End-Time Demonic Activities in
the Book of Revelation
RANKO STEFANOVIC
This paper deals with the subject of end-time demonic activities in the
world in the Book of Revelation. In particular, it explores two texts in Rev-
elation that are relevant to this subject in their relation to each other: the
vision of the fth and sixth trumpets in chapter 9 and the scene of the sixth
bowl plague in 16:13–14.
Meaning of the Seven Trumpets
In order to understand the full spectrum of the scene of the fth and
sixth trumpets, it is important to reect briey on the meaning of the sev-
en trumpets in general. To begin with, we must keep in mind that the
seven trumpets are among the most dicult to interpret of the prophecies
of Revelation. The major disagreement among historicist scholars today is
regarding the historical application of the trumpets, particularly the fth
and sixth trumpets. The most extensive treatment of the vision of the sev-
en trumpets in Revelation is probably found in Jon Paulien’s doctoral dis-
sertation, “Decoding Revelation’s Trumpets” (1987), although Paulien’s
study deals with the nature and meaning of the trumpets in general, its
focus was limited specically to the rst four trumpets. Among Seventh-
day Adventist scholars, there are two major views regarding their mean-
ing and historical fulllment.
Starting with Uriah Smith, the fth and sixth trumpets have been tra-
ditionally interpreted to describe the medieval and post-medieval military
history of Islam. However, the majority of Adventist apocalyptic scholars
today hold that the fth and sixth trumpets describe the spiritual condi-
tion of the Western world during the post-enlightenment period, which
was characterized by atheism and secularism.
Interestingly, the Daniel and Revelation Commiee avoided taking an
interpretative stand on either side. The commiee simply stated that the
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trumpets describe sequential events in history that will take place before
the Second Coming of Christ.
The signicance of the sixth trumpet in particular is found in the fact
that this is the only section of Revelation that adequately describes the
situation in the secular world at the time of the end, and, as such, stands
in close relationship with Rev 16:13–14. Unfortunately, its meaning and
relevance for the time in which we live today has been signicantly (if not
totally) obscured by the Muslim interpretation, which is based on an al-
legorical reading of Revelation’s symbols.
In the current understanding, the seven trumpets point to God’s in-
terventions in history as they herald his judgments upon a world hos-
tile to God and his people. They are structurally organized into pairs that
complement each other. Their historical fulllment is best understood in
light of this structural complementary pairing. (For a detailed analysis
of the historical application of the trumpets see Stefanovic 2009:281–323,
365–370; Stefanovic 2013:101–117, 133–136; LaRondelle 1997:161–195;
Doukhan 2002:77–91.)
The rst two trumpets herald God’s judgments on the two nations in-
volved in the death of Jesus and the subsequent persecution of his follow-
ers, specically the early church. Thus, the rst trumpet (8:7) describes
the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70–72, and the second trumpet (8:8–9)
describes the demise of the Roman Empire.
The next two trumpets describe the situation during the medieval
and post-medieval period. In today’s interpretation, the third trumpet
(8:10–11) refers to the medieval apostasy and its consequences. The fourth
trumpet (8:12) describes the situation in the world in the post-medieval
period. During this time the Age of Reason led to the rise of secularism,
which was characterized by rationalism, the denial of supernaturalism,
and skepticism toward religious faith.
The fth and sixth trumpets describe the dreadful situation in the
world under the prevailing eects of secularism. Thus, the fth trumpet
(9:1–12) depicts the deepening spiritual darkness of the time and its con-
sequences in the world following the Age of Enlightenment, portrayed in
the fourth trumpet. The sixth trumpet (9:13–21) describes an escalation of
the demonic activities in the world leading up to the bale of Armaged-
don.
Before the seventh angel heralds his trumpet, there is an interlude (10:1–
11:14). This interlude is related to the one between the sixth and seventh
seal that identies God’s end-time people who will be alive at the time of
the Second Coming. The interlude between the fth and sixth trumpets
describes the role, task, and experience of God’s people in the world at the
time of the end. Finally, the seventh trumpet (11:15–18) heralds the Second
Coming and ushers in God’s everlasting kingdom.
