This sentence in Greek also lacks a main verb (as both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation show), and in some languages it may be better to supply a verb: “I, John, write to the seven churches….” In other languages it is more appropriate style to restructure the sentence and say “To the seven churches in the province of Asia. From John.”

Asia was the Roman province in what is now southwestern Turkey. Its most important city was Ephesus. The seven churches are named in verse 11. There were other churches in Asia: in Colossae (Col 1.2), Hierapolis (Col 4.13), Troas (Acts 20.5; 2 Cor 2.12), and possibly others. It is impossible to tell why these seven churches are listed and why they are called the seven churches, as though there were no other churches in Asia. In the New Testament the primary reference of “church” is to a group of believers. So in certain languages the term may be translated as “gathering (or, group) of believers,” or even “group of people who believe in Jesus Christ.”

This book is filled with groups of seven; in all, the number seven occurs fifty-four times. In the Bible the number seven indicates totality, completeness; commentators point to the seven nations in Ezekiel 25-32, representing all the Gentiles. So it may be assumed that the writer addresses his book to all Christians of his day, or at least to all Christians in the Roman province of Asia.

What follows is a typical Christian greeting used in letters: Grace to you and peace is the way Paul invariably begins his letters (see Rom 1.7; 1 Cor 1.3; 2 Cor 1.2, and others). Although there is no verb in the Greek text, the sentence is a normal way in Greek of expressing a wish: “May grace and peace be given to you by…” or “May you receive grace and peace from….”

Grace is God’s constant love for his people, a love affirmed by and guaranteed in the covenant he made with them, in which he promised always to bless and protect them. This very important word appears many times in the New Testament, and it is not always easy to find a natural way of expressing the meaning of the term other than to use the word “love,” usually strengthened by an adjective. In the Old Testament the equivalent word chesed is usually translated “steadfast love” by Revised Standard Version and “constant love” by Good News Bible (see Psa 13.5). Some languages will find it useful to have a fuller definition of the word in a glossary, as Brazilian Commom Language version does. Peace is not only the lack of external conflict and hostility, but also the presence of an inner sense of well-being, security, and wholeness. It results from faithful obedience to God’s commands and receiving his consequent blessings. Peace in some languages may be expressed idiomatically; for example, “live in coolness and happiness” or “have a cool heart.” In other languages this clause may be expanded as “May you receive love and peace from God.” Other languages will require a preposed expression of prayer or request; for example, “I pray (or, ask) that you receive love and peace from God” or “I pray that God will show you his love and peace.”

What follows is an invocation to the triune God, usually spoken of as “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (see Matt 28.19). Here the term “Father” is not used and should not appear in a translation. God is spoken of as him who is and who was and who is to come; Good News Translation, like others, has “from God, who is….” The threefold phrase describes God as the eternal one (see 1.8; 4.8; 11.17; 16.5). The first one, [he] who is, is the translation of the divine title in the Greek Septuagint translation of Exodus 3.14, where the title in Hebrew is “I AM” (see Revised Standard Version). The Greek phrase uses the nominative form of the present participle, with the definite article, “the being (one),” as though it were a proper noun; Moffatt represents this by “grace be to you and peace from HE WHO IS AND WAS AND IS COMING, and….” This rendering is somewhat awkward and should not be imitated. The second phrase is [he] who was, which in Greek is the finite form of the imperfect of the verb “to be” in the third person, “he was,” with the definite article “the” (there is no participial form of the imperfect tense of the verb). The two phrases declare God’s eternal existence and may be expressed by “… God, who exists now and has always existed” or “… God, who now lives and has always lived.” The third phrase, who is to come, expresses not only God’s living forever but also God’s continued activity on behalf of his people—God as Judge and Redeemer.

The phrase the seven spirits who are before his throne (see also 3.1; 4.5; 5.6) is a way of speaking of the Holy Spirit; the number seven is probably used in the sense of totality, completeness. As already stated, “seven” plays a very important role in this book. Unless this is the first New Testament book to be translated (a most unlikely possibility), the translation of “spirit” will have already been determined. The main thing to avoid is a word that indicates a ghost, or an evil or malevolent spirit, or the (human) spirit that survives a person’s death, or even the “soul stuff” (or, vital force) that is understood in certain cultures to inhabit plants, animals or even humans. It is also important not to borrow a term from some other language that will be practically meaningless to the reader or even give the wrong meaning. The translation of the phrase in this verse must be quite literal; as with all other symbolic figures and events in this book, the translation must accurately represent them without trying to interpret them. The translation should not say or imply “seven Holy Spirits,” nor should the word “angels” be used.

The word throne identifies God as the supreme ruler of the world, attended by the seven spirits, who are at his service. In some languages throne is rendered as “sacred chair,” and in others as “the high chief’s chair” or “the place where one sits to govern.” In the phrase who are before his throne, translators in certain languages will want to state the bodily position (standing, sitting, or bowing) of these spirits. However, this information is not at all certain. In fact in 5.6 the seven spirits are referred to as “the seven eyes” of the Lamb. Thus the translator in this context will try to keep the translation vague.

