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Trinity [One
God in Three Distinct Persons]
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Note: Old Testament passages herein may
contain relevant comments in italics. Other passages show
the interaction of (or equality of) two or more of the Persons of
the Trinity]
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Then God said: "Let
us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have
dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the
cattle, and over all the wild animals and all the creatures that
crawl on the ground." God created man in his image; in the
divine image he created him; male and female he created them. [GEN
1:26-27] Note: Although God is one, it is interesting to
note that the term "our image" is used even at the
beginning of Scripture. "In six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the LORD has blessed the sabbath day and made it holy."
[EX 20:11] Note: Jesus said: "For the Son of Man
[that is, Jesus] is Lord of the sabbath." [Taken from MT
12:8]
"Learn then that I, I alone, am God, and there is no god besides me. It is I who bring both death and life, I who inflict wounds and heal them, and from my hand there is no rescue."
[DEUT 32:39] Note: There is only one true God manifested
in three distinct Persons]
Then he said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary men, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him
Immanuel [meaning "God is with us"]. [ISA
7:13-14]
Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to
Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the
Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the
Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her." [MT
1:18-20]
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the
Jordan to be baptized by him. John tried to prevent him, saying,
"I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to
me?" Jesus said to him in reply, "Allow it now, for thus
it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he
allowed him. After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water
and behold, the heavens were opened (for him), and he saw the
Spirit of God descending like a dove (and) coming upon him. And a
voice came from the heavens, saying, "This is my beloved
Son, with whom I am well pleased." [MT 3:13-17]
All things have been handed over to me by my
Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows
the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to
reveal him. [MT 11:27]
For the Son of Man will come with his angels in
his Father's glory, and then he will repay everyone according to
his conduct. [MT 16:27]
After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John
his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he
was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his
clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah
appeared to them, conversing with him. Then Peter said to Jesus in
reply, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I
will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one
for Elijah." While he was still speaking, behold, a bright
cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the cloud came a voice
that said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well
pleased; listen to him." [MT 17:1-5]
Then Jesus approached and said to them,
"All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go,
therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And
behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." [MT
28:18-20]
It happened in those days that Jesus came from
Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John. On
coming up out of the water he saw the heavens being torn open and
the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him. And a voice came
from the heavens, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well
pleased." [MK 1:9-11]
After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John
and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was
transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white,
such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. Then Elijah appeared
to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, "Rabbi, it is good that we
are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and
one for Elijah." He hardly knew what to say, they were so
terrified. Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; then
from the cloud came a voice, "This is my beloved Son. Listen
to him." [MK 9:2-7]
And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was
sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, To a virgin
espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David;
and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel being come in, said
unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art
thou among women. Who having heard, was troubled at his saying,
and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be.
And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found
grace with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt
bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be
great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord
God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he
shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom
there shall be no end. And Mary said to the angel: How shall this
be done, because I know not man? And the angel answering, said to
her: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the
most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which
shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And behold
thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old
age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren:
Because no word shall be impossible with God. And Mary said:
Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy
word. And the angel departed from her. [LK 1:26-38]
Now the people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Messiah. John answered them all, saying, "I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit and fire." [LK 3:15-16]
After all the people had been baptized and Jesus
also had been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit
descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came
from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well
pleased." [LK 3:21-22]
About eight days after he said this, he took
Peter, John, and James and went up the mountain to pray. While he
was praying his face changed in appearance and his clothing became
dazzling white. And behold, two men were conversing with him,
Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus
that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. Peter and his
companions had been overcome by sleep, but becoming fully awake,
they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. As they were
about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is
good that we are here; let us make three tents, one for you, one
for Moses, and one for Elijah." But he did not know what he
was saying. While he was still speaking, a cloud came and cast a
shadow over them, and they became frightened when they entered the
cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is
my chosen Son; listen to him." [LK 9:28-35]
At that very moment he rejoiced (in) the Holy Spirit and said, "I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him."
[LK 10:21-22]
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to
be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the
light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the
darkness has not overcome it. A man named John was sent from God.
