Vision

Chapter 1

Introduction by John

¹ This book’s contents are about the events which have been determined by God that will happen soon. In the beginning His plans were revealed by God to Christ Jesus, then Christ sent an angel to show all of that to me John, Christ’s servant, through a vision. ² In this book I'm writing my own testimony about all that was shown to me and all God’s messages that were given to me by Christ Jesus.

³ Every person who reads this book to others is blessed, and everyone who hears and pays close attention to all that’s written in this book is also blessed! For the time determined by God for these events to take place is near.

⁴ I John, send greetings to the Brothers and Sisters in the faith who are in the seven churches in the province of Asia. I pray that God will always be kind to each of you and guard you so that your lives are calm under His protection. For all the blessings which we receive come

     from God who has existed since creation until now and who will continue to exist until the age to come;

         and from God’s Spirit, who with all of His power ^[1] is before God’s throne;

     ^5-6 and from Christ Jesus, who can always be believed in for all of His testimony about God the Father.

         He is the very first ^[2] to have eternal life after death,

         and He’s the High King over all the kings of the earth.

I pray that Christ will be glorified forever! Because of His truly amazing love for us He surrendered Himself to be crucified so that through His own blood we are freed from the power of sin. In that way He has made us citizens of God’s kingdom and priests who serve God, His Father, in a spiritual way. To Christ Jesus alone be the glory and power forever. Amen!

⁷ Look, Jesus is coming surrounded by clouds! Everyone who has died will be brought back to life and will witness His coming, including those who pierced Him. Then all people groups on earth will cry with loud wailing because they know that He’s coming to judge them. It’s true, that’s what will happen! Amen!

⁸ And the Lord God said, “I’m the Almighty, and only I am worthy to be called ‘the First and the Last.’ ^[3] I alone have existed from before creation until now and will always exist through all the ages to come.”

The way Christ revealed Himself to John

⁹ I, John, am your brother in the faith who has also often experienced persecution like you’re experiencing because of following Jesus. For that reason we learn to endure in our faith in Him and become patient waiting for the time when God visibly rules as King in this world. Because I shared the Word of God and bore witness about Jesus, I was also arrested and then exiled and imprisoned by the government of the kingdom of Rome on the island of Patmos. ^{[4] 10} On the Lord’s Day, which is Sunday, I was suddenly controlled by the Holy Spirit. Then close behind me I heard a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet blast ¹¹ which said, “Write down all of the things that will be shown to you, then send that book to the seven churches in the cities of the province of Asia, that is to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.

¹² So I turned around to see Who was speaking to me. Then I saw seven lamps which each stood on a special table, and all of them were made of gold. ¹³ And among the seven lamps there was Someone who looked like “a normal human being”, that is the Son of Man. ^[5] He wore a long robe that reached to His feet. He also wore a gold belt which was so wide that it came up to His chest. ¹⁴ His hair was white like sheep’s wool or as white as snow. His eyes shone like flames of fire. ¹⁵ His feet were like the glow of brass when it is purified in a very hot fire. His voice was as loud as a gigantic waterfall. ¹⁶ His right hand held seven stars. His tongue was like a sharp two-edged sword, which illustrates that all His words are very powerful. And His face shone like the sun at midday.

¹⁷ When I saw Him, I immediately fell headlong in front of Him and felt like all of my strength was gone, like I had died on the spot. Then He put His right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I’m the one who always is, both before the beginning of creation and after all creation passes away. ¹⁸ I’m the source of life. Even though I died, look, I’m alive now and live forevermore! I hold complete power to determine when every person dies. And I hold the keys to the kingdom of death, so I have power to bring people who’ve died back to life.

¹⁹ “For that reason, write down everything that will be shown to you, because all of these visions illustrate the situation that’s going on now and also events which will happen in days to come. ²⁰ I'll explain the meaning of the two previous visions now. The seven stars you saw in My right hand illustrate the seven servants of the Lord ^[6] who represent the seven churches in the cities named. Whereas the seven gold lamps illustrate the seven churches.” ^[7]

Chapter 2

Jesus’ letter to the church in Ephesus

¹ Then Jesus said to me,

         “Write these things to the Lord’s servant ^[1] who represents His church in the city of Ephesus. This is the message from Me, who holds the seven stars in My right hand and who watches over the condition of the seven golden lamps:

         ² “I know how each of you lives, and I notice that you keep fighting for Me and endure with patience. I’m glad that you drove the people who are involved in teaching misleading things out of your church. And when false teachers appeared and claimed that they’re apostles whom I’ve sent, you tested them and finally realized that they’re liars. ³ I know that you keep on standing firm as My followers, and when you were persecuted for that you kept enduring and didn’t give up.

         ⁴ “But I’m disappointed in you because of this: you don’t love Me anymore and don’t love each other anymore like when you first believed in Me. ⁵ Wake up! You’ve already gone too far away from Me. So repent, and come back to your first way of life! But if you don’t repent I'll come and remove your golden lamp from its place in front of Me. ^{[2] 6} But I’m happy with you because of this: you hate the lifestyle taught by the followers of Nicholas. ^[3] I also hate that wicked lifestyle.

         ⁷ “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!

         “This is the reward which will be given to each of you who wins in this spiritual battle: I'll give you the right to eat the fruit from the tree of life which is in God’s Garden.” ^[4]

Jesus’ letter to the church of Smyrna

         ⁸ “Write this to the Lord’s servant who represents the church in the city of Smyrna. This is the message from Me, who always exists both before the beginning of creation and after all of creation passes away. And I died but came back to life.

         ⁹ “I know that you suffer persecution and are also poor, but you’re actually rich! And I also know that you were accused of doing evil things by those who call themselves Jews, but they aren’t actually Jews. They're the church of the devil. ¹⁰ Don’t be afraid of the suffering that you’ll soon experience. For the devil will influence people to oppose you so that some of your brothers and sisters will be arrested and imprisoned. Of course the devil does that to test your faithfulness to Me. And you’ll experience severe suffering for ten days. ^[5] Remain faithful, even if you have to die! Then I'll give you a crown of victory ^[6] when you go to heaven and live forever.

         ¹¹ “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!

         “This is the reward which will be given to each of you who wins in this spiritual battle: you won’t experience the second stage of death.”

Jesus’ letter to the church of Pergamum

         ¹² “Write this to the Lord’s servant who represents the church in Pergamum. This is the message from Me, who’s ready to fight with the full power of My words which are like a sword which has two sharp edges.

         ¹³ “I know that your city is the center of evil, so it can be said that the devil has his throne there. Even so each of you remains faithful to Me. In fact you didn’t deny that you’re My followers when My faithful witness, Antipas, was killed in your city which is like the capitol city of the devil’s kingdom.

         ¹⁴ “But I’m disappointed with you because of this: some of you follow the misleading teaching which was taught by Balaam. Remember how Balaam taught Balak to persuade the people of Israel to commit sin by taking part in the feast to honor idols and by commiting immorality. ^{[1] 15} The following the teaching of Nicholas is almost the same as the following the misleading teaching of Balaam. ¹⁶ So repent! If you don’t I'll come to you suddenly and attack whoever follows that misleading teaching with the full power of My words. The power of My words is illustrated by a sharp two-edged sword.

         ¹⁷ “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!

         “This is the reward that will be given to each of you who wins in this spiritual battle: I'll give you the reward of eating part of the hidden manna. ^[7] And I'll give you a white stone and a new name will be written on that stone which I will give to you in a special way, unknown to anyone except you alone.”

Jesus’ letter to the church in Thyatira

         ¹⁸ “Write this to the Lord’s servant who represents the church in Thyatira. This is the message from Me, the Son of God. I’m the one who has eyes that shine like flames of fire, and My feet gleam like brass shines when it’s being purified in an extremely hot fire.

         ¹⁹ “I know how each of you lives, and I know how you keep loving your fellow brothers and sisters in the faith. I know that you remain certain of Me and faithful to Me. You keep serving Me and keep enduring in suffering. In fact, in all of these things you’ve progressed more and experienced a higher level than in your first way of life when you had just believed in Me.

         ²⁰ “But I’m disappointed in you because of this: you keep allowing that woman named Jezebel to lead My people astray. She claims she’s a prophet, but by her teaching she urges My people to commit immorality and take part in feasts to honor idols. ²¹ I’ve given her many opportunities to repent, but she doesn’t want to repent of her immorality. ²² So I'll punish her with an awful illness and she’ll be forced to lie and suffer on the bed where she liked to commit adultery. And all of the men who’ve committed adultery with her will also be punished in the same way if they don’t repent of the evil deeds which are taught by that Jezebel. ²³ I'll even kill some of her followers. In that way all of the churches will know that I’m the only one who knows what’s in people’s hearts and thoughts. And I am He who will repay you according to your own deeds.

         ²⁴ “But for you in Thyatira who don’t follow her teaching, that is you who reject learning what they call ‘the devil’s advanced teachings’, I’m telling you this, I won’t place any other burden on you. ²⁵ Just keep enduring in your faith in Me until I return.

         ^26-28 “This is the reward which will be given to each of you who keeps on obeying Me until the last day and wins in this spiritual battle: just like I received authority from My Father, I'll give that authority to you too, which is the ‘authority to rule over all people groups’. And along with Me you’ll ‘give them a harsh punishment for their wrongs and evil’. Your authority to punish is illustrated by a ‘rod of iron which easily destroys ceramic pots’. ^[2] And I'll also give you shining glory like the morning star which shines in the east. ^[3]

         ²⁹ “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!”

