天使与小书卷

10 我看见另一位大力天使从天而降。他身披云霞,头顶彩虹,脸如太阳,双腿如火柱, 手中拿着一卷打开了的小书卷,右脚踏在海中,左脚踏在地上。 他大喊的时候,声如狮吼,之后有七声雷鸣。 我正要将雷鸣的意思记录下来,就听见天上有声音说:“你要封住七声雷鸣所说的事,别写下来。”

我刚才所见的那位脚踏海洋和陆地的天使向天举起右手, 凭着活到永永远远、创造天地海洋和其中一切的上帝起誓说:“必不再耽延了。 等第七位天使吹响号角时,上帝奥秘的计划就实现了,正如上帝向祂的奴仆——众先知所宣告的。”

先前从天上对我说话的声音又吩咐我:“你去,从那位脚踏海洋陆地的天使手中把展开的小书卷拿来。”

于是,我走到那天使面前,请他将小书卷给我。他对我说:“拿去,把它吃了。你的腹中会感到苦涩,可是你口中会觉得甘甜如蜜。” 10 我就从天使手中接过小书卷,将它吃了,我口中果然甘甜如蜜,之后腹中觉得苦涩。 11 那天使又对我说:“你必要再对许多民族、国家、语言族群、君王说预言。”

天使與小書卷

10 我又看見一位大力的天使從天上降下來,身披雲彩,頭上有彩虹,臉像太陽,兩腳像火柱一樣, 手裡拿著展開的小書卷。他的右腳踏在海上,左腳踏在地上, 大聲呼喊,好像獅子吼叫。他呼喊的時候,就有七雷發聲說話。 七雷說話的時候,我正要寫下來,就聽見有聲音從天上出來,說:“七雷所說的你要封住,不可寫出來!” 我看見那站在海上和地上的天使,向天舉起右手來, 指著那活到永永遠遠,創造天和天上之物、地和地上之物、海和海中之物的 神起誓,說:“必不再延遲了! 到第七位天使吹號的時候, 神向他的僕人眾先知所宣告的奧祕,就要實現了。”

我先前聽見那從天上來的聲音又對我說:“你去,把那站在海上和地上的天使手中展開的書卷拿過來。” 我就走到天使那裡,請他把小書卷給我。他對我說:“你拿著,吃下去。它必使你肚子苦澀,但是口裡卻好像蜜一樣甘甜。” 10 我把小書卷從天使手中拿過來,吃了,在口裡果然甘甜如蜜;但是吃完之後,我肚子就覺得苦澀。 11 他們又對我說:“論到許多民族、邦國、方言和君王,你必須再說預言。”

John receives the open scroll

10 Then I saw another powerful angel coming down from heaven. He was robed with a cloud, with a rainbow over his head. His face was like the sun, and his feet were like fiery pillars. He held an open scroll in his hand. He put his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land. He called out with a loud voice like a lion roaring, and when he called out, the seven thunders raised their voices. When the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and don’t write it down.”

Then the angel I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven. He swore by the one who lives forever and always, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, and said, “The time is up. In the days when the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious purpose will be accomplished, fulfilling the good news he gave to his servants the prophets.”

Then the voice I heard from heaven spoke to me again and said, “Go, take the opened scroll from the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the land.” So I went to the angel and told him to give me the scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will make you sick to your stomach, but sweet as honey in your mouth.” 10 So I took the scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. And it was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I swallowed it, it made my stomach churn. 11 I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”

The Angel and the Little Scroll

10 And I saw another powerful angel descending from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, and a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire,[a] and holding in his hand a little scroll that was opened. And he put his right foot on the sea and his[b] left on the land. And he cried out with a loud voice like a lion roars, and when he cried out, the seven thunders sounded[c] their own voices. And when the seven thunders spoke,[d] I was about to write, and I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up the things which the seven thunders spoke, and do not write them!”

And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven and swore by the one who lives forever and ever[e], who created heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, “There will be no more delay! But in the days of the sound of the seventh angel, whenever he is about to blow the trumpet, then[f] the mystery of God is completed, as he announced to his own slaves the prophets.”

And the voice that I had heard from heaven was speaking with me again and saying, “Go, take the opened scroll in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” And I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll, and he said to me, “Take and eat it up, and it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” 10 And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it up, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth, and when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. 11 And they said to me, “It is necessary for you to prophesy again about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 10:1 Or “like fiery pillars”
  2. Revelation 10:2 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  3. Revelation 10:3 Or “spoke”
  4. Revelation 10:4 Or “sounded”
  5. Revelation 10:6 Literally “for the ages of the ages”
  6. Revelation 10:7 Literally “and”