He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might
believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to
the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming
into the world. He was in the world, and the world came to be
through him, but the world did not know him. He came to what was
his own, but his own people did not accept him. But to those who
did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those
who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation
nor by human choice nor by a man's decision but of God. And the
Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his
glory, the glory as of the Father's only Son, full of grace and
truth. John testified to him and cried out, saying, "This was
he of whom I said, 'The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of
me because he existed before me.'" From his fullness we have
all received, grace in place of grace, because while the law was
given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No
one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father's
side, has revealed him. [JN 1:1-18]
And this is the testimony of John. When the Jews
from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites (to him) to ask him,
"Who are you?" he admitted and did not deny it, but
admitted, "I am not the Messiah." So they asked him,
"What are you then? Are you Elijah?" And he said,
"I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" He
answered, "No." So they said to him, "Who are you,
so we can give an answer to those who sent us? What do you have to
say for yourself?" He said: "I am 'the voice of one
crying out in the desert, "Make straight the way of the Lord,'"
as Isaiah the prophet said." Some Pharisees were also sent.
They asked him, "Why then do you baptize if you are not the
Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet?" John answered them,
"I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do
not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap
I am not worthy to untie." This happened in Bethany across
the Jordan, where John was baptizing. The next day he saw Jesus
coming toward him and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who
takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, 'A
man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed
before me.' I did not know him, but the reason why I came
baptizing with water was that he might be made known to
Israel." John testified further, saying, "I saw the
Spirit come down like a dove from the sky and remain upon him. I
did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water
told me, 'On whomever you see the Spirit come down and remain, he
is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' Now I
have seen and testified that he is the Son of God." [JN
1:19-34]
The one who comes from above is above all. The
one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things.
But the one who comes from heaven (is above all). He testifies to
what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony.
Whoever does accept his testimony certifies that God is
trustworthy. For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He
does not ration his gift of the Spirit. The Father loves the Son
and has given everything over to him. Whoever believes in the Son
has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life,
but the wrath of God remains upon him. [JN 3:31-36]
The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was
the one who had made him well. Therefore, the Jews began to
persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath. But Jesus
answered them, "My Father is at work until now, so I am at
work." For this reason the Jews tried all the more to kill
him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God
his own father, making himself equal to God. [JN 5:15-18]
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives
life, so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes. Nor
does the Father judge anyone, but he has given all judgment to his
Son, so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.
Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent
him. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes
in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to
condemnation, but has passed from death to life. [JN 5:21-24]
Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and
is now here when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live. For just as the Father has life in
himself, so also he gave to his Son the possession of life in
himself. And he gave him power to exercise judgment, because he is
the Son of Man. Do not be amazed at this, because the hour is
coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and
will come out, those who have done good deeds to the resurrection
of life, but those who have done wicked deeds to the resurrection
of condemnation. "I cannot do anything on my own; I judge as
I hear, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will
but the will of the one who sent me." [JN 5:25-30]
"Everything that the Father gives me will
come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, because
I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the
one who sent me. And this is the will of the one who sent me, that
I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should
raise it (on) the last day. For this is the will of my Father,
that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have
eternal life, and I shall raise him (on) the last day." The
Jews murmured about him because he said, "I am the bread that
came down from heaven" [Taken from JN 6:37-41]
Jesus answered and said to them, "Stop
murmuring among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the
Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day.
It is written in the prophets: 'They shall all be taught by God.'
Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me.
Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from
God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever
believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors
ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that
comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am
the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this
bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my
flesh for the life of the world." The Jews quarreled among
themselves, saying, "How can this man give us (his) flesh to
eat?" Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks
my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever
eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just
as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the
Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of
me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your
ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will
live forever." [JN 6:43-58]
He said to them again, "I am going away and
you will look for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am
going you cannot come." So the Jews said, "He is not
going to kill himself, is he, because he said, 'Where I am going
you cannot come'?" He said to them, "You belong to what
is below, I belong to what is above. You belong to this world, but
I do not belong to this world. That is why I told you that you
will die in your sins. For if you do not believe that I AM, you
will die in your sins." So they said to him, "Who are
you?" Jesus said to them, "What I told you from the
beginning. I have much to say about you in condemnation. But the
one who sent me is true, and what I heard from him I tell the
world." They did not realize that he was speaking to them of
the Father. So Jesus said (to them), "When you lift up the
Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing
on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me. The one who
sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do
what is pleasing to him." Because he spoke this way, many
came to believe in him. [JN 8:21-30]
"I know that you are descendants of
Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no
room among you. I tell you what I have seen in the Father's
presence; then do what you have heard from the Father." They
answered and said to him, "Our father is Abraham." Jesus
said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would be
doing the works of Abraham. But now you are trying to kill me, a
