Exodus 10:4-6

10:4 But if you refuse to release my people, I am going to bring ¹  locusts ²  into your territory ³  tomorrow. 10:5 They will cover ⁴  the surface ⁵  of the earth, so that you ⁶  will be unable to see the ground. They will eat the remainder of what escaped ⁷  – what is left over ⁸  for you – from the hail, and they will eat every tree that grows for you from the field. 10:6 They will fill your houses, the houses of your servants, and all the houses of Egypt, such as ⁹  neither ¹⁰  your fathers nor your grandfathers have seen since they have been ¹¹  in the land until this day!’” Then Moses ¹²  turned and went out from Pharaoh.

Exodus 10:13-15

10:13 So Moses extended his staff over the land of Egypt, and then the Lord ¹³  brought ¹⁴  an east wind on the land all that day and all night. ¹⁵  The morning came, ¹⁶  and the east wind had brought up ¹⁷  the locusts! 10:14 The locusts went up over all the land of Egypt and settled down in all the territory ¹⁸  of Egypt. It was very severe; ¹⁹  there had been no locusts like them before, nor will there be such ever again. ²⁰  10:15 They covered ²¹  the surface ²²  of all the ground, so that the ground became dark with them, ²³  and they ate all the vegetation of the ground and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Nothing green remained on the trees or on anything that grew in the fields throughout the whole land of Egypt.

Psalms 105:34

105:34 He ordered locusts to come, ²⁴ 

innumerable grasshoppers.

Joel 1:4

1:4 What the gazam-locust left the ‘arbeh-locust consumed, ²⁵ 

what the ‘arbeh-locust left the yeleq-locust consumed,

and what the yeleq-locust left the hasil-locust consumed! ²⁶ 

Joel 1:6-7

1:6 For a nation ²⁷  has invaded ²⁸  our ²⁹  land.

There are so many of them they are too numerous to count. ³⁰ 

Their teeth are like those ³¹  of a lion;

they tear apart their prey like a lioness. ³² 

1:7 They ³³  have destroyed our ³⁴  vines; ³⁵ 

they have turned our ³⁶  fig trees into mere splinters.

They have completely stripped off the bark ³⁷  and thrown them aside;

the ³⁸  twigs are stripped bare. ³⁹ 

Joel 2:7-11

2:7 They ⁴⁰  charge ⁴¹  like warriors;

they scale walls like soldiers. ⁴² 

Each one proceeds on his course;

they do not alter ⁴³  their path.

2:8 They do not jostle one another; ⁴⁴ 

each of them marches straight ahead. ⁴⁵ 

They burst through ⁴⁶  the city defenses ⁴⁷ 

and do not break ranks.

2:9 They rush into ⁴⁸  the city;

they scale ⁴⁹  its walls.

They climb up into the houses;

they go in through the windows like a thief.

2:10 The earth quakes ⁵⁰  before them; ⁵¹ 

the sky reverberates. ⁵² 

The sun and the moon grow dark;

the stars refuse to shine. ⁵³ 

2:11 The voice of the Lord thunders ⁵⁴  as he leads his army. ⁵⁵ 

Indeed, his warriors ⁵⁶  are innumerable; ⁵⁷ 

Surely his command is carried out! ⁵⁸ 

Yes, the day of the Lord is awesome ⁵⁹ 

and very terrifying – who can survive ⁶⁰  it?

Joel 2:25

2:25 I will make up for the years ⁶¹ 

that the ‘arbeh-locust ⁶²  consumed your crops ⁶³  –

the yeleq-locust, the hasil-locust, and the gazam-locust –

my great army ⁶⁴  that I sent against you.

Revelation 9:3-11

9:3 Then ⁶⁵  out of the smoke came locusts onto the earth, and they were given power ⁶⁶  like that of the scorpions of the earth. 9:4 They ⁶⁷  were told ⁶⁸  not to damage the grass of the earth, or any green plant or tree, but only those people ⁶⁹  who did not have the seal of God on their ⁷⁰  forehead. 9:5 The locusts ⁷¹  were not given permission ⁷²  to kill ⁷³  them, but only to torture ⁷⁴  them ⁷⁵  for five months, and their torture was like that ⁷⁶  of a scorpion when it stings a person. ⁷⁷  9:6 In ⁷⁸  those days people ⁷⁹  will seek death, but ⁸⁰  will not be able to ⁸¹  find it; they will long to die, but death will flee from them.

