17 and ohe went out, pbearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha. 18 qThere they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. 19 Pilate ralso wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” 20 Many of the Jews read this inscription, for sthe place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and it was written in Aramaic, in Latin, and in Greek. 21 So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but rather, ‘This man said, I am King of the Jews.’” 22 Pilate answered, t“What I have written I have written.”
23 uWhen the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each soldier; also his tunic.1 But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom, 24 so they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be.” vThis was to fulfill the Scripture which says,
w“They divided my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.”
So the soldiers did these things, 25 xbut standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother and ythe disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, z“Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to ahis own home.
The Lamb and the 144,000
1 Then I looked, and behold, on vMount Zion wstood the Lamb, and with him x144,000 who yhad his name and his Father’s name written zon their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven alike the roar of many waters and blike the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of charpists playing on their harps, 3 and they were singing da new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. eNo one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for fthey are virgins. It is these gwho follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as hfirstfruits for God and the Lamb, 5 and iin their mouth no lie was found, for they are jblameless.
The Messages of the Three Angels
6 Then I saw another angel kflying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to lthose who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. 7 And he said with a loud voice, m“Fear God and ngive him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and oworship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the psprings of water.”
8 Another angel, a second, followed, saying, q“Fallen, fallen is rBabylon the great, sshe who made all nations drink tthe wine of the passion1 of her sexual immorality.”
9 And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone uworships the beast and its image and receives va mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he also will drink wthe wine of God’s wrath, xpoured full strength into the cup of his anger, and yhe will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And zthe smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and athey have no rest, day or night, these uworshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
12 bHere is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who ckeep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.2
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: dBlessed are the dead ewho die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, f“that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
The Harvest of the Earth
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one glike a son of man, hwith a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 And another angel icame out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, j“Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for kthe harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” 16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.
17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came out from the altar, lthe angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, mfor its grapes are ripe.” 19 So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great nwinepress of the wrath of God. 20 And othe winepress was trodden poutside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as qa horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.3
16 He also allured you out of distress
into la broad place where there was no cramping,
17 “But you are full of the judgment on the wicked;
judgment and justice seize you.
18 Beware lest wrath entice you into scoffing,
and let not the greatness of othe ransom turn you aside.
19 Will your pcry for help avail to keep you from distress,
or all the force of your strength?
20 Do not long for qthe night,
when peoples vanish rin their place.
21 Take care; sdo not turn to iniquity,
for this you have chosen rather than affliction.
22 Behold, God is exalted in his power;
who is ta teacher like him?
23 Who has uprescribed for him his way,
or who can say, v‘You have done wrong’?
24 “Remember to wextol his work,
of which men have xsung.
25 All mankind has looked on it;
man beholds it from afar.
26 Behold, God is great, and we yknow him not;
the number of his zyears is unsearchable.
27 For he draws up the drops of water;
they distill his amist in brain,
28 which cthe skies pour down
and drop on mankind abundantly.
29 Can anyone understand dthe spreading of the clouds,
the thunderings of his epavilion?
30 Behold, he scatters his lightning about him
and covers the roots of the sea.
31 For by these he fjudges peoples;
he gives gfood in abundance.
32 He covers his hhands with the lightning
and commands it to strike the mark.
33 Its crashing declares his presence;1
the cattle also declare that he rises.
1 aAn oracle concerning bNineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum of Elkosh.
God’s Wrath Against Nineveh
2 cThe Lord is a jealous and avenging God;
the Lord is avenging and wrathful;
dthe Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries
and ekeeps wrath for his enemies.
3 fThe Lord is slow to anger and ggreat in power,
and hthe Lord will by no means clear the guilty.
iHis way is in whirlwind and storm,
and the clouds are the dust of his feet.
4 jHe rebukes the sea and makes it dry;
he dries up all the rivers;
the bloom of kLebanon withers.
5 mThe mountains quake before him;
nthe hills melt;
the earth heaves before him,
othe world and all who dwell in it.
6 pWho can stand before his indignation?
Who can endure the heat of his anger?
His wrath qis poured out like fire,
and rthe rocks are broken into pieces by him.
7 sThe Lord is good,
ta stronghold in the day of trouble;
uhe knows those who take refuge in him.
8 But vwith an overflowing flood
he will make a complete end of the adversaries,1
and wwill pursue his enemies into darkness.
9 What xdo you plot against the Lord?
yHe will make a complete end;
trouble will not rise up a second time.
10 For they are zlike entangled thorns,
like drunkards as they drink;
athey are consumed like stubble fully dried.
11 From you came one
bwho plotted evil against the Lord,
a worthless counselor.
