Daniel 1-2
New Living Translation
Daniel in Nebuchadnezzar’s Court
1 During the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign in Judah,[a] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 The Lord gave him victory over King Jehoiakim of Judah and permitted him to take some of the sacred objects from the Temple of God. So Nebuchadnezzar took them back to the land of Babylonia[b] and placed them in the treasure-house of his god.
3 Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief of staff, to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah’s royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives. 4 “Select only strong, healthy, and good-looking young men,” he said. “Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace. Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon.[c]” 5 The king assigned them a daily ration of food and wine from his own kitchens. They were to be trained for three years, and then they would enter the royal service.
6 Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were four of the young men chosen, all from the tribe of Judah. 7 The chief of staff renamed them with these Babylonian names:
Daniel was called Belteshazzar.
Hananiah was called Shadrach.
Mishael was called Meshach.
Azariah was called Abednego.
8 But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods. 9 Now God had given the chief of staff both respect and affection for Daniel. 10 But he responded, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has ordered that you eat this food and wine. If you become pale and thin compared to the other youths your age, I am afraid the king will have me beheaded.”
11 Daniel spoke with the attendant who had been appointed by the chief of staff to look after Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. 12 “Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,” Daniel said. 13 “At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.” 14 The attendant agreed to Daniel’s suggestion and tested them for ten days.
15 At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king. 16 So after that, the attendant fed them only vegetables instead of the food and wine provided for the others.
17 God gave these four young men an unusual aptitude for understanding every aspect of literature and wisdom. And God gave Daniel the special ability to interpret the meanings of visions and dreams.
18 When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. 20 Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom.
21 Daniel remained in the royal service until the first year of the reign of King Cyrus.[d]
Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream
2 One night during the second year of his reign,[e] Nebuchadnezzar had such disturbing dreams that he couldn’t sleep. 2 He called in his magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers,[f] and he demanded that they tell him what he had dreamed. As they stood before the king, 3 he said, “I have had a dream that deeply troubles me, and I must know what it means.”
4 Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic,[g] “Long live the king! Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means.”
5 But the king said to the astrologers, “I am serious about this. If you don’t tell me what my dream was and what it means, you will be torn limb from limb, and your houses will be turned into heaps of rubble! 6 But if you tell me what I dreamed and what the dream means, I will give you many wonderful gifts and honors. Just tell me the dream and what it means!”
7 They said again, “Please, Your Majesty. Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means.”
8 The king replied, “I know what you are doing! You’re stalling for time because you know I am serious when I say, 9 ‘If you don’t tell me the dream, you are doomed.’ So you have conspired to tell me lies, hoping I will change my mind. But tell me the dream, and then I’ll know that you can tell me what it means.”
10 The astrologers replied to the king, “No one on earth can tell the king his dream! And no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, enchanter, or astrologer! 11 The king’s demand is impossible. No one except the gods can tell you your dream, and they do not live here among people.”
12 The king was furious when he heard this, and he ordered that all the wise men of Babylon be executed. 13 And because of the king’s decree, men were sent to find and kill Daniel and his friends.
14 When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, came to kill them, Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion. 15 He asked Arioch, “Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?” So Arioch told him all that had happened. 16 Daniel went at once to see the king and requested more time to tell the king what the dream meant.
17 Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had happened. 18 He urged them to ask the God of heaven to show them his mercy by telling them the secret, so they would not be executed along with the other wise men of Babylon. 19 That night the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven. 20 He said,
“Praise the name of God forever and ever,
for he has all wisdom and power.
21 He controls the course of world events;
he removes kings and sets up other kings.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the scholars.
22 He reveals deep and mysterious things
and knows what lies hidden in darkness,
though he is surrounded by light.
23 I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors,
for you have given me wisdom and strength.
You have told me what we asked of you
and revealed to us what the king demanded.”
Daniel Interprets the Dream
24 Then Daniel went in to see Arioch, whom the king had ordered to execute the wise men of Babylon. Daniel said to him, “Don’t kill the wise men. Take me to the king, and I will tell him the meaning of his dream.”
25 Arioch quickly took Daniel to the king and said, “I have found one of the captives from Judah who will tell the king the meaning of his dream!”
26 The king said to Daniel (also known as Belteshazzar), “Is this true? Can you tell me what my dream was and what it means?”
