‘And it was given to them that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man. And in those days men will seek death and will not in any circumstances find it, and they shall long to die and death flees from them.'
Scorpion stings are rarely deadly but they are so excessively painful that men so affected wish that they could die. Five months is the life cycle of certain types of locust. The idea would seem to be that during the life cycle of these ‘locusts' they continue to bring pain and agony to men (not necessarily through one ‘sting'). Even here there is a limit set by God on what these creatures can do (‘it was given to them') and limits on their time of activity.
It is probable that the anguish is to be seen as spiritual rather than physical, torment in the mind and spirit rather than in the body, although such anguish often produces, or results from, physical consequences. ‘Like the torment of a scorpion' describes piercing pain which makes a man writhe in anguish. As a result men will want to die, but they will be so ill that they will be unable to find that way out. People with certain illnesses, physical, mental and spiritual, have suffered such torments, and when this occurs on a large scale, as it has for example in the Plagues with their distressing mental and spiritual effects, it may well be seen in these terms. Modern man likes to think he ‘knows' the causes of illnesses which at various times especially plague mankind, but John is saying there is more to some of them than that (compare Luke 13:16). And when spiritual darkness falls on a land the same may be the case. The fact that there is a limit put on the torment is again a sign that God will not allow evil more than a certain amount of scope. All is controlled.
The locusts are now described in more detail and it is clear they are such locusts as have never been, nor ever could be. The passage is heavy in symbolism (they do not really look like this even in the spiritual realm) and we must recognise that they are almost certainly not seen by those they attack. They are described from heaven's viewpoint. Earth sees nothing It is just aware of their effects. They are spiritual beings, fallen creatures arising from the abyss where they have been imprisoned (compare 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6), and invisible to mortal eye. It is by their effects that they are known. But John sees them for he is in a visionary state.