:
1 And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. 3 And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4 And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. 5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. 6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. 7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. 8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. 9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. 10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. 11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon. 12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter. 13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. 15 And 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. 16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. 17 And 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. 18 By 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. 19 For 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. 20 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, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: 21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
[AD 258] Cyprian on Revelation 9:1
Of the idols which the Gentiles think to be gods. In the Wisdom of Solomon: "All the idols of the nations they counted gods, which neither have the use of their eyes for seeing, nor their nostrils to receive breath, nor their ears for hearing, nor the fingers on their hands for handling; but their feet also are slow to walk. For man made them; and he who has borrowed his breath, he fashioned them. But no man will be able to fashion a god like to himself. For since he is mortal, he fashioneth a dead thing with wicked hands. But he himself is better than they whom he worships, since he indeed lived, but they never." On this same matter: "Neither have they who have regarded the works known who was the artificer, but have thought that either fire, or wind, or the rapid air, or the circle of the stars, or the abundant water, or the sun and moon, were the gods that rule over the world; and if, on account of the beauty of these, they have thought thus, let them know how much more beautiful than these is the Lord; or if they have admired their powers and operations, let them perceive from these very things that He who has established these mighty things is stronger than they." Also in the cxxxivth Psalm: "The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have a mouth, and speak not; they have eyes, and see not; they have ears, and hear not; and neither is there any breath in their mouth. Let them who make them become like unto them, and all those who trust in them." Also in the ninety-fifth Psalm: "All the gods of the nations are demons, but the Lord made the heavens." Also in Exodus: "Ye shall not make unto yourselves gods of silver nor of gold." And again: "Thou shalt not make to thyself an idol, nor the likeness of any thing." Also in Jeremiah: "Thus saith the Lord, Walk not according to the ways of the heathen; for they fear those things in their own persons, because the lawful things of the heathen are vain. Wood cut out from the forest is made. the work of the carpenter, and melted silver and gold are beautifully arranged: they strengthen them with hammers and nails, and they shall not be moved, for they are fixed. The silver is brought from Tharsis, the gold comes from Moab. All things are the works of the artificers; they will clothe it with blue and purple; lifting them, they will carry them, because they will not go forward. Be not afraid of them, because they do no evil, neither is there good in them. Say thus, The gods that have not made the heaven and the earth perish from the earth, and from under this heaven. The heaven hath trembled at this, and hath shuddered much more vehemently, saith the Lord. These evil things hath my people done. They have forsaken the fountain of living water, and have dug out for themselves worn-out wells, which could not hold water. Thy love hath smitten thee, and thy wickedness shall accuse thee. And know and see that it shall be a bitter thing for thee that thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord thy God, and thou hast not hoped in me, saith thy Lord. Because of old time thou hast resented my yoke, and hast broken thy bonds, and hast said, I will not serve, but I will go upon every lofty mountain, and upon every high hill, and upon every shady tree: there I will be confounded with fornication. To the wood and to the stone they have said, Thou art my father; and to the stone, Thou hast begotten me: and they turned to me their back, and not their face." In Isaiah: "The dragon hath fallen or is dissolved; their carved works have become as beasts and cattle. Labouring and hungry, and without strength, ye shall bear them bound upon your neck as a heavy burden." And again: "Gathered together, they shall not be able to be saved from war; but they themselves have been led captive with thee." And again: "To whom have ye likened me? See and understand that ye err in your heart, who lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver in the balance, bringing it up to the weight. The workmen have made with their hand the things made; and, bowing themselves, they have adored it, and have raised it on their shoulders: and thus they walked. But if they should place them down, they will abide in their place, and will not be moved; and they will not hear those who cry unto them: they will not save them from evils." Also in Jeremiah: "The Lord, who made heaven and earth, in strength hath ordered the world, in His wisdom hath stretched forth the heaven, and the multitude of the waters in the heaven. He hath brought out the clouds from the end of the earth, the lightnings in the clouds; and He hath brought forth the winds from His treasures. Every man is made foolish by his knowledge, every artificer is confounded by his graven images; because he hath molten a falsehood: there is no breath in them. The works shut up in them are made vain; in the time of their consideration they shall perish." And in the Apocalypse: "And the sixth angel sounded with his trumpet. And I heard one of the four corners of the golden ark, which is in the presence of God, saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound upon the great river Euphrates. And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, to slay the third part of men; and the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred thousand of thousand: I heard the number of them. And then I saw the horses in the vision, and those that sate upon them, having breastplates of fire, and of hyacinth, and of sulphur: and the heads of the horses (as the heads of lions); and out of their mouth went fire, and smoke, and sulphur. By these three plagues the third part of men was slain, by the fire, and the smoke, and the sulphur which went forth from their mouth, and is in their tails: for their tails were like unto eels; for they had heads, and with them they do mischief. And the rest of the men who were not slain by these plagues, nor repented of the works of the deeds of their hands, that they should not worship demons and idols, that is, images of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood, which can neither see nor walk, repented not also of their, murders." Also in the same place: "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and hath received his mark in his forehead or upon his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of His wrath, and shall be punished with fire and sulphur, under the eyes of the holy angels, and under the eyes of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torments shall ascend up for ever and ever."

