Revelation

11{This book is about} things that God revealed to Jesus the Messiah. These things are just about to happen. God revealed them to Jesus so that he could tell the people who believe in him about them. Jesus shared these things by sending his angel {to show them} to {me,} John, a man who serves him faithfully. 2I, John, am reporting {to you} everything that I saw concerning this message from God that Jesus the Messiah revealed to me. 3How happy is the person who reads this book of prophecy {for others to hear}, and how happy are all who hear it and obey what this prophecy says, because these events will happen soon. 4I, John, am writing this letter to you seven groups of believers in the province of Asia. May God continue to be kind to you and make you peaceful. God exists, he has always existed, and he will come {and judge everyone} in the future. May the seven spirits who are in front of the throne of God also continue to be kind to you and make you peaceful. 5May Jesus the Messiah also continue to be kind to you and make you peaceful. He has reliably told us the message from God. He is the first one whom God caused to become alive again after he had died. He is the one who rules the kings of the world. Because he loves us, he shed his blood for us when he died on the cross, and as a result, God has forgiven our sins. 6Jesus is the one who has caused us to become people over whose lives God rules. He has also made us priests who serve God, who is the Father of Jesus. May people glorify Jesus and acknowledge him as their ruler throughout eternity. May it be so! 7Pay attention! Jesus is going to come back from heaven through the sky. Everyone will see him, including those who killed him by nailing him to a cross. When they see him coming, every people group in the world will grieve {in sorrow for their sins}. May it be just like that! 8The Lord God says: “I am the one who began all things. I am the one who will cause all things to come to an end. I am the one who exists, who has always existed, and who will come {and judge everyone} in the future. I am the one who rules over everything and everyone.” 9I, John, believe in Jesus as you do. Like you, I am patiently enduring the troubles that everyone experiences whose life Jesus rules. {The Roman government had put} me {in exile} on the island of Patmos because I was telling people God’s message about who Jesus is. 10It was a Sunday, the day {on which believers gather to worship because God made Jesus alive again on that day}. The Holy Spirit inspired me so that I could see and hear things in a vision. I heard someone speaking behind me. His voice was as loud as the blast of a horn. 11{The person speaking} said {to me}, “Write what you see on a scroll. Send what you have written to seven groups of believers. {Send it to the believers} in the cities of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.” 12{When I heard this voice,} I turned my head to see who was speaking to me. When I turned, I saw seven golden lamp holders. 13In the midst of the lamp holders I saw someone who looked like a human being. He wore a robe that reached down to his feet. He also wore a band of golden fabric across his chest. 14The hair on his head was gleaming like white wool or like white snow. His eyes were {bright} like a fiery flame. 15His feet shone like bronze that the heat of a furnace had refined. {When he spoke,} his resonant voice was like the noise of a great river of rushing water. 16{The one who looked like a human} was holding seven stars in his right hand. A sword with two sharp edges was extending from his mouth. His face shone as brightly as the sun shines during the middle of the day. 17When I saw him, I bowed down in front of him. I was so overcome that I could not move. But he put his right hand on me and said to me, “Do not be afraid! I am the one who began all things, and I am the one who will cause all things to end. 18I have been alive forever. When I came to earth, I died, but indeed I am now alive again for all eternity. I have the power to make anyone who has died become alive again. 19Therefore, write down this vision that you are seeing of me. I will reveal the truth to you about what is happening now and about what will happen in the future. I want you to write down those things as well. 20I will explain the symbolic meaning of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand and of the seven golden lamp holders. The seven stars represent the angels of the seven groups of believers. The seven lamp holders represent the seven groups of believers.

21Write {this message} to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Ephesus: ‘I am the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who walks among the seven golden lamp holders. This is what I say to you: 2“I am aware of all that you have done. {I am aware of how hard} you have worked {for me}. {I am aware of how} patiently you have endured {difficult times}. {I am also aware that} you do not accept wicked people. When people falsely claim to be genuine leaders, you prove that they are lying. 3{I am aware of} how patiently you have endured. {I am also aware that} you have suffered for my sake. {I am also aware that} you have not abandoned your faith in me {even though you have suffered}. 4Nevertheless, I must criticize you about something: You no longer love me as you did when you first believed in me. 5Therefore, remember how you used to love me. Love me again the way you did at first. Now if you do not love me again in that way, I will judge you and I will not allow you to continue being a group of believers. 6However, I do praise you for something that you are doing well. You refuse to accept what the disciples of Nicolaus are doing. {Those disciples eat food that people have sacrificed to idols and they commit sexual sins.} I myself completely reject what they are doing. 7Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers. I will permit anyone who is victorious to eat {fruit} from the tree that gives life. That tree is in the garden of God.”’ 8Next, write {this message} to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Smyrna: ‘I am the one who began all things and who will cause all things to end. I am also the one who died and became alive again. This is what I say to you: 9“I am aware that people have persecuted you. {I am aware that} you are poor, although you have everything you need spiritually. {I am aware that} people are insulting you. Those people claim to be Jews, but they are not acting as if they truly belong to God. When they gather together, they help the devil {instead of serving God}. 10Those people are going to make you suffer. Do not be afraid, but watch out! The devil will soon lead them to put some of you in jail. The devil wants to show that you will abandon your faith in me if you suffer. You will have to suffer for ten days. But remain loyal to me even if you have to die. If you do, I will give you {everlasting} life as a reward. 11Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers. Whoever is victorious will never die a second time.”’ 12Next, write {this message} to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Pergamum: ‘I am the one who has a sword with two sharp edges. This is what I say to you: 13“I am aware of where you live. {It is a place} where Satan controls people. {I am also aware that} you are very loyal to me. You did not abandon your faith in me even when people attacked {your fellow believer} Antipas. He told others about me, and he remained loyal to me. People killed him right in front of you, because Satan has such an influence in your city. 14Nevertheless, I must criticize you about a few things. Some people in your group firmly believe that they should do what {the ancient prophet} Balaam taught. It was Balaam who showed Balak{, the king of Moab,} how to tempt the people of Israel to sin. Balak led the Israelites to eat meat that people had sacrificed to idols. Balak also led the Israelites to commit sexual sins. 15Just as Balak followed Balaam’s advice, some people in your group firmly believe that they may similarly do what the disciples of Nicolaus teach. {They eat food that people have sacrificed to idols and they commit sexual sins.} 16But what the disciples of Nicolaus teach is wrong. So everyone in your group must stop doing those things! Now if some of you do not stop, I will immediately judge those people. I will pronounce a sentence of judgment against them and punish them. 17Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers. To the one who is victorious I will award some special bread that I have hidden for him. I will also give him a white pebble upon which I have written a new name for him. No one will know what this name is except the one to whom I give it.”’ 18Next, write {this message} to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Thyatira: ‘I am the Son of God, whose eyes shine like a fiery flame and whose feet shine like bronze. This is what I say to you: 19“I am aware of all that you are doing. {I am aware that} you love one another because you love me. {I am aware that} you are very loyal to me. {I am aware of how} you are serving me. {I am aware that} you are enduring patiently. {Finally, I am aware that} you are now doing more than you did when you first believed in me. 20Nevertheless, I must criticize you about something. You tolerate a woman in your assembly {who is like that wicked queen in the Old Testament whose name was} Jezebel. She claims {falsely} that she teaches the truth from God. But in fact, by what she teaches, she is misleading people who believe in me. She is teaching them to commit sexual sins and to eat meat that other people have sacrificed to idols. 21Although I have allowed her {sufficient} time to stop teaching these things, she refuses to stop. She continues to act immorally. 22Pay attention! I am going to punish her with a terrible sickness. I will also cause those who act immorally as she does to suffer greatly if they do not stop doing what she does 23And {as a judgment against her,} I will kill the children {she has had as a result of her sexual immorality}. Then all the groups of believers will recognize that I examine what everyone thinks and desires. I will punish or reward each one of you as you deserve. 24But the rest of you believers in the city of Thyatira have not obeyed this woman’s teachings. You have not taken part in what she calls the secret practices that Satan taught her. I have something to say to you as well. I am going to ask you to do just one thing. 25Just continue to obey the true teaching that you have received until I return. 26To the one who is victorious, who continues to do what I command until he dies, I will give power to rule the people groups on earth. 27Those to whom I give this authority will rule the people groups with irresistible power. They will destroy evildoers as completely as if they were smashing clay pots. 28{They will rule so powerfully because} I will share with them the authority that I myself have received from God my Father. I will also give them the assurance that God is beginning a wonderful new era. 29Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers.”’

