Chronological
Yeshua’s Revelation to John
1 The revelation of Yeshua the Messiah, which God gave Him to show to His servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John, 2 who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Yeshua the Messiah—to everything he saw. 3 How fortunate is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and those who hear and keep what has been written in it—for the time is near.
4 John,
To Messiah’s seven communities in Asia:[a]
Grace to you and shalom from Him who is and who was and who is to come, as well as from the seven spirits who are before His throne, 5 and from Messiah Yeshua, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood 6 and made us a kingdom, kohanim to His God and Father—to Him be glory and power forever! Amen!
7 “Look, He is coming with the clouds,[b]
and every eye shall see Him,
even those who pierced Him.
And all the tribes of the earth
shall mourn because of Him.[c]
Yes, amen!”
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,”[d] says Adonai Elohim, “Who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty!”
9 I, John, your brother and fellow partaker with you in the tribulation and kingdom and patient endurance that are in Yeshua, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Yeshua. 10 I was in the Ruach on the Day of the Lord,[e] and I heard behind me a loud voice like that of a trumpet, 11 saying, “Write what you see in a scroll,[f] and send it to Messiah’s seven communities—to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”
Vision of the Glorious Son of Man
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned, I saw seven golden menorot. [g] 13 In the midst of the menorot, I saw One like a Son of Man, clothed in a robe down to His feet, with a golden belt wrapped around His chest. [h] 14 His head and His hair were white like wool, white like snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire. [i] 15 His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace,[j] and His voice was like the roar of rushing waters. [k] 16 In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came forth a sharp, two-edged sword.[l] His face was like the sun shining at full strength.[m]
17 When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man.[n] But He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid! I am the First and the Last, [o] 18 and the One who lives. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever! Moreover, I hold the keys of death and Sheol. [p] 19 Therefore write down what you have seen, what is, and what will happen after these things. 20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden menorot—the seven stars are the angels of Messiah’s seven communities, and the seven menorahs are the seven communities.”
Ephesus: Return to Your First Love
2 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Ephesus write: “Thus says the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks in the midst of the seven golden menorot: 2 I know all about your deeds and your toil and your patient endurance, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. You have tested those who call themselves emissaries and are not, and have found them to be liars. 3 You have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and you have not grown weary.
4 “But this I have against you, that you have forsaken your first love. [q] 5 Remember then from where you have fallen. Repent and do the deeds you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your menorah from its place—unless you repent.
6 “Yet you have this going for you, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities. To the one who overcomes, I will grant the right to eat from the Tree of Life, which is in the Paradise of God.”[r]
Smyrna: Do Not Fear Satan’s Testing
8 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Smyrna write: “Thus says the First and Last, who was dead and came to life. 9 I know your tribulation and your poverty (yet you are rich), as well as the slander of those who say they are Jewish and are not, but are a synagogue of satan. 10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, so that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. [s] 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities. The one who overcomes shall never be harmed by the second death.”
Pergamum: Beware the Trap of Balaam
12 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Pergamum write: “Thus says the One who has the sharp two-edged sword: [t] 13 I know where you live—where satan’s throne is. Yet you continue to hold firm to My name, and you did not deny your faith in Me even in the days of Antipas, My faithful witness, who was killed among you, where satan resides.
14 “But I have a few things against you. You have some there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who was teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before Bnei-Yisrael, to eat food sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality. [u] 15 Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Repent then! If not, I will come to you soon and make war against them with the sword of My mouth. 17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities. To the one who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna,[v] and I will give him a white stone—and written on the stone a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it.”[w]
Thyatira: Do Not Tolerate Jezebel
18 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Thyatira write: “Thus says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire and feet like polished bronze: 19 I know your deeds and your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your last deeds are greater than the first.
20 “But this I have against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel,[x] who calls herself a prophetess—yet she is teaching and deceiving My servants to commit sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. 21 I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her immorality. 22 Behold, I will throw her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation—unless they repent of her doings. 23 I will also strike her children with a deadly disease. Then all of Messiah’s communities will know that I am the One who searches minds and hearts,[y] and I will give to each of you according to your deeds.
