God’s Word Translation
Revelation 9:17
17In the vision that I had, the horses and their riders looked like this: The riders had breastplates that were fiery red, pale blue, and yellow. The horses had heads like lions. Fire, smoke, and sulfur came out of their mouths.
Revelation 9:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, 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.
- New International Version (NIV)The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were like lions' heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And thus I saw the horses in the vision: those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone.
Context of Revelation 9:17
15The four angels who were ready for that hour, day, month, and year were released to kill one-third of humanity. 16The soldiers on horses numbered 20,000 times 10,000. I heard how many there were. In the vision that I had, the horses and their riders looked like this: The riders had breastplates that were fiery red, pale blue, and yellow. The horses had heads like lions. Fire, smoke, and sulfur came out of their mouths. 18These three plagues—the fire, smoke, and sulfur which came out of their mouths—killed one-third of humanity. 19The power of these horses is in their mouths and their tails. (Their tails have heads like snakes which they use to hurt people.)
Read all of Revelation 9Revelation 9:17 word by word
Καὶ οὕτως εἶδον τοὺς ἵππους ἐν τῇ ὁράσει καὶ τοὺς καθημένους ἐπ᾽ αὐτῶν ἔχοντας θώρακας πυρίνους καὶ ὑακινθίνους καὶ θειώδεις. καὶ αἱ κεφαλαὶ τῶν ἵππων ὡς κεφαλαὶ λεόντων, καὶ ἐκ τῶν στομάτων αὐτῶν ἐκπορεύεται πῦρ καὶ καπνὸς καὶ θεῖον.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Andκαίkai · andG2532
- thusοὕτωςhoutō · thus(-ly)G3779
- I sawὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
- the horsesὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- the horsesἵπποςhippos · horseG2462
- inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
- the visionὅρασιςhorasis · appearance/visionG3706
- that satκάθημαιkathēmai · to sitG2521
- onἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
- themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- havingἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- breastplatesθώραξthōrax · breastplateG2382
- of fireπύρινοςpurinos · fieryG4447
- of jacinthὑακίνθινοςhuakinthinos · dark blueG5191
- brimstoneθειώδηςtheiōdēs · sulphurousG2306
- the headsκεφαλήkephalē · headG2776
- asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
- of lionsλέωνleōn · lionG3023
- outἐκek ex · out fromG1537
- mouthsστόμαstoma · mouthG4750
- issuedἐκπορεύωekporeuomai · to departG1607
- fireπῦρpur · fireG4442
- smokeκαπνόςkapnos · smokeG2586
- brimstoneθεῖονtheion · sulfurG2303
Cross-references for Revelation 9:17
- Revelation 9:9They had breastplates like iron. The noise from their wings was like the roar of chariots with many horses rushing into battle.
- Revelation 21:20the fifth onyx, the sixth red quartz, the seventh yellow quartz, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth green quartz, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.
- Revelation 9:18These three plagues—the fire, smoke, and sulfur which came out of their mouths—killed one-third of humanity.
- Revelation 14:10will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured unmixed into the cup of God’s anger. Then he will be tortured by fiery sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the lamb.
- Revelation 19:20The beast and the false prophet who had done miracles for the beast were captured. By these miracles the false prophet had deceived those who had the brand of the beast and worshiped its statue. Both of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
- Revelation 21:8But cowardly, unfaithful, and detestable people, murderers, sexual sinners, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars will find themselves in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
- Genesis 19:24Then the Lord made burning sulfur and fire rain out of heaven on Sodom and Gomorrah.
- Psalms 11:6He rains down fire and burning sulfur upon wicked people. He makes them drink from a cup filled with scorching wind.
- Isaiah 30:33Topheth was prepared long ago. It was made ready for the king. It was made deep and wide and piled high with plenty of burning logs. The Lord’s breath will be like a flood of burning sulfur, setting it on fire.
- Ezekiel 33:22The evening before the refugee arrived, the power of the Lord came over me. On the morning the refugee arrived, the Lord made me speak. So I spoke, and I was no longer quiet.
- 1 Chronicles 12:8Some men left Gad to join David at the fortified camp in the desert. They were warriors, trained soldiers, able to fight with shields and spears. They looked like lions and were as fast as gazelles on the hills.
- Isaiah 5:28Their arrows are sharpened; all their bows are ready to shoot. Their horses’ hoofs are as hard as flint. Their chariot wheels are as quick as the wind.
Commentaries on Revelation 9:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Breastplates of fire - jacinth, and brimstone - That is, red, blue, and yellow; the first is the color of fire, the second of jacinth, and the third of sulphur. And the heads of the horses - Is this an allegorical description of great ordnance? Cannons, on the mouths of which horses' heads were formed, or the mouth of the cannon cast in that form? Fire, smoke, and brimstone, is a good allegorical representation of gunpowder. The Ottomans made great use of…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17And thus I saw the horses in the vision - That is, he saw them as he proceeds to describe them, for the word “thus” - ̔́ houtōs- refers to what follows. Compare Robinson‘s Lexicon on the word (b), and see Matthew 1:18; Matthew 2:5; John 21:1; Hebrews 4:4. Prof. Stuart, however, refers to what precedes. The meaning, as it seems to me, is, that he fixed his attention on the appearance of the immense army - the horses and their riders, and proceeded to…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-21Verses 13-21 The sixth angel sounded, and here the power of the Turks seems the subject. Their time is limited. They not only slew in war, but brought a poisonous and ruinous religion. The antichristian generation repented not under these dreadful judgments. From this sixth trumpet learn that God can make one enemy of the church a scourge and a plague to another. The idolatry in the remains of the eastern church and elsewhere, and the sins of professed…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-19The riders wore armor in colors matching their horses' plagues: red for fire, blue for smoke, and yellow for sulfur. These are signs of judgment in Scripture (see Revelation 14:10–11; 19:20; Genesis 19:24–28; Psalm 11:6; Ezekiel 38:22; Luke 17:29). The horses resemble the terrifying monsters from Greek stories depicted on ancient buildings and celebrated in old dramas. A third: See study note on Revelation 8:7–12.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. thus--as follows. of fire--the fiery color of the breastplates answering to the fire which issued out of their mouths. of jacinth--literally, "of hyacinth color," the hyacinth of the ancients answering to our dark blue iris: thus, their dark, dull-colored breastplates correspond to the smoke out of their mouths. brimstone--sulphur-colored: answering to the brimstone or sulphur out of their mouths.Read the comment
Topics related to Revelation 9:17
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
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