Wahyu 4:1

The Amazing Scene in Heaven

4:1 After these things I looked, and there was ¹  a door standing open in heaven! ²  And the first voice I had heard speaking to me ³  like a trumpet ⁴  said: “Come up here so that ⁵  I can show you what must happen after these things.”

Wahyu 6:4

6:4 And another horse, fiery red, ⁶  came out, and the one who rode it ⁷  was granted permission ⁸  to take peace from the earth, so that people would butcher ⁹  one another, and he was given a huge sword.

Wahyu 11:6

11:6 These two have the power ¹⁰  to close up the sky so that it does not rain during the time ¹¹  they are prophesying. They ¹²  have power ¹³  to turn the waters to blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague whenever they want.

Wahyu 13:1

The Two Beasts

13:1 Then ¹⁴  I saw a beast coming up out of the sea. It ¹⁵  had ten horns and seven heads, and on its horns were ten diadem crowns, ¹⁶  and on its heads a blasphemous name. ¹⁷ 

Wahyu 20:12

20:12 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. Then ¹⁸  books were opened, and another book was opened – the book of life. ¹⁹  So ²⁰  the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to their deeds. ²¹ 

[4:1]  ¹ tn Grk “and behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this statement has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[4:1]  ² tn Or “in the sky” (the same Greek word means both “heaven” and “sky”).

[4:1]  ³ 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.”

[4:1]  ⁴ sn The phrase speaking to me like a trumpet refers back to Rev 1:10.

[4:1]  ⁵ tn The conjunction καί (kai), much like the vav-consecutive in Hebrew, appears to be introducing a final/purpose clause here rather than a coordinate clause.

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

[6:4]  ⁷ tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:4]  ⁸ tn The word “permission” is implied; Grk “it was given to him to take peace from the earth.”

[6:4]  ⁹ 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.”

[11:6]  ¹⁰ tn Or “authority.”

[11:6]  ¹¹ tn Grk “the days.”

[11:6]  ¹² tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[11:6]  ¹³ tn Or “authority.”

[13:1]  ¹⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[13:1]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “having” (a continuation of the previous sentence). All of the pronouns referring to this beast (along with the second beast appearing in 13:11) could be translated as “it” because the word for beast (θηρίον, qhrion) is neuter gender in Greek and all the pronouns related to it are parsed as neuter in the Gramcord/Accordance database. Nevertheless, most interpreters would agree that the beast ultimately represents a human ruler, so beginning at the end of v. 4 the masculine pronouns (“he,” “him,” etc.) are used to refer to the first beast as well as the second beast appearing in 13:11.

[13:1]  ¹⁶ tn For the translation of διάδημα (diadhma) as “diadem crown” see L&N 6.196.

[13:1]  sn Diadem crowns were a type of crown used as a symbol of the highest ruling authority in a given area, and thus often associated with kingship.

[13:1]  ¹⁷ tc ‡ Several mss (A 051 1611 1854 2053 2344 2351 Ï^K) read the plural ὀνόματα (onomata, “[blasphemous] names”), while the singular ὄνομα (onoma, “name”) has somewhat better support (Ì⁴⁷ א C 1006 1841 2329 Ï^A). The plural reading seems motivated by the fact that what is written is written “on its heads.” In the least, it is a clarifying reading. NA²⁷ puts the plural in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[13:1]  sn Whether this means a single name on all seven heads or seven names, one on each head, is not clear.

[20:12]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[20:12]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “another book was opened, which is of life.”

[20:12]  ²⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the books being opened.

[20:12]  ²¹ tn Grk “from the things written in the books according to their works.”