Revelation 9:11 tells us that the locust-like creatures released from the bottomless pit have a king over them, an angel who rules the abyss. John names him in two languages, Hebrew “Abaddon” and Greek “Apollyon,” and both names mean something like “destroyer.” The verse was written by the apostle John, who received this vision on the island of Patmos, and it was addressed to the seven churches of the Roman province of Asia.
They have over them as king the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is “Abaddon”, but in Greek, he has the name “Apollyon”.
Revelation 9:11 (WEB)
What Revelation 9:11 Means
The phrase “they have over them as king” tells you that the swarm of creatures described just before is not a random plague. It has a leader, and that leader is “the angel of the abyss,” a being who holds authority over the realm of the pit. In John’s world, the abyss was the place of confinement for chaos and destructive powers, so an angel placed in charge of it is a sobering image.
The two names, Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek, are given so that the reader understands exactly who this is. Both point to ruin and destruction. John does not explain at length why he gives both names, but the effect is to show that this figure answers to the language of Israel’s Scriptures and to the language of the wider Greek-speaking world at once. The verse does not promise that this destroyer will be defeated in this passage. It simply shows what he is and what he rules over.
The Context of Revelation 9:11
The book of Revelation is a letter written as apocalyptic prophecy, full of visions, symbols and heavenly scenes. John wrote it to Christians facing pressure from the surrounding Roman culture, encouraging them to stay faithful even when the world looked dark and out of control. Chapter 9 belongs to a sequence of trumpet judgments, where each trumpet blast brings a new disaster upon the earth.
The verses just before and after deepen the picture. The creatures in verses 8 to 10 are described in frightening detail, with powers to harm people for five months. Verse 12 then announces that “the first woe is past” and two more are still coming. Read in that setting, the leader in verse 11 is part of a larger unfolding of judgment, and the reader is reminded that God is still directing history even through terrifying events.
Key Phrases in Revelation 9:11
Job 26:6
Sheol is naked before God, and Abaddon has no covering.
(WEB)
This verse speaks of Sheol and Abaddon lying open before God, showing that the place of destruction is never hidden from his sight. It helps explain the Hebrew background of the name Abaddon in Revelation 9:11.
Revelation 20:1-3
1 I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. 2 He seized the dragon, the old serpent, which is the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole inhabited earth, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and cast him into the abyss, and shut it, and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years were finished. After this, he must be freed for a short time.
(WEB)
Later in the same book, an angel comes down with the key to the abyss and binds the dragon there. Reading this alongside Revelation 9:11 shows that the abyss, though ruled by a destroyer, is ultimately under God’s control and not beyond his reach.
A Short Prayer From Revelation 9:11
Lord, you know the destroyers that rise up in the world and in my own life, and you know the names that fear gives them. I bring to you the things that feel like they have a king of their own, the anxieties, losses and temptations that seem too strong for me. Remind me that even in John’s vision, every destructive power was held within your larger purpose. Give me steady trust today, and help me rest in your rule over all things. Amen.
