Parashat Beshalach

¹⁷ After Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not lead them along the road to the land of the Philistines, although that was nearby, for God said, “The people might change their minds if they see war and return to Egypt.” ¹⁸ So God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Sea of Reeds, and Bnei-Yisrael went up out of the land of Egypt armed.

¹⁹ Moses also took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made Bnei-Yisrael swear an oath saying, “God will surely remember you, and then you are to carry my bones away with you.”^[a]

²⁰ So they journeyed from Succoth and encamped in Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. ²¹ Adonai went before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead the way and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light. So they could travel both day and night. ^{[b] 22} The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night never departed from the people.

Sea of Reeds Showdown

14 Adonai spoke to Moses saying, ² “Speak to Bnei-Yisrael, so that they turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. You are to camp by the sea, opposite Baal-zephon. ³ Pharaoh will say concerning Bnei-Yisrael, ‘They are wandering aimlessly in the land—the wilderness has shut them in!’ ⁴ I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so he will follow after them. Then I will be glorified over Pharaoh along with all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am Adonai.” So they did so.

⁵ When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his servants had a change of heart toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we let Israel go from serving us?” ⁶ So he prepared his chariots and took his people with him. ⁷ He took 600 of the finest chariots, along with all other chariots of Egypt, and captains over them. ⁸ Adonai hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so he pursued Bnei-Yisrael, for Bnei-Yisrael went out with a high hand. ⁹ But the Egyptians pursued them with all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, as well as his charioteers and his army, and overtook them as they were encamped by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth opposite Baal-zephon.

¹⁰ When Pharaoh drew near, Bnei-Yisrael lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them! So they were terrified, and Bnei-Yisrael cried out to Adonai. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Have you taken us away to die in the wilderness because there were no graves in Egypt? Why have you dealt this way with us, to bring us out of Egypt? ¹² Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Let us alone, so that we may serve the Egyptians?’ It was better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness!”

¹³ But Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid! Stand still, and see the salvation of Adonai, which He will perform for you today. You have seen the Egyptians today, but you will never see them again, ever! ¹⁴ Adonai will fight for you, while you hold your peace.”

¹⁵ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Why are you crying to Me? Tell Bnei-Yisrael to go forward. ¹⁶ Lift up your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea, and divide it. Then Bnei-Yisrael will go into the midst of the sea on dry ground. ¹⁷ Then I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they will go in after them, so that I will be glorified over Pharaoh and all his army, his chariots and his horsemen. ¹⁸ Then the Egyptians will know that I am Adonai, when I have been glorified over Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.”

¹⁹ Then the angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them. Also the pillar of cloud moved from in front and stood behind them, ²⁰ and so came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel—there was the cloud and the darkness over here, yet it gave light by night over there—neither one came near the other all night long.

²¹ Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. Adonai drove the sea back with a strong east wind throughout the night and turned the sea into dry land. So the waters were divided. ²² Then Bnei-Yisrael went into the midst of the sea on the dry ground, while the waters were like walls to them on their right and on their left.^[c]

²³ But the Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots and his horsemen. ²⁴ Now it came about during the morning watch that Adonai looked at the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and cloud and caused the army of the Egyptians to panic. ²⁵ He took off their chariot wheels and caused them to drive heavily, so that the Egyptians said, “Get away from the presence of Israel! For Adonai fights for them against the Egyptians!”

²⁶ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the waters come back upon the Egyptians, over their chariots and their horsemen.” ²⁷ So Moses stretched his hand out over the waters, and the sea returned to its strength at the break of dawn. The Egyptians were fleeing from it, but Adonai overthrew them in the midst of the sea. ^{[d] 28} The waters returned and covered the chariots, the horsemen and the entire army of Pharaoh that went after them into the sea. Not one of them remained.

²⁹ But Bnei-Yisrael had walked on dry land in the midst of the sea, and the waters were like walls to them on their right hand and on their left. ³⁰ So Adonai saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. ³¹ When Israel saw the great work that Adonai did over the Egyptians, the people feared Adonai, and they believed in Adonai and in His servant Moses.

