Revelation 7-12

New American Standard Bible

An Interlude

7 After this I saw ^(A)four angels standing at the ^(B)four corners of the earth, holding back ^(C)the four winds of the earth ^(D)so that no wind would blow on the earth, or on the sea, or on any tree. ² And I saw another angel ascending ^(E)from the rising of the sun, holding the ^(F)seal of ^(G)the living God; and he called out with a loud voice to the ^(H)four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, ³ saying, “^(I)Do not harm the earth, or the sea, or the trees until we have ^(J)sealed the bond-servants of our God on their ^(K)foreheads.”

The 144,000

⁴ And I heard the ^(L)number of those who were sealed: ^(M)144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel:

A Multitude from the Tribulation

⁹ After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from ^(N)every nation and all the tribes, peoples, and languages, standing ^(O)before the throne and ^(P)before the Lamb, clothed in ^(Q)white robes, and ^(R)palm branches were in their hands; ¹⁰ and they *cried out with a loud voice, saying,

¹¹ And all the angels were standing ^(U)around the throne and around ^(V)the elders and the ^(W)four living creatures; and they ^(X)fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, ¹² saying,

¹³ Then one of the elders ^(AB)responded, saying to me, “These who are clothed in the ^(AC)white robes, who are they, and where have they come from?” ¹⁴ I ^[a]said to him, “My lord, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the ^(AD)great tribulation, and they have ^(AE)washed their robes and made them ^(AF)white in the ^(AG)blood of the Lamb. ¹⁵ For this reason they are ^(AH)before the throne of God, and they ^(AI)serve Him day and night in His ^[b](AJ)temple; and ^(AK)He who sits on the throne will spread His ^(AL)tabernacle over them. ^16 (AM)They will no longer hunger nor thirst, nor will the sun ^[c]beat down on them, nor any scorching heat; ¹⁷ for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their ^(AN)shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the ^[d](AO)water of life; and ^(AP)God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”

The Seventh Seal: Trumpets

8 When the Lamb broke the ^(AQ)seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. ² And I saw ^(AR)the seven angels who stand before God, and seven ^(AS)trumpets were given to them.

^3 (AT)Another angel came and stood at the ^(AU)altar, holding a ^(AV)golden censer; and much ^(AW)incense was given to him, so that he might ^[e]add it to the ^(AX)prayers of all the ^[f]saints on the ^(AY)golden altar which was before the throne. ⁴ And ^(AZ)the smoke of the incense ascended from the angel’s hand with the prayers of the ^[g]saints before God. ⁵ Then the angel ^[h]took the ^[i]censer and ^(BA)filled it with the fire of the altar, and ^(BB)hurled it to the earth; and there were ^(BC)peals of thunder and sounds, and flashes of lightning and an ^(BD)earthquake.

^6 (BE)And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them.

⁷ The first sounded, and there was ^(BF)hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and ^(BG)a third of the earth was burned up, and ^(BH)a third of the ^(BI)trees were burned up, and all the green ^(BJ)grass was burned up.

⁸ The second angel sounded, and something like a great ^(BK)mountain burning with fire was hurled into the sea; and ^(BL)a third of the ^(BM)sea became blood, ⁹ and ^(BN)a third of the creatures which were in the sea ^[j]and had life, died; and a third of the ^(BO)ships were destroyed.

¹⁰ The third angel sounded, and a great star ^(BP)fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a ^(BQ)third of the rivers and on the ^(BR)springs of waters. ¹¹ The star is named Wormwood; and a ^(BS)third of the waters became ^(BT)wormwood, and many people died from the waters because they were made bitter.

¹² The fourth angel sounded, and a ^(BU)third of the ^(BV)sun, a third of the ^(BW)moon, and a ^(BX)third of the ^(BY)stars were struck, so that a ^(BZ)third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a ^(CA)third of it, and the night in the same way.

¹³ Then I looked, and I heard ^[k]an eagle flying in ^(CB)midheaven, saying with a loud voice, “^(CC)Woe, woe, woe to ^(CD)those who live on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the ^(CE)three angels who are about to sound!”

The Fifth Trumpet: Shaft of the Abyss

9 Then the ^(CF)fifth angel sounded, and I saw a ^(CG)star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the ^(CH)key to the ^(CI)shaft of the abyss was given to him. ² He opened the shaft of the abyss, and ^(CJ)smoke ascended out of the shaft like the smoke of a great furnace; and ^(CK)the sun and the air were darkened from the smoke of the shaft. ³ Then out of the smoke came ^(CL)locusts ^[l]upon the earth, and power was given them, as the ^(CM)scorpions of the earth have power. ⁴ They were told not to ^(CN)hurt the ^(CO)grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the people who do not have the ^(CP)seal of God on their foreheads. ⁵ And ^[m]they were not permitted to kill ^[n]anyone, but to torment for ^(CQ)five months; and their torment was like the torment of a ^(CR)scorpion when it ^[o]stings a person. ⁶ And in those days ^(CS)people will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death ^[p]will flee from them!

