And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings [was] as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
9. breastplates of iron ] This probably is an idealisation of the structure of the natural locust.
chariots ] Joe 2:5.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron – Hard, horny, impenetrable, as if they were made of iron. The locust has a firm and hard cuticle on the forepart of the breast, which serves for a shield or defense while it moves in the thorny and furzy vegetation. On those which John saw this was especially hard and horny, and would thus be well adapted to be an emblem of the breastplates of iron commonly worn by ancient warriors. The meaning is, that the warriors referred to would be well clad with defensive armor.
And the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle – The noise made by locusts is often spoken of by travelers, and the comparison of that noise with that of chariots rushing to battle, is not only appropriate, but also indicates clearly what was symbolized. It was an army that was symbolized, and everything about them served to represent hosts of men well armed, rushing to conflict. The same thing here referred to is noticed by Joel Joe 2:4-5, Joe 2:7;
The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses;
And as horsemen so shall they run.
Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains, shall they leap;
Like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble;
As a strong people set in battle array.
They shall run like mighty men;
They shall climb the wall like men of war;
And they shall march every one his ways,
And shall not break their ranks, etc.
It is remarkable that Volney, who had no intention of illustrating the truth of Scripture, has given a description of locusts, as if he meant to confirm the truth of what is here said. Syria, says he, as well as Egypt, Persia, and almost all the south of Asia, is subject to another calamity no less dreadful (than earthquakes); I mean those clouds of locusts so often mentioned by travelers. The quantity of these insects is incredible to all who have not themselves witnessed their astounding numbers; the whole earth is covered with them for the space of several leagues. The noise they make in browsing on the trees and herbage may be heard to a great distance, and resembles that of an army foraging in secret (Travels in Egypt and Syria, vol. i. pp. 283, 284).
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 9. They had breastplates-of iron] They seemed to be invulnerable, for no force availed against them.
The sound of their wings] Their hanging weapons and military trappings, with the clang of their shields and swords when they make their fierce onsets. This simile is borrowed from Joe 2:5-7.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; armed with the best armour of defence.
And the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle; like locusts, they moved very swiftly. This agreeth to the Saracens, who made such haste in their conquests, that (saith Mr. Mede) in little more than eighty years they had subdued Palestina, Syria, both the Armenias, almost all the Lesser Asia, Persia, India, Egypt, Numidia, all Barbary, Portugal, Spain; and within a few more, Sicily, Candia, Cyprus, and were come to the very gates of Rome; so as they had many crowns on their heads, and moved as with wings.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
9. as it were breastplates ofironnot such as forms the thorax of the natural locust.
as . . . chariots (Joe2:5-7).
battleGreek,“war.”
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron,…. Alluding to the hard skin of the locusts, with which nature has fenced it q; see Joe 2:8; and denotes the armour with which the Saracens were accoutred: and if to be understood of the western locusts, the hardness of their hearts, their seared consciences, or their protection by the princes of the earth, the many privileges they are possessed of, the laws made in their favour, and for their security; their breastplates were not breastplates of righteousness, faith, and love, nor in defence of truth, but against it. And some think the iron colour may denote the colour of their habit, their black garments:
and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle; see Joe 2:5. The sound of locusts, when they fly or march in large companies, is very great. Pliny says r, they make such a noise with their wings, when they fly, that they have been thought to have been other winged creatures; hence a locust, in Hebrew, is sometimes called , the same name that is given to the high sounding cymbal. The sound of them is said to have been heard six miles s. Aristotle t ascribes it to the rubbing of their legs or thighs one against another; and so the Ethiopic version here renders it, “the sound of their feet”: this may be expressive of the swift and rapid incursions of the Saracens, and of the dreadful alarms to the nations which their invasions made; and may be applied to the noisy declamations, anathemas, excommunications, and interdicts of the Romish clergy.
q Claudian. Epigram. 13. r Plin. l. 11. c. 29, 51. s Altissiodorensis in Joel ii. 5. t Hist. Animal. l. 4. c. 9. Vid. Plin. l. 11. c. 51.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
As it were breastplates of iron ( ). The was originally the breast (from the neck to the navel), then the breastplate, only N.T. usage (Rev 9:9; Rev 9:17; 1Thess 5:8; Eph 6:14). The armour for the breastplate was usually of iron (, Re 2:27), but with the locusts it only seemed to be so (). However, the scaly backs and flanks of the locusts do resemble coats of mail. “The locusts of the Abyss may be the memories of the past brought home at times of Divine visitation” (Swete).