Song of Moses and Miriam

15 Then Moses and Bnei-Yisrael sang this song to Adonai:^[e]

¹⁹ For Pharaoh’s horses with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, but Adonai brought the waters of the sea back over them. Yet Bnei-Yisrael walked in the midst of the sea on dry ground. ²⁰ Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dancing, ²¹ as Miriam sang to them:

Bitter Waters Made Sweet

²² Then Moses led Israel onward from the Sea of Reeds. They went out into the wilderness of Shur. But they travelled three days in the wilderness and found no water. ²³ When they came to Marah, they could not drink from the waters because they were bitter. On account of this it was called Marah. ²⁴ So the people complained to Moses saying, “What are we going to drink?”

²⁵ So he cried out to Adonai, and Adonai showed him a tree. When he threw it into the waters, they were made sweet.

There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them. ²⁶ He said, “If you diligently listen to the voice of Adonai your God, do what is right in His eyes, pay attention to His mitzvot, and keep all His decrees, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians. For I am Adonai who heals you.”

²⁷ Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. So they camped there by the waters.

Manna From Heaven

16 They journeyed on from Elim, and the entire community of Bnei-Yisrael came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after leaving the land of Egypt. ² But the whole congregation of Bnei-Yisrael murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. ³ Bnei-Yisrael said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of Adonai in the land of Egypt, when we sat by pots of meat, when we ate bread until we were full. But you have brought us into the wilderness, to kill this entire congregation with hunger.”

⁴ Then Adonai said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you.^[h] The people will go out and gather a day’s portion every day, so that I can test them to find out whether they will walk according to My Torah or not. ⁵ So on the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather day by day.”

⁶ So Moses and Aaron said to all Bnei-Yisrael, “In the evening you will know that Adonai has brought you out from the land of Egypt, ⁷ and in the morning, then you will see the glory of Adonai. For He heard your complaining against Him. What are we? You complain against us?” ⁸ Then Moses said, “Adonai will give you meat to eat in the evening and enough bread to fill you in the morning, since Adonai hears your complaints that you mutter against Him, what are we? Your complaining is not against us, but against Adonai!”

⁹ Moses said to Aaron, “Say to all the congregation of Bnei-Yisrael, ‘Come near before Adonai, because He has heard your complaining.’”

¹⁰ Then, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of Bnei-Yisrael, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of Adonai appeared in the cloud. ¹¹ Adonai spoke to Moses saying, ¹² “I have heard the complaining of Bnei-Yisrael. Speak to them saying, ‘At dusk you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am Adonai your God.’”

¹³ So when evening fell, quails came up and covered the camp. Moreover, in the morning there was a layer of dew all around the camp. ¹⁴ When the layer of dew was gone, on the surface of the desert was a thin, flake-like frost, as fine as the frost on the ground. ¹⁵ When Bnei-Yisrael saw it, they said one to another, “What is it?”^[i] For they did not know what it was. Then Moses said to them, “It is the bread that Adonai has given you to eat. ¹⁶ This is the word that Adonai has commanded. Every man is to gather according to his needs, an omer^[j] per person, according to the number of people per household. Each man is to take it for those who are in his tent.”

¹⁷ Bnei-Yisrael did so, and some gathered more, some less. ¹⁸ When they measured it with an omer, those who gathered more had nothing left over, and those that gathered less did not lack at all. Every man gathered according to his appetite.

¹⁹ Also Moses said to them, “Let no one save any of it until the morning.”

²⁰ However, they did not listen to Moses. Some of them preserved it until the morning—but it bred worms and rotted. So Moses was angry with them.

²¹ So they gathered it morning by morning, each man according to his needs, and as the sun became hot it melted. ²² On the sixth day they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each individual. So all the leaders of the community came and informed Moses. ²³ But he said to them, “This is what Adonai has said. Tomorrow is a Shabbat rest, a holy Shabbat to Adonai. Bake whatever you would bake, and boil what you would boil. Store up for yourselves everything that remains, to be kept until the morning.”

