The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up (Rev. 8:7). What can I say? The Apostle saw such a scene: An angel sounded his trumpet, and it immediately started to hail and fire broke out; they were mingled with blood and fell upon the earth. Obviously, this isn’t a pleasant and joyful picture, not a harbinger of favorable events. But all of this will precede the coming of Christ. Don’t think we’ll see this exact picture: an angel in the heavens, fire, thunder, and the rest. But surely, before the coming of Christ to earth, we’ll experience great trials. It’s reported that a third of the earth will burn—trees, grass, and the like. A dangerous thunderstorm is coming, with hail and fire mixed with blood. Later we’ll examine the rest of the trumpet voices, and we’ll get an approximate idea of what’s happening.
The Apocalypse Tapestry, France, 14th C.
And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed (Rev. 8:8-9). Immediately after this, the Apostle saw a second angel who sounded his trumpet, after which another terrible scene opened before his eyes: a huge mountain burning with fire. It fell into the sea, and a third of the sea turned into blood. A third of the creatures living in the sea perished, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
Let’s move on to the third angel. And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter (Rev. 8:10–11). Now the third angel trumpets, and we see a massive star falling from the sky. This star was burning like a lampada. It fell on a third of the rivers and springs of waters, and a third of the waters became bitter. This star was called Wormwood. You know this plant—we have it here in Cyprus. It’s a very bitter herb. It has its beneficial properties, but it’s very bitter. Many people who have drunk these waters have died from its bitterness. We see a third angel trumpeting and a large star falling from the sky to earth, burning like a lampada; it falls into the water—into the rivers, the springs—and the name of this star is Wormwood. Do you remember the Chernobyl tragedy? It was in 1986. I was on the Holy Mountain then. They say that the very word “Chernobyl” translates into Greek as “wormwood” (άψινθος).1 Many people were talking and writing about it then. Everything was polluted—the earth, trees, grass, the sea, and the water we drink were destroyed.
And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise (Rev. 8:12). The fourth angel sounds his trumpet, and immediately a third of the sun, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars are struck. A third of them are darkened; they lose the ability to illuminate, and a third lose the light of the day and night. These are changes in natural phenomena. Let’s dwell on this point a bit and then we’ll move on.
This can be taken as a natural catastrophe: the earth, grass, trees, sea, water, sun, moon, the atmosphere, and everything around us is destroyed. I think we can imagine all this. You don’t have to do a lot of philosophizing to understand the ongoing ecological disaster, which is probably irreversible (we don’t know for sure). But it’s on a huge scale. Everything is polluted, the whole world is infected with diseases—both serious and minor. Both young and old, even children are sick with serious, incurable, deadly diseases. We all know that what we eat, what we breathe, what we drink, isn’t healthy anymore. Many are fighting for a healthy diet now. Okay, you’re going to eat healthy food. Will you breathe healthy air too? Will you walk under a “healthy” sun? It’s all dangerous and only getting worse; we’re not going back to purity. Okay, you’re not going to eat canned food filled with chemicals, genetically modified foods. And what kind of water are you going to drink? What kind of air are you going to breathe? What kind of sun will you go out to bask in?
This is a serious problem; it’s noticeable and tangible. Here it says that the coming of Christ will be preceded by an environmental catastrophe. This is what Christ says in the Gospel: The powers of the heavens shall be shaken (Mt. 24:29). I used to puzzle over these words, wondering what they could mean, that the powers of the heavens would be shaken. As can be seen from what’s happening, it’s likely that the natural laws that determine the balance and harmony in nature will be shaken. There will be natural disasters—earthquakes, fires, large-scale floods. Now they say the glaciers are melting; they say a lot of things. All these are phenomena preceding the coming of Christ.
Four angels have sounded their trumpets. Before the fifth could begin to blow, the Apostle John saw something else: And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound! (Rev. 8:13). We see here an angel flying by and foreshadowing the grief that is coming to all those living on earth due to the remaining three trumpets. But this shows us the mercy of God. God has compassion upon us, as do the angels and the saints of God. We are under the protection of God’s attention and providence. We’re not abandoned, not left unattended. God sees, observes, knows what’s happening. God takes care of those who love Him and call upon Him. We’ll see this in the next part.
