The Woman and the Dragon

12 A great and miraculous sign appeared in heaven. It was a woman wearing the sun like clothes. The moon was under her feet. On her head she wore a crown of 12 stars. 2She was pregnant. She cried out in pain because she was about to have a baby.

3Then another sign appeared in heaven. It was a huge red dragon. He had seven heads and ten horns. On his seven heads he wore seven crowns. 4His tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky. It threw them down to earth.

The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to have a baby. He wanted to eat her child the moment it was born.

5She gave birth to a son. He will rule all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was taken up to God and to his throne.

6The woman escaped into the desert where God had a place prepared for her. There she would be taken care of for 1,260 days.

7There was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But the dragon wasn’t strong enough. He and his angels lost their place in heaven.

9The great dragon was thrown down to the earth, and his angels with him. The dragon is that old serpent called the devil, or Satan. He leads the whole world down the wrong path.

10Then I heard a loud voice in heaven. It said,

“Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God have come.

The authority of his Christ has come.

Satan, who brings charges against our brothers and sisters,

has been thrown down.

He brings charges against them before our God day and night.

11 They overcame him

because the Lamb gave his life’s blood for them.

They overcame him

by giving witness about Jesus to others.

They were willing to risk their lives,

even if it led to death.

12 So be joyful, you heavens!

Be glad, all you who live there!

But how terrible it will be for the earth and the sea!

The devil has come down to you.

He is very angry.

He knows his time is short.”

13The dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth. So he chased the woman who had given birth to the boy.

14The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle so that she could fly away. She could fly to the place prepared for her in the desert. There she would be taken care of for three and a half years. She would be out of the serpent’s reach.

15Then the serpent spit water like a river out of his mouth. He wanted to catch her and sweep her away in the flood. 16But the earth helped the woman. It opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had spit out.

17The dragon was very angry with the woman. He went off to make war against the rest of her children. They obey God’s commands and hold firmly to what Jesus has said. 13 The dragon stood on the seashore.

The Beast out of the Sea

I saw a beast coming out of the sea. He had ten horns and seven heads. There were ten crowns on his horns. On each head was an evil name that was displeasing to God.

2The beast I saw looked like a leopard. But he had feet like a bear and a mouth like a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power, his throne, and great authority. 3One of the beast’s heads seemed to have had a deadly wound. But the wound had been healed. The whole world was amazed and followed the beast.

4People worshiped the dragon, because he had given authority to the beast. They also worshiped the beast. They asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?”

5The beast was given a mouth to brag and speak evil things against God. The beast was allowed to use his authority for 42 months. 6He opened his mouth to speak evil things against God. He told lies about God’s character and about the place where God lives and about those who live in heaven with him. 7He was allowed to make war against God’s people and to overcome them. He was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.

8All who live on earth whose names have not been written in the Book of Life will worship the beast. The Book of Life belongs to the Lamb whose death was planned before the world was created.

9Everyone who has ears should listen.

10 Everyone who is supposed to be captured

will be captured.

Everyone who is supposed to be killed with a sword

will be killed with a sword.

So God’s people must be patient and faithful.

The Beast out of the Earth

11Then I saw another beast. This one came out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb. But he spoke like a dragon. 12He had all the authority of the first beast. He did what that beast wanted. He made the earth and all who live on it worship the first beast. The first beast was the one whose deadly wound had been healed.

13The second beast did great and miraculous signs. He even made fire come from heaven. It came down to earth where everyone could see it. 14He did the signs the first beast wanted him to do. In that way the second beast tricked those who live on the earth. He ordered them to set up a statue to honor the first beast.

The first beast was the one who had been wounded by the sword and still lived.

15The second beast was allowed to give breath to the statue so it could speak. He was allowed to kill all who refused to worship the statue. 16He also forced everyone to receive a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. People great or small, rich or poor, free or slave had to receive the mark. 17They could not buy or sell anything unless they had the mark. The mark is the name of the beast or the number of his name.

18Here is a problem that you have to be wise to figure out. If you can, figure out what the beast’s number means. It is man’s number. His number is 666.

The Lamb and the 144,000

14 I looked, and there in front of me was the Lamb. He was standing on Mount Zion. With him were 144,000 people. Written on their foreheads were his name and his Father’s name.

2I heard a sound from heaven. It was like the roar of rushing waters and loud thunder. The sound I heard was like the music of harps being played.

3Then everyone sang a new song in front of the throne. They sang it in front of the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000. They had been set free from the evil of the earth.

4They had not committed sexual sins with women. They had kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among people as a first offering to God and the Lamb. 5Their mouths told no lies. They are without blame.

The Three Angels

6I saw another angel. He was flying high in the air. He came to tell everyone on earth the good news that will always be true. He told it to every nation, tribe, language and people. 7In a loud voice he said, “Have respect for God. Give him glory. The hour has come for God to judge. Worship him who made the heavens and the earth. Worship him who made the sea and the springs of water.”

8A second angel followed him. He said, “Fallen! Babylon the Great has fallen! The city of Babylon made all the nations drink the strong wine of her terrible sins.”

9A third angel followed them. He said in a loud voice, “Watch out, all you who worship the beast and his statue! Watch out, all you who have his mark on your forehead or your hand! 10You, too, will drink the wine of God’s great anger. His wine has been poured full strength into the cup of his anger. You will be burned with flaming sulfur. The holy angels and the Lamb will see it happen. 11The smoke of your terrible suffering will rise for ever and ever. Day and night, there is no rest for you who worship the beast and his statue. There is no rest for you who receive the mark of his name.”

12God’s people need to be very patient. They are the ones who obey God’s commands. They remain faithful to Jesus.

13Then I heard a voice from heaven. “Write this,” it said. “Blessed are the dead who die as believers in the Lord from now on.”

“Yes,” says the Holy Spirit. “They will rest from their labor. What they have done will not be forgotten.”

The Harvest of the Earth

14I looked, and there in front of me was a white cloud. Sitting on the cloud was One who looked “like a son of man.” (Daniel 7:13) He wore a gold crown on his head. In his hand was a sharp, curved blade for cutting grain.

15Then another angel came out of the temple. He called in a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud. “Take your blade,” he said. “Cut the grain. The time has come. The earth is ready to be harvested.”

16So the one sitting on the cloud swung his blade over the earth. And the earth was harvested.

17Another angel came out of the temple in heaven. He too had a sharp, curved blade. 18Still another angel came from the altar. He was in charge of the fire on the altar. He called out in a loud voice to the angel who had the sharp blade. “Take your blade,” he said, “and gather the bunches of grapes from the earth’s vine. Its grapes are ripe.”

19So the angel swung his blade over the earth. He gathered its grapes. Then he threw them into a huge winepress. The winepress stands for God’s anger.

20In the winepress outside the city, the grapes were stomped on. Blood flowed out of the pit. It spread over the land for about 180 miles. It rose as high as the horses’ heads.