Coming to the sixth out of seven trumpet judgments, which I believe make up the principal part of the time period known as the Great Tribulation that we were first introduced to back in chapter seven, verse 14. If you remember, John saw a great multitude out of every tribe, tongue, people, and nation, and they had come out of the Great Tribulation. And of course, this is something that's gonna come upon the world, as we believe, not just from Revelation, but from other places in scripture, just before the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And certainly that is our blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Now, before we do look at this sixth trumpet judgment, we need to remember kind of where it comes in the flow of all of the trumpet judgments. There continues to be an intensification in the severity of these trumpet judgments. Obviously, all of them are bad, but it seems like they continue to get from bad to worse, and certainly that is something that we see going on here as well. Also, something else to keep in mind, not only the intensification, There also seems to be a transition from judgments that affect the world of nature. And if you remember, we saw that, especially under the first four trumpet judgments of chapter eight. These might even be judgments that people would be able to at least try to explain away in natural terms, or even as just natural disasters, things that could happen in a normal but fallen world. But also, as we saw in Chapter 9, they start to transition into judgments that afflict the world of men. Now obviously they all affect the world of men, but the judgments in Chapter 8 primarily deal with natural forces or things that could be explained in natural ways. And now we come to things that really can only be seen in supernatural or even spiritual ways. And so there is obviously and intensification going on, but also a transition from judgments dealing with the world of nature to judgments that deal with the world of men. This can also be seen in how these last three trumpet judgments are described. We're introduced to the three woes that that one angel eagle or eagle angel is announcing to the world all the way back in verse 13 of chapter eight. So this sixth trumpet, is the second of the three woes that we were introduced to there at the end of chapter eight. So just to kind of keep those things in mind as we approach this sixth judgment. So as we think about the placement of this judgment, why don't we read the judgment in its entirety, starting in verse 13 through the end of the chapter. And this is what John both sees and hears in this vision. Verse 13. And the sixth angel sounded. And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar, which is before God, saying to the sixth angel, which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels, which are bound in the great river Euphrates. And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. And the number of the army of the horsemen were 200,000,000. And I heard the number of them. And thus I saw the horses in the vision. And then that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of Jason, and brimstone. And the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions, and out of their mouths issued fire, and smoke, and brimstone. By these three was the third part of men killed by the fire. and by the smoke and by the brimstone which issued out of their mouths. For the power is in their mouth and in their tails. For their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt. And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands. that they should not worship devils and idols of gold and silver and brass and stone and of wood, which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk. Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their things. And that is the sixth trumpet judgment. Now, as we've seen in the other judgments, the first thing that we find here in verse 13, we're going to really focus our attention on the first three verses of this judgment. But there in verse 13, we learn about the components of the sixth trumpet judgment. And of course, in every one of these trumpet judgments, you find certain things that are going to be used to bring about God's judgment in this world. And that's no different here. However, the components of this trumpet judgment are different than the components of the other ones. Because this time, the angel that sounds that sixth trumpet is not only the one who initiates it, he's also involved in the judgment. That's something that we haven't seen in any of the other five trumpet judgments thus far. We certainly heard them blow their trumpet, but we didn't see them actively involved in that judgment. This is the first and really the only case where that is true. It's a truly unique feature to all of the rest of the trumpet judgments. And so the first component really deals with this angel who sounded the trumpet. And the first component is what we can describe as the call of the angel, or the call from the angel with that sixth trumpet. beginning of verse 13 again, and the sixth angel sounded. The word sounded, we've already seen this with the other trumpet judgments. The idea is that he trumpeted his trumpet. He sounded his trumpet. And this is the way all of the previous five judgments are introduced. But it is significant. Because if you remember, they were already prepared to sound their trumpets. So it's almost as if when they all came out from the heavenly throne room, they all had their trumpets ready to sound. They had them all close to their mouth, ready to blow. And then one right after the other, not exactly sure in history how long it would have been, or even in the