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The Fifth Trumpet
Since the fth trumpet scene builds on the previous trumpet, it is nec-
essary to briey comment on the meaning and historical implications of
the fourth trumpet. The fourth trumpet describes the situation of the West-
ern world in the post-medieval period. The Reformation of the sixteenth
century brought to an end medieval religious dominance. It rediscovered
the gospel and restored the Bible as the rule of faith and teaching. Very
soon, however, the Reformers were succeeded by a lifeless generation of
so-called Protestant scholasticism, which was characterized by theological
polemics and controversies.
Such a situation had a mortifying eect upon Christianity. The intel-
lectual revolution in Europe during the seventeenth and eighteenth cen-
turies ended the prominence of faith and led to the rise of rationalism,
skepticism, humanism, and liberalism, which, as a result, gave birth to
secularism. Despite its positive impact on science, politics, religious lib-
erty, arts, and education, with its materialistic orientation and denial of
supernaturalism, secularism gradually eroded Christian faith and robbed
millions of the hope of salvation. The fourth trumpet scene thus describes
the dreadful consequences of the darkening of the spiritual source of the
true light under the prevailing inuence of secularism.
The fourth trumpet concludes with a special warning proclaimed by
a vulture ying in the sky announcing loudly: “Woe, woe, woe to those
who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of
the three angels who are about to sound!” (Rev 8:13 NASB). Much worse
is yet to come. The fth trumpet signies the deepening of the spiritual
darkness in the Western world and its dreadful consequences upon hu-
manity following the Enlightenment as pictured in the fourth trumpet.
The Demonic Locusts (9:1–6)
At the sound of the fth trumpet, John the Revelator sees a star that
has fallen from heaven to the earth (Rev 9:1). This star is undoubtedly
the same one spoken of in the third trumpet poisoning the streams and
springs of water (8:10–11). The English verb conjugation “has fallen” is in
the perfect tense, which suggests that the fall of the star took place some-
time before the heralding of the fth trumpet. This falling of the star is a
direct allusion to the falling of Satan, the morning star in Isaiah 14:12 (see
also Luke 10:18; Rev 12:9; for the biblical and extra-biblical evidence see
Beale 1999:491–492; Collins 1979:60). In Revelation, there is a description
of Satan’s present condition as the one who has lost his position in heaven
(Hendriksen 1997:120). In verse 11, he is identied as “the angel of the
abyss” and the leader of the demonic army. Paul calls him “the prince of
the power in the air” (Eph 2:2).
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The star was given “the key of the abyss.” The passive form (“was
given”) functions here as the Hebrew divine passive, meaning that the
fallen star was given the key of the abyss by God. Passivum divinum or di-
vine passive was very common in Judaism. Jews believed that God’s name
was too sacred to be uered, except in rare circumstances. When talking
about God or his actions, they usually expressed it in a passive form. For
instance, “You are blessed,” meant clearly, “God has blessed you.” The
divine passive form is used often in the book of Revelation.
The abyss (Gr. abyssos) is the place of temporary connement of Satan
and the fallen angels. This has been their abode since their expulsion from
heaven, and will continue to be until they receive their punishment (Luke
8:31; 2 Pet 2:4; Jude 6). The word “abyss” is used rst in Gen 1:2 with refer-
ence to the chaotic condition of the earth before the Creation. In Jer 4:23–30,
it is used to refer to desolated and uninhabited Palestine during the Exile.
In the New Testament, the abyss is described as a dark and chaotic prison
for the fallen angels or demons, who are under God’s control (Luke 8:31;
2 Pet 2:4; Jude 6; Rev 20:1, 3). In Revelation it is the place from which
the beast arises (Rev 11:7; 17:8). The abyss is also the place of Satan’s im-
prisonment during the millennium (Rev 20:1–3) until he receives his nal
punishment in the lake of re (20:10). As a result of the connement of
Satan and the fallen angels, their freedom and activities are restricted. In
the fth trumpet scene, however, the restriction is removed, giving the
demonic forces partial freedom to perform their harmful activities.
