TRV
Translation
King James Version
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.
Complete Jewish Bible
a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
Berean Standard Bible
a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
American Standard Version
and there died the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, even they that had life; and the third part of the ships was destroyed.
World English Bible Messianic
and one third of the living creatures which were in the sea died. One third of the ships were destroyed.
Geneva Bible (1599)
And the thirde part of the creatures, which were in the sea, and had life, died, and the thirde part of shippes were destroyed.
Young's Literal Translation
and die did the third of the creatures that are in the sea, those having life, and the third of the ships were destroyed.
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In the KJVVerse 30,837 of 31,102
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Commentary on Revelation 8 verses 7–13
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 of 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 as 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!
Observe, I. The first angel sounded the first trumpet, and the events which followed were very dismal: There followed hail and fire mingled with blood, etc., Rev 8:7. There was a terrible storm; but whether it is to be understood of a storm of heresies, a mixture of monstrous errors falling on the church (for in that age Arianism prevailed), or a storm or tempest of war falling on the civil state, expositors are not agreed. Mr. Mede takes it to be meant of the Gothic inundation that broke in upon the empire in the year 395, the same year that Theodosius died, when the northern nations, under Alaricus, king of the Goths, broke in upon the western parts of the empire. However, here we observe, 1. It was a very terrible storm-fire, and hail, and blood: a strange mixture! 2. The limitation of it: it fell on the third part of the trees, and on the third part of the grass, and blasted and burnt it up; that is, say some, upon the third part of the clergy and the third part of the laity; or, as others who take it to fall upon the civil state, upon the third part of the great men, and upon the third part of the common people, either upon the Roman empire itself, which was a third part of the then known world, or upon a third part of that empire. The most severe calamities have their bounds and limits set them by the great God.
II. The second angel sounded, and the alarm was followed, as in the first, with terrible events: A great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea; and the third part of the sea became blood, Rev 8:8. By this mountain some understand the leader or leaders of the heretics; others, as Mr. Mede, the city of Rome, which was five times sacked by the Goths and Vandals, within the compass of 137 years; first by Alaricus, in the year 410, with great slaughter and cruelty. In these calamities, a third part of the people (called here the sea or collection of waters) were destroyed: here was still a limitation to the third part, for in the midst of judgment God remembers mercy. This storm fell heavy upon the maritime and merchandizing cities and countries of the Roman empire.
III. The third angel sounded, and the alarm had the like effects as before: There fell a great star from heaven, etc., Rev 8:10. Some take this to be a political star, some eminent governor, and they apply it to Augustulus, who was forced to resign the empire to Odoacer, in the year 480. Others take it to be an ecclesiastical star, some eminent person in the church, compared to a burning lamp, and they fix it upon Pelagius, who proved about this time a falling star, and greatly corrupted the churches of Christ. Observe, 1. Where this star fell: Upon a third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters. 2. What effect it had upon them; it turned those springs and streams into wormwood, made them very bitter, that men were poisoned by them; either the laws, which are springs of civil liberty, and property, and safety, were poisoned by arbitrary power, or the doctrines of the gospel, the springs of spiritual life, refreshment, and vigour to the souls of men, were so corrupted and embittered by a mixture of dangerous errors that the souls of men found their ruin where they sought for their refreshment.
IV. The fourth angel sounded, and the alarm was followed with further calamities. Observe, 1. The nature of this calamity; it was darkness; it fell therefore upon the great luminaries of the heaven, that give light to the world - the sun, and the moon, and the stars, either the guides and governors of the church, or of the state, who are placed in higher orbs than the people, and are to dispense light and benign influences to them. 2. The limitation: it was confined to a third part of these luminaries; there was some light both of the sun by day, and of the moon and stars by night, but it was only a third part of what they had before. Without determining what is matter of controversy in these points among learned men, we rather choose to make these plain and practical remarks: - (1.) Where the gospel comes to a people, and is but coldly received, and has not its proper effects upon their hearts and lives, it is usually followed with dreadful judgments. (2.) God gives warning to men of his judgments before he sends them; he sounds an alarm by the written word, by ministers, by men's own consciences, and by the signs of the times; so that, if a people be surprised, it is their own fault. (3.) The anger of God against a people makes dreadful work among them; it embitters all their comforts, and makes even life itself bitter and burdensome. (4.) God does not in this world stir up all his wrath, but sets bounds to the most terrible judgments. (5.) Corruptions of doctrine and worship in the church are themselves great judgments, and the usual causes and tokens of other judgments coming on a people.