27 Daniel replied, “There are no wise men, enchanters, magicians, or fortune-tellers who can reveal the king’s secret. 28 But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and he has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the future. Now I will tell you your dream and the visions you saw as you lay on your bed.
29 “While Your Majesty was sleeping, you dreamed about coming events. He who reveals secrets has shown you what is going to happen. 30 And it is not because I am wiser than anyone else that I know the secret of your dream, but because God wants you to understand what was in your heart.
31 “In your vision, Your Majesty, you saw standing before you a huge, shining statue of a man. It was a frightening sight. 32 The head of the statue was made of fine gold. Its chest and arms were silver, its belly and thighs were bronze, 33 its legs were iron, and its feet were a combination of iron and baked clay. 34 As you watched, a rock was cut from a mountain,[h] but not by human hands. It struck the feet of iron and clay, smashing them to bits. 35 The whole statue was crushed into small pieces of iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold. Then the wind blew them away without a trace, like chaff on a threshing floor. But the rock that knocked the statue down became a great mountain that covered the whole earth.
36 “That was the dream. Now we will tell the king what it means. 37 Your Majesty, you are the greatest of kings. The God of heaven has given you sovereignty, power, strength, and honor. 38 He has made you the ruler over all the inhabited world and has put even the wild animals and birds under your control. You are the head of gold.
39 “But after your kingdom comes to an end, another kingdom, inferior to yours, will rise to take your place. After that kingdom has fallen, yet a third kingdom, represented by bronze, will rise to rule the world. 40 Following that kingdom, there will be a fourth one, as strong as iron. That kingdom will smash and crush all previous empires, just as iron smashes and crushes everything it strikes. 41 The feet and toes you saw were a combination of iron and baked clay, showing that this kingdom will be divided. Like iron mixed with clay, it will have some of the strength of iron. 42 But while some parts of it will be as strong as iron, other parts will be as weak as clay. 43 This mixture of iron and clay also shows that these kingdoms will try to strengthen themselves by forming alliances with each other through intermarriage. But they will not hold together, just as iron and clay do not mix.
44 “During the reigns of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed or conquered. It will crush all these kingdoms into nothingness, and it will stand forever. 45 That is the meaning of the rock cut from the mountain, though not by human hands, that crushed to pieces the statue of iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God was showing the king what will happen in the future. The dream is true, and its meaning is certain.”
Nebuchadnezzar Rewards Daniel
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar threw himself down before Daniel and worshiped him, and he commanded his people to offer sacrifices and burn sweet incense before him. 47 The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is the greatest of gods, the Lord over kings, a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this secret.”
48 Then the king appointed Daniel to a high position and gave him many valuable gifts. He made Daniel ruler over the whole province of Babylon, as well as chief over all his wise men. 49 At Daniel’s request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be in charge of all the affairs of the province of Babylon, while Daniel remained in the king’s court.
Footnotes
- 1:1 This event occurred in 605 B.c., during the third year of Jehoiakim’s reign (according to the calendar system in which the new year begins in the spring).
- 1:2 Hebrew the land of Shinar.
- 1:4 Or of the Chaldeans.
- 1:21 Cyrus began his reign (over Babylon) in 539 B.c.
- 2:1 The second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign was 603 B.c.
- 2:2 Or Chaldeans; also in 2:4, 5, 10.
- 2:4 The original text from this point through chapter 7 is in Aramaic.
- 2:34 As in Greek version (see also 2:45); Hebrew lacks from a mountain.
Daniel 1-2
New American Standard Bible
The Choice Young Men
1 In the third year of the reign of (A)Jehoiakim king of Judah, (B)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the (C)Lord handed Jehoiakim king of Judah over to him, along with some of the (D)vessels of the house of God; and he brought them to the land of (E)Shinar, to the house of his [a]god, and he brought the vessels into the treasury of his [b](F)god.
