1This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,[ † ]John 3:32Revelation 22:6 2who testifies to everything he saw. This is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.[ † ]1 Corinthians 1:61 John 1:1
3Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and obey what is written in it, because the time is near.[ † ]Luke 11:28Revelation 22:7James 5:8Revelation 22:10
4John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven spirits before His throne,[ † ]Exodus 3:14John 1:1Isaiah 11:2Zechariah 3:9Revelation 3:1Revelation 4:5Revelation 5:6
5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by His blood,[ † ]John 8:14Proverbs 14:5Isaiah 55:4Psalms 89:271 Corinthians 15:20Colossians 1:18Revelation 17:14John 13:34Hebrews 9:14 6who has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and power forever and ever! Amen.[ † ]1 Peter 2:5-91 Timothy 6:16
7Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him—even those who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. So shall it be! Amen.[ † ]Matthew 24:30Zechariah 12:10-14John 19:37
8“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and was and is to come—the Almighty.[ † ]Isaiah 41:4Revelation 21:6Revelation 22:13Revelation 4:8Revelation 11:17Isaiah 9:6
9I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance that are in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and my testimony about Jesus.[ † ]Philippians 1:7Romans 8:172 Timothy 2:12 10On the Lord’s day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,[ † ]Acts 10:10Acts 20:7Revelation 4:1 11saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
12Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned, I saw seven golden lampstands,[ † ]Exodus 25:37Zechariah 4:2Revelation 1:20Revelation 2:1 13and among the lampstands was One like the Son of Man, dressed in a long robe, with a golden sash around His chest.[ † ]Revelation 2:1Ezekiel 1:26Daniel 7:13Daniel 10:16Revelation 14:14Daniel 10:5Revelation 15:6 14The hair of His head was white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes were like a blazing fire.[ † ]Daniel 7:9Daniel 10:6Revelation 2:18Revelation 19:12 15His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace, and His voice was like the roar of many waters.[ † ]Ezekiel 1:7Daniel 10:6Revelation 2:18Ezekiel 1:24Ezekiel 43:2Revelation 14:2Revelation 19:6 16He held in His right hand seven stars, and a sharp double-edged sword came from His mouth. His face was like the sun shining at its brightest.[ † ]Revelation 1:20Revelation 2:1Revelation 3:1Isaiah 49:2Hebrews 4:12Revelation 2:12-16Revelation 19:15Matthew 17:2Acts 26:13Revelation 10:1
17When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last,[ † ]Ezekiel 1:28Daniel 8:18Daniel 10:10-12Isaiah 41:4Isaiah 44:6Isaiah 48:12Revelation 2:8Revelation 22:13 18the Living One. I was dead, and behold, now I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of Death and of Hades.[ † ]Romans 6:9Revelation 2:8Revelation 10:6Revelation 15:7Revelation 4:9Psalms 68:20
19Therefore write down the things you have seen, the things that are, and the things that will happen after this.[ † ]Revelation 1:9-18Revelation 2:1John 16:13Revelation 4:1 20This is the mystery of the seven stars you saw in My right hand and of the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.[ † ]Malachi 2:7Revelation 2:1Exodus 25:37Exodus 37:23Zechariah 4:2Matthew 5:15Philippians 2:15