I hope you don't mind me sharing this but as you had mentioned Islam I thought you might be interested in the nineth chapter of the book of revelation. It sets the scene leading up to the nineteenth century as the Islamic dispensation is unfurled. Its an example of a Baha'i exegesis of some of the more challenging biblical verses.
Revelation 9
1 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.
2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.
3 And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
4 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.
5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.
8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.
9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.
11 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.
12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
This prophecy concerns the Muslim invasions of Asian and African Christendom that began about 633 AD. At first, Muslim warriors were noted for their justice and tolerance of other Faiths, such as Christianity and Judaism. Muslim warriors were, however, ferocious fighters against idol worshippers and other enemies of monotheism. It is important to understand that the aggressive invasions of Islam were not instigated by Muhammad but by the Successors (Caliphs) following the death of Muhammad.
The question of the Successorship was the historical origin of the Shi'ah and Sunni divisions of Islam. The first four Caliphs, often called the Rightly-Guided, generally followed the policy laid down by Muhammad. However, according to Shi'a belief, Muhammad had actually chosen His son-in-law, 'Ali, as His Caliph. Although 'Ali later arose to His appointed station, He was assassinated before He could consolidate His power. The caliphate fell to the Umayyad pretender, Mu'awiya, whose father, Abu-Sufyan, was the arch-enemy of Muhammad and His Revelation. The course of political intrigue set in motion by Abu-Sufyan eventually achieved success, and, by beclouding the principles of Islam, Abu-Sufyan became a "fallen star."
The bottomless pit is the pit of error. The smoke arising from the pit symbolizes obscurement. The sun of spiritual truth was dissensions, abrogation of obscured, and the atmosphere of nearness to God was stifled by the smoke.
The scorpion was a quickfirer that permitted rapid discharge of arrows. John describes the plague of mounted warriors as "locusts." The magnificent horses of the Arabian warriors are commemorated in fable. Grass, green things and trees are the commoners, the righteous people and their spiritual leaders. The command not to hurt the righteous was given by Muhammad.
A "month" is 30 years therefore 5 months is 150 years. The Muslim Empire was carved out in a space of about 150 years, from the initial invasions of 633 AD until the peak of the Empire under Caliph Harun ar-Rashid in 786 AD. Verses 7 to 10 describe the appearance of the mounted Arabian warriors (locusts), their quickfirers (scorpions), and the sound of their chariots (wings).
Abaddon and Apollyon mean "The Destroyer" and refer to the Umayyad dynasty personified by Abu-Sufyan.
The woe that is past is the Advent of Muhammad. The two remaining woes are to be the Advents of the Bab and Baha'u'llah.
Forgive me please. I get a little excited when Islam and the Bible are mentioned, especially in regards to the islamic year AH 1260 or 1844AD.
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