Shared ground

Revelation 9:1–3 presents an ordered sequence: a trumpet sounds, a “star” is already fallen to the earth, a key is given to him, the abyss is opened, smoke rises like furnace smoke and darkens sun and air, and then locusts come out of that smoke onto the earth. The passage emphasizes permission and restraint: both the key and the locusts’ “power” are portrayed as assigned, not self-originated.

The imagery connects disaster with a hidden, confined source. The “pit of the abyss” reads like a secured place that must be unlocked, and what emerges affects the inhabited world through darkness and then through hostile agents.

Where interpretation differs

What (or who) the “star” is. Some readers take the star as a personal being (since “him” receives the key). Others think “star” is mainly a symbol for a ruler/agent, with “him” reflecting the symbol’s meaning. A smaller number read it as a literal celestial phenomenon portrayed in visionary form.

What the “abyss” refers to. Some take it as a real spiritual prison-like realm from which hostile forces can be released. Others take it as a vivid image for the unleashing of chaotic, destructive realities into human life (for example, social collapse, invasion, or mass deception), without committing to a mapped “place.”

How to understand the smoke and locusts. Some read these as describing non-human, spiritual agents released into the world. Others read them as symbolic portrayals of human or historical forces (like invasion or oppressive powers) described in apocalyptic imagery. Either way, the text’s own stress is that they come “out of the smoke,” and their capacity to harm is “given.”

Why the disagreement exists

John narrates what he “saw” in a vision using concrete images (key, pit, smoke, locusts). The scene mixes physical effects (“sun and air were darkened”) with clearly symbolic features (a “star” functioning as a person who receives a key). Because the passage itself does not explain the referents, readers must decide how literally to map the images to spiritual realities, historical events, or both.

What this passage clearly contributes

1. Evil and judgment-like calamity are not shown as random; access to the abyss is controlled by a key that is granted (explicit in the text). 2) The opening of the abyss brings darkness that spreads broadly (explicit). 3) The locusts’ harmful capacity is portrayed as delegated and limited in kind (“like scorpions”) (explicit), setting up the later description of what they do (inference from the narrative flow). 4) The passage strengthens Revelation’s larger theme that unseen sources can produce visible disruption, yet operate under bounded permission (inference anchored to “was given” language; see Revelation 9:1 and Revelation 9:3).