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Revelation 1

Revelation opens by showing the risen Jesus among his assemblies, ruling over earthly kings and holding authority over death.

John writes to seven assemblies in Asia while on Patmos because of God’s word and his testimony about Jesus. He introduces a revelation given through Jesus Christ and announces Christ’s coming before recounting a vision received on the Lord’s day. Among seven golden lamp stands, John sees the risen Jesus in overwhelming glory and falls at his feet. Jesus tells him not to fear and commands him to write what he sees for the assemblies.

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1This is the Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things which must happen soon, which he sent and made known by his angel to his servant, John,
2who testified to God’s word and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, about everything that he saw.
3Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written in it, for the time is near.
4John, to the seven assemblies that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from God, who is and who was and who is to come; and from the seven Spirits who are before his throne;
5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us, and washed us from our sins by his blood—
6and he made us to be a Kingdom, priests to his God and Father—to him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
7Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, including those who pierced him. All the tribes of the earth will mourn over him. Even so, Amen.
8“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
9I John, your brother and partner with you in the oppression, Kingdom, and perseverance in Christ Jesus, was on the isle that is called Patmos because of God’s Word and the testimony of Jesus Christ.
10I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, like a trumpet
11saying, “What you see, write in a book and send to the seven assemblies: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.”
12I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. Having turned, I saw seven golden lamp stands.
13And among the lamp stands was one like a son of man, clothed with a robe reaching down to his feet, and with a golden sash around his chest.
14His head and his hair were white as white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire.
15His feet were like burnished brass, as if it had been refined in a furnace. His voice was like the voice of many waters.
16He had seven stars in his right hand. Out of his mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining at its brightest.
17When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me, saying, “Don’t be afraid. I am the first and the last,
18and the Living one. I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever and ever. Amen. I have the keys of Death and of Hades.
19Write therefore the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will happen hereafter.
20The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lamp stands is this: The seven stars are the angels of the seven assemblies. The seven lamp stands are seven assemblies.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Revelation 1:5Jesus’ authority over kings stands beside his love and cleansing blood, grounding the greeting in his saving work.
Revelation 1:8God’s declaration of his eternal being and almighty power establishes whose authority governs the revelation.
Revelation 1:17The glorious Christ touches the terrified John and identifies himself as the first and the last.
Where this chapter reaches

Daniel shares the vision language of a humanlike figure and coming with clouds that shapes this chapter’s portrayal of Christ. John shares the witness to Jesus being pierced and rising from death, events behind the announcement that the living Christ will come.

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After reading the whole chapter

Which detail in John’s vision most shapes how you understand Jesus’ authority, and why?

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How does Jesus’ response to John’s fear affect your reading of this vision?

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Questions people ask about Revelation 1

Who wrote Revelation 1?

The writer names himself John and calls himself a brother and partner of the assemblies in oppression, the Kingdom, and perseverance in Jesus. He says he was on Patmos because of God’s word and Jesus’ testimony. The chapter does not identify him as an apostle or give further biographical details.

What do the seven stars and lamp stands mean in Revelation 1?

Verse 20 explains both symbols: the seven lamp stands are the seven assemblies, and the seven stars are their angels. Jesus stands among the lamp stands and holds the stars in his right hand. Whether these angels are heavenly beings or human messengers is debated; the chapter does not explain further.

Who is the Alpha and the Omega in Revelation 1:8?

Verse 8 identifies the speaker as the Lord God, the Almighty, who is and was and is to come. Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, expressing God’s encompassing authority. In verse 17, Jesus uses the related title, “the first and the last.”

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Revelation · 22 chapters
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What the Bible says about fear →What the Bible says about worship →What the Bible says about death →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).