Revelation 8-9 - In Depth Bible Commentaries

889 890burned up, and the third part of the trees was burned up, and all green grass was burnedup. 891886(...continued)Majority Text (A) and some manuscripts of the Latin Vulgate. Whether read or not makes nodifference for Revelation, as the dative case of the noun implies “with blood.”887Aune translates by “down to the earth” (p. 482).The first four of the seven trumpets have features that apparently have somerelationship to the story of the Ten Plagues on Egypt found in Exodus 7-11. As is John'scustom, however, none of these are taken over exactly or verbatim from the story in Exodus--rather, the imagery is greatly changed and varied in John's vision.The first of the trumpet-blasts signals the coming of hail and fire mixed with blood. Theninth plague on Egypt (Exodus 9:13-35) brought thunder, lightning, and hail upon the Egyptianswho refused to listen to YHWH's warning. But whereas in Exodus the hail is mixed withthunder and lightning, in John's vision the hail is accompanied by blood mixed with fire.Rist states that “The plagues of the exodus preceding the deliverance of the Israelitesfrom their Egyptian oppressors served as a prototype for the plagues that are the precursorsof the deliverance of the Christians, the true people of God, from their persecutors theRomans.” (P. 428)888For this mention of the "third part," see Revelation 8:7, 7 (here), 8, 9, 11, 12, 12, 12,12, 12; 9:15, 18 and 12:4. Compare Zechariah 13:7-9, where two-thirds of the land is destroyed,while one-third is left undamaged.Aune comments that “The...destruction of one-third of various aspects of the cosmos (aconsistent theme throughout 8:2 - 9:21...is loosely based on Ezekiel 5:2...where three differentfates befall each third of the hairs of his head and beard.” (P. 519)889The phrase êá ô ôñßôïí ôò ãò êáôåêÜç, kai to triton tes ges katekae, “and thethird part of the earth was burned up,” is omitted by Minuscule 1854 and a few other Greekmanuscripts. This omission was probably caused by the eye of the copyist skipping from thefirst êá ô ôñßôïí, kai to triton to the second kai to triton, omitting the words in between.890The phrase êá ô ôñßôïí ôí äÝíäñùí êáôåêÜç, kai to triton ton dendron katekae,“and the third part of the trees was burned up,” is omitted by the first writer of Uncial Manuscript046, Minuscule 2053 (see), the Old Latin manuscript gig and the Sahidic Coptic.891Swete comments that "The fire destroyed the whole of the vegetation, which wasscorched at once, and one-third of the trees and other perishable things. Two-thirds escapedeverywhere, i.e. the visitation was partial, and not final." (P. 111)Charles holds that "This is absolutely at variance with 9:4, where the locusts are biddennot to destroy the grass." (P. 233) But this is to demand a logical consistency that is simply(continued...)415