31Write {this message} to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Sardis: ‘I am the one who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I have these things to say to you: “I am aware of what you are doing. You have a reputation for being spiritually vigorous. However, you are not really acting out of zeal for me. 2Be careful! You are at risk of losing your devotion for me completely. Renew the devotion that you still have left. You have not yet done all that God knows you should have done. 3So remember how eagerly you accepted God’s instruction when you heard it. Be sorry for disobeying and start obeying again. If you are not careful to obey me, I will judge you when you are not expecting it. You will not know at what time I am going to punish you. 4Nevertheless, there are a few believers there in the city of Sardis who have not been doing what is wrong. They will live with me {forever} and be pure in every way. This is what they deserve. 5In this way I will completely purify the one who is victorious. I will make sure that his name always remains in the Book of Life. I will tell God my Father and his angels that I know him personally. 6Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers.”’ 7Write {this message} to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Philadelphia: ‘I am the one who always does what is right. I am the one who always says what is true. Just as King David had authority to allow people to enter the ancient city of Jerusalem, so I have the authority to allow people to enter heaven. If I create an opportunity for someone, then no one can deny him that opportunity. If I deny an opportunity to someone, then no one can give him that opportunity. I have these things to say to you: 8“I know what you are doing. I know that although you are weak, you have obeyed my commands You have acknowledged that you believe in me. Be aware that I am giving you an opportunity that no one will be able to deny to you. 9Pay attention! Some people {are denying that you belong to me. Those people} claim to be Jews, but they are not acting the way people do who truly belong to God. When they gather together, they help the devil {instead of serving God}. Pay attention! I will make those people recognize that I love you. They will come and honor you greatly when they recognize this. 10You obeyed me when I commanded you to endure suffering patiently. And so I will keep you safe during the time of trouble that all of humanity will soon experience. How people everywhere respond to this trouble will show what they are really like. 11I am coming soon. So continue to believe in me. Do not let anyone cause you to lose the reward that God wants to give you. 12I will make the one who is victorious secure, like a pillar in the temple of my God. He will remain in God’s temple forever. I will write my God’s name on him. I will also write on him the name of the city of my God. That city is the New Jerusalem. It will come down out of heaven from my God. I will also write my new name on the one who is victorious. 13Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers.”’ 14Write this message to the angel of the group of believers in the city of Laodicea: ‘I am the one who confirms all of God’s promises. I am the one who testifies about God with complete reliability. I am the ruler over all of God’s creation. I have these things to say to you: 15“I am aware of what you are doing. You have not abandoned your faith, but you do not love me very much. I would rather have you commit yourselves for me or even against me! 16But you are just mediocre. You do not love me very much, but you still claim that you believe in me. That is disgusting, and because of it, I am going to reject you. 17You keep bragging about how very rich you are. You do not realize that you are actually unhappy. You need someone to pity you. You are actually poor, blind, and lacking clothes. 18I advise you to get everything from me that you need, as if you were buying pure gold from me that would make you truly rich. Let me make you righteous, as if you were buying white garments from me so that you could be wearing clothes instead of being shamefully naked. Let me help you to understand the truth, as if you were buying eye salve from me to put on your sick eyes so that you could see. 19I carefully discipline everyone I love. So sincerely change your behavior. 20Pay attention! I am urging each one of you to love me genuinely, as if I were standing at the door of your house and knocking to get you to open it. If anyone responds to me by loving me, I will become his dear friend. It will be as if he heard me calling from his door and he opened it and I came into his house and we ate a meal together. 21I have been victorious and now rule with my Father. In the same way, I will permit everyone who is victorious to rule with me. 22Everyone who is spiritually discerning should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the groups of believers.”’”

41After these things, I, John, saw something remarkable: a door open in heaven! The one who had spoken to me previously, whose voice had been like a loud trumpet, spoke to me again. He said, “Come up here! I will show you events that must happen later.” 2At once the Holy Spirit inspired me so that I could see and hear things in a vision. I saw something remarkable: A throne was there in heaven and someone was sitting on that throne. 3The ruler who sat on the throne shone like a bright red jasper gem and like an orange carnelian gem. Around the throne a rainbow was shining like a brilliant green emerald gem. 4Around the throne there were 24 other thrones. On those thrones 24 elders were sitting. They were wearing pure white garments and they had golden crowns on their heads. 5Flashes of lightning and peals of thunder came out from the throne. In front of the throne, seven torches were burning. These torches represented the seven spirits of God. 6In front of the throne there was also something that looked like a sea made of glass. It was clear like crystal. A living creature stood on each of the four sides of the throne. Eyes covered each creature, all around its body. 7The first living creature resembled a lion. The second living creature resembled a bull. The third living creature had a face like that of a human being. The fourth living creature resembled a flying eagle. 8Each of the four living creatures had six wings. Eyes completely covered these living creatures. All the time, without stopping, they say: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God who rules over everything and everyone. He is the one who has always existed, who exists now, and who will come {and judge everyone} in the future.” 9-10The living beings repeatedly praise, honor, and thank God, who sits upon the throne and who lives forever. When they do, the 24 elders also kneel before God at his throne. They bow down to God, who lives forever. They place their crowns in front of his throne and they say, 11“God our Lord, you deserve to have all creatures glorify you and honor you and acknowledge how powerful you are. You deserve this because you created everything. Yes, everything exists just as you determined to create it.”

51Then I saw that the person who was sitting on the throne was holding a scroll in his right hand. He had written words on both sides of the scroll. But he had then sealed the scroll shut with seven pieces of wax{, so no one could read what he had written}. 2I saw a powerful angel who was asking in a loud voice: “Who is the person who qualifies to break open the pieces of wax on the scroll and then unroll the scroll {and read what it says}?” 3Yet no heavenly being, no person on the earth, and no one in the abode of the dead was sufficiently worthy to open the scroll and read it. 4When I saw that no one anywhere was sufficiently worthy to open the scroll and read it, I wept bitterly. {I wept because I knew that what God had written was important, but I thought that no one would ever find out what he had written}. 5But one of the elders said to me, “You do not need to weep! Here is the person we are looking for! He is the {person whom the prophets described as the} Lion from the tribe of Judah and as a branch that would grow from David’s roots. He is victorious! Therefore, he is {sufficiently} worthy to break open the seven pieces of wax on the scroll and open the scroll!” 6Then I saw that a lamb was standing by the throne. The four living beings and the elders surrounded him. He was alive, but he had marks that showed that others had once killed him violently. He had seven horns. He also had seven eyes. Those are the seven spirits of God that God sends throughout all the world. 7The Lamb came up to the throne, and the person who was sitting on the throne handed the scroll to him. 8As soon as {the Lamb} accepted the scroll, the four living beings and the 24 elders knelt down in front of the Lamb. The elders each held a harp and some golden bowls that contained incense. The incense symbolized the prayers of people who belong to God. 9The living beings and the elders sang a song that no one had ever sung before. They sang {to the Lamb}, “You deserve to receive this scroll and to break open its pieces of wax {so that you can read what it says}. {You deserve this} because when you gave up your life, you paid with your own blood to set people free from sin so that they could worship and obey God. You did this for people all over the world. 10You have caused them to become people over whom our God rules and to become people who will lead others to worship God. They will be rulers of the people who live in the world.” 11As I was seeing {these events}, I heard many angels singing. These angels surrounded the throne, the living beings, and the elders. There were millions of angels, so many that no one could count how many there were. 12The angels were singing loudly, “The Lamb who gave up his life deserves for everyone to honor, glorify, and bless him and acknowledge how powerful, wealthy, wise, and strong he is!” 13Then I also heard every creature that exists in heaven, on the earth, underneath the earth, and in the sea—yes, every creature in all of those places—singing, “May everyone forever praise and honor and glorify the one sitting on the throne and the Lamb and acknowledge how powerful they are!” 14When the millions of angels and every creature sang these things, the four living beings said, “So be it!” Then the elders knelt down on the ground in front of both God and the Lamb to worship them.