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:1
In this star he speaks of the body of those many persons who have fallen from heaven through agreement [with the devil].… We ought to understand the key to the pit to be false teachings that confine those within it in such a way that they are not able to look upon the light of truth. And so the devil fell from heaven and received the key to the pit, and [he] opened his mouth in blasphemy and taught his followers not to do the will of God but to do their own will.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:1
The abyss and the pit are people who are hiding places for error, that is, they hide iniquity in their hearts even though they are in the church.… I think that they receive this key to the pit, and through it they open the poisons of their hearts and, once made manifest, burst forth into the open. For, as the apostle says, “There must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.” Whenever error arises, the truth is preached all the more, and as the integrity of the faith is being defended, that deceptive falsehood that had been hidden for such a long time is at the right time uncovered. For schismatics and heretics frequently arise from those who have fallen, and of these the church truly speaks in the Song of Songs, “The sons of my mother fought against me.”

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:1
The “star” is a divine angel. With God’s permission he leads up [from the pit] the evil demons who have been condemned to the pit, namely, those whom Christ bound at his incarnation. [He leads them up] so that they might do their work before the consummation but then attain to neverending torment.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:1
And I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, etc. The flame of heretics, which he had mentioned briefly, he explains with what kindling it has grown: indeed, the ancient enemy, whom the Lord saw falling like lightning from heaven (Luke X), opened the hearts of his own with a blasphemous doctrine, and taught them, as if they were smoke, to seek high places, to speak iniquity in lofty terms.

[AD 990] Oecumenius on Revelation 9:1-4
Up to now the vision was describing for us the way and the kind of plagues with which the [elements] of earth and heaven, and with them human beings, were being consummated or changed. But now as though the consummation has already come about and the resurrection has been effected, he describes the punishments accorded to sinners.

He says, I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, meaning that the star is a messenger of God because of its brilliance, which had come down on the earth, where the judgment of sinners will occur, at a certain place which one of the holy prophets named “the valley of Jehoshaphat.”

He says, The key of the shaft of the bottomless pit was given to him. He calls Gehenna a shaft of a bottomless pit. That is why there also came up from the shaft smoke as of abundant fire, which was clearly lurking in the shaft. But the smoke symbolizes not only fire, but also darkness; for the word of the prophet, “The voice of the Lord cutting through a flame of fire,” is interpreted by the saints as though it will cut through the illumination of the fire of Gehenna so that only scorching heat and darkness remain in it.

He says, The sun and the air were darkened with the smoke of the shaft, not because these elements were darkened, but because those who had been thrown into the shaft were filled with darkness because of their punishment, and so were blind to the air and the sun. For this is what one of the holy prophets also said: “The sun” will be darkened “at noon,” describing the disasters of the Jews, not that the sun was darkened, but that they suffered this in their affliction and could not see the sun; for the extent of their disasters was like being overcome with dizziness.

He says, And from the smoke locusts came out on the earth. I think that he calls the worms locusts, about which Isaiah says, “Their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched,” perhaps calling the biting sting of the soul and its persistent and creeping pain a worm.

He says, And they were given power like the power which scorpions have on earth. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green growth or any tree, but only those human beings who do not have the seal of God upon their foreheads once the earth had been changed and renewed. For it is said somewhere about it, “You will send forth your spirit and they will be created, and you will renew the face of the earth.”

It was no longer a good thing for any adornment of the earth to be struck, neither a tree nor anything growing, except only human beings, and of these only those who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. For those human beings who are completely holy and pure have received the place mentioned earlier on, being constantly with Christ and in sight of the divine throne. But those who are less holy but nevertheless who have been baptized, and who bear the sign of Christ on their foreheads and who have not been completely rejected, and have not gravely defiled themselves and their baptism by their unnatural deeds, but as it were are midway between good and evil, remain upon earth but escape punishment.

For if this were not so, why would the Lord have said to those who had made good use of the pounds entrusted to them, “Have authority over ten cities,” and to another, “over five cities,” as if they were going to rule over the inferior, while their subjects went altogether unpunished? For who would choose to rule those who were being punished and constantly gnashing their teeth, and bewailing their unspeakable sufferings? I am not of course referring to the saints, nor to people like them, but simply to people deserving our sympathy. Who would choose to rule over them, unless he himself, too, were going to suffer something similar to the incurable condition of those who were being punished?

The third part of human beings is handed over to punishment, since they are sinners and impious and have not received the faith of Christ. That is why it is said that those were struck who had not been sealed with the seal of God.

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:2
“He opened the shaft of the pit” means that he revealed his own heart and taught people to sin without any fear or shame. “And smoke arose from the pit,” that is, from the heart of a blasphemous people which also persecutes the church. “And the sun and air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.” The sins that people constantly commit through the world obscure among them the sun of faith and of righteousness and in some produce a blindness so that they do not see the light of truth. “As smoke from a great furnace.” This smoke that precedes the fire of the furnace generally refers to the last persecution, for the earlier persecution burns against the church, and then the crowd of hypocrites and unbelievers will be manifested. And outside [the church] the insanity of many caused by this smoke is already advanced.

