³ Then locusts came out of the smoke on to the earth,^(A) and power^[a] was given to them^(B) like the power that scorpions have on the earth.^{(C) 4} They were told not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green plant, or any tree,^(D) but only those people who do not have God’s seal on their foreheads.^{(E) 5} They were not permitted to kill them but were to torment them for five months; their torment is like the torment caused by a scorpion when it stings someone.