1:7 (Look! He is returning with the clouds, 1
and every eye will see him,
even 2 those who pierced him, 3
and all the tribes 4 on the earth will mourn because 5 of him.
This will certainly come to pass! 6 Amen.) 7
4:11 “You are worthy, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
since you created all things,
and because of your will they existed and were created!” 13
“Worthy is the lamb who was killed 16
to receive power and wealth
and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and praise!”
7:11 And all the angels stood 21 there in a circle around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground 22 before the throne and worshiped God,
“We give you thanks, Lord God, the All-Powerful, 24
the one who is and who was,
because you have taken your great power
and begun to reign. 25
“Great and astounding are your deeds,
Lord God, the All-Powerful! 45
Just 46 and true are your ways,
King over the nations! 47
15:4 Who will not fear you, O Lord,
and glorify 48 your name, because you alone are holy? 49
All nations 50 will come and worship before you
for your righteous acts 51 have been revealed.”
19:6 Then 54 I heard what sounded like the voice of a vast throng, like the roar of many waters and like loud crashes of thunder. They were shouting: 55
“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God, 56 the All-Powerful, 57 reigns!
19:17 Then 65 I saw one angel standing in 66 the sun, and he shouted in a loud voice to all the birds flying high in the sky: 67
“Come, gather around for the great banquet 68 of God,
21:5 And the one seated on the throne said: “Look! I am making all things new!” Then 69 he said to me, “Write it down, 70 because these words are reliable 71 and true.”
1 sn An allusion to Dan 7:13.
2 tn Here καί (kai) was translated as ascensive.
3 sn An allusion to Zech 12:10.
4 tn In this context, tribes (φυλαί, fulai) could also be translated as “nations” or “peoples” (L&N 11.56).
5 tn The conjunction ἐπί (epi) is most likely causal here. The people who crucified him are those of every tribe on the earth and they will mourn because he comes as judge.
6 tn Grk “Yes, Amen.” The expression “This will certainly come to pass” is an attempt to capture the force of the juxtaposition of the Greek ναί (nai) and the Hebrew ἀμήν (amhn). See L&N 69.1.
7 sn These lines are placed in parentheses because they form an aside to the main argument.
8 tn Grk “her children,” but in this context a reference to this woman’s followers or disciples is more likely meant.
9 tn Grk “I will kill with death.” θάνατος (qanatos) can in particular contexts refer to a manner of death, specifically a contagious disease (see BDAG 443 s.v. 3; L&N 23.158).
10 tn Grk “I will give.” The sense of δίδωμι (didwmi) in this context is more “repay” than “give.”
11 sn This pronoun and the following one are plural in the Greek text.
12 tn Grk “each one of you according to your works.”
13 tc The past tense of “they existed” (ἦσαν, hsan) and the order of the expression “they existed and were created” seems backwards both logically and chronologically. The text as it stands is the more difficult reading and seems to have given rise to codex A omitting the final “they were created,” 2329 replacing “they existed” (ἦσαν) with “have come into being” (ἐγένοντο, egeneto), and 046 adding οὐκ (ouk, “not”) before ἦσαν (“they did not exist, [but were created]”). Several
14 tn The words “all of whom” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied to indicate the resumption of the phrase “the voice of many angels” at the beginning of the verse.
15 tn Grk “saying.”
16 tn Or “slaughtered”; traditionally, “slain.”
17 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of new but related material.
18 tn Grk “who were sealed.”
19 tn Normally, “every,” but since 144,000 is the total number, “all” is clearer here.
20 tn Grk “the sons of Israel,” normally an idiom for the Israelites as an ethnic entity (L&N 11.58). However, many scholars understand the expression in this context to refer to Christians rather than ethnic Israelites.
21 tn The verb is pluperfect, but the force is simple past. See ExSyn 586.
22 tn Grk “they fell down on their faces.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב. has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion or humility, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
23 tn Grk “saying.”
24 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”
25 tn The aorist verb ἐβασίλευσας (ebasileusa") has been translated ingressively.
26 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the conclusion of the anticipated birth.
27 tn On this term BDAG 135 s.v. ἄρσην states: “male…The neut. ἄρσεν Rv 12:5, difft. vs. 13, comes fr. Is 66:7 and is in apposition to υἱόν. On the juxtaposition s. FBoll, ZNW 15, 1914, 253; BOlsson, Glotta 23, ’34, 112.”
28 tn Grk “shepherd.”
29 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
30 tn Or “scepter.” The Greek term ῥάβδος (rJabdo") can mean either “rod” or “scepter.”
sn An allusion to Ps 2:9 (see also Rev 2:27; 19:15).
31 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
32 tn Grk “it”; the referent (the beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
33 tn The prepositional phrase “since the foundation of the world” is traditionally translated as a modifier of the immediately preceding phrase in the Greek text, “the Lamb who was killed” (so also G. B. Caird, Revelation [HNTC], 168), but it is more likely that the phrase “since the foundation of the world” modifies the verb “written” (as translated above). Confirmation of this can be found in Rev 17:8 where the phrase “written in the book of life since the foundation of the world” occurs with no ambiguity.