[AD 542] Caesarius of Arles on Revelation 9:2
[The devil] revealed his own heart, which sins without any fear or shame. “And smoke rose from the pit,” that is, from a people that covers and obscures the church, so that it is said that “the sun and air were darkened with the smoke.” It says that the sun was darkened, not that it fell to the earth. For the sins of evil and prideful persons, which are constantly being committed throughout the world, obscure the sun, that is, obscure the church and sometimes cause darkness for the saints and the righteous. For the number of the evil is so great that it is often with great difficulty that the good among them become evident.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:2
And the smoke of the pit arose, like the smoke of a great furnace, etc. Proclaiming the great furnace, that is, the final persecution, the heretical madness rages, not only attempting to obscure the light of the weaker ones, who, like the air, touch the boundaries of the earth and heaven in some way, but also striving to obscure the light of the exalted ones, though not able to extinguish it. For even the elect will be led into error, if possible (Matthew XXIV).

[AD 1171] Jacob Bar-Salibi on Revelation 9:2
'On this Caius objects, that according to this, the unrighteous are consumed by the locusts; whereas Scripture has said that sinners prosper and the righteous are persecuted, in the world' [Ps. lxxiii. 12 ] ; and Paul, that the faithful shall be persecuted and the evil shall flourish, deceiving and being deceived [2 Tim. iii. 12, 13].

But Hippolytus answers him, and says that the faithful, those who are persecuted by the unrighteous, at this period are to have rest, because they have been sealed; but the unrighteous who persecuted the saints, on them comes the plague of locusts; even as the Egyptians were devoured, and the Hebrews were free from the plagues, while they dwelt in one place. Thus the saints in this time are to be in well-being, even as our Lord said, When these things begin to be, be of good cheer, and lift up your heads, inasmuch as your redemption is nigh [St. Luke, xxi. 28]; that is, when plagues come on the evil, the righteous have rest. And this, that evil men deceive and are deceived [2 Tim. iii. 13], at the present day is coming to pass : that crafty men, who alter the words of the Lord and of the Scriptures after their evil thoughts, that even though at the present day they are proceeding further, yet in the end they are to be rebuked : even as Jannes and Jambres, who withstood Moses [ib. 8, 9], and afterwards were overcome and put to shame.'
[AD 160] Shepherd of Hermas on Revelation 9:3
But the sun now shone out a little, and, lo! I see a mighty beast like a whale, and out of its mouth fiery locusts

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:3
In the locusts he signifies spiritual and adversarial powers that we see flying around in the air in the manner of locusts for the purpose of harming humankind.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:3
The “locusts” signify those who come forth from the smoke. For, like smoke, the heretics desire to rise high, since by their teachings they strive for positions of eminence, yet, again like smoke, they are dissipated. We read of this smoke, for in the person of those who are evil it was said, “Smoke is the breath in our nostrils, and reason is the sparks for moving our heart.” When the impious are said to strive by sin against wisdom, that is, against the Lord Jesus Christ, they are also described as fighting against his church, harming it by their malicious mouth, while they are hindered from harming the green grass and trees.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:3
And out of the smoke came forth locusts upon the earth. Just as the saints are the body of Christ, and members from a member, so also the members of the flesh of the dragon are joined together, one being born from another, and the smoke of heretical blindness generates the pride of the wicked, harming them with its mouth. But those who are shaken off by pride do not forsake earthly things. For even the smoke from which they are born, though it seeks high places, always fails in itself.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:3
And power was given to them, etc. Heretics are compared to opposing powers, seemingly innocent in appearance, but holding poison within their hind parts.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:4
By “grass” he refers to those small ones who are content with the milk of the Christian faith. By “green vegetation” he refers to those who have begun to live according to the virtues and who are moving not toward dryness but toward a fruitful fertility. By “trees” he refers to those persons in the church who already give spiritual thanks by the production of fruit. Of the first kind, the small ones, we read, “Who spread out the earth upon the waters,” that is, baptism. Of the second type, we read, “It shall rejoice in its drops when it comes forth.” And concerning the third kind we read, “I am like a fruitful olive tree in the house of the Lord.” The number of the elect is perfected from all of these kinds of persons, which the bite of the locusts cannot harm, except for those who do not have the sign of God upon their foreheads. For the apostle says, “For not all have faith.” By such persons, it says, the sun will be darkened, however not extinguished, for although with the increase of iniquity the love of many will grow cold, “God’s firm foundation stands,” as it is written, “having this seal, ‘The Lord knows who are his,’ and ‘Let every one who calls upon the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.’ ”

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:4
And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing. He shows that the locusts are men, who are sent not to harm the grass, but men. For grass here is simply understood as men.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:4
Except those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They are said to have the seal of God on their foreheads, by whom it is properly held. Whose number above the angel who brought the seal of the living God from the rising of the sun has counted as inviolable and fixed. For he wished to use the manner of speaking here, by which it is said: No one can say that Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians XII), that is, perfectly and truly.

[AD 542] Caesarius of Arles on Revelation 9:5
There are two parts in the church, one part of those who are good and one part of those who are evil. The one part is persecuted in order that it might be corrected; the other part is given up to its own desires. A part of those who are good is handed over to humiliation that they might know the righteousness of God and might remember penance, as it is written, “It is good that you have humbled me, that I might know your righteous deeds.” [The torture like a sting of a scorpion] occurs when the devil draws near through the poison of transgressions and sins.