The Apocalypse, from St. Vladimir’s Cathedral in Kiev. Artist: V.Vasnetsov
“There came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth…”
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 (Rev. 9:1). A star fell from the heavens. It was given the key to the abyss. Imagine a well that reaches to the very abyss of the earth. It’s closed. A star falls, and someone gives it the key to open this well.
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 (Rev. 9:2). Imagine a well with as much smoke coming out of it as a chimney. This smoke darkens the sun; all of the air becomes smoke.
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 (Rev. 9:3). These locusts had as much power as a poisonous scorpion. Such locusts flew out of this well.
In the fourth verse the Apostle says: 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 (Rev. 9:4). These locusts were instructed not to harm either the grass of the earth, or the greenery, or the trees, but only the people who don’t have the seal of God on their foreheads. These locusts won’t go to eat grass, as they usually do, but they’ll start to hurt people. What kind of people? Those who don’t have the seal of God on their foreheads. Of course, I repeat, it’s unlikely that it will be exactly like this—that locusts will come and kill people. This is about a scourge, a disaster, torment. We don’t know exactly what it will be like. However, these locusts won’t harm the people of God who have the mark on their foreheads; they won’t harm the trees and the greenery, but will torment people who don’t have the seal of God.
Remember the bomb that only kills people? The neutron bomb? It was a great invention, of course. A wonderful bomb: It will leave houses, it will leave trees, it will leave gardens—it will only destroy us. At least houses and buildings that people value and love to build won’t be destroyed. A locust of this type will appear—it will harm only people and leave the rest alone.
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 (Rev. 9:5). This shows that the test will not last long; it’s limited; it won’t be prolonged. People will suffer as if they were bitten by a scorpion. Such torment and troubles will befall people from these locusts. What these locusts are, we don’t know. We can’t know for sure. Most likely it won’t be the locusts that we know, but some other kind.
And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them (Rev. 9:6). In those days, there will come such a difficult situation, such pain, such problems and sorrows, such torment for people that they’ll seek death, but they won’t be able to die. They’ll wish to die, but death will flee from them. Imagine the hopelessness, the despair. You’ll wish for a death that’s worse than anything a man can endure, but you won’t die. Because you still have to go through various things.
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 (Rev. 9:7). See, here it clearly says that they’re not locusts, but similar to them. As the Apostle John sees it, so he describes it. They looked like horses ready for war, with crowns like gold upon their heads. And their faces resembled human faces.
Apocalypse of Saint-Sever, France, 11th C.
And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. 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 (Rev. 9:8-9). A terrible vision: locusts like horses, golden crowns on their heads, human-like faces, hair like women, teeth like lions, adorned in iron armor, with the noise of their wings resembling the sound of chariots.
And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months (Rev. 9:10). You know how scorpions have stingers in their tails? They were given the power to torment people for five months. We again see a period of five months, a short period of time.
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 (Rev. 9:11). These locusts, which came out of the well, had the angel of the abyss (the abyss out of which they came) as their king. The name of this king is Abaddon (in Hebrew), or Apollyon (in Greek), which means the destroyer—the one who destroys everything, leaving nothing.
One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter (Rev. 9:12). One woe has passed (which we have just seen), followed by two more.
Will you be able to sleep tonight? Or will you see locusts? I hope nothing happens to you today because of me.
And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God (Rev. 9:13). The sixth angel sounded, and the Apostle heard one voice from the four horns of the golden altar standing before God. There’s a golden altar before God, an angel is trumpeting, and a voice is heard coming from the four corners of the altar. The voice that spoke to the sixth angel which had the trumpet says: Loose the four angels which are bound in 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, for to slay the third part of men (Rev. 9:14-15). You see, there’s accuracy in the description here. It doesn’t say it will happen sometime. God knows the day, the month, the year and the hour. Everything is under God’s control; nothing happens by itself, by accident. All of this will happen to kill a third of the people. How? It’s not difficult today—you could kill everyone all at once.
And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. 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 (Rev. 9:16-17). A terrible vision, horrifying. All of this is to destroy everything all around. Fire, smoke, and brimstone will leave nothing behind.
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. 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 (Rev. 9:18-19). Their tails were made out of snakes with heads, and through these heads they brought death to men.
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: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts (Rev. 9:20-21).
To be continued…