²⁴ So they set it aside until the morning, just as Moses instructed, and it did not rot nor were there any worms. ²⁵ Then Moses said, “Eat that today, because today is a Shabbat to Adonai. Today you will not find it in the field. ²⁶ You are to gather it for six days, but the seventh day is the Shabbat, and there will be none.”

²⁷ Yet on the seventh day, some of the people went out to gather and they found none. ²⁸ Adonai said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep My mitzvot and My Torah? ²⁹ See, Adonai has given you the Shabbat, so on the sixth day He gives you the bread of two days. Let every man stay in his place, and let no man go out on the seventh day.” ³⁰ So the people rested on the seventh day.

³¹ The house of Israel named it manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. ³² Then Moses said, “This is what Adonai has commanded. Let a full omer of it be kept throughout your generations, so that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness, when I brought you out from the land of Egypt.”

³³ Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar and put a full omer of manna inside. Store it up before Adonai, to be kept throughout your generations.”

³⁴ Just as Adonai commanded Moses, Aaron stored it up in front of the Testimony, to be preserved. ³⁵ Bnei-Yisrael ate the manna for 40 years. They ate the manna until they came to an inhabited land, when they came to the borders of the land of Canaan. ³⁶ Now an omer is the tenth part of an ephah.^[k]

Test and Quarreling

17 All the congregation of Bnei-Yisrael journeyed from the wilderness of Sin in stages, according to the command of Adonai, and camped in Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. ² So the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test Adonai?”

³ But the people thirsted for water there, and they complained against Moses and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt? To kill us with thirst, along with our children and cattle?”

⁴ So Moses cried out to Adonai saying, “What am I to do for these people? They are about ready to stone me.”

⁵ Adonai said to Moses, “Walk before the people, and take of the elders of Israel with you, along with your staff with which you struck the river. Take it in your hand and go. ⁶ Behold, I will stand before you, there upon the rock in Horeb. You are to strike the rock, and water will come out of it so that the people can drink.” Then Moses did just so in the eyes of the elders of Israel. ⁷ The name of the place was called Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of Bnei-Yisrael, and because they tested Adonai saying, “Is Adonai among us, or not?”

War Against Amalek

⁸ Then the Amalekites came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. ⁹ Moses said to Joshua, “Choose men, go out, and fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.”

¹⁰ So Joshua did as Moses said, and fought the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron and Hur went up to the top of the hill. ¹¹ When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed. But when he let down his hand, the Amalekites prevailed. ¹² Moses’ hands grew heavy, so they took a stone, put it under him, and he sat down. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on each side. So his hands were steady until the sun went down. ¹³ So Joshua overpowered the Amalekites and his army with the edge of the sword.

¹⁴ Adonai said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial in the book, and rehearse it in the hearing of Joshua, for I will utterly blot out the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven.”

¹⁵ Then Moses built an altar, and called the name of it Adonai-Nissi. ^{[l] 16} Then he said, “By the hand upon the throne of Adonai, Adonai will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

⁴ Now Deborah, a woman who was a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. ⁵ She used to sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and Bnei-Yisrael came up to her for judgment. ⁶ Now she sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Hasn’t Adonai, God of Israel, commanded, ‘Go, march to Mount Tabor, and take with you 10,000 men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun? ⁷ Then at the Kishon torrent, I will draw out to you Sisera, commander of Jabin’s army with his chariots and his multitude, and I will give him into your hand.’”

⁸ But Barak said to her, “If you are going with me, then I will go. But if you aren’t going with me, I won’t go.”

⁹ “Surely I will go with you,” she said. “However, no honor will be yours on the way that you are about to go—for Adonai will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” So Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. ¹⁰ Then Barak summoned Zebulun and Naphtali together to Kedesh, and 10,000 men marched up after him, and Deborah went up with him.

