Revelation 10–11

The Angel and the Small Scroll

10Then I saw another powerful angel coming down from heaven dressed in a cloud with a rainbow over his head. His face was like the sun, and his legs were like pillars of fire. ²The angel was holding a small scroll open in his hand. He put his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land. ³Then he shouted loudly like the roaring of a lion. And when he shouted, the voices of seven thunders spoke. ⁴When the seven thunders spoke, I started to write. But I heard a voice from heaven say, “Keep hidden what the seven thunders said, and do not write them down.”

⁵Then the angel I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven, ⁶and he made a promise by the power of the One who lives forever and ever. He is the One who made the skies and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it. The angel promised, “There will be no more waiting! ⁷In the days when the seventh angel is ready to blow his trumpet, God’s secret will be finished. This secret is the Good News God told to his servants, the prophets.”

⁸Then I heard the same voice from heaven again, saying to me: “Go and take the open scroll that is in the hand of the angel that is standing on the sea and on the land.”

⁹So I went to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll. And he said to me, “Take the scroll and eat it. It will be sour in your stomach, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” ¹⁰So I took the small scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. In my mouth it tasted sweet as honey, but after I ate it, it was sour in my stomach. ¹¹Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”

The Two Witnesses

11I was given a measuring stick like a rod, and I was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, and count the people worshiping there. ²But do not measure the yard outside the temple. Leave it alone, because it has been given to those who are not God’s people. And they will trample on the holy city for forty-two months. ³And I will give power to my two witnesses to prophesy for one thousand two hundred sixty days, and they will be dressed in rough cloth to show their sadness.”

⁴These two witnesses are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. ⁵And if anyone tries to hurt them, fire comes from their mouths and kills their enemies. And if anyone tries to hurt them in whatever way, in that same way that person will die. ⁶These witnesses have the power to stop the sky from raining during the time they are prophesying. And they have power to make the waters become blood, and they have power to send every kind of trouble to the earth as many times as they want.

⁷When the two witnesses have finished telling their message, the beast that comes up from the bottomless pit will fight a war against them. He will defeat them and kill them. ⁸The bodies of the two witnesses will lie in the street of the great city where the Lord was killed. This city is named Sodom ⁿ and Egypt, which has a spiritual meaning. ⁹Those from every race of people, tribe, language, and nation will look at the bodies of the two witnesses for three and one-half days, and they will refuse to bury them. ¹⁰People who live on the earth will rejoice and be happy because these two are dead. They will send each other gifts, because these two prophets brought much suffering to those who live on the earth.

¹¹But after three and one-half days, God put the breath of life into the two prophets again. They stood on their feet, and everyone who saw them became very afraid. ¹²Then the two prophets heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Come up here!” And they went up into heaven in a cloud as their enemies watched.

¹³In the same hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city was destroyed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and those who did not die were very afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.

¹⁴The second trouble is finished. Pay attention: The third trouble is coming soon.

The Seventh Trumpet

¹⁵Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet. And there were loud voices in heaven, saying:

“The power to rule the world now belongs to our Lord and his Christ,

and he will rule forever and ever.”

¹⁶Then the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, bowed down on their faces and worshiped God. ¹⁷They said:

“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,

who is and who was,

because you have used your great power

and have begun to rule!

¹⁸The people of the world were angry,

but your anger has come.

The time has come to judge the dead,

and to reward your servants the prophets

and your holy people,

all who respect you, great and small.

The time has come to destroy those who destroy the earth!”

¹⁹Then God’s temple in heaven was opened. The Ark that holds the agreement God gave to his people could be seen in his temple. Then there were flashes of lightning, noises, thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.