As the star opens the boomless pit, a massive smoke of locusts emerg-
es resembling “the smoke of a great furnace” (9:2). In the Bible, locusts
are a symbol of judgment (see Stefanovic 2009:307). However, these are
clearly not ordinary locusts. Their power is compared to the power of
scorpions (9:3; also in v. 5; on the gurative use of scorpions in the OT
see 1 Kgs 12:11 and 14). This brings to mind Jesus’ statement in which he
likens demons to scorpions in connection with Satan’s fall from heaven:
The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to
us in your name!” And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from
heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions,
and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.” (Luke
10:17–19)
One may easily see the verbal parallels between this passage from Luke
and Rev 9:1–3. The fact that the scorpion-like locusts of the fth trumpet
come out of the abyss, as the prison-abode of the demonic forces, suggests
that they are the symbols of supernatural demonic forces which were pre-
viously conned and restrained, but now are unleashed to perform their
harmful activities in the world as it nears its end.
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The locusts of the fth trumpet must be understood as symbolic. This
is evident rst because they have the power of scorpions (9:3, 5); they have
tails like scorpions, and poisonous stings (9:10). While locusts normally
aack plants; the locusts of the fth trumpet, however, hurt not plants
but people. Finally, their description as armies advancing like a cloud,
darkening the sky, and sounding like the rale of chariots is drawn from
Joel’s vision of the locust invasion on Judah as a judgment from God (cf.
Joel 2:2–10).
This gigantic smoke of demonic locusts creates thick darkness in the sky,
as the darkness of the fourth trumpet deepens (8:12). This reminds us of the
locust plague on Egypt (Exod 10:14–15). The scene also echoes the prophecy
of Joel in which the locust plague causes the darkening of the sun, the moon,
and the stars (2:2, 10). With the demonic locusts, spiritual darkness covers
the earth. Darkness is the opposite of light. Since light in the Bible stands for
the gospel (Col 1:13; John 8:12; 12:46), the darkness symbolizes the absence
of the gospel. Jesus said: “This is the judgment, that the light is come into the
world, and the men loved the darkness rather than the light” (John 3:19;
cf. Mic 3:6). The demonic locusts of the fth trumpet have obliterated the
light of the gospel, replacing it with rationalism and human materialistic
philosophies that have become the ultimate standards of truth. As a re-
sult, Christ and the gospel have been extinguished from the lives of most
people in the world. What follows is spiritual torment and mental anguish
with devastating eects.
The demonic locusts “were given” to do their harmful activities. The
use of the passive form (“were given”) here functions as the Hebrew divine
passive, suggesting divine action. Here, in the scene of the fth trumpet,
God uses the demonic forces as his instruments of judgment (Doukhan
2002:86–87; Osborne 2002:383). However, the demonic forces are not al-
lowed to harm “the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree,”
but only those “who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads” (9:4).
Grass and other green things stand here in contrast to those who do not
have the seal of God (cf. 7:1–3). Beale argues forcibly that the fth trumpet
“woe is directed against rebellious humanity and not nature (1999:496).
Grass and trees in the OT are frequent symbols for God’s people. Trees (Ps
1:3; 52:8; 92:12–14; Isa 61:3; Jer 11:15–17; 17:7–8; Ezek 20:46–48) and green
grass (Ps 72:16; Isa 40:6–8; 44:2–4) are in the Old Testament used gura-
tively with reference to Israel as God’s covenant people. The New Testa-
ment writers conrm the association. For instance, John the Baptist com-
pared the apostate leaders of the Jewish people to trees that did not bear
good fruit (Ma 3:10). Likewise, Jesus used tree symbolism in referring to
the Jewish people as the green tree (Luke 23:28–31) and as a g tree that
did not bear fruit (Luke 13:6–9; cf. Ma 7:17–19; 21:18–19). God’s people
are thus protected from the demonic harmful activities by the seal of God.