¹¹ Now Heber the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites, from the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far as the oak in Zaanannim, which is near Kedesh.

¹² They told Sisera that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. ¹³ So Sisera ordered all his chariots—900 iron chariots—and all the troops that were with him, from Harosheth-ha-goyim to the Kishon.

¹⁴ Then Deborah said to Barak, “Arise! For this is the day in which Adonai will deliver Sisera into your hand. Has Adonai not gone out before you?” So Barak came down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. ¹⁵ Adonai threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his army into confusion before Barak with the edge of the sword. Then Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot. ¹⁶ But Barak pursued the chariots and the army as far as Harosheth-ha-goyim. The whole army of Sisera fell by the sword; not one was left.

¹⁷ Meanwhile Sisera fled on foot to the tent of Yael the wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was peace between King Jabin of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. ¹⁸ So Yael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me! Don’t be afraid!” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a blanket.

¹⁹ He said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin of milk and made him drink some, and covered him. ²⁰ Then he said to her, “Stand at the entrance of the tent, and if anyone comes and asks you saying, ‘Is there a man here?’ then you will say, ‘There’s no one.’”

²¹ Then Yael, Heber’s wife, took a tent pin and got a hammer in her hand, approached him stealthily and drove the pin into his temple until it pierced through into the ground—for he was exhausted and in a deep sleep. So he died. ²² Now behold, as Barak was pursuing Sisera, Yael came out to meet him and said to him, “Come, I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” So he entered with her, and behold, Sisera was lying dead, with a tent-pin in his temple!

²³ So on that day God subdued King Jabin of Canaan before Bnei-Yisrael. ²⁴ The hand of Bnei-Yisrael pressed hard on King Jabin of Canaan until they had cut off King Jabin of Canaan.

Deborah’s Song

5 Then Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang on that day saying:

Then the land had peace for 40 years.

The Angel with a Little Scroll

10 Then I saw another powerful angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud with a rainbow over his head. His face was like the sun and his feet like pillars of fire. ² He had in his hand a little scroll that was open. He set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, ³ and he cried out with a loud voice, just as a lion roars. When he cried out, the seven thunders spoke.^[a]

⁴ And when the seven thunders had spoken, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said. Do not write it down!”^[b]

⁵ Then the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand toward heaven ⁶ and swore^[c] by the One who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay.

⁷ But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel—when he is about to trumpet—the mystery of God is completed, just as He declared to His servants the prophets. ^{[d] 8} Then the voice that I heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel standing on the sea and on the land.”

⁹ So I went to the angel, telling him to give me the little scroll. And he tells me, “Take and eat it. It will be bitter to your stomach, but sweet as honey in your mouth.”^[e]

¹⁰ So I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth; but when I had swallowed it, my stomach was made bitter. ¹¹ And they tell me, “You must prophesy again about many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.”

Two Witnesses

11 Then a measuring rod like a staff was given to me, saying, “Get up and measure the Temple of God and the altar, and count those worshiping in it. ^{[f] 2} But do not measure the court outside the Temple—leave it out, because it has been given to the nations, and they shall trample the holy city for forty-two months. ^{[g] 3} And I will grant authority to My two witnesses and they will prophesy for 1,260 days,^[h] dressed in sackcloth.”

⁴ These are the two olive trees and the two menorot that are standing before the Lord of the earth. ^{[i] 5} If anyone wishes to harm them, fire comes out of their mouths and consumes their enemies. If anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way. ^{[j] 6} These two have the power to shut the heavens, so that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying.^[k] And they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they wish.^[l]

⁷ When they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the abyss will make war on them, and overcome them and kill them. ^{[m] 8} And their corpses will lie in the open street^[n] of the great city that figuratively is called Sodom and Egypt—where also their^[o] Lord was crucified. ⁹ Some from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their corpses for three and a half days, not allowing them to be placed into a grave. ^{[p] 10} Those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them. They will celebrate and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.

