The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer

When the Lamb opened (A)the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. Then I saw the seven angels (B)who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. And another angel came and stood (C)at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with (D)the prayers of all the saints on (E)the golden altar before the throne, and (F)the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. Then the angel took the censer and (G)filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and (H)there were peals of (I)thunder, rumblings,[a] flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

The Seven Trumpets

Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.

The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed (J)hail and (K)fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a (L)third of the earth was burned up, and a third of (M)the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like (N)a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea (O)became blood. A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of (P)the ships were destroyed.

10 The third angel blew his trumpet, and (Q)a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on (R)the springs of water. 11 The name of the star is Wormwood.[b] A third of the waters (S)became wormwood, and many people died from the water, (T)because it had been made bitter.

12 The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of (U)the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.

13 Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, (V)“Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 8:5 Or voices, or sounds
  2. Revelation 8:11 Wormwood is the name of a plant and of the bitter-tasting extract derived from it

The Lamb Breaks the Seventh Seal

When the Lamb broke the seventh seal on the scroll,[a] there was silence throughout heaven for about half an hour. I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets.

Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold altar before the throne. The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out. Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake.

The First Four Trumpets

Then the seven angels with the seven trumpets prepared to blow their mighty blasts.

The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. One-third of the earth was set on fire, one-third of the trees were burned, and all the green grass was burned.

Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. One-third of the water in the sea became blood, one-third of all things living in the sea died, and one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed.

10 Then the third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from the sky, burning like a torch. It fell on one-third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11 The name of the star was Bitterness.[b] It made one-third of the water bitter, and many people died from drinking the bitter water.

12 Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet, and one-third of the sun was struck, and one-third of the moon, and one-third of the stars, and they became dark. And one-third of the day was dark, and also one-third of the night.

13 Then I looked, and I heard a single eagle crying loudly as it flew through the air, “Terror, terror, terror to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.”

Footnotes

  1. 8:1 Or book.
  2. 8:11 Greek Wormwood.