34 tn Or “slaughtered”; traditionally, “slain.”
35 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
36 tn For the translation “ruling authority” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.
37 tn For this meaning see BDAG 342 s.v. ἐνώπιον 4.b, “by the authority of, on behalf of Rv 13:12, 14; 19:20.”
38 tn Grk “it”; the referent (the second beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
39 tn Grk “it was given [permitted] to it [the second beast].”
40 tn Grk “breath,” but in context the point is that the image of the first beast is made to come to life and speak.
41 tn Grk “of the beast”; the word “first” has been supplied to specify the referent.
42 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
43 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
44 tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
45 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”
46 tn Or “righteous,” although the context favors justice as the theme.
47 tc Certain
48 tn Or “and praise.”
sn Jeremiah 10:7 probably stands behind the idea of fearing God, and Psalm 86:9-10 stands behind the ideas of glorifying God, his uniqueness, and the nations coming to worship him. Many other OT passages also speak about the nations “coming to his temple” to worship (Isa 2:2-3, 49:22-23, 66:23-24; Micah 4:2; Zech 8:20-22). See G. K. Beale, Revelation [NIGTC], 796-97.
49 sn Because you alone are holy. In the Greek text the sentence literally reads “because alone holy.” Three points can be made in connection with John’s language here: (1) Omitting the second person, singular verb “you are” lays stress on the attribute of God’s holiness. (2) The juxtaposition of alone with holy stresses the unique nature of God’s holiness and complete “otherness” in relationship to his creation. It is not just moral purity which is involved in the use of the term holy, though it certainly includes that. It is also the pervasive OT idea that although God is deeply involved in the governing of his creation, he is to be regarded as separate and distinct from it. (3) John’s use of the term holy is also intriguing since it is the term ὅσιος (Josios) and not the more common NT term ἅγιος (Jagios). The former term evokes images of Christ’s messianic status in early Christian preaching. Both Peter in Acts 2:27 and Paul in Acts 13:35 apply Psalm 16:10 (LXX) to Jesus, referring to him as the “holy one” (ὅσιος). It is also the key term in Acts 13:34 (Isa 55:3 [LXX]) where it refers to the “holy blessings” (i.e., forgiveness and justification) brought about through Jesus in fulfillment of Davidic promise. Thus, in Rev 15:3-4, when John refers to God as “holy,” using the term ὅσιος in a context where the emphasis is on both God and Christ, there might be an implicit connection between divinity and the Messiah. This is bolstered by the fact that the Lamb is referred to in other contexts as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (cf. 1:5; 17:14; 19:16 and perhaps 11:15; G. K. Beale, Revelation [NIGTC], 796-97).
50 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
51 tn Or perhaps, “your sentences of condemnation.” On δικαίωμα (dikaiwma) in this context BDAG 249 s.v. 2. states, “righteous deed…δι᾿ ἑνὸς δικαιώματος (opp. παράπτωμα) Ro 5:18. – B 1:2 (cp. Wengst, Barnabas-brief 196, n.4); Rv 15:4 (here perh.= ‘sentence of condemnation’ [cp. Pla., Leg. 9, 864e; ins fr. Asia Minor: LBW 41, 2 [κατὰ] τὸ δι[καί]ωμα τὸ κυρω[θέν]= ‘acc. to the sentence which has become valid’]; difft. Wengst, s. above); 19:8.”
52 tn BDAG 699 s.v. οἰκουμένη 1 states, “the inhabited earth, the world…ὅλη ἡ οἰκ. the whole inhabited earth…Mt 24:14; Ac 11:28; Rv 3:10; 16:14.”
53 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”
54 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
55 tn Grk “like the voice of a large crowd…saying.” Because of the complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the words “They were.”
56 tc Several
57 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22…κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν ὁ π. Rv 19:6.”
58 tn Or “the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
59 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
60 tn Grk “will shepherd.”
61 tn Or “scepter.” The Greek term ῥάβδος (rJabdo") can mean either “rod” or “scepter.”
sn A quotation from Ps 2:9 (see also Rev 2:27, 12:5).
62 sn He stomps the winepress. See Isa 63:3, where Messiah does this alone (usually several individuals would join in the process), and Rev 14:20.
63 tn The genitive θυμοῦ (qumou) has been translated as an attributed genitive. Following BDAG 461 s.v. θυμός 2, the combination of the genitives of θυμός (qumos) and ὀργή (orgh) in Rev 16:19 and 19:15 are taken to be a strengthening of the thought as in the OT and Qumran literature (Exod 32:12; Jer 32:37; Lam 2:3; CD 10:9).
64 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”
65 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
66 tn The precise significance of ἐν (en) here is difficult to determine.
67 tn On μεσουρανήματι (mesouranhmati) here see L&N 1.10: “high in the sky, midpoint in the sky, directly overhead, straight above in the sky.” The birds mentioned here are carrion birds like vultures, circling high overhead, and now being summoned to feast on the corpses.
68 tn This is the same Greek word (δεῖπνον, deipnon) used in 19:9.
69 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
70 tn The words “it down” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
71 tn Grk “faithful.”