6:9 Now 7 when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been violently killed 8 because of the word of God and because of the testimony they had given.
9:1 Then 9 the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky 10 to the earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the abyss. 11
16:10 Then 12 the fifth angel 13 poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast so that 14 darkness covered his kingdom, 15 and people 16 began to bite 17 their tongues because 18 of their pain.
1 sn Onyx (also called sardonyx) is a semiprecious stone that comes in various colors (L&N 2.35).
2 sn Carnelian is a semiprecious gemstone, usually red in color (L&N 2.36).
3 sn Chrysolite refers to either quartz or topaz, golden yellow in color (L&N 2.37).
4 sn Beryl is a semiprecious stone, usually blue-green or green in color (L&N 2.38).
5 sn Chrysoprase is a greenish type of quartz (L&N 2.40).
6 sn Jacinth is a semiprecious stone, probably blue in color (also called “hyacinth,” but that translation is not used here because of possible confusion with the flower of the same name). See L&N 2.41.
7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of a new and somewhat different topic after the introduction of the four riders.
8 tn Or “murdered.” See the note on the word “butcher” in 6:4.
9 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
10 tn Or “from heaven” (the same Greek word means both “heaven” and “sky”).
11 tn On this term BDAG 2 s.v. ἄβυσσος 2 states, “netherworld, abyss, esp. the abode of the dead Ro 10:7 (Ps 106:26) and of demons Lk 8:31; dungeon where the devil is kept Rv 20:3; abode of the θηρίον, the Antichrist 11:7; 17:8; of ᾿Αβαδδών (q.v.), the angel of the underworld 9:11…φρέαρ τῆς ἀ. 9:1f; capable of being sealed 9:1; 20:1, 3.”
12 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
13 tn Grk “the fifth”; the referent (the fifth angel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
14 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so that” to indicate the implied result of the fifth bowl being poured out.
15 tn Grk “his kingdom became dark.”
16 tn Grk “men,” but this is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") and refers to both men and women.
17 tn On this term BDAG 620 s.v. μασάομαι states, “bite w. acc. τὰς γλώσσας bite their tongues Rv 16:10.”
18 tn The preposition ἐκ (ek) has been translated here and twice in the following verse with a causal sense.