118_213] THE APOCALYPSE OF JOHN "Fear not: 18 I am the first and the last and the living one; and I was dead, and lo, I am alive for ever and ever, And I have the keys of death and Hades. 19 Write then what thou hast seen, and what is, and what is to come to pass after this. 20 As for the symbol of the seven stars which thou didst see on my right hand, 21 And the seven golden lampstands : The seven stars are the angels of the seven Communities, And the seven lampstands are the seven Communities. To the angel of the Community in Ephesus write : these things saith he who holds the seven stars in his right hand, 2 'I know thy works and thy labour and thy patience, And that thou canst not bear wicked men, And didst try those who allege themselves to be apostles and are not, and didst find them false; 3 And thou hast patience, and for my name's sake didst bear and hast not grown weary. 4 But I have this against thee: 5 6 Thou hast left thy first love. Remember then where thou hast fallen from, And repent and do the first works; Else I will come to thee and move thy lampstand out of its place, Unless thou repent. Yet thou hast this: Thou hatest the works of the Nikolaitans, which I also hate.' 7 He who has an ear, 8 Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities. 'To him who conquers will I grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.'" And to the angel of the Community in Smyrna write: these things saith the first and the last, who was dead and became alive. 9 'I know thy distress and poverty (but thou art rich), 10 And the slander of those who allege themselves to be Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Fear not what thou art to suffer. Lo, the devil is to throw some of you into prison that you may be tried, Be faithful to death, And I will give thee the wreath of life.' 11 He who has an ear, 12 Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities. 'He who conquers shall not be injured by the second death.' And to the angel of the Community in Pergamos write : 13 'I know where thou dwellest, Where the throne of Satan is; Yet thou holdest fast my name And didst not renounce my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness who was killed among you, Where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against thee: Thou hast some people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, The eating of food offered to idols, and the committing of fornication; 15 Even so thou hast some people who hold to the teaching of the Nikolaitans in the same way. 16 Repent: 1 Else I will come to thee speedily and fight against them with the sword of my mouth.' 17 He who has an ear, 18 Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities. "To him who conquers I will give a share of the hidden manna, Also I will give him a white stone, And written on the stone a new name, Which no one knows save he who receives it.' And to the angel of the Community in Thyatira write : with his eyes like a flame of fire and his feet like burnished brass. 19 'I know thy works, Even thy love and faith and ministry and patience, And that thy last works are more than the first. 20 But I have this against thee: 23 23 Thou dost tolerate the woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess, Teaching and seducing my slaves to commit fornication and to eat food offered to idols. And I have given her time to repent, Yet she refuses to repent of her fornication. Lo, I throw her into a bed, And her adulterers into great distress, unless they repent of her works, And her children I will utterly slay: So all the Communities shall know that I am the searcher of reins and heart, And I will give to each of you according to your works. 24 But to you, to the rest in Thyatira, I say, Even to all who hold not this teaching, Who do not (in their phrase) “know the depths of Satan" I put no other burden on you. Only, hold to what you have, until I come. And as for him who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, I will give him authority over the nations (And he shall shepherd them with a rod of iron, as a potter's vessels are As I also have received it from my Father: 29 He who has an ear, Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities. 1 Omitting cv. 31 And to the angel of the Community in Sardis write: these things saith he who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. 'I know thy works: Thou hast the name of being "alive," And thou art dead. 2 Be wakeful and establish the things that remain, 3 That are on the point of dying, For I have not found thy works completed before God. If thou art not wakeful then, I will come like a thief, Nor shalt thou know at what hour I will come upon thee. 4 Yet thou hast a few souls in Sardis, who have not defiled their gar 5 ments: And they shall walk with me in white, for they are worthy. He who conquers shall thus be clad in white garments, And I will not blot his name out of the book of life, But will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.' 6 He who has an ear, 7 Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities. And to the angel of the Community in Philadelphia write : he who has the key of David, he who opens and none shall shut, and shuts and none shall open. 8 'I know thy works. Lo, I have set before thee an open door, Which none is able to shut. For thou hast little strength, Yet thou didst keep my word and didst not disown my name. 9 Lo, I make those of the synagogue of Satan, who allege they are Jews and are not, but are liars Lo, I will make them come and do reverence before thy feet, And learn that I have loved thee. 10 Because thou didst keep my word of patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of trial, Which is about to come upon the whole world to try the dwellers on the earth. 