Coming of the Holy Spirit

2 When ^(A)the Day of Pentecost had fully come, ^(B)they were all ^[a]with one accord in one place. ² And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and ^(C)it filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ Then there appeared to them ^[b]divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. ⁴ And ^(D)they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began ^(E)to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The Crowd’s Response

⁵ And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, ^(F)devout men, from every nation under heaven. ⁶ And when this sound occurred, the ^(G)multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. ⁷ Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak ^(H)Galileans? ⁸ And how is it that we hear, each in our own ^[c]language in which we were born? ⁹ Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and ^(I)Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, ¹¹ Cretans and ^[d]Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.” ¹² So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?”

¹³ Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.”

Peter’s Sermon^(J)

¹⁴ But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. ¹⁵ For these are not drunk, as you suppose, ^(K)since it is only ^[e]the third hour of the day. ¹⁶ But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

²² “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you ^(S)by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— ²³ Him, ^(T)being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, ^(U)you ^[f]have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; ^24 (V)whom God raised up, having ^[g]loosed the ^[h]pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. ²⁵ For David says concerning Him:

²⁹ “Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you ^(Y)of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. ³⁰ Therefore, being a prophet, ^(Z)and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, ^[i]according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, ³¹ he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, ^(AA)that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. ^32 (AB)This Jesus God has raised up, ^(AC)of which we are all witnesses. ³³ Therefore ^(AD)being exalted ^[j]to ^(AE)the right hand of God, and ^(AF)having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He ^(AG)poured out this which you now see and hear.

³⁴ “For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself:

³⁶ “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

³⁷ Now when they heard this, ^(AI)they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

³⁸ Then Peter said to them, ^(AJ)“Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the ^[k]remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ For the promise is to you and ^(AK)to your children, and ^(AL)to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

A Vital Church Grows

⁴⁰ And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this ^[l]perverse generation.” ⁴¹ Then those who ^[m]gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. ^42 (AM)And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ ^[n]doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. ⁴³ Then fear came upon every soul, and ^(AN)many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. ⁴⁴ Now all who believed were together, and ^(AO)had all things in common, ⁴⁵ and ^[o]sold their possessions and goods, and ^(AP)divided^[p] them among all, as anyone had need.

^46 (AQ)So continuing daily with one accord ^(AR)in the temple, and ^(AS)breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, ⁴⁷ praising God and having favor with all the people. And ^(AT)the Lord added ^[q]to the church daily those who were being saved.

First Seal: The Conqueror

6 Now ^(A)I saw when the Lamb opened one of the ^[a]seals; and I heard ^(B)one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, “Come and see.” ² And I looked, and behold, ^(C)a white horse. ^(D)He who sat on it had a bow; ^(E)and a crown was given to him, and he went out ^(F)conquering and to conquer.

Second Seal: Conflict on Earth

³ When He opened the second seal, ^(G)I heard the second living creature saying, “Come ^[b]and see.” ^4 (H)Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to ^(I)take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.

Third Seal: Scarcity on Earth

⁵ When He opened the third seal, ^(J)I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, ^(K)a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of ^(L)scales^[c] in his hand. ⁶ And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A ^[d]quart of wheat for a ^[e]denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and ^(M)do not harm the oil and the wine.”

Fourth Seal: Widespread Death on Earth

⁷ When He opened the fourth seal, ^(N)I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come and see.” ^8 (O)So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And ^[f]power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, ^(P)to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, ^(Q)and by the beasts of the earth.

Fifth Seal: The Cry of the Martyrs

⁹ When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under ^(R)the altar ^(S)the souls of those who had been slain ^(T)for the word of God and for ^(U)the testimony which they held. ¹⁰ And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ^(V)“How long, O Lord, ^(W)holy and true, ^(X)until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” ¹¹ Then a ^(Y)white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them ^(Z)that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.

Sixth Seal: Cosmic Disturbances

¹² I looked when He opened the sixth seal, ^(AA)and ^[g]behold, there was a great earthquake; and ^(AB)the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the ^[h]moon became like blood. ^13 (AC)And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. ^14 (AD)Then the sky ^[i]receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and ^(AE)every mountain and island was moved out of its place. ¹⁵ And the ^(AF)kings of the earth, the great men, ^[j]the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, ^(AG)hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, ^16 (AH)and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who ^(AI)sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! ¹⁷ For the great day of His wrath has come, ^(AJ)and who is able to stand?”

The Sealed of Israel

7 After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, ^(A)holding the four winds of the earth, ^(B)that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. ² Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, ³ saying, ^(C)“Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God ^(D)on their foreheads.” ^4 (E)And I heard the number of those who were sealed. ^(F)One hundred and forty-four thousand ^(G)of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed:

A Multitude from the Great Tribulation

⁹ After these things I looked, and behold, ^(H)a great multitude which no one could number, ^(I)of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, ^(J)clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, ¹⁰ and crying out with a loud voice, saying, ^(K)“Salvation belongs to our God ^(L)who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” ^11 (M)All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and ^(N)worshiped God, ^12 (O)saying:

¹³ Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in ^(P)white robes, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴ And I said to him, ^[b]“Sir, you know.”

So he said to me, ^(Q)“These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and ^(R)washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵ Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will ^(S)dwell among them. ^16 (T)They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; ^(U)the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; ¹⁷ for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne ^(V)will shepherd them and lead them to ^[c]living fountains of waters. ^(W)And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Seventh Seal: Prelude to the Seven Trumpets

8 When^(A) He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. ^2 (B)And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, ^(C)and to them were given seven trumpets. ³ Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with ^(D)the prayers of all the saints upon ^(E)the golden altar which was before the throne. ⁴ And ^(F)the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand. ⁵ Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And ^(G)there were noises, thunderings, ^(H)lightnings, ^(I)and an earthquake.

⁶ So the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.

First Trumpet: Vegetation Struck

⁷ The first angel sounded: ^(J)And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown ^(K)to the ^[a]earth. And a third ^(L)of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

Second Trumpet: The Seas Struck

⁸ Then the second angel sounded: ^(M)And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, ^(N)and a third of the sea ^(O)became blood. ^9 (P)And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

Third Trumpet: The Waters Struck

¹⁰ Then the third angel sounded: ^(Q)And a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, ^(R)and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. ^11 (S)The name of the star is Wormwood. ^(T)A third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the water, because it was made bitter.

Fourth Trumpet: The Heavens Struck

^12 (U)Then the fourth angel sounded: And a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them were darkened. A third of the day ^[b]did not shine, and likewise the night.

¹³ And I looked, ^(V)and I heard an ^[c]angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, ^(W)“Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!”