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These demonic locusts are not permied to kill people, only to torment
them for ve months. Among historicist interpreters, there is disagree-
ment concerning the specic number of years covered by this prophetic
period. The period of ve months in Rev 9:5 and 10 has been variously
interpreted. First, as the life span of locusts is ve months; the harm of
this plague would therefore include one entire generation of locusts. Sec-
ond, it has been explained through historical interpretation based on the
day/year principle. All of these proposals are untenable and problematic
however. The most likely Old Testament background is the Genesis Flood
story, where a ve-month period is mentioned twice, just as in the scene of
the fth trumpet (Gen 7:24; 8:3). It is most likely that John describes the de-
monic locusts harming the earth and its inhabitants for ve months after
the Flood story. The best way to understand this ve-month period allot-
ted to the demonic locusts is in connection to the period of the Flood dur-
ing which Noah and his family were under the divine protection from the
oodwaters (Gen 7:24; 8:3). The torment of the demonic locusts is spiritual
and mental, driving people into suicidal anguish; “men will seek death
and will not nd it” (v. 6).
The Description of the Locusts (9:7–11)
Having described the origin of the demonic locusts and their activities,
John now describes their appearance, which is obviously indescribable. In
picturing them, John uses eight gurative analogies: their appearance is
like horses ready for bale; they appear as wearing golden crowns; they
have human-like faces and hair like women; their teeth are like those of
lions; they have iron-like breastplates; with their wings they produce the
sound of chariots rushing to bale; and they have the scorpion-like tails
by which they sting.
In describing the demonic locusts, John draws from Joel’s description
of the locusts swarming on Judah with devastating consequences:
For a nation has invaded my land, mighty and without number; its teeth
are the teeth of a lion, and it has the fangs of a lioness. . . . For the day of
the Lord is coming; surely it is near, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of
clouds and thick darkness. As the dawn is spread over the mountains, so
there is a great and mighty people. . . . Their appearance is like the appear-
ance of horses; and like war horses, so they run. With a noise as of chariots,
they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a ame of re
consuming the stubble, like a mighty people arranged for bale. . . . They
ran like mighty men, they climb the wall like soldiers; and each march in
line. . . . They rush on the city, they run on the walls, they climb into the
houses, they enter through the windows like a thief. Before them the earth-
quakes, the heavens tremble, the sun and the moon grow dark, and the stars
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lose their brightness. The Lord uers His voice before His army, surely His
camp is very great; for strong is he who carries out His word. The day of
the Lord is indeed great and very awesome; who can endure it? (1:6; 2:2–11)
By drawing the locust imagery from Joel, John the Revelator describes
the demonic forces operating in the world near the end of history. As in
Joel’s prophecy, the demonic locusts of the fth trumpet resemble a vast
army. Yet, they are not a real army, for their activity is not military, but
rather spiritual. “These forces may exhibit themselves through institu-
tions or individuals, but their eect is devastating” (Tucker 2007:86). Their
weapons are tails like scorpions containing stings to aict people (v. 10).
In the Bible, the tail is a symbol of deception. Isaiah refers to false prophets
deceiving people with their false teaching in terms of the tail (9:14–15). In
Rev 12:4, the tail of the dragon caused one third of the heavenly beings to
rebel against God.
In contrast to locusts who have no leader (Prov 30:27), this locust-like
demonic army has a leader who is identied as “the angel of the abyss.”
His name in Hebrew is Abaddon (destruction), and in Greek Apollyon (de-
stroyer). This demonic leader is undoubtedly Satan himself, “the ruler of
demons” (Ma 12:24) and “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2),
the fallen star from heaven to whom is given authority over the abyss (Rev
9:1). His followers are referred to as the “destroyers of the earth” (Rev
11:18).
The fth trumpet scene concludes with the statement: “The rst woe
is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things” (9:12). While
the woe of the fth trumpet is frightening, the worst is yet to come with
the sixth and seventh trumpets.
The Sixth Trumpet
The sixth trumpet builds on the fth trumpet by showing further de-
velopments in demonic activities as the situation further escalates.
Release of the Demonic Army (9:13–15)
At the sound of the sixth trumpet, John hears a voice from the golden
altar of incense in the heavenly temple ordering the angel with the sixth
trumpet to release “the four angels who are bound at the great river
Euphrates” (9:13–14). The four angels that are to be released correspond
to the four angels restraining the destroying winds from blowing until the
appointed time in Rev 7:1–3 (see Beale 1999:507).