man who has told you the truth that I heard from God; Abraham did
not do this. You are doing the works of your father!" (So)
they said to him, "We are not illegitimate. We have one
Father, God." Jesus said to them, "If God were your
Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did
not come on my own, but he sent me." [JN 8:37-42]
So the Jews gathered around him and said to him,
"How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are
the Messiah, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I
told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father's
name testify to me. But you do not believe, because you are not
among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they
follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them
to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the
Father's hand. The Father and I are one." The Jews again
picked up rocks to stone him. Jesus answered them, "I have
shown you many good works from my Father. For which of these are
you trying to stone me?" The Jews answered him, "We are
not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy. You, a man, are
making yourself God." Jesus answered them, "Is it not
written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'? If it
calls them gods to whom the word of God came, and scripture cannot
be set aside, can you say that the one whom the Father has
consecrated and sent into the world blasphemes because I said, 'I
am the Son of God'? If I do not perform my Father's works, do not
believe me; but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me,
believe the works, so that you may realize (and understand) that
the Father is in me and I am in the Father." [JN 10:24-38]
Jesus cried out and said, "Whoever believes
in me believes not only in me but also in the one who sent me, and
whoever sees me sees the one who sent me." [JN 12:44-45]
Thomas said to him, "Master, we do not know
where you are going; how can we know the way?" Jesus said to
him, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes
to the Father except through me. If you know me, then you will
also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen
him." Philip said to him, "Master, show us the Father,
and that will be enough for us." Jesus said to him,
"Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not
know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can
you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the
Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do
not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his
works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,
or else, believe because of the works themselves." [JN
14:5-11]
"If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will
ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with
you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept,
because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it
remains with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you
orphans; I will come to you." [JN 14:15-18]
Jesus answered and said to him, "Whoever
loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we
will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not
love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me. I have told you this while I
am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit that the Father will
send in my name - he will teach you everything and remind you of
all that (I) told you." [JN 14:23-26]
"When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the
Father, the Spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father, he will
testify to me." [JN 15:26]
But now I am going to the one who sent me, and not one of you
asks me, 'Where are you going?' But because I told you this, grief
has filled your hearts. But I tell you the truth, it is better for
you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to
you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes he
will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and
condemnation: sin, because they do not believe in me;
righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will no
longer see me; condemnation, because the ruler of this world has
been condemned. "I have much more to tell you, but you cannot
bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide
you to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak
what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and
declare it to you. Everything that the Father has is mine; for
this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and
declare it to you." [Taken from JN 16:5-15]
"I have told you this in figures of speech. The hour is
coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures but I will
tell you clearly about the Father. On that day you will ask in my
name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.
For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and
have come to believe that I came from God. I came from the Father
and have come into the world. Now I am leaving the world and going
back to the Father." [JN 16:25-28]
When Jesus had said this, he raised his eyes to
heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come. Give glory to
your son, so that your son may glorify you, just as you gave him
authority over all people, so that he may give eternal life to all
you gave him. Now this is eternal life, that they should know you,
the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ. I
glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work that you gave me
to do. Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had
with you before the world began. I revealed your name to those
whom you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you
gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that
everything you gave me is from you, because the words you gave to
me I have given to them, and they accepted them and truly
understood that I came from you, and they have believed that you
sent me. I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for the
ones you have given me, because they are yours, and everything of
mine is yours and everything of yours is mine, and I have been
glorified in them. And now I will no longer be in the world, but
they are in the world, while I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep
them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one
just as we are." [JN 17:1-11]
(Jesus) said to them again, "Peace be with
you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." And when he
had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive
the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and
whose sins you retain are retained." [JN 20:21-23]
In the first book, Theophilus, I dealt with all that Jesus did
and taught until the day he was taken up, after giving
instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had
chosen. He presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he
had suffered, appearing to them during forty days and speaking
about the kingdom of God. While meeting with them, he enjoined
them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for "the
promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for
John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized
with the Holy Spirit." [ACTS 1:1-5]
God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses. Exalted at the right hand of God, he received the promise of the
Holy Spirit from the Father and poured it forth, as you (both) see and hear.
[ACTS 2:32-33]
We know that... "there is no God but
one." Indeed, even though there are so-called gods in heaven
and on earth..., yet for us there is one God, the Father, from
whom all things are and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus
Christ, through whom all things are and through whom we exist.
[Taken from 1COR 8:4-6]
Therefore, I tell you that nobody speaking by
the spirit of God says, "Jesus be accursed." And no one
can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.
There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit;
there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are
different workings but the same God who produces all of them in
everyone. To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is
given for some benefit. [1COR 12:3-7]
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love
of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.
