Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;
Parallel translations
- WEB Write therefore the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will happen hereafter;
- BSB Therefore write down the things you have seen, and the things that are, and the things that will happen after this.
- NKJV Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this.
- NASB Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.
- NLT “Write down what you have seen—both the things that are now happening and the things that will happen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
John is to write what he has seen, what is, and what will be. It matters because it gives a structure for the whole revelation that follows.
Overview
Christ commissions John to record his visions, spanning present realities and future events. Many take this threefold phrase as an outline: the vision just seen (chapter 1), the present state of the churches (chapters 2–3), and things to come (chapters 4 onward). At minimum, it stresses that the book addresses both the churches' current condition and God's unfolding purposes.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Rev 4:1–11After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.
- Rev 1:11Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Revelation ends the story with the slain-yet-standing Lamb who is worthy, the Lion of Judah, the Alpha and Omega, the returning King who makes all things new and dwells with his people forever.
How Revelation 1:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.