3 Then the king told Ashpenaz, the chief of his [c]officials, to bring in some of the sons of Israel, including some of the [d]royal (G)family and of the nobles, 4 youths in whom there was (H)no impairment, who were good-looking, suitable for (I)instruction in every kind of expertise, endowed with understanding and discerning knowledge, and who had ability to [e]serve in the king’s [f]court; and he ordered Ashpenaz to teach them the [g]literature and (J)language of the (K)Chaldeans. 5 The king also allotted for them a daily ration from the (L)king’s choice food and from the wine which he drank, and ordered that they be educated for three years, at the end of which they were to [h](M)enter the king’s personal service. 6 Now among them from the sons of Judah were (N)Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. 7 Then the commander of the officials assigned new names to them; and to Daniel he assigned the name (O)Belteshazzar, to Hananiah (P)Shadrach, to Mishael (Q)Meshach, and to Azariah (R)Abed-nego.
Daniel’s Resolve
8 But Daniel [i]made up his mind that he would not (S)defile himself with the (T)king’s choice food or with the (U)wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. 9 Now God granted Daniel (V)favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials. 10 The commander of the officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has allotted your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking gaunt in comparison to the youths who are your own age? Then you would [j]make me forfeit my head to the king.” 11 But Daniel said to the overseer whom the commander of the officials had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, 12 “Please put your servants to the test for ten days, and let us be (W)given some vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then let our appearance be [k]examined in your presence and the appearance of the youths who are eating the king’s choice food; and deal with your servants according to what you see.”
14 So he listened to them in this matter, and put them to the test for ten days. 15 And at the end of ten days their appearance seemed (X)better, and [l]they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king’s choice food. 16 So the overseer continued to [m]withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and kept (Y)giving them vegetables.
17 And as for these four youths, (Z)God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every kind of [n]literature and expertise; Daniel even understood all kinds of (AA)visions and dreams.
18 Then at the end of the days which the king had [o]specified [p]for presenting them, the commander of the officials [q]presented them before Nebuchadnezzar. 19 And the king talked with them, and out of them all not one was found like (AB)Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; so they [r](AC)entered the king’s personal service. 20 As for every matter of (AD)expertise [s]and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them (AE)ten times (AF)better than all the (AG)soothsayer priests and conjurers who were in all his realm. 21 And Daniel [t]continued until the (AH)first year of Cyrus the king.
The King’s Dream
2 Now in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar [u](AI)had dreams; and his spirit was troubled and his (AJ)sleep [v]left him. 2 Then the king [w]gave orders to call in the (AK)soothsayer priests, the conjurers, the sorcerers, and the [x]Chaldeans, to [y]tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. 3 The king said to them, “I [z](AL)had a dream, and my spirit [aa]is anxious to [ab]understand the dream.”
4 Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in [ac](AM)Aramaic: “(AN)O king, live forever! (AO)Tell the dream to your servants, and we will declare the interpretation.” 5 The king replied to the Chaldeans, “The command [ad]from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you will be [ae](AP)torn limb from limb and your houses will be turned into a rubbish heap. 6 But if you declare the dream and its interpretation, you will receive from me (AQ)gifts and a reward and great honor; therefore declare to me the dream and its interpretation.” 7 They answered a second time and said, “Let the king (AR)tell the dream to his servants, and we will declare the interpretation.” 8 The king replied, “I know for certain that you are trying to buy time, because you have perceived that the command [af]from me is firm, 9 that if you do not make the dream known to me, there is only (AS)one [ag]decree for you. For you have agreed together to speak lying and corrupt [ah]words before me until the [ai]situation is changed; therefore tell me the dream, so that I may (AT)know that you can declare to me its interpretation.” 10 The Chaldeans answered [aj]the king and said, “There is no person on earth who could declare the matter [ak]to the king, because no great king or ruler has ever asked anything like this of any (AU)soothsayer priest, sorcerer, or Chaldean. 11 Moreover, the thing which the king demands is difficult, and there is no one else who could declare it [al]to the king except (AV)gods, whose (AW)dwelling place is not with mortal flesh.”
12 Because of this, the king became (AX)angry and extremely furious, and he gave orders to kill all the wise men of Babylon. 13 So the [am]decree was issued that the wise men be killed; and they looked for (AY)Daniel and his friends, to [an]kill them.
14 Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to (AZ)Arioch, the captain of the king’s [ao]bodyguard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon; 15 he said to Arioch, the king’s officer, “For what reason is the decree from the king so harsh?” Then Arioch informed Daniel of the matter. 16 So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him a grace period, so that he might declare the interpretation to the king.