vision how long it would have been between them. Yet what we have here is the sixth time as he's already prepared, now he blows. He blows it. And this time, in response to the sound of the trumpet, John hears another sound. So not only do we have the call from the angel, that's the first component, then we find the second component, and that is a voice. A voice from the altar. So it's as if the voice from this altar, the sound from this altar, is in response to the sound of the trumpet. Goes on in verse 13, John says, and I heard. I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar, which is before God. Now, there are a few manuscripts that do not have the number four, and that's why there might be some translations that do not have the number four in front of horns, but I think the vast majority of Greek manuscripts that we have of Revelation do have that number four, and so that, I think, also is significant as we go through the book of Revelation through this particular judgment. But before we look at the horns of the altar, we need to focus our attention on the golden altar itself, the four horns of the golden altar. If you remember back just in the previous chapter, verse three, we were already introduced to a golden altar. In fact, this is the beginning of all of the trumpet judgments. If you look at that verse with me, It says another angel came and stood at the altar having a golden censer. Now, obviously, we have this altar before the throne of God, but then it's described as a golden altar in just a moment. And there was given unto him much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon what? The golden altar, which was before the throne. So here we have the golden altar referenced again in chapter 9, same golden altar that we find here in chapter 8. It's probably the same altar that we found back in chapter 6, verse 9. If you remember, that was when, under the fifth seal, John saw the martyrs of the Lord under the altar, crying out, you know, how long, O Lord? And so there's this commonality between so many of these chapters dealing with this special altar before the Lord. It's not described as a golden altar in chapter six, but a lot of the same things happen at the altar there that they do here, namely prayer. And so more than likely, it's talking about the same golden altar before God. So and of course, this golden altar in in in heaven, in chapters six and eight and nine is what we would describe as the heavenly counterpart to the altar of incense that was used in the Old Testament tabernacle and temple. And of course, a few years ago, we actually looked at the different articles that were made and used in the tabernacle and the temple that you find all the way back in the book of Exodus and their use in Leviticus and various places like that. But this particular altar of incense in the Old Testament was associated with prayer. It is something that was even used in the time when Jesus was about to be born. Remember, John, his father, Zechariah, was the priest that was to go in and offer the incense on the golden altar of incense during that time. And he went in to pray. The people around that were outside were there to pray. And so the altar of incense was always associated with prayer. And I think that's the case in Chapter 6 with the martyrs. I think that's something that you find here in Chapter 8. As well as in Chapter 9, this golden altar is associated with prayer. But then we find that other feature of the altar, which I mentioned not every Greek manuscript that we have has it, but I think most do. And that is this altar, this golden altar has four horns. And that also was true of the altar of incense that we find back in Exodus chapter 30, where all of the instructions are given in the first ten chapters of that the first 10 verses of that chapter. And of course, they had horns. And here's an image or a picture of what it might have looked like. And it wasn't just restricted to the Altar of Incense. If you remember the altar that was used for the main sacrifices, the altar burnt offering, that too had the Thor. the four horns and there might have been a few others as well that had this but what do horns symbolize not just in revelation but throughout all the bible what do horns symbolize well obviously when you think of animals that have horns you think of animals that have strength and power and might. And certainly that is part of the meaning behind the horns of this altar. The idea is the power and the strength that is available to God's people through prayer and worship. And I think that's something that we often forget. There is power available for us as believers in prayer. And it's not because of so much the prayer that we offer, but rather to the God that we offer our prayers to. And so, so much of the articles that were used there in the tabernacle and there in the temple were meant to encourage and to strengthen and to give spiritual might and power to God's people as they worshiped, as they prayed. And certainly that was the case here. It was associated with prayer, and that prayer is how we as believers still get our power from the Lord. And of course, the number four in Revelation also has some significance, I think. We find not just the number four, but we also find things in series of four. And the idea is that four is a number that symbolizes something that is complete, and comprehensive on a global scale. One area that we find it frequently is when it talks about the people of the world, every tongue, tribe, people, and nation, right? Those are four words to describe four different aspects of humanity. And so when you think about all kinds of people that live in this globe, a lot of times it's associated with that number four. We also find that in other areas in Revelation, but especially here. So the number four would seem to symbolize something that is complete and comprehensive. So all power, all of God's power in a comprehensive way is available to his people through prayer, symbolized by this golden altar in heaven. But then John notes that he heard something coming from the four horns of this altar. And it states not sounds, but singular, a sound or a voice. And obviously this sound is a voice because of what it says later on that we'll see in verse 14. but he hears a single sound, a single voice from the area between the four horns, which from our perspective would just be the center. So when he talks about, I heard a voice from or out of the four horns, it's not coming necessarily vibrating out of the horns, but if you think of the four horns of the altar, What's in between? It's the actual altar itself. It's right in between. It's right in the middle there. And so it's the very place where the coals of fire would have been used to offer the incense and offer the prayers of God's people. Right in the center of the altar itself. So now a voice comes out of the place of offering. But it's interesting we're not told whose voice it is. Are we? We're not told who the voice belongs to. And so, you know, when you think about the different literature that's out there on revelation. There have been several suggestions as to whose voice it might be. Obviously, it's not super critical or super important. Otherwise, we would have been told whose voice it was. But that doesn't stop people from trying to come up with ideas that are relevant to the passage itself. It could be the voice of the angel who is offering the incense there back in chapter 8, verse 3. Because if you remember, there was another angel that stood at the altar having a golden censer. But the interesting thing is there, in verse 3, when it says that he stood at the altar, the word that's translated at least in the King James Act is the Greek word epi, and it can also mean on or upon the altar. So you could actually picture the altar of incense not as a small one, but as a big one. Obviously, if it's the same altar that we saw in Chapter 6, it's big enough for all of the martyrs to be under and around. And so, it's a large enough place that he could be on this particular altar and actually saying what needs to be said in answer to the prayers of God's people. So it could be the angel who is offering the incense there. Another suggestion is it's the voice of the saints that were under the altar. And of course, they also cried under the fifth seal. Oh, Lord, how long? But it also could be the voice of God himself. That's the other suggestion as a further answer to the prayers of his people. Again, chapter 6, verse 10, they cry, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And this would be another answer to that. God says, not long. You don't have to wait as long as you think, because I'm going to bring the judgment on the earth. So it could be the angel. It could be the saints. It could be God himself. I personally see it as most likely being the same angel that we saw back in chapter eight because of that idea of him being on the altar. And it may even be him be inside the altar as he is offering those. But either way, whether it's of the angel or the saints or of God himself, Ultimately, the voice speaks on behalf of God and his people. It ultimately is God speaking through whoever it is to be able to bring about this sixth judgment. This might just be another way of saying that this angel spoke with a mighty voice. That is a phrase that you find all throughout the book of Revelation. Someone speaks with a mighty voice, a strong voice, a powerful voice. Even though it's not said here, it could just be another way of putting that because it's coming from the strong horns that surround this altar. It's coming right from the middle of it. It's a mighty way of saying these words. But whoever it is, he speaks on behalf of both God and his people to the angel who just blew the sixth trumpet. So it's different than the angel that blows the trumpet, but it's an angel or someone else bringing this message to that angel. So the first component is the angel. The second component is this voice. And then the third component is what we find in verse 14, and that is the command of the voice. the command of the angel to this other angel from this voice from the four horns. And what does it say? Verse 14 saying to the sixth angel, which had the trumpet loose, the four angels, which are bound in the great river Euphrates. So the command is to loose, right? To free, to release, to release and set free some angels which at some point had been bound. The idea is that they were free at some point and then they got bound at another point and now they are going to be set free again. As mentioned before, this is the first time that an angel in the trumpet judgments actually initiates the judgment. So here we have an angel actually involved, not just blowing the trumpet, but actually being part of the judgment. And so he is the one who actually is to loose the four angels. So that's who. Who is to loose it? The angel that blew the horn. And he is to loose the four angels. There might be a connection between the four horns of the altar that we just saw in verse 13 and the four angels mentioned here. Because again, four has the idea of complete and something that is comprehensive. And if these angels, four of them, sort of have a complete mission to go throughout all the world, as we just read, to destroy a third of humanity, I think perhaps God is saying, you know, the fourfold strength and power of God is greater than