¹¹ But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet;^[q] and great fear fell on those who were watching them. ¹² Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies watched them.^[r]

¹³ At that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city collapsed.^[s] Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

¹⁴ The second woe is past. The third woe is coming soon.

The Seventh Trumpet

¹⁵ Then the seventh angel trumpeted, and there were loud voices in heaven saying,

¹⁶ And the twenty-four elders seated on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, ¹⁷ saying,

¹⁹ Then the Temple of God in heaven was opened, and the Ark of His Covenant appeared in His Temple. And there were flashes of lightning and rumblings and clashes of thunder and an earthquake and heavy hail.^[x]

Mother, Child, Dragon, and War

12 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. ^{[y] 2} She is pregnant—crying out in birth pains, in agony to give birth.^[z]

³ Then another sign appeared in heaven: a great fiery red dragon that had seven heads and ten horns, and seven royal crowns on his heads. ^{[aa] 4} His tail sweeps away a third of the stars of heaven—it hurled them to the earth.^[ab] Now the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that whenever she gave birth he might devour her child.

⁵ And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with an iron rod.^[ac] And her child was snatched away to God and to His throne. ⁶ Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God so they might take care of her for 1,260 days.

⁷ And war broke out in heaven, Michael and his angels making war against the dragon.^[ad] The dragon and his angels fought, ⁸ but they were not strong enough, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. ⁹ And the great dragon was thrown down—the ancient serpent, called the devil and satan, who deceives the whole world.^[ae] He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. ^{[af] 10} Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Anointed One, for the accuser of our brothers and sisters—the one who accuses them before our God day and night^[ag]—has been thrown out. ¹¹ They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives even in the face of death.

¹² Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the earth and the sea, for the devil has come down to you with great rage, knowing that his time is short.

¹³ Now when the dragon saw that he had been thrown to the earth, he stalked the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴ But the woman was given two wings of the great eagle,^[ah] so that she might fly away from the presence of the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is taken care of—for a time, times, and half a time.^[ai]

¹⁵ And from out of his mouth, the serpent spewed water like a river after the woman, in order to sweep her away with a flood. ¹⁶ But the earth came to the aid of the woman. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had spewed from his mouth. ¹⁷ So the dragon became enraged at the woman and went off to make war with the rest of her offspring—those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Yeshua. ¹⁸ And he stood on the shore of the sea.

Two Beasts

13 Then I saw a beast rising out of the sea,^[aj] that had ten horns and seven heads. On his horns were ten royal crowns, and upon his heads were slanderous names. ² Now the beast that I saw was like a leopard, his feet like a bear’s, and his mouth like a lion’s. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. ³ One of his heads seemed to have been slain, but the fatal wound was healed. The whole earth was amazed and followed the beast. ⁴ And they worshiped the dragon, because he had given authority to the beast. They also worshiped the beast, chanting, “Who is like the beast, and who can make war against him?”^[ak]

⁵ The beast was given a mouth uttering great boasts and blasphemies. It was given authority to act for forty-two months. ⁶ Then he opened his mouth with blasphemies against God, to slander His name and His tabernacle—that is, those dwelling in heaven. ⁷ He was also permitted to make war against the kedoshim and overcome them, and he was given authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation. ⁸ All who dwell on the earth shall worship him—everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the Book of Life of the Lamb who was slain.

Here is the perseverance and faith of the kedoshim.

¹¹ Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. He had two horns^[am] like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. ¹² He exercises all the authority of the first beast before him, and he makes the earth and all those who dwell in it worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. ¹³ He performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven in the sight of men. ^{[an] 14} And he deceives those who dwell on the earth through the signs he is permitted to perform, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image in honor of the beast who has the sword wound yet lived. ¹⁵ The second beast was permitted to give life to the image of the first beast, so that the image of the beast could even speak and cause all who would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶ He also causes all—the small and the great, the rich and the poor, the free and the slave—to receive a mark on their right hand or upon their forehead. ¹⁷ And so no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark—either the name of the beast or the number of his name.

