.
Now people are going to start dying.
Because the locusts weren't killing people, they were just tormenting them.
But now these four angels are going to go about killing a third of all men on the earth.
Okay?
Now how long is this judgment?
Well, as it says there, they're prepared for an hour and a day and a month and a year.
So I just kind of just take that literally.
Okay, years 12 months, but then a month, so 13 months, 13 months, a day and an hour.
That's how long they'll be operating, you know, pouring out God's wrath.
And of course, I have no problem with that interpretation.
Because, you know, I believe that this period of time, we already looked at this, is 40 and a half months long, okay?
Which is about 3.3 years long.
So having a judgment lasting this long over a year is not a big deal.
It'll fit well within the chronology that we've seen.
Some other people have the opinion, what this means is that, not that these angels are killing people for a year long, but rather one hour, like one literal hour.
So the way they would interpret this is, that the angels are loosed and were prepared.
So, like this, I'll read it to you backwards how they would understand it.
They're prepared for that particular year, for that particular month, for that particular day, for that particular hour to kill a third of the earth.
That's how they would read it, okay?
To me, that's not my natural way of reading it.
I don't see why it needs to be understood that way.
I think it is 13 months long and an extra hour and an extra day long, okay?
And again, it fits perfectly within the timeframe that God has given us that He's pouring out His wrath, okay?
For roughly 3.3 years.
Alright, let's keep going there.
Now, these four angels, they're not doing that killing on their own, okay?
They've got an army themselves, in verse 16.
And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand, and I heard the number of them.
So two hundred thousand thousand is two hundred million.
So these four angels have two hundred million army of horsemen, okay?
I believe these are just other angels riding on horses of heaven, okay?
And they're given direction, I guess, of the captains of these horsemen.
And these horsemen are going throughout the earth, killing a third of all men, okay?
Now, how are these people being killed?
Verse number 17, it says,
And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and then that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, okay?
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.
So these are horses, but the head's like a lion, okay?
And then this lion horse is blowing out fire, and so people are dying from the flame, okay?
They're dying from the flame.
And not only that, it says, sorry, and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone,
and verse number 18 says,
By these three was the third part of men killed.
What three? The fire, the smoke and the brimstone, okay?
Sorry, by these three were the third part of men killed by the fire and by the smoke and by the brimstone,
which issued out of their mouths.
So either you get burnt alive, that's one way to lie, smoke inhalation, right?
You know, you're taking in too much smoke and your body dies, or by the brimstone, okay?
So again, that'd be just very hot rocks, you know, as it were, just melting you, which issued out of their mouths.
That's how a third of the men on the earth are killed.
Now, if this were all to happen today, again, the earth right now is about 8 billion people.
Let's just take around number 8 billion, okay?
We already saw in Revelation chapter 6, verse number 8, that there is a world war in heaven.
And remember, I'll just read it to you, it says in Revelation 6, 8,
And I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him.
And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword and with hunger and with death,
and with the beasts of the earth.
So I believe that speaking about a fourth of the population, because it's death and hell that follow after it,
speaking of people going to these places, that a quarter of the earth died during that world war.
So if it's 8 billion people today, if it happened today, a quarter of 8 billion is what?
2 billion, okay?
So we're left with 6 billion, does it make sense?
Okay, so if we're left with 6 billion, and now a third of all men are dying, what's a third of 6 billion?
Another 2 billion, does it make sense? Another 2 billion.
And we're not even cancelling the people that died from drinking the bitter waters that we saw earlier, and the blood,
you know, the ships that were destroyed when the seas turns to black, we're not cancelling all those people.
Like, we're talking about some significant numbers right here, okay?
So 2 billion people bearish, if we went by today's numbers,
2 billion people then perish with these horses, they're breathing out fire.
So that's 4 billion people on the earth wiped out at this point in time.
So that's half the population.
If you start with 8 billion, and now 4 billion have died, 50% of the earth is left, like human beings.
I mean, this is just, it's a massacre that's taking place during all this time, okay?
So I mean, that in and of itself would be just scary, right?
Just half the people of the earth just now all dead.
