Revelation 9:4

Revelation 9:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
• New International Version (NIV)They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
• English Standard Version (ESV)They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
• New King James Version (NKJV)They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

Context of Revelation 9:4

2He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke like the smoke of a great furnace flowed out of the pit; and the sun and the atmosphere were darkened by the smoke from the pit. 3Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power [to hurt] was given to them, like the power which the earth’s scorpions have. They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but [to hurt] only the people who do not have the seal (mark of ownership, protection) of God on their foreheads. 5They were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment and cause them extreme pain for five months; and their torment was like the torment from a scorpion when it stings a man. 6And in those days people will seek death and will not find it; and they will long to die [to escape the pain], but [will discover that] death evades them.

Revelation 9:4 word by word

καὶ ἐρρέθη αὐταῖς ἵνα μὴ ἀδικήσουσιν τὸν χόρτον τῆς γῆς οὐδὲ πᾶν χλωρὸν οὐδὲ πᾶν δένδρον, εἰ μὴ τοὺς ἀνθρώπους οἵτινες οὐκ ἔχουσιν τὴν σφραγῖδα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπὶ τῶν μετώπωνRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• it was commandedἐρῶereō · to sayG2046
• themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• they shouldἀδικέωadikeō · to harmG91
• notμήmē · notG3361
• the grassὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the grassχόρτοςchortos · grassG5528
• of the earthγῆgē · earth: planetG1093
• neitherοὐδέoude · norG3761
• anyπᾶςpas · allG3956
• green thingχλωρόςchlōros · greenG5515
• treeδένδρονdendron · treeG1186
• butεἰei · if: notG1487
• onlyμόνοςmonos · aloneG3441
• thoseὅστιςhostis hētis ho6ti · who/whichG3748
• menἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
• which haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
• notοὐou · noG3756
• the sealσφραγίςsphragis · sealG4973
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• inἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• foreheadsμέτωπονmetopon · foreheadG3359

Cross-references for Revelation 9:4

• Revelation 6:6And I heard something like a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius (a day’s wages), and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not damage the oil and the wine.”
• Revelation 7:3saying, “Do not harm the earth nor the sea nor the trees until we seal (mark) the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads.”
• Job 1:10Have You not put a hedge [of protection] around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands [and conferred prosperity and happiness upon him], and his possessions have increased in the land.
• Psalms 76:10For the wrath of man shall praise You; With a remnant of wrath You will clothe and arm Yourself.
• Matthew 24:24For false Christs and false prophets will appear and they will provide great signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect (God’s chosen ones).
• 2 Timothy 3:8Just as Jannes and Jambres [the court magicians of Egypt] opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, unqualified and worthless [as teachers] in regard to the faith.
• Revelation 8:7The first [angel] sounded [his trumpet], and there was [a storm of] hail and fire, mixed with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.
• Revelation 14:1Then I looked, and this is what I saw: the Lamb stood [firmly established] on Mount Zion, and with Him a hundred and forty-four thousand who had His name and His Father’s name inscribed on their foreheads [signifying God’s own possession].
• Exodus 12:23For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel [above the entry way] and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to slay you.
• Job 2:6So the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand, only spare his life.”
• Ezekiel 9:4The Lord said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, throughout all of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh [in distress] and grieve over all the repulsive acts which are being committed in it.”
• Ephesians 4:30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God [but seek to please Him], by whom you were sealed and marked [branded as God’s own] for the day of redemption [the final deliverance from the consequences of sin].

Commentaries on Revelation 9:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4They should not hurt the grass - Neither the common people, the men of middling condition, nor the nobles. However, this appears rather to refer to the prudent counsels of a military chief, not to destroy the crops and herbage of which they might have need in their campaigns. Which have not the seal of God - All false, hypocritical, and heterodox Christians.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4And it was commanded them - The writer does not say by whom this command was given, but it is clearly by someone who had the direction of them. As they were evoked from the “bottomless pit” by one who had the key to that dark abode, and as they are represented in Revelation 9:11 as under the command of one who is there called Abaddon, or Apollyon - the Destroyer - it would seem most probable that the command referred to is one that is given by him; that…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4The locusts come down to earth from the smoke. They have the power to sting like scorpions. They are fiercer than those in the Egyptian plague (see Exodus 10:14–15). Instead of eating plants, these locusts attack people like stinging scorpions. Only people without the seal of God (see Revelation 7:1–8) experience this painful judgment. The stings cause painful torture but do not cause death (Revelation 9:5–6).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. not hurt the grass ... neither ... green thing ... neither ... tree--the food on which they ordinarily prey. Therefore, not natural and ordinary locusts. Their natural instinct is supernaturally restrained to mark the judgment as altogether divine. those men which--Greek, "the men whosoever." in, &c.--Greek, "upon their forehead." Thus this fifth trumpet is proved to follow the sealing in Re 7:1-8, under the sixth seal. None of the saints are hurt by…Read the comment

Topics related to Revelation 9:4

• Locust
• Trumpet
• Vision
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Abaddon
• Angel
• Authority in Religion
• Color; Colors
• Forehead
• Government
• Grass
• Jair

Commentaries on Revelation 9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings