⁸ Then I heard the same voice from heaven again, saying to me: “Go and take the open scroll that is in the hand of the angel that is standing on the sea and on the land.”

⁹ So I went to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll. And he said to me, “Take the scroll and eat it [^Ca symbol of internalizing the word]. It will be ·sour [bitter] in your stomach [^Cbecause it is a message of judgment], but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey [^Cbecause it is God’s word and because it brings salvation and vindication to his people; Ps. 119:103; Jer. 15:16; Ezek. 2:8—3:3].” ¹⁰ So I took the small scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. In my mouth it tasted sweet as honey, but after I ate it, it was ·sour [bitter] in my stomach.