the fourfold strength and power of these angels that will be released into the world. And so that could be a reason why God uses that to comfort his people. You don't have to worry about these things, because greater is God in this world than even these angels who will be loosed in it. So God is powerful and has greater power still than these angels. He's in complete control of them. But even though the havoc that these four angels will wreak in this world, even though it will be comprehensive in this world, God's power still rules over them wherever they might go. But they're called angels. And I think, you know, this reminds us of what we saw last time in chapter 9, where the leader of those locusts, those demonic locusts, back in verse 11, is also called an angel. So obviously, these angels, like that angel, at some point were created by God as ministering spirits. And so, at some point, they were made in a way in which they were holy creatures, they were holy beings, and they were to do God's will and do God's bidding. We'll see later on in Revelation that a bunch of those angels did actually fall, rebelled against God, and chose to do that. And so, obviously, this particular angel, or these particular angels, are also angels originally created by God to be His ministering spirits, But based on why they are to be loosed, we learn that these are fallen angels, just like the locusts, just like Abaddon, just like Apollyon that we saw earlier in this chapter. These are fallen angels as well, because the reason they are to be loosed is because they were bound. They were bound. This means that at some point in the past, they were restrained. They were restricted in a particular place in this world. In the Greek, it's a perfect passive, which means that they had no choice. It wasn't saying, okay, we'll volunteer to go down here and wait for our time, but no, God did it himself. And so this is another one of those divine passives. Basically, they were, for whatever reason, bound in the past so that they would be restricted from bringing any harm until their time actually comes. So again, God's sovereign hand, God's sovereign control. So again, this is one of those divine passives, which shows that God is the one who bound these angels against their will, but for his own will and purpose. There are some who actually do see it as good angels, but that's a very, very small minority position. I think it is definitely an indication that they were fallen angels because they really follow after the will of Abaddon and even of the devil himself. Though there have been some attempts also, kind of suggesting that these might have been good angels, who have tried to associate these four angels with the four angels back in chapter 7, verse 1. that were in control of the four winds, if you remember. And again, the number four has the idea of comprehensive and global. But in chapter seven, verse one, John saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth nor any sea or any tree. And this is just before, obviously, the trumpets are unleashed on the earth and the sea and the tree. I hold that those are good angels, because God is letting them and allowing them, permitting them to hold the forces of nature at bay and to hold those things at bay. I don't see, though, as some suggest, that the angels here are the same as the angels there. Some of the reasons for that is because these are bound. and they're bound in a particular place, whereas those are on the four corners of the earth, and they seem like they have relative freedom along the four corners of the earth, and they're just holding the things at bay that are necessary. And so the reason why I would say that is especially because of where they are to be loosed from. We just briefly introduced this last time, the great river Euphrates, but these four angels are to be loosed from it because they are at least the King James puts it, in it. Once again, some of these prepositions can be translated differently depending on the context. The word in here is also from the Greek word epi, which also can mean, as we saw earlier, upon. So the angel could be on the altar in order to offer it up at Pete. Here we have the angels could also be on the river, not just in the river, which would basically mean that the banks of the river, not the water itself, but the banks of the river are sort of the bars of their prison. So they can't go beyond the limits of the river Euphrates for whatever reason obviously God has that purpose and God has that plan and for that reason So the the banks would be the bars of their prison now the Euphrates River Of course, we're familiar with it just because of the activities that have gone on over in Iraq and Iran, in our own country's history here recently. It is the longest river in the Middle East. It's about 1,700 miles long. So that's a pretty big prison for these four angels to roam. Not exactly sure if they're able to do anything within the banks of that river, but obviously they have a reason for being there until later on that we will see here. 1,700 miles is a pretty long river, but I thought this was interesting. It's only about half the length of our longest river, which is the Mississippi. I was kind of surprised at that. But this Euphrates River is great, not just because of its size, but because of its significance. It's been significant throughout history, not just biblical history, but history throughout the world. For the Jews, the Euphrates River formed, as one writer says, the northeastern boundary of the promised land that was promised to Abraham and to the children of Israel. You can find this in Genesis and Deuteronomy and Joshua. Now obviously, though it was promised to them, it