Rejoicing in Heaven

19 After this I heard (A)what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
(B)Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
    for (C)his judgments are true and just;
for he has judged (D)the great prostitute
    who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
and (E)has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

Once more they cried out,

“Hallelujah!
(F)The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.”

And (G)the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” And from the throne came a voice saying,

(H)“Praise our God,
    all you his servants,
(I)you who fear him,
    small and great.”

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

Then I heard what seemed to be (J)the voice of a great multitude, like (K)the roar of many waters and (L)like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
    the Almighty (M)reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for (N)the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and (O)his Bride has made herself ready;
(P)it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is (Q)the righteous deeds of the saints.

And the angel said[a] to me, “Write this: (R)Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, (S)“These are the true words of God.” 10 Then (T)I fell down at his feet to worship him, (U)but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to (V)the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The Rider on a White Horse

11 Then I saw (W)heaven opened, and behold, (X)a white horse! The one sitting on it is called (Y)Faithful and True, and (Z)in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 (AA)His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are (AB)many diadems, and he has (AC)a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in (AD)a robe dipped in[b] blood, and the name by which he is called is (AE)The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, (AF)arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, (AG)were following him on white horses. 15 (AH)From his mouth comes a sharp sword (AI)with which to strike down the nations, and (AJ)he will rule[c] them with a rod of iron. (AK)He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh (AL)he has a name written, (AM)King of kings and Lord of lords.

17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to (AN)all the birds that fly directly overhead, (AO)“Come, gather for (AP)the great supper of God, 18 (AQ)to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave,[d] both small and great.” 19 And I saw (AR)the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies (AS)gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. 20 And the beast was captured, and with it (AT)the false prophet (AU)who in its presence[e] had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who (AV)worshiped its image. These two were (AW)thrown alive into the lake of (AX)fire that burns with sulfur. 21 And the rest were slain by the sword (AY)that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and (AZ)all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

The Thousand Years

20 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, (BA)holding in his hand the key to (BB)the bottomless pit[f] and a great chain. And he seized (BC)the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and (BD)bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into (BE)the pit, and shut it and (BF)sealed it over him, so that (BG)he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.

Then I saw (BH)thrones, and (BI)seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw (BJ)the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those (BK)who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. (BL)They came to life and (BM)reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. (BN)Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such (BO)the second death has no power, but they will be (BP)priests of God and of Christ, and they (BQ)will reign with him for a thousand years.

The Defeat of Satan

And when the thousand years are ended, (BR)Satan will be released from his prison and will come out (BS)to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, (BT)Gog and Magog, (BU)to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And (BV)they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded (BW)the camp of the saints and (BX)the beloved city, but (BY)fire came down from heaven[g] and consumed them, 10 and the devil (BZ)who had deceived them was (CA)thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where (CB)the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Judgment Before the Great White Throne

11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence (CC)earth and sky fled away, and (CD)no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and (CE)books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is (CF)the book of life. And (CG)the dead were judged by what was written in the books, (CH)according to what they had done. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, (CI)Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, (CJ)according to what they had done. 14 Then (CK)Death and Hades (CL)were thrown into the lake of fire. This is (CM)the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, (CN)he was thrown into the lake of fire.

The New Heaven and the New Earth

21 Then I saw (CO)a new heaven and a new earth, for (CP)the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw (CQ)the holy city, (CR)new Jerusalem, (CS)coming down out of heaven from God, (CT)prepared (CU)as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, (CV)the dwelling place[h] of God is with man. He will (CW)dwell with them, and they will be his people,[i] and God himself will be with them as their God.[j] (CX)He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and (CY)death shall be no more, (CZ)neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

And (DA)he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I (DB)am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for (DC)these words are trustworthy and true.” And he said to me, (DD)“It is done! (DE)I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. (DF)To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. (DG)The one who conquers will have this heritage, and (DH)I will be his God and (DI)he will be my son. (DJ)But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, (DK)their portion will be in (DL)the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is (DM)the second death.”