Chapter 3

Jesus’ letter to the church in Sardis

         ¹ “Write this to the Lord’s servant who represents the church in Sardis. This is the message from Me, who has all the power of God’s Spirit, ^[1] and who holds the seven stars which illustrate the seven churches:

         “I know how each of you lives. You are known as My faithful and zealous followers, but spiritually speaking you’re actually almost dead. ² For that reason wake up and rise up from death, and strengthen your spiritual lives which are almost dead so they live again! For I know before God that none of your works have been totally completed. ³ For that reason remember the teaching which you’ve heard and believed from the beginning. Obey it and repent! If you resist guarding your spirits so that they live again, then I will come suddenly and punish you. And you won’t know ahead of time when I'll come, because I'll come like a thief.

         ⁴ “But there are just a few people in the church in Sardis who haven’t stained yourselves by doing evil. ^[2] Each of you will walk with Me in white clothing because you deserve to receive that honor.

         ⁵ “This is the reward which will be given to each of you who wins in this spiritual battle: white clothing will be given to you. And I won’t erase your names from the Book of Life. But before My Father and before the angels I'll state that you’ve proven faithful to Me.

         ⁶ “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!”

Jesus’ letter to the church in Philadelphia

         ⁷ “Write this to the Lord’s servant who represents the church in Philadelphia. This is the message from Me, who is called “The Holy One” and who is very worthy to be believed. I hold the “keys of David,” ^[4] so I have the right to determine who’ll receive the right to become citizens of God’s kingdom. If I open the door for a person, no one can hinder him by closing that door. And if I close the door for a person, no one can open the door for him.

         ⁸ “I know the way of life of each of you. I know that your strength to endure is very limited, yet you still follow My teachings and don’t deny that you’re My followers. Because of that, look! I’ve opened the door of opportunity for you so that you’ll tell about Me, and no one can close that door of opportunity. ⁹ Listen! I'll make the people who are opposing you now come and kneel before you and repent. They’re the ones who claim they’re followers of the Jewish religion but they’re actually the church of the devil. But I'll make them realize that I love you. ¹⁰ You’ve obeyed My command to endure with patience as My followers. For that reason I'll protect you from the time of trouble that will be poured out on the whole earth to test all the people who live on the earth.

         ¹¹ “I will come soon! Keep enduring in your faith in Me until I come so that in this contest to defend your faith no one will be able to steal your crown of victory when you’re so close to the finish line!

         ¹² “This is the reward which will be given to each of you who wins in this spiritual battle: I'll make you like a large pillar in the House of My God. By that I mean you'll have the right to live there forever. And on your body I'll write the name of My God and the name of the city of My God which is the new Jerusalem that will come down from heaven. I'll also write My new name on you. ^[3]

         ¹³ “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!”

Jesus’ letter to the church in Laodicea

         ¹⁴ “Write this to the Lord’s servant who represents the church in Laodicea. This is the message from Me, who is also called The Amen! ^[4] I mean that I’m the Witness who is very worthy to be believed, who has taught what’s true about My Father. Through Me My Father created everything.

         ¹⁵ “I know the way of life of each of you, that spiritually you’re neither cold or hot. May you become hot or cold and not just half-heartedly follow Me! ¹⁶ So you can be illustrated by food that’s just lukewarm, neither cold or hot. I mean that you’re like food which I spit out of My mouth as soon as I’ve tasted it! ¹⁷ For each one of you thinks, ‘I’m already rich. The wealth that I’ve gathered is enough so that I won’t experience lack of anything anymore.’ But you don’t realize that spiritually you’re very poor, without hope, destitute, blind and naked. ¹⁸ So I advise you to trade your riches for My gold which has been purified in fire so that you’ll really be rich. ^[5] And use your wealth to buy white clothing from Me so that later on you won’t be naked and ashamed anymore. And buy oil to rub on your eyes so that the eyes of your heart can see clearly.

         ¹⁹ “My beloved children, I’m the One who rebukes you and corrects you! ^[6] For that reason relight the fire of your enthusiasm again and repent! ²⁰ Look! It’s as if I’m standing in front of the door of each of your homes, knocking and asking permission to enter. I will enter the heart of whoever hears My voice and opens the door of his heart for Me. Then we’ll often eat together as close friends.

         ²¹ “This is the reward which will be given to each of you who wins in this spiritual battle: I'll give you authority to rule with Me. And you’ll sit on thrones to the right and left of My throne, just like I sat to the right of My Father’s throne after I won the great spiritual battle. ^[7]

         ²² “You have ears don’t you?! Then listen closely to this news that My Spirit gives to the seven churches!”

Chapter 4

John sees God’s throne and those worshiping Him in heaven

¹ Then as the revelation continued, I saw that there was an open door up above in heaven, and I heard a voice like before that was as loud as a trumpet blast which said, “Come up here! I'll show you what must happen after this.” ² I was suddenly controlled by the Holy Spirit, and it was like I had arrived in heaven where I saw a King’s throne. And He who is Almighty was sitting on that throne! ³ He who was sitting on the throne looked like jewels which sparkled in red, green and several other colors. And the throne was surrounded by a rainbow which glittered like jewels. ^[1]

⁴ Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones and twenty-four leaders who wore white robes and gold crowns sitting on those thrones. ⁵ The throne of the Almighty King sent out flashes of lightning and loud sounds of rumblings and thunder. In front of His throne there were seven torches burning, which illustrate all the power of God’s Spirit. ^{[2] 6} And in front of the throne there was also something like a sea of glass which was transparent, like crystal.

Very close to the four corners of His throne were four living creatures which had many eyes all over their bodies, both in front and in back. ⁷ The first living creature was like a lion. The second was like a male water buffalo. The third living creature’s face was like the face of a human being. And the fourth was like an eagle with wings opened wide, as if it was flying. ⁸ The four living creatures each had six wings, and their bodies had many eyes, even under their wings. They sang without stopping day and night,

     “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty!

         He’s the one who was from creation until now

         and who will continue to be until the next age.”

^9-10 When the twenty-four leaders heard the living creatures sing praise, honor and thanks to Him who lives forever, they also knelt down over and over again, worshiping in front of Him who sat on the throne. Then they placed each of their crowns before His throne as a sign that all glory is truly His alone. And at the same time they sang,

     ¹¹ “Oh, our Lord God.

         You’re worthy to receive praise, honor and authority!

     For You’re the one who created everything.

         And everything was created and continues to exist

         only because of Your will.

Chapter 5

The Lamb who is worthy to open the scroll of God’s plans

¹ Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. The scroll had writing on the inside and outside, but it couldn’t be opened and read because it was closed with seven seals that were made of wax. ² And I saw a very strong angel ask with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to release the seals of the scroll and open it?” ³ But obviously there wasn’t anyone, either in heaven or on earth or under the earth, who was worthy to open it or look inside of it. ⁴ So I cried with great sadness because there wasn’t anyone who was worthy to do that. ⁵ But one of the twenty-four leaders said to me, “Don’t cry! He who is like the lion of the tribe of Judah has won! He’s the High King descended from David. ^[1] He’s the one who is worthy to release the seven seals of the scroll and open it!”

⁶ Then I saw a Lamb standing near the great throne and surrounded by the four living creatures and the leaders. But the Lamb looked like it had been killed. He also had seven horns which illustrate His divine authority to rule, and seven eyes which illustrate all the power of God’s Spirit which was sent into the whole world. ⁷ The Lamb came and took the scroll from the right hand of the Almighty who sat on the throne. ⁸ And when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four leaders immediately fell down headlong and worshiped before Him. They each held their own harps, and they also held golden bowls which were full of incense which illustrate the prayers of God’s people. ⁹ And they sang a new song to Him,

     “You are worthy to receive the scroll

         and release it’s seals!

     For You were killed,

         and with Your own blood You’ve bought them back for God

         from every tribe, language, people group and country.

     ¹⁰ You’ve also made them citizens of God’s kingdom

         and priests who serve our God.

         And You made them kings who will rule over the whole earth.”

¹¹ Then in that vision I heard the voices of countless angels, thousands of thousands, in fact millions of millions. The angels surrounded the leaders, the leaders surrounded the four living creatures and the four living creatures surrounded the great throne. ¹² They sang in a loud voice,

     “Let all authority, wealth, wisdom and power

         be to the Lamb who was killed!

         He’s the one who is worthy to receive all honor, glory and praise!”

¹³ Then I heard every living creature that was in heaven, on the earth, under the earth and in the sea, everyone that was in every place cried out,

     “All praise, honor, glory and authority

         forever and ever

     be to Him who sits on the throne

         and to the Lamb!”

¹⁴ Then the four living creatures cried out, “Amen!” And the leaders immediately fell down headlong and worshiped Him.

Chapter 6

The Lamb releases six of the seals

¹ Then I saw Him who’s called the Lamb release the first seal of the seven seals that were on the scroll. Right after that I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like the sound of thunder, “Come!” ² And I was surprised to see a white horse move forward in front of them all, and the person riding on it held a bow. A crown was given to him, and then he left for earth to defeat his enemies. ³ When the Lamb released the second seal, then I heard the second creature say, “Come!” ⁴ Then another horse came forward. That horse was red like a flame of fire. The rider of that horse was given authority to do away with peace on the earth so that people would kill each other, and he was given a large sword.

⁵ And when the Lamb released the third seal, then I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” Then a black horse came forward. The rider of that horse held a scale in his hand. ⁶ Then I heard a voice that sounded like the voice of a man which came out from between the four living creatures. The voice said, “Oh dear! The price of one liter of wheat or three liters of the cheap kind of wheat ^[1] have gone up to be the same as the daily wage of a worker! Oh dear, don’t let the price of cooking oil and wine go up too!” ^[2]

⁷ When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, then the fourth living creature said, “Come!” ⁸ And a pale horse came forward. It’s rider illustrates death, and there was a person who looked like a ghost who followed him, which illustrates the kingdom of death. They were given authority over one fourth of the earth to kill the people on earth through war, famine, disease and by wild animal attacks.

⁹ When the Lamb released the fifth seal, then I saw many souls under the altar of heaven! The souls were those who had been killed for faithfully telling God’s Word. ¹⁰ They were crying out, “Oh Lord who’is holy and righteous, when will You judge and punish the people of the world who killed us?” ¹¹ Then each of those souls was given a white robe, and they were told to be patient a little longer because there are still more of their brothers and sisters in the faith who will be killed like them, that is those who are following their example in the service of Christ. They should wait patiently until the total number of people to be killed has been reached according to the plan of God.

¹² When the Lamb released the sixth seal, a huge earthquake happened, and the sun became black like mourning clothes, and the full moon became red like blood. ¹³ The stars in the sky fell onto the earth like the unripe fruit of a fig tree falls to the ground when shaken by a strong wind. ¹⁴ Then the sky split apart and rolled up like a sheet of paper is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved from it’s place.

¹⁵ Then everyone, including the kings of the earth, leading people, the military commanders, rich people, strong people and other people, both slaves and free, ran away and hid in caves and gaps in the rocks of the mountains. ¹⁶ Then they said to the mountains and rocks, “Collapse and fall on top of us quickly! Hide us from Him who sits on the throne and from the anger of Him who is called the Lamb! ¹⁷ For that most terrifying day has come when God and the Lamb will punish us by pouring out Their anger! After that there certainly won’t be any of us still alive!”

Chapter 7

144,000 people are given the stamp of God

¹ After that happened I saw four more angels standing at the four corners of the earth. They held back the four winds of the earth, east, west, north and south, so that the winds didn’t blow anywhere, either on the land, the sea or on the trees. ² Those four angels had received authority from God to ruin the earth and sea. But then I saw another angel who appeared from the east who brought a stamping tool that was used to give a stamp as a sign of being owned by the living God. Then the other angel cried out to the four angels, ³ “Don’t ruin the earth, the sea or the trees until we put a stamped sign on the forehead of everyone who serves God.”

⁴ Then I heard that the total number of those who were given the stamped sign was 144,000 people who came from all the tribes of Israel.

     ⁵ So there were 12,000 from each tribe, including the tribes of Judah, Reuben, Gad,

     ⁶ Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh,

     ⁷ Simeon, Levi, Issachar,

     ⁸ Zebulun, Joseph and Benjamin.

From each of those tribes 144,000 people were given the stamped sign of God. ^[1]

A gathering of people that can’t be counted from every country, ethnic group, tribe and language

⁹ Then I saw such a huge number of people whose total couldn’t be counted, who came from every country, ethnic group, tribe and language. They all stood in front of God’s throne and in front of the Lamb wearing white robes and holding palm branches. ¹⁰ They cried out, “Praise to You our God who sits on the throne of Your kingdom! We were saved because of You and the Lamb whom You sent!”

¹¹ The angels, the twenty-four leaders and the four living creatures were still standing around God’s throne. When they heard praises from that huge number of God’s people all of them immediately fell down headlong in front of God’s throne and worshiped Him. ¹² They all cried out, “Amen! To God be all praise, glory, wisdom, thanksgiving, honor, authority and power forever. Amen!”

¹³ Then one of the leaders asked me, “Do you know who those are who are wearing white robes and where they came from?”

¹⁴ I answered him, “I don’t know, Sir. Please tell me.”

And he said to me, “They’re the people who’ve come out of very severe persecution. They’ve washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb, and His blood is also what made their robes white. ¹⁵ That’s why they have the right to come before the throne of God, and they worship before God day and night with enthusiasm here in His heavenly Home. And He who sits on the throne of His kingdom will keep protecting them. ¹⁶ They won’t ever be hungry and thirsty again. And even if the sun shines with midday heat, it won’t bother them anymore. ^{[8] 17} Because the Lamb who is closest to the throne of God will shepherd them and guide them to the source of water which gives life. And God will ‘wipe away all the tears from their eyes.’” ^[9]

Chapter 8

The Lamb releases the seventh seal

¹ When the Lamb released the last seal of the scroll, heaven became still and silent for almost half an hour. ² Then I saw the seven well-known angels ^[1] come forward and stand in front of God. And they were given seven trumpets.

³ Then one of the other angels came and stood near the golden altar, the place for offering incense before God. That angel held a golden pan which was used to burn incense. And he was given a lot of incense to offer to God. The angel mixed the incense in the pan with fire which he took from the altar. The incense was offered to God, illustrating the prayers of all of His people. ⁴ Then a cloud of incense smoke arose before God from the pan that was in the angel’s hand. This illustrates the prayers of all of God’s people. ⁵ After that the angel filled the pan with fire from the altar again and then threw it onto the earth! Then the sound of rumblings of thunder occured along with continuous lightning and an earthquake.

Each of the seven angels blow their trumpets

⁶ After that the seven angels who held the seven trumpets each prepared to blow their trumpets.

⁷ The first angel blew his trumpet and then hail and fire mixed with blood fell onto the earth. So one third of the earth and one third of the trees were burned up and all the green grass was burned up.

⁸ The second angel blew his trumpet and then something that looked like a huge burning mountain was thrown into the sea. So one third of the sea became blood ⁹ and one third of the living creatures in the sea died and one third of all the ships were destroyed too.

¹⁰ The third angel blew his trumpet and then a huge star that was burning like a torch fell from the sky. That star fell on one third of the rivers and the springs of water on earth. ¹¹ The name of that star was Bitterness. ^[2] One third of all the water became very bitter, and many people died because of drinking that bitter water.

¹² The fourth angel blew his trumpet and then the sun, moon and stars were struck. Because of that the sun didn’t shine for twelve hours any longer, but only for eight hours. And also the moon and stars shone for only one third of the time. As a result there was often very great darkness on the earth.

¹³ Then I saw something important! I heard an eagle that flew in the sky and cried out this announcement, “How unfortunate! How unfortunate! It will be so unfortunate for those who live on earth because of the sound of the trumpets that will be blown by the other three angels!”

Chapter 9

¹ When the fifth angel blew his trumpet, I saw a star which had already fallen from the sky to earth. But the star was like an angel, and he was given a key that could open the hole of the pit of death. ² So he opened the door to the hole of the pit of death and smoke rose from that hole like the smoke from a huge fireplace. The sun and sky became dark because of the smoke from that hole.

³ Then grasshoppers came out of the smoke onto the earth in great numbers. And God gave authority to the grasshoppers to hurt people with their poison, like the poison of scorpions. ⁴ They were forbidden to ruin the grass, plants or trees on earth. They could only hurt humans who didn’t have the stamp of God on their foreheads. ^{[10] 5} The grasshoppers weren’t permitted to kill the portion of people I mentioned, but only to torture them for as long as five months with pain that feels like the bite of a poisonous scorpion. ⁶ For those five months people will want to die and search for a way out by killing themselves. But God will make death stay far away from them so that their efforts to kill themselves will fail.

⁷ The grasshoppers looked like horses wearing battle equipment made from iron plates. On top of their heads was something like gold crowns. The faces of the grasshoppers were like human faces ⁸ with long hair like a woman. But their teeth were sharp like a lion’s teeth. ⁹ Their chests were covered with metal coats. The sound of their wings was like the sound of a great many carts pulled by horses, running quickly to attack the enemy. ¹⁰ The tails of those grasshoppers contain poison like the poison of a scorpion sting. The tails of the grasshoppers were used to torture humans for five months. ¹¹ The king who ruled the troops of grasshoppers was the ruler of the pit of death. In the Hebrew language his name is Abaddon and in the Greek language Apollyon. Both of those names mean ‘destroyer’.

¹² That’s the first disaster that was announced by the eagle previously mentioned. ^[11] But there are still two more disasters that have to happen.

¹³ When the sixth angel blew his trumpet I heard a voice come out from the golden altar that was in front of God. The altar was square-shaped and at every corner there was a horn, and the voice came out of one of those horns. ¹⁴ The voice ordered the sixth angel who had just blown his trumpet, “Release the four demons that are tied near the great Euphrates river!” ^{[1] 15} That command was carried out precisely according to the time determined by God, the year, month, day and even the hour. So the demons were released to carry out their tasks which was to kill one third of the people on earth. ¹⁶ And I was told the total number of soldiers on horses that were led by the demons was two hundred million.