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:5
That these spiritual locusts sting people after the manner of scorpions shows the baneful death of the soul that lies hidden at the end of evil deeds. Those are subjected to [such a death] who have not signed their forehead with the divine seal and with the enlightenment of the lifegiving cross through the Holy Spirit, so that, as the Lord says, “they may let their light shine before men for the glory of the divine name.” We think that the five months of their torment signifies either the shortness of time—“For had those days not been shortened, no flesh would have been saved,” as the Lord says—or a certain five-day period representing the five senses through which sin enters into people, or a determined period that is known to God alone.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:5
And it was said to them that they should not kill them, etc. Although heretics, empowered by secular authority, are allowed to attack the good temporally, they cannot kill the soul, as the Lord says. For the time of the world is signified by five months, because of the five-part sense which we use in this life. That another translation contains six months agrees with the same sense because of the six ages of the world.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:5
And their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man. Just as the scorpion spreads poison from its hind parts, so the impiety of the wicked harms from behind, when it compels temporal things, which are behind, to be preferred to eternal goods by threats or blandishments. This scorpion, contrary to the parable of the Gospel, the generation of vipers hands over to its offspring.

[AD 990] Oecumenius on Revelation 9:5-6
Is this why some of the fathers accepted the restoration of sinners, saying that they were to be chastised so far, but no further, as they had been cleansed by their punishment? But what is to be done, when most of the fathers say this, while the accepted Scriptures say that the punishment of those who were then being chastised is everlasting? What, therefore, should one say, or how should one reconcile these views? One must combine the opinions of both.

I say this as a suggestion and not as an affirmation; for I associate myself with the teaching of the church in meaning that the future punishments will be everlasting, since this is also what the Lord said in the gospel according to Matthew, “And these will go away into everlasting punishment,” and Isaiah, “Their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched.”

So this is to be taken as a suggestion, taking a middle path between each view, because up to a certain time, which the present Revelation said is five months, using the number in a kind of mystical way, sinners will be most severely punished as if stung by a scorpion; but after this we shall be punished more gently, though we shall certainly not be entirely unpunished, to such an extent that we may seek death and not find it. For why would those who were not being punished at all need to seek death?

He says, Death flies from them, for they pass all their life in punishment.

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:6
They say that death is a rest. And so, they seek death, not that they may die but that they might have rest from evil things while the evil vices die away. They desired to die, that is, that they might die to the world and, as the apostle says, live again to God. “They seek death but will not find it,” it says. They desire to be changed to better things, so that they might have rest after the labor of sins.… Therefore, “death will flee” while life is close by and we are truly dying while we are being freed from the chains of sins.

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:6
Through these words the magnitude of the evils is revealed. For it is common among those in severe troubles to call upon death. But it is from the judgments of God that death does not come to those in the midst of trouble who seek it. For he considers it beneficial to use the bitterness of tribulations to make hateful that sin which was the mother and patron of their torments.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:6
And in those days men will seek death, and will not find it. Preferring to end a miserable life with a quick death. As blessed Cyprian lamented under the Decian storm: "To those willing to die, he says, it was not permitted to be killed."

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:7-8
In the image of the horses he shows the suddenness of persecution that runs around so that it might oppress the innocent and obstruct [their path] to the celestial kingdom.… We recall that it was written that upon the heads of the twenty-four elders, who were a figure of the church, there were crowns of gold. However, these [locusts] do not present a true figure of the church but one only by way of pretense, and so they are not said to have crowns of true gold but crowns similar to gold.… Likewise, they are not perfect human beings but like human beings.… And by the hair he speaks not only of the effeminacy and laxity of women, but he speaks of those from either sex who are given to wantonness and are stained by every baseness.… [By the teeth like lions’ teeth] they daily devour the church.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:7-8
By the locusts prepared as horses for war he means those who originate evil teachings. For just as locusts which destroy by their mouth, so also these persons tear asunder by their preaching. It is as we read, “fierce wolves not sparing the flock.” Moreover, they are like horses running around aimlessly and so destroy in such a war many whom they lead astray.… And if false doctrine is indicated by the mouth, by the hair of women he aptly describes their effeminate morals and their souls that are open to seduction. And so the apostle says, “These are those who make their way into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and swayed by various impulses.” By these images he suggests both leaders and those whom they have led astray, so that he shows them to be not only deceitful in their faith but also hateful in their morals. The historical record shows that some of both sexes exhibit [these characteristics]. For women gave their support to many heretics, such as Priscilla and Maximilla to Montanus and Lucilla to Donatus.… It is natural for the teeth of lions not only to mangle but also to give off a natural stench. And since [the heretics] run around like horses to acquire for themselves fleeting fame as preachers, their opinion is rightly regarded as a stench. For in a good sense the apostle said, “We are the good aroma of Christ.” This bad odor, therefore, is derived from their evil doctrine and is by comparison like the odor of a lion’s mouth.

