Revelation 9:12 is a signpost in the middle of a frightening vision. It tells John’s readers that the first of three terrible judgments has ended, and two more are still coming. The verse is a spoken announcement, most likely from the risen Christ or an angelic messenger speaking through the prophet, given to the churches of Asia Minor in the late first century.
The first woe is past. Behold, there are still two woes coming after this.
Revelation 9:12 (WEB)
What Revelation 9:12 Means
The phrase “the first woe is past” tells you that the events just described, the locust-like creatures released from the bottomless pit, were not the end of God’s judgment on a rebellious world. A “woe” here is a sharp cry of warning followed by disaster. John has just watched a plague of stinging creatures torment people who lacked God’s seal on their foreheads, and now he is told that this was only the first stage.
The words “behold, there are still two woes coming” work as a warning and a reminder at once. The verse does not explain every detail of what will follow, and it does not give a calendar. What it does promise is that God is measured and purposeful, moving toward a conclusion he has already decided. It does not promise that believers will be spared every hardship, nor that the timeline is easy to map. It promises that the judgment has a shape and a limit.
The Context of Revelation 9:12
The book of Revelation was written by John, traditionally identified as the apostle, while he was exiled on the island of Patmos. He wrote to seven churches in the Roman province of Asia, Christians who faced social pressure, economic hardship, and sometimes persecution for refusing to honor Rome and its emperor. Visions of cosmic judgment spoke directly into that situation, reminding them that the powers they saw around them were not ultimate.
Verses 9 through 11 describe the creatures and their king, the angel of the abyss, whose name means “destroyer” in Hebrew and Greek. Verse 12 stands as a hinge: it closes the first woe and opens the way to the sixth trumpet in verse 13. Read in that setting, the verse keeps the reader from treating the horror of the locusts as the final word. The sequence is ordered, and the story is still unfolding.
Key Phrases in Revelation 9:12
Revelation 21:4
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; neither will there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more. The first things have passed away.”
(WEB)
This verse looks past the woes to the new creation, where God wipes away tears and death no longer exists. It shows where the sequence of judgments is leading, which helps readers understand that the woes serve God’s larger purpose of making all things new.
Romans 8:18
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed toward us.
(WEB)
Paul sets present suffering alongside future glory, much as Revelation sets the woes beside the coming kingdom. Reading the two together reminds you that hardship is real but not the final measure of your life or of what God will reveal.
A Short Prayer From Revelation 9:12
Lord, you see the storms I can only partly understand, and you know where each one begins and ends. When fear rises and the pain feels endless, remind me that the first season is past and that you are still guiding history toward your good purpose. Steady my heart to trust your timing, and help me take the next faithful step today without needing to see the whole road. Keep me close to you through every stage, until your promises are fully fulfilled. Amen.