¹⁷ In my vision I was able to see those soldiers on horses. They wore coats of metal. Some of their coats of metal were the color red like flames of fire and some were the color dark blue, and some others wore the color yellow like sulfur. The heads of the horses were like heads of lions. And the horses also had power to shoot out fire, black smoke and sulfurous smoke from their mouths. ¹⁸ Then one third of the people on earth were killed by the disaster that came out of the mouths of those horses, that is fire, smoke and sulfur. ¹⁹ The power of those horses to kill wasn’t just because of what came out of their mouths but also because their tails were like heads of snakes that could bite and torture people.

²⁰ But the other people who weren’t killed by that great disaster still didn’t want to repent of their idol worship. They refused to stop worshiping evil spirits and idols made with their own hands. They kept praising their idols which were made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, things that can’t see, hear or walk. ²¹ And they also didn’t repent of doing their other evil deeds, including murder, sorcery, immorality and theft.

Chapter 10

The angel gives a small scroll to John

¹ Then I saw another angel who had full authority come down from heaven. That angel was robed in white clouds. A rainbow surrounded his head. His face shone like the sun, and his legs looked like two pillars of fire. ² He held a small scroll which was open. His right foot stepped on the sea while his left foot stepped on the earth. ³ The angel cried out in a very loud voice, like the sound of a roaring lion. After that the voice of the Almighty spoke from heaven like the sound of thunder. ^[1]

⁴ I was just about to write what I heard, but another voice from heaven said, “Don’t write what was said by the voice that sounded like thunder. Keep that a secret.” ⁵ Then the angel who stepped on the sea and the earth lifted his right hand to the sky ^6-7 and swore like this, “By Him who lives forever, the Lord who created everything, including everything in the heavens, the earth and the sea, God won’t delay any longer in doing what He has planned! But when the seventh angel blows his trumpet whatever was foretold by the prophets and God’s messengers ^[2] will happen, and whatever plans of God’s are still kept secret from people will become reality.”

⁸ Then the voice which previously came from heaven ordered me, “Go and take the open scroll that’s in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and earth.”

⁹ So I went to the angel and said to him, “Please give me that scroll.” Then the angel said to me, “Take it and eat it. The scroll will taste sweet like honey in your mouth but will become bitter in your stomach.” ¹⁰ Then when I took the little scroll from his hand and ate it the scroll was sweet like honey in my mouth, and after I swallowed it my stomach became bitter. ¹¹ Then the angel said to me, “You have to prophesy about many countries, people groups, languages and kings.”

Chapter 11

Two witnesses will prophesy and then be killed

^1-2 Then one of the angels gave me a measuring tool like a rod and said, “Go to Jerusalem and measure God’s House and its altar. And count the number of those who worship there. But don’t measure the courtyard of God’s House because that place has been given as a place of prayer for the non-Jewish people groups. And God has determined that those people groups will control the Holy City Jerusalem and oppress its inhabitants for forty-two months. ³ And I will give authority to two male witnesses who will witness and prophesy for 1,260 days. ^[1] And to show their grief for the evil of people they’ll wear mourning clothes every day. ⁴ Those two witnesses are the ones illustrated in the writing of the Prophet Zachariah who are the two olive trees and the two large lamps that stand before the Lord, the High King over all the earth. ^{[12] 5} If anyone wants to persecute those two witnesses, fire will come out of both of their mouths and burn the people who persecute them. That’s how God has determined to give the death penalty to all of those who want to persecute those two. ⁶ They’re also given authority to close up the sky so that rain can’t fall as long as they’re prophesying. And they have authority to change water to blood. They’re also allowed to punish people on earth by all kinds of disasters. They can cause any disaster whenever they want to.

⁷ But when the two witnesses have finished the task which was planned by God for them, a wild beast ^[13] will appear from the pit of death and will attack them. Then God will allow that beast to defeat and kill them. ⁸ Their bodies will be left in the place where they are killed, on the main street of the big city where the Lord of those two witnesses was crucified. The evil of that city can be illustrated by Sodom. And spiritually the residents of that city are like the residents of Egypt. ^9-10 Then people from every country, people group, tribe and language will be happy and party while sending each other gifts because of the death of those two prophets who caused so much suffering for the residents of the earth. Because of that, for three and a half days they won’t allow the bodies of the two to be buried.

¹¹ But after three and a half days God will give the breath of life to the two witnesses. Then they’ll come back to life and everyone who sees that miracle will be frightened. ¹² Then the two witnesses will hear a voice from heaven which cries out, “Come up here!” So clouds will cover the two of them and they’ll be lifted up to heaven. At that time the people who opposed them will still be there and witness that event.

¹³ Then at that time there’ll be a terrible earthquake. That earthquake will destroy a tenth of the city of Jerusalem and seven thousand people will be killed. Everyone who doesn’t die will be very frightened and will say to each other, “God who rules from heaven is definitely very strong!”

¹⁴ That’s the second disaster that was announced by the eagle. ^[14] But after that the third disaster will soon follow.

The seventh trumpet

¹⁵ When the seventh angel blew his trumpet many voices were heard from heaven which cried out,

     “From now on and forever

         God will rule the whole earth in reality.

     And Christ, who was appointed by God, will rule as King with Him!

¹⁶ Then the twenty-four leaders who were previously sitting on their own thrones around the throne of God immediately fell headlong and worshiped God ¹⁷ while singing,

     “We thank you, oh Lord

         God Almighty, the God who always is both now and from the beginning of time!

     For through Your great authority You’ve defeated all of Your enemies

         and have begun to rule in reality.

     ¹⁸ Of course ‘all people groups were angry and made plans to oppose You’, ^[15]

         but now the time has come to punish them according to Your anger.

     The Judgment Day has come for all dead people.

         So this is the time when You give rewards to all of Your servants,

         that is to all who fear and respect You, both those of high and low position.

     All of Your people who’ve been purified through Christ will be given a reward,

         especially all your messengers who prophesy.

     But this is also the time to destroy everyone who has ruined and defiled the earth.”

¹⁹ Then the Most Holy Room in heaven was opened and the Ark of the Covenant was seen inside, which is a heavenly chest that is a reminder of the promise God made with His people. ^[16] Then there was lightning, thunder and the sound of very loud rumbling, earthquakes and very large hail on earth.

Chapter 12

The vision of a glorious woman and the dragon that opposed her

¹ A meaningful sign was shown to me. I saw a very glorious woman in the sky. She wore a shining robe as if made from the sun. The moon was under her feet and she wore a crown made of twelve stars. ² But she was pregnant and it was already time for her to give birth. Because of that she screamed in pain.

³ Then another sign in the sky was seen, which was a huge red dragon with seven heads and ten horns. There was a crown on each of its heads. ⁴ Then the dragon pulled one third of the stars with its tail and threw them down to the earth. After that the dragon stood in front of the pregnant woman in order to eat her Child as soon as He was born.

⁵ Then the woman gave birth to a boy Child. This is the Child that a prophet prophesied about by saying that He will have great power to “rule over all people groups.” And His power is illustrated by “a rod of iron which easily destroys ceramic pots.” ^[17] But as soon as the Child was born, He was suddenly taken away and brought to God to rule with God next to His throne. ⁶ But the women fled to the desert to a place that had been prepared by God for her. In that place she will be cared for by angels for 1,260 days. ^[1]

⁷ Then a war took place in heaven! Michael and the angels who were under his command fought against that huge dragon. The dragon fought with the help of the angels who had been on his side to oppose God since before creation. ⁸ But the dragon was defeated! So he and all the angels who were on his side were driven out of heaven. ⁹ The huge dragon and everyone who was on his side were thrown down to earth. He’s the snake whom we know in the events that happened in the garden of Eden who is called the devil and named Satan, and who likes to deceive people in the whole world.

¹⁰ Then I heard an extremely loud heavenly voice cry out,

     “The time has now come when God will use His power!

         God will establish His kingdom in reality,

         and Christ will rule as King with Him!

         His victory will be seen individually in all of His people whom He has saved!

     For the devil who always accuses our brothers and sisters in the faith day and night before God

         has been thrown out of heaven.

     ¹¹ Our brothers and sisters have defeated the devil because they completely believe

         in the victory of the Lamb when His blood was poured out for them.

         And they won because they weren’t ashamed to witness about their King of Salvation.

     They didn’t take pity on their own lives, even to the point of being willing to die.

     ¹² For that reason rejoice all of you residents of heaven!

     But how unfortunate are all of you residents of earth, both on the land and in the sea,

         because the devil has been thrown down.

     He’s in your midst, and he’s very angry

         because he realizes that the time to oppose God is almost gone.”

¹³ When the huge dragon realized that he had been throne down to the earth, he chased the woman who gave birth to the boy Child in order to hurt her. ¹⁴ But God gave two large wings to the woman, like the wings of an eagle, in order to fly to the desert to the place that had been prepared for her. She was taken care of there, far from the dragon, for three and a half years. ¹⁵ Then the dragon spit water out of his mouth, like a huge river flowing in the direction of the woman, so he could harm the woman through that river. ¹⁶ But the woman got help because by God’s command a hole opened up in the ground that swallowed the water which the dragon spit out. ¹⁷ So the dragon got very angry with the woman. Then he went to make war against all of her other children, that is we who obey the commands of God and faithfully tell the teachings of Jesus.

¹⁸ Then the dragon stood on the shore.