wasn't fulfilled until the time of Solomon. where he was actually in charge and in control of all that land, even to the Euphrates. But even then, he was more of a governor. It wasn't all belonging to the Jews. There were other vassal states that were under the control of Solomon and the Jewish nation. But that was the promised boundary line for the people of God and for their land. But as time went on, God's people sinned. The other side of the Euphrates became associated with, again the same writer puts, the place from which God's judgment often came. as well as a place where evil lurked. And isn't this something that we find all throughout the Old Testament? You know, last time when we had our men's Bible study, we were going through the book of Jeremiah, and how many times does it talk about the countries from the north? Now, when we think about countries from the north, we think about far north. We think about our compass. But really, when the enemies of God's people would come and invade Israel, a lot of times they came from the east, Babylon, Assyria, those places. But they would follow the Euphrates River north and then invade from the north in order to destroy God's people, to punish God's people. Sometimes they'd go down to Egypt as well. And so, again, the Euphrates River was a significant place when they thought about judgment from God. And anything beyond it, they didn't want to have anything to do with. They didn't want anything to do with it. Also, though, not just for the Jews, but even during the times of the Romans, the time in which the Book of Revelation was written, the Euphrates River was significant to them as well. And we mentioned this last time because it too made up the eastern border of the entire Roman Empire. And just on the other side of the Euphrates River were the feared Parthians. that were always sort of a threat to Rome and to their empire. They would raid and defeat the Romans from about the middle of the first century all the way through like the third century after Christ. And so they would always be a threat to the Romans. And so the Romans hated the other side of the Euphrates. They despised the people that were on the other side. And so certainly that is a significant reason why these angels are bound there. Because the point is, they're really not there to harm God's people, but they are there to come when they are called. Now, we will find the Euphrates River mentioned again in Revelation, all the way in chapter 16, verse 12, when we learn that the water of the Euphrates will be dried up so that the way of another army, in fact, the way of the kings of the east, might be prepared. Again, Euphrates from the point of John, the point of God's people in Israel, was still east. But there will come a time when the water will be dried up, again, 1,700 miles completely dried up, so that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. Some have suggested that since the Euphrates River is mentioned in both the sixth trumpet judgment here, and then in the sixth bowl judgment, that's where we find it in chapter 16, There will be some that say that they must be referring to the same event, only from a different perspective. Remember when we were looking at some of the different approaches to Revelation? There were some that would see the seals, and the bowls, and the judgment, or the trumpets and the bowls, as really occurring simultaneously, only from a different perspective. And this is one of the reasons why, is they'd say there's a lot of similarities. And they would look at, hey, the Sixth Trumpet Judgment, you've got the Euphrates River. And then in the Sixth Bowl Judgment, you have the Euphrates River. And so since you have the Euphrates River mentioned in both, they must refer to the same events going on. Maybe one is more spiritual, the other one more physical, the other one dealing with demons, the other one dealing with men. So they must be referring to the same thing. However, as we've considered before, there does seem to be progression between these three series of seal and trumpet and bull judgments. Not just in severity, but even in time. And so I think it's hard to see the parallelism because what happens if they're all parallel? Does the sixth seal finish itself out in the sixth trumpet and then the sixth bull before you move on to the seventh? I think that kind of really doesn't hold true when you look at all of the details and you consider even the progression in time. So it does seem to be, even though they're mentioned in two different places, two different events that are being referred to. Yet already the association of these four angels and this Euphrates River is meant to bring up bad feelings to the original audience that John was writing to. Remember, we have Christians that are not only citizens of God's kingdom, but citizens of the Roman kingdom. They're in those cities there in Asia, and they too probably have some feelings about the Parthians. They have some feelings about what goes on on the other side of the Euphrates River. And so now they're starting to think, wait a second, What's going to happen when these four angels are released from that prison, the great Euphrates, what's going to happen when they are finally released? Well, they don't, and we don't have to wait very long to learn what will happen, because after these components, the three components, we've got the angel sounding his trumpet, you've got the voice from the four horns of the golden altar, and now you have the command to loose the four angels, now we find the consequences of the sixth trumpet. What happens with all of these components come together? Well, starting there in verse 15, following the command, the four