The First Six Bowls of Wrath

¹Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out on the earth the seven bowls of God’s wrath.”

²So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and loathsome, malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

³And the second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it turned to blood like that of the dead, and every living thing in the sea died.

⁴And the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water, and they turned to blood.

⁵And I heard the angel of the waters say:“Righteous are You, O Holy One,who is and was,because You have brought these judgments.

⁶For they have spilled the blood of saints and prophets,and You have given them blood to drink,as they deserve.”

⁷And I heard the altar reply:“Yes, Lord God Almighty,true and just are Your judgments.”

⁸Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given power to scorch the people with fire.

⁹And the people were scorched by intense heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues. Yet they did not repent and give Him glory.

¹⁰And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness, and men began to gnaw their tongues in anguish

¹¹and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores. Yet they did not repent of their deeds.

¹²And the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings of the East.

¹³And I saw three unclean spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet.

¹⁴These are demonic spirits that perform signs and go out to all the kings of the earth, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.

¹⁵“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who remains awake and clothed, so that he will not go naked and let his shame be exposed.”

¹⁶And they assembled the kings in the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

The Seventh Bowl of Wrath

¹⁷Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came from the throne in the temple, saying, “It is done!”

¹⁸And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake the likes of which had not occurred since men were upon the earth—so mighty was the great quake.

¹⁹The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. And God remembered Babylon the great and gave her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath.

²⁰Then every island fled, and no mountain could be found.

²¹And great hailstones weighing almost a hundred pounds eachrained down on them from above. And men cursed God for the plague of hail, because it was so horrendous.

The Seventh Seal

¹When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

²And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets.

³Then another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, along with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne.

⁴And the smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, rose up before God from the hand of the angel.

⁵Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

The First Four Trumpets

⁶And the seven angels with the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.

⁷Then the first angel sounded his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, along with a third of the trees and all the green grass.

⁸Then the second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned to blood,

⁹a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

¹⁰Then the third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star burning like a torch fell from heaven and landed on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.

¹¹The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter like wormwood oil,and many people died from the bitter waters.

¹²Then the fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun and moon and stars were struck. A third of the stars were darkened, a third of the day was without light, and a third of the night as well.

¹³And as I observed, I heard an eagle flying overhead, calling in a loud voice, “Woe! Woe! Woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the remaining three angels!”

The Choosing of the Seven

¹In those days when the disciples were increasing in number, the Grecian Jews among them began to grumble against the Hebraic Jewsbecause their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.

²So the Twelve summoned all the disciples and said, “It is unacceptable for us to neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.

³Therefore, brothers, select from among you seven men confirmed to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will assign this responsibility to them

⁴and will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

⁵This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, as well as Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.

⁶They presented these seven to the apostles,who prayed and laid their hands on them.

⁷So the word of God continued to spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem grew rapidly, and a great number of priests became obedient to the faith.

The Arrest of Stephen

⁸Now Stephen, who was full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.

⁹But resistance arose from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and men from the provinces of Cilicia and Asia.They disputed with Stephen,

¹⁰but they could not stand up to his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.

¹¹Then they prompted some men to say, “We heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God.”

¹²So they stirred up the people, elders, and scribes and confronted Stephen. They seized him and brought him before the Sanhedrin,

¹³where they presented false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law.

¹⁴For we have heard him say that Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.”

¹⁵All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

A Father’s Instruction

¹Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction;pay attention and gain understanding.

²For I give you sound teaching;do not abandon my directive.

³When I was a son to my father,tender and the only child of my mother,

⁴he taught me and said,“Let your heart lay hold of my words;keep my commands and you will live.

⁵Get wisdom, get understanding;do not forget my words or turn from them.

⁶Do not forsake wisdom, and she will preserve you;love her, and she will guard you.

⁷Wisdom is supreme; so acquire wisdom.And whatever you may acquire,gain understanding.

⁸Prize her, and she will exalt you;if you embrace her, she will honor you.

⁹She will set a garland of grace on your head;she will present you with a crown of beauty.”

¹⁰Listen, my son, and receive my words,and the years of your life will be many.

¹¹I will guide you in the way of wisdom;I will lead you on straight paths.

¹²When you walk, your steps will not be impeded;when you run, you will not stumble.

¹³Hold on to instruction; do not let go.Guard it, for it is your life.

¹⁴Do not set foot on the path of the wickedor walk in the way of evildoers.

¹⁵Avoid it; do not travel on it.Turn from it and pass on by.

¹⁶For they cannot sleepunless they do evil;they are deprived of slumberuntil they make someone fall.

¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickednessand drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn,shining brighter and brighter until midday.

¹⁹But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom;they do not know what makes them stumble.

²⁰My son, pay attention to my words;incline your ear to my sayings.

²¹Do not lose sight of them;keep them within your heart.

²²For they are life to those who find them,and health to the whole body.

²³Guard your heart with all diligence,for from it flow springs of life.

²⁴Put away deception from your mouth;keep your lips from perverse speech.

²⁵Let your eyes look forward;fix your gaze straight ahead.

²⁶Make a level path for your feet,and all your ways will be sure.

²⁷Do not swerve to the right or to the left;turn your feet away from evil.