Chapter 13

A beast from the ocean is a representative of the huge dragon

¹ Then I saw a wild beast which appeared out of the ocean. ^[1] The beast had seven heads and ten horns. On each head there was a crown, and a name was written on each head that insulted God. Each name was different. ² The beast looked like a tiger, but its feet were really big, like the bears feet and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. Then the terrible dragon gave his own authority and power to the beast so that the wild beast represented the dragon as the high king of earth, even sitting on the dragon’s throne.

³ One of the heads of the beast looked like it had gotten a very severe and fatal wound, but the wound had healed. All the people on earth were surprised and amazed, so they followed and obeyed the beast because they thought the healing of its head was a miracle. ⁴ They also worshiped the dragon because he’s the one who gave the beast authority to rule. And they also worshiped the beast saying, “There certainly isn’t a more powerful being than the beast! And there is no being at all that is capable of making war against him!”

⁵ These things happened because the beast was given permission by God to rule as king for forty-two months. ^[2] In fact, the beast was permitted to continuously praise itself and insult God. ⁶ So without stopping, the beast insulted God, His name, His Temple in heaven and all of the residents of heaven. ⁷ That beast also was given permission to make war against the people of God and defeat them, that is those who were made holy by Him because of Christ. In fact the beast was given authority to rule every country, people group, tribe and every group that uses a regional language. ⁸ Almost everyone who lives on earth will worship that beast, that is everyone whose name hasn’t been written in the Lamb’s Book of Life since the world was created. However it’s the Lamb who is worthy to be worshiped because He’s the One who surrendered Himself to be the sacrifice to erase sin.

⁹ For that reason, listen everyone who has ears! It’s really important that each of us understand God’s will concerning the end of the age:

     ¹⁰ “Each of us whom God has determined to be taken captive will certainly be taken captive.

     Each of us who has been determined to be killed by a sword will certainly be killed by a sword.”

This means that God wants each of us who’ve been made holy by Him to keep enduring and be faithful to Christ in persecution!

A beast from the land is a representative of the huge dragon

¹¹ Then I saw another beast appear from the land. That beast had two horns like a lamb, but he deceived like the dragon with his words. ^12-14 Then the beast from the sea gave its full authority to the beast that came out of the land. So with the full right as his representative, the second beast forced all the residents on earth to worship the first beast,that is the beast who had recovered from the fatal sword wound. And to convince people, the second beast did various great miracles, even bringing fire down from the sky to earth before the eyes of all people.

So because of the ability and authority to do miracles that was given by the first beast, the second beast led almost all of the residents on earth astray. Then he ordered them to make an idol in the form of the first beast. ¹⁵ So with the authority that was given by the first beast, the second beast gave life to the idol so that it could speak. And when the idol spoke it gave this order, “Whoever doesn’t kneel and worship me has to be killed!” ¹⁶ Then the second beast forced everyone to receive a sign of worshiping the first beast on his hand or on his forehead. Everyone was forced to receive that sign, both people of high position and the lowly, both rich people and poor, both slaves and free. ¹⁷ It meant that no one could buy or sell anything at all if they didn’t have that sign. The sign of worship used a number as a symbol that shows the name of the first beast.

¹⁸ It takes wisdom to understand the meaning of the number which is used as a symbol of the name of the first beast because the number indicates a person. ^[3] And the number is 666. ^[4]

Chapter 14

144,000 of God’s people sing a new song

¹ While I was still having the vision, the Lamb stood on Mount Zion with 144,000 people ^[1] who had the name of the Lamb and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. ² Then I heard the sound of music from heaven, but its sound was like the sound of a huge waterfall or like the sound of loud thunder. The sound was also like the sound of a very large music group that played their harps together. ³ Then the 144,000 people sang a new song, accompanied by that music, before the throne of God, before the four living creatures and before the twenty-four leaders. That new song was a special song that was sung by the 144,000 people who had been redeemed from the earth by the Lamb. Other people weren’t allowed to sing that song, ^4-5 because the 144,000 had guarded themselves so that they kept pure and they didn’t defile themselves with immorality. They remained holy like a virgin. They lived without stain and never lied. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. He’s the one who redeemed them from among the residents of earth. So those 144,000 people are the ones who become people especially reserved for God and for the Lamb. ^[2]

Three angels and the news they announce

⁶ Then I saw another angel flying high in the sky that come down bringing news of eternal salvation to be broadcast to everyone on earth, to every country, people group, tribe and every group that uses a regional language. ⁷ He cried out, “Praise God! Fear and honor Him! For the time has come for God to judge all people. Worship God the Creator of the sky, earth, sea and all springs of water.”

⁸ And there was a second angel who followed the first angel. The second angel also cried out, “The city of Babylon has been destroyed! The great capitol city of Babylon has been totally destroyed! That city has been punished by the wrath of God because its residents have, as it were, invited the residents of all other countries and people groups to get drunk on their wine. That wine illustrates the way they involved all people groups to live according to their immoral lustful desires, and that’s what has, as it were, poisoned all people groups.”

⁹ Then a third angel followed the second angel. That third angel also cried out, “Beware! Whoever worships the first beast and its idol and receives the sign of worship on his forehead or on his hand ¹⁰ will also be punished by drinking the poisonous wine of the wrath of God like the residents of Babylon! ^[18] That wine is pure, unmixed with anything else. Don’t be like them, because the wrath of God is poured out on them without mercy! And they’ll be tortured by fire mixed with sulfur before the Lamb and the angels in heaven. ¹¹ The smoke of the fire that tortures them will rise up forever. That’s the torture which will happen to those who worship the first beast and its idol and receive the sign of its name. They’re tortured day and night without stopping.” ¹² This means that God desires each of us who’ve been made holy by Him to keep enduring in obedience to all of His commands and to keep believing in Christ!

¹³ Then I heard a voice from heaven which said, “Write down this announcement: From now on, everyone who dies in oneness with the Lord Jesus is really happy!”

And that statement was ‘affirmed with an amen’ by God’s Spirit Himself who said, “Yes, it’s true! Their lives will be happy and they’ll rest calmly! They won’t ever experience any more trouble because of following the Lord, and they’ll be given a reward because of all their good deeds.”

Time to harvest wheat and grain on earth

¹⁴ I was still having that vision when I saw a white cloud. On top of the cloud sat someone who looked like the Son of Man, who was like Jesus Himself! ^[3] He wore a gold crown and held a sharp sickle. ¹⁵ Then another angel came out of God’s tent and cried to the one who sat on the cloud, “Swing Your sickle and harvest all of the wheat on earth! All of that wheat is already ripe and the time to harvest has come!” ¹⁶ Then the one who sat on the cloud swung his sickle and harvested all of the wheat on earth. ^[4]

¹⁷ Then another angel came from God’s tent in heaven. That angel also held a sharp sickle. ¹⁸ And from the altar which is in God’s tent another angel came out, the one who has authority over the altar fire. He cried to the angel that just came out holding the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle! Cut and gather all the grapes on earth, because they’re ripe.” ¹⁹ Then that angel swung his sickle and cut all the grapes from earth, then he threw all of them into a very huge wine press. That wine press illustrates the place of carrying out punishment according to the wrath of God. ²⁰ Then the grapes were pressed outside of the city. And people’s blood flowed like a river from that wine press. Its depth was about two meters, and it flowed as far as three hundred kilometers. ^[5]

Chapter 15

The seven angels who bring about the last punishment of disasters

¹ Then I saw another miracle in heaven which was very terrible and shocking. I saw seven angels who were given the task to cause the seven final disasters. Then all of the punishment because of the wrath of God will be finished.

² I first saw a sea of glass before the throne of God, ^[19] but this time it was like it was mixed with fire. And on the edge of the sea of glass stood everyone who had defeated the first beast with its idol and the number which illustrated its name. They stood holding the harps that God had given them. ³ And they were singing a song of victory which was first created by Moses, the servant of God. With that song they praised God for the victory which they received from the Lamb,

     “Great and awesome are all of Your deeds, Oh Lord God Almighty!

         King of all people groups, everything that You’ve done is just and right!

     ⁴ Everyone will honor and fear You, Oh Lord.

     And everyone will praise and glorify Your name.

         Because it’s really obvious that You alone are Holy.

     So all people groups will come and fall headlong worshiping You

         because it’s clear that Your judgment is just and right.”

⁵ Then I saw God’s tent in heaven and the Most Holy Room whose door had previously been closed by a cloth curtain. I saw that the curtain was now open! ⁶ Then the seven angels who had the task to bring about the seven final disasters came out from there. They each wore linen robes which were very white and shining and golden belts which were so wide that they came up to their chests. ⁷ Then one of the four living creatures gave a golden bowl to each of the angels. The bowls were full of poisonous wine which illustrates the punishment because of the wrath of God, He who lives forever. ⁸ And God’s tent was suddenly filled with smoke, illustrating the glory and authority of God. ^[20] Because of that no servant could enter God’s tent until the seven disasters brought about by the seven angels were ended.

Chapter 16

The seven bowls full of God’s wrath are poured out on the earth

¹ Then I heard a voice from God’s tent which cried out to the seven angels, “Go and pour the seven bowls full of the wine of God’s wrath onto the earth.”

² The first angel went to pour the contents of his bowl on the earth. Then severe and disgusting boils appeared on everyone who had received the sign of worshiping the beast and its idol.