61Then I saw the Lamb open the first of the seven pieces of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, I heard one of the four living beings say as loudly as a clap of thunder, “Come forth!” 2Then I saw something remarkable: a white horse whose rider was holding a bow {and arrows}! God gave him a crown {to wear in recognition of the victories he was going to win}. The rider went out from heaven fully capable to fight and defeat God’s enemies. 3Then the Lamb opened the second piece of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, I heard the second living being say, “Come forth!” 4Then another horse appeared. It was bright red. There was also a rider sitting on that horse. God gave the rider the power to cause wars on the earth. That way the world’s people would kill each other. For this purpose, God gave the rider on the bright red horse a huge sword. 5The Lamb then opened the third piece of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, I heard the third living being say, “Come forth!” I then saw something else remarkable: a black horse whose rider was holding a pair of balance scales! 6Then I heard a sound like a voice coming from among the four living beings. It said, “Make wheat so scarce that a person will have to work an entire day to earn enough money to buy one liter of it. Also make barley so scarce that a person will have to work an entire day to earn enough money to buy three liters of it. However, make sure that olive oil and wine remain so plentiful that their prices do not increase.” 7The Lamb then opened the fourth piece of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, I next heard the fourth living being say, “Come forth!” 8I then saw something else remarkable: a horse that was pale because it was diseased and that had two riders. The name of the first rider was The One Who Causes People to Die. The name of the rider sitting behind him on the horse was The Place Where Dead People Go. God gave these riders the power to kill a quarter of all the people in the world. They could kill them by causing wars or famine or epidemics or by making wild animals come into populated areas and kill people. 9The Lamb then opened the fifth piece of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, I saw, at the base of an altar in heaven, the souls of people whom others had killed because they spoke God’s message faithfully as reliable witnesses. 10These souls called out {to God} loudly, “You, Master, always do what is right and decide what is right! So please condemn and punish the people on the earth who killed us!” 11Then God gave each of them a white flowing robe. God told them to be patient a little longer, because there were others who were also going to die rather than deny their faith in Jesus. But as soon as all of them had died, God would punish the people who had killed them and had killed the people whose souls were now in heaven. 12Then I saw the Lamb open the sixth piece of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, the earth shook violently. The sun turned very dark, like mourning cloth woven from black goat hair. The moon was full and it became as red as blood. 13Then the stars fell from the sky down to the earth. They fell just as figs left on a fig tree all fall off when the tree shakes in a very strong wind. 14The sky split open and rolled away in both directions, just as a scroll rolls away in both directions if it splits in two. All the mountains and islands also moved out of their places. 15Then all the people on earth, even kings, high-ranking officials, military officers, rich people, and influential individuals, hid within caves and mountain rocks. 16They told the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and cover us! That way God, who sits on the throne in heaven, will not be able to see us! And that way the Lamb will not be able to punish us! 17For today is the terrible day on which God and the Lamb will punish people who have done wrong, and we know that none of us are innocent!”

71After these events I saw four angels standing on the earth. One was standing to the north of me, one to the east, one to the south, and one to the west. They were keeping the winds from those directions from blowing on the land or on the sea or against any tree. 2Then I saw another angel coming towards me from the east. This angel was holding a tool that would create the mark of the only true God. This angel called out loudly to the four angels whom God had allowed to keep the winds from blowing on the land and the sea. 3The angel told {the other four angels}, “Wait, first we must mark the people who believe in and obey our God with a seal on their foreheads. Until then, do not keep the winds from blowing on the land or the sea or any tree.” 4{Then the angel and his fellow angels marked all of the people who believed in and obeyed God.} I heard someone say how many people they had marked. It was 144,000 people from every tribe of Israel. 5The angels marked 12,000 people from the tribe of Judah with a seal. {They also marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Reuben. From the tribe of Gad {they also marked} 12,000 people. 6{The angels marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Asher with a seal. {They also marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Naphtali. From the tribe of Manasseh {they also marked} 12,000 people. 7{The angels marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Simeon with a seal. {They also marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Levi. From the tribe of Issachar {they also marked} 12,000 people. 8{The angels marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Zebulun with a seal. {They also marked} 12,000 people from the tribe of Joseph. From the tribe of Benjamin they also marked 12,000 people with a seal. 9After these events, I saw something remarkable: a huge crowd of people! There were so many people in the crowd that no one could count them. They came from every nation, tribe, and people group, and they spoke every language. They all stood in front of the throne, where the Lamb was. They all wore flowing white robes, and they were all holding palm branches. 10They were shouting loudly, “Our God, who rules over everything, has saved us! The Lamb has saved us!” 11Then all the angels stood around the throne, the elders, and the four living beings. The angels all knelt down in front of the throne with their faces on the ground and worshiped God. 12The angels all said, “Yes, may it be so! We praise, glorify, thank, and honor you, our God, forever! We proclaim forever that you are wise, powerful, and strong! May it be so!” 13One of the elders then said to me, “I want to make sure you know who these people are who are wearing white flowing robes and where they have come from.” 14I answered him, “Sir, I need you to tell me who they are.” He then told me: “These are the people who remained faithful to Jesus during a time of great persecution. This showed that they have become pure from sin by trusting in Jesus, who shed his blood for them when he died on the cross. 15Therefore, they remain in front of God’s throne. They worship God inside his temple without stopping. God, the one who rules from the throne in heaven, will protect them. 16God will make sure that they always have enough food to eat. God will also make sure that they always have enough to drink. The rays of the sun will never again burn them. The heat from the sun will never again exhaust them. 17This is because the Lamb who is by the throne will care for them just as a shepherd cares for his sheep. The Lamb will enable them to receive everlasting life, as if they were drinking from springs where fresh, pure water flows. God will help them to stop crying and be joyful.”

81Then the Lamb opened the seventh piece of wax that sealed the scroll. When he did, there was no sound at all in heaven for a short time. 2I then saw the seven angels who are God’s personal attendants. He gave each of them a trumpet. 3Another angel then came and stood at the altar. He had a golden bowl for burning incense. God gave him a large quantity of incense to offer with the prayers of all God’s people on the golden altar in front of God’s throne. 4{The angel started burning the incense.} The smoke from the incense burning in the container that the angel was holding went up to God along with the prayers of God’s people. 5Then the angel took the golden incense bowl and filled it with coals of fire from the altar. He threw these coals and the burning incense onto the earth. When he did, thunder crashed and rumbled, lightning flashed, and the earth shook.

6Then the seven angels, each of whom had one of the seven trumpets, got ready to blow them. 7Then the first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire appeared. There was blood in the midst of the hail and fire. All of it poured down onto the earth. The fire burned up one third of everything on the surface of the land, one third of the trees, and all the green grass. 8Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and something that was like a huge mountain that was on fire fell into the ocean. As a result, one third of the ocean became blood, 9one third of the living creatures in the ocean died, and one third of the ships in the ocean sank 10Then the third angel blew his trumpet, and a huge star fell from the sky. The star was blazing as if it were on fire. Parts of the star fell into one third of the rivers and into {one third of} the springs of water on earth. 11The name of the star is Bitterness. When it fell into one third of the rivers and springs, their water became poisonous. Many people died from drinking that poisonous water. 12Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet, and God struck the sun, the moon, and the stars so that they lost their light for one third of the time. The sun did not shine during one third of the day, and the moon and stars did not shine during one third of the night.

13Then, as I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying high in the sky shouting loudly, “Three terrible things will happen to the people who live on the earth when the three remaining angels blow their trumpets! They are about to blow them!”

91Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. God gave it the key to the deep, dark pit. 2When he opened that pit, a huge amount of smoke rose from it, as if it were a great burning furnace. The smoke prevented anyone from seeing the light of the sun and the sky. 3Then locusts came out of the smoke and started swarming the earth. God gave these locusts the power to sting people just as scorpions sting people. 4God told the locusts that they should not eat up all the grass on the ground and all the plants and all the leaves on the trees {as locusts usually do}. God told the locusts just to sting the people who did not have the mark on their foreheads that showed they belonged to God. 5God did not allow the locusts to kill those people. Instead, the locusts kept torturing people for five months. The pain those people felt was like the pain that a scorpion causes when it stings someone. 6During the time when the locusts torture people who refuse to belong to God, those people {will be in so much pain that they} will want to die. But God will make sure those people stay alive {to experience the punishment for their sin}. 7The locusts looked like horses that were ready for battle. They had what looked like golden crowns on their heads. Their faces were like human faces. 8They had long hair like women’s long hair. Their teeth were as strong as lions’ teeth. 9They wore breastplates made of metal. When they were flying, their wings made a noise like the roar of many horses pulling chariots and rushing into battle. 10They had tails like the tails of scorpions. With these tails they could sting people. Their power to harm people during those five months was in their tails. 11The king who ruled over them was the angel of the deep, dark pit. His name in the Hebrew language is Abaddon. In the Greek language it is Apollyon. Both of these names mean Destroyer.

12{After five months the locusts went away.} That ended the first terrible event. But be aware that two more terrible events are still to come.

13Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four corners of the golden altar that is in God’s presence. 14The voice was saying to the sixth angel, the one who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels whom I have bound at the great river Euphrates.” 15Then those four angels went free. They had been waiting for that exact moment. They went free so they could enable their soldiers to kill one third of humanity. 16I heard someone say how many soldiers there were riding on horses. The number was 200,000,000. 17In the vision I saw what the horses and the soldiers who rode them looked like. The soldiers wore breastplates that were red like fire, blue like sapphire, and yellow like sulfur. The heads of the horses were like the heads of lions. From their mouths came fire, smoke, and fumes of burning sulfur. 18Those three things—the fire, the smoke, and the burning sulfur from the horses’ mouths—killed one third of humanity. 19But the power of the horses was also in their tails, as well as in their mouths. Their tails were like snakes, and they had heads that bit people. 20But there were still people whom the plagues of fire and smoke and burning sulfur did not kill. Those people did not stop doing sinful things. They also did not stop worshiping demons and idols that they had made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood. The people did not stop worshiping the idols even though they were lifeless statues that could not help people. 21They also did not stop murdering other people, practicing sorcery, acting in sexually immoral ways, and stealing things.

101Then in the vision I saw another mighty angel come down out of heaven. A cloud surrounded him. There was a rainbow over his head. His face shone brightly like the sun. His legs glowed like columns of fire. 2He had in his hand a small scroll that was open. He set his right foot on the ocean and his left foot on the land. 3He shouted something in a voice as loud as the roar of a lion. As he shouted, I heard seven thunderclaps. {In the thunder were words that I could understand.} 4I was about to record what the thunders had said. But then a voice from heaven told me, “Keep secret what the thunders said! Do not write it down!” 5Then the angel whom I had seen standing on the ocean and the land raised his right hand toward heaven {in order to swear an oath}. 6He asked God, who lives forever and who created everything that exists, to confirm that what he said was true. The angel said that God would no longer delay in doing what he had planned to do. 7He said that when the time came for the seventh angel to blow his trumpet, then God would finish his secret plan. That is what God told his servants the prophets long ago.

8Then the one whom I had heard speak from heaven spoke to me again. He said, “Go and take the open scroll from the hand of the angel who is standing on the ocean and on the land.” 9So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, “Take it and eat it. When you eat it, it will taste sweet like honey, but after you eat it, your stomach will hurt.” 10So I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. When I ate it, it tasted sweet like honey, but after I ate it, my stomach hurt. 11Then someone said to me, “You must speak God’s messages again about many nations, many people groups, speakers of many languages, and many kings.”

111Then an angel gave me a reed similar to a measuring stick. God said to me, “Go to my temple, measure it and the altar in it, and count the people who are worshiping there. 2But do not measure the courtyard outside of the temple building. I have given that to the non-Jewish people groups. As a result, they will oppress the people who live in the city of Jerusalem for 42 months. 3I will send two witnesses to announce what I reveal to them for 1,260 days. They will show they are sad about the people’s sin by wearing rough clothes that someone has woven from goat hair.” 4Those witnesses are the ones whom the two olive trees and the two lampstands represent. Those trees and lampstands are in the presence of the Lord, who rules the earth. 5Now if anyone tries to harm those witnesses, they breathe fire out of their mouths and burn them up. In this way the two witnesses will certainly kill anyone who wants to harm them. 6Those witnesses will have the authority to command no rain to fall from the sky during the time that they are announcing what God reveals to them. They also will have the authority to cause the water in lakes and streams to become blood. They will also have the authority to make many kinds of plagues happen on the earth. They will do these things when they sense that this will emphasize their message from God. 7But when they have finished announcing their message from God, the beast that comes up from the deep, dark pit will attack them. The beast will defeat them and kill them. 8Now the two witnesses were announcing God’s message in the great city that people symbolically call Sodom because its people are very evil. People also call that city Egypt because its people treat God’s people badly. That is also the city where Jesus, whom the witnesses were serving, died on a cross. To insult the witnesses, the people of the city will not bury their bodies. They will leave their bodies lying in the city’s open area. 9Individuals from many people groups, tribes, language groups, and nations will look at those dead bodies for three and a half days. But the people of the city will not allow anyone to bury those bodies. 10When the people who do not honor God see that the witnesses are dead, they will be very glad and hold a celebration. They will even send gifts to each other to celebrate. They will be so happy because the two prophets are dead who sent plagues that made them suffer. 11But after three and a half days, God will make them alive again. They will stop lying dead and stand up! The people who see them alive again will be terrified. 12Then the two witnesses will hear a loud voice from heaven saying to them: “Come up here!” Then they will go up into heaven in a cloud. Their enemies will watch them go up. 13At that same time there will be a great earthquake, as a result of which a tenth of the buildings in the city will collapse. That will kill 7,000 people. The rest of the people will become very afraid and acknowledge that the true God had justly punished them for killing the witnesses.

14That will be the second terrible event. Be aware that the third terrible event will happen soon afterwards.

15Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and voices in heaven shouted loudly, “The Lord our God and the Messiah whom he has appointed will now rule all the people in the world! They will continue to rule those people forever!” 16The 24 elders who sit on thrones around God’s throne bowed down with their faces on the ground and worshiped him. 17They said:

“Lord God, you are the one who rules over everything!

You are the one who exists now!

You are the one who has always existed!

We thank you that you have so powerfully defeated

everyone who has rebelled against you,

and you now rule over all the people in the world.

18The unbelieving people of the nations were raging angrily at you.

As a result, you have punished them.

You have decided that this is the right time for you to judge all those who have died.

You are rewarding your servants who spoke your message and the people who belong to you,

You are rewarding all those who honor you,

whoever they are.

You have decided that it is time for you to destroy the people who have been destroying the earth.”

19Then God opened the doors his temple in heaven, and in it I saw the sacred chest that contains symbols of God’s promise. Lightning was flashing. I heard the rumbling of thunder. The earth shook, and large hailstones fell from the sky.

121Then something very significant appeared in the sky. It was a woman who was wearing the sun as her clothing. She was standing on the moon. On her head was a crown that was made of 12 stars. 2She was about to have a baby. She was screaming in pain because it was so difficult to deliver her baby. 3Then something else significant appeared in the sky. It was a huge red dragon. It had seven heads and ten horns. It had a royal crown on each of its heads. 4The dragon’s tail dragged a third of the stars out of the sky and threw them onto the earth. The dragon set himself in front of the woman who was about to give birth so that he could eat her child as soon as he was born. 5Then the woman gave birth to a son. He is destined to rule all groups of people with complete authority. God snatched away this child {for safety} and brought him up to his throne in heaven. 6But the woman fled to a desolate region. God had made a place ready for her there where people would take care of her for 1,260 days.

7Then a battle began in heaven. Michael and the angels he commanded fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back {against Michael and his angels}. 8But the dragon lost the battle, and God did not allow the dragon and his angels to stay in heaven after that. 9Instead, God threw the huge dragon out of heaven. That dragon is the same evil spirit who appeared as a serpent long ago. His names are the Devil and Satan. He deceives everyone who lives in the world. God threw him and all of his angels down to the earth. 10Then I heard someone in heaven shout loudly,

“Now our God has saved his people by his power, and he rules all people!