V. Before the other three trumpets are sounded here is solemn warning given to the world how terrible the calamities would be that should follow them, and how miserable those times and places would be on which they fell, Rev 8:13. 1. The messenger was an angel flying in the midst of heaven, as in haste, and coming on an awful errand. 2. The message was a denunciation of further and greater woe and misery than the world had hitherto endured. Here are three woes, to show how much the calamities coming should exceed those that had been already, or to hint how every one of the three succeeding trumpets should introduce its particular and distinct calamity. If less judgments do not take effect, but the church and the world grow worse under them, they must expect greater. God will be known by the judgments that he executes; and he expects, when he comes to punish the world, the inhabitants thereof should tremble before him.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 7–13. Public domain.
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TiconiusAD 390
COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 8:8-9
Another edition has the reading “[a third of] those who have souls” and shows thereby that they have died a spiritual death, similar to that which the apostle said about the widow, “She who is self-indulgent is dead.” And so the passage suggests that one third has killed another third by a poisonous tradition and by imitation of a useless teaching.
TiconiusAD 390
COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 8:9
When he speaks customarily of the part that has a soul, he refers to persons who are spiritually dead and separated from the kingdom of God. “And a third of the birds fell to the ground.” Therefore, that third that died in the sea destroyed by its own death another third. He is describing the devil and those who are of one mind with the devil, who after the manner of birds fly around and deceive or wish to deceive all by their trickery.
BedeAD 735
Commentary on Revelation
And a third of the ships perished. Another Edition, by saying "And they corrupted a third of the ships," signifies that the third that died killed another third, that is, the succeeding one, with harmful tradition and useless imitation of doctrine.
BedeAD 735
Commentary on Revelation
And a third of them died, those that had souls in the sea. He said, "those that have souls," to show that the spiritually living were dead. Just as the Apostle says of the voluptuous widow: "Living," he says, "she is dead" (I Tim. V).
Alcuin of YorkAD 804
COMMENTARY ON REVELATION
And the second angel sounded the trumpet: and as it were a great mountain, burning with fire, was cast into the sea, and the third part of the sea became blood: and the third part of those creatures died in it, which had life, and the third part of the ships was destroyed. The Devil is called a great mountain, whether because he wanted to be like the one about which it is said, In the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared, [Is. 2:2] or because in the end he will exalt himself above all that is called, or worshipped as, God. [2 Thes. 2:4] He is called burning because he is tormented by his own evilness and envy, because, ejected from among the saints by the angel sounding the trumpet, that is by the Church preaching, he is cast into the sea, that is into the incredulous — not that he was not already in them before, but since he has been ejected from among the saints, he starts ruling over the incredulous all the more. It seems that by the third that was turned into blood is symbolized the kind of death by which the two other thirds die, so that in one third is denoted the death, and in two thirds the number of the dying. The water turned into blood is fleshly wisdom, which kills souls; whence the apostle: Being wise according to the flesh is death. [Variant of Rom. 8:6] This wisdom means both bad credulity and wrong work; for with regards to wrong doctrine it is said, The letter killeth, [2 Cor. 3:6] and with regards to wrong work, Deliver me from bloods. [Ps. 50:16]
OecumeniusAD 990
Commentary on Revelation
The divine apostle writes to the Romans, saying: "that creation was subjected to futility, not willingly but because of the one who subjected it, in hope that creation itself will be set free from the bondage of corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God." (Rom. 8:20-21)
But when will it be freed? When there will be "new heavens and a new earth according to His promises," as Peter proclaims to us, writing in his second epistle. (2 Peter 3:13) In order for the earth, when it is renewed, to be freed from corruption and to become new, it is necessary that the sea also undergo this transformation; for the sea is within the earth. And how could it be purified itself, except through the cleansing of fire? Therefore, fire having fallen into it, it transformed the sea into blood, and killed a third of those within it. This, then, in relation to the letter and the perceptible, you might also conceive of as the sea, both by analogy and according to the laws of transformation, representing the present life because of the turmoil within it and the varied distractions; and fish and ships, symbolizing people immersed in the salty and bitter mud of sins, who, overwhelmed by sorrows, will ultimately fall into fruitless regrets over the lives they have lived.