³ The second angel poured the contents of his bowl on the ocean. Then the ocean became dark red, like a dead person’s blood. So everything that lived in the ocean died.

⁴ The third angel poured the contents of his bowl on all of the rivers and springs of water. Then all of them became blood. ⁵ Then I heard the angel who had authority over all the ocean, rivers and springs of water cry out,

     “These punishments of Yours are very just,

         Oh one and only God Most Holy

         since the beginning and until now!

     ⁶ Because those people are the ones who poured out the blood

         of Your people and the blood of all Your prophets and messengers,

     and now You have forced them to drink blood!

         This punishment fits their deeds!”

⁷ Then I heard a voice from the golden altar ^[21] which cried out,

     “Oh Lord God Almighty,

         You give punishments that are righteous and just!”

⁸ The fourth angel poured contents of his bowl on the sun. Then fire came out of the sun which burned people. ⁹ As a result people experienced many burns that were very severe and disgusting. So they insulted God because they realized that all of these disasters happened because of His authority. But they still didn’t want to repent or glorify God.

¹⁰ The fifth angel poured the contents of his bowl over the throne of the first beast. Then all of the region of his authority became very dark. And people felt terribly tortured because of fear and pain. ^{[1] 11} So because of the boils, large burns and feeling tortured, they insulted God in heaven even more. And they still didn’t want to repent of all of their wickedness.

¹² The sixth angel poured the contents of his bowl on the great Euphrates River. Then the water of the river dried up. This happened according to God’s plan to prepare a road for the kings of the east who would come and lead their soldiers across that river. ¹³ Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs. The three evil spirits came out of the mouth of the dragon, from the mouth of the first beast and from the mouth of the second beast. (The second beast was the one who worked as a false prophet who led people astray by the authority of the first beast.) ¹⁴ Those three spirits are demons that have authority to perform various miracles. In that way they will persuade the kings of the whole world to gather their soldiers to fight on the final day of battle which has been determined by God the Almighty. ^{[22] 15-16} Then the three demons gathered all of the kings of the earth together with their soldiers at a place called Armageddon in the Hebrew language.

But the Spirit of Christ said, “Listen! I’m coming suddenly like a thief. Each of you who is on guard and doesn’t stain himself by doing evil are truly blessed! You’re the ones who’ll be considered worthy to wear white robes, and in that way you won’t feel ashamed before My people because you don’t have heavenly clothing.” ^[2]

¹⁷ The seventh angel poured the contents of his bowl onto the air on earth. Then a voice came out from the throne of God in that Most Holy Room which cried out, “Everything is finished!” ¹⁸ Then lightning, loud crashing noises, thunder and a terrible earthquake happened. Since the time people have been on earth there has never been an earthquake like this. This was the most terrible earthquake. ^19-20 The great city that we often call Babylon ^[3] was destroyed and split into three parts. So God didn’t forget to punish the great city of Babylon because of His wrath. Because of the evil things done by the kings and residents of that city, a horrifying punishment fell upon them, as if they were forced to drink poisoned wine from God. There were also many cities in other lands which were destroyed by that earthquake. Every island disappeared completely. All the mountains were destroyed and became level. ²¹ Also hail like stones as heavy as forty kilograms each fell down from the sky on top of people. ^[4] Then people insulted God even more because of the disaster of hail that was so horrible.

Chapter 17

The vision of the prostitute and the evil beast

¹ Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come. I'll show you the punishment that will fall on the prostitute who is well-known, that is she who sits in the place where many rivers flow. ^{[1] 2} The kings of the earth have committed immoral acts with her, and all the residents of the earth have become drunk because of her wine.” ^[2]

³ Then I was suddenly controlled by the Holy Spirit, and an angel carried me to a desert. I saw a woman who was sitting there on the back of a red-colored beast. Many names were written on the skin of that beast, all of which insulted God. That beast also had seven heads and ten horns. ⁴ The woman wore very luxurious clothing which was purple and red in color. She was also adorned with different decorations of gold, jewels and pearls. She held a golden bowl which was full of the wine of filthiness, that is unfaithfulness to God and all kinds of immoral acts that make one unholy. ⁵ A name was written on her forehead that illustrates her true name which was, I’m the great capitol city of Babylon, the mother of all prostitutes and the source of all defilement on earth.

⁶ Then I realized that this woman was drunk because of drinking the blood of the people who were made holy by God, who were killed because they were faithful and unashamed to testify about Jesus! So I looked at her with great amazement.

⁷ But the angel said to me, “Why are you amazed? I'll explain the secret illustrated by the prostitute to you, and the beast on which she’s riding which has seven heads and ten horns. ⁸ That beast illustrates a man who once lived on earth but is dead now. He’ll live again and appear from the world of the dead to become a king again. And all the residents of earth, whose names were not written in the Book of Life since the world was created, will be amazed to see that beast when it lives again. Then he’ll be destroyed in hell.

⁹ “Whoever wants to explain the meaning of these things needs a wise mind. The seven heads of the beast are illustrated by the seven hills which are the place where the woman sits, and they also illustrate seven great kings. ¹⁰ Five of those kings have already died. The sixth king is ruling now. The seventh king hasn’t appeared yet, and when he appears he’ll rule for just a short time. ¹¹ Now like I said, the red beast used to live on earth but isn’t here anymore. He was one of the previous seven kings. But when he lives again he’ll be counted as the eighth king. Then he’ll be destroyed in hell.

¹² “The ten horns that you’ve seen also illustrate ten kings who will rule over ten countries, but they haven’t begun to rule yet. They’ll receive authority to rule with the beast for just a short time. ^{[3] 13} The ten kings will make an agreement to surrender all of their authority and military power to that beast. ¹⁴ All of them will fight against the Lamb! But the Lamb will defeat them because He is Lord over all lords and King over all kings. And His troops are His own chosen people that are called by Him and who are faithful to Him.”

¹⁵ Then the angel said to me, “The place where many rivers flow, which is the place where the prostitute sits, illustrates many groups of people, including all people groups, tribes and groups that use a regional language. ¹⁶ The ten horns, illustrating the kings, and the beast whom you saw will hate the prostitute. They’ll steal all of her treasures and clothing so that she becomes naked. They’ll capture her and eat her flesh. And they’ll finally destroy her body with fire. ¹⁷ It's actually God who moves their hearts so that they make an agreement to do what He has planned. That’s why they'll surrender the authority of their kingdoms to the beast so that all of God's will and all He says are fulfilled. ¹⁸ And the vision about the prostitute illustrates the capitol city which rules over all the kings of the earth.”

Chapter 18

The vision of Babylon being destroyed

¹ After that I saw another angel come down from heaven. He had great authority, and the light of his glory illuminated the earth. ² The angel cried out in a very loud voice,

     “Babylon has been destroyed!

         The glorious capitol city has been destroyed!

     And only demons and evil spirits live in that city.

     The place that was previously full of life has become a place for filthy birds

         which people hate.

     ³ God's punishment of that city is just

     because the kings of the earth have been influenced by the residents of that city to worship idols.

         In God’s eyes it’s like the sin of adultery.

     And God's punishment is just

         because all people groups have become dirty and unholy because they copied the lifestyle of the residents of that city which is according to the lustful desires of the world.

         It’s as if all people groups became drunk with the wine which was given by the residents of that city.

     As a result the merchants of the earth became rich because of buying and selling all kinds of luxury items to them which they used to satisfy their lustful desires.” ^[23]

God’s warning to us who live in this time now

⁴ Then I heard the voice of the Lord Jesus from heaven which said,

     “Oh My people, run away from that city!

         Don’t be influenced and join in sinning with them.

         For then you’ll also take part in being punished by various disasters along with them.

     ⁵ For the sin of the residents of that city is piled up as high as the sky!

         So God is ready to punish them in proportion to their wickedness.

     ⁶ Oh it’s time! Let the residents of that city suffer in the way they’ve made My people suffer!

         Since they’ve often brought trouble on other people, may their trouble be two times that in proportion!

     For they've poisoned other people groups with their wine,

         so now may they drink poison which is even stronger!

     ⁷ Remember the way in which they each bragged about themselves,

         so now let them feel very depressed.

     Remember their lives that were so luxurious,

         and now let them live with trouble and great anxiety.

     Remember that they thought,

         ‘We’re the greatest people on earth!

         We’ll never lack anything!

         We won’t be sad or mourn like a widow who no longer has a family.’

     ⁸ Because of their arrogance let various disasters fall on them suddenly!

         On the same day let them experience starvation, death, mourning and the disaster of being burned by fire!

     For the Lord who judges them is the strong and powerful God!”

The wailing that will occur when the capitol of Babylon is destroyed

⁹ When the smoke of the destruction of the city of Babylon is seen, all of the kings of earth who had joined with the residents of that city in worshiping idols and living luxuriously to satisfy their lustful desires will cry and mourn. ¹⁰ Those kings won’t dare to get near that city because they’ll be afraid of getting the same torture. For that reason they’ll watch from far away while wailing,

     “Oh my, how truly horrifying that is! What a terrible disaster has happened to that great capitol city!

         It's so pitiful because the city of Babylon used to be very great and strong!

     But in just one hour God's punishment has fallen on them!”

¹¹ In the same way the merchants of the earth will cry and mourn because of that city, because the greatest market for their wares has been destroyed. So they’ll say, “Who’ll buy all of this?