Alright, we've gone from 8 billion to 4 billion people on the earth.
Alright, let's keep going to verse number 19.
Not only do these horses have heads like lions breathing out fire, it says in verse number 19,
For their power is in their mouth, yet we saw that, and in their tails.
For their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.
So the tails of these horses are like snakes.
So I guess if you're trying to attack these things, you go, well I can't attack from the front,
because of the fire, and the smoke, and the brimstone, maybe I'll attack them from the back.
Well it's like taking on a serpent.
Okay, you're going to be attacked, you're going to be hurt by that.
Okay, you're going to be attacked by that serpent tail as it were, okay?
Now the question is, where do these things come from?
Like, where do these creatures come from?
The bubble doesn't say where they come from, it doesn't mention the bottomless pit or anything like that, okay?
I could be wrong about this, I'm not going to be dogmatic about this, this is what I think, okay?
I just think these are your normal horses from heaven that we read about in other passages of the Bible.
That's what I think, okay?
For example, I'll just read it to you quickly.
In 2 Kings 2 verse 11, speaking about Elijah,
It says, And it came to pass, as they went on and talked, and behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire.
And part of them both asunder, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
So we have these horses that can deal with fire, no problem, horses of fire.
And also in 2 Kings 6 to 17, And Elijah prayed and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see.
And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.
So I just think it's the same things.
You say, oh, but these other horses don't mention the lion head and the serpent tail.
Yeah, these other references don't mention anything about the lion.
Like all we hear about is the horses.
We don't get any further description about what they look like.
And so I think the book of Revelation has just given us further description of what these horses look like, okay?
So if they're being led by these angels, and these horsemen, I believe, are just angels, okay?
Riding these beasts into the battlefield, wiping out a third of the earth.
So that's what I believe they are.
People have different opinions. I've heard, one of my pastors, one of my first IP pastors mentioned that these are tanks.
And so, you know, a tank blows out, you know, when it shoots, the smoke that comes out of it.
And maybe it's like a tank that's got like a forward attack and also a rear attack.
I don't know. Like, again, when I look at all these, this wrath of God, it all appears to be very supernatural.
Things that you don't commonly, you're not commonly used to, okay?
And then angels commanding tanks, like it just starts to open like this, you know, can of worms.
I don't know. Where does that lead? It becomes too, it becomes too much like imagination.
And if you know me as a pastor, I don't like to use my imagination too much.
What does God say? Okay, that's what God says. We're happy with that. That's what he says. That's enough, okay?
All right, let's keep going. Let's keep going. Back to Revelation 9, verse number 20.
Revelation chapter 9, verse number 20. All right.
And the rest of the men, which were not killed by these plagues.
So if you're not killed by the, you know, the, or the locusts didn't kill anyone anyway,
but, you know, if you're not killed by the previous plagues, you know, the first five trumpets,
if you're not killed by the sixth trumpet here, which is the horses blowing out this fire,
it says, what about these men? Obviously, there's great fear, isn't there?
Obviously, like, and I can't remember who was saying, I mean, if it's you, it's all good.
Like, a lot of my sermons are just what I hear, what I talk about.
And sometimes I'm thinking when I prepare a sermon, am I going to offend brother so-and-so for saying this?
But I just have that many conversations that it gives me good ideas in my head, right?
But the question is like, how can God be pouring out his wrath so significantly?
Like, of course, this is bringing great fear. How can people not be going, Lord, please forgive me?
Lord, please be merciful to me. I didn't realize your anger, your wrath.
Lord, please show me how to be saved.
Like, you would think that's the natural inclination of a man at this point in time,
because you guys are normal human beings. You've got common sense about you.
Like, if something like this is happening, no doubt, you'll be calling out to God,
God, please deliver me from such things.
But what we see about these people in verse number 20,
it says, and 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,
meaning they continue worshiping devils and idols of gold and silver.
They continue worshiping idols and brass and stone and of wood,
which neither can see nor hear nor walk.
These men, they continue worshiping their false gods.
Like, how?
Verse number 21, neither repented they of their murders.
