Revelation Chapter 9 verse 4 Holy Bible

ASV Revelation 9:4

And it was said unto them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only such men as have not the seal of God on their foreheads.
read chapter 9 in ASV

BBE Revelation 9:4

And they were ordered to do no damage to the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only to such men as have not the mark of God on their brows.
read chapter 9 in BBE

DARBY Revelation 9:4

and it was said to them, that they should not injure the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but the men who have not the seal of God on their foreheads:
read chapter 9 in DARBY

KJV Revelation 9:4

And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
read chapter 9 in KJV

WBT Revelation 9:4


read chapter 9 in WBT

WEB Revelation 9:4

They were told that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only those people who don't have God's seal on their foreheads.
read chapter 9 in WEB

YLT Revelation 9:4

and 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,
read chapter 9 in YLT

Pulpit Commentary

Pulpit CommentaryVerse 4. - And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree. The force of this plague is to fall directly upon mankind, not, as in the former judgments, upon the earth, and then indirectly upon men. This appears to be stated with the greater plainness, because it might readily be inferred, from the nature of locusts, that the immediate object of their destructiveness would be the vegetation of the world. But only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads; but only such men as have not, etc. (Revised Version; cf. Revelation 7:3, to which this is an allusion). Here, by proleipsis, the servants of God are described as "those that have the seal of God in their foreheads." It is not stated, nor is it necessarily implied, that the seal is visible to man at the time of the infliction of this judgment upon the ungodly. In a similar way our Lord speaks of the elect (Matthew 24:22), not thereby implying that there is any visible manifestation by which the elect may be known to men, though known to God (so also Titus 1:1; Mark 13:22, etc.). Thus also it is said in 2 Timothy 2:19, "The foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his." The frequent use of the term to denote those who were sealed by baptism may have led to the employment of the expression in this place, as being equivalent to "the servants of God" (cf. Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30; 2 Corinthians 1:22). The locusts may not hurt God's servants (see on ver. 3). Thus we are taught that God in reality preserves his own, though it may sometimes appear to man as though the innocent suffer with the guilty.

Ellicott's Commentary

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(4) And it was commanded . . .--Translate, And it was commanded them that they shall not injure the grass of the earth, nor yet any green thing, nor yet any tree; but only (or, except) the men whosoever have not the seal of God on their foreheads. The locusts which are sent not to injure the vegetation are clearly not literal locusts, and the security of those who have the seal of God in their foreheads (those who were described as sealed, and so assured of safety against the tempest blast: see Revelation 7:1-3, et seq.) may confirm us in this view. Whatever the plague be, it is one which cannot injure God's children. "Nothing," Christ has said, "shall by any means hurt you. I give you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy" (Luke 10:19). It is interesting and suggestive to notice that this promise of our Lord was given immediately after the saying, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven," as the safety of the sealed ones is mentioned here after the vision of the star fallen from heaven. The coincidence is hardly undesigned; at least, the sense in which we understand the danger from which Christ promised His disciples protection may afford us a guiding meaning here. Now, none have maintained that Christ promised His disciples entire freedom from danger, pain, and death. He said, "They shall persecute you and kill you; ye shall be hated of all men for My name's sake, but he that endureth to the end shall be saved." No real injury can happen to them; pain and death might be encountered, but all things work together for their higher good. They have a joy which no pain or peril can take away; they have a joy in this (it is the same chapter as above--Luke 10), that their "names are written in heaven." For such, death has no sting, the grave no victory. They meet famine and nakedness, and peril and sword; but in these they are more than conquerors. No plague can hurt those who have the seal of God in their foreheads. A plague from which those whose way is through tribulation are exempt can hardly be a physical one.