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:7-8
Some have interpreted these words and those which come afterward to indicate that the locusts are angels who administer the divine punishment and who are metaphorically described through each of the various images. These images would then describe either their fearsomeness and the panic they arouse, or their swiftness, or the destruction that comes upon those worthy of condemnation in Gehenna. However, I think that the image of these locusts depicts rather evil demons who are prepared for war against us and who wear upon their heads crowns as of gold in expectation of victory against us. Whenever we submit to these demons and win an evil victory through pleasure, we believe ourselves also to be crowned with such crowns. That their hair is like that of women reveals their love of luxury and their arousal to fornication. The teeth like those of a lion signifies their murderous and poisonous character.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:7
And the shapes of the locusts were like horses prepared for battle. That is, like the last persecutors. For in the last battle, which he will describe in the following angel, he says that horses fight. Or simply as horses are driven into battle not by their own reason, but by the impulse of their rider, so evil teachers, driven by a demonic spirit, attack the Church.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:7
And on their heads were crowns like gold. The twenty-four elders, who are the Church, have golden crowns. But these, pretending to be like gold, falsely imagine foolish triumphs of victory.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:7
And their faces were like the faces of men, etc. In their human face, a simulation of reason; in the hair of women, flowing and effeminate habits; in the teeth of lions, which both tear apart and often bring a natural stench, the ferocity of the mind and the fame of bad doctrine; and in iron breastplates, hardened hearts against the truth, he notes. Those who have a form of godliness but deny its power (2 Tim. III), come in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves (Matt. VII).

[AD 990] Oecumenius on Revelation 9:7-12
After this the blessed evangelist depicts for us the nature of the worms in a way which is both subtle and fearful. In each of the statements about them, one might wonder at the accuracy of the account; for he did not say that they had lions’ teeth and scorpions’ tails and human faces, but that there was in each a sort of image disclosing a figurative picture, not the truth.

By such means, therefore, either their fearsomeness and amazing power is indicated, or he has truly sketched their shape.

He says, They have as their king the angel of the bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek Apolluon. The name has either been invented to correspond with the aforementioned events of the vision, or perhaps not only are there “ministering spirits, sent to serve those who are to inherit salvation,” according to the divine apostle, but also spirits sent to punish those who deserve to be punished, rather like the angel who in a single night struck the hundred and eighty-five thousand of the Assyrians; and those who destroyed by fire the five cities of Sodom.

He says, The first woe has passed; two woes are still to come. Woe is the jargon denoting great distress and indicates present and future afflictions. So he says the one punishment has already been mentioned; two will be mentioned later.

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:9-10
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.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:9-10
[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 honored man is the head, and the prophet who teaches falsehood is the tail, and those who bless my people will lead them astray, and those who are blessed have fallen.” It is clear from this that these persons wish to rule that which every saint and teacher of the truth desires at all costs to avoid, namely, the glory of the world and the error of a destructive preaching. That they have power in their tails for five months indicates again the present life where falsehood can be strong and can either capture the useless or torment the spiritual for a short period of time.

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:9-10
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.”

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:9
And the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots of many horses running into battle. It is more terrifying than it is to be explained, that so much strength grows in this army. First, the smoke rises. Then it brings forth locusts, which are first compared to scorpions, and soon to horses and lions. Their strength would suffice if they did not also come armored. Now, indeed, they are called to be both flying and like chariots fighting.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:10
And they had tails like scorpions, etc. Just as a scorpion walks gently but strikes with its tail, so the fraudulent destruction of the wicked appears pleasant and harmless on the surface, but while it secretly kills, it covertly brings death.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:10
Their power to harm men was for six months. This again suggests this life, where lies can prevail either to capture the useless or to torment the spiritually strong temporarily.

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:11
[The angel of the bottomless pit] is the devil, who possesses his great power among the kings of the world.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:11
[“As king they have over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is ‘Armageddon,’ whose name in Greek is ‘Apollion,’ and whose name in Latin is ‘Exterminans.’ ”] Although God is supremely good, by hidden yet just judgments he nevertheless allows an angel suitable for such persons to rule over them. For a person is awarded as servant to the one who conquered him. And so the apostle said that they had been handed over “to every wicked deception because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore, God sends upon them a strong delusion that they might believe what is false and that all who did not believe the truth but consented to iniquity might be condemned.” The kind of work he did, therefore, was befitting to the character of his name, that is, the “exterminator.”

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:11
It follows that the devil is to be regarded as their king, for he certainly destroys those who obey him.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:11
And they had over them a king, the angel of the abyss. Although God, who is supremely good, permits an angel fitting for such people to preside over them by hidden but just judgments.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:12
One woe is past, and behold, two woes are still to come. Since he predicted that three woes were to come, he now mentions that one has already come in heretical deceit, but two remain, which will occur in the time of the Antichrist and on the day of judgment for the wicked.

[AD 304] Victorinus of Pettau on Revelation 9:13-14
"And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is in the presence of God, saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels." That is, the four corners of the earth which hold the four winds.

"Which are bound in the great river Euphrates." By the corners of the earth, or the four winds across the river Euphrates, are meant four nations, because to every nation is sent an angel; as said the law, "He determined them by the number of the angels of God," until the number of the saints should be filled up. They do not overpass their bounds, because at the last they shall come with Antichrist.

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:13
When it says that the first woe has passed and the trumpet of the sixth angel has sounded, it announces the final preaching, that of the sixth age.

[AD 542] Caesarius of Arles on Revelation 9:13
In the altar that is in the sight of God we are to understand the church. In the time of the last persecution she will despise the words and commands of that most inhumane of kings and will separate from those who have submitted to him.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:13
And the sixth angel sounded his trumpet, etc. The sixth angel represents the preachers of the final battle, who, at the prompting of the Gospel, expose the frauds of the Antichrist. The horns of the golden altar indeed represent the preeminent Gospels of the Church.

