Revelation 1 - English Standard Version (ESV)

Prologue

1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God (A)gave him (B)to show to his servants[a] the things that must soon take place. (C)He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 (D)who bore witness to the word of God and to (E)the testimony of Jesus Christ, even (F)to all that he saw. 3 (G)Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, (H)for the time is near.

Greeting to the Seven Churches

4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia:

Grace to you and peace from (I)him (J)who is and (K)who was and who is to come, and from (L)the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ (M)the faithful witness, (N)the firstborn of the dead, and (O)the ruler of kings on earth.

To (P)him who loves us and (Q)has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us (R)a kingdom, (S)priests to (T)his God and Father, to him be (U)glory and (V)dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, (W)he is coming with the clouds, and (X)every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail[b] on account of him. Even so. Amen.

8 (Y)“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, (Z)“who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Vision of the Son of Man

9 I, John, your brother and (AA)partner in (AB)the tribulation and (AC)the kingdom and (AD)the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos (AE)on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 (AF)I was in the Spirit (AG)on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice (AH)like a trumpet 11 saying, (AI)“Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”

12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw (AJ)seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the lampstands (AK)one like (AL)a son of man, (AM)clothed with a long robe and (AN)with a golden sash around his chest. 14 (AO)The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. (AP)His eyes were like a flame of fire, 15 (AQ)his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and (AR)his voice was like the roar of many waters. 16 (AS)In his right hand he held seven stars, (AT)from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and (AU)his face was like the sun shining (AV)in full strength.

17 (AW)When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But (AX)he laid his right hand on me, (AY)saying, “Fear not, (AZ)I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. (BA)I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and (BB)I have the keys of Death and Hades. 19 (BC)Write therefore (BD)the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. 20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and (BE)the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and (BF)the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 1:1 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface; likewise for servant later in this verse
  2. Revelation 1:7 Or mourn

Cross references

  1. Revelation 1:1 : John 17:7, 8; [John 8:26; 14:10]
  2. Revelation 1:1 : ch. 22:6
  3. Revelation 1:1 : ch. 22:16
  4. Revelation 1:2 : John 19:35
  5. Revelation 1:2 : ch. 6:9; 12:17; 19:10; See 1 Cor. 1:6
  6. Revelation 1:2 : ver. 11, 19
  7. Revelation 1:3 : ch. 22:7; [Luke 11:28; John 8:51; 1 John 2:3]
  8. Revelation 1:3 : ch. 22:10; [1 John 2:18]; See Rom. 13:11
  9. Revelation 1:4 : ver. 8; ch. 4:8; Heb. 13:8
  10. Revelation 1:4 : Ex. 3:14 (Gk.)
  11. Revelation 1:4 : John 1:1
  12. Revelation 1:4 : ch. 3:1; 4:5; 5:6
  13. Revelation 1:5 : ch. 3:14; John 18:37; 1 Tim. 6:13; [ch. 2:13; Ps. 89:37; Isa. 55:4]
  14. Revelation 1:5 : Col. 1:18; [Ps. 89:27; Acts 26:23; 1 Cor. 15:20]
  15. Revelation 1:5 : ch. 17:14; 19:16; [Ps. 89:27]
  16. Revelation 1:5 : John 13:34; 15:9
  17. Revelation 1:5 : 1 Pet. 1:18, 19
  18. Revelation 1:6 : ch. 5:10; 20:6; 1 Pet. 2:9
  19. Revelation 1:6 : ch. 5:10; 20:6; 1 Pet. 2:9
  20. Revelation 1:6 : See Rom. 15:6
  21. Revelation 1:6 : See Rom. 11:36
  22. Revelation 1:6 : 1 Pet. 4:11
  23. Revelation 1:7 : Dan. 7:13; See Matt. 16:27
  24. Revelation 1:7 : Zech. 12:10; John 19:37
  25. Revelation 1:8 : ch. 21:6; 22:13; [Isa. 41:4; 43:10; 44:6]
  26. Revelation 1:8 : ver. 4
  27. Revelation 1:9 : [Phil. 4:14]
  28. Revelation 1:9 : John 16:33
  29. Revelation 1:9 : 2 Tim. 2:12
  30. Revelation 1:9 : ch. 3:10
  31. Revelation 1:9 : See ver. 2
  32. Revelation 1:10 : ch. 4:2; [ch. 17:3; 21:10; 1 Kgs. 18:12; Ezek. 3:12; Matt. 22:43; 2 Cor. 12:2]
  33. Revelation 1:10 : Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2
  34. Revelation 1:10 : ch. 4:1
  35. Revelation 1:11 : ver. 2, 19
  36. Revelation 1:12 : ver. 20; ch. 2:1; Ex. 25:37; 2 Chr. 4:20; Zech. 4:2; [ch. 11:4]
  37. Revelation 1:13 : Dan. 7:13
  38. Revelation 1:13 : ch. 14:14; Dan. 10:16
  39. Revelation 1:13 : Dan. 10:5
  40. Revelation 1:13 : ch. 15:6
  41. Revelation 1:14 : Dan. 7:9
  42. Revelation 1:14 : ch. 2:18; 19:12; [Dan. 10:6]
  43. Revelation 1:15 : Ezek. 1:7; Dan. 10:6
  44. Revelation 1:15 : ch. 14:2; 19:6; Ezek. 43:2
  45. Revelation 1:16 : ver. 20; ch. 2:1; 3:1
  46. Revelation 1:16 : ch. 19:15; [ch. 2:12, 16; Isa. 49:2; Eph. 6:17; Heb. 4:12]
  47. Revelation 1:16 : Matt. 17:2
  48. Revelation 1:16 : Judg. 5:31
  49. Revelation 1:17 : Dan. 8:17, 18; 10:9, 10, 15; [Luke 24:37; John 21:12]
  50. Revelation 1:17 : Dan. 8:17, 18; 10:9, 10, 15; [Luke 24:37; John 21:12]
  51. Revelation 1:17 : Matt. 17:7
  52. Revelation 1:17 : ch. 2:8; 22:13; Isa. 41:4; 44:6; 48:12
  53. Revelation 1:18 : Rom. 6:9; 14:9
  54. Revelation 1:18 : [ch. 9:1; 20:1]
  55. Revelation 1:19 : ver. 2, 11
  56. Revelation 1:19 : ver. 12-16
  57. Revelation 1:20 : See ver. 12
  58. Revelation 1:20 : [Matt. 5:14, 15]

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