John to the seven churches in Asia: spiritual blessing and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven spirits that are before His throne,

The open secret of the seven stars that you have seen in my right hand, and of the seven golden lampstands, is this: The seven stars are the messengers of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

You are showing patient endurance, and you have borne it for my sake, and have not grown weary.

But you have it to your credit that you hate what the Nicolaitans are doing, as I do too.

"I know your pressing trouble and poverty, but still you are rich; I know how you are abused by those who claim to be Jews although they are not, but are only a synagogue of Satan.

Do not be so afraid of what you are to suffer. See! The devil is going to throw some of you into prison to be tested there and for ten days to suffer pressing troubles. Each one of you must prove to be faithful, even if you have to die, and I will give you the crown of life.

"I know where you live, where Satan has his throne. Yet you are clinging to my name and have never renounced your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful martyred witness, who was put to death among you, right where Satan lives,

Yet I hold it somewhat against you that you have among you some who are clinging to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to set a trap for the children of Israel, to entice them to eat the meat that had been sacrificed to idols and to commit immoral practices.

And you also have among you some who are clinging to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

"To the messenger of the church in Thyatira write: 'The Son of God, whose eyes are like coals of fire, and whose feet are like bronze refined to white heat, speaks as follows:

"I know what you are doing, I know your love and faithfulness, your service and patient endurance, and I know that you are now working harder than you did at first.

But I hold it against you that you are tolerating that Jezebel of a woman who claims to be a prophetess, and by her teaching is misleading my slaves to practice immorality and to eat meat that has been sacrificed to idols.

"To the messenger of the church at Sardis write: 'The One who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars speaks as follows: "I know what you are doing; you have the reputation of being alive, but in reality you are dead.

"I know what you are doing. See! I have put before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have but little strength, and yet you have obeyed my message and you have not disowned my name.

I will make some, who claim to be Jews although they are not, but are lying -- I will make them come and fall at your feet and find out that I have loved you.

"I know what you are doing, and that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot.

As it is, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of my mouth.

Because you say, 'I am rich, I have already become rich, I need nothing,' and you do not know that you are the very one that is wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked;

And the four living creatures have each of them six wings, and they are dotted with eyes all around and beneath the wings. And day and night they never cease saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and is and is to come."

"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to have ascribed to you the glory, honor, and power; for you created everything, And since you willed it so, they came into existence and were created."

Then I saw, midway between the throne and the four living creatures, standing among the elders, a Lamb that looked as though He had been slaughtered. He had seven horns and seven eyes; the latter are the seven spirits of God which are sent on duty to every portion of the earth.

Then one of the elders addressed me and said, "Who are these people clothed in white robes, and where did they come from?"

I answered him, "You know, my lord." He said to me: "These are the people who are coming through the great persecution, who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

This is why they are before the throne of God, and day and night serve Him in His temple, and He who is seated on His throne will shelter them in His tent.

Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in mid-air say in a loud voice, "Alas! Alas! Alas for the inhabitants of the earth because of the remaining blasts of the three angels who are going to blow their trumpets!"

The first woe is past. See! Two other woes are yet to come.

say to the sixth angel who had the trumpet: "Turn loose the four angels that are bound at the river Euphrates."

They are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.

saying: "We give you thanks, Lord God Almighty, who are and were, because you have assumed your great power and begun to reign.

These are the men who have not been defiled by relations with women, for they are as pure as virgins, These are the men who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been redeemed from among men as the first fruits for God and the Lamb,

and they have never been known to tell a lie with their lips; they are blameless.

Then I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write: 'Blessed are the dead who from this time die as Christians.'" "Yes," says the Spirit, "let them rest from their toils, for the things they have done are going with them."

And another angel came from the altar, who had power over the fire, and he called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, "Put forth your sharp sickle, and gather the bunches of grapes from the earth's vine, because its grapes are fully ripe."

Then I saw another symbol in heaven, great and wonderful: seven angels bringing seven plagues which are to be the last, because with them God's wrath is completely expressed.

And they were singing the song of Moses, the slave of God, and the song of the Lamb: "Great and wonderful are your works, Lord God, Almighty One; upright and true your ways, O King of the ages.

Who will not fear and glorify your name, O Lord? For you alone are holy. All the nations will come and worship you, because the justice of your sentences has now been shown."

Then I heard the angel of the waters say: "You are just in passing such a sentence, you who are and were, you the Holy One.

And I heard the altar say, "Yes, Lord God Almighty! Your sentences are true and just."

They are the spirits of demons that perform wonders, and they go forth to the kings of the whole world, to muster them for battle on the great day of the Almighty God.

but the angel said to me: "Why are you astonished? I will tell you the symbolical meaning of the woman, and the wild beast with seven heads and ten horns, that carries her.

Here is scope for a mind that is packed with wisdom. The seven heads are the seven hills on which the woman is seated.

There are also seven kings; five have fallen, one is on the throne, the other has not yet come, and when he does he must stay but a little while,

The ten horns that you saw are ten kings, who have not yet become kings, but for a single hour they accept authority as kings allied with the wild beast.

He also said to me: "The waters that you saw, on which the prostitute was seated, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages.

For God has put it into their hearts to carry out His purpose by giving up their authority to the wild beast until God's words are carried out.

For her sins are piled clear up to heaven, and God has remembered the wrongs which she has done.

because His judgments are true and just. Because He has passed judgment on the notorious prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and for the blood of His slaves He has taken vengeance upon her!"

Then he said to me, "Write, 'Blessed are they who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.' These," he said to me, "are the true words of God."

Then he hurled him into the abyss, closed it, and sealed it over him, to keep him from leading the nations astray anymore, until the thousand years are at an end; after that he must be let loose a little while.

He will go forth to lead astray the nations that are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, and to muster them for battle, and their number will be like the sands of the seashore.

Then the devil who led them astray was hurled into the fiery lake of burning brimstone, where the wild beast and false prophet were, and there they are to be tortured day and night forever and ever.

Then He who was seated on the throne said, "See! I am making everything new." He continued, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true."

I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty Himself and the Lamb Himself are its temple.

Nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices abominable living and lying, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life.

Then he said to me: "These words are trustworthy and true; the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show His slaves what must soon take place.

"See! I am coming soon, and my rewards are with me, to repay each one just as his work has been.

Blessed are those who wash their robes, so as to have a right to the tree of life and to enter the gates of the city.

The dogs, that is, those who practice magic and immorality, murderers, idolaters, and those who love and practice lying, are on the outside.

I warn everyone who hears the words of prophecy contained in this book that if anyone adds anything to it, God will add to him the plagues that are described in this book;

and if anyone subtracts from it some of the words of this prophetic book, God will subtract from him his share in the tree of life and the holy city which are described in this book.