9:7 Now ⁸²  the locusts looked like horses equipped for battle. On ⁸³  their heads were something like crowns similar to gold, ⁸⁴  and their faces looked like men’s ⁸⁵  faces. 9:8 They ⁸⁶  had hair like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. 9:9 They had breastplates ⁸⁷  like iron breastplates, and the sound of their wings was like the noise of many horse-drawn chariots charging into battle. 9:10 They have ⁸⁸  tails and stingers like scorpions, and their ability ⁸⁹  to injure people for five months is in their tails. 9:11 They have as king over them the angel of the abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon. ⁹⁰ 

[10:4]  ¹ tn הִנְנִי (hinni) before the active participle מֵבִיא (mevi’) is the imminent future construction: “I am about to bring” or “I am going to bring” – precisely, “here I am bringing.”

[10:4]  ² tn One of the words for “locusts” in the Bible is אַרְבֶּה (’arbeh), which comes from רָבָה (ravah, “to be much, many”). It was used for locusts because of their immense numbers.

[10:4]  ³ tn Heb “within your border.”

[10:5]  ⁴ tn The verbs describing the locusts are singular because it is a swarm or plague of locusts. This verb (וְכִסָּה, vÿkhissah, “cover”) is a Piel perfect with a vav consecutive; it carries the same future nuance as the participle before it.

[10:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “eye,” an unusual expression (see v. 15; Num 22:5, 11).

[10:5]  ⁶ tn The text has לִרְאֹת וְלֹא יוּכַל (vÿlo’ yukhal lir’ot, “and he will not be able to see”). The verb has no expressed subjects. The clause might, therefore, be given a passive translation: “so that [it] cannot be seen.” The whole clause is the result of the previous statement.

[10:5]  ⁷ sn As the next phrase explains “what escaped” refers to what the previous plague did not destroy. The locusts will devour everything, because there will not be much left from the other plagues for them to eat.

[10:5]  ⁸ tn הַנִּשְׁאֶרֶת (hannish’eret) parallels (by apposition) and adds further emphasis to the preceding two words; it is the Niphal participle, meaning “that which is left over.”

[10:6]  ⁹ tn The relative pronoun אֲשֶׁר (’asher) is occasionally used as a comparative conjunction (see GKC 499 §161.b).

[10:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “which your fathers have not seen, nor your fathers’ fathers.”

[10:6]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew construction מִיּוֹם הֱיוֹתָם (miyyom heyotam, “from the day of their being”). The statement essentially says that no one, even the elderly, could remember seeing a plague of locusts like this. In addition, see B. Childs, “A Study of the Formula, ‘Until This Day,’” JBL 82 (1963).

[10:6]  ¹² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:13]  ¹³ tn The clause begins וַיהוָה (va’adonay [vayhvah], “Now Yahweh….”). In contrast to a normal sequence, this beginning focuses attention on Yahweh as the subject of the verb.

[10:13]  ¹⁴ tn The verb נָהַג (nahag) means “drive, conduct.” It is elsewhere used for driving sheep, leading armies, or leading in processions.

[10:13]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and all the night.”

[10:13]  ¹⁶ tn The text does not here use ordinary circumstantial clause constructions; rather, Heb “the morning was, and the east wind carried the locusts.” It clearly means “when it was morning,” but the style chosen gives a more abrupt beginning to the plague, as if the reader is in the experience – and at morning, the locusts are there!

[10:13]  ¹⁷ tn The verb here is a past perfect, indicting that the locusts had arrived before the day came.

[10:14]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “border.”

[10:14]  ¹⁹ tn This is an interpretive translation. The clause simply has כָּבֵד מְאֹד (kaved mÿ’od), the stative verb with the adverb – “it was very heavy.” The description prepares for the following statement about the uniqueness of this locust infestation.

[10:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “after them.”

[10:15]  ²¹ tn Heb “and they covered.”

[10:15]  ²² tn Heb “eye,” an unusual expression (see v. 5; Num 22:5, 11).

[10:15]  ²³ tn The verb is וַתֶּחְשַׁךְ (vattekhshakh, “and it became dark”). The idea is that the ground had the color of the swarms of locusts that covered it.

[105:34]  ²⁴ tn Heb “he spoke and locusts came.”

[1:4]  ²⁵ tn Heb “eaten.” This verb is repeated three times in v. 4 to emphasize the total devastation of the crops by this locust invasion.

