The angel wielding the sixth trumpet of judgment releases the four angels bound at the great river Euphrates (Revelation 9:14-15). A demonic prison long hidden beneath the Euphrates River in modern-day Iraq is opened. Four bound demonic generals, burning with murderous rage in their black hearts, are unshackled and set free from their watery dungeon.
Though the angel standing before God’s altar had called these four “angels,” we recognize them for what they truly are—demons. Beneath those soggy shores, they remain chained, thrashing about as they anxiously wait for the hour, day, month, and year God had planned to set them free. The Four Horsemen of the Euphrates, once unleashed, attack mankind with such malice that they will kill (get this)—a third of the world’s population—a staggering number!
According to the Revelation narrative, a quarter of humanity had already been wiped out by the fourth seal judgment. Then millions more died between that time and Revelation 9. The sixth trumpet judgment further prophesies that a third of the remaining population will perish as well. Adding these death tolls together, we learn that a staggering half of the world’s population—four billion people based on today’s figures—will have perished, all within just the first three and a half years of the Tribulation. No wonder Jesus stated that unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved (Matthew 24:22).
The 200 Million Soldier Army
“Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them” (Revelation 9:16). The Four Horsemen of the Euphrates will not strike out on their genocidal rampage alone. Rather, the four demonic generals will lead the largest army the world has ever seen—200 million! Such a figure must have staggered the apostle John, for that was the planet’s entire population in his century.
The identity of these troops has been widely debated among Bible prophecy scholars. Are they human or demonic? Those who argue they are human note that China has claimed since 1965 that it could assemble 200 million soldiers. However, I don’t believe the 200 million are comprised of humans. Context suggests they are armies of released demons. The next group of angelic beings should make that clear.
The Chimera
John describes the fearsome beasts the generals ride, and they are unlike any living animal (Revelation 9:17-19). Instead, these “horses” are demonic chimeras—hybrid creatures that exhibit features from multiple species. Often found in classical mythology, the term “chimera” originated in Greek mythology.
The bile-choking sight of the Chimeras’ three plague weapons—fire, smoke, and brimstone—will terrorize a world that, over the last three years, thought it had seen every horror that legend and modern warfare could conjure. By incendiary flame and serpent’s bite, the Chimera will gleefully participate in slaughtering a third of the world’s population.
The Real Tragedy
The real tragedy of this demonic plague, authorized by God and enacted by the trumpet judgment angels, is not the body count. More tragic than even a billion people incinerated by monsters from the deep is the sad state of the hearts of the remaining three billion survivors.
Revelation 9:20, to me, stands out as the most disheartening verse in the whole Bible: “But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols.”
Years earlier, when people hid in caves to escape the sixth seal judgment, the world conceded that behind the wrath was the Lamb, and His judgment served as a clarion call for the people to repent (Revelation 6:12-17). Some responded in repentance, but many more did not. Will they finally repent under the assault of demonic overlords? Not even this time! Instead, the survivors will continue to worship the very demons that are slaughtering them. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).
These five sins characterize behavior during the tribulation: idolatry, murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, and theft. The people will refuse to repent because they’re junkies. The Antichrist’s followers are hooked on their next high, whether through drugs, magic, or sexual perversion. These manic addicts of evil steal and kill to satisfy their vilest passions. Instead of recognizing the fulfilling wonders of Jesus Christ’s unmatched love and grace, these denizens of the Devil will reject Christ’s priceless spiritual riches and cling to the fleeting, unfulfilling pleasures of sin. Tragically, during the Tribulation, the unredeemed will degenerate into beings as evil as demons.
So heed Christ’s call to repent and turn to Him for salvation! Don’t face a future in which you could devolve into such a wretched creature and an eternity of punishment in the Lake of Fire.
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