¹⁸ Here is wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is a number of a man, and his number is 666.^[ao]

A Song for the 144,000

14 Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion,^[ap] and with Him were 144,000 who had His name and His Father’s name written on their foreheads. ² And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and the booming of loud thunder.^[aq] The voice I heard was like harpists playing on their harps. ³ And they are singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one is able to learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth.

⁴ These are the ones who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins.

These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes.

These have been redeemed from among mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb.

⁵ And in their mouth was found no lie—they are blameless.^[ar]

Three Angels with Messages

⁶ And then I saw another angel flying high in the sky, having a timeless message of good news to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation and tribe and tongue and people. ⁷ He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship the One who made heaven and earth and sea and springs of water.”

⁸ Another angel, a second one, followed, saying,

⁹ And another angel, a third one, followed them, saying in a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, ¹⁰ he shall also drink the wine of God’s fury, poured full strength into the cup of His wrath.^[at] And he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone^[au] before the holy angels and before the Lamb. ¹¹ The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever.^[av] Those who worship the beast and its image and those who receive the mark of his name have no rest day or night.”

¹² Here is the perseverance of the kedoshim—those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Yeshua.

¹³ Then I heard a voice from heaven saying,^[aw]

“Write: How fortunate are the dead—those who die in the Lord from now on!”

“Yes,” says the Ruach, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.”

Time to Harvest the Earth

¹⁴ Then I looked, and behold, there was a white cloud—and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man.^[ax] He had a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. ¹⁵ Then another angel came out of the Temple, crying out with a loud voice to the One seated on the cloud,

¹⁶ So the One seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.^[ay]

¹⁷ Then another angel came out of the Temple in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. ¹⁸ Then another angel—the one who has authority over fire—came out from the altar; and he called out with a loud voice to the one holding the sharp sickle, saying, “Put in your sickle and gather the grape clusters from the vineyard of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.” ¹⁹ So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the clusters from the vineyard of the earth and threw them into the great winepress of the wrath of God. ²⁰ And the winepress was stomped on outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress as high as a horse’s bridle for 1,600 stadia.^[az]

Song of Moses to the Lamb

15 Then I saw another great and wonderful sign in heaven: seven angels who have seven plagues—the last ones, for with them God’s wrath is finished. ² And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had overcome the beast and his image^[ba] and the number of his name standing by the sea of glass, holding the harps of God. ³ And they are singing the song of Moses^[bb] the servant of God and the song of the Lamb, saying,

⁵ After these things I looked, and the Temple of the Tent of Witness in heaven was opened. ⁶ Out of the Temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, dressed in pure bright linen and wearing wide gold sashes around their chests.

⁷ Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. ⁸ And the Temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power.^[bf] No one was able to enter the Temple until the seven angels’ seven plagues were finished.

Seven Bowls of God’s Wrath

16 Then I heard a loud voice from the Temple saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of God’s wrath.” ^{[bg] 2} So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and foul and painful boils^[bh] came upon the people having the mark of the beast and worshiping his image. ³ Next the second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood like that of a corpse; and every living thing in the sea died. ^{[bi] 4} Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood. ^{[bj] 5} Then I heard the angel of the waters saying,

⁸ The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was permitted to scorch people with fire. ⁹ People were scorched with fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God—the One who has power over these plagues. But they did not repent, to give Him glory.

¹⁰ Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness.^[bm] People gnawed their tongues in pain ¹¹ and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their boils. But they did not repent of their deeds.^[bn]

¹² The sixth angel poured out his bowl over the great river Euphrates; and its water was dried up, to prepare the way for the kings from the east. ¹³ Then I saw—coming from the dragon’s mouth and from the beast’s mouth and from the false prophet’s mouth—three unclean spirits like frogs. ^{[bo] 14} For they are demonic spirits performing miraculous signs, who go out to the kings of the whole world—to gather them for battle on the great Day of Elohei Tzva’ot.^[bp]

¹⁵ “Behold, I am coming like a thief! How fortunate is the one who stays alert and keeps his clothes on, lest he walk around naked and they see his shamefulness.”

