Revelation 7
New Testament · English Majority Text Version with Greek parallel
Revelation chapter 7 is given here in full, verse by verse, in the English Majority Text Version (EMTV), with the Byzantine Majority Text set beneath each verse. The text follows the Byzantine textual tradition used in the Orthodox Church.
2 patristic excerpts are attached to this chapter, from Victorinus of Pettau.
Revelation 7
1And after this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, so that a wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.Καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο εἶδον τέσσαρας ἀγγέλους ἑστῶτας ἐπὶ τὰς τέσσαρας γωνίας τῆς γῆς, κρατοῦντας τοὺς τέσσαρας ἀνέμους τῆς γῆς, ἵνα μὴ πνέῃ ἄνεμος ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς μήτε ἐπὶ τῆς θαλάσσης μήτε ἐπί τι δένδρον.
2Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it had been granted to harm the earth and the sea,καὶ εἶδον ἄλλον ἄγγελον ἀναβαίνοντα ἀπὸ ἀνατολῆς ἡλίου, ἔχοντα σφραγῖδα Θεοῦ ζῶντος. καὶ ἔκραξε φωνῇ μεγάλῃ τοῖς τέσσαρσιν ἀγγέλοις, οἷς ἐδόθη αὐτοῖς ἀδικῆσαι τὴν γῆν καὶ τὴν θάλασσαν,
3saying, “Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”λέγων, Μὴ ἀδικήσητε τὴν γῆν μήτε τὴν θάλασσαν μήτε τὰ δένδρα, ἄχρις οὗ σφραγίσωμεν τοὺς δούλους τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἐπὶ τῶν μετώπων αὐτῶν.
4And I heard the number of those having been sealed, one hundred and forty-four thousand having been sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel:καὶ ἤκουσα τὸν ἀριθμὸν τῶν ἐσφραγισμένων, ἑκατὸν καὶ τεσσαράκοντα τέσσαρες χιλιάδες, ἐσφραγισμένων ἐκ πάσης φυλῆς υἱῶν Ἰσραήλ·
5of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand having been sealed; of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand; of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand;ἐκ φυλῆς Ἰούδα δώδεκα χιλιάδες ἐσφραγισμέναι, ἐκ φυλῆς Ῥουβὶμ δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Γὰδ δώδεκα χιλιάδες,
6of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand; of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand; of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand;ἐκ φυλῆς Ἀσὴρ δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Νεφθαλεὶμ δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Μανασσῆ δώδεκα χιλιάδες,
7of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand; of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand; of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand;ἐκ φυλῆς Συμεὼν δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Λευῒ δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Ἰσάχαρ δώδεκα χιλιάδες,
8of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand; of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand; of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand, having been sealed.ἐκ φυλῆς Ζαβουλὼν δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Ἰωσὴφ δώδεκα χιλιάδες, ἐκ φυλῆς Βενιαμὶν δώδεκα χιλιάδες ἐσφραγισμέναι.
9After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could number, out of every nation, and from tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, having been clothed in long white robes, with palm branches in their hands.Μετὰ ταῦτα εἶδον, καὶ ἰδού, ὄχλος πολύς, ὃν ἀριθμῆσαι οὐδεὶς ἐδύνατο, ἐκ παντὸς ἔθνους καὶ φυλῶν καὶ λαῶν καὶ γλωσσῶν, ἑστῶτας ἐνώπιον τοῦ θρόνου καὶ ἐνώπιον τοῦ ἀρνίου, περιβεβλημένους στολὰς λευκάς, καὶ φοίνικας ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν.
10And they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God, to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”καὶ κράζουσι φωνῇ μεγάλῃ λέγοντες, Ἡ σωτηρία τῷ Θεῷ ἡμῶν τῷ καθημένῳ ἐπὶ τῷ θρόνῳ, καὶ τῷ ἀρνίῳ.
11And all the angels stood around the throne, and the elders and the four living beings, and they fell down on their faces before His throne and they worshiped God,καὶ πάντες οἱ ἄγγελοι εἱστήκεισαν κύκλῳ τοῦ θρόνου καὶ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων καὶ τῶν τεσσάρων ζῴων, καὶ ἔπεσον ἐνώπιον τοῦ θρόνου αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὰ πρόσωπα αὐτῶν καὶ προσεκύνησαν τῷ Θεῷ
12saying: “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”λέγοντες, Ἀμήν· ἡ εὐλογία καὶ ἡ δόξα καὶ ἡ σοφία καὶ ἡ εὐχαριστία καὶ ἡ τιμὴ καὶ ἡ δύναμις καὶ ἡ ἰσχὺς τῷ Θεῷ ἡμῶν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων· ἀμήν.
13Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in long white robes, and where did they come from?”Καὶ ἀπεκρίθη εἷς ἐκ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων λέγων μοι, Οὗτοι οἱ περιβεβλημένοι τὰς στολὰς τὰς λευκάς, τίνες εἰσὶ καὶ πόθεν ἦλθον;
14And I said to him, “My lord, you know.” So he said to me, “These are those who come out of the Great Tribulation, and have washed their robes and they made them white in the blood of the Lamb.καὶ εἶπον αὐτῷ, Κύριέ μου, σὺ οἶδας. καὶ εἶπέ μοι, Οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ ἐρχόμενοι ἐκ τῆς θλίψεως τῆς μεγάλης, καὶ ἔπλυναν τὰς στολὰς αὐτῶν καὶ ἐλεύκαναν ἐν τῷ αἵματι τοῦ ἀρνίου.
15Therefore they are before the throne of God, and they serve Him day and night in His temple. And He that sits on the throne shall dwell among them.διὰ τοῦτό εἰσιν ἐνώπιον τοῦ θρόνου τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ λατρεύουσιν αὐτῷ ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς ἐν τῷ ναῷ αὐτοῦ, καὶ ὁ καθήμενος ἐπὶ τῷ θρόνῳ σκηνώσει ἐπ᾽ αὐτούς.
16They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; nor shall the sun by any means strike them, nor any scorching heat;οὐ πεινάσουσιν ἔτι οὐδὲ διψήσουσιν ἔτι, οὐδ᾽ οὐ μὴ πέσῃ ἐπ᾽ αὐτοὺς ὁ ἥλιος οὐδὲ πᾶν καῦμα·
17because the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne shepherds them, and He leads them to the springs of the waters of life. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”ὅτι τὸ ἀρνίον τὸ ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ θρόνου ποιμαίνει αὐτούς, καὶ ὁδηγεῖ αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ ζωῆς πηγὰς ὑδάτων, καὶ ἐξαλείψει ὁ Θεὸς πᾶν δάκρυον ἐκ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν.
The Fathers on Revelation 7
Victorinus of Pettau comments on this chapter. Each excerpt below is drawn from the full text held in the Fathers Library; follow the link on any entry to read the whole work.
On Revelation 7:2Victorinus of Pettau2. “And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God.”] He speaks of Elias the prophet, who is the precursor of the times of Antichrist, for the restoration and establishment of the churches from the great and intolerable persecution. We read that these things are predicted in the...
Read Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed John →
On Revelation 7:9Open Revelation 7 in the interactive reader Switch translations, hear the chapter read aloud, tap any verse for its patristic commentary, and study the Greek word by word.Victorinus of Pettau9. “After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man was able to number, of every nation, tribe, and people, and tongue, clothed with white robes.”] What the great multitude out of every tribe implies, is to show the number of the elect out of all believers, who, being cleansed by baptism in the blood of...
Read Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed John →