The evidence show that there are corresponding parallels between the
four angels “bound at the great river Euphrates” and the same four angels
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of Rev 7:1–3. While in Rev 7 the four angels are holding rmly the four
winds of the earth, so that the wind should not blow upon the earth, the
four angels in Rev 9 restrain the armies of the horsemen. In Rev 7:3 they
are ordered not to harm the earth until the servants of God have been
sealed, in the scene of the sixth trumpet they are released “that they might
kill the third part of humankind” (9:15, 18). This suggests that the destruc-
tive winds restrained by the four angels in Rev 7:1–3 correspond to the
horsemen—the demonic forces—in the scene of the sixth trumpet (Rev
9:16–19).
The Euphrates River in the OT was the boundary that separated God’s
people from their enemies, Assyria and Babylon (Isa 7:20; Jer 46:10). The
enemies of God’s people came from this great river. The aack by these
enemy nations was often described in terms of the overowing waters of
the Euphrates sweeping over the land of Judah (Isa 8:7–8).
The four angels are ready to release the demonic forces for “the hour
and day and month and year” (9:15). This expression refers to a specic
point in time appointed by God when the angels are released “to kill a
third of mankind,” namely, a part of Satan’s kingdom. This divinely ap-
pointed time has come. Verse 18 shows that the demonic forces, not the
angels, are the ones doing the killing. In the fth trumpet, the demonic
agencies have been under God’s restraints, and allowed only to aict
people (9:4–6); but now, they are unleashed to both kill and aict those
who are alive.
John sees the demonic forces as a huge army of two hundred million
cavalry troops appearing on the scene (9:16). This is undoubtedly a sym-
bolic number expressing an incalculable number. The expression, “I heard
the number of them” mirrors the same phrase in Rev 7:4:
Rev 7:4
“And I heard the number of those
who have been sealed, 144,000
sealed from every tribe of the sons
of Israel.”
Rev 9:16
“And the number of the army of
horsemen was two hundred mil-
lion; I heard the number of them.”
The parallel between these two text shows that the number 200 million
stands in contrast to the sealed 144,000 of God’s end-time people (see Rev
7:4). The demonic locusts that were aicting human beings in the fth
trumpet have now grown into a huge monstrous army that kills human
beings and are ready to engage in the nal conict referred to as the bale
of Armageddon (see Rev 16:12–16).
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The Description of the Demonic Army (9:16–19)
The features and characteristics of the horses and their riders in the
sixth trumpet are very similar to those of the horse-like locusts in the fth.
The contextual evidence suggests that the horsemen of the sixth trumpet
are the demonic locusts of the fth trumpet. The appearance of the de-
monic locusts was like horses prepared for bale (9:7, 9). They came out of
the abyss (9:2–3), while the horsemen come from the river Euphrates, the
symbolic boundary between God’s people and their enemies. The harmful
activity of the horsemen of the sixth trumpet shows a further intensica-
tion of the destructive demonic activity that began with the coming of the
locusts in the fth trumpet. That said, there are some basic dierences
between them:
• While the riders on the horses in the fth trumpet had lion’s teeth
(9:8); now the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions (v. 17).
• In the fth trumpet, they have breastplates of iron (9:9); now those
breastplates become ery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfurous yellow,
which is a reection of re, smoke, and sulfur emanating from the
horses’ mouths (vv. 17–18).
• The horsemen of the fth trumpet used tails as their weaponry (9:10);
now both the tails and the mouth are the source of their power (v. 19).
• In the fth trumpet, the tails of the demonic forces are scorpion-like,
now they are serpent-like. For a metaphoric association of serpents
and scorpions in Judaism see Beale 1999:515–517.
• In the fth trumpet, the demonic locusts were allowed to only aict
and torment people, not kill them (9:5); now they are allowed to kill a
third of mankind (v. 15).
These parallels are a further indication that the sixth trumpet describes
a further development in the demonic activities as the situation further
escalates and becomes more horric.
