ARKCODEX
Revelation
Ch. 1–3
1This book is the record of the events that Jesus Christ revealed. God gave him this revelation in order to show to his servants what must happen very soon. Christ made these things known to his servant John by sending his angel to him,
2and John has told all that he has seen. This is his report concerning the message from God and the truth revealed by Jesus Christ.
3Happy is the one who reads this book, and happy are those who listen to the words of this prophetic message and obey what is written in this book! For the time is near when all these things will happen.
Greetings to the Seven Churches
4From John to the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace be yours from God, who is, who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits in front of his throne,
5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first to be raised from death and who is also the ruler of the kings of the world. He loves us, and by his sacrificial death he has freed us from our sins
6and made us a kingdom of priests to serve his God and Father. To Jesus Christ be the glory and power forever and ever! Amen.
7Look, he is coming on the clouds! Everyone will see him, including those who pierced him. All peoples on earth will mourn over him. So shall it be!
8“I am the first and the last,” says the Lord God Almighty, who is, who was, and who is to come.
A Vision of Christ
9I am John, your brother, and as a follower of Jesus I am your partner in patiently enduring the suffering that comes to those who belong to his Kingdom. I was put on the island of Patmos because I had proclaimed God's word and the truth that Jesus revealed.
10On the Lord's day the Spirit took control of me, and I heard a loud voice, that sounded like a trumpet, speaking behind me.
11It said, “Write down what you see, and send the book to the churches in these seven cities: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
12I turned around to see who was talking to me, and I saw seven gold lampstands,
13and among them there was what looked like a human being, wearing a robe that reached to his feet, and a gold band around his chest.
14His hair was white as wool, or as snow, and his eyes blazed like fire;
15his feet shone like brass that has been refined and polished, and his voice sounded like a roaring waterfall.
16He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came out of his mouth. His face was as bright as the midday sun.
17When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. He placed his right hand on me and said, “Don't be afraid! I am the first and the last.
18I am the living one! I was dead, but now I am alive forever and ever. I have authority over death and the world of the dead.
19Write, then, the things you see, both the things that are now and the things that will happen afterward.
20Here is the secret meaning of the seven stars that you see in my right hand, and of the seven gold lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
Revelation 2
The Message to Ephesus
1“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: “This is the message from the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who walks among the seven gold lampstands.
2I know what you have done; I know how hard you have worked and how patient you have been. I know that you cannot tolerate evil people and that you have tested those who say they are apostles but are not, and have found out that they are liars.
3You are patient, you have suffered for my sake, and you have not given up.
4But this is what I have against you: you do not love me now as you did at first.
5Think how far you have fallen! Turn from your sins and do what you did at first. If you don't turn from your sins, I will come to you and take your lampstand from its place.
6But this is what you have in your favor: you hate what the Nicolaitans do, as much as I do.
7“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches! “To those who win the victory I will give the right to eat the fruit of the tree of life that grows in the Garden of God.
The Message to Smyrna
8“To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: “This is the message from the one who is the first and the last, who died and lived again.
9I know your troubles; I know that you are poor—but really you are rich! I know the evil things said against you by those who claim to be Jews but are not; they are a group that belongs to Satan!
10Don't be afraid of anything you are about to suffer. Listen! The Devil will put you to the test by having some of you thrown into prison, and your troubles will last ten days. Be faithful to me, even if it means death, and I will give you life as your prize of victory.
11“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches! “Those who win the victory will not be hurt by the second death.
The Message to Pergamum
12“To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: “This is the message from the one who has the sharp two-edged sword.
13I know where you live, there where Satan has his throne. You are true to me, and you did not abandon your faith in me even during the time when Antipas, my faithful witness, was killed there where Satan lives.
14But there are a few things I have against you: there are some among you who follow the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak how to lead the people of Israel into sin by persuading them to eat food that had been offered to idols and to practice sexual immorality.
15In the same way you have people among you who follow the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
16Now turn from your sins! If you don't, I will come to you soon and fight against those people with the sword that comes out of my mouth.
17“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches! “To those who win the victory I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give each of them a white stone on which is written a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it.
The Message to Thyatira
18“To the angel of the church in Thyatira write: “This is the message from the Son of God, whose eyes blaze like fire, whose feet shine like polished brass.
19I know what you do. I know your love, your faithfulness, your service, and your patience. I know that you are doing more now than you did at first.
20But this is what I have against you: you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a messenger of God. By her teaching she misleads my servants into practicing sexual immorality and eating food that has been offered to idols.
21I have given her time to repent of her sins, but she does not want to turn from her immorality.
22And so I will throw her on a bed where she and those who committed adultery with her will suffer terribly. I will do this now unless they repent of the wicked things they did with her.
23I will also kill her followers, and then all the churches will know that I am the one who knows everyone's thoughts and wishes. I will repay each of you according to what you have done.
24“But the rest of you in Thyatira have not followed this evil teaching; you have not learned what the others call ‘the deep secrets of Satan.’ I say to you that I will not put any other burden on you.
25But until I come, you must hold firmly to what you have.
26-28To those who win the victory, who continue to the end to do what I want, I will give the same authority that I received from my Father: I will give them authority over the nations, to rule them with an iron rod and to break them to pieces like clay pots. I will also give them the morning star.
29“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches!
Revelation 3
The Message to Sardis
1“To the angel of the church in Sardis write: “This is the message from the one who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know what you are doing; I know that you have the reputation of being alive, even though you are dead!
2So wake up, and strengthen what you still have before it dies completely. For I find that what you have done is not yet perfect in the sight of my God.