Now his Messiah has begun to rule!

This is because God has thrown the accuser of our fellow believers out of heaven.

He was continually coming to God and accusing believers of doing wrong things.

11But our fellow believers overcame him. This is because the Lamb shed his blood as a sacrifice for them

and because they spoke the truth about him to other people.

They did not want just to stay alive.

They were willing to die if necessary for speaking the truth about him.

12So all of you living in heaven should rejoice!

But terrible things will happen to you people who live on the earth and travel on the ocean because the devil is now among you.

He is very angry because he knows that he has only a short time before God judges and punishes him.”

13When the dragon realized that God had thrown him down to the earth, he tried to attack the woman who had given birth to a son. 14But God gave the woman two wings like the wings of a very large eagle. These enabled her to fly away to a desolate region. God had prepared a safe place for her there. In that place, God took care of her for three and one-half years. The serpent{, that is, the dragon,} was not able to reach her there. 15Then the serpent poured a flood of water out of his mouth toward the woman. He was trying to sweep her away with the water. 16But the ground helped the woman. The ground opened up a big hole and the flood that the dragon poured out from his mouth went down into the hole. 17Then the dragon was very angry with the woman, so he went away to fight against the rest of her children. They are the people who obey God’s commandments and who speak the truth about Jesus. 18Then the dragon stood on the ocean shore.

131Then I saw a beast come up out of the ocean. It had ten horns and seven heads. On each of its horns there was a royal crown. On each of its heads there was a name that insulted God. 2This beast was like a leopard, but its feet were like the feet of a bear. Its mouth was like the mouth of a lion. The dragon made the beast very powerful. He also gave him the supreme right to rule over people as their king. 3One of the heads of the beast looked as if someone had wounded it so that it had died. But that wound had healed. As a result, all the people of the earth marveled at the beast and obeyed it. 4They worshiped the dragon because he had given the beast authority to rule over them. They also worshiped the beast. They said, “No one is as powerful as the beast! No one could ever fight against it!” 5The dragon enabled the beast to speak proudly and to insult God. The dragon also enabled it to rule the people on earth. But God would only allow the beast to rule for 42 months. 6When the beast spoke, it insulted God. It said that God was not really like what people believed him to be like. The beast also insulted the people in heaven among whom God lives. 7The dragon enabled the beast to fight against God’s people and conquer them. The dragon also gave the beast the right to rule over people no matter what tribe they came from or what group they belonged to or what language they spoke or where they lived. 8The names of some of the people living on earth do not appear in the Book of Life. Those people will worship the beast. The Book of Life belongs to the Lamb. The Lamb gave up his life at the beginning of the world in order to become the Savior. 9Everyone who wants to understand must listen carefully to this message from God. 10If anyone’s enemies are going to capture him, they will capture him. If anyone’s enemies are going to kill him with a sword, they will kill him with a sword. So God’s people must endure suffering and remain faithful to him.

11Then I saw another beast come up from the earth. It had two small horns on its head as a sheep has. But its voice sounded like a dragon’s voice. 12This beast from the earth carries out all the orders of the beast from the sea. It requires the people who live on the earth to worship the beast from the sea. That is the beast that almost died but whose wound healed. 13The beast from the earth also did amazing miracles. It even caused fire to fall from the sky onto the earth while people watched. 14The dragon gave the beast from the earth the power to do these miracles on behalf of the beast from the sea. The beast from the earth used the miracles to deceive the people who live on the earth. It told them to make an idol that looked like the beast from the sea. That was the beast that survived a sword wound that seemed to kill it. 15The dragon gave the beast from the earth the power to make that idol live. Then the idol that looked like the beast from the sea was able to speak. The beast from the earth then commanded that anyone who refused to worship the idol would be killed. 16The beast from the earth also required each person to have a mark on his right hand or on his forehead. This requirement applied to important people and unimportant people. It applied to people who were rich and people who were poor. It applied to free people and to slaves. It applied to everyone! 17Then the beast from the earth ordered that no one could buy or sell anything if he did not have this mark. This mark was the name of the beast from the sea or the number that stood for its name. 18You must think wisely about this: Anyone who understands things well can figure out the identity of the beast from the sea. That is because the number that stands for its name actually represents the name of a man. That number is 666.

141But then I saw the Lamb standing on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. With him were 144,000 people. He had written his name and his Father’s name on their foreheads. 2I also heard a sound from heaven. It was as loud as the sound of a huge waterfall or of mighty thunder. It also sounded like many people playing on harps. 3This sound was of the people I saw singing a new song. They were standing in front of the throne and the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had saved these 144,000 people from among all the people on the earth. Only they could learn that song. 4Those 144,000 people are spiritually pure, as virgins are morally pure. They have not made themselves impure by worshiping any false god. They are the ones who accompany Jesus, the one who is like a lamb, wherever he goes. They represent all those whom he has saved so far from among the people of the earth. Those who have believed in Jesus will share their faith and lead many others to believe in God and Jesus. 5These people never denied Jesus. They always lived pure lives.

6Then I saw another angel flying through the sky. He was bringing God’s eternal good news from heaven so that he could proclaim it to the people who live on earth. He will proclaim it to every nation, to every tribe, to speakers of every language, and to every people group. 7He said in a loud voice, “Honor God and praise him because it is now time for him to judge everyone! Worship him because he is the one who created heaven and earth and the ocean and the fresh water.” 8And then another angel came after that one. This angel said, “The very evil city of Babylon has now become a complete ruin! Babylon forced the people of every nation to be unfaithful to God by worshiping idols.” 9Yet another angel came afterward. This angel said in a loud voice, “If people worship the beast and its image or allow someone to put its mark on their foreheads or on their hands, 10God will duly punish them. They will stagger from the punishment as if they had drunk strong wine. He will torment them in burning sulfur as his holy angels and the Lamb are watching. 11The smoke from the fire that torments them will rise forever. God will torment them all the time without stopping. This is what will happen to the people who worship the beast and its image or who allow someone to write its name on them.” 12God’s people are those who obey what God commands and who trust in Jesus. They must continue to do these things faithfully {because those who disobey God and deny Jesus will experience these torments}. 13Then I heard someone speaking from heaven and saying, “Write this: How fortunate from now on are those who die as faithful believers in Jesus.” The Holy Spirit says, “Yes, after they die, they will no longer have to endure suffering. Instead, it will be clear that they were doing the right things.”

14Then I saw something else very significant. I saw a white cloud, and someone was sitting on the cloud who looked like a human being. He was wearing a golden crown on his head. He held a sharp sickle in his hand. 15Still another angel came out of the temple in heaven. In a loud voice, he said to the one who was sitting on the cloud, “The grain on the earth is ripe. So this is the time to reap it. So use your sickle to reap the grain.” 16Then the person who looked like a human being and who was sitting on the cloud used his sickle to harvest all of the grain on the earth. 17Another angel then came out of the heavenly sanctuary. This angel was also holding a sharp sickle. 18One more angel came from the altar. He is the one who takes care of the fire of the altar. He said in a loud voice to the angel who was holding the sickle, “The grapes on the earth are ripe! So use your sickle to cut the bunches of grapes off of the earth’s grapevines. Then collect those bunches of grapes.” 19So the angel used his sickle to harvest the grapes. Then he threw the grapes into the huge winepress that represents the place where God will punish people for what they have done wrong. 20God trampled the grapes in the winepress outside the city. When he did, blood poured out of the winepress! It flowed in such quantity that it formed a stream that was a meter and a half deep and extended for three hundred kilometers.

151Then something else very significant appeared in the sky. I saw seven angels. God had given them the duty to punish rebellious people in seven different ways. This is the last time that God will punish people this way, because through these punishments he will have given people on earth all of the punishment that they deserve.

2I also saw a great flat area of glass that was sparkling with light. I also saw the people who had overcome the beast by not worshiping it or its image and by not allowing anyone to mark them with the number that represents the beast’s name. They were standing on the large flat area of glass. They were holding harps that God had given them. 3They were singing a song such as God’s servant Moses sang long ago. It was the same kind of song that the Lamb now sings. They sang,

“Lord God, who rules over everything,

all that you do is very marvelous!

