Revelation 1:5

1:5 and from Jesus Christ – the faithful ¹  witness, ²  the firstborn from among the dead, the ruler over the kings of the earth. To the one who loves us and has set us free ³  from our sins at the cost of ⁴  his own blood

Revelation 1:7

1:7 (Look! He is returning with the clouds, ⁵ 

and every eye will see him,

even ⁶  those who pierced him, ⁷ 

and all the tribes ⁸  on the earth will mourn because ⁹  of him.

This will certainly come to pass! ¹⁰  Amen.) ¹¹ 

Revelation 3:10

3:10 Because you have kept ¹²  my admonition ¹³  to endure steadfastly, ¹⁴  I will also keep you from the hour of testing that is about to come on the whole world to test those who live on the earth.

Revelation 6:4

6:4 And another horse, fiery red, ¹⁵  came out, and the one who rode it ¹⁶  was granted permission ¹⁷  to take peace from the earth, so that people would butcher ¹⁸  one another, and he was given a huge sword.

Revelation 6:10

6:10 They ¹⁹  cried out with a loud voice, ²⁰  “How long, ²¹  Sovereign Master, ²²  holy and true, before you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?”

Revelation 6:15

6:15 Then ²³  the kings of the earth, the ²⁴  very important people, the generals, ²⁵  the rich, the powerful, and everyone, slave ²⁶  and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains.

Revelation 8:13

8:13 Then ²⁷  I looked, and I heard an ²⁸  eagle ²⁹  flying directly overhead, ³⁰  proclaiming with a loud voice, “Woe! Woe! Woe to those who live on the earth because of the remaining sounds of the trumpets of the three angels who are about to blow them!” ³¹ 

Revelation 9:4

9:4 They ³²  were told ³³  not to damage the grass of the earth, or any green plant or tree, but only those people ³⁴  who did not have the seal of God on their ³⁵  forehead.

Revelation 10:2

10:2 He held ³⁶  in his hand a little scroll that was open, and he put his right foot on the sea and his left on the land.

Revelation 13:8

13:8 and all those who live on the earth will worship the beast, ³⁷  everyone whose name has not been written since the foundation of the world ³⁸  in the book of life belonging to the Lamb who was killed. ³⁹ 

Revelation 14:3

14:3 and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No ⁴⁰  one was able to learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been redeemed from the earth.

Revelation 14:6

Three Angels and Three Messages

14:6 Then ⁴¹  I saw another ⁴²  angel flying directly overhead, ⁴³  and he had ⁴⁴  an eternal gospel to proclaim ⁴⁵  to those who live ⁴⁶  on the earth – to every nation, tribe, ⁴⁷  language, and people.

Revelation 14:19

14:19 So ⁴⁸  the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the grapes from the vineyard ⁴⁹  of the earth and tossed them into the great ⁵⁰  winepress of the wrath of God.

Revelation 16:18

16:18 Then ⁵¹  there were flashes of lightning, roaring, ⁵²  and crashes of thunder, and there was a tremendous earthquake – an earthquake unequaled since humanity ⁵³  has been on the earth, so tremendous was that earthquake.

Revelation 18:9

18:9 Then ⁵⁴  the kings of the earth who committed immoral acts with her and lived in sensual luxury ⁵⁵  with her will weep and wail for her when they see the smoke from the fire that burns her up. ⁵⁶ 

Revelation 19:19

19:19 Then ⁵⁷  I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to do battle with the one who rode the horse and with his army.

