The Angel and the Little Scroll

10 Then I saw another mighty angel(A) coming down from heaven.(B) He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow(C) above his head; his face was like the sun,(D) and his legs were like fiery pillars.(E) He was holding a little scroll,(F) which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land,(G) and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion.(H) When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders(I) spoke. And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write;(J) but I heard a voice from heaven(K) say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down.”(L)

Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land(M) raised his right hand to heaven.(N) And he swore(O) by him who lives for ever and ever,(P) who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it,(Q) and said, “There will be no more delay!(R) But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet,(S) the mystery(T) of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”(U)

Then the voice that I had heard from heaven(V) spoke to me once more: “Go, take the scroll(W) that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”

So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.’[a](X) 10 I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth,(Y) but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. 11 Then I was told, “You must prophesy(Z) again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”(AA)

The Two Witnesses

11 I was given a reed like a measuring rod(AB) and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. But exclude the outer court;(AC) do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles.(AD) They will trample on the holy city(AE) for 42 months.(AF) And I will appoint my two witnesses,(AG) and they will prophesy for 1,260 days,(AH) clothed in sackcloth.”(AI) They are “the two olive trees”(AJ) and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”[b](AK) If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies.(AL) This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die.(AM) They have power to shut up the heavens(AN) so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying;(AO) and they have power to turn the waters into blood(AP) and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast(AQ) that comes up from the Abyss(AR) will attack them,(AS) and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city(AT)—which is figuratively called Sodom(AU) and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.(AV) For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation(AW) will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.(AX) 10 The inhabitants of the earth(AY) will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts,(AZ) because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

11 But after the three and a half days(BA) the breath[c] of life from God entered them,(BB) and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.”(BC) And they went up to heaven in a cloud,(BD) while their enemies looked on.

13 At that very hour there was a severe earthquake(BE) and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory(BF) to the God of heaven.(BG)

14 The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.(BH)

The Seventh Trumpet

15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet,(BI) and there were loud voices(BJ) in heaven, which said:

“The kingdom of the world has become
    the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah,(BK)
    and he will reign for ever and ever.”(BL)

16 And the twenty-four elders,(BM) who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces(BN) and worshiped God, 17 saying:

“We give thanks(BO) to you, Lord God Almighty,(BP)
    the One who is and who was,(BQ)
because you have taken your great power
    and have begun to reign.(BR)
18 The nations were angry,(BS)
    and your wrath has come.
The time has come for judging the dead,(BT)
    and for rewarding your servants the prophets(BU)
and your people who revere your name,
    both great and small(BV)
and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

19 Then God’s temple(BW) in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant.(BX) And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder,(BY) an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.(BZ)

The Woman and the Dragon

12 A great sign(CA) appeared in heaven:(CB) a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars(CC) on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain(CD) as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven:(CE) an enormous red dragon(CF) with seven heads(CG) and ten horns(CH) and seven crowns(CI) on its heads. Its tail swept a third(CJ) of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth.(CK) The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child(CL) the moment he was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”[d](CM) And her child was snatched up(CN) to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days.(CO)

Then war broke out in heaven. Michael(CP) and his angels fought against the dragon,(CQ) and the dragon and his angels(CR) fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent(CS) called the devil,(CT) or Satan,(CU) who leads the whole world astray.(CV) He was hurled to the earth,(CW) and his angels with him.

10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven(CX) say:

“Now have come the salvation(CY) and the power
    and the kingdom of our God,
    and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,(CZ)
    who accuses them before our God day and night,
    has been hurled down.
11 They triumphed over(DA) him
    by the blood of the Lamb(DB)
    and by the word of their testimony;(DC)
they did not love their lives so much
    as to shrink from death.(DD)
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens(DE)
    and you who dwell in them!
But woe(DF) to the earth and the sea,(DG)
    because the devil has gone down to you!
He is filled with fury,
    because he knows that his time is short.”

13 When the dragon(DH) saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.(DI) 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle,(DJ) so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time,(DK) out of the serpent’s reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent(DL) spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war(DM) against the rest of her offspring(DN)—those who keep God’s commands(DO) and hold fast their testimony about Jesus.(DP)

The Beast out of the Sea

13 The dragon[e] stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea.(DQ) It had ten horns and seven heads,(DR) with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name.(DS) The beast I saw resembled a leopard,(DT) but had feet like those of a bear(DU) and a mouth like that of a lion.(DV) The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.(DW) One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed.(DX) The whole world was filled with wonder(DY) and followed the beast. People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like(DZ) the beast? Who can wage war against it?”

The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies(EA) and to exercise its authority for forty-two months.(EB) It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven.(EC) It was given power to wage war(ED) against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.(EE) All inhabitants of the earth(EF) will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life,(EG) the Lamb(EH) who was slain from the creation of the world.[f](EI)

Whoever has ears, let them hear.(EJ)

10 “If anyone is to go into captivity,
    into captivity they will go.
If anyone is to be killed[g] with the sword,
    with the sword they will be killed.”[h](EK)

This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness(EL) on the part of God’s people.(EM)

The Beast out of the Earth

11 Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth.(EN) It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon.(EO) 12 It exercised all the authority(EP) of the first beast on its behalf,(EQ) and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast,(ER) whose fatal wound had been healed.(ES) 13 And it performed great signs,(ET) even causing fire to come down from heaven(EU) to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs(EV) it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived(EW) the inhabitants of the earth.(EX) It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived.(EY) 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship(EZ) the image to be killed.(FA) 16 It also forced all people, great and small,(FB) rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads,(FC) 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark,(FD) which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.(FE)

18 This calls for wisdom.(FF) Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man.[i](FG) That number is 666.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 10:9 Ezek. 3:3
  2. Revelation 11:4 See Zech. 4:3,11,14.
  3. Revelation 11:11 Or Spirit (see Ezek. 37:5,14)
  4. Revelation 12:5 Psalm 2:9
  5. Revelation 13:1 Some manuscripts And I
  6. Revelation 13:8 Or written from the creation of the world in the book of life belonging to the Lamb who was slain
  7. Revelation 13:10 Some manuscripts anyone kills
  8. Revelation 13:10 Jer. 15:2
  9. Revelation 13:18 Or is humanity’s number

10 And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:

And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,

And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,

And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:

But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.

And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.

10 And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

11 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.

But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

11 And after three days and an half the spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.

12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.

14 The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.

15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,

17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.

18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

12 And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.

14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

13 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

If any man have an ear, let him hear.

10 He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.