3Remember, then, what you were taught and what you heard; obey it and turn from your sins. If you do not wake up, I will come upon you like a thief, and you will not even know the time when I will come.
4But a few of you there in Sardis have kept your clothes clean. You will walk with me, clothed in white, because you are worthy to do so.
5Those who win the victory will be clothed like this in white, and I will not remove their names from the book of the living. In the presence of my Father and of his angels I will declare openly that they belong to me.
6“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches!
The Message to Philadelphia
7“To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: “This is the message from the one who is holy and true. He has the key that belonged to David, and when he opens a door, no one can close it, and when he closes it, no one can open it.
8I know what you do; I know that you have a little power; you have followed my teaching and have been faithful to me. I have opened a door in front of you, which no one can close.
9Listen! As for that group that belongs to Satan, those liars who claim that they are Jews but are not, I will make them come and bow down at your feet. They will all know that I love you.
10Because you have kept my command to endure, I will also keep you safe from the time of trouble which is coming upon the world to test all the people on earth.
11I am coming soon. Keep safe what you have, so that no one will rob you of your victory prize.
12I will make those who are victorious pillars in the temple of my God, and they will never leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which will come down out of heaven from my God. I will also write on them my new name.
13“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches!
The Message to Laodicea
14“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: “This is the message from the Amen, the faithful and true witness, who is the origin of all that God has created.
15I know what you have done; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. How I wish you were either one or the other!
16But because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am going to spit you out of my mouth!
17You say, ‘I am rich and well off; I have all I need.’ But you do not know how miserable and pitiful you are! You are poor, naked, and blind.
18I advise you, then, to buy gold from me, pure gold, in order to be rich. Buy also white clothing to dress yourself and cover up your shameful nakedness. Buy also some ointment to put on your eyes, so that you may see.
19I rebuke and punish all whom I love. Be in earnest, then, and turn from your sins.
20Listen! I stand at the door and knock; if any hear my voice and open the door, I will come into their house and eat with them, and they will eat with me.
21To those who win the victory I will give the right to sit beside me on my throne, just as I have been victorious and now sit by my Father on his throne.
22“If you have ears, then, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches!”
2 Timothy
Ch. 3–4
The Last Days
1Remember that there will be difficult times in the last days.
2People will be selfish, greedy, boastful, and conceited; they will be insulting, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, and irreligious;
3they will be unkind, merciless, slanderers, violent, and fierce; they will hate the good;
4they will be treacherous, reckless, and swollen with pride; they will love pleasure rather than God;
5they will hold to the outward form of our religion, but reject its real power. Keep away from such people.
6Some of them go into people's houses and gain control over weak women who are burdened by the guilt of their sins and driven by all kinds of desires,
7women who are always trying to learn but who can never come to know the truth.
8As Jannes and Jambres were opposed to Moses, so also these people are opposed to the truth—people whose minds do not function and who are failures in the faith.
9But they will not get very far, because everyone will see how stupid they are. That is just what happened to Jannes and Jambres.
Last Instructions
10But you have followed my teaching, my conduct, and my purpose in life; you have observed my faith, my patience, my love, my endurance,
11my persecutions, and my sufferings. You know all that happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, the terrible persecutions I endured! But the Lord rescued me from them all.
12Everyone who wants to live a godly life in union with Christ Jesus will be persecuted;
13and evil persons and impostors will keep on going from bad to worse, deceiving others and being deceived themselves.
14But as for you, continue in the truths that you were taught and firmly believe. You know who your teachers were,
15and you remember that ever since you were a child, you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
16All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching the truth, rebuking error, correcting faults, and giving instruction for right living,
17so that the person who serves God may be fully qualified and equipped to do every kind of good deed.
2 Timothy 4
1In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and because he is coming to rule as King, I solemnly urge you
2to preach the message, to insist upon proclaiming it (whether the time is right or not), to convince, reproach, and encourage, as you teach with all patience.
3The time will come when people will not listen to sound doctrine, but will follow their own desires and will collect for themselves more and more teachers who will tell them what they are itching to hear.
4They will turn away from listening to the truth and give their attention to legends.
5But you must keep control of yourself in all circumstances; endure suffering, do the work of a preacher of the Good News, and perform your whole duty as a servant of God.
6As for me, the hour has come for me to be sacrificed; the time is here for me to leave this life.
7I have done my best in the race, I have run the full distance, and I have kept the faith.
8And now there is waiting for me the victory prize of being put right with God, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that Day—and not only to me, but to all those who wait with love for him to appear.
Personal Words
9Do your best to come to me soon.
10Demas fell in love with this present world and has deserted me, going off to Thessalonica. Crescens went to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.
11Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he can help me in the work.
12I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.
13When you come, bring my coat that I left in Troas with Carpus; bring the books too, and especially the ones made of parchment.
14Alexander the metalworker did me great harm; the Lord will reward him according to what he has done.
15Be on your guard against him yourself, because he was violently opposed to our message.
16No one stood by me the first time I defended myself; all deserted me. May God not count it against them!
17But the Lord stayed with me and gave me strength, so that I was able to proclaim the full message for all the Gentiles to hear; and I was rescued from being sentenced to death.
18And the Lord will rescue me from all evil and take me safely into his heavenly Kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever! Amen.
Final Greetings
19I send greetings to Priscilla and Aquila and to the family of Onesiphorus.
20Erastus stayed in Corinth, and I left Trophimus in Miletus, because he was sick.
21Do your best to come before winter. Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, and Claudia send their greetings, and so do all the other Christians.
22The Lord be with your spirit. God's grace be with you all.
Proverbs
Ch. 31
8“Speak up for people who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless.
9Speak for them and be a righteous judge. Protect the rights of the poor and needy.”