Revelation 20:8-9

20:8 and will go out to deceive ⁵⁸  the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, ⁵⁹  to bring them together for the battle. They are as numerous as the grains of sand in the sea. ⁶⁰  20:9 They ⁶¹  went up ⁶²  on the broad plain of the earth ⁶³  and encircled ⁶⁴  the camp ⁶⁵  of the saints and the beloved city, but ⁶⁶  fire came down from heaven and devoured them completely. ⁶⁷ 

[1:5]  ¹ tn Or “Jesus Christ – the faithful one, the witness…” Some take ὁ πιστός (Jo pistos) as a second substantive in relation to ὁ μάρτυς (Jo martus). In the present translation, however, ὁ πιστός was taken as an adjective in attributive position to ὁ μάρτυς. The idea of martyrdom and faithfulness are intimately connected. See BDAG 820 s.v. πιστός 1.a.α: “ὁ μάρτυς μου ὁ πιστός μου Rv 2:13 (μάρτυς 3); in this ‘book of martyrs’ Christ is ὁ μάρτυς ὁ πιστὸς (καὶ ὁ ἀληθινός) 1:5; 3:14; cp. 19:11 (the combination of ἀληθινός and πιστός in the last two passages is like 3 Macc 2:11). Cp. Rv 17:14.”

[1:5]  ² sn The Greek term translated witness can mean both “witness” and “martyr.”

[1:5]  ³ tc The reading “set free” (λύσαντι, lusanti) has better ms support (̹⁸ א A C 1611 2050 2329 2351 Ï^A sy) than its rival, λούσαντι (lousanti, “washed”; found in P 1006 1841 1854 2053 2062 Ï^K lat bo). Internally, it seems that the reading “washed” could have arisen in at least one of three ways: (1) as an error of hearing (both “released” and “washed” are pronounced similarly in Greek); (2) an error of sight (both “released” and “washed” look very similar – a difference of only one letter – which could have resulted in a simple error during the copying of a ms); (3) through scribal inability to appreciate that the Hebrew preposition ב can be used with a noun to indicate the price paid for something. Since the author of Revelation is influenced significantly by a Semitic form of Greek (e.g., 13:10), and since the Hebrew preposition “in” (ב) can indicate the price paid for something, and is often translated with the preposition “in” (ἐν, en) in the LXX, the author may have tried to communicate by the use of ἐν the idea of a price paid for something. That is, John was trying to say that Christ delivered us at the price of his own blood. This whole process, however, may have been lost on a later scribe, who being unfamiliar with Hebrew, found the expression “delivered in his blood” too difficult, and noticing the obvious similarities between λύσαντι and λούσαντι, assumed an error and then proceeded to change the text to “washed in his blood” – a thought more tolerable in his mind. Both readings, of course, are true to scripture; the current question is what the author wrote in this verse.

[1:5]  ⁴ tn The style here is somewhat Semitic, with the use of the ἐν (en) + the dative to mean “at the price of.” The addition of “own” in the English is stylistic and is an attempt to bring out the personal nature of the statement and the sacrificial aspect of Jesus’ death – a frequent refrain in the Apocalypse.

[1:7]  ⁵ sn An allusion to Dan 7:13.

[1:7]  ⁶ tn Here καί (kai) was translated as ascensive.

[1:7]  ⁷ sn An allusion to Zech 12:10.

[1:7]  ⁸ tn In this context, tribes (φυλαί, fulai) could also be translated as “nations” or “peoples” (L&N 11.56).

[1:7]  ⁹ 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.

[1:7]  ¹⁰ 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.

[1:7]  ¹¹ sn These lines are placed in parentheses because they form an aside to the main argument.

[3:10]  ⁹ tn Or “obey.” For the translation of τηρέω (threw) as “obey” see L&N 36.19. In the Greek there is a wordplay: “because you have kept my word…I will keep you,” though the meaning of τηρέω is different each time.

[3:10]  ¹⁰ tn The Greek term λόγον (logon) is understood here in the sense of admonition or encouragement.

[3:10]  ¹¹ tn Or “to persevere.” Here ὑπομονῆς (Jupomonhs) has been translated as a genitive of reference/respect related to τὸν λόγον (ton logon).

[6:4]  ¹³ tn L&N 79.31 states, “‘fiery red’ (probably with a tinge of yellow or orange).”