[1:4]  ²⁶ tn The four Hebrew terms used in this verse are of uncertain meaning. English translations show a great deal of variation in dealing with these: (1) For ָגּזָם (gazam) KJV has “palmerworm,” NEB “locust,” NAB “cutter”, NASB “gnawing locust,” NIV “locust swarm,” NKJV “chewing locust,” NRSV, NLT “cutting locust(s),” NIrV “giant locusts”; (2) for אַרְבֶּה (’arbeh) KJV has “locust,” NEB “swarm,” NAB “locust swarm,” NASB, NKJV, NRSV, NLT “swarming locust(s),” NIV “great locusts,” NIrV “common locusts”; (3) for יֶלֶק (yeleq) KJV has “cankerworm,” NEB “hopper,” NAB “grasshopper,” NASB “creeping locust,” NIV, NIrV “young locusts,” NKJV “crawling locust,” NRSV, NLT “hopping locust(s)”; (4) for חָסִיל (khasil) KJV has “caterpillar,” NEB “grub,” NAB “devourer,” NASB, NLT “stripping locust(s),” NIV, NIrV “other locusts,” NKJV “consuming locust,” NRSV “destroying locust.” It is debated whether the Hebrew terms describe different species of locusts or similar insects or different developmental stages of the same species, or are virtual synonyms. While the last seems more likely, given the uncertainty over their exact meaning, the present translation has transliterated the Hebrew terms in combination with the word “locust.”

[1:6]  ²⁷ sn As becomes increasingly clear in what follows, this nation is to be understood figuratively. It refers to the locust invasion as viewed from the standpoint of its methodical, destructive advance across the land (BDB 156 s.v. גּוֹי 2). This term is used figuratively to refer to animals one other time (Zeph 2:14).

[1:6]  ²⁸ tn Heb “has come up against.”

[1:6]  ²⁹ tn Heb “my.”

[1:6]  ³⁰ tn Heb “[It] is huge and there is not number.”

[1:6]  ³¹ tn Heb “its teeth are the teeth of a lion.”

[1:6]  ³² tn Heb “its incisors are those of a lioness.” The sharp, cutting teeth are metonymical for the action of tearing apart and eating prey. The language is clearly hyperbolic. Neither locusts nor human invaders literally have teeth of this size. The prophet is using exaggerated and picturesque language to portray in vivid terms the enormity of the calamity. English versions vary greatly on the specifics: KJV “cheek teeth”; ASV “jaw-teeth”; NAB “molars”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “fangs.”

[1:7]  ³³ tn Heb “it.” Throughout vv. 6-7 the Hebrew uses singular forms to describe the locust swarm, but the translation uses plural forms because several details of the text make more sense in English as if they are describing the appearance and effects of individual locusts.

[1:7]  ³⁴ tn Heb “my.”

[1:7]  ³⁵ tn Both “vines” and “fig trees” are singular in the Hebrew text, but are regarded as collective singulars.

[1:7]  ³⁶ tn Heb “my.”

[1:7]  ³⁷ tn Heb “it has completely stripped her.”

[1:7]  ³⁸ tn Heb “her.”

[1:7]  ³⁹ tn Heb “grow white.”

[2:7]  ⁴⁰ sn Since the invaders are compared to warriors, this suggests that they are not actually human, but instead an army of locusts.

[2:7]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “run.”

[2:7]  ⁴² tn Heb “men of battle.”

[2:7]  ⁴³ tc The translation reads יְעַבְּתוּן (yÿ’abbÿtun) for MT יְעַבְּטוּן (yÿ’abbÿtun). The verb found in MT (עָבַט, ’avat) means “take or give a pledge” (cf. Deut 15:6, 8; 24:10) and does not fit the context. Some scholars have proposed various emendations: (1) יְעָוְּתוּן (yÿ’avvÿtun, “they make crooked”); (2) יָטּוּן (yattun, “they turn aside”); (3) יָעַוּוּן (ya’avvun, “they err”); and (4) יְעָבְּתוּן (adopted in the present translation) from the root I עָבַת (’avat, “to twist, pervert”) or II עָבַת (’avat, “to change, abandon”). KBL adopt the latter option, but the only biblical evidence for this is the problematic reference in Joel 2:7. Another option is to view it as a variant of the root חבט (khavat, “turn aside from”), a meaning attested for the Arabic cognate. The difference in spelling would be due to the interchange of the guttural letters khet (ח) and ayin (ע). This may lay behind LXX rendering ἐκκλίνωσιν (ekklinwsin; cf. Syriac Peshitta nstwn and Vg declinabunt). See S. F. Whitley, “‘bt in Joel 2, 7,” Bib 65 (1984): 101-2.

[2:8]  ⁴⁴ tn “each one does not crowd his brother.”

[2:8]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “each warrior walks in his own course.”

[2:8]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “they fall upon.” This line has been interpreted in two different ways: (1) although they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded (KJV), or (2) when they “burst through” the city’s defenses, they will not break ranks (RSV, NASB, NIV, NIrV).

[2:8]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “missile” or “javelin.” This term appears to function as a synecdoche for the city’s defenses as a whole (cf. NASB, NIV, TEV). Some scholars instead understand the reference to be an aqueduct by which the locusts (or armies) entered the city.

[2:9]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “dart about in.”

[2:9]  ⁴⁹ tn Or “they run upon its wall.”