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Revelation 8:9 details the devastating consequences of the second trumpet judgment, describing a catastrophic event in which one-third of all living creatures in the sea perish, and one-third of all ships are destroyed. This judgment follows the casting of a great, burning mountain into the sea, underscoring God's sovereign power to inflict widespread ecological and economic disruption upon an unrepentant world as part of His unfolding end-time judgments.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: Revelation 8:9 immediately follows the sounding of the second angel's trumpet in Revelation 8:8, which depicts "something like a great mountain, burning with fire, thrown into the sea." This verse, therefore, describes the direct, devastating effects of that cataclysmic event. It is an integral part of the series of seven trumpet judgments, which progressively intensify God's wrath upon the earth, each affecting a "third part" of creation. These judgments are revealed after the opening of the seven seals, particularly the prayers of the saints in Revelation 8:3-5, signifying a divine response to the world's rebellion and the cries of the persecuted. The recurring "third part" motif throughout Revelation 8 (e.g., Revelation 8:7, Revelation 8:10, Revelation 8:12) is a deliberate literary device, indicating severe but not total destruction, hinting at God's longsuffering and a potential for repentance before the final, more comprehensive judgments.
Historical & Cultural Context: In the ancient world, the sea was a vital artery for commerce, travel, and sustenance. Maritime trade routes connected empires, facilitated the exchange of goods, and sustained coastal populations through fishing. The Roman Empire, in particular, relied heavily on its vast network of sea lanes for economic prosperity and military projection. Therefore, the destruction of "a third part of the ships" would represent an unimaginable blow to the global economy and infrastructure of the time, leading to widespread famine, isolation, and societal collapse. The imagery of a "burning mountain" cast into the sea might evoke ancient volcanic eruptions or meteor strikes, phenomena that would have been understood as terrifying natural disasters, often interpreted as divine portents or judgments. Furthermore, the sea itself held both practical and symbolic significance; while a source of life and trade, it was also often associated with chaos, evil, and the unknown in biblical and ancient Near Eastern thought, making it a fitting stage for divine judgment.
Key Themes: Revelation 8:9 powerfully contributes to several overarching themes within the book of Revelation and biblical theology. Firstly, it highlights the theme of Divine Judgment and Wrath, demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty over creation and His righteous indignation against human sin and rebellion. The scale of the destruction underscores the gravity of humanity's unrepentance. Secondly, the verse emphasizes Ecological Catastrophe, portraying an immense environmental disaster that impacts a significant portion of marine life. This illustrates the vulnerability of the natural world to divine intervention and the far-reaching consequences of God's wrath, reminding humanity of its stewardship responsibilities and the ultimate subservience of creation to its Creator. Thirdly, the destruction of ships points to Economic and Social Disruption, revealing the fragility of human systems—commerce, transportation, and communication—when confronted with divine power. This theme underscores that human achievements and infrastructure are ultimately transient and subject to God's will. Finally, the recurring phrase "the third part" reinforces the theme of Partial Judgments, indicating that while these events are severe and widespread, they are not yet total annihilation. This serves as a final, urgent call for humanity to repent, echoing God's patience and desire for salvation even amidst judgment, as seen in passages like 2 Peter 3:9.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Revelation 8:9 employs several powerful literary devices to convey its message of divine judgment. Symbolism is prominent, with "the sea" often symbolizing the chaotic nations and peoples of the world, or the realm from which evil arises (e.g., the beast from the sea in Revelation 13:1). The "ships" symbolize global commerce, human enterprise, and the interconnectedness of human society. Their destruction signifies the dismantling of these worldly systems under divine wrath. The recurring phrase "the third part" is a form of numerical symbolism, indicating a severe but not exhaustive judgment, suggesting a calculated and precise act of God's justice rather than indiscriminate annihilation. This partiality also serves as a warning, leaving room for repentance before more complete judgments. The vivid imagery of widespread death and destruction also functions as apocalyptic imagery, designed to shock and impress upon the reader the gravity and reality of God's impending judgments, often using hyperbolic language to emphasize the scale of the cataclysm.