17 Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, (BA)Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, 18 so that they might (BB)request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his friends would not be (BC)killed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
The Secret Is Revealed to Daniel
19 Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night (BD)vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven; 20 Daniel said,
“May the name of God be (BE)blessed forever and ever,
For (BF)wisdom and power belong to Him.
21 It is He who (BG)changes the times and the periods;
He (BH)removes kings and appoints kings;
He gives (BI)wisdom to wise men,
And knowledge to [ap]people of understanding.
22 It is He who (BJ)reveals the profound and hidden things;
(BK)He knows what is in the darkness,
And the (BL)light dwells with Him.
23 To You, (BM)God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me (BN)wisdom and power;
Even now You have made known to me what we (BO)requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s matter.”
24 Thereupon, Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to kill the wise men of Babylon; he went and said this to him: “(BP)Do not kill the wise men of Babylon! Take me [aq]into the king’s presence, and I will declare the interpretation to the king.”
25 Then Arioch hurriedly (BQ)brought Daniel [ar]into the king’s presence and spoke to him as follows: “I have found a man among the [as](BR)exiles from Judah who can make the interpretation known to the king!” 26 The king said to Daniel, whose name was (BS)Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?” 27 Daniel answered before the king and said, “As for the secret about which the king has inquired, neither (BT)wise men, sorcerers, soothsayer priests, nor diviners are able to declare it to the king. 28 However, there is a (BU)God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will take place in the [at](BV)latter days. This was your dream and the (BW)visions [au]in your mind while on your bed. 29 As for you, O king, while on your bed your thoughts [av]turned to what would take place [aw]in the future; and (BX)He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will take place. 30 But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me [ax]for any (BY)wisdom [ay]residing in me more than in any other living person, but for the purpose of making the interpretation known to the king, and that you may understand the (BZ)thoughts of your [az]mind.
The King’s Dream
31 “You, O king, were watching and behold, there was a single great statue; that statue, which was large and [ba]of extraordinary radiance, was standing in front of you, and its appearance was [bb](CA)awesome. 32 The (CB)head of that statue was made of fine gold, its chest and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, and its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 You [bc]continued watching until a (CC)stone was broken off (CD)without hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay, and (CE)crushed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed to pieces [bd]all at the same time, and they were (CF)like chaff from the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away so that (CG)not a trace of them was found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great (CH)mountain and filled the entire earth.
The Interpretation—Babylon the First Kingdom
36 “This was the dream; and now we will tell (CI)its interpretation before the king. 37 You, O king, are the (CJ)king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the [be]kingdom, the (CK)power, the strength, and the honor; 38 and wherever the sons of mankind live, or the (CL)animals of the field, or the birds of the sky, He has handed them over to you and has made you ruler over them all. You are the head of gold.
Medo-Persia and Greece
39 And after you another kingdom will arise inferior to you, then another third kingdom of bronze, which will rule over all the earth.
Rome
40 Then there will be a (CM)fourth kingdom as strong as iron; just as iron smashes and crushes everything, so, like iron that crushes, it will smash and crush all these things. 41 And in that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have within it some of the toughness of iron, since you saw the iron mixed with [bf]common clay. 42 And just as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong, and part of it will be fragile. 43 In that you saw the iron mixed with [bg]common clay, they will combine with one another [bh]in [bi]their descendants; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not combine with pottery.
The Divine Kingdom
44 And in the days of those kings the (CN)God of heaven will (CO)set up a (CP)kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be [bj]left for another people; it will (CQ)crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. 45 Just as you saw that a (CR)stone was broken off from the mountain without hands, and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the (CS)great God has made known to the king what (CT)will take place [bk]in the future; so the dream is certain and its interpretation is trustworthy.”
Daniel Promoted
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and paid (CU)humble respect to Daniel, and gave orders to present to him an offering and (CV)incense. 47 The king responded to Daniel and said, “(CW)Your God truly is a (CX)God of gods and a Lord of kings and a (CY)revealer of secrets, since you have been able to reveal this secret.” 48 Then the king [bl](CZ)promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts, and he made him ruler over the entire (DA)province of Babylon, and chief [bm]prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. 49 And Daniel made a request of the king, and he (DB)appointed (DC)Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego over the administration of the province of Babylon, while Daniel was at the king’s [bn](DD)court.
