A Tree and Its Fruit

¹⁵ “Beware of the ^(A)false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ^(B)ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will ^[a](C)know them by their fruits. ^[b]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? ¹⁷ So ^(D)every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. ^19 (E)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ So then, you will ^[c]know them ^(F)by their fruits.

²¹ “^(G)Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. ^22 (H)Many will say to Me on ^(I)that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many ^[d]miracles?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; ^(J)leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

The Two Foundations

²⁴ “Therefore, ^(K)everyone who hears these words of Mine, and ^[e]acts on them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ And the rain fell and the ^[f]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. ²⁶ And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not ^[g]act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ And the rain fell and the ^[h]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and its collapse was great.”

^28 [i](L)When Jesus had finished these words, ^(M)the crowds were amazed at His teaching; ²⁹ for He was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

The Scroll with Seven Seals

5 I saw ^[a]in the right hand of Him who ^(A)sat on the throne a ^[b](B)scroll written inside and on the back, ^(C)sealed up with seven seals. ² And I saw a ^(D)strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” ³ And no one ^(E)in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. ⁴ Then I began to weep greatly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. ⁵ And one of the elders *said to me, “Stop weeping; behold, the ^(F)Lion that is ^(G)from the tribe of Judah, the ^(H)Root of David, has overcome so as to be able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

⁶ And I saw ^[c]between the throne (with the four living creatures) and ^(I)the elders a ^(J)Lamb standing, as if ^(K)slaughtered, having seven ^(L)horns and ^(M)seven eyes, which are ^[d](N)the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. ⁷ And He came and took ^(O)the scroll out of the right hand of Him who ^(P)sat on the throne. ⁸ When He had taken the scroll, the ^(Q)four living creatures and the ^(R)twenty-four elders ^(S)fell down before the ^(T)Lamb, each one holding a ^(U)harp and ^(V)golden bowls full of incense, which are the ^(W)prayers of the ^[e]saints. ⁹ And they *sang a ^(X)new song, saying,

Angels Exalt the Lamb

¹¹ Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels ^(AF)around the throne and the ^(AG)living creatures and the ^(AH)elders; and the number of them was ^[f](AI)myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, ¹² saying with a loud voice,

¹³ And I heard ^(AM)every created thing which is in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth, or on the sea, and all the things in them, saying,

¹⁴ And the ^(AQ)four living creatures were saying, “^(AR)Amen.” And the ^(AS)elders ^(AT)fell down and worshiped.