The sound of their wings ( ). Graphic picture of the onrush of the swarms of demonic locusts and the hopelessness of resisting them.
As the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to war ( ). Both metaphors here, the clatter and clangour of the chariot wheels and the prancing of the horses are found in Joe 2:4f. is present active predicate participle of , to run. Cf. 2Kgs 7:6; Jer 47:3.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Breastplates. The breast of the locust resembles the plates of a horse ‘s armor.
Sound of their wings. Olivier, a French writer, says : “It in difficult to express the effect produced on us by the sight of the whole atmosphere filled on all sides and to a great height by an innumerable quantity of these insects, whose flight was slow and uniform, and whose noise resembled that of rain.” For a graphic description of their numbers and ravages, see Thomson, “Land and Book, Central Palestine and Phoenicia,” 295 – 302.
Of chariots of many horses. That is, of many – horsed chariots. The Rev., by the insertion of a comma, apparently takes the two clauses as parallel : the sound of chariots, (the sound) of many horses.
Tails like unto scorpions. The comparison with the insect as it exists in nature fails here, though Smith’s “Bible Dictionary” gives a picture of a species of locust, the Acridium Lineola, a species commonly sold for food in the markets of Bagdad, which has a sting in the tail.
Stings [] . Originally any sharp point. A goad. See on pricks, Act 26:14. Plato uses it of the peg of a top (” Republic, “436). Herodotus of an instrument of torture. Democedes, the Crotoniat physician, having denied his knowledge of medicine to Darius, Darius bade his attendants” bring the scourges and pricking – irons kentra) (3, 30) Sophocles of the buckle – tongues with which Oedipus put out his eyes.
“Woe, woe, and woe again! How through me darts the throb these clasps [] . have caused.” ” Oedipus Tyrannas, ” 1318.
Of the spur of a cock, the quill of a porcupine, and the stings of insects. For the A. V., there were stings in their tails, read as Rev., and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “And they had breastplates,” (kai eichon thorakas) “And they held breastplates;- armor of breast protection, for the thorax area of the body, covering the area of the vitals of the body.
2) “As it were breastplates of iron,” (hos thorakas siderous) “Similar to breastplates of iron,” referring to a hard scale-covering on the locust, almost hard as iron. Such is the appearance, viciousness, and durable structure of these creatures of Divine plague judgments that are to fall on men under the sounding of the angel of the fifth trumpet, Rev 9:1-11.
3) “And the sound of their wings,” (kai he phone ton pterugon auton) “And the sound (noise) of their wings,” as they came up out of the smoke, out of the bottomless pit, where they were released by the fallen star, the Devil, Rev 9:1-3.
4) “Was as the sound of chariots of many horses,” (hos phone harmaton hippon pollon) “Was similar to the sound or noise of many chariots of running horses,” headed for battle in prancing and galloping fear and horror, Joe 2:5.
5) “Running to battle,” (trechonton eis polemon) “Running into battle; as the goat or ox to slaughter, bleats and bellows in horror at the smell of blood, as it approaches the slaughter, while the sheep opens not his mouth, Pro 7:22; Isa 53:7; Eze 21:22.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
9. Breastplates ”Referred here to the hard and firm cuticle on the fore part of the locust, which serves as a shield while it moves among the thorny and furzy vegetation.” Stuart. Such is the natural basis which symbolizes how damning lie is ever ready to defend itself in the moral battle with truth and righteousness.