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Revelation 8:9 underscores God's absolute sovereignty over all creation, including the natural world and human endeavors. It powerfully illustrates the consequences of human rebellion against a holy God, demonstrating that divine judgment extends beyond human beings to impact the very environment and systems they rely upon. This judgment serves as a stark reminder that the created order, though beautiful and designed for human flourishing, is ultimately subject to the Creator's will and can become an instrument of His wrath when humanity persists in sin. The partial nature of these judgments, affecting "a third part," reflects God's longsuffering and His desire for humanity to turn from its wicked ways, offering a window of opportunity for repentance before the final, more comprehensive outpouring of His wrath. This aligns with the biblical principle that God's judgments are often redemptive in their intent, aiming to bring about a turning back to Him.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Revelation 8:9 serves as a profound and sobering reminder of the fragility of life and human systems in the face of divine power. For believers, it reinforces the urgency of living in spiritual preparedness, recognizing that the world as we know it is not eternal and is subject to God's ultimate judgment. This verse should cultivate a deep sense of reverence for God's holiness and justice, prompting us to examine our own lives for areas of unrepentance and to live in a manner that honors Him. It also calls us to consider our stewardship of creation, understanding that the natural world, too, is God's and can be affected by human sin and divine judgment. Furthermore, this passage compels us to engage in fervent evangelism, sharing the good news of salvation through Christ with a world that desperately needs to hear it before the full weight of God's wrath falls. Ultimately, while terrifying, these judgments are a testament to God's faithfulness to His word and His unwavering commitment to bring about justice and righteousness, urging us to find our refuge and hope in Him alone.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Is the destruction described in Revelation 8:9 a literal event, or is it symbolic?
Answer: Biblical scholars hold varying views on the literal versus symbolic interpretation of Revelation. While the language of Revelation is highly symbolic, rich with apocalyptic imagery, many commentators believe that the judgments described, including those in Revelation 8:9, represent real, tangible events that will occur on earth. The "great mountain burning with fire" in Revelation 8:8 could be a meteor, an asteroid, or a volcanic eruption, leading to the precise consequences of marine death and ship destruction. Even if the "mountain" is symbolic of a great power or kingdom, the effects—death of sea creatures and destruction of ships—are depicted as concrete, physical outcomes. The "third part" suggests a measurable, impactful, yet not total, destruction, which would have very real and devastating consequences for global ecosystems and economies. Therefore, while the imagery is symbolic, the events themselves are often understood to be literal calamities.
What is the significance of "the third part" being affected in this and other trumpet judgments?
Answer: The recurring phrase "the third part" (Greek: to triton) throughout the trumpet judgments (e.g., Revelation 8:7, Revelation 8:10, Revelation 8:12, Revelation 9:15, Revelation 9:18) is highly significant. It indicates a severe and widespread judgment, but one that is not complete or total annihilation. Theologically, this partiality suggests God's longsuffering and His desire to offer opportunities for repentance, even amidst judgment. It signifies a warning, a severe chastisement, rather than the final, all-consuming wrath. It can be seen as a calculated measure of divine justice, demonstrating God's control and precision in judgment, leaving a remnant or a portion of creation untouched as a testament to His mercy and a final call for humanity to turn to Him before the ultimate judgments of the bowls are poured out in Revelation 16.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Revelation 8:9 vividly portrays God's righteous judgment upon a rebellious world, its ultimate Christ-centered fulfillment lies not in the judgment itself, but in the salvation and hope offered through Jesus Christ. The devastating death and destruction described here underscore the profound consequences of sin and the necessity of divine intervention to purify a fallen world. However, Christ Himself is the ultimate answer to this judgment. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, bearing the full weight of God's wrath on the cross, so that those who believe in Him might be spared from such calamities. His death and resurrection offer a way of escape from the condemnation that these judgments represent, providing eternal life to all who believe. Furthermore, Christ is the sovereign Lord who orchestrates these very judgments, for all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him. He is not only the Judge but also the Redeemer, whose ultimate purpose is to establish a new heaven and a new earth, where there will be no more sea, no more curse, and no more death or destruction, but only the glorious presence of God. Thus, Revelation 8:9, though a scene of judgment, points to the profound need for Christ's atoning work and His ultimate reign of peace and righteousness.