[2COR 13:13]
Have among yourselves the same attitude that is
also yours in Christ Jesus, Who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather,
he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human
likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of
this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is
above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and
every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
God the Father. [PHIL 2:5-11]
This is the will of God, your holiness: that you
refrain from immorality, that each of you know how to acquire a
wife for himself in holiness and honor, not in lustful passion as
do the Gentiles who do not know God; not to take advantage of or
exploit a brother in this matter, for the Lord is an avenger in
all these things, as we told you before and solemnly affirmed. For
God did not call us to impurity but to holiness. Therefore,
whoever disregards this, disregards not a human being but God, who
(also) gives his Holy Spirit to you. [1THES 4:3-8]
For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, deluded,
slaves to various desires and pleasures, living in malice and
envy, hateful ourselves and hating one another. But when the
kindness and generous love of God our savior appeared, not because
of any righteous deeds we had done but because of his mercy, he
saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,
whom he richly poured out on us through Jesus Christ our savior,
so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in
hope of eternal life. [TI 3:3-7]
We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that unique declaration came to him from the majestic glory, "This is my Son, my beloved, with whom I am well pleased." We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven while we were with him on the holy mountain.
[2PT 1:16-18]
What was from the beginning, what we have heard,
what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked upon and touched
with our hands concerns the Word of life - for the life was made
visible; we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to you the
eternal life that was with the Father and was made visible to us -
what we have seen and heard we proclaim now to you, so that you
too may have fellowship with us; for our fellowship is with the
Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. [1JN 1:1-3]
I write to you not because you do not know the
truth but because you do, and because every lie is alien to the
truth. Who is the liar? Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ.
Whoever denies the Father and the Son, this is the antichrist. No
one who denies the Son has the Father, but whoever confesses the
Son has the Father as well. Let what you heard from the beginning
remain in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in
you, then you will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this
is the promise that he made us: eternal life. [1JN 2:21-25]
Anyone who is so "progressive" as not
to remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God; whoever
remains in the teaching has the Father and the Son. [2JN 1:9]
Then I turned to see whose voice it was that
spoke to me, and when I turned, I saw seven gold lampstands and in
the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, wearing an
ankle-length robe, with a gold sash around his chest. The hair of
his head was as white as white wool or as snow, and his eyes were
like a fiery flame. His feet were like polished brass refined in a
furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing water. In his
right hand he held seven stars. A sharp two-edged sword came out
of his mouth, and his face shone like the sun at its brightest.
When I caught sight of him, I fell down at his feet as though
dead. He touched me with his right hand and said, "Do not be
afraid. I am the first and the last, the one who lives. Once I was
dead, but now I am alive forever and ever. I hold the keys to
death and the netherworld." [RV 1:12-18]
After this I had a vision of a great multitude,
which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and
tongue. They stood before the throne and before the Lamb, wearing
white robes and holding palm branches in their hands. They cried
out in a loud voice: "Salvation comes from our God, who is
seated on the throne, and from the Lamb." All the angels
stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living
creatures. They prostrated themselves before the throne, worshiped
God, and exclaimed: "Amen. Blessing and glory, wisdom and
thanksgiving, honor, power, and might be to our God forever and
ever. Amen." [RV 7:9-12]
Then one of the elders spoke up and said to me,
"Who are these wearing white robes, and where did they come
from?" I said to him, "My lord, you are the one who
knows." He said to me, "These are the ones who have
survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes
and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. For this reason they
stand before God's throne and worship him day and night in his
temple. The one who sits on the throne will shelter them. They
will not hunger or thirst anymore, nor will the sun or any heat
strike them. For the Lamb who is in the center of the throne will
shepherd them and lead them to springs of life-giving water, and
God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." [RV 7:13-17]
Then I saw something like a sea of glass mingled
with fire. On the sea of glass were standing those who had won the
victory over the beast and its image and the number that signified
its name. They were holding God's harps, and they sang the song of
Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb: "Great
and wonderful are your works, Lord God almighty. Just and true are
your ways, O king of the nations. Who will not fear you, Lord, or
glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All the nations will
come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been
revealed." [RV 15:2-4]
Then the angel showed me the river of
life-giving water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne
of God and of the Lamb down the middle of its street. On either
side of the river grew the tree of life that produces fruit twelve
times a year, once each month; the leaves of the trees serve as
medicine for the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there
anymore. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his
servants will worship him. [RV 22:1-3]
Also try:
God
[G4a]
Holy
Spirit [S27a]
Jesus
(links) [J]
mysterious
/ mystery [M9]
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