Sound of their wings It is from their wings that issues the stridulous noise of the locust tribe. And so the wings of swarming lies from the pit fill the air with their monotonous noise and confusion. Human life is distracted with their eternal racket.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
Ver. 9. And they had breastplates ] Their pretended donations, privileges and exemptions from the secular power; shaking their tippets at kings, whom they have trampled on, and forced to go barefoot on the hard stones, till they bled again. Thus dealt they by our Henry II; yea, they lashed him with rods upon the bare, and said, Domine, noli minari; nos enim nullas minas timemus, qui de tali curia sumus quae consuevit imperare regibus et imperatoribus: Sir, never threaten us; for we care not for your threats, as being of that court that commands kings and emperors. (Jac. Revius de Vii. Pontiff p. I49.)
And the sound of their wings ] They are loud and bold spoken, make a great noise, raise a great dust, and thereby think to carry it. Herein they are like the heretic Nestorius, who is said to have been homo indoctus, superbus, contemptor Patrum, sed audax et magnae loquentiae, a proud ass, but bold above measure, and of a loud language, whereby he so far prevailed for a time, that he seduced good Theodosius, and procured a writ for the banishment of Cyril, that godly orthodox divine. (Zanch. Miscel., Epist. Dedic.)
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
sound. Locusts in flight give out a great sound. These supernatural creatures will appal by the sound of their wings.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Rev 9:9. ) That the construction may be plain, the have , a sound. Andreas here calls them . The running horses draw the chariot: but the chariots themselves in their course strictly and closely cause the noise (sound). See Joe 2:5.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
breastplates
Rev 9:17, contra, Eph 6:14.
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
they had: Rev 9:17, Job 40:18, Job 41:23-30, Joe 2:8
and the: Job 39:25, Isa 9:5, Joe 2:5-7, Nah 2:4, Nah 2:5
Reciprocal: 1Ki 22:34 – joints of the harness 2Ki 7:6 – the Lord Eph 6:14 – the breastplate
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Rev 9:9. A breastplate is a piece for the protection of the vital parts of the body. The apostate church stood behind its clergy and gave them all the protection necessary. Sound of their wings. The locusts have wings literally and since the symbolism is still drawn from those insects it is appropriate to mention that part of their anatomy. Yet we know it is not to be taken literally, for the rest of the verse represents them sounding like war chariots drawn by horses going into battle.
Comments by Foy E. Wallace
Verse 9.
The locusts of war: “And they had breast plates as it were of iron”–Rev 9:9.
Breastplates of iron: The breastplate is the armor of war. Its figurative use here is sufficiently obvious, showing the symbolic locusts to be men of war, and the whole scene descriptive of the Vespasian march on Jerusalem. The locusts were seen as haberdashed with breastplates of iron, as if shielded by the Roman soldier’s impenetrable coat of mail, encompassing the vital portions of the body. The figure of “iron” connected with breastplate denotes the irresistible force of the armies of invasion.
Sound of wings as chariots: The whirling of myriad wings of the locusts were in sound as the wheels of bustling chariots and hustling horses racing to battle. Here again John joins Joel in the imagery of war in their respective visions of the locusts. Describing the Chaldean armies as swarms of locusts in their march on Jerusalem B.C. 584, Joel said: “The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. Like the noise of chariots on the tops of the mountains shall they leap . . . as a strong people set in battle array.” The locust visions of Joel and John are parallel–the former describing the Old Testament war of Nebuchadnezzar on the Jews, the latter the Neroan war of A. D. 70 on Judea and Jerusalem. Joel referred to the locusts as “people set in battle array,” or battle formation. John referred to the locusts as “chariots running to battle.” The parallels and the applications are unmistakable.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Their iron breastplates, which covered the chest and back in John’s day, gave them the appearance of invulnerability (cf. Rev 9:17). [Note: Robertson, 6:364.] The sound of their activity will be terrifying, like the sound of battle (cf. Joe 2:4-5; 2Ki 7:6; Jer 47:3). Indeed their sound signifies battle with earth-dwellers.