Apollyon, the angel of the bottomless pit

There are four angels in the Bible that are mentioned by name: Michael, Lucifer, Gabriel & Apollyon. This article sheds light on Apollyon, the angel of the bottomless pit. The reason why Apollyon is called the angel of the bottomless pit is because he has the key to open and close the bottomless pit:

• “And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit...” Revelation 9:1-2

• “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” Revelation 20:1-3

• “And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.” Revelation 9:11

  
  

The margin note on Revelation 9:11 says the word Apollyon means a destroyer. While Satan himself is a destroyer of all good, Apollyon is only commissioned to destroy those that do not bear God’s mark. In another words, Apollyon is commissioned to destroy those that bear Satan’s mark and ultimately bind Satan into the bottomless pit:

• “And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.” Revelation 9:4

  
  

Examples of the work of Apollyon in the past:

1) The doors that were marked by the blood were passed over by the destroyer angel while the ones that were not marked were destroyed.

• “For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.” Exodus 12:23

  
  

2) When Satan stood up against Israel to number them, the destroyer angel was sent to execute those that were marked by Satan. Notice the destroyer angel is also called “the angel of the LORD”, therefore, he is neither Satan himself nor one of Satan’s angels.

• “And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel...And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite. And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.” 1 Chronicles 21:1,15,16

  
  

Examples of the work of Apollyon in the end times:

1) Apollyon and four other angels shall destroy those that professed to be God’s people but are not marked by God.

• “He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer's inkhorn by his side; And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity.” Ezekiel 9:1-5

  
  

The four other destroying angels that accompanies Apollyon are also the same angels as the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates and their job too is to destroy the wicked.

• “Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates...And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.” Revelation 9:14,20,21

  
  

Many have claimed that Apollyon & the four angels of the river Euphrates are Satan and his angels but I will refute that claim by the following reasons:

1. Apollyon and the four angels’ work is to destroy the wicked, those that do not bear the seal of God. This is the opposite work to that of Satan and his angels.

2. Never in scripture, Satan is given the key to the bottomless pit. Apollyon has the key to the bottomless pit and will bind Satan to the bottomless pit.

In conclusion, while both Lucifer and Apollyon came from heaven to the earth to destroy, their missions are completely opposite from one another. They are not the same angel.