You always act entirely righteously.

You rule as King forever!

4O Lord, everyone will fear you and honor you because you alone are holy.

Yes, people from every group will come and bow down to you in worship

because you have shown that you have judged everyone in the right way.”

5Then, after that, I saw that the doors of the temple in heaven were open. That heavenly temple was like the tent on earth that had held the sacred chest. 6The seven angels whose duty it was to punish rebellious people in seven different ways came out of the temple. The angels were wearing clean, white linen garments. They were also wearing bands of golden fabric around their chests. 7One of the four living creatures gave each of the seven angels a golden bowl. Inside each bowl was a different kind of punishment for people who had done wrong. The angels would administer these punishments on behalf of God, who lives forever and ever. 8Then smoke that expressed the presence of the glorious and all-powerful God filled the temple. {The smoke remained there while the angels were administering the plagues.} Only after the seven angels finished punishing the people of the earth in seven different ways could anyone enter the temple again.

161Next I heard someone in the temple speak in a loud voice to the angels who had the seven bowls. He told them, “Go from here and pour out what you have in your seven bowls onto the earth. This is how God will punish people for their sins.” 2So the first angel went and poured out what he had in his bowl onto the earth. As a result, terrible sores broke out on the people who had allowed the beast’s servants to write the beast’s name on them. These were the people who had worshiped the beast’s image. 3Then the second angel poured out what he had in his bowl on the ocean. As a result, the water of the sea turned into blood. That blood was decayed and stinky like the blood of a dead person. Every creature that lived in the ocean died. 4Then the third angel poured out what he had in his bowl upon the earth’s rivers and springs. As a result, the water in them turned into blood. 5Then I heard the angel who was in charge of those waters say to God, “O God, you exist and have always existed. You are supremely holy. You are a fair judge of people. 6The people who rebelled against you murdered your holy people and the prophets. So you are just in punishing them by giving them blood to drink.” 7Then I heard the altar answer, “Yes, Lord God, you who rule over everything, you punish people completely fairly.” 8Then the fourth angel poured out what he had in his bowl on the sun. As a result, the sun became so hot that it burned people very badly. 9Because the sun burned people so badly, they said evil things about God because he had the power to punish them in these ways. But they still refused to stop doing wrong things and they still refused to praise him.

10Then the fifth angel poured out what he had in his bowl on the throne of the beast. As a result, it became dark where the beast ruled. {Because it was like night all the time, the people whom the beast ruled could feel the pain of their terrible sores even more.} So they were biting their tongues because of this pain. 11They also said evil things about God who rules in heaven because their sores were so painful. But they refused to stop doing wrong things. 12Then the sixth angel poured out what he had in his bowl on the Euphrates River. As a result, the water in the river dried up so that the rulers from the eastern countries could cross it with their armies. 13Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs. One came out of the mouth of the dragon. One came out of the mouth of the beast. And one came out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14Now those spirits were demons that were able to do miracles. They went out to the rulers of the entire earth to gather their armies. Those armies will fight a battle on the important day when Almighty God punishes his enemies. 15(I heard the Lord Jesus say, “You must listen carefully to me: I am coming unexpectedly, like a thief. It will be good for people who stay alert and keep on living in the right way. They will not feel shame when I return. They will be just like a person who keeps his clothes on so that he does not feel shame in front of other people.”) 16The evil spirits gathered the rulers at a place whose name in the Hebrew language is Armageddon.

17Then the seventh angel poured what he had in his bowl into the air. As a result, someone said with a loud voice from the throne in the temple, “God has now finished punishing rebellious people.” 18Then lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and the earth shook violently. There had not been such a powerful earthquake during the whole time that people have lived on the earth. 19As a result of this earthquake, the giant city split into three parts. God also destroyed the cities in the other nations. God did not forget that the people of Babylon had sinned very much. So he made them experience the punishments they so justly deserved. 20Also as a result of the earthquake, every island disappeared, and the mountains became flat land. 21Then huge hailstones, each weighing 33 kilograms, fell from the sky onto people. Then people said evil things about God because he had punished them in this terrible way with those huge, heavy hailstones.

171One of the seven angels who had the bowls came over to me. He said, “Come with me. I want to show you how God will punish the evil prostitute whom you saw sitting near a great river. 2The kings of the earth have worshiped the idols she wanted them to worship. The people they rule have also worshiped those idols. It was as if they had gotten drunk on wine that she gave them.”

3Then the Holy Spirit inspired me so that I could see and hear things in a vision. The angel carried me away to a desolate area. There I saw a woman who was riding on a red beast. The beast had written names all over itself. They were names that insulted God. The beast had seven heads and ten horns. 4Now the woman was wearing purple and red clothes. She had gold jewelry with precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand. That cup was full of something to drink that stands for the awful things she does when she commits sexual immorality. 5And there was a name in writing on her forehead. The name had a secret meaning. That name was: The Great Babylon, the Mother of Prostitutes and of the Immoral Things in the World. 6I saw that the woman had become drunk because she had drunk the blood of God’s people. Those people had suffered for proclaiming the truth about Jesus. When I saw her, that astonished me completely.

7The angel said to me, “This should not astonish you. I will explain to you the hidden meaning of the woman and of the beast on which she rides. That beast has seven heads and ten horns. 8The beast that you saw lived previously. Now he is no longer alive. But he is about to come back up from the deep, dark pit. Eventually God will destroy him. But this beast will appear again after having lived previously and then dying. Seeing him will astonish the people on the earth whose names God did not write in the Book of Life before he created the world. 9People need to think wisely to understand this: The seven heads of the beast that the woman is riding represent seven hills. Those are the seven hills of the city that the woman represents. The heads also represent seven rulers. 10Five of those rulers have died. One is still alive. The seventh ruler has not yet come. And when he comes, he will rule for only a short time. 11The beast that lived previously and then was not alive will be an eighth ruler. He is actually one of those seven rulers. God will certainly destroy him. 12Now the ten horns that you saw represent ten rulers who have not yet begun to rule. But they will rule people together with the beast, though only for a short time. 13Those rulers will all agree to do the same thing. As a result, they will give the beast their power to rule. 14The rulers and the beast will fight against the Lamb. He will defeat them because he is the Lord who rules over all other lords and the King who rules over all other kings. The people who are with him are the ones whom God has chosen and called to himself and who keep serving him faithfully.” 15Then the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw in the city where the prostitute sits represent a large number of people from many different backgrounds. 16And the ten horns that you saw represent rulers. They and the beast will hate the prostitute. So they will plunder the city and leave nothing in it. Then they will destroy the city the way a wild animal devours another animal. They will burn down the city completely. 17They will do that because God has caused them to decide to do what he wants them to do. As a result, they will all agree together to let the beast have their power to rule until God has accomplished what he said. 18And the prostitute that you saw represents the very evil city whose leaders rule over the other rulers in the world.”

181After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. God had given great authority to this angel. The angel was shining so brightly that he lit up the earth. 2The angel shouted very loudly, “God is about to destroy the evil city of Babylon completely. {People will no longer live in the ruins of the city.} All kinds of evil spirits will live there. All kinds of disgusting scavenger birds will also live there. 3God is going to destroy Babylon because that evil city influenced many people groups to devote themselves to idol worship. Babylon influenced the rulers of those groups, and they made their people worship idols. Babylon also set an example of living in luxury. This made people in other places want to live in the same way. Those who sold luxury goods made a lot of money selling the goods to those people.”

4Then I heard someone else speak from heaven. He said, “My people, run away from that evil city of Babylon! If you stay there, you may sin as the people there do. And if you sin as they do, I will punish you in the same way that I will punish them. 5Run away because the people of that evil city have sinned very greatly and God is now going to punish them for what they have done.”