angels were loosed. says, loose them, and this angel, again, the one who sounded the sixth trumpet, he actually obeys, he complies, he obeys. It was a divine command, no matter who said it, no matter how it was conveyed, and he obeyed and loosed the four angels according to this vision. Now, obviously, we see this as something yet to come. From John's perspective, it was actively going on in his vision. And so the first thing that we learn about the consequences of this judgment is, first of all, the plan for their release, the plan for these four angels' release. We're told that these four angels were prepared. This is another perfect passive participle that indicates that they did not prepare themselves. Whereas it almost seems like the demonic locusts in chapter nine were kind of like right there, just as the pit of hell was about to be opened. I mean, they were ready. Here it says that they were prepared. Who prepared them? God prepared. This is another one of those divine passes. God is the one who prepares them for this time, for this place, for this experience. So once again, even to the believers that are living during this time, they would see that in the darkest times of this world, they could see that God is still sovereign and still in complete control. And isn't that what we need to remember? In our own lives as Christians, no matter what might be released in this world, who's ultimately in charge? Who's ultimately in control? whether it's dealing with demonic forces or physical and natural forces, whether it's talking about things that go on in your body or outside of your body, God ultimately is in control and prepares things for his people. One writer again says, all occurs at God's behest and by his design. So again, God is in control. God is a sovereign God. We must never forget that as we go through the book of Revelation. Over and over again, you find these divine passives, which is something done or given to somebody and you're not told who it is. It's implied that it's God himself. But even as God is in complete control, one of the great doctrines that we find throughout scripture is also added there, yet God himself is absolved of evil in the whole enterprise. Though God is in control of evil, God never creates evil because God is holy, holy, holy. And yet he can still use what angels and what men mean for evil to accomplish his plan and his goodness and for his final purpose in all of history. So we need to remember that. And I think that phrase, those two sentences there written by Thomas Schreiner, I think really encapsulates what we ought to learn from the book of Revelation. God, all occurs at God's behest by his design. God himself is absolved of evil in the whole enterprise. So that's the plan for their release. But then we learn about the period of their release. Again, as we look at the King James, they were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year. And this simply means that everything that is going on in this judgment, as well as in all of the others, is done according to God's timetable. God has a timetable, and we don't know what it is. We're not familiar with the times and the dates and the seasons I mean we can kind of be aware of what's going on But ultimately all things happen according to God's timetable and we as Christians are just basically said to watch and pray Watch and pray watch and wait even as these things are going on But even down to the very moment these angels are released from their watery prison God is in control now even though at first at least from this translation and some other English translations, it does seem to refer to the overall time period, the overall time frame and length of their mission. Instead, it refers to the precise timing, not of the complete mission, but rather of the beginning of their mission. And the reason why we would say this is because the way it appears in Greek, it's there on your lesson guide as well as up here on the screen. You don't need to know the Greek words, but I just wanted to put it out there. We have here, and to basically translate it word for word in English, it simply means that these angels were prepared, the Greek word is eis, unto, so it's pointing forward to a particular time, and then you have the Greek article teis, which is the, okay, that's the significant word here, unto the hour, And, which is chi, day, and month, and year. Now, obviously we know what an hour is, we know what a day is, we know what a month is, and we know what a year is, all right? And they mean the exact same in Greek. As we look at those words there, I translated those for you. Horon, hameron, mena, and anioton. Okay, so those are the different words for hour, day, month, and year. But the use of the article the is very significant and very important in order to understand what is actually being said here in this verse. There are some Greek rules, and one of those is that when you have a string of nouns like this, like hour and day and month and year, in Greek they're known as substantives. When you have a string of nouns like hour and day and month and year, but you only have one article at the very beginning, they're all talking about the same thing. And so instead of really referring to the period of time of an hour and a day and a month and a year, what is happening is, is it's actually pinpointing, it's pinpointing the time at which their mission is going to begin. So when you have this Greek, the string of nouns, they're all related. So this does not refer to an hour plus a day plus a month plus a year, then to add them all together. It pinpoints the very hour that these are going to be released, but it's the very hour that will be in the very day, in the very