[AD 990] Oecumenius on Revelation 9:13-19
He says that when the angel sounded the trumpet, I heard a voice from the horns of the altar. By the horns of the altar he means those among the angels who are superior and distinguished above the others. He says the altar was golden, because he depicts the altar as wonderful since it was valuable and divine, made out of material which we consider precious. Just as we understood the horns of the altar to be rulers of the angels, so it is natural to understand the altar itself to be all “the ministering spirits,” because they offer to God “a spiritual sacrifice.”

What is the voice that was heard from the horns of the altar? Release, it says, the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.

Holy Scripture told us about the rebel angel—I mean Satan and those who rebelled with him—how on the one hand we were told that they were “kept in eternal chains in the nether gloom,” and on the other hand how they were condemned to the depth of the sea.

For it says in the second epistle of Peter, “For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of nether gloom to be kept until the judgment,” and in the epistle of Jude it says, “The angels that did not keep their own position but left their proper dwelling he has kept in eternal chains in the nether gloom until the judgment of the great day.”

The book of Job says that the rebel has been thrown into the sea, expounding allegorically in various ways his shape and size and the bitterness of his condition; he says, “He is mocked by the angels of God.” And Isaiah cried out about him that “The sword of God will be brought against the serpent, the fleeing snake, against the serpent, the crooked snake, and he will destroy the serpent in the sea on that day.”

And the prophet, too, after detailing all created things, goes on to add this about those in the sea: “This serpent, which you formed to sport in it.” In accordance with these words the blessed prophet Ezekiel, too, when speaking about Egypt, says, “You were like a lion of the nations, and as a serpent in the sea, and you were thrusting with your horns in your rivers.”

Yet no one ever told us that they had been bound in the river Euphrates, or that they would ever be released, nor even that human beings were to be punished by them. For Jude, in saying that they had been bound “with eternal chains,” denied that they would ever be released. And when Isaiah said that the serpent in the sea will be destroyed on the day of judgment, he did not say that he would destroy others, but only the serpent. So, too, the Lord in the gospels, when sending the sinners “to the fire prepared for the Devil and his angels,” denied that he would use them as avengers and tormentors, but rather that they were going to undergo punishment.

So how could anyone understand the present saying to mean, on the one hand, that they had been bound in the river Euphrates and that they will be released and, on the other, that they themselves will punish the sinners? I suspect that the words are figurative, in line with the manner of the whole vision. I think he means by the angels those who had been spiritually bound to the joyful contemplation of God. For the river is used allegorically by Isaiah to refer to the divine: “See, I am turning to them as a river of peace, and as a torrent enveloping the glory of the nations.” And the prophet says, “The waves of the river make glad the city of God.” And the Lord himself, in John, in the twenty-second section, said about the Spirit, “He who believes in me, as Scripture says, ‘From out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.’”

He says, “Release them from the contemplation of God and send them to punish the impious.” He means that these are those who have been appointed for the day of his presence. But who does he say the four angels are? Perhaps they are those designated in the Scripture: Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael.

After this they went out with an ineffably large army of cavalry. By this he means the invincible force of the holy angels, comparing it with a huge force of cavalry.

He says, I saw their riders with their breastplates of flame color, hyacinth-blue, and sulfuryellow: fire is a symbol of wrath and punishment; blue indicates that those who were sent were heavenly, for heaven is blue like a hyacinth; being sulfur-yellow makes them pleasing to God, in that they are singing to God, for it is pleasing to sing. Who rather than the holy angels would be pleasing to God?

Then the vision changes course and ceases to refer to the power of the holy angels, and now provides an image of lions and fire, of smoke and sulfur and snakes, all of which clearly indicate their fearfulness and irresistibility.

[AD 390] Ticonius on Revelation 9:14
In these four angels that are bound at the Euphrates River we understand those adversaries that God will command to be loosed for the testing of his church. To be sure, this passage shows that the winds and the angels are the same thing, for it said that the winds were held back by the angels and now that the angels are to be loosed by an angel. “Loose,” it says, “the four angels at the great river Euphrates.” Those whom above it said were at the “four corners of the earth” it now says are bound “at the river Euphrates.” The river Euphrates indicates a people that persecutes [the church]. In this people, Satan and his will are bound, lest he should accomplish whatsoever he desires before it is time. The Euphrates is in the land of Babylon, of which the prophet Jeremiah testifies as follows, “This says the Lord” concerning this Euphrates, “This is the day of the Lord God of hosts, so that he might avenge himself on his foes, and the sword shall devour and be sated and drink its fill of their blood. For the sacrifice to the Lord of hosts is in the north country by the river Euphrates.” He speaks of sacrifice, but that of strangled animals, not of praise. And Isaiah said, “The sword of the Lord is sated on blood, it is gorged with the fat of goats and rams, for the sacrifice of the Lord is in Bosor and a great slaughter in Idumea.” Bosor and Idumea are cities of Esau, who by persecution forced his brother, Jacob, to flee from his father’s lands.