         ¹² Who’ll buy our gold, silver, jewels and pearls?

         And who else will buy our fine linen cloth, purple cloth, silk cloth and scarlet cloth?

         Who’ll buy various kinds of items made of fragrant smelling wood

         or items made of ivory, expensive wood, bronze, iron and marble?

         ¹³ There are no more customers for our luxury items that include cinnamon, spices, perfumes, myrrh and incense.

         Who else will have parties and buy wine, olive oil and fine flour?

         There are no industry owners anymore that need wheat, bulls and sheep.

         What king will buy our horses and carts?

         There are no rich people who’ll buy our slaves!”

     (It’s truly horrifying! They even sold human souls!)

¹⁴ So the merchants will wail,

     “Oh, how pitiful! All of the expensive things that the residents of Babylon wanted have vanished.

     All of their luxury and beauty has been destroyed.

         They won’t find those things again!”

¹⁵ Those merchants used to become rich because of the merchandise they marketed there. But on seeing that disaster they’ll just watch from far away because they’re afraid that they’ll come under the same torture. With weeping and mourning ¹⁶ they say,

     “Oh my, how horrible! What an awful disaster has fallen on the greatest capitol city!

         How pitiful because the citizens of that city used to wear fine linen, purple and red clothing every day.

         And they were decked in gold, jewels and pearls every day.

     ¹⁷ But in just one hour all of their riches were destroyed!”

In the same way every ship owner and captain, all the ships’ crews and every marine merchant will watch the disaster from far away. ¹⁸ When they see the smoke rising from the fire that burns the city they’ll say, “There was never a city as beautiful as that great capitol city!” ¹⁹ So they’ll mourn by putting ashes on their heads and while crying, they’ll wail,

     “Oh my, it’s truly horrible! The disaster that fell on that great capitol city was so awful!

         How pitiful! For we who used to be involved in marketing merchandise by ship became rich because of that city!

         But in just one hour all of it was destroyed!”

²⁰ But there was a voice from heaven which cried out,

     “Rejoice all of you residents of heaven because that evil capitol city has been destroyed!

         And all of you should rejoice, you messengers of God who prophesied, the apostles of Christ and all the people who were made holy through Christ.

     For God has punished the residents of that city in proportion to the wicked things they did to you.”

An angel illustrates the destruction of Babylon

²¹ Then a strong angel picked up a large rock, as big as a millstone used to grind flour that's turned by donkeys. Then the angel threw it into the ocean while saying,

     “In a harsh way like this the great city of Babylon will be destroyed

         so that it won’t be found again!

     ²² The sound of playing the harp, flute, trumpet and other musical instruments

         won’t be heard there anymore.

     There won’t be anyone there any longer who is skilled at making luxurious merchandise.

     In fact the sound of the millstone grinding wheat won’t be heard there again.

     ²³ The light of lamps won’t shine there anymore.

     The sound of the happiness of the groom and bride

         won’t be heard there again.

     This punishment was caused because the merchants there became the richest in the world

         based on the sorcery used by them to mislead and poison all people groups.

     ²⁴ And the blood of the prophets, God’s messengers and other people of God was found in that city.

         And many murders done in other places were caused by the government of that capitol city.”

Chapter 19

Many people praise God in heaven

¹ After that I heard the voices of a huge number of people who cried out in heaven.

     “Hallelujah! ^[1] May all glory and power be given to our God

         who saved us!

     ² For He always judges right with justice.

     So now God has judged the queen of prostitutes

         who made the residents of earth stained by worshiping idols.

         In God’s eyes it’s the same as the sin of immorality.

     And God has repaid the murders of His servants on that prostitute

         because she was the one who did it.”

³ Once more the crowd cried out,

     “Hallelujah! The smoke from the fire that tortures the prostitute will rise up forever!”

⁴ So the twenty-four leaders and the four living creatures immediately fell headlong and worshiped God who sits on the throne. They cried out,

     “Amen! Hallelujah!”

⁵ Then a voice was heard near the throne of God which cried out,

     “Praise our God all you servants of God

         who fear and honor Him, both those who have high and lowly status.”

⁶ Then I heard the voices of many people and the voices of angels. The sound was like a huge waterfall or like the sound of awesome thunder when they shouted,

     “Hallelujah! For now our Lord God rules in reality!

         Praise to the Almighty!

     ⁷ Let’s rejoice and shout!

     Let’s glorify God because the wedding day of Him who is called the Lamb has come!

         And His bride has prepared herself.

     ⁸ A robe of very clean and shining white linen cloth was given to His bride.”

His bride illustrates all the people of God who have been made holy through the work of Christ, whereas the white clean linen is the righteous deeds done by the people of God.

⁹ Then the angel who showed me all these things ^[24] told me, “Write this down: everyone who is invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb is truly blessed by God!” Then he said to me again, “Those are the true words from God!”

¹⁰ Then I immediately fell headlong to worship the angel. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I’m also a servant of God just like you and your brothers and sisters in the faith, that is all the faithful who witness about Jesus. Worship God, because everyone who tells the news of salvation about Jesus carries out the work of the Holy Spirit just like prophesying.”

The vision about Jesus who is coming as the leader of war

¹¹ Then I saw heaven open and a white horse appeared with a Man riding on it. The rider was Him who’s called ‘The Faithful One’ and ‘The True One’ because He’s always just when He judges people and when He fights against the people who oppose Him. ¹² His eyes were shining like flames of fire, and He wore many crowns. A name was written on His forehead which isn’t known by anyone other than He Himself. ¹³ He wore a robe that had been dipped in blood. And He had another name which is “The Word of God.” ¹⁴ And He was accompanied by the soldiers of heaven. Each of them also rode a white horse, and their robes were also made of clean white linen cloth. ¹⁵ The One who led them was ready to make war with the power of His words which are illustrated by a sword with two sharp edges. With that power He’ll defeat the people groups who oppose Him. Then, when He rules as King He’ll “invoke harsh punishment on their wrongs and wickedness”. His authority to punish is illustrated by “an iron rod that easily destroys ceramic pots.” ^[25] He’s the one who’ll invoke punishment on every people group according to the wrath of Almighty God, and the destruction that falls on them is illustrated by pressing grapes to produce wine. ¹⁶ There’s another name for Him written on the part of His robe which covers His thighs, which is

         “King over all kings and Lord over all lords.”

¹⁷ Then in the sky I saw an angel stepping on the sun while crying out, “Come here all of you birds that fly in the sky! Come and eat at the feast of victory that has been prepared for you by God! ¹⁸ Come and eat the flesh

     of kings, generals

     and brave soldiers

     and the flesh of horses and all the riders of horses

     and people from every people group,

     including slaves and freemen,

     both people who have high as well as lowly status.”

¹⁹ Then I saw that first beast ^[26] and all of the kings of the earth with their soldiers who had gathered to oppose the Rider of the white horse and His soldiers. ²⁰ Then the first beast was captured and also the second beast. He’s the one who worked as a prophet who made people go astray by doing various miracles which were done by the authority of the first beast. In that way he deceived everyone who had received the sign of worship which was a symbol of the name of the first beast. So the two beasts were thrown alive into the lake of fire mixed with sulfur. ^{[27] 21} And the Lord who rode that white horse killed all of their soldiers with just the power of His words. Then all the birds were very full because of eating their flesh.

Chapter 20

The thousand year kingdom

¹ Then I saw an angel come down from heaven with a huge chain in his hand, holding the key to the door of the pit of death. ^2-3 Then the angel captured and tied up the great dragon who is the snake that we know in the story of the garden of Eden, who’s called the devil and named Satan. Then the angel threw the dragon into the pit of death. After locking its door, he attached a seal to the door. And the devil will be tied up and imprisoned there for a thousand years so that he can’t deceive the people groups until the time of the thousand years is over. After that the snake will be released again, but only for a short time.

⁴ Then I saw many thrones, and the people sitting on those thrones were those who were considered worthy to receive authority to judge. I also saw the spirits of people who had been beheaded because they testified about Jesus and told the Word of God. They’re the ones who didn’t worship the beast or its idol and didn’t receive the sign of worshiping the beast on their foreheads or their hands. They lived again and ruled with Christ for one thousand years. ⁵ That’s the time of the first stage when the dead are brought back to life again, whereas the other dead people won’t live again until the end of the thousand years. ⁶ Everyone who takes part in the first stage of living again is truly blessed by God. They are truly holy, and they won’t experience the punishment of God that’s called “the second death.” ^[28] They’ll become priests who serve God and Christ, and they will rule with Christ for a thousand years.

The devil is defeated

⁷ When the time of a thousand years has ended, the devil will be released from prison, that is the pit of death. ⁸ Then he’ll go and deceive all the people groups on earth. That's who was illustrated by the Prophet Ezekial as the king of Gog and the people group of Magog. ^[29] Then he’ll gather them to fight against God, and the number of their soldiers is illustrated as the amount of sand on the ocean shore. ⁹ All of the devil’s troops will come from all regions of earth to surround the camp of God’s people, that is the city loved by Him. But fire will come down from heaven and burn them.

¹⁰ Then the devil, who continually deceives, will also be thrown into the ocean of fire mixed with sulfur, the place where the first and second beasts were already thrown. They’ll be tortured there day and night forever.

