After the Exodus, God had
Moses make two silver trumpets, (Numbers 10:2), later called the
chazozra. The traditional sacred horn of the ancient
Hebrews was the
shofar, made from a
ram's horn.
First trumpet Upon the sound of the first trumpet,
hail and
fire mingled with
blood is thrown to
Earth, burning up a third of the trees on the planet, and all green grass. 1/3 of nature will disappear.
Second trumpet (circa 1330), an angel sounds the 2nd trumpet and fire rains on the sea. The trumpet is an
añafil, adopted from the Muslim
nafir by Christians after the two sides fought in the
Reconquista and
crusades. With the sounding of the second trumpet, something described as "a great
mountain burning with fire" plunges into the sea and turns a third of the oceans to blood. Soon after, a third of all
sea life and a third of all
ships will be destroyed.
Third trumpet With the sounding of the third trumpet, a great
star called
Wormwood falls to the Earth, poisoning a third of the planet's
freshwater sources, such as rivers and
springs. Many will die from the bitterness of its taste.
Fourth trumpet Following the sounding of the fourth trumpet, a third of the light that shines from the
Sun,
moon, and
stars becomes dark from the celestial bodies being "struck." This catastrophe causes complete darkness for a third of the day, even through night hours. This is the final trumpet that sounds before the three woes, also known as the fifth, sixth, and seventh trumpets.
Fifth trumpet The fifth trumpet is the "first woe" of three. Before this trumpet sounds, an angel (translated as an eagle in some versions) appears, and warns, "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!" The fifth trumpet prompts a personified star to fall from heaven. The star is given the key to the
bottomless pit. After opening it, the smoke that rises out of the pit darkens the air and blocks the sunlight. Then, from out of the smoke, the locusts are unleashed. The locusts are scorpion-tailed warhorses that have a man's face with lion's teeth. Their hair is long and they fly with locust-like wings. They are adorned with golden crowns and protected with iron breastplates. They are commanded by their king,
Abaddon, to torment anyone who does not have the seal of God on their forehead, by using their scorpion-like tails. It is also made clear to them that they must not kill anyone during the five months of torment.
Preterist views Robert Witham, a Catholic commentator, issued his two-volume Annotations on the
New Testament, in 1733. Commenting on Chapter 9, he offers two preterist views for identifying the locusts with scorpion tails. • The locusts may have represented the incursion of the
Goths and "those barbarous People" who interrupted the
Roman Empire during the time of
Decius. • The locusts may have represented the Jewish heretics who denied Christ. Most notably,
Theodotus,
Praxeas,
Noetus,
Paul of Samosata,
Sabellius, and
Arius. This is the "second woe", where four angels are released from their binds in the "great river
Euphrates". They command a force of two-hundred million mounted troops whose horses exude plagues of fire, smoke, and
brimstone from their mouths. The mounted horsemen wore breastplates with the color of fire,
hyacinth, and brimstone. The horses are with lion's head and their tails, as well, are like a serpent with a head. These three plagues exuding from the horses will kill a third of all mankind. The text states that the power of the horses is in their mouths and also in their tails. Their tails are like snakes with heads, and they use them to hurt people. An excerpt from the Good News translation version of this verse in Revelation 9:20-21 states that", The rest of the human race, all those who had not been killed by these plagues, did not turn away from what they themselves had made. They did not stop worshipping demons, nor the idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, which cannot see, hear, or walk. 21 Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic, their sexual immorality, or their stealing."
Seventh trumpet The sound of the seventh trumpet signals the "third woe." This is the final trumpet and the final woe. Loud voices in Heaven will say: "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His
Messiah, and He will reign forever and ever." ==Interpretations==