The Warnings of History to the Ungodly

^1 [a](A)Jude, a ^(B)bond-servant of Jesus Christ and brother of ^[b]James,

To ^(C)those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and ^(D)kept for Jesus Christ: ^2 (E)May mercy, peace, and love ^(F)be multiplied to you.

^3 (G)Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our ^(H)common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you ^(I)contend earnestly for ^(J)the faith that was once for all time ^(K)handed down to ^(L)the ^[c]saints. ⁴ For certain people have ^(M)crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand ^[d](N)marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn ^(O)the grace of our God into ^(P)indecent behavior and ^(Q)deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

⁵ Now I want to ^(R)remind you, though ^(S)you know everything once and for all, that ^[e]the Lord, ^(T)after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, ^[f]subsequently destroyed those who did not believe. ⁶ And ^(U)angels who did not keep their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling place, these He has ^(V)kept in eternal restraints under darkness for the judgment of the great day, ⁷ just as ^(W)Sodom and Gomorrah and the ^(X)cities around them, since they in the same way as these angels indulged in sexual perversion and ^(Y)went after ^[g]strange flesh, are exhibited as an ^[h](Z)example in undergoing the ^(AA)punishment of eternal fire.

⁸ Yet in the same way these people also, dreaming, ^(AB)defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak abusively of angelic ^[i]majesties. ⁹ But ^(AC)Michael ^(AD)the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about ^(AE)the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him an abusive judgment, but said, “^(AF)The Lord rebuke you!” ¹⁰ But ^(AG)these people disparage all the things that they do not understand; and ^(AH)all the things that they know by instinct, ^(AI)like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed. ¹¹ Woe to them! For they have gone ^(AJ)the way of Cain, and for pay ^[j]they have given themselves up to ^(AK)the error of Balaam, and ^(AL)perished in the rebellion of Korah. ¹² These are the ones who are ^[k]hidden reefs ^(AM)in your love feasts when they feast with you ^(AN)without fear, like shepherds caring only for themselves; ^(AO)clouds without water, ^(AP)carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, ^[l]doubly dead, ^(AQ)uprooted; ^13 (AR)wild waves of the sea, churning up ^(AS)their own shameful deeds like dirty foam; wandering stars, ^(AT)for whom the ^[m]gloom of darkness has been reserved forever.

¹⁴ It was also about these people that ^(AU)Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “^(AV)Behold, the Lord has come with ^[n]many thousands of His holy ones, ^15 (AW)to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ^(AX)ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” ¹⁶ These are ^(AY)grumblers, finding fault, ^(AZ)following after their own lusts; ^[o]they speak ^(BA)arrogantly, flattering people ^(BB)for the sake of gaining an advantage.

Keep Yourselves in the Love of God

¹⁷ But you, ^(BC)beloved, ^(BD)ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by ^(BE)the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁸ that they were saying to you, “^(BF)In the last time there will be mockers, ^(BG)following after their own ungodly lusts.” ¹⁹ These are the ones who cause divisions, ^[p](BH)worldly-minded, ^[q]devoid of the Spirit. ²⁰ But you, ^(BI)beloved, ^(BJ)building yourselves up on your most holy ^(BK)faith, ^(BL)praying in the Holy Spirit, ²¹ keep yourselves in the love of God, ^(BM)looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. ²² And have mercy on some, who are doubting; ²³ save others, ^(BN)snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, ^(BO)hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.

^24 (BP)Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling, and to ^(BQ)make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless with ^(BR)great joy, ²⁵ to the ^(BS)only ^(BT)God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, ^(BU)be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority ^(BV)before all time and now and ^[r]forever. Amen.

The Revelation of Jesus Christ

1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which ^(A)God gave Him to ^(B)show to His bond-servants, ^(C)the things which must soon take place; and He sent and ^[a]communicated it ^(D)by His angel to His bond-servant ^(E)John, ² who testified to ^(F)the word of God and to ^(G)the testimony of Jesus Christ, everything that he saw. ^3 (H)Blessed is the one who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and ^[b]keep the things which are written in it; ^(I)for the time is near.

Message to the Seven Churches

^4 (J)John to ^(K)the seven churches that are in ^(L)Asia: ^(M)Grace to you and peace from ^(N)Him who is, and who was, and who ^[c]is to come, and from ^(O)the ^[d]seven spirits who are before His throne, ⁵ and from Jesus Christ, ^(P)the faithful witness, the ^(Q)firstborn of the dead, and the ^(R)ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who ^(S)loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— ⁶ and He made us into a ^(T)kingdom, ^(U)priests to ^[e](V)His God and Father—^(W)to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. ^7 (X)Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and ^(Y)every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will ^(Z)mourn over Him. ^[f]So it is to be. Amen.

⁸ “I am ^(AA)the Alpha and the Omega,” says the ^(AB)Lord God, “^(AC)who is and who was and who ^[g]is to come, the Almighty.”

The Patmos Vision

^9 (AD)I, John, your ^(AE)brother and ^(AF)fellow participant in the tribulation and ^(AG)kingdom and ^[h](AH)perseverance in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos ^(AI)because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. ¹⁰ I was ^(AJ)in the ^[i]Spirit on ^(AK)the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice ^(AL)like the sound of a trumpet, ¹¹ saying, “^(AM)Write ^[j]on a scroll what you see, and send it to the ^(AN)seven churches: to ^(AO)Ephesus, ^(AP)Smyrna, ^(AQ)Pergamum, ^(AR)Thyatira, ^(AS)Sardis, ^(AT)Philadelphia, and ^(AU)Laodicea.”

