Revelation 3:7

To the Church in Philadelphia

3:7 “To ¹  the angel of the church in Philadelphia write the following: ² 

“This is the solemn pronouncement of ³  the Holy One, the True One, who holds the key of David, who opens doors ⁴  no one can shut, and shuts doors ⁵  no one can open:

Revelation 5:8

5:8 and when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders threw themselves to the ground ⁶  before the Lamb. Each ⁷  of them had a harp and golden bowls full of incense (which are the prayers of the saints). ⁸ 

Revelation 6:10

6:10 They ⁹  cried out with a loud voice, ¹⁰  “How long, ¹¹  Sovereign Master, ¹²  holy and true, before you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?”

Revelation 11:2

11:2 But ¹³  do not measure the outer courtyard ¹⁴  of the temple; leave it out, ¹⁵  because it has been given to the Gentiles, ¹⁶  and they will trample on the holy city ¹⁷  for forty-two months.

Revelation 13:10

13:10 If anyone is meant for captivity,

into captivity he will go.

If anyone is to be killed by the sword, ¹⁸ 

then by the sword he must be killed.

This ¹⁹  requires steadfast endurance ²⁰  and faith from the saints.

Revelation 14:10

14:10 that person ²¹  will also drink of the wine of God’s anger ²²  that has been mixed undiluted in the cup of his wrath, and he will be tortured with fire and sulfur ²³  in front of the holy angels and in front of the Lamb.

Revelation 17:6

17:6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of those who testified to Jesus. ²⁴  I ²⁵  was greatly astounded ²⁶  when I saw her.

Revelation 20:9

20:9 They ²⁷  went up ²⁸  on the broad plain of the earth ²⁹  and encircled ³⁰  the camp ³¹  of the saints and the beloved city, but ³²  fire came down from heaven and devoured them completely. ³³ 

Revelation 21:10

21:10 So ³⁴  he took me away in the Spirit ³⁵  to a huge, majestic mountain ³⁶  and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.

[3:7]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated due to differences between Greek and English style.

[3:7]  ² tn The phrase “the following” after “write” is supplied to clarify that what follows is the content of what is to be written.

[3:7]  ³ tn Grk “These things says [the One]…” See the note on the phrase “this is the solemn pronouncement of” in 2:1.

[3:7]  ⁴ tn The word “door” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied in the translation. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context. Since the following verse does contain the word “door” (θύραν, quran), that word has been supplied as the direct object here.

[3:7]  ⁵ tn See the note on the word “door” earlier in this verse.

[5:8]  ⁶ tn Grk “fell down.” 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.”

[5:8]  ⁷ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[5:8]  ⁸ sn This interpretive comment by the author forms a parenthesis in the narrative.

[6:10]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:10]  ¹² tn Grk “voice, saying”; the participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.

[6:10]  ¹³ tn The expression ἕως πότε (ews pote) was translated “how long.” Cf. BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.γ.

[6:10]  ¹⁴ tn The Greek term here is δεσπότης (despoths; see L&N 37.63).

[11:2]  ¹⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[11:2]  ¹⁷ tn On the term αὐλήν (aulhn) BDAG 150 s.v. αὐλή 1 states, “(outer) court of the temple…Rv 11:2.”

[11:2]  ¹⁸ tn The precise meaning of the phrase ἔκβαλε ἔξωθεν (ekbale exwqen) is difficult to determine.

[11:2]  ¹⁹ tn Or “to the nations” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).

[11:2]  ²⁰ sn The holy city appears to be a reference to Jerusalem. See also Luke 21:24.

[13:10]  ²¹ tc Many mss (C 051* 2351 Ï^A pc) read “if anyone will kill with the sword, it is necessary for him to be killed with the sword” (εἴ τις ἐν μαχαίρῃ ἀποκτενεῖ, δεῖ αὐτὸν ἐν μαχαίρῃ ἀποκτανθῆναι). Other mss (א 1006 1611* 1854 al) are similar except that they read a present tense “kills” (ἀποκτείνει, apokteinei) in this sentence. Both of these variants may be regarded as essentially saying the same thing. On the other hand, codex A reads “if anyone is to be killed by the sword, he is to be killed by the sword” (εἴ τις ἐν μαχαίρῃ ἀποκτανθῆναι αὐτὸν ἐν μαχαίρῃ ἀποκτανθῆναι). Thus the first two variants convey the idea of retribution, while the last variant, supported by codex A, does not. (There are actually a dozen variants here, evidence that scribes found the original text quite difficult. Only the most important variants are discussed in this note.) The first two variants seem to be in line with Jesus’ comments in Matt 26:52: “everyone who takes up the sword will die by the sword.” The last variant, however, seems to be taking up an idea found in Jer 15:2: “Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity.” Though G. B. Caird, Revelation (HNTC), 169-70, gives four arguments in favor of the first reading (i.e., “whoever kills with the sword must with the sword be killed”), the arguments he puts forward can be read equally as well to support the latter alternative. In the end, the reading in codex A seems to be original. The fact that this sentence seems to be in parallel with 10a (which simply focuses on God’s will and suffering passively and is therefore akin to the reading in codex A), and that it most likely gave rise to the others as the most difficult reading, argues for its authenticity.

[13:10]  ²² tn On ὧδε (Jwde) here, BDAG 1101 s.v. 2 states: “a ref. to a present event, object, or circumstance, in this case, at this point, on this occasion, under these circumstances…in this case moreover 1 Cor 4:2. ὧδε ἡ σοφία ἐστίν…Rv 13:18; cf. 17:9. ὧδέ ἐστιν ἡ ὑπομονή…13:10; 14:12.”

[13:10]  ²³ tn Or “perseverance.”

[14:10]  ²⁶ tn Grk “he himself.”

[14:10]  ²⁷ tn The Greek word for “anger” here is θυμός (qumos), a wordplay on the “passion” (θυμός) of the personified city of Babylon in 14:8.

[14:10]  ²⁸ tn Traditionally, “brimstone.”

[17:6]  ³¹ tn Or “of the witnesses to Jesus.” Here the genitive ᾿Ιησοῦ (Ihsou) is taken as an objective genitive; Jesus is the object of their testimony.

[17:6]  ³² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[17:6]  ³³ tn Grk “I marveled a great marvel” (an idiom for great astonishment).

[20:9]  ³⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[20:9]  ³⁷ tn The shift here to past tense reflects the Greek text.

[20:9]  ³⁸ 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]  ³⁹ tn Or “surrounded.”

[20:9]  ⁴⁰ 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]  ⁴¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[20:9]  ⁴² tn See L&N 20.45 for the translation of κατεσθίω (katesqiw) as “to destroy utterly, to consume completely.”

[21:10]  ⁴¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s invitation.

[21:10]  ⁴² 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]  ⁴³ tn Grk “to a mountain great and high.”