Revelation 6:10

John saw these martyrs calling out to their heavenly Master (Gr. despotes) to punish their murderers. Contrast the prayers of Jesus (Luke 23:34) and Stephen (Acts 7:60) in which they asked God to be merciful to their murderers. The difference is that the time of God’s longsuffering has now ended and He has begun to pour out His wrath on sinners. "Master" implies divine might, majesty, power, and authority, and it stresses the absolute power of God. [Note: Moffatt, 5:391; Lange, 176; Robertson, 6:344; Alford, 4:619.] How much longer did they have to wait for God to avenge them (cf. Psalms 79:10; Psalms 94:3; Habakkuk 1:2)? "Holy and true" were attributes of Christ earlier (Revelation 3:7), but here the Father is probably in view since He is the ultimate source of the judgments. "Those who dwell on the earth" is almost a technical expression in Revelation describing unbelievers who are hostile to God (cf. Revelation 3:10; Revelation 8:13; Revelation 11:10; Revelation 13:8; Revelation 13:12; Revelation 17:2; Revelation 17:8).

"Their [the Tribulation martyrs’] prayers for revenge upon their enemies are viewed as the fifth judgment against the earth-dwellers." [Note: Robert Thomas, "The Imprecatory Prayers of the Apocalypse," Bibliotheca Sacra 125:502 (April-June 1969):127; idem, Revelation 1-7, pp. 517-24.]