11 I come speedily: 12 Hold to what thou hast, that no one seize thy wreath. As for him who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, Also, I will write the name of my God on him, And the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, 13 He who has an ear, 14 Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities. And to the angel of the Community in Laodicea write: these things saith the Amen, 15 'I know thy works: Thou art neither cold nor hot- Would thou wert either cold or hot! 16 So, because thou art lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I am soon to vomit thee out of my mouth. 17 Since thou sayest "I am rich and have grown rich and am in need of nothing," And knowest not that thou art the one who is wretched, beggared, blind, and naked 18 I counsel thee to buy from me gold refined out of the furnace, That thou mayest gain riches, And white garments, That thou mayest be clad, and that the shame of thy nakedness be not disclosed, And salve, To rub on thine eyes for sight. 19 Those whom I love, I reprove and chasten: Be zealous therefore and repent. 20 Lo, I stand at the door and knock ! 21 If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and sup with him, and he with me. As for him who conquers, I will grant him to sit down with me upon my throne; As I also conquered, And sat down with my Father upon his throne.' 22 He who has an ear, 4 1 Let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Communities." After this I looked, and lo, a door stood open in heaven! And the voice like a trumpet, which I had heard first talking with me, said, "Come up hither, and I will show thee what must come to pass after 2 this." Immediately I was in the Spirit, And lo, a throne stood in heaven, And one sat on the throne, 3 And he who sat was in appearance like a jasper and sardius stone; And round the throne was a rainbow like an emerald in appearance. 4 And round the throne were four and twenty thrones, And on the thrones four and twenty elders sitting, Clothed in white garments with golden wreaths upon their heads. 5 And out of the throne issue lightnings and voices and thunders, And seven torches of fire were burning before the throne, Which are the seven spirits of God. 6 And before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne and round the throne were four living creatures, full of eyes before and behind : 7 The first creature was like a lion, The second creature like a calf, The third creature had a face like a man's, The fourth creature was like an eagle flying. 8 And the four living creatures, with six wings apiece, are full of eyes round them and inside them; And they cease not day and night to say, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God the almighty, Who was and who is and who is to come.' 9 And whenever the living creatures give 1 praise and honour and thanks To him who sits upon the throne, who lives for ever and ever, 10 The four and twenty elders fall down 11 5 1 Before him who sits upon the throne, And they worship Him who lives for ever and ever, And they cast their wreaths Before the throne, saying, "Worthy art thou, our Lord and God, To take the praise, the honour, and the power: Yea, by thy will they existed and were created." And I saw on the right hand of him who sat upon the throne, a book 2 written inside and on the back, sealed fast with seven seals. Also I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the 3 book and unloose the seals of it?" And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the book or to look at it. 4 And I wept greatly, because no one was found worthy to open the book 5 or to look at it. And one of the elders says to me, Weep not; lo, the lion which is from the tribe of Judah, the scion of David, has con6 quered, so that he can open the book and the seven seals of it." And in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the four and twenty elders, I saw a Lamb standing as if slain, with seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all 7 the earth. And he came and took the book from the right hand of him 8 who sits upon the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense (which is the 9 prayers of the saints). And they sing a new song, saying, 10 "Worthy art thou to take the book And to open the seals of it, For thou wast slain and hast bought for God by thy blood 11 And I looked, and round the throne and the living creatures and the elders, I heard the voice of many angels (and their number was ten 12 thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands), saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb which has been slain, To take the power and riches and wisdom and might 13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, saying, "To him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb Be the blessing and the honour And the majesty and the dominion For ever and ever." 14 And the four living creatures said "Amen," and the elders fell down and worshipped. 1 Reading δώσωσιν. 2 Reading βασιλεύσουσιν. 3 Omitting [[]]. |