Passover Celebrated

1 Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem to ^ukeep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel. 2 For the king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel to keep the Passover ^vin the second month— 3 for they could not keep it at that time because ^wthe priests had not consecrated themselves in sufficient number, nor had the people assembled in Jerusalem— 4 and the plan seemed right to the king and all the assembly. 5 So they decreed to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that the people should come and keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel, at Jerusalem, for they had not kept it as often as prescribed. 6 So couriers went throughout all Israel and Judah with letters from the king and his princes, as the king had commanded, saying, “O people of Israel, ^xreturn to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that he may turn again to the remnant of you who have escaped ^yfrom the hand of the kings of Assyria. 7 Do not be like your fathers and your brothers, who were faithless to the Lord God of their fathers, so that he made them a desolation, as you see. 8 Do not now be ^zstiff-necked as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the Lord and come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever, and serve the Lord your God, that his fierce anger may ^aturn away from you. 9 For if you return to the Lord, your brothers and your children will find ^bcompassion with their captors and return to this land. For the Lord your God is gracious and merciful and will not turn away his face from you, if you return to him.”

10 So the couriers went from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but they laughed them to scorn and ^cmocked them. 11 However, some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. 12 The hand of God was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of the Lord.

13 And many people came together in Jerusalem to keep the ^dFeast of Unleavened Bread in the second month, a very great assembly. 14 They set to work and removed the ^ealtars that were in Jerusalem, and all the altars for burning incense they took away and threw into the brook ^fKidron. 15 And they slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. And the priests and the Levites were ashamed, so that they ^gconsecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings into the house of the Lord. 16 They took their accustomed posts according to the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests threw the blood that they received from the hand of the Levites. 17 For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the Lord. 18 For a majority of the people, many of them from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise than as prescribed. For Hezekiah had prayed for them, saying, “May the good Lord pardon everyone 19 who ^hsets his heart to seek God, the Lord, the God of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary’s rules of cleanness.”¹ 20 And the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people. 21 And the people of Israel who were present at Jerusalem kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread ⁱseven days with great gladness, and the Levites and the priests praised the Lord day by day, singing with all their might² to the Lord. 22 And Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites who showed good skill in the service of the Lord. So they ate the food of the festival for seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord, the God of their fathers.

23 Then the whole assembly agreed together to keep the feast for another seven days. So they kept it for another seven days with gladness. 24 For Hezekiah king of Judah gave the assembly 1,000 bulls and 7,000 sheep for offerings, and the princes gave the assembly 1,000 bulls and 10,000 sheep. And the priests consecrated themselves in great numbers. 25 The whole assembly of Judah, and the priests and the Levites, and the whole assembly that came out of Israel, and the sojourners who came out of the land of Israel, and the sojourners who lived in Judah, rejoiced. 26 So there was great joy in Jerusalem, for ^jsince the time of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. 27 Then the priests and the Levites arose and ^kblessed the people, and their voice was heard, and their prayer came to ^lhis holy habitation in heaven.

The Throne in Heaven

1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, ^fwhich I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, ^g“Come up here, and I will show you ^hwhat must take place after this.” 2 At once I was ⁱin the Spirit, ^jand behold, a ^kthrone stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. 3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a ^lrainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were ^mtwenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. 5 From the throne came ⁿflashes of lightning, and rumblings¹ and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are ^othe seven spirits of God, 6 and before the throne there was as it were a ^psea of glass, like ^qcrystal.

And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are ^rfour living creatures, ^sfull of eyes in front and behind: 7 ^tthe first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. 8 And the four living creatures, ^ueach of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and ^vday and night they never cease to say,

9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders ^yfall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

The Scroll and the Lamb

1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne ^aa scroll written within and on the back, ^bsealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, 4 and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5 And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, ^cthe Lion ^dof the tribe of Judah, the ^eRoot of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”

6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a ^fLamb standing, as though it had been ^gslain, with seven horns and with ^hseven eyes, which are ⁱthe seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. 8 And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the ^jtwenty-four elders ^kfell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, ^lwhich are the prayers of the saints. 9 And they sang a ^mnew song, saying,

11 Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of ^rmany angels, ^snumbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice,

13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,

14 And the four living creatures said, ^u“Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

The Seven Seals

1 Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 And I looked, and behold, a ^vwhite horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out ^wconquering, and to conquer.

3 When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 And out came another horse, ^xbright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.

5 When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” And I looked, and behold, a ^yblack horse! And its rider had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures, saying, ^z“A quart² of wheat for a denarius,³ and three quarts of barley for a denarius, and ^ado not harm the oil and wine!”

7 When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 And I looked, and behold, a ^bpale horse! And its rider’s name was Death, ^cand Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill ^dwith sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth.

9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the ^ealtar ^fthe souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. 10 They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, ^gholy and true, how long before you will judge and ^havenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 Then they were each given a ⁱwhite robe and told to ^jrest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers⁴ should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.

12 When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great ^kearthquake, and ^lthe sun became ^mblack as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, 13 and ⁿthe stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. 14 ^oThe sky vanished like a scroll that is being ^prolled up, and ^qevery mountain and island was removed from its place. 15 Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave⁵ and free, ^rhid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, 16 calling to the mountains and rocks, ^s“Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 for the ^tgreat day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”