[2:10]  ⁵⁰ sn Witnesses of locust invasions have described the visual effect of large numbers of these creatures crawling over one another on the ground. At such times the ground is said to appear to be in motion, creating a dizzying effect on some observers. The reference in v. 10 to the darkening of the sun and moon probably has to do with the obscuring of visibility due to large numbers of locusts swarming in the sky.

[2:10]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “before it.”

[2:10]  ⁵² tn Heb “trembles.”

[2:10]  ⁵³ tn Heb “gather their brightness.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “the Lord gives his voice.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “before his army.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “military encampment.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “very large.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “he makes his word powerful.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “powerful.” Heb “great.”

[2:11]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “endure.” The MT and LXX read “endure,” while one of the Qumran manuscripts (4QXXII^c) has “bear.”

[2:25]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “I will restore to you the years.”

[2:25]  ⁶² sn The same four terms for locust are used here as in 1:4, but in a different order. This fact creates some difficulty for the notion that the four words refer to four distinct stages of locust development.

[2:25]  ⁶³ tn The term “your crops” does not appear in the Hebrew, but has been supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

[2:25]  ⁶⁴ sn Here Joel employs military language to describe the locusts. In the prophet’s thinking this invasion was far from being a freak accident. Rather, the Lord is pictured here as a divine warrior who leads his army into the land as a punishment for past sin and as a means of bringing about spiritual renewal on the part of the people.

[9:3]  ⁶⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[9:3]  ⁶⁶ tn See BDAG 352 s.v. ἐξουσία 2, “potential or resource to command, control, or govern, capability, might, power.”

[9:4]  ⁶⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:4]  ⁶⁸ tn The dative indirect object (αὐταῖς, autais) was converted into the subject (“they”) as this more closely approximates English usage. The following ἵ῞να (Jina) is taken as substantival, introducing a direct object clause. In this case, because it is reported speech, the ἵνα is similar to the declarative ὅτι (Joti).

[9:4]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “men”; but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense here of both men and women.

[9:4]  ⁷⁰ tn The article τῶν (twn) has been translated as a possessive pronoun here (ExSyn 215).

[9:5]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “It was not permitted to them”; the referent (the locusts) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:5]  ⁷² tn The word “permission” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.

[9:5]  ⁷³ tn The two ἵνα (Jina) clauses of 9:5 are understood to be functioning as epexegetical or complementary clauses related to ἐδόθη (edoqh).

[9:5]  ⁷⁴ tn On this term BDAG 168 s.v. βασανισμός states, “1. infliction of severe suffering or pain associated with torture or torment, tormenting, torture Rv 9:5b. – 2. the severe pain experienced through torture, torment vs. 5a; 14:11; 18:10, 15; (w. πένθος) vs. 7.”

[9:5]  ⁷⁵ tn The pronoun “them” is not in the Greek text but is picked up from the previous clause.

[9:5]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “like the torture,” but this is redundant in contemporary English.

[9:5]  ⁷⁷ tn Grk “a man”; but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used here in an individualized sense without being limited to the male gender.

[9:6]  ⁷⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:6]  ⁷⁹ tn Grk “men”; but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense here of both men and women.

[9:6]  ⁸⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[9:6]  ⁸¹ tn The phrase “not be able to” was used in the translation to emphasize the strong negation (οὐ μή, ou mh) in the Greek text.

[9:7]  ⁸² tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of the description of the locusts, which is somewhat parenthetical in the narrative.

[9:7]  ⁸³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:7]  ⁸⁴ tn The translation attempts to bring out the double uncertainty in this clause in the Greek text, involving both the form (ὡς στέφανοι, Jw" stefanoi, “like crowns”) and the material (ὅμοιοι χρυσῷ, {omoioi crusw, “similar to gold”).

[9:7]  ⁸⁵ tn Or “human faces.” The Greek term ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpos) is often used in a generic sense, referring to both men and women. However, because “women’s hair” in the next clause suggests a possible gender distinction here, “men’s” was retained.

[9:8]  ⁸⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:9]  ⁸⁷ tn Or perhaps, “scales like iron breastplates” (RSV, NRSV) although the Greek term θώραξ (qwrax) would have to shift its meaning within the clause, and elsewhere in biblical usage (e.g., Eph 6:14; 1 Thess 5:8) it normally means “breastplate.” See also L&N 8.38.

[9:10]  ⁸⁸ tn In the Greek text there is a shift to the present tense here; the previous verbs translated “had” are imperfects.

[9:10]  ⁸⁹ tn See BDAG 352 s.v. ἐξουσία 2, “potential or resource to command, control, or govern, capability, might, power.”

[9:11]  ⁹⁰ sn Both the Hebrew Abaddon and the Greek Apollyon mean “Destroyer.”