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:14
I think that these [angels] are the most evil of the demons who were bound at the coming of Christ and who, according to a divine command that comes from the heavenly altar (whose image was the ancient tabernacle), will be loosed by a divine angel so that they might trouble the nations. They will fight not only against the Christians but also against each other, so that while some, like ripe wheat, might be made manifest as approved and faithful and worthy of the best rewards and of the highest mansions and dwellings, others, like chaff, namely, the wicked and the gross sinners and those unrepentant, might be here justly punished but receive at the judgment an even harsher condemnation. It is not strange that they are bound at the Euphrates. For according to the ordinance of God, some [demons] were condemned for a time to the abyss, others to the swine, and others to other places, so that after the conclusion of their warfare against humankind they might receive eternal punishment. And perhaps the mention of “Euphrates” indicates that the antichrist will come from those regions. And we have no reason to doubt concerning the multitude of demons, for all the saints say that the air is replete with them.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:14
Release the four angels, etc. It indicates how much the ancient enemy with his satellites will persecute the Church at the end of the world, who from the time of the Lord's passion has been shut up in the hearts of the impious, so that he cannot harm as much as he would like, restrained by divine power. For the Euphrates, which is a river of Babylon, signifies the power of the worldly kingdom and the waves of the persecutors. This is the great mountain that he had predicted would be cast into the sea, burning with fire.

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:15
“The four angels were released” indicates the beginning of the persecution.… He indicates by an apt expression the four times during which the persecution will be continuing, that is, [he indicates] three years and six months. He said “for the hour, the day, the month, and the year,” since a day is gradually filled with hours, and months with days, and finally years with months. It says that they were “prepared” in order to indicate the character of the devil and his angels. For they entangle themselves in ongoing hostilities against the church and constantly desire to do it harm. However, divine power restrains them, lest they wreak havoc as much as they want. Rightly did he previously say that the locusts were similar to horses arrayed for battle, for now when he says that the angels were loosed, he says that he saw horses.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:15
And the four angels were released. In the manner of prophecy, which designates to us things to come, he himself sees the events in the spirit. He called them four angels because that persecution will rage in the four parts of the world. These are the ones he previously saw standing at the four corners of the earth, and were prevented from harming the earth and sea for the sealing of God's servants.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:15
Who were prepared for the hour, and day, and month, etc. Malignant spirits, who at every moment of hours and times hunger for human death, will then be allowed to rage more freely to opportunely destroy the Church. What do you think they will do when released, who now harm so much while bound?

[AD 1171] Jacob Bar-Salibi on Revelation 9:15
'On this Caius says : It is not written that angels are to make war, nor that a third part of men is to perish; but that nation shall rise against nation [St. Matth. xxiv. 7].

Hippolytus in reply to him: It is not of angels he says that they are to go to war, but that four nations are to arise out of the region which is by Euphrates, and to come against the earth, and to war with mankind. But this that he says, four angels, is not alien from Scripture. Moses said, When He dispersed the sons of Adam, He set the boundary of the nations according to the number of the Angels of God [Deut. xxxii. 8 (LXX.)].

Since therefore nations have been assigned to angels, and each nation pertains to one angel, John rightly declared by the Revelation a loosing for those four angels: who are the Persians, and the Medes, and the Babylonians, and the Assyrians. Since then these angels who have been appointed over the nations have not been commanded to stir up those who have been assigned to them, a certain bond of the power of the word is indicated, which restrains them until the day shall arrive and the Lord of all shall command. And this then is to happen when Antichrist shall come.'
[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:16
“The number of that cavalry was eighty thousand.” … He again uses different ways to suggest the whole body of evil persons. Here it says eighty thousand. Just as through the perfection of the number six, he signifies for us the form of sixty good people, so that we read “there were sixty queens,” so sometimes the number eighty is used in a bad sense. [Eighty] arises from that which is fourfold, on account of the four well-known qualities of the body—cold and heat, moisture and dryness—or on account of the four passions that often vex humans in life—dread, desire, pain and joy. When these four are doubled because of the two sexes, they become eight. This number similarly increasing by way of tens makes eighty, and in some way this shows that portion of evil persons who as cavalry fight against the body of Christ, which is the church. Therefore, that verse continued, “there are eighty concubines,” as though they were not united by a legitimate union but by a fraudulent one. And this is characteristic of all heresies that lay hold of the sacraments of faith for a time while they are clothed in the name of Christ. Yet just like concubines who do not remain permanently in the home, they desire to profit from the name of Christ by gaining influence or advantage or authority or human praise.… Tyconius comments upon another translation, “And the number of soldiers was twice ten thousand times ten thousand.” … It seems to us that also in this translation the portion of the people of perdition are aptly indicated. For twice ten thousand is twenty thousand, and this is the number which the Lord in the Gospel placed against the king who had ten thousand, so that, as it were, the duplicity of those who are evil opposes the simplicity of the Christians.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:16
And the number of the mounted troops was two hundred million. This number designates the deceptive duplicity of the perverse army. Which another translation, saying "twice ten thousand times ten thousand," can be more easily understood; and this number is also opposed by the evangelical parable to the king having ten thousand (Matt. IV), as the duplicity of the wicked resists the simple faith of Christ, to whom thousands of thousands minister and ten thousand times ten thousand stand (Dan. VII).

[AD 560] Primasius of Hadrumetum on Revelation 9:17
The horses are men, and their riders are evil spirits. Just as we could say in a good sense “You mounted upon your horses,” referring to preachers, “and your victorious cavalry,” so here in an evil sense [these horses] are joined to iniquitous spirits.… And although little similarity can be found between locusts and horses, the same is true concerning lions. Yet each of these is suitable for symbolizing the persons of heretics.… The description of the breastplate signifies the punishments of the impious, for we read that those who worship the beast are promised fire and sulphur, and “the smoke of their torments goes up for ever and ever.”