¹⁶ Then the spirits gathered the kings to the place called in Hebrew Har-Megiddo.^[bq]

¹⁷ The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. A loud voice came out of the Temple^[br] from the throne, saying, “It is done!” ^{[bs] 18} And there were flashes of lightning and rumblings and clashes of thunder and a great earthquake—such as never happened since mankind has been on the earth, so mighty was the quake.^[bt]

¹⁹ Then the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to force her to drink the cup of the wine of His furious wrath. ^{[bu] 20} Every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. ²¹ Enormous hail—about a hundred pounds each^[bv]—falls from heaven on the people. And the people cursed God because of the plague of hail—so extreme was that plague.^[bw]

The Vile Prostitute and the Beast

17 Then one of the seven angels holding the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come, I will show you the sentencing of the great prostitute,^[bx] who sits on many waters. ² The earth’s kings committed sexual immorality with her, and those who dwell on the earth got drunk with the wine of her immorality.”

³ So he carried me away in the Ruach into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. ^{[by] 4} The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls.^[bz] She was holding a golden cup^[ca] in her hand full of detestable things and the filth of her immorality, ⁵ and on her forehead was written a name, a mystery:

“Babylon the Great, the mother of prostitutes and the detestable things of the earth.”

⁶ And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the kedoshim and with the blood of the witnesses of Yeshua. When I saw her, I was totally astounded.

⁷ But the angel said to me, “Why are you astonished? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns. ⁸ The beast that you saw was, and is not, and yet is about to rise up from the abyss and head for destruction. Those who dwell on the earth—whose names have not been written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world—will be astonished when they see the beast, because he was and is not and is to come.

⁹ “This calls for a mind having wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated. They are also seven kings— ¹⁰ five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. ¹¹ The beast that was and is not—he himself is the eighth, and is one of the seven, and is heading for destruction. ¹² The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. ¹³ These kings are of one mind, and they give their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴ They will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them—because He is Lord of lords and King of kings,^[cb] and those with Him are called and chosen and faithful.”

¹⁵ Then he tells me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. ¹⁶ The ten horns that you saw, and the beast—these will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked,^[cc] and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire. ¹⁷ For God has put it into their hearts to do His will, and to be of one mind, and to give their royal power to the beast until the words of God are fulfilled. ¹⁸ And the woman that you saw is the great city exercising kingship over the kings of the earth.”

Judgment of Babylon

18 After these things, I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his glory. ² He cried out with a mighty voice, saying:

⁴ Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,

⁸ For this reason her plagues will arrive in

a single day—

⁹ Then the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and indulged in luxury with her shall weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning^[ck]— ¹⁰ standing far off because of the terror of her torment, saying:

¹¹ And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her,^[cl] because no one buys their merchandise anymore— ¹² shipments of gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet; all kinds of citron wood; all kinds of ivory products; all kinds of products made of costly wood, bronze, iron, and marble; ¹³ cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine, oil, fine flour, and wheat; cattle, sheep, horses, and chariots; and slaves—that is, human souls.

¹⁵ The merchants of these things, who became rich from her, shall stand far off for fear of her torment, weeping and mourning, ¹⁶ saying,

And every ship captain and passenger, sailors and all who make their living at sea, stood at a distance ¹⁸ and were crying out, seeing the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What city is like the great city?’ ¹⁹ And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning,

²¹ Then a mighty angel picked up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea,^[cn] saying:

Victory Songs in Heaven

19 After these things, I heard something like the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, shouting:

⁴ Then the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who is seated on the throne, saying, “Amen! Halleluyah!”^[cv]

⁵ Then a voice came from the throne, saying:

Wedding of the Lamb

⁶ Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude—like the roar of rushing waters^[cx] or like the rumbling of powerful thunder—saying,