month, in the very year. And you can kind of see the V, the point going right down to that very hour in which their mission is to be accomplished. It shows the very moment that this judgment is going to begin, showing that it's in God's hands. Another way you could put it is that according to God's plan, these angels will not be released until the very hour of the very day of the very month, of the very year that God has prepared for them to come. One writer puts it this way, and I think this is sort of how All of the commentators would describe this particular Greek rule. One article governing all four nouns shows that duration is not in view, but the occasion of each one of the time designations is one in the same. The appointed hour occurs on the appointed day, in the appointed month, and in the appointed year. And of course, what's the point of this? The point of this is that God's actions are not accidental, but planned and precise. So again, you can just kind of see that pinpoint. This is the year. This is the day. This is the hour. This is it for this judgment to begin. And God is preparing for this. So even though when you look at these horses and these horsemen and you look and you feel and experience through John's vision, all that's going on there and hearing that a third of mankind is going to be killed, remember who's ultimately in charge. He's the one that prepared them for that very moment. But then all of this leads to the very purpose of their release. We find this again there in verse 15. It is to slay the third part of men. So remember, the demonic locusts are restricted, aren't they? I would imagine if they were allowed to, they would want to kill as many as they possibly could. But they were restricted from killing their victims. Here, no such restriction is given to these four angels. They are, by God's permission, under God's authority, for God's purpose, to kill. And so the third part of mankind at this time will be killed. Of course, the phrase third part continues the theme of the first four trumpet judgments. We didn't see this in the fifth trumpet judgment. There was no part. All right. We saw that there were many, in fact, probably most, if not all mankind that were tormented and tortured by these demonic angels, these demonic locusts. But if you remember the first four trumpet judgments, We have the third part of the trees, the third part of the sea, the third part of the ships, the third part of the rivers, the third part of the springs of water, the third part of the sun, the third part of the moon, the third part of the stars, all are affected. And now we have a third part of men die. Back in chapter eight, verse 11, we saw that many men died because of the waters when they were made bitter. Here again, it's especially said a third of them will die of however many men will be left in this world. But just like with the fifth trumpet judgment, it will only affect the people who are not believers in Christ. We're gonna actually jump down to the end of this trumpet judgment, because obviously in chapter, or in the first part of this chapter, we learn that those who have the seal of God in their forehead are spared. But I think you get a sense of that also when we come to verse 20, when we're told that the ones who were not killed The ones that were not killed are told, or we're told, that they repented not of the works of their hands. And so the sense is that the ones that were not killed, though they were hurt by these horses, they were the ones who still had to repent. And believers don't have to, as far as initial salvation and coming to the Lord Jesus Christ. So both the fifth and the sixth trumpet judgments are limited in their scope to only those who still need to repent of their idolatry and of their sins to turn to and trust in Christ. So the third part of men is not dealing with believers, but of all of those who yet need to repent of their sin. Also, This mention of the third is not meant for us to tabulate how many more people are left in the world. There are some who would take this back with what we found in the seal judgments. If you remember all the way back in chapter six, verse eight, when the fourth seal is open, death and hell were given power over, if you remember the fourth part of, The earth, to kill with sword and hunger and death and with the beasts of the earth. Under the fourth seal, when it's talking about the power to kill, it's limited to not people, but a place. It's limited not to the population, but rather to the part of the earth. And earth, whenever it's used in Revelation, and I did a study of every time that earth is found in Revelation, and every single time it doesn't refer to the population of earth, it deals with the actual place of the earth, the global scale, the global scene. And so death and hell will have many victims, but we cannot say that it will be a fourth of the population of the earth, but rather their mission is on a fourth part of the earth at any one time. So here under the sixth trumpet, it's expressly said that a third of mankind, who are unbelievers, will be killed by the power that is given to these four imprisoned angels. So if you remember back in the fifth trumpet judgment, what Abaddon started with his horde of demonic locusts, These demons will actually be able to finish with their cavalry of demonic horses. And that is what we will learn about next time. So this is sort of the introduction to this sixth trumpet judgment. You've got the components there in verse 13 and 14, and then you've got the consequences as those four angels are loosed, who were bound, and they are going to go out to slay the third part of men. How they do that, we find in verse 16 and following.