¹² Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And after turning I saw ^(AV)seven golden lampstands; ¹³ and ^(AW)in the middle of the lampstands I saw one ^(AX)like ^[k]a son of man, ^(AY)clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and ^(AZ)wrapped around the chest with a golden sash. ¹⁴ His head and His ^(BA)hair were white like white wool, like snow; and ^(BB)His eyes were like a flame of fire. ¹⁵ His ^(BC)feet were like ^[l]burnished bronze when it has been heated to a glow in a furnace, and His ^(BD)voice was like the sound of many waters. ¹⁶ In His right hand He held ^(BE)seven stars, and out of His mouth came a ^(BF)sharp two-edged sword; and His ^(BG)face was like ^(BH)the sun ^[m]shining in its strength.

¹⁷ When I saw Him, I ^(BI)fell at His feet like a dead man. And He ^(BJ)placed His right hand on me, saying, “^(BK)Do not be afraid; ^(BL)I am the first and the last, ¹⁸ and the ^(BM)living One; and I ^[n](BN)was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have ^(BO)the keys of death and of Hades. ¹⁹ Therefore ^(BP)write ^(BQ)the things which you have seen, ^[o]and the things which are, and the things which will take place ^(BR)after these things. ²⁰ As for the ^(BS)mystery of the ^(BT)seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the ^(BU)seven golden lampstands: the ^(BV)seven stars are the angels of ^(BW)the seven churches, and the seven ^(BX)lampstands are the seven churches.

Message to Ephesus

2 “To the angel of the church in ^(BY)Ephesus write:

The One who holds ^(BZ)the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks ^[p](CA)among the seven golden lampstands, says this:

² ‘^(CB)I know your deeds and your labor and ^[q]perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil people, and you have ^(CC)put those who call themselves ^(CD)apostles to the test, and they are not, and you found them to be false; ³ and you have ^[r]perseverance and have endured ^(CE)on account of My name, and have not become weary. ⁴ But I have this against you, that you have ^(CF)left your first love. ⁵ Therefore, remember from where you have fallen, and ^(CG)repent, and ^(CH)do the ^[s]deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and I will remove your ^(CI)lampstand from its place—unless you repent. ⁶ But you have this, that you hate the deeds of the ^(CJ)Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ^7 (CK)The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. ^(CL)To the one who overcomes, I will grant to eat from ^(CM)the tree of life, which is in the ^(CN)Paradise of God.’

Message to Smyrna

⁸ “And to the angel of the church in ^(CO)Smyrna write:

^(CP)The first and the last, who ^[t](CQ)was dead, and has come to life, says this:

⁹ ‘I know your ^(CR)tribulation and your ^(CS)poverty (but you are ^(CT)rich), and the ^[u]slander by those who ^(CU)say they are Jews, and are not, but are a synagogue of ^(CV)Satan. ¹⁰ Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, so that you will be ^(CW)tested, and you will have tribulation ^(CX)for ten days. ^[v]Be ^(CY)faithful until death, and I will give you ^(CZ)the crown of life. ^11 (DA)The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. ^(DB)The one who overcomes will not be hurt by the ^(DC)second death.’

Message to Pergamum

¹² “And to the angel of the church in ^(DD)Pergamum write:

The One who has ^(DE)the sharp two-edged sword says this:

¹³ ‘I know where you dwell, where ^(DF)Satan’s throne is; and you hold firmly to My name, and did not deny ^(DG)My faith even in the days of Antipas, My ^(DH)witness, My ^(DI)faithful one, who was killed among you, ^(DJ)where Satan dwells. ¹⁴ But ^(DK)I have a few things against you, because you have some there who hold the ^(DL)teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a ^[w]stumbling block before the sons of Israel, ^(DM)to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality. ¹⁵ So you too, have some who in the same way hold to the teaching of the ^(DN)Nicolaitans. ¹⁶ Therefore ^(DO)repent; or else ^(DP)I am coming to you quickly, and I will wage war against them with ^(DQ)the sword of My mouth. ^17 (DR)The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. ^(DS)To the one who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden ^(DT)manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a ^(DU)new name written on the stone ^(DV)which no one knows except the one who receives it.’

Message to Thyatira

¹⁸ “And to the angel of the church in ^(DW)Thyatira write:

^(DX)The Son of God, ^(DY)who has ^[x]eyes like a flame of fire, and ^[y]feet like burnished bronze, says this:

¹⁹ ‘^(DZ)I know your deeds, and your love and faith, and service and ^[z]perseverance, and that your ^[aa]deeds of late are greater than ^[ab]at first. ²⁰ But ^(EA)I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman ^(EB)Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they ^(EC)commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. ^21 (ED)I gave her time to repent, and she ^(EE)does not want to repent of her sexual immorality. ²² Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who ^(EF)commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of ^[ac]her deeds. ²³ And I will kill her children with ^[ad]plague, and all the churches will know that I am He who ^(EG)searches the ^[ae]minds and hearts; and ^(EH)I will give to each one of you according to your deeds. ²⁴ But I say to you, the rest who are in ^(EI)Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the ^(EJ)deep things of Satan, as they call them—I ^(EK)place no other burden on you. ²⁵ Nevertheless ^(EL)what you have, hold firmly ^(EM)until I come. ^26 (EN)The one who overcomes, and the one who keeps My deeds ^(EO)until the end, ^(EP)I will give him authority over the ^[af]nations; ²⁷ and he shall ^[ag](EQ)rule them with a rod of iron, ^(ER)as the vessels of the potter are shattered, as I also have received authority from My Father; ²⁸ and I will give him ^(ES)the morning star. ^29 (ET)The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’