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:17
I think that these “horses” are either men who, like beasts, lust after women, or they are those who are submitted to demons and are ruled by them. For those who sit upon others are those who also govern them. It is common for these to use not only each other as servants but also to use evil people as instruments for plotting against people of similar kind. We interpret “the breastplates of fire and of smoke and of sulfur” to signify the aerial nature of the evil demons and of their destructive work, and that the heads of lions show their murderous and beastly nature.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:17
And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and those who sat on them, etc. The malignant spirits, in whose hearts they preside, are clothed with their punishments. For we read that those worshipping the beast are to be tormented with fire and sulfur, and the smoke of their torment will ascend forever and ever. Note that in the plague of locusts he did not say he saw horsemen, but only horses. Here indeed, the magnitude of the persecutions shows the open presence of the opposing power. Thus, here the heads are of lions, while there the faces are indeed human, but the teeth are only bestial. Because often heretics show some humanity, but the ministers of the final storm extort what they persuade by words and signs even through punishments.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:17
And from their mouths proceeds fire and smoke and sulfur. He shows what he had said about hyacinth smoke. But these things do not clearly come out of their mouths, but by harmful preaching, they generate punishment for themselves and their listeners. For, he says, I will bring forth a fire from the midst of you, which shall devour you (Ezek. XXVIII).

[AD 542] Caesarius of Arles on Revelation 9:18-19
[The smoke, fire, and sulphur from their mouths] are the blasphemies that proceed from their mouths against God. “Their tails are like serpents.” The leaders [of the heretics] we call “tails,” and the rulers of the world we call “heads.” It is through these that the devil does his harm, and without these he is not able to do harm. For either irreligious kings do harm by an evil exercise of authority, or worldly prelates do harm by teaching badly.

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:18-19
“The fire that proceeds with smoke and sulfur from their mouths,” through which one third of humankind is killed, signifies those sins that consume the fruits of the heart by means of the poisonous assaults and instigations of the demons. Or the fire signifies the devastation of cities by fire and by the shedding of blood, which God allows to be done through the hands of the barbarians.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:19
For the power of the horses is in their mouths, and in their tails. That is, in speech and in action; for the prophet teaching lies, he is the tail. Who covers in a certain way the blind and unclean part with the volubility of a flattering tongue, saying to the wicked: You are good.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:19
For their tails are like serpents, etc. False teachers, like the ancient serpent who deceived man, supported by the patronage of rulers, harm more than if they persuaded only by speech. He sits, he says, in ambush with the rich (Ps. X).

[AD 614] Andreas of Caesarea on Revelation 9:20-21
The rest of humankind, who were spared and did not suffer these things, yet remained unrepentant. They will suffer these same things, since they did not keep themselves from idolatries and murders and fornications and thefts and works of magic. It is clear that the universal wrath comes from such things as these. These various deceits effect a frenzy in those nations that do not acknowledge the truth and that worship idols and the creature rather than the creator. And this is certainly so among those who confess to know God but deny him by their works and who wrap themselves up in the form of piety but deny the power of it.… May it be that we display the purity and authenticity of our faith in Christ by deeds so that we never hear those terrible words, “Truly, truly I say to you, I do not know you.” “Depart from me, you workers of iniquity.” Rather, may we hear this blessed invitation, “Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:20
And the rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues, etc. Because he had described false Christians and heretics, now, to encompass the entire body of the devil, he also mentions the error of the Gentiles, to whom it benefits nothing not to be killed by these plagues, as it is evident they will continue in their Gentile malice even then. For in that persecution the Gentiles will not be compelled to consent to the aforementioned but will die in their own unbelief.

[AD 990] Oecumenius on Revelation 9:20-21
The prophet, plucking his spiritual lyre, told us of those who were being punished in Hades, saying with reference to God that “in death there is no one who remembers you; in Hades who will give you praise?” so depriving them both of joy with God and of repentance. For by not remembering God they were deprived of spiritual joy, as the same prophet writes elsewhere, “I remembered God and I rejoiced,” and through not making confession they were deprived of repentance. For confession is the declaration of offenses resulting from a change of heart and conversion due to the pricking of conscience in one’s soul.

For in fact, God has given us two kinds of life, the present and the future. In the present we have been permitted to conduct our life according to our opinion and ability, but in the future life we receive the consequent rewards or punishments for the actions of our lives. The present life is not one of judgment, unless someone perhaps may be profitably reminded to turn to repentance, nor is the future life one of behaving in such a way that we may be changed from a debased life to one better.

This being so, what is the meaning of the present saying about those who are being punished there—And the rest of humankind, who were not killed by these plagues, and did not repent of the works of their hands? He means by this not those who did not repent in their life there, but those who are still living and who did not repent of their various unlawful deeds after hearing and seeing what the future holds. By this aforesaid plague, perhaps they will not die the spiritual death—calling punishment death— while they eternally live out their life with the wicked, unless, of course, they will be punished by something worse, which he has prudently passed over in silence in his attempted explanation.

May all of us be free of these, by the grace and lovingkindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

[AD 735] Bede on Revelation 9:21
And they did not repent of their murders, etc. To their impious religion, they also add wicked morals. After describing the cruelty of the Antichrist, he, in his manner, recapitulates the beginning of Christ's birth and the glory of the Church to show the ruin of the same.