Footnotes
- Daniel 1:2 Or gods
- Daniel 1:2 Or gods
- Daniel 1:3 Or eunuchs, and so throughout the ch
- Daniel 1:3 Lit seed of the monarchy
- Daniel 1:4 Lit stand
- Daniel 1:4 Lit palace
- Daniel 1:4 Or writing
- Daniel 1:5 Lit stand before the king
- Daniel 1:8 Lit set upon his heart
- Daniel 1:10 Lit make my head guilty
- Daniel 1:13 Lit seen
- Daniel 1:15 Lit fat of flesh
- Daniel 1:16 Lit take away
- Daniel 1:17 Or writing
- Daniel 1:18 Lit said
- Daniel 1:18 Lit to bring them in
- Daniel 1:18 Lit brought them in
- Daniel 1:19 Lit stood before the king
- Daniel 1:20 Lit of
- Daniel 1:21 Lit was until
- Daniel 2:1 Lit dreamed dreams
- Daniel 2:1 Lit was gone upon him
- Daniel 2:2 Lit said to call
- Daniel 2:2 Probably master astrologers, diviners, etc., and so throughout the ch
- Daniel 2:2 Lit explain to
- Daniel 2:3 Lit dreamed
- Daniel 2:3 Lit was troubled
- Daniel 2:3 Lit know
- Daniel 2:4 The text is in Aramaic from here through 7:28
- Daniel 2:5 Another reading is is issued by me
- Daniel 2:5 Lit turned into limbs
- Daniel 2:8 See note 1 v 5
- Daniel 2:9 Or verdict
- Daniel 2:9 Lit word
- Daniel 2:9 Lit time
- Daniel 2:10 Lit before the
- Daniel 2:10 Lit of
- Daniel 2:11 Lit before
- Daniel 2:13 Or law
- Daniel 2:13 Lit be killed
- Daniel 2:14 Or executioners
- Daniel 2:21 Lit knowers of
- Daniel 2:24 Lit in before the king
- Daniel 2:25 Lit in before the king
- Daniel 2:25 Lit sons of the exile of
- Daniel 2:28 Lit end of the days
- Daniel 2:28 Lit of your head
- Daniel 2:29 Lit came up
- Daniel 2:29 Lit after this
- Daniel 2:30 Or through
- Daniel 2:30 Lit which is
- Daniel 2:30 Lit heart
- Daniel 2:31 Lit its radiance was extraordinary
- Daniel 2:31 Or dreadful
- Daniel 2:34 Lit were
- Daniel 2:35 Lit as one
- Daniel 2:37 Or sovereignty
- Daniel 2:41 Lit wet clay
- Daniel 2:43 Lit wet clay
- Daniel 2:43 Or with
- Daniel 2:43 Lit the seed of men
- Daniel 2:44 Or passed on to
- Daniel 2:45 Lit after this
- Daniel 2:48 Lit made Daniel great
- Daniel 2:48 Lit of the prefects
- Daniel 2:49 Lit gate
Revelation 16
New Living Translation
16 Then I heard a mighty voice from the Temple say to the seven angels, “Go your ways and pour out on the earth the seven bowls containing God’s wrath.”
2 So the first angel left the Temple and poured out his bowl on the earth, and horrible, malignant sores broke out on everyone who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his statue.
3 Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse. And everything in the sea died.
4 Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs, and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel who had authority over all water saying,
“You are just, O Holy One, who is and who always was,
because you have sent these judgments.
6 Since they shed the blood
of your holy people and your prophets,
you have given them blood to drink.
It is their just reward.”
7 And I heard a voice from the altar,[a] saying,
“Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty,
your judgments are true and just.”
8 Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, causing it to scorch everyone with its fire. 9 Everyone was burned by this blast of heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over all these plagues. They did not repent of their sins and turn to God and give him glory.
10 Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. His subjects ground their teeth[b] in anguish, 11 and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God.
12 Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great Euphrates River, and it dried up so that the kings from the east could march their armies toward the west without hindrance. 13 And I saw three evil[c] spirits that looked like frogs leap from the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. 14 They are demonic spirits who work miracles and go out to all the rulers of the world to gather them for battle against the Lord on that great judgment day of God the Almighty.
15 “Look, I will come as unexpectedly as a thief! Blessed are all who are watching for me, who keep their clothing ready so they will not have to walk around naked and ashamed.”
