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Revelation 1
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Revelation 1
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Introduction and Salutation
1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants what must soon take place; and he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is he who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written therein; for the time is near.
4 John to the seven churches that are in Asia:[a]
Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, every one who pierced him; and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
A Vision of Christ
9 I John, your brother, who share with you in Jesus the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet 11 saying, “Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Per′gamum and to Thyati′ra and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to La-odice′a.”
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man,[b] clothed with a long robe and with a golden girdle round his breast; 14 his head and his hair were white as white wool, white as snow; his eyes were like a flame of fire, 15 his feet were like burnished bronze, refined as in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of many waters; 16 in his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth issued a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand upon me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one; I died, and behold I am alive for evermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. 19 Now write what you see, what is and what is to take place hereafter. 20 As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
Revelation 1
New International Version
Revelation 1
New International Version
Prologue
1 The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave(A) him to show his servants what must soon take place.(B) He made it known by sending his angel(C) to his servant John,(D) 2 who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God(E) and the testimony of Jesus Christ.(F) 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it,(G) because the time is near.(H)
Greetings and Doxology
4 John,
To the seven churches(I) in the province of Asia:
Grace and peace to you(J) from him who is, and who was, and who is to come,(K) and from the seven spirits[a](L) before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness,(M) the firstborn from the dead,(N) and the ruler of the kings of the earth.(O)
To him who loves us(P) and has freed us from our sins by his blood,(Q) 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests(R) to serve his God and Father(S)—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.(T)
7 “Look, he is coming with the clouds,”[b](U)
and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”;(V)
and all peoples on earth “will mourn(W) because of him.”[c]
So shall it be! Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,”(X) says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come,(Y) the Almighty.”(Z)
John’s Vision of Christ
9 I, John,(AA) your brother and companion in the suffering(AB) and kingdom(AC) and patient endurance(AD) that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God(AE) and the testimony of Jesus.(AF) 10 On the Lord’s Day(AG) I was in the Spirit,(AH) and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,(AI) 11 which said: “Write on a scroll what you see(AJ) and send it to the seven churches:(AK) to Ephesus,(AL) Smyrna,(AM) Pergamum,(AN) Thyatira,(AO) Sardis,(AP) Philadelphia(AQ) and Laodicea.”(AR)
12 I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands,(AS) 13 and among the lampstands(AT) was someone like a son of man,[d](AU) dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet(AV) and with a golden sash around his chest.(AW) 14 The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire.(AX) 15 His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace,(AY) and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.(AZ) 16 In his right hand he held seven stars,(BA) and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword.(BB) His face was like the sun(BC) shining in all its brilliance.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet(BD) as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me(BE) and said: “Do not be afraid.(BF) I am the First and the Last.(BG) 18 I am the Living One; I was dead,(BH) and now look, I am alive for ever and ever!(BI) And I hold the keys of death and Hades.(BJ)
19 “Write, therefore, what you have seen,(BK) what is now and what will take place later. 20 The mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand(BL) and of the seven golden lampstands(BM) is this: The seven stars are the angels[e] of the seven churches,(BN) and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.(BO)
Footnotes
- Revelation 1:4 That is, the sevenfold Spirit
- Revelation 1:7 Daniel 7:13
- Revelation 1:7 Zech. 12:10
- Revelation 1:13 See Daniel 7:13.
- Revelation 1:20 Or messengers
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.