End-Time Demonic Activities
The source of the power of the horses is said to be in their mouths and
their tails by which they inict the inhabitants of the earth to the point
of death (9:19). The tails correspond to the tails of the demonic forces in
the fth trumpet (see 9:10). It was noted above that in the Bible “tails” is
a symbol of deception by which Satan turns people away from God. In
Isa 9:14–15 “tails” symbolize false prophets deceiving people with their
teaching. In Rev 12:4, the tail of the dragon (namely, Satan) pulled down
from heaven a third of the stars. Satan is the “the serpent of old, who de-
ceives the whole world” (12:9). The lamb-like beast arising from the earth
is referred to as the false prophet speaking on behalf of Satan. Thus, the
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serpent-like-tails weaponry of the demonic forces is the symbol of Satan’s
end-time deceptive activities by which he leads people astray from God
(cf. 2 Thess 2:9–11).
While the demonic locusts inict people with their serpent-like tails,
they kill human beings with their mouths out of which emanate re,
smoke, and sulfur. They are equipped with weapons from the lake of re
(Rev 19:20; 20:10; 21:8). Fire, smoke, and sulfur in the OT are a means
of executing divine judgments (Ps 11:6; Ezek 38:22). Fire and sulfur were
used in destroying Sodom and Gomorrah as the smoke ascended like the
smoke of a furnace (Gen 19:24, 28; Luke 17:29). Elsewhere in the OT these
elements are used for punishing the wicked (Ps 11:6; Isa 34:9–10; Ezek
38:22). In Revelation, the receivers of the mark of the beast will be “tor-
mented with re and sulfur before the holy angels and before the Lamb.
And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever” (Rev 14:10–11).
These three elements are used for the destruction of Satan and his forces in
the lake of re at the nal judgment (Rev 20:10; cf. 19:20; 21:8).
In Revelation, the mouth is the symbol of spiritual weaponry in the
end-time bale between the forces of good and evil (see 16:13–14; 19:15
and 21). This shows that the nature of the nal crisis is not military, but
rather spiritual and ideological. It is a bale for the minds and hearts of
the people in the world (cf. 2 Cor 10:3–5).
The Historical Application of the Fifth
and Sixth Trumpets
The fth and sixth trumpets suggest that, as the end approaches, the
situation in this world will be characterized by an intensication of de-
monic activity. The fth trumpet describes the spiritual condition of the
world in the aftermath of the Age of Enlightenment, which was charac-
terized by the rise of rationalism, skepticism, humanism, relativism, and
liberalism. It ultimately gave rise to secularism and its negative eects
on Christianity. God-centered theology was replaced by atheistic, human-
centered philosophy, which has lile or no room for God (LaRondelle
1999:189; Doukhan 2002:88). The atheistic philosophy has alienated peo-
ple from God and from each other, thus creating in them the agony of
emptiness and meaninglessness. This stands in contrast to the green grass
and trees that are nourished by water.
Although they have separated themselves from God, secular people
still have a longing for spiritual values to ll the emptiness of their lives.
However, resistance to the transforming power of the gospel provides an
opportunity for Satan and demonic forces to ll that emptiness. The situ-
ation in Israel as described best by Amos who illustrates the spiritual con-
dition in the world referred to in the fth trumpet. When Israel “turned
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justice into poison, and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood” (Amos
6:12), God brought swarms of locusts upon their land (7:1–3). By reject-
ing the gospel, the people in the world are left defenseless against the
demonic activity bringing destruction and death.
While in the fth trumpet the demonic forces were very active, their
power was still limited and restrained by God (9:4–5). However, the situ-
ation escalates with the sixth trumpet, as the evil forces are totally un-
leashed to do their menacing and harmful work under the governance
of Satan. People who are without the seal of God are helpless against the
demonic powers. It is during these intense demonic activities that God
makes a special eort to reach human hearts in oering the everlasting
gospel to the inhabitants of the earth (Rev 14:6–13). His mercies are still
available and he hopes that sin-hardened hearts will respond and make a
decisive turn-around.