24 “But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold to this teaching and have not learned the so-called ‘deep things’ of satan—I place on you no other burden. 25 Only hold firm to what you have until I come. 26 To the one who overcomes and guards My deeds until the end,
‘I will give him authority over the nations
27 and he shall rule them with an iron rod,
as when clay pots are broken into pieces.’[z]
28 Even as I have received from My Father, so I will give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities.”
Sardis: Coming Like a Thief
3 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Sardis write: “Thus says the One having the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: I know your deeds—you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains that was about to die. For I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of My God. 3 So remember what you have received and heard—keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you.
4 “But still, you have a few people in Sardis who have not stained their clothes. They will walk with Me in white, because they are worthy. 5 The one who overcomes thus will be dressed in white clothes; I will never blot his name out of the Book of Life,[aa] and will confess his name before My Father and His angels. 6 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities.
Philadelphia: I Have Loved You
7 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Philadelphia write: “Thus says the Holy One, the True One, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens: [ab] 8 I know your deeds. Behold, I have set before you an open door that no one is able to shut—because you have little power, but you have kept My word and have not denied My name. 9 Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of satan—who say they are Jewish and are not, but lie—behold, I will cause them to come and bow down before your feet,[ac] so that they acknowledge that I have loved you!
10 “Because you have kept My word about patient endurance, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is coming upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 I am coming soon—hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown. 12 The one who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the Temple of My God,[ad] and he will never leave it. And on him I will write the name of My God and the name of the city of My God—the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God—and My own new Name. 13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities.”
Laodicea: Standing at the Door
14 To the angel of Messiah’s community in Laodicea write: “Thus says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Originator of God’s creation: [ae] 15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. Oh, that you were either cold or hot! 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spew you out of My mouth. 17 For you say, ‘I am rich, I have made myself wealthy, and I need nothing.’[af] But you do not know that you are miserable and pitiable and poor and blind and naked. 18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may be rich, and white clothes so that you may dress yourself and so the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed, and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. 19 Those whom I love, I rebuke and discipline. Therefore, be zealous and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To the one who overcomes I will grant the right to sit with Me on My throne, just as I myself overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach is saying to Messiah’s communities.”
The Heavenly Throne of Adonai
4 After these things I looked, and behold, a door was standing open in heaven.[ag] And the first voice, which I had heard speaking with me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”
2 Immediately I was in the Ruach;[ah] and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One seated on the throne. [ai] 3 And the One who was seated was like jasper and carnelian in appearance, and a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance. [aj] 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders dressed in white clothes with golden crowns on their heads. 5 And out from the throne come flashes of lightning and rumblings and clashes of thunder[ak]—and seven torches of fire burning before the throne,[al] which are the seven spirits of God. 6 And before the throne was something like a sea of glass, like crystal.
In the middle of the throne and around it were four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind.[am]
7 The first living creature was like a lion,
the second living creature was like an ox,
the third living creature had a face
like a man,
and the fourth living creature was
like a flying eagle.[an]
8 The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes all around and within.[ao] They do not rest day or night, chanting,
“Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh
Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot,[ap]
asher haya v’hoveh v’yavo!
Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God of Hosts,
who was and who is
and who is to come!”
9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to the One seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, [aq] 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before the One seated on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever. And they throw their crowns down before the throne, chanting,
11 “Worthy are You, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
For You created all things,
and because of Your will
they existed and were created!”
A Scroll with Seven Seals
5 And I saw in the right hand of the One seated upon the throne a scroll, written on both the front and the back, sealed with seven seals. [ar] 2 I also saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and to break its seals?” 3 No one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it. 4 I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it.
5 Then one of the elders tells me, “Stop weeping! Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah,[as] the Root of David,[at] has triumphed—He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Worshiping the Lamb
6 And in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, I saw a Lamb standing, as having been slain—having seven horns and seven eyes,[au] which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He came and took the scroll from the right hand of the One seated on the throne. 8 When He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense—which are the prayers of the kedoshim.
9 And they are singing a new song,[av] saying,
“You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals.
For You were slain,
and by Your blood
You redeemed for God
those from every tribe and tongue
and people and nation.[aw]
10 You have made them for our God
a kingdom and kohanim,
and they shall reign upon the earth.”
11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders—their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands. [ax] 12 They were chanting with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and riches
and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea and everything in them, responding,
“To the One seated on the throne
and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor
and glory and power forever and ever!”
14 And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.