⁷ The ^[q](CT)appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like human faces. ⁸ They had hair like the hair of women, and their ^(CU)teeth were like the teeth of lions. ⁹ They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the ^(CV)sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle. ¹⁰ They have tails like ^(CW)scorpions, and stings; and in their ^(CX)tails is their power to hurt people for ^(CY)five months. ¹¹ They have as king over them, the angel of the ^(CZ)abyss; his name in ^(DA)Hebrew is ^[r](DB)Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name ^[s]Apollyon.

^12 (DC)The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.

The Sixth Trumpet: Army from the East

¹³ Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard ^[t]a voice from the ^[u]four ^(DD)horns of the ^(DE)golden altar which is before God, ¹⁴ saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the ^(DF)four angels who are bound at the ^(DG)great river Euphrates.” ¹⁵ And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were ^(DH)released, so that they would kill a ^(DI)third of mankind. ¹⁶ The number of the armies of the horsemen was ^(DJ)two hundred million; ^(DK)I heard the number of them. ¹⁷ And this is how I saw ^(DL)in my vision the horses and those who sat on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire, of hyacinth, and of ^[v](DM)brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and ^(DN)out of their mouths *came fire and smoke and ^[w](DO)brimstone. ¹⁸ A ^(DP)third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the ^(DQ)fire, the smoke, and the ^[x]brimstone which came out of their mouths. ¹⁹ For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads, and with them they do harm.

²⁰ The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, ^(DR)did not repent of ^(DS)the works of their hands so as not to ^(DT)worship demons and ^(DU)the idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; ²¹ and they ^(DV)did not repent of their murders, nor of their ^(DW)witchcraft, nor of their ^(DX)sexual immorality, nor of their thefts.

The Angel and the Little Scroll

10 I saw another ^(DY)strong angel ^(DZ)coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud; and the ^(EA)rainbow was on his head, and ^(EB)his face was like the sun, and his ^(EC)feet like pillars of fire; ² and he had in his hand a ^(ED)little scroll, which was open. He placed ^(EE)his right foot on the sea and his left on the land; ³ and he cried out with a loud voice, ^(EF)as when a lion roars; and when he had cried out, the ^(EG)seven peals of thunder ^[y]uttered their voices. ⁴ When the seven peals of thunder had spoken, ^(EH)I was about to write; and I ^(EI)heard a voice from heaven, saying, “^(EJ)Seal up the things which the seven peals of thunder have spoken, and do not write them.” ⁵ Then the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land ^(EK)raised his right hand to heaven, ^6 (EL)and swore by ^(EM)Him who lives forever and ever, ^(EN)who created heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, that ^(EO)there will no longer be a delay, ⁷ but in the days of the voice of the ^(EP)seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then ^(EQ)the mystery of God is finished, as He announced to His servants the prophets.

⁸ Then ^(ER)the voice which I heard from heaven, I heard again speaking with me, and saying, “Go, take ^(ES)the scroll which is open in the hand of the angel who ^(ET)stands on the sea and on the land.” ⁹ And I went to the angel, telling him to give me the little scroll. And he *said to me, “^(EU)Take it and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” ¹⁰ I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it, and in my mouth it was sweet as honey; and when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. ¹¹ And ^(EV)they *said to me, “You must ^(EW)prophesy again concerning ^(EX)many peoples, nations, languages, and ^(EY)kings.”

The Two Witnesses

11 Then there was given to me a ^[z](EZ)measuring rod like a staff; ^[aa]and ^(FA)someone said, “Get up and measure the ^[ab]temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. ^2 [ac]Leave out the ^(FB)courtyard which is outside the ^[ad]temple and do not measure it, because ^(FC)it has been given to the nations; and they will ^(FD)trample ^(FE)the holy city for ^(FF)forty-two months. ³ And I will grant authority to my two ^(FG)witnesses, and they will prophesy for ^(FH)1,260 days, clothed in ^(FI)sackcloth.” ⁴ These are the ^(FJ)two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. ⁵ And if anyone wants to harm them, ^(FK)fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; and so if anyone wants to harm them, ^(FL)he must be killed in this way. ⁶ These have the power to ^(FM)shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during ^(FN)the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to ^(FO)turn them into blood, and ^(FP)to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.

⁷ When they have finished their testimony, ^(FQ)the beast that comes up out of the ^(FR)abyss will ^(FS)make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. ⁸ And their dead bodies will lie on the street of the ^(FT)great city which ^[ae]spiritually is called ^(FU)Sodom and ^(FV)Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. ⁹ Those from ^(FW)the peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will look at their dead ^[af]bodies for three and a half days, and ^[ag](FX)will not allow their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. ¹⁰ And ^(FY)those who live on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will ^(FZ)send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented ^(GA)those who live on the earth.

¹¹ And after the three and a half days, ^(GB)the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. ¹² And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “^(GC)Come up here.” And they ^(GD)went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them. ¹³ And ^[ah]at that time there was a great ^(GE)earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; ^[ai]seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and ^(GF)gave glory to the ^(GG)God of heaven.

¹⁴ The second ^(GH)woe has passed; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

The Seventh Trumpet: Christ’s Reign Foreseen

¹⁵ Then the ^(GI)seventh angel sounded; and there were ^(GJ)loud voices in heaven, saying,

“^(GK)The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of ^(GL)His ^[aj]Christ; and ^(GM)He will reign forever and ever.” ¹⁶ And the twenty-four elders, who ^(GN)sit on their thrones before God, ^(GO)fell on their faces and worshiped God, ¹⁷ saying,

“We give You thanks, ^(GP)Lord God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to ^(GQ)reign. ¹⁸ And ^(GR)the nations were enraged, and ^(GS)Your wrath came, and ^(GT)the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to ^[ak]reward Your ^(GU)bond-servants the prophets and the ^[al]saints and those who fear Your name, ^(GV)the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”

¹⁹ And ^(GW)the ^[am]temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and ^(GX)the ark of His covenant appeared in His ^[an]temple, and there were flashes of ^(GY)lightning and sounds and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a ^(GZ)great ^[ao]hailstorm.

The Woman, Israel

12 A great ^(HA)sign appeared ^(HB)in heaven: ^(HC)a woman ^(HD)clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; ² and she was pregnant and she *^(HE)cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth.

The Red Dragon, Satan

³ Then ^(HF)another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red ^(HG)dragon having ^(HH)seven heads and ^(HI)ten horns, and on his heads were ^(HJ)seven crowns. ⁴ And his tail *swept away a ^(HK)third of the stars of heaven and ^(HL)hurled them to the earth. And the ^(HM)dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth ^(HN)he might devour her Child.

The Male Child, Christ

⁵ And ^(HO)she gave birth to a Son, a male, who is going to ^[ap](HP)rule all the ^[aq]nations with a rod of iron; and her Child was ^(HQ)caught up to God and to His throne. ⁶ Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she *had a place prepared by God, so that there ^[ar]she would be nourished for ^(HR)1,260 days.

The Angel, Michael

⁷ And there was war in heaven, ^(HS)Michael and his angels waging war with the ^(HT)dragon. The dragon and ^(HU)his angels waged war, ⁸ and they did not prevail, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. ⁹ And the great ^(HV)dragon was thrown down, the ^(HW)serpent of old who is called the devil and ^(HX)Satan, who ^(HY)deceives the whole ^[as]world; he was ^(HZ)thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. ¹⁰ Then I heard ^(IA)a loud voice in heaven, saying,

“Now the ^(IB)salvation, and the power, and the ^(IC)kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the ^(ID)accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down, the one who accuses them before our God day and night. ¹¹ And they ^(IE)overcame him because of ^(IF)the blood of the Lamb and because of ^(IG)the word of their testimony, and they ^(IH)did not love their life even ^[at]when faced with death. ¹² For this reason, ^(II)rejoice, you heavens and ^(IJ)you who dwell in them. ^(IK)Woe to the earth and the sea, because ^(IL)the devil has come down to you with great wrath, knowing that he has only ^(IM)a short time.”

¹³ And when the ^(IN)dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted ^(IO)the woman who gave birth to the male Child. ¹⁴ But the ^(IP)two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, so that she could fly ^(IQ)into the wilderness to her place, where she *was nourished for ^(IR)a time, times, and half a time, away from the presence of the serpent. ¹⁵ And the ^(IS)serpent hurled water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the flood. ^16 [au]But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon had hurled out of his mouth. ¹⁷ So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to ^(IT)make war with the rest of her ^[av](IU)children, who ^(IV)keep the commandments of God and ^(IW)hold to the testimony of Jesus.