[6:4]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:4]  ¹⁵ tn The word “permission” is implied; Grk “it was given to him to take peace from the earth.”

[6:4]  ¹⁶ tn BDAG 979 s.v. σφάζω states, “Of the killing of a person by violence…σφάζειν τινά butcher or murder someone (4 Km 10:7; Jer 52:10; Manetho: 609 fgm. 8, 76 Jac. [in Jos., C. Ap. 1, 76]; Demetr.[?]: 722 fgm. 7; Ar. 10, 9) 1J 3:12; Rv 6:4. Pass. (Hdt. 5, 5) 5:9; 6:9; 18:24.”

[6:10]  ¹⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:10]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “voice, saying”; the participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.

[6:10]  ¹⁹ tn The expression ἕως πότε (ews pote) was translated “how long.” Cf. BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.γ.

[6:10]  ²⁰ tn The Greek term here is δεσπότης (despoths; see L&N 37.63).

[6:15]  ²¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[6:15]  ²² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated; nor is it translated before each of the following categories, since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[6:15]  ²³ tn Grk “chiliarchs.” A chiliarch was normally a military officer commanding a thousand soldiers, but here probably used of higher-ranking commanders like generals (see L&N 55.15; cf. Rev 6:15).

[6:15]  ²⁴ tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

[8:13]  ²⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[8:13]  ²⁶ tn Grk “one eagle.”

[8:13]  ²⁷ tc Ï^A reads “angel” (ἀγγέλου, angelou) instead of “eagle” (ἀετοῦ, aetou), a reading strongly supported by {א A 046 Ï^K and several versions}. On external grounds, ἀετοῦ is clearly the superior reading. ἀγγέλου could have arisen inadvertently due to similarities in spelling or sound between ἀετοῦ and ἀγγέλου. It may also have been intentional in order to bring this statement in line with 14:6 where an angel is mentioned as the one flying in midair. This seems a more likely reason, strengthened by the facts that the book only mentions eagles two other times (4:7; 12:14). Further, the immediate as well as broad context is replete with references to angels.

[8:13]  ²⁸ tn Concerning the word μεσουράνημα (mesouranhma), L&N 1.10 states, “a point or region of the sky directly above the earth – ‘high in the sky, midpoint in the sky, directly overhead, straight above in the sky.’ εἶδον, καὶ ἤκουσα ἑνὸς ἁετοῦ πετομένου ἐν μεσουρανήματι ‘I looked, and I heard an eagle that was flying overhead in the sky’ Re 8:13.”

[8:13]  ²⁹ tn Grk “about to sound their trumpets,” but this is redundant in English.

[9:4]  ²⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:4]  ³⁰ tn The dative indirect object (αὐταῖς, autais) was converted into the subject (“they”) as this more closely approximates English usage. The following ἵ῞να (Jina) is taken as substantival, introducing a direct object clause. In this case, because it is reported speech, the ἵνα is similar to the declarative ὅτι (Joti).

[9:4]  ³¹ tn Grk “men”; but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense here of both men and women.

[9:4]  ³² tn The article τῶν (twn) has been translated as a possessive pronoun here (ExSyn 215).

[10:2]  ³³ tn Grk “and having.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the pronoun “he.”

[13:8]  ³⁷ tn Grk “it”; the referent (the beast) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:8]  ³⁸ 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.

[13:8]  ³⁹ tn Or “slaughtered”; traditionally, “slain.”

[14:3]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “elders, and no one.” This is a continuation of the previous sentence in the Greek text, but because of the length and complexity of the sentence a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[14:6]  ⁴⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[14:6]  ⁴⁶ tc Most mss (Ì47 א* Ï sa) lack ἄλλον (allon, “another”) here, but the support for it is stronger (Ì^115vid א² A C P 051 1006 1611 1841 2053 2329 al latt sy bo). The problem that its inclusion represents is that there is no reference to any other angel in the immediate context (the last mention was in 11:15). In this instance, the longer reading is harder. The word was probably intentionally omitted in order to resolve the tension; less likely, it might have been accidentally omitted since its spelling is similar to “angel” (ἄγγελος, angelos).