12 Thus says the Lord,
“Though they are at full strength and many,
cthey will be cut down and pass away.
dThough I have afflicted you,
I will afflict you no more.
13 And now eI will break his yoke from off you
and will burst your bonds apart.”
14 The Lord has given commandment about you:
f“No more shall your name be perpetuated;
from gthe house of your gods I will cut off
the carved image and the metal image.
15 2 jBehold, upon the mountains, kthe feet of him
who brings good news,
who publishes peace!
lKeep your feasts, O Judah;
mfulfill your vows,
nfor never again shall the worthless pass through you;
he is utterly cut off.
The Destruction of Nineveh
1 oThe scatterer has come up against you.
pMan the ramparts;
watch the road;
dress for battle;3
collect all your strength.
2 For qthe Lord is restoring the majesty of Jacob
as the majesty of Israel,
for plunderers have plundered them
and rruined their branches.
3 The shield of his mighty men is red;
shis soldiers are clothed in scarlet.
The chariots come with flashing metal
on the day he musters them;
the cypress spears are brandished.
4 tThe chariots race madly through the streets;
they rush to and fro through the squares;
they gleam like torches;
they dart like lightning.
5 He remembers uhis officers;
vthey stumble as they go,
they hasten to the wall;
the siege tower4 is set up.
6 wThe river gates are opened;
the palace xmelts away;
7 its mistress5 is ystripped;6 she is carried off,
her slave girls zlamenting,
moaning like doves
and beating their breasts.
8 bNineveh is like a pool
whose waters run away.7
“Halt! Halt!” they cry,
but cnone turns back.
9 Plunder the silver,
plunder the gold!
There is no end of the treasure
or of the wealth of all precious things.
10 dDesolate! Desolation and ruin!
eHearts melt and fknees tremble;
ganguish is in all loins;
hall faces grow pale!
11 Where is the lions’ den,
the feeding place of ithe young lions,
where the lion and lioness went,
where his cubs were, with jnone to disturb?
12 kThe lion tore enough for his cubs
and lstrangled prey for his lionesses;
he filled his caves with prey
and his dens with torn flesh.
13 mBehold, I am against you, declares the Lord of hosts, and nI will burn your8 chariots in smoke, and the sword shall devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the earth, and othe voice of your messengers shall no longer be heard.
Woe to Nineveh
1 Woe to pthe bloody city,
all full of lies and plunder—
qno end to the prey!
2 The crack of the whip, and rrumble of the wheel,
sgalloping horse and tbounding chariot!
3 Horsemen charging,
flashing sword and uglittering spear,
vhosts of slain,
heaps of corpses,
dead bodies without end—
they stumble over the bodies!
4 And all for the countless whorings of the wprostitute,
xgraceful and of deadly charms,
who betrays nations with her whorings,
and peoples with her charms.
5 mBehold, I am against you,
declares the Lord of hosts,
and ywill lift up your skirts over your face;
and I will make nations look at zyour nakedness
and kingdoms at your shame.
6 I will throw filth at you
and atreat you with contempt
and make you ba spectacle.
7 And all who look at you cwill shrink from you and say,
“Wasted is dNineveh; ewho will grieve for her?”
fWhere shall I seek comforters for you?
8 gAre you better than hThebes9
that sat iby the Nile,
with water around her,
her rampart a sea,
and water her wall?
9 jCush was her strength;
Egypt too, and that without limit;
10 mYet she became an exile;
she went into captivity;
nher infants were dashed in pieces
at the head of every street;
for her honored men olots were cast,
pand all her great men were bound in chains.
11 qYou also will be drunken;
you will go into hiding;
ryou will seek a refuge from the enemy.
12 All your fortresses are slike fig trees
with first-ripe figs—
if shaken they fall
into the mouth of the eater.
13 Behold, your troops
tare women in your midst.
The gates of your land
are wide open to your enemies;
fire has devoured your bars.
14 uDraw water for the siege;
rstrengthen your forts;
go into the clay;
tread the mortar;
take hold of the brick mold!
15 There will the fire devour you;
the sword will cut you off.
It will vdevour you wlike the locust.
Multiply yourselves wlike the locust;
multiply wlike the grasshopper!
16 You increased xyour merchants
more than the stars of the heavens.
wThe locust spreads its wings and flies away.
17 Your zprinces are wlike grasshoppers,
ayour scribes11 like clouds of locusts
settling on the fences
in a day of cold—
when the sun rises, they fly away;
no one knows where they are.
18 Your shepherds bare asleep,
O king of Assyria;
cyour nobles slumber.
Your people dare scattered on the mountains
with none to gather them.
19 There is no easing your hurt;
eyour wound is grievous.
All who hear the news about you
fclap their hands over you.
For gupon whom has not come
your unceasing evil?