So, they're still murdering.
It's like, oh, man, you know, be careful of the lions breathing out fire.
It's like, well, I'll deal with that later. I need to go and kill this person,
because I'm taking out revenge or whatever.
Like, murder is still taking place, nor their sorceries.
They're still doing their occult practices, nor their fornication.
They're still having sex before marriage.
They're still defiling their bodies, nor their thefts.
They're still breaking into people's houses and stealing.
I mean, a normal person would have the fear of God,
and go, God, how do I get right with you?
Not God, how do I continue making you mad at me?
They've got the complete opposite mentality that a normal human being would have.
Wouldn't you agree with that?
And the question is, why? How?
Well, there's one element that we sometimes forget, okay?
Come with me to 2 Thessalonians in the New Testament.
2 Thessalonians chapter 2, 2 Thessalonians chapter 2.
Now, when it says the rest of the men, obviously, the Bible is speaking about the majority.
Obviously, there are people getting saved even during this time, okay?
Otherwise, you're not going to have anyone pretty much left when the millennium rolls in, right?
You're going to have still people that have not taken the mark of the beast, okay, at the very least.
You're going to have people that are getting right with God and all these kinds of things happening.
But when the Bible speaks, of course, it's speaking about the majority.
The majority of people are still in their weakness.
The majority of people aren't getting right with God, right?
Why is that?
Well, I believe the answer is here in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, verse number 1.
Now, we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by our gathering together unto Him, the rapture, of course,
that ye be not soon shaken in mind, nor be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as from us,
as that the day of Christ is at hand.
And of course, by the time we get into Revelation chapter 9, the day of Christ has already occurred.
The rapture has already occurred, okay?
Now, drop then to verse number 8.
It says,
And then shall the wicker be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth,
and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming,
even Him whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders.
This is a reference to the antichrist or the beast of Revelation.
Look, this antichrist, this personality that starts to take over the world during this time,
he's got power, signs, lying wonders.
He himself has the power to do certain miracles.
And of course, in the book of Revelation, it tells us that he's also got a false prophet doing amazing things,
causing people to believe on the antichrist.
Then in verse number 10, so he's deceiving people.
People on the earth are deceived, okay?
But not only that, let's keep going to verse number 10.
And with all deceivableness and unrighteousness in them that perish,
this is why, because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved.
These people that are dying, they did not love the truth.
These people that are still committing sin, still bringing the wrath of God upon them,
they don't love the truth that they might be saved.
And then look at verse number 11.
And for this cause, or for this reason, God shall send them strong delusion,
that they should believe a lie, that they all might be damned who believed not the truth,
but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
So we see this group of people, even as God's pouring out his wrath,
they still have pleasure in unrighteousness.
You say, why is that? They're not acting normally.
Because they're reprobates. That's why.
Because God himself sent them a strong delusion to believe a lie, so that they might be damned.
Look, who believed not the truth, meaning these people had the opportunity to believe the truth.
All these people, okay, that are facing and being destroyed by the wrath of God,
can't say, I never had a soul winner come to my door.
They can never say, I never heard the gospel.
God says, they had the chance, you rejected the truth, you did not believe in the gospel,
so I'm going to send you a strong delusion after the rapture, when God begins to pour out his wrath.
And that's why the people on the earth, as you read Revelation, to us makes no sense.
Yeah, because it's hard to put your head in the mind of a reprobate, that's why.
That's what these people are. They can't repent.
They can't believe the truth. All they can do is believe a lie.
Alright brethren, title for the sermon this morning was, The Fifth and the Six Trumpets.
We had two woes, whoa, whoa, horrible, horrible.
Pastor, what's the answer to reprobates? Get them saved before they're damned.
Get them saved before God sends them a strong delusion.
You can cross a line with God, and God says, I'm through with you, I'm done with you.
Now your end is destruction. Your end is to be damned.
And brethren, we have the privilege to see people saved.
You know, so people to be caught up in heaven with us, rejoicing in the Lord Jesus Christ,
than to face the wrath of God. Alright brethren, let's pray.