6{The voice from heaven told the angels whom God had assigned to punish Babylon,} “Punish the people of that city just as much as they harmed other people. In fact, cause them to suffer twice as much as they caused other people to suffer. 7The people of the city of Babylon honored themselves. They indulged in pleasures. To the same extent that they did that, torment them and cause them to grieve. Do that because they were confident that they would always rule other people. They were confident that they could provide themselves with everything they needed. They were confident that nothing bad would ever happen to them. 8Because the people of Babylon are so wicked, terrible things will happen to them all at once. Some will die and others will mourn for them. People will be hungry because they will have no food. The city will burn up completely. The Lord God is able to punish her in these ways because he is mighty.”

9The rulers of the peoples who live on earth worshiped idols with the people of Babylon. They indulged in pleasures with the people of Babylon. So they will mourn greatly for the city when they see it burning up. 10Those rulers will stand far away from Babylon because they will be afraid that God will punish them too if they get too close. They will say, “How very terrible it is for the Great Babylon, that strong city! God is punishing the people who live there so quickly!” 11And the merchants of the earth will mourn greatly for the city because no one living there will ever again buy the things that they have to sell. 12-13They sell ornaments made of gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls. They sell expensive cloth made of fine linen and silk, expensive cloth that is dyed purple and crimson. They sell many kinds of scented wood and many kinds of items made of ivory, the most expensive wood, bronze, iron, and marble. They sell cinnamon, spices, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, and grain. They sell cattle, sheep, horses, and chariots. They even sell human beings as slaves. 14Yes, the good things the people of Babylon longed to have are gone! God has punished them by destroying their many valuable possessions! They have lost those possessions permanently. 15Many merchants earned a lot of money by selling these things. Those merchants will stand far away from Babylon because they will be afraid that God will punish them too if they get too close. They will mourn greatly 16and they will say, “Very terrible things have happened to that great city! That city was like a woman who dressed in clothes made of fine linen and expensive cloth dyed purple and crimson and who wore gold jewelry with precious stones and pearls. 17But God has destroyed all these expensive things so quickly!”

Every ship captain, every ship passenger, all sailors, and all others who do work involving the ocean will stand far away from the city. 18When they see the smoke of the fire that is burning there, they will shout, “No other city has ever been like that great city!” 19They will even throw dust on their heads {to show that they are sad}. Then they will shout in great distress, “Very terrible things have happened to Babylon. The people who lived in that city bought many expensive things, so that people who owned ships earned a lot of money by transporting those things there. God has destroyed that city so quickly!”

20Then someone spoke from heaven saying, “You who live in heaven, rejoice over what has happened to Babylon! You who are God’s people, including you apostles and prophets, rejoice because God has justly punished the people of that city because they harmed you so badly!”

21Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large stone for grinding grain and he threw it into the ocean. Then he said, “God will destroy the great city of Babylon abruptly! It will disappear completely, just as that stone disappeared into the ocean! Babylon will be gone forever! 22In that city there will never again be anyone playing harps, singing, playing flutes, or blowing trumpets. There will no longer be any skilled workers making things. There will never again be people grinding grain at the mills. 23No lamp will ever again shine there. There will never again be the happy voices of any bridegroom and his bride. God will destroy this city because its merchants were the most important people in the world. They were so prosperous because it was as if the city used witchcraft to get every people group to live as its people did. 24The city is also guilty of killing the prophets and others of God’s people. Indeed, {because it used violence and set an example of violence,} it is guilty of every murder that people committed on the earth!”

191Next I heard what sounded like a huge crowd in heaven. They were shouting,

“Hallelujah! God has saved us!

Our God is glorious and mighty!

2Praise him because he judges completely fairly!

He has punished the evil city that was like a prostitute, because the people of that city persuaded many other people to act immorally as they did.

Praise him because he has punished them for murdering his servants!”

3The crowd shouted again, saying,

“Hallelujah! The smoke of the fire that is burning that city will go up forever!”

4Then the 24 elders and the four living creatures prostrated themselves and worshiped God, who sits on the throne. They said:

“It is true! Hallelujah!”

5Then someone spoke from the throne and said,

“All of you who are his servants, praise our God!

All of you who honor him, praise him, every one of you!”

6Then I heard something like the noise of a huge crowd of people. They were making a loud sound like the sound of a huge waterfall or loud claps of thunder. They were shouting,

“Hallelujah! Our Lord God, who rules over everything, reigns!

7We should truly celebrate, and we should honor him

because now is the time for the Lamb to be united with the woman he is marrying. She has dressed for the wedding.

8God has given her clean white clothes to wear. They are fine-linen clothes.”

(That fabric represents the right things that God’s people do.)

9Then the angel said to me, “Write how fortunate the people are whom God invites to the feast when the Lamb marries his wife!” He also said to me, “God has said this, and it is true!” 10Immediately I prostrated myself in front of the angel to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not worship me! I am just your fellow servant and the fellow servant of other believers who speak the truth about Jesus. God has sent me here to serve you by helping you understand the prophetic vision he has given you because you want to speak the truth about Jesus. God is the one you should worship!”

11Then I saw the heavens open up, and I saw something amazing: Jesus riding on a white horse! Those who truly know Jesus call him Always Trustworthy. He judges all people according to what is right, and he fights against people who do what is wrong. 12Now his eyes shone like a burning flame. He wore many royal crowns on his head. There was a name on his clothing. Only he knows what that name means. 13Blood covered the cloak that he was wearing. Another of his names is the Word of God. 14The heavenly armies were following him. They were riding on white horses. They were wearing clean, white linen clothes. 15Jesus had a sharp sword extending from his mouth. He will use it to defeat the rebellious people groups. He himself will rule them so powerfully that no one will be able to resist him. He will destroy his enemies as if they were grapes that he was crushing in a winepress. He will do this for God, who rules over everything and will punish his enemies thoroughly because of their sins. 16A title appeared on his cloak at his thigh: “This is the King who rules over all other kings and the Lord who rules over all other lords.”

17Then I saw an angel standing in the light of the sun. He called loudly to all the flesh-eating birds flying high in the sky, “Come and gather for the large feast that God is providing for you! 18Come and eat the flesh of God’s enemies who will die in this battle! Eat the flesh of kings, of army commanders, of people who fought powerfully, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of many other kinds of people.” 19Then I saw the beast and the kings of earth with their armies. They had gathered together to fight against the rider on the horse and his army. 20But the rider on the white horse captured the beast and the false prophet. The false prophet is the one who had performed miracles in the beast’s presence. By doing that he had deceived the people who had accepted the beast’s mark on their foreheads and who had worshiped its image. Then God threw the beast and the false prophet alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21And the rider on the horse killed the rest of their armies with his sword, the one that extended from his mouth. Birds came and ate as much as they wanted of the flesh of the people and horses that he had killed.

201Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven. He had the key to the deep, dark pit and he was carrying a large chain in his hand. 2The angel seized the dragon. That dragon is the ancient serpent—the devil, that is, Satan. The angel bound him with the chain. That chain would hold him for a thousand years. 3The angel threw him into the deep, dark pit. He shut the door of the pit, locked it, and sealed it to prevent anyone from opening it. He did this so that Satan would no longer deceive the many people groups until after those thousand years. At that time, God will release Satan for a short time.

4Then I saw thrones on which people were sitting. God made those people judges. I also saw the souls of other people whose enemies had killed them by cutting their heads off. Their enemies did that because they had spoken the truth from God about Jesus. I also saw the souls of other people whose enemies had not killed them but who had refused to worship the beast or its image. They had not allowed the beast’s servants to put the beast’s mark on them, either on their foreheads or on their hands. They all became alive again and they ruled with the Messiah during those thousand years. 5These were the people who lived again the first time that God caused dead people to live again. The rest of the people who had died did not live again until after those thousand years. 6God will be pleased with those who live again this first time. Yes, God will consider them to belong to him in a special way. They will not die a second time. Instead, they will be priests who serve God and the Messiah. They will rule with the Messiah during those thousand years.

7At the end of the thousand years, God will release Satan from the deep, dark pit. 8Satan will go out to deceive the rebellious people groups all over the earth. {These are the nations that the prophet Ezekiel called} Gog and Magog. Satan will gather them to fight against God’s people. There will be so many of them fighting against God’s people that no one will be able to count them, just as no one can count the grains of sand on the ocean shore. 9They will march from many places on the earth. They will surround the army of God’s people where it is in battle formation. That will be at Jerusalem, the city that God loves. But God will send fire down from heaven and it will burn up all of his enemies. 10Then God will throw the devil, who had deceived those people, into the lake of burning sulfur. This is also where God had thrown the beast and the false prophet. As a result, they will continually suffer severely forever.

11Then I saw a huge white throne on which God was sitting. {He was so fearsome that} the land and the sky disappeared completely when he appeared. 12Then I saw people of all kinds who had died but who were now alive again standing in front of God’s throne. God opened the books in which he records what people do. God also opened another book, the Book of Life. God writes in that book the names of people who have eternal life. God judged the people who had died and who were now alive again according to what they had done, which he had recorded in the books. 13The people whose bodies were in the sea became alive again, and the people whose bodies were in graves on the land also became alive again. {They all stood in front of God’s throne, and} God judged each of them according to what each one had done. 14Then God took the place where souls went after dying physically and threw that place itself into the burning lake. The burning lake is where people go when they die spiritually. 15Then God saw whose names he had written in the book that lists the people who have eternal life. If someone’s name was not in that book, God threw him into the burning lake.

211Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth had disappeared, and the oceans no longer existed. 2I saw the city of Jerusalem, which is special to God, in a new form. It was coming down to earth from God in heaven. The city looked very beautiful, like a bride on her wedding day. 3Then I heard a loud voice calling out from the throne of God. The voice said, “Listen to this! Now God will live right where people live! They will belong to him, and God himself will stay with them. 4He will comfort them so that they are no longer sad. None of them will ever again die or mourn or cry or suffer pain. God has taken away those things, so they are gone forever.”

5Then God said from the throne, “Listen to this! I am now making everything new!” He also said to me, “Write these things that I have told you. You can be confident that I will certainly cause them to happen.” 6He also said to me, “I have completed all these things! I am the one who began all things and the one who will cause all things to end. To everyone who wants it, I will freely give everlasting life, as if I were giving them a drink from a spring whose water keeps people alive. 7I will give this to all who are victorious over Satan. And I will be their God, and they will be my children. 8But all the others will suffer in the lake of burning sulfur. That is what it means to die a second time. Those who are cowards will suffer this way. So will those who do not believe in me, those who do detestable things, those who murder people, those who sin sexually, those who practice witchcraft, those who worship idols, and all those who tell lies.”

9Then an angel came to me. He was one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls of the wine that caused the seven last ways of suffering. He said to me, “Come with me. I will show you the people who will live together with the Lamb forever!”

10Then the Holy Spirit inspired me so that I could see and hear things in a vision. The angel took me to the top of a very high mountain. There he showed me the city that is special to God, the new Jerusalem. It was coming down out of heaven from God. 11The city was shining with brilliant light that came from God himself. It was sparkling like a priceless jasper gemstone, and it was clear like crystal. 12A very high wall surrounded the city. The wall had twelve gates. An angel stood at each gate. The names of the twelve tribes of Israel appeared over the gates. Each gate had the name of one tribe. 13Three gates were on the east side of the city. Three gates were on the north side. Three gates were on the south side. And three gates were on the west side. 14The city wall had twelve foundation stones. On each foundation stone was the name of one of the twelve apostles whom the Lamb had appointed.

15The angel who was speaking to me carried a golden measuring rod. He used it to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. 16The city was square in shape, that is, it was as long as it was wide. After the angel measured the city with his rod, he reported that it was 2,200 kilometers long and that its width and height were the same as its length. 17He measured its wall and reported that it was 66 meters high. The angel used the measurement that people normally use.

18The stones of the city wall were like the green stone that people call jasper. The buildings of the city were pure gold and they showed reflections the way clear glass does. 19The foundations of the city wall were beautiful precious stones. Each foundation was a different stone. The first foundation stone was jasper. The second foundation stone was sapphire. The third foundation stone was chalcedony. The fourth foundation stone was emerald. 20The fifth foundation stone was sardonyx. The sixth foundation stone was carnelian. The seventh foundation stone was chrysolite. The eighth foundation stone was beryl. The ninth foundation stone was topaz. The tenth foundation stone was chrysoprase. The eleventh foundation stone was jacinth. And the twelfth foundation stone was amethyst. 21The twelve gates of the city were each huge pearls. Each gate was a single pearl. The city streets were pure gold and they showed reflections the way clear glass does.

22There was no temple in the city. That was because the Lord God himself, who rules over all, and the Lamb were there. So there was no need for a temple. 23Now the city will not need the sun or the moon for light, because the light coming from God and from the Lamb will be all the light that it needs. 24The way people live in the city will be an example to all of the world’s people groups. The rulers of the earth will bring their treasures into the city to honor God and the lamb. 25It will never be night in the city. So no one will ever shut the gates of the city as one usually does at the end of a day. 26The people of the world will also bring their wealth into the city. 27But nothing that is morally impure will ever enter that city. No one who does things that God considers detestable and no one who tells lies will ever enter it. Only those people whose names God has written in the book that belongs to the Lamb will be there. That is the book that lists the names of people who have everlasting life.

221Then the angel showed me the river that causes people who drink from it to live forever. The water was sparkling and clear like crystal. The river was flowing out from the thrones where God and the Lamb were sitting. 2It flowed down through the middle of the city’s open area. On each side of the river was a tree with fruit that causes people who eat it to live forever. These trees produce fruit 12 times a year. They produce a crop each month. The people groups use the leaves of the trees as medicine. 3There will never be anyone or anything there that God will curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city. God’s servants will worship him there. 4They will see him face to face, and his name will appear on their foreheads. 5There will never again be night. God’s servants will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun because the Lord God will shine his light upon them. They will rule forever.

6The angel said to me: “These things that God has shown you are true, and he will certainly make them happen. The Lord God who inspires the prophets sent his angel to show the people who serve him the events that must happen soon.” 7Jesus says to all his people, “Listen to this! I am coming soon; God will abundantly bless everyone who obeys the prophetic message in this book.”

8I, John, am the one who heard and saw in a vision these things that I have written down. When I had heard and seen them, I immediately lay down in front of the angel who had shown me these things in order to worship him. 9But he said to me, “Do not worship me! I am just a servant of God like you! I am also a servant like your fellow believers who are the prophets, and like those who obey the message in this book. Instead, worship God!” 10He also said to me, “Do not keep secret the message about what God has foretold in this book, because it is almost time for him to fulfill this message. 11Since that time is near, if those who act in an evil manner want to continue to act that way, let them continue to do so. If those who are vile want to continue to be vile, let them continue to do so. God will soon punish them for that. But those who are acting righteously should continue to act righteously. Those who are acting as people should who belong to God should continue to act that way.”

12Jesus says to all people: “Listen! I am coming soon! And I will punish or reward everyone according to what each one has done. 13I am the one who began all things and the one who will cause all things to end. I am before all things and I am at the end of all things. 14God is very pleased with the people who stop living in wrong ways and start living in right ways. Because they do that, those people will be able to eat the fruit of the tree that enables people to live forever. They will be able to go through the gates into the holy city. 15But others will not enter that city. This includes people who do wicked things, practice witchcraft, sin sexually, murder others, worship idols, or lie continually.

16I, Jesus, sent my angel to announce these things that will affect you groups of believers. Mysteriously, I am both the ancestor of King David and his descendant whom the prophets promised would come. I am the one who is like the bright morning star.”

17The Holy Spirit and the people who belong to God say, “Come!” Whoever hears this should also say, “Come!” Everyone who wants everlasting life should receive it! God will give everlasting life as a free gift to everyone who desires it!

18I, John, solemnly warn everyone who hears the message about what I have foretold in this book: If anyone adds anything to this message, God will punish him in the ways that this book tells about. 19And if anyone takes away any of the message about the things I have foretold in this book, God will take away that person’s right to eat fruit from the tree that enables people to live forever. God will also take away that person’s right to enter the new Jerusalem. I describe both these things in this book.

20Jesus, who says that all these things are true, says, “Certainly I am coming soon!” I, John, reply, “May it be so! Lord Jesus, come!”

21I pray that our Lord Jesus will continue to act kindly to all of you who are God’s people. May it be so!