16 And the demonic spirits gathered all the rulers and their armies to a place with the Hebrew name Armageddon.[d]
17 Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. And a mighty shout came from the throne in the Temple, saying, “It is finished!” 18 Then the thunder crashed and rolled, and lightning flashed. And a great earthquake struck—the worst since people were placed on the earth. 19 The great city of Babylon split into three sections, and the cities of many nations fell into heaps of rubble. So God remembered all of Babylon’s sins, and he made her drink the cup that was filled with the wine of his fierce wrath. 20 And every island disappeared, and all the mountains were leveled. 21 There was a terrible hailstorm, and hailstones weighing as much as seventy-five pounds[e] fell from the sky onto the people below. They cursed God because of the terrible plague of the hailstorm.
Revelation 16
New American Standard Bible
The Bowls of Wrath
16 Then I heard a loud voice from (A)the [a]temple, saying to the (B)seven angels, “Go and (C)pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
2 So the first angel went and poured out his bowl (D)on the earth; and a harmful and painful (E)sore [b]afflicted the people (F)who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.
3 The second angel poured out his bowl (G)into the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man; and every living [c]thing in the sea died.
4 Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the (H)rivers and the springs of waters; and they (I)became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “(J)Righteous are You, (K)the One who is and who was, O (L)Holy One, because You (M)judged these things; 6 for they poured out (N)the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them (O)blood to drink. They [d]deserve it.” 7 And I heard (P)the altar saying, “Yes, (Q)Lord God, the Almighty, (R)true and righteous are Your judgments.”
8 And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon (S)the sun, (T)and it was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 And the people were scorched with [e]fierce heat; and they (U)blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they (V)did not repent so as to (W)give Him glory.
10 And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the (X)throne of the beast, and his kingdom became (Y)darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, 11 and they (Z)blasphemed the (AA)God of heaven because of their pain and their (AB)sores; and they (AC)did not repent of their deeds.
12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the (AD)great river, the Euphrates; and (AE)its water was dried up, so that (AF)the way would be prepared for the kings (AG)from the [f]east.
Har-Magedon (Armageddon)
13 And I saw coming out of the mouth of the (AH)dragon, and out of the mouth of the (AI)beast, and out of the mouth of the (AJ)false prophet, three (AK)unclean spirits like (AL)frogs; 14 for they are (AM)spirits of demons, (AN)performing signs, which go out to the kings of the (AO)entire [g]world, to (AP)gather them together for the war of the (AQ)great day of God, the Almighty. 15 (“Behold, (AR)I am coming like a thief. (AS)Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, (AT)so that he will not walk about naked and people will not see his shame.”) 16 And they (AU)gathered them together to the place which (AV)in Hebrew is called (AW)Har-Magedon.
The Seventh Bowl of Wrath
17 Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon (AX)the air, and a (AY)loud voice came out of the [h](AZ)temple from the throne, saying, “(BA)It is done.” 18 And there were flashes of (BB)lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was (BC)a great earthquake, (BD)such as there had not been since mankind came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. 19 (BE)The great city [i]was split into three parts, and the cities of the [j]nations fell. (BF)Babylon the great was (BG)remembered in the sight of God, to give her (BH)the cup of the wine of [k]His fierce wrath. 20 And (BI)every island fled, and no mountains were found. 21 And (BJ)huge [l]hailstones, weighing about [m]a talent each, *came down from heaven upon people; and people (BK)blasphemed God because of the (BL)plague of the hail, because [n]the hailstone plague *was extremely [o]severe.
Footnotes
- Revelation 16:1 Or sanctuary
- Revelation 16:2 Lit came upon
- Revelation 16:3 Lit soul
- Revelation 16:6 Lit are worthy
- Revelation 16:9 Lit great
- Revelation 16:12 Lit rising of the sun
- Revelation 16:14 Lit inhabited earth
- Revelation 16:17 Or sanctuary
- Revelation 16:19 Lit became three
- Revelation 16:19 Or Gentiles
- Revelation 16:19 Lit wrath of His anger
- Revelation 16:21 Lit hail
- Revelation 16:21 I.e., as a measure of weight about 100 lb. or 45 kg
- Revelation 16:21 Lit its plague
- Revelation 16:21 Lit great
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
