The Great Multitude in White Robes

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language,(A) standing before the throne(B) and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes(C) and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,(D)
who sits on the throne,(E)
and to the Lamb.”

11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders(F) and the four living creatures.(G) They fell down on their faces(H) before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying:

“Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen!”(I)

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes(J)—who are they, and where did they come from?”

14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes(K) and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.(L) 15 Therefore,

“they are before the throne of God(M)
    and serve him(N) day and night in his temple;(O)
and he who sits on the throne(P)
    will shelter them with his presence.(Q)
16 ‘Never again will they hunger;
    never again will they thirst.(R)
The sun will not beat down on them,’[a]
    nor any scorching heat.(S)
17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne
    will be their shepherd;(T)
‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’[b](U)
    ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’[c](V)

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Footnotes

  1. Revelation 7:16 Isaiah 49:10
  2. Revelation 7:17 Isaiah 49:10
  3. Revelation 7:17 Isaiah 25:8

After these things I looked, and here was[a] an enormous crowd that no one could count, made up of persons from every nation, tribe,[b] people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb dressed in long white robes, and with palm branches in their hands. 10 They were shouting out in a loud voice,

“Salvation belongs to our God,[c] who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

11 And all the angels stood[d] there in a circle around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground[e] before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying,

“Amen! Praise and glory,
and wisdom and thanksgiving,
and honor and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

13 Then[f] one of the elders asked[g] me, “These dressed in long white robes—who are they and where have they come from?” 14 So[h] I said to him, “My lord, you know the answer.”[i] Then[j] he said to me, “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation. They[k] have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb! 15 For this reason they are before the throne of God, and they serve[l] him day and night in his temple, and the one seated on the throne will shelter them.[m] 16 They will never go hungry or be thirsty again, and the sun will not beat down on them, nor any burning heat,[n] 17 because the Lamb in the middle of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”[o]

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Footnotes

  1. Revelation 7:9 tn The phrase “and here was” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).
  2. Revelation 7:9 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated before each of the following categories, since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
  3. Revelation 7:10 tn The dative here has been translated as a dative of possession.
  4. Revelation 7:11 tn The verb is pluperfect, but the force is simple past. See ExSyn 586.
  5. Revelation 7:11 tn Grk “they fell down on their faces.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב. has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion or humility, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
  6. Revelation 7:13 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
  7. Revelation 7:13 tn Grk “spoke” or “declared to,” but in the context “asked” reads more naturally in English.
  8. Revelation 7:14 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the previous question.
  9. Revelation 7:14 tn Though the expression “the answer” is not in the Greek text, it is clearly implied. Direct objects in Greek were frequently omitted when clear from the context.
  10. Revelation 7:14 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
  11. Revelation 7:14 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
  12. Revelation 7:15 tn Or “worship.” The word here is λατρεύω (latreuō).
  13. Revelation 7:15 tn Grk “will spread his tent over them,” normally an idiom for taking up residence with someone, but when combined with the preposition ἐπί (epi, “over”) the idea is one of extending protection or shelter (BDAG 929 s.v. σκηνόω).
  14. Revelation 7:16 tn An allusion to Isa 49:10. The phrase “burning heat” is one word in Greek (καῦμα, kauma) that refers to a burning, intensely-felt heat. See BDAG 536 s.v.
  15. Revelation 7:17 sn An allusion to Isa 25:8.