9:2a

opened the pit of the Abyss: The Greek clause is literally “he opened the shaft of the Abyss.” The New International Version shortens the clause, as is natural in English. In some languages it is more natural to translate the whole Greek clause. For example:

he opened the shaft of the Abyss

9:2b

smoke rose out of it like the smoke of a great furnace: This clause compares the smoke coming from the Abyss to smoke that comes from a great furnace.

In some languages it is not natural to repeat the word smoke. For example:

smoke poured out as though from a huge furnace (New Living Translation (2004))

like the smoke of a great furnace: A furnace is an enclosure heated by a big fire. A furnace often has a smokestack above that takes the smoke far above it. This simile refers to lots of thick black smoke rising quickly.

In some languages people are not familiar with furnaces. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Use a simile for something in your area that produces a lot of black smoke that rises quickly. For example:

like the smoke from a house fire

• Describe the meaning of the simile. For example:

much thick, ⌊black,⌋ smoke rising quickly

9:2c

and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke from the pit: This clause is passive. Some languages must use an active clause. For example:

The smoke from the Abyss darkened the sun and sky
-or-
the sun and the air turned dark because of the smoke (Contemporary English Version)

the air: The Berean Standard Bible translates the Greek phrase here literally as the air. The smoke probably went everywhere in the air: low to the ground and high in the sky and in between, as well. Other ways to translate this word are:

sky (New International Version)
-or-
atmosphere

darkened: The word darkened here indicates that the smoke greatly reduced the amount of light. Here the word probably does not indicate that the sun and sky were completely dark.

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