26
There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude: her graves are around him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living.
Ezekiel 32:26
Revelation 8
1
And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
2
And I saw the seven angels who stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
3
And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given to him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
4
And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God out of the angel's hand.
5
And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it upon the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
6
And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
7
The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
8
And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9
And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
10
And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
11
And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died by the waters, because they were made bitter.
12
And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so that the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.
13
And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, Woe, Woe, to the inhabiters of the earth, by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!
Apocalypse Explained # 553
553. And upon their heads as it were crowns like gold, signifies that they seem to themselves, when they reason, as if they were wise and victorious. This is evident from the signification of "head" as being wisdom and intelligence (of which presently); and from the signification of "a crown of gold," as being a reward of victory (of which above, n. 358. "A crown like gold," signifies the reward of victory, because kings in ancient times, when they were in combats with their enemies wore crowns of gold upon their heads, besides various insignia that then belonged to kings. This was because kings represented the Lord in relation to Divine truth, and Divine truth combats from Divine good; so this was represented by "a crown of gold," and wisdom and intelligence itself by the head upon which was the crown. This is why the martyrs had crowns, for they fought from Divine truth against the falsities from evil that are from hell, and came off victors, because they fought even unto death, which they did not fear. From this it can be seen that "upon their heads as it were crowns like gold" signifies that those who are sensual men seem to themselves, from the persuasion of the falsity in which they are, to be wise and victorious.
[2] As the locusts are described in respect to their heads, their faces, their breasts upon which were breast plates, and as to their tails, and hair, and teeth, it is important to know what their heads signify, and afterwards what the other things signify. The "head" signifies in the Word wisdom and intelligence, because these have their seat in the head; but when those who are in no wisdom or intelligence because they are in falsities from evil are treated of, the "head" signifies folly and insanity, because falsities and evils are therein and therefrom. So here, where those who are sensual and in the persuasion of falsity are treated of, the "head" properly signifies folly and insanity, for such see falsities as truths and evils as goods, for they constantly see what they see from fallacies. Of such, therefore, it is said that "upon their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces as men's faces," and other things follow, all of which were appearances from the fantasy with them, therefore it is said "as it were" crowns, and "like" gold, which shows that these appearances were not real but fallacious. For in the heavens all appearances that exist are real, because they are correspondences; for the interiors belonging to the affections and thoughts therefrom of the angels, when they pass to the sight of their eyes, are clothed in such forms as are manifest in the heavens; they are called appearances because they are visible, and they are said to be correspondences and are real because they spring from creation. But it is otherwise with the appearances in some of the hells, where those are who are in the persuasions of falsity from evil; from these persuasions fantastic visions spring, in which there is inwardly nothing real, and for this reason they also vanish if a single ray from the light of heaven flows in. Such are the appearances that are here described in reference to the "locusts." (But of appearances in the spiritual world, both those that are real and those that are not real, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 170-176; and above, in the explanation, n. 369, 395)