The New Jerusalem

Then came (DN)one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of (DO)the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you (DP)the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And (DQ)he carried me away in the Spirit to (DR)a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 (DS)having the glory of God, (DT)its radiance (DU)like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall, (DV)with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve (DW)foundations, and (DX)on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

15 And the one who spoke with me (DY)had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia.[k] Its length and width and height are equal. 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits[l] by (DZ)human measurement, which is also (EA)an angel's measurement. 18 The wall was built of (EB)jasper, while the city was pure gold, like (EC)clear glass. 19 (ED)The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and (EE)the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.

22 And (EF)I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city (EG)has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for (EH)the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light (EI)will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth (EJ)will bring their glory into it, 25 and (EK)its gates will never be shut by day—and (EL)there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But (EM)nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's (EN)book of life.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 19:9 Greek he said
  2. Revelation 19:13 Some manuscripts sprinkled with
  3. Revelation 19:15 Greek shepherd
  4. Revelation 19:18 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface
  5. Revelation 19:20 Or on its behalf
  6. Revelation 20:1 Greek the abyss; also verse 3
  7. Revelation 20:9 Some manuscripts from God, out of heaven, or out of heaven from God
  8. Revelation 21:3 Or tabernacle
  9. Revelation 21:3 Some manuscripts peoples
  10. Revelation 21:3 Some manuscripts omit as their God
  11. Revelation 21:16 About 1,380 miles; a stadion was about 607 feet or 185 meters
  12. Revelation 21:17 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters

Threefold Hallelujah Over Babylon’s Fall

19 After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude(A) in heaven shouting:

“Hallelujah!(B)
Salvation(C) and glory and power(D) belong to our God,
    for true and just are his judgments.(E)
He has condemned the great prostitute(F)
    who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.
He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”(G)

And again they shouted:

“Hallelujah!(H)
The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.”(I)

The twenty-four elders(J) and the four living creatures(K) fell down(L) and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried:

“Amen, Hallelujah!”(M)

Then a voice came from the throne, saying:

“Praise our God,
    all you his servants,(N)
you who fear him,
    both great and small!”(O)

Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude,(P) like the roar of rushing waters(Q) and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

“Hallelujah!(R)
    For our Lord God Almighty(S) reigns.(T)
Let us rejoice and be glad
    and give him glory!(U)
For the wedding of the Lamb(V) has come,
    and his bride(W) has made herself ready.
Fine linen,(X) bright and clean,
    was given her to wear.”

(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts(Y) of God’s holy people.)

Then the angel said to me,(Z) “Write this:(AA) Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”(AB) And he added, “These are the true words of God.”(AC)

10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him.(AD) But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God!(AE) For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”(AF)

The Heavenly Warrior Defeats the Beast

11 I saw heaven standing open(AG) and there before me was a white horse, whose rider(AH) is called Faithful and True.(AI) With justice he judges and wages war.(AJ) 12 His eyes are like blazing fire,(AK) and on his head are many crowns.(AL) He has a name written on him(AM) that no one knows but he himself.(AN) 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood,(AO) and his name is the Word of God.(AP) 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen,(AQ) white(AR) and clean. 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword(AS) with which to strike down(AT) the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.”[a](AU) He treads the winepress(AV) of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:(AW)

king of kings and lord of lords.(AX)

17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds(AY) flying in midair,(AZ) “Come,(BA) gather together for the great supper of God,(BB) 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people,(BC) free and slave,(BD) great and small.”(BE)

19 Then I saw the beast(BF) and the kings of the earth(BG) and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse(BH) and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet(BI) who had performed the signs(BJ) on its behalf.(BK) With these signs he had deluded(BL) those who had received the mark of the beast(BM) and worshiped its image.(BN) The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake(BO) of burning sulfur.(BP) 21 The rest were killed with the sword(BQ) coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse,(BR) and all the birds(BS) gorged themselves on their flesh.

