<p>9:10- see on Mt. 24:37; Mk. 13:20.</p><p><em>And they have tails like scorpions and stings, and in their tails is their power</em>- At first blush, this appears to not be true to the figure of locusts. But Smith's &ldquo;Bible Dictionary&rdquo; gives a picture of &quot;a species of locust, the <em>Acridium Lineola</em>, a species commonly sold for food in the markets of Baghdad, which has a sting in the tail&quot;. We may infer that these symbolic locusts come from Iraq, specifically from the area of the Euphrates. This is in harmony with the later picture within this same chapter of hordes of attackers swarming into the land promised to Abraham from the same area- the Euphrates. The only other reference to a &ldquo;tail&rdquo; in the NT is in Rev. 12:4, where the dragon uses his tail to cast down one third of the stars. It could be that we are being shown part of the same process here.</p><p><em>To hurt men</em>- Significantly, the same word is used in Lk. 10:19 about how those who are preaching the Lord Jesus will not be hurt by scorpions. This is the context here- these trumpets are part of the judgments which will be restrained from falling upon those who have responded to the seal judgments, the symbolic 144,000. The same word is used in 7:2,3 of how the 144,000 will not be &ldquo;hurt&rdquo;. And chapters 10-15 teach that the resistant believers at this time will be engaged in witnessing to Jesus.</p><p><em>For five months</em>- See on :5.</p>