The final judgment

¹¹ Then I saw a glorious white thrown. And the One who sat on that throne was called the Most Glorious. He was so glorious that when His radiance shone, it made heaven and earth vanish like the radiance of the hot sun makes the clouds vanish. ¹² Then I saw that all of the other dead people ^[1] came back to life. They stood in front of the throne, both those who had a high status as well as the lowly. Then the books that recorded their deeds were opened, and one other book was also opened, the Book of Life. Then they were judged by their own deeds according to what was written in those books. ¹³ Even the people who had died in the ocean came back to life and stood before the judgment throne. Everyone in the kingdom of death even came back to life and were judged according to their own deeds. ^14-15 Then everyone whose name was not written in the Book of Life was thrown into the ocean of fire. And finally the authority of death and the kingdom of the dead were also thrown into the ocean of fire. Thats called “the second stage of death.” There will be no more death! The authority of death is gone!

Chapter 21

The new Jerusalem

¹ Then I saw the new heaven and new earth, because the first heaven and the first earth had vanished, and there was no ocean anymore. ² I saw the holy city of God, which is the new Jerusalem, as God brought it down from heaven. That city is so beautiful. Its beauty can be illustrated by a bride that has been adorned for her marriage to the groom. ^[30]

³ Then I heard a voice near the throne of God which cried out,

     “From now on God will live with people.

     So now God has fulfilled His promise which He gave through the prophets,

         ‘I Myself will live with you.

         You’ll be My people,

         and I'll be your God.’” ^[31]

     ⁴ He also said, ‘I'll wipe away all their tears.’ ^[32] They won’t experience death or pain anymore, and they won’t mourn or cry again because the old way of life is no more.”

⁵ The One who sits on that throne says, “Look! I’m making everything new!” Then He said again, “Write these things down because all of My warnings are true and worthy to be believed.”

⁶ Then the One who sits on the throne said to me, “Look! Everything is finished! I’m the one called the ‘Alpha and Omega’— who is your one and only God and who always is, both before the beginning of creation and after all of this creation is done away. Anyone who is thirsty, come! I'll give him water freely, that is water from the spring that puts out living water! ^{[33] 7} All of you who remain faithful to Me and win in this spiritual battle will receive all of the blessings mentioned. You’re worthy to be called ‘My children’, and I’m happy to be called ‘your Father’. ⁸ But those blessings mentioned above will never be received by people like these:

     cowards, murderers, idol worshipers,

     sorcerers, deceivers,

     those who are unfaithful to Jesus,

     and those who defile themselves by committing immorality or other various kinds of revolting sins. ^[1]

They’ll be thrown into the ocean of fire mixed with sulfur.” (That’s what’s called the “second stage of death.”)

⁹ Then that angel ^[2] came to me again. He’s one of the seven angels that poured out the seven bowls full of the seven final disasters. He said, “Come here. I'll show you the bride of the Lamb, that is the union of all people who believe, who is married to Him.” ^{[34] 10} Then the Holy Spirit controlled me again, and the angel took me to the top of a very great high mountain. From there he showed me the holy city, which is the new Jerusalem that God brought down from heaven. ¹¹ That city is full of the glory of God and everything shines like a jewel that’s really clear, like crystal the color of green mixed with red. ^{[3] 12-13} That city has huge walls that are very high. And the walls have twelve gates, three gates each on the east, north, south and west sides. And each gate is guarded by an angel. A name of each of the twelve tribes of Israel is written above each gate. ¹⁴ The walls of the city have twelve foundation stones. A name of each of the twelve apostles of the Lamb is written on each foundation stone.

¹⁵ The angel who spoke to me held a measuring rod made of gold so that he could measure that city, including the twelve gates and the walls. ¹⁶ The city is shaped like a cube, so the length, width and height are the same. And when the angel measured the city with his rod its length was 12,000 stadia. The width and height were also the same. ^{[4] 17} Then the angel also measured the width of the wall and it was 144 hasta. ^[5] The measurements mentioned are according to those used by the angel and are no different than the measurements used by people on earth.

¹⁸ The walls of the city were made from a clear jewel the color green mixed with red, whereas all of the structures in the city were made of very pure gold that's as clear as glass. ¹⁹ The twelve foundation stones of the city wall were decorated with all kinds of jewels. Each foundation stone was made of one very large stone.

     The first foundation stone was made of a green jewel mixed with red, the second was a dark blue jewel,

     the third was a light green jewel, the fourth was a dark green jewel, ²⁰ the fifth was a red jewel, the sixth was a dark red jewel,

     the seventh was a yellow jewel, the eighth was a blue jewel mixed with green,

     the ninth was a clear jewel, the tenth was a green jewel,

     the eleventh was a blue jewel and the twelfth was a purple jewel. ^{[6] 21} And the twelve gates were each made of one amazing pearl. The main street in the middle of the city was made of gold that was so pure it sparkled like clear glass.

²² I didn’t see God’s House in the city because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb Himself have become God’s House for the city. ²³ The city doesn’t need the sun and moon to give it light because the glory of God shines like the sun. And the radiance of the Lamb is like a lamp that gives the city light. ²⁴ The lives of all people groups will be illuminated by the radiance of that city. And all the kings of earth will come bringing their own kingdom’s treasures to the city as an offering to glorify God and the Lamb. ^{[35] 25} The gates of the city will never be closed because there is no more night there. ²⁶ All kinds of riches from all people groups will be brought into the city to glorify and honor God and the Lamb. ²⁷ But no unholy things will be brought into the city. Whoever makes himself unholy with great sin won’t be allowed to enter, and the same for all liars too. Only the people whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life can enter that city.

Chapter 22

¹ Then the angel showed me the river that flows with living water. ^[36] The river flows from the throne of God and from the throne of the Lamb and it’s very clear, like crystal. ² The river flows in the middle of the main street which is in the center of the city. And the trees of life ^[37] are on the two sides of the river. Those trees bear fruit every month, twelve times a year. And people from every people group will use the leaves of those trees to heal their sicknesses.

³ In that city there will never be people or things that are cursed by God. ^[38] The throne of God and the throne of the Lamb are there in that city, and the servants of God will serve and worship Him there. ⁴ They’ll even see His face. And His name will be written on their foreheads. ⁵ There’ll be no more night in that city, and they’ll no longer need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because God Himself will be the light for them. And they’ll rule as kings with Him forever.

⁶ Then the angel said to me, “All that you’ve heard and seen today is true and worthy to be believed. The Lord God alone gives the ability to His messengers to prophesy, and He’s the one who has sent me to show all of His servants what has to take place soon.”

⁷ Christ Jesus said to us, “Listen! I’m coming soon. Everyone who obeys all of the warnings that have been written in this book of prophecy is truly blessed by God.”

⁸ As I told you already, I (John), who wrote about all the vision in this book, fell down and worshiped the angel that told me and showed me all of these things. ⁹ But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I’m also a servant of God like you and your brothers and sisters, God’s messengers, and like everyone who obeys all the warnings in this book. Worship God!” ^[1]

¹⁰ Then he said to me again, “Don’t keep the prophecies that have been written in this book secret, because the time for all of this to happen is near. ¹¹ So because the remainder of the time is short, whoever does what’s evil, keep doing what’s evil. And whoever allows himself to be stained, keep living according to your lustful desires. But whoever lives right, keep living right! And whoever has been made holy by Christ, keep living holy!”

¹² And Christ Himself urges us, “Listen! I’m coming soon. I'll bring a reward which will be given to each person according to his deeds. ¹³ I’m also called the ‘Alpha and the Omega’ Who is the one and only and Who always is, both before the beginning of creation and after all created things are gone. ¹⁴ Everyone who washes their robes with the blood of the Lamb is truly blessed by God! ^[2] In that way they receive the right to eat the fruit from the trees of life, and they’re permitted to enter the holy city through its gates. ¹⁵ But people who are illustrated as dogs won’t be allowed to enter, that is those who stain themselves by their lustful desires. So those who aren’t allowed to enter that holy city are

     sorcerers, people who do immoral things,

     murderers, idol worshipers

     and everyone who likes to deceive.

¹⁶ “I’m Jesus who sent My angel to testify about all of this to the churches. I’m the Descendant of David and the Leader of all of his descendants. ^[3] I’m the one illustrated by the morning star which shines brightly in the east.”

 

     ¹⁷ And the Holy Spirit and the Bride of the Lamb, that is all the unified churches of Christ say, “Oh, Christ, come quickly!”

     And may everyone who hears this also cry out, “Oh, Lord, please come!”

         But before Christ comes, whoever is thirsty let him come to Christ!

         Whoever wants to drink the water of life receive it from Jesus

         because He gives that water as a gift!

¹⁸ I (John) give this warning to everyone who hears the prophecies that I’m writing in this book.

         Whoever adds something to this book, God will add a very harsh punishment to him, that is he’ll experience the disasters which are written in this book. ¹⁹ And whoever takes something away from the prophecies that are in this book, God will remove his right to enjoy the various blessings that are written in this book. So he won’t be allowed to enter His Holy City or eat fruit from the trees of Life.

²⁰ Remember! Jesus, who is always worthy to be believed, says, “I’m coming soon.”

Amen! Come Lord Jesus!

²¹ May our Lord Christ Jesus always be kind hearted to each of us. AMEN!