Book of Common Prayer

¹² And I looked when he opened the sixth seal, and lo, there was a great earthquake, and the sun was as black as sackcloth made of hair. And the moon became even as blood; ¹³ and the stars of heaven fell to the earth, even as a fig tree casts from her her figs when she is shaken by a mighty wind. ¹⁴ And heaven vanished away, like a scroll when it is rolled together. And all mountains and isles were moved out of their places.

¹⁵ And the kings of the earth, and the great leaders, and the rich, and the high commanders, and the mighty, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in dens and in the rocks of the hills, ¹⁶ and said to the hills and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the presence of him that sits on the seat, and from the wrath of the Lamb! ¹⁷ For the great day of his wrath is come, and who can endure it?

He sees the servants of God sealed in their foreheads out of all nations and peoples, who, though they suffer trouble, yet the Lamb feeds them, and leads them to the fountains of living waters. God will wipe away all tears from their eyes.

7 And after that, I saw four angels stand on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth so that the winds would not blow on the land, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.  ² And I saw another angel ascend from the rising of the sun, who had the seal of the living God, and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels (to whom power was given to hurt the land and the sea), ³ saying, Do not hurt the land, nor the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

⁴ And I heard the number of those who were sealed, and there were sealed 144,000 of all the tribes of the children of Israel.

²⁴ Another similitude he put forth to them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ But while people were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. ²⁶ When the blade had sprung up and had brought forth fruit, then the tares appeared also. ²⁷ Then the servants went to the householder and said to him, Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where then did the tares come from? ²⁸ He said to them, The envious man has done this. Then the servants said to him, Do you want us then to go and weed them out? ²⁹ But he said, Nay, lest while you go about to weed out the tares, you pluck up also with them the wheat by the roots. ³⁰ Let both grow together till harvest comes. And in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather the tares first, and bind them in sheaves to be burned; but gather the wheat into my barn.