Revelation 21:9-10

The New Jerusalem Descends

21:9 Then ¹  one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven final plagues came and spoke to me, ²  saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb!” 21:10 So ³  he took me away in the Spirit ⁴  to a huge, majestic mountain ⁵  and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.

[21:9]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[21:9]  ² tn Grk “with me.” The translation “with me” implies that John was engaged in a dialogue with the one speaking to him (e.g., Jesus or an angel) when in reality it was a one-sided conversation, with John doing all the listening. For this reason, μετ᾿ ἐμοῦ (met’ emou, “with me”) was translated as “to me.” See also v. 15.

[21:10]  ³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s invitation.

[21:10]  ⁴ tn Or “in the spirit.” “Spirit” could refer either to the Holy Spirit or the human spirit, but in either case John was in “a state of spiritual exaltation best described as a trance” (R. H. Mounce, Revelation [NICNT], 75).

[21:10]  ⁵ tn Grk “to a mountain great and high.”