Prologue

1 The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave^(A) him to show his servants what must soon take place.^(B) He made it known by sending his angel^(C) to his servant John,^{(D) 2} who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God^(E) and the testimony of Jesus Christ.^{(F) 3} Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it,^(G) because the time is near.^(H)

Greetings and Doxology

⁴ John,

To the seven churches^(I) in the province of Asia:

Grace and peace to you^(J) from him who is, and who was, and who is to come,^(K) and from the seven spirits^[a](L) before his throne, ⁵ and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness,^(M) the firstborn from the dead,^(N) and the ruler of the kings of the earth.^(O)

To him who loves us^(P) and has freed us from our sins by his blood,^{(Q) 6} and has made us to be a kingdom and priests^(R) to serve his God and Father^(S)—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.^(T)

⁸ “I am the Alpha and the Omega,”^(X) says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come,^(Y) the Almighty.”^(Z)

John’s Vision of Christ

⁹ I, John,^(AA) your brother and companion in the suffering^(AB) and kingdom^(AC) and patient endurance^(AD) that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God^(AE) and the testimony of Jesus.^{(AF) 10} On the Lord’s Day^(AG) I was in the Spirit,^(AH) and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,^{(AI) 11} which said: “Write on a scroll what you see^(AJ) and send it to the seven churches:^(AK) to Ephesus,^(AL) Smyrna,^(AM) Pergamum,^(AN) Thyatira,^(AO) Sardis,^(AP) Philadelphia^(AQ) and Laodicea.”^(AR)

¹² I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands,^{(AS) 13} and among the lampstands^(AT) was someone like a son of man,^[d](AU) dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet^(AV) and with a golden sash around his chest.^{(AW) 14} The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire.^{(AX) 15} His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace,^(AY) and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.^{(AZ) 16} In his right hand he held seven stars,^(BA) and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword.^(BB) His face was like the sun^(BC) shining in all its brilliance.

¹⁷ When I saw him, I fell at his feet^(BD) as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me^(BE) and said: “Do not be afraid.^(BF) I am the First and the Last.^{(BG) 18} I am the Living One; I was dead,^(BH) and now look, I am alive for ever and ever!^(BI) And I hold the keys of death and Hades.^(BJ)

¹⁹ “Write, therefore, what you have seen,^(BK) what is now and what will take place later. ²⁰ The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand^(BL) and of the seven golden lampstands^(BM) is this: The seven stars are the angels^[e] of the seven churches,^(BN) and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.^(BO)

9 The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth.^(A) The star was given the key^(B) to the shaft of the Abyss.^{(C) 2} When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace.^(D) The sun and sky were darkened^(E) by the smoke from the Abyss.^{(F) 3} And out of the smoke locusts^(G) came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions^(H) of the earth. ⁴ They were told not to harm^(I) the grass of the earth or any plant or tree,^(J) but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.^{(K) 5} They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months.^(L) And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion^(M) when it strikes. ⁶ During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.^(N)

⁷ The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle.^(O) On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces.^{(P) 8} Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth.^{(Q) 9} They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle.^{(R) 10} They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months.^{(S) 11} They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss,^(T) whose name in Hebrew^(U) is Abaddon^(V) and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer).

¹² The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.^(W)

¹³ The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the four horns^(X) of the golden altar that is before God.^{(Y) 14} It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels^(Z) who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”^{(AA) 15} And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released^(AB) to kill a third^(AC) of mankind.^{(AD) 16} The number of the mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number.^(AE)

¹⁷ The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths^(AF) came fire, smoke and sulfur.^{(AG) 18} A third^(AH) of mankind was killed^(AI) by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur^(AJ) that came out of their mouths. ¹⁹ The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury.

²⁰ The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent^(AK) of the work of their hands;^(AL) they did not stop worshiping demons,^(AM) and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk.^{(AN) 21} Nor did they repent^(AO) of their murders, their magic arts,^(AP) their sexual immorality^(AQ) or their thefts.

The Seven Bowls of God’s Wrath

16 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple^(A) saying to the seven angels,^(B) “Go, pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.”^(C)

² The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land,^(D) and ugly, festering sores^(E) broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.^(F)

³ The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died.^(G)

⁴ The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water,^(H) and they became blood.^{(I) 5} Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say:

⁷ And I heard the altar^(O) respond:

⁸ The fourth angel^(R) poured out his bowl on the sun,^(S) and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire.^{(T) 9} They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God,^(U) who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent^(V) and glorify him.^(W)

¹⁰ The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast,^(X) and its kingdom was plunged into darkness.^(Y) People gnawed their tongues in agony ¹¹ and cursed^(Z) the God of heaven^(AA) because of their pains and their sores,^(AB) but they refused to repent of what they had done.^(AC)

¹² The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates,^(AD) and its water was dried up to prepare the way^(AE) for the kings from the East.^{(AF) 13} Then I saw three impure spirits^(AG) that looked like frogs;^(AH) they came out of the mouth of the dragon,^(AI) out of the mouth of the beast^(AJ) and out of the mouth of the false prophet.^{(AK) 14} They are demonic spirits^(AL) that perform signs,^(AM) and they go out to the kings of the whole world,^(AN) to gather them for the battle^(AO) on the great day^(AP) of God Almighty.

¹⁶ Then they gathered the kings together^(AT) to the place that in Hebrew^(AU) is called Armageddon.^(AV)

¹⁷ The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air,^(AW) and out of the temple^(AX) came a loud voice^(AY) from the throne, saying, “It is done!”^{(AZ) 18} Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder^(BA) and a severe earthquake.^(BB) No earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth,^(BC) so tremendous was the quake. ¹⁹ The great city^(BD) split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered^(BE) Babylon the Great^(BF) and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath.^{(BG) 20} Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found.^{(BH) 21} From the sky huge hailstones,^(BI) each weighing about a hundred pounds,^[a] fell on people. And they cursed God^(BJ) on account of the plague of hail,^(BK) because the plague was so terrible.