Revelation 2:1-4:11 To the Angel of the Church in Ephesus write:-- "These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, and walks among the seven golden lamps:--

Twentieth_Century⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ To the Angel of the Church in Ephesus write:-- "These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, and walks among the seven golden lamps:-- ² I know your life, your toil and endurance, and I know that you cannot tolerate evil-doers. I know, too, how you tested those who declare that they are Apostles, though they are not, and how you proved them false. ³ You possess endurance, and have borne much for my Name, and have never grown weary. ⁴ But this I have against you--You have abandoned your first love. ⁵ Therefore remember from what you have fallen, and repent, and live the life that you lived before; or else, I will come and remove your Lamp from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ But this is in your favor--You hate the life lived by the Nikolaitans, and I also hate it. ⁷ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. To him who conquers-- to him I will give the right 'to eat the fruit of the Tree of life, which stands in the Paradise of God.' " ⁸ To the Angel of the Church in Smyrna write:-- "These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died, but is restored to life:-- ⁹ I know your persecution and your poverty--yet you are rich! I know, too, the slander that come from those who declare that they are Jews, though they are not, but are a Congregation of Satan. ¹⁰ Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The Devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tempted, and may undergo persecution for ten days. Be faithful even to death, and I will give you the Crown of Life. ¹¹ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. He who conquers shall suffer no hurt from the Second Death." ¹² To the Angel of the Church in Pergamus write:-- "These are the words of him who holds the sharp two-edged sword:-- ¹³ I know where you dwell, where the Throne of Satan stands. And yet you hold to my Name, and you did not disown my Faith even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death among you where Satan dwells. ¹⁴ Yet I have a few things against you--You have among you those who hold to the Teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put temptations in the way of the Israelites, so that they should eat idol-offerings and commit licentious acts. ¹⁵ Again you have among you those who hold in the same way to the Teaching of the Nikolaitans. ¹⁶ Therefore repent, or else, I will come quickly and contend with such men with words that will cut like a sword. ¹⁷ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. To him who conquers-- to him I will give a share of the mystic manna, and I will give him a white stone; and on the stone shall be inscribed a new name, which no one knows except him who receives it." ¹⁸ To the Angel of the Church in Thyatira write:-- "These are the words of the Son of God, 'whose eyes are like flaming fire, and whose feet are like brass':-- ¹⁹ I know your life, your love, faith, service, and endurance; and I know that your life of late has been better than it was at first. ²⁰ Yet I have this against you--You tolerate the woman Jezebel, who declares that she is a Prophetess, and misleads my servants by her teaching, till they commit licentious acts and eat idol-offerings. ²¹ I gave her time to repent, but she is determined not to turn from her licentiousness. ²² Therefore I am laying her upon a bed of sickness, and bringing great suffering upon those who are unfaithful with her, unless they repent and turn from a life like hers. ²³ I will also put her children to death; and all the Churches shall learn that I am he who 'looks into the hearts and souls of men'; and I will give to each one of you what his life deserves. ²⁴ But I say to the rest of you at Thyatira--all who do not accept such teaching, whose who did not learn 'the secrets of Satan,' as men call them--I am not laying on you any further burden; ²⁵ only hold fast to what you have received, until I come. ²⁶ To him who conquers and is careful to live my life to the end--to him I will give authority over the nations, ²⁷ and 'he shall rule them with an iron rod, as when earthen vessels are broken in pieces' (as I myself have received from my Father) ²⁸ and I will give him the Morning Star. ²⁹ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches." ³ ¹ To the Angel of the Church in Sardis write:-- "These are the words of him who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars;--I know your life, and that men say of you that you are living, though you are dead. ² Be on the watch, and strengthen what still survives, though once it was all but dead; for I have not found your life perfect in the eyes of my God. ³ Therefore remember what you have received and heard, and lay it to heart and repent. Unless you are on the watch, I shall come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I am coming to you. ⁴ Yet there are some few among you at Sardis who did not soil their robes; they shall walk with me, robed in white, for they are worthy. ⁵ He who conquers shall be clothed in these white robes, and I will not 'strike his name out of the Book of Life'; but I will own him before my Father, and before his angels. ⁶ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches." ⁷ To the Angel of the Church in Philadelphia write:-- "These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds 'the Key of David, who opens and no one shall shut, and shuts and no one opens':-- ⁸ I know your life (see, I have set a door open before you which no one is able to shut), I know that, though you have but little strength, you kept my teaching in mind, and did not disown my Name. ⁹ Listen, I give some of the Congregation of Satan, the men who declare that they are Jews, though they are not, but are lying----I will make them 'come and bow down at your feet,' and they shall learn that I loved you. ¹⁰ Because you kept in mind the story of my endurance, I will keep you in the hour of trial that is about to come upon the whole world, the hour that will test all who are living upon earth. ¹¹ I will come quickly. Hold to what you have received, that no one may take your crown. ¹² He who conquers--I will make him a pillar in the Temple of my God; and never more shall he leave it; and I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the City of my God, the New Jerusalem, which is coming down out of Heaven from my God, and I will write on him my new name. ¹³ Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches." ¹⁴ To the Angel of the Church in Laodicaea write:-- "These are the words of the Unchanging One, 'the Witness faithful and true, the Beginning of the Creation of God':-- ¹⁵ I know your life; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! ¹⁶ But now, because you are lukewarm, neither hot not cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say 'I am rich and have grown rich, and I want for nothing,' and you do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, naked! ¹⁸ Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold which has been refined by fire, that you may grow rich; and white robes, that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness be hidden; and ointment to anoint your eyes, that you may see. ¹⁹ 'All whom I love I rebuke and discipline.' Therefore be in earnest and repent. ²⁰ I am standing at the door and knocking! If any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will go in, and will feast with him, and he shall feast with me. ²¹ To him who conquers--to him I will give the right to sit beside me on my throne, as I, when I conquered, took my seat beside my Father on his throne. ²² Let him who has ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches." ⁴ ¹ After this, in my vision, I saw an open door in the heavens, and the first voice that I heard was like the blast of a trumpet speaking to me. It said-- 'Come up here and I will show you what must take place.' ² Immediately after this I fell into a trance. There stood a throne in Heaven, and on the throne was One seated. ³ He who was seated on it was in appearance like a jasper and a sardius; and 'round the throne there was a rainbow' of the color of an emerald. ⁴ And round the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and on these I saw twenty-four Councillors sitting clothed in white robes; and on their heads they had crowns of gold. ⁵ Out from the throne 'come flashes of lightning, cries, and peals of thunder'! There are seven torches burning in front of the throne, which are the seven spirits of God; ⁶ and in front of the throne is what seemed to be a sea of glass, 'resembling crystal, while within the space before the throne and round the throne are four Creatures full of eyes' in front and behind. ⁷ The first Creature is like a lion, the second Creature like a calf, the third Creature has a face like a man's, and the fourth Creature is like an eagle on the wing. ⁸ These four Creatures have each of them six wings, and all round, and within, they are full of eyes; and day and night they never cease to say-- 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, our God, the Almighty, who was, and who is, and who shall be.' ⁹ And, whenever these Creatures give praise and honour and thanks to him who is 'seated on the throne, to him who lives for ever and ever,' ¹⁰ the twenty-four Councillors prostrate themselves before him who is seated on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever, and throw down their crowns before the throne, saying-- ¹¹ 'Worthy art thou, our Lord and God, to receive all praise, and honour, and power, for thou didst create all things, and at thy bidding they came into being and were created.'