Thus, the sixth trumpet brings us to the time of the end. It describes the
events leading up to the bale of Armageddon described further in Rev
16:12–16. The parallels in language with Rev 7:1–4 and 16:12–16 situate the
sixth trumpet at the very time of the end of the great gathering of Satan’s
army for the end-time bale of Armageddon.
Strong verbal and conceptual parallels between the sixth trumpet and
Rev 7:1–4 and 16:12–16, link these two passages to each other:
• both the sixth trumpet and Rev 7:1–4 mention four angels that restrain
the plagues about to come upon the inhabitants of the earth;
• both talk about binding and releasing the destructive forces;
• both use the phrase, “I heard the number of [them]” (7:4; 9:16);
• also, both in the sixth trumpet and Rev 16:12–16 are found the River
Euphrates, demonic activities, military language, and mouths used as
weaponry in the end-time conict.
These parallels between the three passages situate the sixth trumpet at
the very time of the end. In Rev 7:1–4, the four angels were holding back
the winds of destruction. While in the fth trumpet the demonic forces
were very active, aicting the inhabitants of the earth (9:4–6), their power
was still limited and restrained by God. However, in the sixth trumpet,
the supernatural forces are unleashed to operate under the governance of
Satan, “the angel of the abyss” (9:11).
Through these destructive activities of the hellish demonic forces,
God calls people to repentance (Osborne 2002:374). However, as the book
shows, the people “did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up
worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone
and wood, which cannot either see or hear or walk” (9:20). The concept of
“worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone
and wood” echoes Dan 5, when the Babylonians kept worshipping their
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self-made gods prior to Babylon’s fall (5:23–24). Even though rebellious
humanity is tormented by demons, they do not want to turn to God. “And
they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their im-
morality nor of their thefts” (9:21). In the Bible, these vices are the fruit
of worshipping idols (Rom 1:18–32). All of these are the characteristics of
those who do not follow the Lamb (Rev 21:8; 22:15).
This unrepentant world now becomes fertile ground for Satan’s nal
great deception. The Book of Revelation shows that right before the Sec-
ond Coming there will be a short-lived confederacy of the dragon, the sea
beast, and the lamb-like beast in their opposition to God and his rightful
rule in the world. “Each has its own history but, at the end-time, they
join together in deception and coercion during the last bale” (Marshall
2000:147). In the end-time scenario, Satan will have a leading role. Rev
16:13–14 shows that the demonic activity will escalate to its highest point;
it describes issuing out of “the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth
of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits
like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out
to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the
great day of God, the Almighty” (for the equation of the sixth trumpet and
Rev 16:12–16 see Beale 1999:513). The identication of the three demonic
spirits in terms of frogs seems to be intentional. In the plague on Egypt,
the frogs were the last plague that Pharaoh’s magicians were able to du-
plicate to inuence Pharaoh to persist in his opposition to God’s request
through Moses to let Israel go out of Egypt. In such a way, the three frog-
like demonic spirits represent Satan’s last counterfeit of God in an eort to
ensnare and deceive the world to carry out his purposes (Beale 1999:513).
Satan’s nal deception will be very convincing. While the fth and sixth
trumpets describe the demonic activities embracing the whole world, Rev
16 points to the end-time scenario as something unparalleled in history.
However the nal deception will be implemented, it will be successful
and convincing. Ellen G. White describes it as follows:
Fearful sights of a supernatural character will soon be revealed in the heav-
ens, in token of the power of miracle-working demons. The spirits of devils
will go forth to the kings of the earth and to the whole world, to fasten
them in deception, and urge them on to unite with Satan in his last struggle
against the government of heaven. By these agencies, rulers and subjects
will be alike deceived. . . .
As the crowning act in the great drama of deception, Satan himself will
personate Christ. The church has long professed to look to the Saviour’s
advent as the consummation of her hopes. Now the great deceiver will
make it appear that Christ has come. In dierent parts of the earth, Satan
will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling brightness,
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resembling the description of the Son of God given by John in the Revelation
(Rev. 1:13–15). The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed by anything
that mortal eyes have yet beheld. The shout of triumph rings out upon the
air: “Christ has come! Christ has come!” The people prostrate themselves in
adoration before him. . . . This is the strong, almost overmastering delusion.
