Book of Common Prayer

1 God showed these things to Jesus Christ to show to his servants. These are things that must happen soon. Then God sent his angel and showed them to John, his servant.

² John wrote down what God said and what Jesus showed to him. These words tell all that He saw.

³ God will bless the person who reads the words of this book. God will bless those who hear the words of this book and obey the things written in it.

⁴ Here is what John wrote to the people of the seven churches which are in the country of Asia Minor: May God's loving kindness bless you and give you peace. He lives now, he always has lived, and he will come again. May the seven Spirits bless you and give you peace. They stand in front of God's throne [chief chair of a king].

⁵ May Jesus Christ bless you and give you peace. What he says is true. He was the first to rise from death. And he is ruler of the kings of the earth. He loves us. By his own blood [death] he has made us free from the wrong things we have done.

⁶ He has made us into kings and priests to his God and Father. Praise him! He is great and has power for ever! Yes, it is so!

⁷ Watch! He will come in the clouds. Every one will see him. Those who stuck a spear in him will also see him. All the tribes on earth will cry when they see him. That is the way it will be. Yes it will!

⁸ The Lord God says, `I am the First and the Last. I am the beginning and the ending. I live now. I always have lived, and I will come again. I have all power.'

³⁷ The last day of the feast was a big day. On that day Jesus stood up and shouted, `If anyone is thirsty, he may come to me and drink.

³⁸ If anyone believes in me, the holy writings say, "Rivers of water that give life will flow out of his heart." '

³⁹ This is what Jesus meant: those who believe in him would receive the Spirit. At that time no one had received the Holy Spirit because Jesus had not yet been lifted up to heaven

⁴⁰ When some of the people heard this they said, `Truly, this is the Prophet.'

⁴¹ Other people said, `This is the Christ.' But some said, `The Christ will not come from Galilee. Shall Christ come out of Galilee?

⁴² Do not the holy writings say that Christ will be of David's family? Will he not come from Bethlehem where David lived?'

⁴³ The people did not all say the same thing about him.

⁴⁴ Some of them wanted to catch Jesus, but no one put hands on him.

⁴⁵ The soldiers came back to the chief priests and the Pharisees. They asked the soldiers, `Why did you not bring him?'

⁴⁶ The soldiers replied, `No person has ever talked like he does!'

⁴⁷ The Pharisees said, `Has he fooled you also?

⁴⁸ None of the rulers and none of the Pharisees have believed on him, have they?

⁴⁹ These poor people do not know the law. They will die!'

⁵⁰ Nicodemus, the man who came to Jesus by night, was one of them.

⁵¹ He said, `Is it right to judge any man by our law before we hear him and learn what he has done?'

⁵² They answered him, `Are you from Galilee also? Study what is written. You will see that no prophet is to come from Galilee.'