Revelation 12–22

12TH CHAPTER

Two Signs

¹A spectacular sign appeared in the sky: There was a woman who was dressed in the sun, who had the moon under her feet and a crown of 12 stars on her head. ²She was pregnant. She cried out from labor pains and the agony of giving birth. 

³Another sign appeared in the sky: a huge fiery red serpent with seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns on its heads. ⁴Its tail swept away one-third of the stars in the sky and threw them down to earth. The serpent stood in front of the woman who was going to give birth so that it could devour her child when it was born. ⁵She gave birth to a son, a boy, who is to rule all the nations with an iron scepter. Her child was snatched away and taken to God and to his throne. ⁶Then the woman fled into the wilderness where God had prepared a place for her so that she might be taken care of for 1,260 days. 

⁷Then a war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels had to fight a war with the serpent. The serpent and its angels fought. ⁸But it was not strong enough, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. ⁹The huge serpent was thrown down. That ancient snake, named Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world, was thrown down to earth. Its angels were thrown down with it. 

¹⁰Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, 

“Now the salvation, power, kingdom of our God, 

and the authority of his Messiah have come. 

The one accusing our brothers and sisters, 

the one accusing them day and night in the presence of our God, 

has been thrown out. 

¹¹They won the victory over him because of the blood of the lamb 

and the word of their testimony. 

They didn’t love their life so much that they refused to give it up. 

¹²Be glad for this reason, heavens and those who live in them. 

How horrible it is for the earth and the sea 

because the Devil has come down to them with fierce anger, 

knowing that he has little time left.” 

¹³When the serpent saw that it had been thrown down to earth, it persecuted the woman who had given birth to the boy. ¹⁴The woman was given the two wings of the large eagle in order to fly away from the snake to her place in the wilderness, where she could be taken care of for a time, times, and half a time. ¹⁵The snake’s mouth poured out a river of water behind the woman in order to sweep her away. ¹⁶The earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river which had poured out of the serpent’s mouth. ¹⁷The serpent became angry with the woman. So it went away to fight with her other children, the ones who keep God’s commands and hold on to the testimony of Jesus. 

¹⁸The serpent stood on the sandy shore of the sea.^a

13TH CHAPTER

The Beast from the Sea

¹I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns, seven heads, and ten crowns on its horns. There were insulting names on its heads. ²The beast that I saw was like a leopard. Its feet were like bear’s feet. Its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. The serpent gave its power, kingdom, and far-reaching authority to the beast. ³One of the beast’s heads looked like it had a fatal wound, but its fatal wound was healed. 

All the people of the world were amazed and followed the beast. ⁴They worshiped the serpent because it had given authority to the beast. They also worshiped the beast and said, “Who is like the beast? Who can fight a war with it?” ⁵The beast was allowed to speak arrogant and insulting things. It was given authority to act for 42 months. ⁶It opened its mouth to insult God, to insult his name and his tent—those who are living in heaven. ⁷It was allowed to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. It was also given authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation. ⁸Everyone living on earth will worship it, everyone whose name is not written in the Book of Life. That book belongs to the lamb who was slaughtered before the creation of the world. 

⁹If anyone has ears, let him listen: 

¹⁰If anyone is taken prisoner, he must go to prison. 

If anyone is killed with a sword, with a sword he must be killed. 

In this situation God’s holy people need endurance and confidence. 

The Beast from the Earth

¹¹I saw another beast come from the earth, and it had two horns like a lamb. It talked like a serpent. ¹²The second beast uses all the authority of the first beast in its presence. The second beast makes the earth and those living on it worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. ¹³The second beast performs spectacular signs. It even makes fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people. ¹⁴It deceives those living on earth with the signs that it is allowed to do in front of the ⸤first⸥ beast. It tells those living on earth to make a statue for the beast who was wounded by a sword and yet lived. 

