Fifth Seal: The Cry of the Martyrs

9 When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under rthe altar sthe souls of those who had been slain tfor the word of God and for uthe testimony which they held. 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, v“How long, O Lord, wholy and true, xuntil You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then a ywhite robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them zthat they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.

Sixth Seal: Cosmic Disturbances

12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, aand 7behold, there was a great earthquake; and bthe sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the 8moon became like blood. 13 cAnd the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. 14 dThen the sky 9receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and eevery mountain and island was moved out of its place. 15 And the fkings of the earth, the great men, 1the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, ghid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 16 hand said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who isits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of His wrath has come, jand who is able to stand?”

The Sealed of Israel

7 After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, aholding the four winds of the earth, bthat the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree. 2 Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, 3 saying, c“Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God don their foreheads.” 4 eAnd I heard the number of those who were sealed. fOne hundred and forty-four thousand gof all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed:

5 of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand were 1sealed;

of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand were sealed;

6 of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand were sealed;

7 of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand were sealed;

8 of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand were sealed;

of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand were sealed.

A Multitude from the Great Tribulation

9 After these things I looked, and behold, ha great multitude which no one could number, iof all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, jclothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, k“Salvation belongs to our God lwho sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 mAll the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and nworshiped God, 12 osaying:

“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom,

Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,

Be to our God forever and ever.

Amen.”

13 Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in pwhite robes, and where did they come from?”

14 And I said to him, 2“Sir, you know.”

So he said to me, q“These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and rwashed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will sdwell among them. 16 tThey shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; uthe sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; 17 for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne vwill shepherd them and lead them to 3living fountains of waters. wAnd God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”