The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes

5 ^(A)Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on ^(B)the ^[a]mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. ² And ^(C)He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

³ “^[b](D)Blessed are the poor in spirit, for ^(E)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are ^(F)those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are ^(G)the ^[c]gentle, for they will inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are ^(H)those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are ^(I)the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are ^(J)the pure in heart, for ^(K)they will see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for ^(L)they will be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who have been ^(M)persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for ^(N)theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when people ^(O)insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for ^(P)in this same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Disciples and the World

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth; but ^(Q)if the salt has become tasteless, how ^[d]can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people.

¹⁴ “You are ^(R)the light of the world. A city set on a ^[e]hill cannot be hidden; ^15 (S)nor do people light a lamp and put it under a ^[f]basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may ^(T)see your good works, and ^(U)glorify your Father who is in heaven.

The Revelation of Jesus Christ

1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which ^(A)God gave Him to ^(B)show to His bond-servants, ^(C)the things which must soon take place; and He sent and ^[a]communicated it ^(D)by His angel to His bond-servant ^(E)John, ² who testified to ^(F)the word of God and to ^(G)the testimony of Jesus Christ, everything that he saw. ^3 (H)Blessed is the one who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy and ^[b]keep the things which are written in it; ^(I)for the time is near.

Message to the Seven Churches

^4 (J)John to ^(K)the seven churches that are in ^(L)Asia: ^(M)Grace to you and peace from ^(N)Him who is, and who was, and who ^[c]is to come, and from ^(O)the ^[d]seven spirits who are before His throne, ⁵ and from Jesus Christ, ^(P)the faithful witness, the ^(Q)firstborn of the dead, and the ^(R)ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who ^(S)loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— ⁶ and He made us into a ^(T)kingdom, ^(U)priests to ^[e](V)His God and Father—^(W)to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. ^7 (X)Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and ^(Y)every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will ^(Z)mourn over Him. ^[f]So it is to be. Amen.

⁸ “I am ^(AA)the Alpha and the Omega,” says the ^(AB)Lord God, “^(AC)who is and who was and who ^[g]is to come, the Almighty.”

The Patmos Vision

^9 (AD)I, John, your ^(AE)brother and ^(AF)fellow participant in the tribulation and ^(AG)kingdom and ^[h](AH)perseverance in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos ^(AI)because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. ¹⁰ I was ^(AJ)in the ^[i]Spirit on ^(AK)the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice ^(AL)like the sound of a trumpet, ¹¹ saying, “^(AM)Write ^[j]on a scroll what you see, and send it to the ^(AN)seven churches: to ^(AO)Ephesus, ^(AP)Smyrna, ^(AQ)Pergamum, ^(AR)Thyatira, ^(AS)Sardis, ^(AT)Philadelphia, and ^(AU)Laodicea.”

¹² Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And after turning I saw ^(AV)seven golden lampstands; ¹³ and ^(AW)in the middle of the lampstands I saw one ^(AX)like ^[k]a son of man, ^(AY)clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and ^(AZ)wrapped around the chest with a golden sash. ¹⁴ His head and His ^(BA)hair were white like white wool, like snow; and ^(BB)His eyes were like a flame of fire. ¹⁵ His ^(BC)feet were like ^[l]burnished bronze when it has been heated to a glow in a furnace, and His ^(BD)voice was like the sound of many waters. ¹⁶ In His right hand He held ^(BE)seven stars, and out of His mouth came a ^(BF)sharp two-edged sword; and His ^(BG)face was like ^(BH)the sun ^[m]shining in its strength.

¹⁷ When I saw Him, I ^(BI)fell at His feet like a dead man. And He ^(BJ)placed His right hand on me, saying, “^(BK)Do not be afraid; ^(BL)I am the first and the last, ¹⁸ and the ^(BM)living One; and I ^[n](BN)was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have ^(BO)the keys of death and of Hades. ¹⁹ Therefore ^(BP)write ^(BQ)the things which you have seen, ^[o]and the things which are, and the things which will take place ^(BR)after these things. ²⁰ As for the ^(BS)mystery of the ^(BT)seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the ^(BU)seven golden lampstands: the ^(BV)seven stars are the angels of ^(BW)the seven churches, and the seven ^(BX)lampstands are the seven churches.