(2005:624)
In conclusion, the book of Revelation shows clearly that as we near the
end, demonic activity will increase in the world in dierent ways. The
end-time warfare in which the whole world will be involved is not mate-
rial, but spiritual (Ezell 1977:78). The end time scenario has cosmic signi-
cance. It will once and for all solve the question of who has the right to rule
over the universe. However, in facing the evident reality of the extensive
activities of the supernatural forces in the world today, it is important to
remember that the description of the end-time demonic activity in Revela-
tion begins with the well-established truth that Satan was cast out from
heaven (Rev 9:1; 12:7–9).
In concluding the description of the destructive locusts swarming on
the land, Joel makes a plea to the people: “Yet even now,” declares the
Lord, “return to me with all your heart. . . . Now return to the Lord your
God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in
loving kindness and relenting of evil” (2:12–13). The same applies to the
people living at the time prior to the Second Coming.
It is important to remember that the supernatural forces of darkness
do not harm those who are on God’s side (Rev 9:4). Their only security is
found in Christ and the gospel. It was on the cross of Calvary that Jesus
won the victory over Satan and his demonic forces. Any religion apart
from Christ does not supply the needs of the world. In trying to fulll
the Great Commission (Ma 28:19–20), the church “must warn people
of the cosmic powers in control of this secular world and call them to
God” (Osborne 2002:388). What secular people need today is a clear
understanding of the gospel, which alone can ll the emptiness in their
lives and protect them from the torment caused by supernatural forces. As
mentioned earlier, Jesus assured his followers: “I have given you authority
to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and
nothing shall hurt you” (Luke 10:19). To the followers of Christ, Satan and
his demonic agents are but defeated enemies.
Works Cited
Beale, G. K. 1999. The Book of Revelation. The New International Greek Testament
Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.
Collins, A. Yarbro. 1979. The Apocalypse. New Testament Message 22. Wilmington,
DE: Michael Glazier.
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Doukhan, Jacques B. 2002. Secrets of Revelation. Hagerstown, MD: Review and
Herald.
Ezell, Douglas. 1977. Revelations on Revelation: New Sounds from Old Symbols. Waco,
TX: Word Books.
Hendriksen, William. 1997. More Than Conquerors: An Interpretation of the Book of
Revelation. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
LaRondelle, Hans. 1997. How to Understand the End-Time Prophecies of the Bible.
Sarasota, FL: First Impressions.
Marshall, David. 2000. Apocalypse: Has the Countdown Begun. Alma Park, Grantham,
UK: Autumn House.
Osborne, Grant R. 2002. Revelation. Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New
Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
Paulien, Jon. 1987. Decoding Revelation’s Trumpets. Andrews University Seminary
Doctoral Dissertation Series. Berrien Springs, MI: Andrews University
Press.
Ranko Stefanovic. 2009. Revelation of Jesus Christ: Commentary on the Book of
Revelation. 2nd ed. Berrien Springs, MI: Andrews University Press.
________. 2013. Plain Revelation: A Reader’s Introduction to the Apocalypse. Berrien
Springs, MI: Andrews University Press.
Tucker, Mike. 2007. Meeting Jesus in the Book of Revelation: Taking Fear out of the
Bible’s Scariest Book. Nampa, ID: Pacic Press.
White, Ellen G. 2005. The Great Controversy. Nampa, ID: Pacic Press.
Ranko Stefanovic is a professor of New Testament at the Seventh-
day Adventist Theological Seminary, Andrews University. He
has presented scholarly papers at professional societies including
the Society of Biblical Literature, Chicago Society for Biblical
Research, Adventist Society for Religious Studies, and the Adventist
Theological Society. In addition to numerous scholarly and popular
articles, he has authored Revelation of Jesus Christ, a commentary
on the book of Revelation, which is the standard textbook in many
Adventist colleges and universities, and a book Plain Revelation: A
Reader’s Introduction to the Apocalypse.
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