¹⁷ When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. He put his right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. ¹⁸ I am the One who lives; I was dead, but ·look [^Tbehold], I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys to death and ·to the place of the dead [^LHades].