Revelation 9:13-21, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Revelation 9:13-21
The Sixth Trumpet Exposes Death without Repentance
The sixth trumpet kills a third, and the survivors do not turn
The sixth angel sounds, and a voice from the horns of the golden altar tells him to release the four angels bound at the great river Euphrates. They have been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, to kill a third of humankind. The number of mounted troops is two hundred million; John hears that figure.
The horses and riders appear in fiery, hyacinth, and sulfur colors, with lion-like heads. Fire, smoke, and sulfur come from their mouths, and tails like serpents do harm. A third of humankind is killed by these three plagues. The rest of humankind, who were not killed, do not repent of the works of their hands: worship of demons and of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood idols that cannot see, hear, or walk. They do not repent of murders, sorceries, sexual immorality, or thefts.
Euphrates and two hundred million are not a modern army list
The river marks Rome's eastern horizon and older invasion memory. The army does not identify China, another modern state, a race, or a current military. The exact time signals divine limitation, not a date to calculate, and the troop number may simply name immensity.
The passage does not authorize killing idolaters or alleged sorcerers. Its grief is that death itself does not produce repentance.
How this should shape us
Do not pin this cavalry on a nation you already fear. Examine idolatry, violence, and theft closer to home, and refuse any reading that turns the sixth trumpet into a war plan.
Teach it back
Explain Revelation 9:13-21 in your own words. Include its place in Revelation's visionary movement, one major interpretive uncertainty, one Old Testament or first-century control, and one use the passage does not authorize.
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Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties
Where do careful interpreters differ?
Best judgment: The Euphrates evokes Rome's eastern frontier and older invasion traditions without identifying modern armies. The exact time signals divine limitation, not a date to calculate; the troop number may be symbolic immensity.
How certain? probableResearch trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact reader-facing KJV wording, paragraph markers, supplied-word markup, and complete coverage.
Revelation 9:13-21, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Supports: Greek wording and sentence relations checked independently of the KJV.
Faithlife SBLGNT official repository, data/sblgnt/text/Revelation.txt, 9:13-21
Supports: Greek form, morphology, and lexical-range cross-check; lexical data does not decide context by itself.
STEP Bible Data official repository, TAGNT Acts–Revelation data, rows for 9:13-21
Supports: Verse-level translation, syntax, textual variants, imagery, cross-references, and stated alternatives.
NET Bible Revelation PDF, printed pp. 2408–2447, 9:13-21 and attached translator/textual notes
Supports: Revelation's textual transmission, KJV/TR history, local uncertainty, and limits of reconstructing an earliest text.
Hernández, 'The Greek Text of Revelation,' author preprint, sections on textual plurality, Textus Receptus, Erasmus, manuscript recovery, Hoskier, Schmid, and Text und Textwert; local implications for 9:13-21
Supports: Methodological control for verbal, thematic, structural, authorial, reader, and later intertextual claims.
Moyise, 'Intertextuality and the Use of Scripture in the Book of Revelation?' pp. 391–401; allusion-method discussion applied to 9:13-21
Supports: Authorship, date, audience, genre, cycles, Roman setting, Lamb-shaped conquest, and limits on persecution reconstructions.
Oxford Handbook authorized preview: Koester, 'Revelation in Its Historical and Theological Context,' printed pp. 1–20; Reddish, 'The Genre of the Book of Revelation,' printed pp. 21–32; applied to 9:13-21
Supports: Reader-first whole-book context, Roman Asia, symbolism, worship, judgment, endurance, and responsible reception.
Enter the Bible Revelation course, sections Summary, Outline, Background, Introductory Issues, Theological Themes, and Bible in the World; applied to 9:13-21
Supports: Full confessional commentary, Greek observations, Old Testament links, four major interpretive approaches, millennial options, and application.
Tabb, 'Revelation,' commentary heading covering Revelation 9:13-21 plus Introduction and Theology
Supports: Social-historical control for Roman Asia, civic participation, imperial cults, local conflicts, and anti-imperial rhetoric.
Harland, 'Imperial Cults, Persecution, and the Apocalypse of John,' printed pp. 211–231, especially the seven assemblies, imperial honors, persecution cautions, and Babylon discussion applied to 9:13-21
Supports: Violent imagery, worship, witness, repentance, Lamb-shaped conquest, creation, and the unresolved divine-violence problem.
Decock, 'Images of War and Creation, Violence and Non-Violence in the Revelation of John,' complete article, sections 1–5; applied to 9:13-21
Supports: Gendered rhetoric, Roman power, faithful witness, worship, nonviolent application, and new creation.
Kirby, 'The Book of Revelation: Following the Lamb,' printed pp. 466–484, especially Gender and Violence, imperial setting, literary features, and Following the Lamb; applied to 9:13-21
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact reader-facing KJV wording, paragraph markers, supplied-word markup, and complete coverage.
