Text -- Revelation 9:12-21 (NET)

9:12 The first woe has passed, but two woes are still coming after these things! 9:13 Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a single voice coming from the horns on the golden altar that is before God, 9:14 saying to the sixth angel, the one holding the trumpet, “Set free the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates!” 9:15 Then the four angels who had been prepared for this hour, day, month, and year were set free to kill a third of humanity. 9:16 The number of soldiers on horseback was two hundred million; I heard their number. 9:17 Now this is what the horses and their riders looked like in my vision: The riders had breastplates that were fiery red, dark blue, and sulfurous yellow in color. The heads of the horses looked like lions’ heads, and fire, smoke, and sulfur came out of their mouths. 9:18 A third of humanity was killed by these three plagues, that is, by the fire, the smoke, and the sulfur that came out of their mouths. 9:19 For the power of the horses resides in their mouths and in their tails, because their tails are like snakes, having heads that inflict injuries. 9:20 The rest of humanity, who had not been killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so that they did not stop worshiping demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood– idols that cannot see or hear or walk about. 9:21 Furthermore, they did not repent of their murders, of their magic spells, of their sexual immorality, or of their stealing.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Rev 9:12

¹ tn Grk “behold.” Here ἰδού (idou) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in the context.

NET Notes: Rev 9:13

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

² tc ‡ Several key mss (Ì⁴⁷ א¹ A 0207 1611 2053 2344 pc lat sy^h co) lack the word τεσσάρων (tessarwn, “four”) before κεράτων (keratwn, “horns”). The word seems to have been added by scribes because a “horned” altar (described in the OT [Exod 30:2, 10]) could have only four “horns” or projections at the corners. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

NET Notes: Rev 9:14

¹ tn Grk “having.”

² tn On λῦσον (luson) BDAG 606-7 s.v. λύω 2 states, “set free, loose, untie – a. lit. a pers., animal, or thing that is bound or tied…Angels that are bound Rv 9:14f.”

NET Notes: Rev 9:15

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

² tn The Greek article τήν (thn) has been translated with demonstrative force here.

³ tn The Greek term καί (kai) has not been translated here and before the following term “month” since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

⁴ tn Grk “so that they might kill,” but the English infinitive is an equivalent construction to indicate purpose here.

NET Notes: Rev 9:16

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

² tn Grk “twenty thousand of ten thousands.”

NET Notes: Rev 9:17

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of the description of the horses and riders, which is somewhat parenthetical in the narrative.

² tn Grk “and those seated on them.”

³ tn Grk “the vision”; the Greek article has been translated as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

⁴ tn L&N 79.31 states, “‘fiery red’ (probably with a tinge of yellow or orange).”

⁵ tn On this term BDAG 1022 s.v. ὑακίνθινος states, “hyacinth-colored, i.e. dark blue (dark red?) w. πύρινος Rv 9:17.”

⁶ tn On this term BDAG 446 s.v. θειώδης states, “sulphurous Rv 9:17.”

⁷ sn The colors of the riders’ breastplates parallel the three plagues of fire, smoke, and sulfur in v. 18.

⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

⁹ tn Traditionally, “brimstone.”

NET Notes: Rev 9:18

¹ tn The phrase ἐκ τοῦ πυρὸς καὶ τοῦ καπνοῦ καὶ τοῦ θείου τοῦ ἐκπορευομένου ἐκ τῶν στομάτων αὐτῶν (“by the fire, the smoke, and the sulfur that came out of their mouths”) is taken as epexegetical (explanatory) to the phrase τῶν τριῶν πληγῶν τούτων (“these three plagues”).

NET Notes: Rev 9:19

¹ tn See BDAG 352 s.v. ἐξουσία 2, “potential or resource to command, control, or govern, capability, might, power.”

² tn Grk “is.”

NET Notes: Rev 9:20

¹ tn The word “made” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

² tn The Greek conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here or before the following materials in this list, since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

NET Notes: Rev 9:21

¹ tn Grk “and.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation, with “furthermore” used to indicate a continuation of the preceding.

² tn On the term φαρμακεία (farmakeia, “magic spells”) see L&N 53.100: “the use of magic, often involving drugs and the casting of spells upon people – ‘to practice magic, to cast spells upon, to engage in sorcery, magic, sorcery.’ φαρμακεία: ἐν τῇ φαρμακείᾳ σου ἐπλανήθησαν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ‘with your magic spells you deceived all the peoples (of the world)’ Re 18:23.”