1 A nd the fifth messenger did sound, and I saw a star out of the heaven having fallen to the earth, and there was given to it the key of the pit of the abyss,

Then the fifth angel blew trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth; and to the angel was given the key of the shaft of the Abyss (the bottomless pit).

2 a nd he did open the pit of the abyss, and there came up a smoke out of the pit as smoke of a great furnace, and darkened was the sun and the air, from the smoke of the pit.

He opened the long shaft of the Abyss (the bottomless pit), and smoke like the smoke of a huge furnace puffed out of the long shaft, so that the sun and the atmosphere were darkened by the smoke from the long shaft.

3 A nd out of the smoke came forth locusts to the earth, and there was given to them authority, as scorpions of the earth have authority,

Then out of the smoke locusts came forth on the earth, and such power was granted them as the power the earth’s scorpions have.

4 a nd it was said to them that they may not injure the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but -- the men only who have not the seal of God upon their foreheads,

They were told not to injure the herbage of the earth nor any green thing nor any tree, but only such human beings as do not have the seal (mark) of God on their foreheads.

5 a nd it was given to them that they may not kill them, but that they may be tormented five months, and their torment as the torment of a scorpion, when it may strike a man;

They were not permitted to kill them, but to torment (distress, vex) them for five months; and the pain caused them was like the torture of a scorpion when it stings a person.

6 a nd in those days shall men seek the death, and they shall not find it, and they shall desire to die, and the death shall flee from them.

And in those days people will seek death and will not find it; and they will yearn to die, but death evades and flees from them.

7 A nd the likenesses of the locusts like to horses made ready to battle, and upon their heads as crowns like gold, and their faces as faces of men,

The locusts resembled horses equipped for battle. On their heads was something like golden crowns. Their faces resembled the faces of people.

8 a nd they had hair as hair of women, and their teeth were as of lions,

They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth.

9 a nd they had breastplates as breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings as the noise of chariots of many horses running to battle;

Their breastplates (scales) resembled breastplates made of iron, and the noise made by their wings was like the roar of a vast number of horse-drawn chariots going at full speed into battle.

10 a nd they have tails like to scorpions, and stings were in their tails; and their authority to injure men five months;

They have tails like scorpions, and they have stings, and in their tails lies their ability to hurt men for five months.

11 a nd they have over them a king -- the messenger of the abyss -- a name to him in Hebrew, Abaddon, and in the Greek he hath a name, Apollyon.

Over them as king they have the angel of the Abyss (of the bottomless pit). In Hebrew his name is Abaddon, but in Greek he is called Apollyon.

12 T he first wo did go forth, lo, there come yet two woes after these things.

The first woe (calamity) has passed; behold, two others are yet to follow.

13 A nd the sixth messenger did sound, and I heard a voice out of the four horns of the altar of gold that is before God,

Then the sixth angel blew trumpet, and from the four horns of the golden altar which stands before God I heard a solitary voice,

14 s aying to the sixth messenger who had the trumpet, `Loose the four messengers who are bound at the great river Euphrates;'

Saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, Liberate the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.

15 a nd loosed were the four messengers, who have been made ready for the hour, and day, and month, and year, that they may kill the third of men;

So the four angels who had been in readiness for that hour in the appointed day, month, and year were liberated to destroy a third of mankind.

16 a nd the number of the forces of the horsemen two myriads of myriads, and I heard the number of them.

The number of their troops of cavalry was twice ten thousand times ten thousand (200, 000, 000); I heard what their number was.

17 A nd thus I saw the horses in the vision, and those sitting upon them, having breastplates of fire, and jacinth, and brimstone; and the heads of the horses as heads of lions, and out of their mouths proceedeth fire, and smoke, and brimstone;

And in vision the horses and their riders appeared to me like this: the riders wore breastplates the color of fiery red and sapphire blue and sulphur (brimstone) yellow. The heads of the horses looked like lions’ heads, and from their mouths there poured fire and smoke and sulphur (brimstone).

18 b y these three were the third of men killed, from the fire, and from the smoke, and from the brimstone, that is proceeding out of their mouth,

A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues—by the fire and the smoke and the sulphur (brimstone) that poured from the mouths of the horses.

19 f or their authorities are in their mouth, and in their tails, for their tails like serpents, having heads, and with them they do injure;

For the power of the horses to do harm is in their mouths and also in their tails. Their tails are like serpents, for they have heads, and it is by means of them that they wound people.

20 a nd the rest of men, who were not killed in these plagues, neither did reform from the works of their hands, that they may not bow before the demons, and idols, those of gold, and those of silver, and those of brass, and those of stone, and those of wood, that are neither able to see, nor to hear, nor to walk,

And the rest of humanity who were not killed by these plagues even then did not repent of the works of their hands, so as to cease paying homage to the demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor move.

21 y ea they did not reform from their murders, nor from their sorceries, nor from their whoredoms, nor from their thefts.

And they did not repent of their murders or their practice of magic (sorceries) or their sexual vice or their thefts.