Exact location: Revelation 9:13-21, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: Greek wording and sentence relations checked independently of the KJV.
Exact location: Faithlife SBLGNT official repository, data/sblgnt/text/Revelation.txt, 9:13-21
Open the Revelation Greek text file ↗Lexical and grammatical evidence
STEP Bible Data
Tyndale House Cambridge
Tyndale House Cambridge, repository snapshot verified 2026
Supports: Greek form, morphology, and lexical-range cross-check; lexical data does not decide context by itself.
Exact location: STEP Bible Data official repository, TAGNT Acts–Revelation data, rows for 9:13-21
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Revelation with translators' and textual notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2005–2026 online edition
Supports: Verse-level translation, syntax, textual variants, imagery, cross-references, and stated alternatives.
Exact location: NET Bible Revelation PDF, printed pp. 2408–2447, 9:13-21 and attached translator/textual notes
Open the official NET Revelation PDF ↗peer reviewed handbook chapter author preprint
The Greek Text of Revelation
Juan Hernández Jr.
The Oxford Handbook of the Book of Revelation, 2020
Supports: Revelation's textual transmission, KJV/TR history, local uncertainty, and limits of reconstructing an earliest text.
Exact location: Hernández, 'The Greek Text of Revelation,' author preprint, sections on textual plurality, Textus Receptus, Erasmus, manuscript recovery, Hoskier, Schmid, and Text und Textwert; local implications for 9:13-21
Open Hernández's author-uploaded preprint ↗peer reviewed open access article
Intertextuality and the Use of Scripture in the Book of Revelation?
Steve Moyise
Scriptura 84, 2003; online record 2013
Supports: Methodological control for verbal, thematic, structural, authorial, reader, and later intertextual claims.
Exact location: Moyise, 'Intertextuality and the Use of Scripture in the Book of Revelation?' pp. 391–401; allusion-method discussion applied to 9:13-21
Open Moyise's Scripture-use article ↗modern scholarly handbook preview
The Oxford Handbook of the Book of Revelation — publisher preview
Craig R. Koester, editor; chapters by Craig R. Koester and Mitchell G. Reddish
Oxford University Press, 2020
Supports: Authorship, date, audience, genre, cycles, Roman setting, Lamb-shaped conquest, and limits on persecution reconstructions.
Exact location: Oxford Handbook authorized preview: Koester, 'Revelation in Its Historical and Theological Context,' printed pp. 1–20; Reddish, 'The Genre of the Book of Revelation,' printed pp. 21–32; applied to 9:13-21
Open the Oxford Handbook preview ↗modern scholarly book introduction
Revelation course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, theological themes, and Bible in the world
Craig R. Koester and Kristofer Phan Coffman
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, current online course inspected 2026
Supports: Reader-first whole-book context, Roman Asia, symbolism, worship, judgment, endurance, and responsible reception.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Revelation course, sections Summary, Outline, Background, Introductory Issues, Theological Themes, and Bible in the World; applied to 9:13-21
Open the Enter the Bible Revelation course ↗modern open commentary
Revelation
Brian J. Tabb
The Gospel Coalition Bible Commentary, 2023 online edition
Supports: Full confessional commentary, Greek observations, Old Testament links, four major interpretive approaches, millennial options, and application.
Exact location: Tabb, 'Revelation,' commentary heading covering Revelation 9:13-21 plus Introduction and Theology
Open Tabb's Revelation commentary ↗modern social historical monograph chapter
Imperial Cults, Persecution, and the Apocalypse of John
Philip A. Harland
Second edition of Associations, Synagogues, and Congregations, 2013
Supports: Social-historical control for Roman Asia, civic participation, imperial cults, local conflicts, and anti-imperial rhetoric.
Exact location: Harland, 'Imperial Cults, Persecution, and the Apocalypse of John,' printed pp. 211–231, especially the seven assemblies, imperial honors, persecution cautions, and Babylon discussion applied to 9:13-21
Open Harland's imperial-cults chapter ↗peer reviewed open access article
Images of War and Creation, Violence and Non-Violence in the Revelation of John
Paul Decock
HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 64.4, 2008
Supports: Violent imagery, worship, witness, repentance, Lamb-shaped conquest, creation, and the unresolved divine-violence problem.
Exact location: Decock, 'Images of War and Creation, Violence and Non-Violence in the Revelation of John,' complete article, sections 1–5; applied to 9:13-21
Open Decock's violence article ↗modern open scholarly book chapter
The Book of Revelation: Following the Lamb
D. Jill Kirby
Religious Studies Center, in New Testament History, Culture, and Society, 2019
Supports: Gendered rhetoric, Roman power, faithful witness, worship, nonviolent application, and new creation.
Exact location: Kirby, 'The Book of Revelation: Following the Lamb,' printed pp. 466–484, especially Gender and Violence, imperial setting, literary features, and Following the Lamb; applied to 9:13-21
Open Kirby's Revelation chapter ↗