Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

A psalm of David.

³⁹ “ ‘ “People of Israel, the Lord and King says, ‘Go, every one of you! Serve your gods. But later you will listen to me. You will no longer treat my name as if it were not holy. You will not offer sacrifices to other gods anymore. ⁴⁰ People of Israel, you will all serve me,’ announces the Lord and King. ‘You will serve me on my high and holy mountain in Jerusalem. There I will accept you. I will require your offerings and your finest gifts. I want you to bring them along with all your other holy sacrifices. ⁴¹ I will bring you back from the nations. I will gather you together from the countries where you have been scattered. Then I will accept you as if you were sweet-smelling incense. I will show that I am holy among you. The nations will see it. ⁴² I will bring you into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Long ago I raised my hand and made a promise. I promised to give that land to your people of long ago. ⁴³ There you will remember your conduct. You will think about everything you did that made you “unclean.” And you will hate yourselves because of all the evil things you have done. ⁴⁴ People of Israel, I will deal with you for the honor of my name. I will not deal with you based on your evil conduct and sinful practices. Then you will know that I am the Lord,’ announces the Lord and King.” ’ ”

The Seals of the Scroll Are Broken

6 I watched as the Lamb broke open the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice that sounded like thunder, “Come!” ² I looked, and there in front of me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow in his hands. He was given a crown. He rode out like a hero on his way to victory.

³ The Lamb broke open the second seal. Then I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” ⁴ Another horse came out. It was red like fire. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth. He was given power to make people kill each other. He was given a large sword.

⁵ The Lamb broke open the third seal. Then I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there in front of me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. ⁶ Next, I heard what sounded like a voice coming from among the four living creatures. It said, “Two pounds of wheat for a day’s pay. And six pounds of barley for a day’s pay. And leave the olive oil and the wine alone!”

⁷ The Lamb broke open the fourth seal. Then I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” ⁸ I looked, and there in front of me was a pale horse! Its rider’s name was Death. Following close behind him was Hell. They were given power over a fourth of the earth. They were given power to kill people by swords. They could also use hunger, sickness and the earth’s wild animals to kill.

⁹ The Lamb broke open the fifth seal. I saw souls under the altar. They were the souls of people who had been killed. They had been killed because of God’s word and their faithful witness. ¹⁰ They called out in a loud voice. “How long, Lord and King, holy and true?” they asked. “How long will you wait to judge those who live on the earth? How long will it be until you pay them back for killing us?” ¹¹ Then each of them was given a white robe. “Wait a little longer,” they were told. “There are still more of your believing brothers and sisters who will be killed. They will be killed just as you were.”

¹² I watched as the Lamb broke open the sixth seal. There was a powerful earthquake. The sun turned black like the clothes people wear when they’re sad. Those clothes are made out of goat’s hair. The whole moon turned as red as blood. ¹³ The stars in the sky fell to earth. They dropped like figs from a tree shaken by a strong wind. ¹⁴ The sky rolled back like a scroll. Every mountain and island was moved out of its place.

¹⁵ Everyone hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. This included the kings of the earth, the princes and the generals. It included rich people and powerful people. It also included everyone else, both slaves and people who were free. ¹⁶ They called out to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us! Hide us from the face of the one who sits on the throne! Hide us from the anger of the Lamb! ¹⁷ The great day of their anger has come. Who can live through it?”

144,000 People Are Marked With the Seal of the Living God

7 After this I saw four angels. They were standing at the four corners of the earth. They were holding back the four winds of the earth. This kept the winds from blowing on the land or the sea or on any tree. ² Then I saw another angel coming up from the east. He brought the official seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels. They had been allowed to harm the land and the sea. ³ “Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees,” he said. “Wait until we mark with this seal the foreheads of those who serve our God.” ⁴ Then I heard how many people were marked with the seal. There were 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.