American Standard Version
Revelation 9:5
5And it was given them that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when it striketh a man.
Revelation 9:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
- New International Version (NIV)They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes.
- English Standard Version (ESV)They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months. Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.
Context of Revelation 9:5
3And out of the smoke came forth locusts upon the earth; and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4And it was said unto them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only such men as have not the seal of God on their foreheads. And it was given them that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when it striketh a man. 6And in those days men shall seek death, and shall in no wise find it; and they shall desire to die, and death fleeth from them. 7And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared for war; and upon their heads as it were crowns like unto gold, and their faces were as men’s faces.
Read all of Revelation 9Revelation 9:5 word by word
καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτοῖς ἵνα μὴ ἀποκτείνωσιν αὐτούς, ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα βασανισθήσονται μῆνας πέντε, καὶ ὁ βασανισμὸς αὐτῶν ὡς βασανισμὸς σκορπίου ὅταν παίσῃ ἄνθρωπον.¶Read the interlinear
- givenδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
- killἀποκτείνωapokteinō · to killG615
- tormentedβασανίζωbasanizō · to torture: tortureG928
- fiveπέντεpente · fiveG4002
- monthsμήνmēn · monthG3376
- tormentβασανισμόςbasanismos · tormentG929
- scorpionσκορπίοςskorpios · scorpionG4651
- whenὅτανhotan · when(-ever)G3752
- manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
Cross-references for Revelation 9:5
- Revelation 13:5and there was given to him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and there was given to him authority to continue forty and two months.
- Daniel 5:18O thou king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father the kingdom, and greatness, and glory, and majesty:
- Daniel 7:6After this I beheld, and, lo, another, like a leopard, which had upon its back four wings of a bird; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it.
- John 19:11Jesus answered him, Thou wouldest have no power against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath greater sin.
- Revelation 11:7And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that cometh up out of the abyss shall make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them.
- Job 2:6And Jehovah said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thy hand; only spare his life.
- Revelation 9:10And they have tails like unto scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men five months.
- Revelation 9:3And out of the smoke came forth locusts upon the earth; and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
Commentaries on Revelation 9:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5To them it was given - That is, they were permitted. That they should be tormented five months - Some take these months literally, and apply them to the conduct of the Zealots who, from May to September, in the year of the siege, produced dreadful contests among the people; or to the afflictions brought upon the Jews by Cestius Gallus, when he came against Jerusalem, before which he lay one whole summer, or nearly five months - See Joseph., Bell. Jud., l…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5And to them it was given - There is here the same indefiniteness as in the former verse, the impersonal verb being here also used. The writer does not say by whom this power was given, whether by God, or by the leader of the host. It may be admitted, however, that the most natural interpretation is to suppose that it was given them by God, and that this was the execution of his purpose in this case. Still it is remarkable that this is not directly…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5torment them for five months: This time period is a symbolically complete number based on the fingers on a hand. It is also the normal life span of locusts, suggesting that their entire purpose was to torture people.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. they ... they--The subject changes: the first "they" is the locusts; the second is the unsealed. five months--the ordinary time in the year during which locusts continue their ravages. their torment--the torment of the sufferers. This fifth verse and Re 9:6 cannot refer to an invading army. For an army would kill, and not merely torment.Read the comment
Topics related to Revelation 9:5
In the dictionaries
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
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries