Bible in 90 Days

Babylon Is Destroyed

18 After ·the vision of these things [^Lthese things], I saw another angel coming down from heaven. This angel had great ·power [authority], and his ·glory [splendor] ·made the earth bright [illumined the earth]. ² He ·shouted [cried out] in a ·powerful [mighty; strong] voice:

⁴ Then I heard another voice from heaven saying:

⁹ The kings of the earth who ·sinned sexually [fornicated] with her and ·shared her wealth [lived in luxury/sensuality with her] will see the smoke from her burning. Then they will ·cry [weep] and ·be sad [mourn] because of her death. ¹⁰ They will be afraid of her ·suffering [torment; torture] and stand far away and say:

¹¹ And the merchants of the earth will ·cry [weep] and be sad about her, because now there is no one to buy their cargoes— ¹² cargoes of gold, silver, ·jewels [precious stones], pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, ·red [scarlet] cloth; all kinds of citron wood and all kinds of things made from ivory, expensive wood, bronze, iron, and marble; ¹³ [and cargoes of] cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle, sheep, horses, carriages [wagons], ·slaves, and human lives [^Lbodies and human souls].

¹⁴ The merchants will say [^Cimplied by the context],

¹⁵ The merchants [^Lof these things] who became rich ·from selling to her [^Lfrom her] will be afraid of her ·suffering [torment; torture] and will stand far away. They will ·cry [weep] and ·be sad [mourn] ¹⁶ and say:

Every sea captain, every passenger, the sailors, and all those who ·earn their living from [trade; work on] the sea stood far away from Babylon. ¹⁸ As they saw the smoke from her burning, they cried out loudly, “·There was never a city [What city was…?] like this great city!” ¹⁹ And they threw dust on their heads [^Ca ritual of mourning] and cried out, weeping and ·being sad [mourning]. They said:

²¹ Then a ·powerful [strong; mighty] angel picked up a large stone, like ·one used for grinding grain [a millstone], and threw it into the sea [Jer. 51:63–64]. He said:

People in Heaven Praise God

19 After ·this vision and announcement [^Lthese things] I heard ·what sounded like a great many people [^Lthe loud voice/sound of a great crowd] in heaven saying:

³ Again they said:

⁴ Then the twenty-four elders [4:4] and the four living creatures ·bowed [fell] down and worshiped God, who sits on the throne. They said:

⁵ Then a voice came from the throne, saying:

⁶ Then I heard ·what sounded like a great many people [^Lthe voice/sound of a great crowd], like the noise of ·flooding water [many waters], and like the noise of loud thunder. The people were saying:

(The fine linen ·means [is; stands for] the ·good things done by God’s holy people [^Lrighteousness/righteous deeds of the saints/holy ones].)

⁹ And the angel said to me, “Write this: ·Blessed [Happy] are those who have been invited to the wedding ·meal [supper; banquet] of the Lamb!” And the angel said [^Lto me], “These are the true words of God.”

¹⁰ Then I ·bowed down [fell] at the angel’s feet to worship him, but he said to me, “·Do not worship me [Don’t do that!; ^LSee, not]! I am a ·servant like you [fellow servant with you] and your brothers and sisters who have the ·message [witness; testimony] of Jesus. Worship God, because the ·message [witness; testimony] ·about [or from] Jesus ·is the spirit that gives all prophecy [or is the essence of true prophecy; or is Spirit-inspired prophecy; ^Lis the spirit/Spirit of prophecy].”

The Rider on the White Horse

¹¹ Then I saw heaven opened, and there before me was a white horse. The rider [^CJesus] on the horse is called Faithful and True, and ·he is right when [with justice/righteousness] he judges and makes war [Ps. 96:13; 98:9]. ¹² His eyes are like ·burning [blazing; flames of] fire [Dan. 10:6], and on his head are many ·crowns [diadems; royal crowns; ^Ccontrast 12:3; 13:1]. He has a name written on him, which no one but himself knows. ¹³ He is dressed in a ·robe [garment] dipped in blood [^Cindicating judgment; Is. 63:1–3], and his name is the Word of God [John 1:1]. ¹⁴ The armies of heaven, dressed in fine linen, white and ·clean [pure], were following him on white horses. ¹⁵ Out of the rider’s mouth comes a sharp sword [1:16] that he will use to ·defeat [strike down] the nations [Is. 11:4], and he will ·rule [or shepherd] them with a ·rod [staff; scepter] of iron [Ps. 2:9]. He will ·crush out [tread; stomp] the wine in the winepress of the ·terrible anger [furious wrath] of God the ·Almighty [All-powerful; 19:13; Is. 63:1–6]. ¹⁶ On his robe and on his upper leg was written this name: king of kings and lord of lords [17:14; Deut. 10:17; Dan. 2:47].

¹⁷ Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he called with a loud voice to all the birds flying in ·the sky [^Lmid-heaven]: “Come and gather together for the great ·feast [supper; banquet] of God ¹⁸ so that you can eat the ·bodies [flesh] of kings, ·generals [captains; officers], mighty people, horses and their riders, and the bodies of all people—free, slave, small, and great [13:16; Ezek. 39:17–20].”

¹⁹ Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth. Their armies were gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse [^CJesus] and his army. ²⁰ But the beast was captured and with him the false prophet who ·did the miracles [performed signs] ·for the beast [on his behalf; in his presence]. The false prophet had used these ·miracles [signs] to ·trick [deceive; lead astray] those who had the ·mark [brand; stamp] of the beast and worshiped his ·idol [image]. ·The false prophet and the beast [^LThe two] were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. ²¹ And ·their armies [^Lthe rest] were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds ·ate the bodies until they were full [^Lwere gorged/filled up with their flesh].

The Thousand Years

20 I saw an angel coming down from heaven. He had the key to the ·bottomless pit [Abyss; 9:1] and a ·large [great] chain in his hand. ² The angel ·grabbed [seized] the dragon, that ·old snake [ancient serpent] who is the devil and Satan [12:9; Gen. 3:15], and ·tied him up [bound him; Mark 3:27] for a thousand years. ³ Then he threw him into the ·bottomless pit [Abyss], ·closed [or locked] it, and ·locked it [^Lsealed it; or placed a seal on it] over him. The angel did this so he could not ·trick [deceive; lead astray] the ·people of the earth [nations] anymore until the thousand years were ·ended [finished; completed]. After ·a thousand years [^Lthese things] he must be set free for a short time.

⁴ Then I saw some thrones and people sitting on them who had been given the power to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been ·killed [^Lbeheaded] because ·they were faithful to the message [of their testimony/witness] of Jesus and [^Lbecause of] the ·message from [word of] God. They had not worshiped the beast or his ·idol [image], and they had not received the ·mark [brand; stamp] of the beast on their foreheads or on their hands. They came back to life and ·ruled [reigned] with Christ for a thousand years. ⁵ (The others that were dead did not live again until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first ·raising of the dead [resurrection]. ⁶ ·Blessed [Happy] and holy are those who ·share [have a part] in this first ·raising of the dead [resurrection]. The second death [^Cbeing cast in the lake of fire] has no ·power [authority] over them. They will be priests for God and for Christ and will ·rule [reign] with him for a thousand years.

⁷ When the thousand years are over, Satan will be set free from his prison. ⁸ Then he will go out to ·trick [deceive; lead astray] the nations in ·all [^Lthe four corners of] the earth—Gog and Magog—to gather them for battle [Ezek. 38—39]. ·There are so many people [^LIn number] they will be like ·sand on the seashore [or the sand of the sea]. ⁹ And ·Satan’s army [^Lthey] marched across [^Lthe breadth of; or the broad plain of] the earth and ·gathered around [surrounded] the camp of ·God’s people [^Tthe saints] and the city God loves. But fire came down from heaven and ·burned them up [consumed/devoured them; 13:13; 1 Kin. 18:38; 2 Kin. 1:10, 12]. ¹⁰ And ·Satan [^Lthe Devil], who ·tricked them [deceived them; led them astray], was thrown into the lake of ·burning sulfur [^Lfire and sulfur] with the beast and the false prophet. There they will be ·punished [tormented; tortured] day and night forever and ever.

People of the World Are Judged

¹¹ Then I saw a great white throne and the One who was sitting on it. Earth and ·sky [heaven] ·ran away [fled] from ·him [^Lhis presence/face] and ·disappeared [^Lno place was found for them]. ¹² And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. Then ·books [scrolls] were opened, and [^Lanother book/scroll, which is] the ·book [scroll] of life was opened [3:5; Dan. 12:1–2]. The dead were judged by what they had done, which was ·written [recorded] in the ·books [scrolls]. ¹³ The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades [^Cthe realm of the dead, also known as Sheol; 6:8] gave up the dead who were in them. Each person was judged by what he had done. ¹⁴ And Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. ¹⁵ And anyone whose name was not found written in the book [scroll] of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

The New Jerusalem

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth [Is. 65:17; 66:22; 2 Pet. 3:13]. [^LFor] The first heaven and the first earth had ·disappeared [passed away], and there was no sea anymore [^Cthe sea represents chaos and evil, so its absence indicates peace and security]. ² And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem [^Cthe believers’ eternal dwelling place; 3:12], coming down out of heaven from God. It was prepared like a bride ·dressed [adorned] for her husband [19:7, 9]. ³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “[^LLook; ^TBehold] Now God’s ·presence [dwelling; tabernacle] is with people, and he will ·live [dwell; tabernacle; John 1:14] with them, and they will be his people [Ex. 29:45; Jer. 31:33; Ezek. 37:27]. God himself will be with them and will be their God.^{[a] 4} He will wipe away every tear from their eyes [7:17; Is. 25:8], and there will be no more death [Is. 25:8; 1 Cor. 15:54], ·sadness [mourning], crying, or pain, because ·all the old ways [the old order; ^Lthe first things] are gone.”

⁵ The One who was sitting on the throne [^CJesus] said, “Look! I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this, because these words are ·true and can be trusted [^Lfaithful/reliable and true].”

⁶ The One on the throne said to me, “It is ·finished [done; accomplished]. I am the Alpha and the Omega [^Cthe first and last letters of the Greek alphabet; 1:8], the Beginning and the End. I will give ·free water [^Lfreely] from the spring of the water of life to anyone who is thirsty [Is. 55:1; John 7:37]. ⁷ Those who ·win the victory [conquer] will ·receive [inherit] ·this [^Lthese things; ^CGod’s promise], and I will be their God, and they will be my children [21:3; 2 Sam. 7:14]. ⁸ But cowards, those ·who refuse to believe [without faith], who do ·evil [vile; detestable] things, who kill, who sin sexually, who do ·evil magic [sorcery], who worship idols, and who tell lies—all these will have ·a place [^Ltheir part] in the lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death [20:6].”

⁹ Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last ·troubles [plagues] came to me, saying, “·Come with me [^LCome], and I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb [^Cthe church; Eph. 5:27–29].” ¹⁰ And the angel carried me away ·by the Spirit [or in the spirit] to a very large and high mountain. He showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. ¹¹ It ·was shining with [possessed; ^Lhad] the glory of God and was ·bright [radiant; brilliant] like a ·very expensive jewel [precious stone], like a jasper, clear as crystal. ¹² The city had a great high wall with twelve gates with twelve angels at the gates, and on each gate was written the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. ¹³ There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south, and three on the west [Ezek. 48:30–35]. ¹⁴ The walls of the city were built on twelve foundation stones, and on the stones were written the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

¹⁵ The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod made of gold to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. ¹⁶ The city ·was built in a square [^Llies foursquare], and its length was equal to its width. The angel measured the city with the rod. The city was ·1,500 miles long, 1,500 miles wide, and 1,500 miles high [^L1,200 stadia—its length and width and height are equal; ^Cthe unit of measure called a stadium was approximately 600 feet]. ¹⁷ The angel also measured the wall. It was ·216 feet [^L144 cubits] ·high [or thick; ^Cthe Greek is ambiguous], by human measurements, which the angel was using. ¹⁸ The wall was made of jasper, and the city was made of pure gold, as pure as glass. ¹⁹ The foundation stones of the city walls were ·decorated [ornamented] with every kind of ·jewel [precious stone; Ex. 28:15–21; Is. 54:11–12]. The first foundation was jasper, the second was sapphire, the third was ·chalcedony [agate], the fourth was emerald, ²⁰ the fifth was ·onyx [sardonyx], the sixth was carnelian, the seventh was ·chrysolite [yellow quartz], the eighth was beryl, the ninth was topaz, the tenth was ·chrysoprase [turquoise], the eleventh was jacinth, and the twelfth was amethyst [^Cthe specific identity of some of these jewels is uncertain]. ²¹ The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate having been made from a single pearl. And the ·street [main street; square] of the city was made of pure gold as clear as glass.

²² I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God ·Almighty [All-powerful] and the Lamb are the city’s temple [^Ca temple representing the presence of God is not needed because God’s presence is throughout the city]. ²³ The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because the glory of God ·is its [gives it] light, and the Lamb is the city’s lamp [Is. 60:19]. ²⁴ By its light the ·people of the world [nations] will walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it [Is. 60:1–3]. ²⁵ The city’s gates will never be shut on any day [Is. 60:11], because there is no night there. ²⁶ The glory and the honor of the nations will be brought into it [^Cas gifts to God]. ²⁷ Nothing ·unclean [impure; profane; common] and no one who does ·shameful [detestable; abominable] things or tells lies will ever go into it. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s ·book [scroll] of life [3:5] will enter the city.

22 Then the angel showed me the river of the ·water of life [or living water]. It was ·shining [bright; clear] like crystal and was flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² down the middle of the ·street [main street; square] of the city [Gen. 2:10; Ezek. 47:1–12]. The tree of life was on each side of the river [Gen. 2:9; ^Cheaven is like Eden, only better]. It produces ·fruit twelve times a year, once each month [or twelve kinds of fruit, producing fruit each month]. The leaves of the tree are for the healing of all the nations. ³ ·Nothing that God judges guilty will be in that city [Nothing accursed will be there; or There will no longer be any curse; Gen. 3:16–19; Zech. 14:11]. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and God’s servants will ·worship [serve] him. ⁴ They will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads [^Cdenoting ownership; 3:12; 7:3; contrast 13:16; Ex. 28:36–38]. ⁵ There will never be night again. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, because the Lord God will give them light. And they will ·rule as kings [reign] forever and ever.

⁶ The angel said to me, “These words ·can be trusted and are [are faithful and] true.” The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets [^Cthe spirit that inspires the prophets; 1 Cor. 14:32], sent his angel to show his servants the things that must happen ·soon [quickly].

⁷ “·Listen [^LLook; ^TBehold]! I am coming ·soon [quickly]! ·Blessed [Happy] is the one who obeys the words of prophecy in this ·book [scroll].”

⁸ I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw them, I ·bowed [fell] down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed these things to me. ⁹ But the angel said to me, “·Do not worship me [Don’t do that!; ^LSee, not]! I am a ·servant like you [fellow servant with you], your brothers the prophets, and all those who ·obey [keep] the words in this ·book [scroll]. Worship God!”

¹⁰ Then the angel told me, “Do not ·keep secret [^Lseal; contrast 10:4] the words of prophecy in this ·book [scroll], because the time is near for all this to happen. ¹¹ Let whoever is doing ·evil [wrong; harm] continue to do evil [wrong; harm; Dan. 12:10]. Let whoever is ·unclean [vile; impure; filthy] continue to be ·unclean [vile; impure; filthy]. Let whoever is ·doing right [righteous; just] continue to do ·right [righteousness; justice]. Let whoever is holy continue to be holy.”

¹² “·Listen [^LLook; Behold]! I am coming ·soon [quickly]! ·I will bring my reward with me [^Land my reward is with me; Is. 40:10], and I will repay ·each one of you [^Leach person] for what you have done. ¹³ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End [1:8; 21:6].

¹⁴ “·Blessed [Happy] are those who wash their robes [^Can image of spiritual cleansing] so that they will receive the ·right [power; authority] to eat the fruit from the tree of life and may ·go through [enter] the gates into the city. ¹⁵ Outside the city are the ·evil people [^Ldogs], those who do ·evil magic [sorcery], who ·sin sexually [fornicate], who murder, who worship idols, and who love lies and tell lies.

¹⁶ “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to ·tell you [testify/witness to] these things for the churches. I am the ·descendant from the family of David [root and descendant/offspring of David; ^Ca messianic title applied to Jesus; 5:4; Is. 11:10], and I am the bright morning star [2:28; Num. 24:17; ^Ca messianic title].”

¹⁷ The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let the one who hears this say, “Come!” Let whoever is thirsty come; whoever wishes may ·have [take; receive] the water of life ·as a free gift [freely].

¹⁸ I ·warn [testify to] everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this ·book [scroll]: If anyone adds anything to these words, God will add to that person the ·disasters [plagues] written about in this ·book [scroll]. ¹⁹ And if anyone takes away from the words of this ·book [scroll] of prophecy, God will take away that one’s ·share [part] of the tree of life and of the holy city, which are written about in this ·book [scroll; Deut. 4:2; 12:32].

²⁰ ·Jesus, the One who says these things are true, [^LThe One who witnesses to these things] says, “Yes, I am coming ·soon [quickly].”

·Amen [^CHebrew for “so be it”]. Come, Lord Jesus!

²¹ The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.