¹⁵The second beast was allowed to put breath into the statue of the ⸤first⸥ beast. Then the statue of the ⸤first⸥ beast could talk and put to death whoever would not worship it. ¹⁶The second beast forces all people—important and unimportant people, rich and poor people, free people and slaves—to be branded on their right hands or on their foreheads. ¹⁷It does this so that no one may buy or sell unless he has the brand, which is the beast’s name or the number of its name. 

¹⁸In this situation wisdom is needed. Let the person who has insight figure out the number of the beast, because it is a human number.^aThe beast’s number is 666. 

14TH CHAPTER

The New Song on Mount Zion

¹I looked, and the lamb was standing on Mount Zion. There were 144,000 people with him who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. ²Then I heard a sound from heaven like the noise of raging water and the noise of loud thunder. The sound I heard was like the music played by harpists. ³They were singing a new song in front of the throne, the four living creatures, and the leaders. Only the 144,000 people who had been bought on earth could learn the song. 

⁴These 144,000 virgins are pure. They follow the lamb wherever he goes. They were bought from among humanity as the first ones offered to God and to the lamb. ⁵They’ve never told a lie. They are blameless. 

The Harvest of the Earth

⁶I saw another angel flying overhead with the everlasting Good News to spread to those who live on earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. ⁷The angel said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the time has come for him to judge. Worship the one who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs.” 

⁸Another angel, a second one, followed him, and said, “Fallen! Babylon the Great has fallen! She has made all the nations drink the wine of her passionate sexual sins.” 

⁹Another angel, a third one, followed them, and said in a loud voice, “Whoever worships the beast or its statue, whoever is branded on his forehead or his hand, ¹⁰will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured unmixed into the cup of God’s anger. Then he will be tortured by fiery sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the lamb. ¹¹The smoke from their torture will go up forever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast or its statue, or for anyone branded with its name.” ¹²In this situation God’s holy people, who obey his commands and keep their faith in Jesus, need endurance. 

¹³I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: From now on those who die believing in the Lord are blessed.” 

“Yes,” says the Spirit. “Let them rest from their hard work. What they have done goes with them.” 

¹⁴Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and on the cloud sat someone who was like the Son of Man. He had a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. ¹⁵Another angel came out of the temple. He cried out in a loud voice to the one who sat on the cloud, “Swing your sickle, and gather the harvest. The time has come to gather it, because the harvest on the earth is overripe.” 

¹⁶The one who sat on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the harvesting of the earth was completed. 

¹⁷Another angel came out of the temple in heaven. He, too, had a sharp sickle. ¹⁸Yet another angel came from the altar with authority over fire. This angel called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sickle, and gather the bunches of grapes from the vine of the earth, because those grapes are ripe.” ¹⁹The angel swung his sickle on the earth and gathered the grapes from the vine of the earth. He threw them into the winepress of God’s anger. ²⁰The grapes were trampled in the winepress outside the city. Blood flowed out of the winepress as high as a horse’s bridle for 1,600 stadia.^a

15TH CHAPTER

Seven Angels with Seven Plagues

¹I saw another sign in heaven. It was spectacular and amazing. There were seven angels with the last seven plagues which are the final expression of God’s anger. 

²Then I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire. Those who had won the victory over the beast, its statue, and the number of its name were standing on the glassy sea. They were holding God’s harps ³and singing the song of God’s servant Moses and the song of the lamb. They sang, 

“The things you do are spectacular and amazing, Lord God Almighty. 

The way you do them is fair and true, King of the Nations. 

⁴Lord, who won’t fear and praise your name? 

You are the only holy one, 

and all the nations will come to worship you 

because they know about your fair judgments.” 

⁵After these things I looked, and I saw that the temple of the tent containing the words of God’s promise was open in heaven. ⁶The seven angels with the seven plagues came out of the temple wearing clean, shining linen with gold belts around their waists. ⁷One of the four living creatures gave seven gold bowls full of the anger of God, who lives forever and ever, to the seven angels. ⁸The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and his power. No one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels came to an end. 

16TH CHAPTER

The Seven Angels Pour Out…