The Thousand Years

20 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven,(BT) having the key(BU) to the Abyss(BV) and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan,(BW) and bound him for a thousand years.(BX) He threw him into the Abyss,(BY) and locked and sealed(BZ) it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations(CA) anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.

I saw thrones(CB) on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge.(CC) And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded(CD) because of their testimony about Jesus(CE) and because of the word of God.(CF) They[b] had not worshiped the beast(CG) or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands.(CH) They came to life and reigned(CI) with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.(CJ) Blessed(CK) and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death(CL) has no power over them, but they will be priests(CM) of God and of Christ and will reign with him(CN) for a thousand years.

The Judgment of Satan

When the thousand years are over,(CO) Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations(CP) in the four corners of the earth(CQ)—Gog and Magog(CR)—and to gather them for battle.(CS) In number they are like the sand on the seashore.(CT) They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded(CU) the camp of God’s people, the city he loves.(CV) But fire came down from heaven(CW) and devoured them. 10 And the devil, who deceived them,(CX) was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur,(CY) where the beast(CZ) and the false prophet(DA) had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.(DB)

The Judgment of the Dead

11 Then I saw a great white throne(DC) and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence,(DD) and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small,(DE) standing before the throne, and books were opened.(DF) Another book was opened, which is the book of life.(DG) The dead were judged(DH) according to what they had done(DI) as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades(DJ) gave up the dead(DK) that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.(DL) 14 Then death(DM) and Hades(DN) were thrown into the lake of fire.(DO) The lake of fire is the second death.(DP) 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life(DQ) was thrown into the lake of fire.

A New Heaven and a New Earth

21 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,”[c](DR) for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,(DS) and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City,(DT) the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,(DU) prepared as a bride(DV) beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them.(DW) They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.(DX) ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes.(DY) There will be no more death’[d](DZ) or mourning or crying or pain,(EA) for the old order of things has passed away.”(EB)

He who was seated on the throne(EC) said, “I am making everything new!”(ED) Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”(EE)

He said to me: “It is done.(EF) I am the Alpha and the Omega,(EG) the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost(EH) from the spring of the water of life.(EI) Those who are victorious(EJ) will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.(EK) But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars(EL)—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur.(EM) This is the second death.”(EN)

The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues(EO) came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride,(EP) the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And he carried me away(EQ) in the Spirit(ER) to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.(ES) 11 It shone with the glory of God,(ET) and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper,(EU) clear as crystal.(EV) 12 It had a great, high wall with twelve gates,(EW) and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.(EX) 13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations,(EY) and on them were the names of the twelve apostles(EZ) of the Lamb.

15 The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod(FA) of gold to measure the city, its gates(FB) and its walls. 16 The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia[e] in length, and as wide and high as it is long. 17 The angel measured the wall using human(FC) measurement, and it was 144 cubits[f] thick.[g] 18 The wall was made of jasper,(FD) and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass.(FE) 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone.(FF) The first foundation was jasper,(FG) the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby,(FH) the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst.[h] 21 The twelve gates(FI) were twelve pearls,(FJ) each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.(FK)

22 I did not see a temple(FL) in the city, because the Lord God Almighty(FM) and the Lamb(FN) are its temple. 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God(FO) gives it light,(FP) and the Lamb(FQ) is its lamp. 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.(FR) 25 On no day will its gates(FS) ever be shut,(FT) for there will be no night there.(FU) 26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it.(FV) 27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful,(FW) but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.(FX)

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 19:15 Psalm 2:9
  2. Revelation 20:4 Or God; I also saw those who
  3. Revelation 21:1 Isaiah 65:17
  4. Revelation 21:4 Isaiah 25:8
  5. Revelation 21:16 That is, about 1,400 miles or about 2,200 kilometers
  6. Revelation 21:17 That is, about 200 feet or about 65 meters
  7. Revelation 21:17 Or high
  8. Revelation 21:20 The precise identification of some of these precious stones is uncertain.