[14:6]  ⁴⁷ tn L&N 1.10 states, “a point or region of the sky directly above the earth – ‘high in the sky, midpoint in the sky, directly overhead, straight above in the sky.’”

[14:6]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “having.”

[14:6]  ⁴⁹ tn Or “an eternal gospel to announce as good news.”

[14:6]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “to those seated on the earth.”

[14:6]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “and tribe,” but καί (kai) has not been translated here or before the following term since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[14:19]  ⁴⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s directions.

[14:19]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “vine.” BDAG 54 s.v. ἄμπελος a states, “τρυγᾶν τοὺς βότρυας τῆς ἀ. τῆς γῆς to harvest the grapes fr. the vine of the earth (i.e. fr. the earth, symbol. repr. as a grapevine) Rv 14:18f; but ἀ may be taking on the meaning of ἀμπελών, as oft. in pap., possibly PHib. 70b, 2 [III bc].” The latter alternative has been followed in the translation (ἀμπελών = “vineyard”).

[14:19]  ⁵¹ tn Although the gender of μέγαν (megan, masc.) does not match the gender of ληνόν (lhnon, fem.) it has been taken to modify that word (as do most English translations).

[16:18]  ⁵³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[16:18]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “sounds,” “voices.” It is not entirely clear what this refers to. BDAG 1071 s.v. φωνή 1 states, “In Rv we have ἀστραπαὶ καὶ φωναὶ καὶ βρονταί (cp. Ex 19:16) 4:5; 8:5; 11:19; 16:18 (are certain other sounds in nature thought of here in addition to thunder, as e.g. the roar of the storm?…).”

[16:18]  ⁵⁵ tn The singular ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used generically here to refer to the human race.

[18:9]  ⁵⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[18:9]  ⁵⁸ tn On the term ἐστρηνίασεν (estrhniasen) BDAG 949 s.v. στρηνιάω states, “live in luxury, live sensually Rv 18:7. W. πορνεύειν vs. 9.”

[18:9]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “from the burning of her.” For the translation “the smoke from the fire that burns her up,” see L&N 14.63.

[19:19]  ⁶¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[20:8]  ⁶⁵ tn Or “mislead.”

[20:8]  ⁶⁶ sn The battle with Gog and Magog is described in the OT in Ezek 38:1-39:20.

[20:8]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “of whom the number of them [is] like the sand of the sea” (an allusion to Isa 10:22).

[20:9]  ⁶⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[20:9]  ⁷⁰ tn The shift here to past tense reflects the Greek text.

[20:9]  ⁷¹ tn On the phrase “broad plain of the earth” BDAG 823 s.v. πλάτος states, “τὸ πλάτος τῆς γῆς Rv 20:9 comes fr. the OT (Da 12:2 LXX. Cp. Hab 1:6; Sir 1:3), but the sense is not clear: breadth = the broad plain of the earth is perh. meant to provide room for the countless enemies of God vs. 8, but the ‘going up’ is better suited to Satan (vs. 7) who has recently been freed, and who comes up again fr. the abyss (vs. 3).” The referent here thus appears to be a plain large enough to accommodate the numberless hoards that have drawn up for battle against the Lord Christ and his saints.

[20:9]  ⁷² tn Or “surrounded.”

[20:9]  ⁷³ tn On the term παρεμβολή (parembolh) BDAG 775 s.v. states, “Mostly used as a military t.t.…so always in our lit.…1. a (fortified) camp…ἡ παρεμβολὴ τῶν ἁγίων Rv 20:9 is also to be understood fr. the OT use of the word.”

[20:9]  ⁷⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[20:9]  ⁷⁵ tn See L&N 20.45 for the translation of κατεσθίω (katesqiw) as “to destroy utterly, to consume completely.”