I saw a great white throne, and him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. There was found no place for them.
Parallel translations
- KJV And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
- BSB Then I saw a great white throne and the One seated on it. Earth and heaven fled from His presence, and no place was found for them.
- NKJV Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
- NASB Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled, and no place was found for them.
- NLT And I saw a great white throne and the one sitting on it. The earth and sky fled from his presence, but they found no place to hide.
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 sees God on a great white throne, before whom heaven and earth flee away. The final judgment of all creation is at hand.
Overview
The 'great white throne' signals purity, majesty, and unassailable authority as God prepares to judge. Heaven and earth fleeing pictures the old order passing away before the Creator (cf. 21:1; 2 Peter 3:10). The scene presents God as the final Judge of all, a role Scripture also assigns to the exalted Christ (John 5:22; Acts 17:31).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 22
- Rev 21:1I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more.
- 2 Pet 3:7But the heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
- Matt 25:31“But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.
- Dan 2:35Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that no place was found for them: and the stone that struck the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.
- 2 Pet 3:10–12But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
- Rom 2:5But according to your hardness and unrepentant heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath, revelation, and of the righteous judgment of God;
- Acts 17:30–31The times of ignorance therefore God overlooked. But now he commands that all people everywhere should repent,
- Jer 4:23–26I saw the earth, and, behold, it was waste and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.
- Ps 9:7–8But Yahweh reigns forever. He has prepared his throne for judgment.
- Rev 16:20Every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
- Matt 24:35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
- Rev 6:14The sky was removed like a scroll when it is rolled up. Every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
- Ps 47:8God reigns over the nations. God sits on his holy throne.
- Rev 12:8They didn’t prevail, neither was a place found for him any more in heaven.
- Ps 89:14Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne. Loving kindness and truth go before your face.
- Ps 97:2Clouds and darkness are around him. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
- Rev 20:2He seized the dragon, the old serpent, which is the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole inhabited earth, and bound him for a thousand years,
- Rev 19:11I saw the heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful and True. In righteousness he judges and makes war.
- Job 9:6He shakes the earth out of its place. Its pillars tremble.
- Rev 4:2Immediately I was in the Spirit. Behold, there was a throne set in heaven, and one sitting on the throne
- Ps 14:6–7You frustrate the plan of the poor, because Yahweh is his refuge.
- Gen 18:25Be it far from you to do things like that, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be like the wicked. May that be far from you. Shouldn’t the Judge of all the earth do right?”
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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 20:11 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
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