Jesus Christ is described by three phrases: (1) the faithful witness: this means that the testimony about God and God’s will for humankind that Jesus is going to give John in the visions reported in this book is true, or reliable, and can be believed. If a distinction can be drawn between the two, the word refers more to the reliability of Jesus Christ as a witness than to the truth, the reliability, of his testimony. In other words the witness of Jesus Christ can be trusted. Some languages will require an expanded phrase; for example, “the one who reveals the truth about God faithfully (or, in a way that can be trusted).” In 3.14 the title is expanded to “the faithful and true witness.” (2) Jesus Christ is the first-born of the dead, that is, the first one to “be born” to a new life by being raised from death. The use of “first” indicates that there are and will be others to be “born.” The phrase is similar to the one used in Col 1.18. The element “first” may refer to Jesus as “the firstborn Son,” as Good News Translation translates it; so also Bible en français courant “the firstborn Son, the first to have been transferred from death to life.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “the first one of all the dead who has been born to new life,” and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates “who was the first one to rise from death.” (3) Jesus Christ is the ruler of kings on earth, which indicates his power over all earthly rulers (see 17.14; 19.16). Where the concept of kings is difficult to express, the translation may say “the great chief,” “the great one,” or in certain languages, “the fat (or, large) one,” or even “big (or, older) brother with uplifted name.” And the phrase the ruler of kings on earth may be expressed as “the supreme ruler of all the world” or “the one who has power over all people on earth.” Christ here is used as part of the name of Jesus, rather than a title meaning the “Messiah.”

The one sentence, verses 4-5a, is in the form of a wish, or a prayer, and the appropriate equivalent form in a given language should be used. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates “Receive grace and peace from the one who….” Bible en français courant and Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje have “May grace and peace be given you by God, who…,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “I wish for you grace and peace from God, who….”

An alternative translation model for verses 4-5a is:

• I, John, write to the seven groups of believers (or, churches) in the province of Asia.
I pray that you may receive love and peace from God. He is the one who lives and has always lived, and who is coming (or, about to come). May you receive love and peace from the seven spirits in front of God’s throne, and from Jesus Christ, the one who reveals the truth about God faithfully. He was the first one to rise from death, and who also rules over all the kings (or, high chiefs) all over the world.

This last one sentence in Greek is a doxology, that is, the giving of praise to Christ, confessing his greatness and might (see other doxologies in 5.12, 13; 7.10; see also 2 Tim 4.18b; Heb 13.21b; 1 Peter 4.11b). It lacks a verb, and most English translations use the form To him … be … (Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, Revised, New International Version); but there are other ways of restructuring the text (see below).

This doxology is addressed to Jesus Christ, not to God; if necessary the translation can make this explicit; for example, “To Jesus, the one who loves us,” or in a similar way to Good News Translation, “He loves us….”

Him who loves us: the use of the Greek present participle “the one loving us” emphasizes the continual, never-ending love of Jesus Christ for all his people. The Greek verb agapaō occurs again at 3.9 (and see the noun agapē at 2.40); another Greek verb, phileō, is used at 3.19.

Loves: the word for “love” in some languages has very little to do with feelings of mercy or compassion, which are components of the word used in this verse, and thus it is often expressed idiomatically; for example, “His (Jesus’) heart (or, insides) is warm for us” or “He holds us in his heart.” The pronoun us includes all followers of Jesus Christ, even though the writer has in mind particularly his readers, the people of the churches to whom he will send his book.

And has freed us from our sins by his blood: the background of this description of redemption is the Old Testament sacrificial system, in which an animal was offered as the means of achieving the forgiveness of sins. The blood shed when the animal was killed represented the life being offered. In this passage his blood is a way of speaking of Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross. For similar language see Rom 5.9; Eph 2.16; Col 1.20; 1 Peter 1.18-19; 1 John 1.7. Most cultures are familiar with the concept of sin, that it refers to a violation of the teachings, laws, and traditions of the culture, or that it is an offense against some deity. In certain languages sinfulness or sins will be best expressed as “going the wrong way,” “wrong actions,” or “evil deeds,” while in others one may translate “deeds that go against God” or “actions done in disobedience against (or, that disobey) God.”

Has freed us: some Greek manuscripts and ancient versions have “washed us”; New Jerusalem Bible has followed this reading. However, there is better textual evidence for “freed” than for “washed,” and most modern translations have “freed.” The statement freed us from our sins may mean freed us from the penalty, or consequences, of our sins (see Gal 3.13; Eph 1.7; Col 1.14). It seems more likely, however, that here the author means that Christ’s death has freed us from the power of our sins, from the domination of sin in our lives (as Paul develops at length in Rom 6.16-23). In some languages this phrase will be rendered “has caused us to escape from the power of our sins,” or “has prevented our sins from having control (or, power) over us anymore,” or even “has helped us to be able to refrain from sinning.”

The preposition by may indicate the price paid for the freedom, as at 5.9, where “the blood” is the price paid. But it may indicate the means, the instrument, by which the freedom was achieved—and that is how most translations render it. In certain languages that use modal words to express instrumentality or cause, one may express this as “used his blood (or, death) to free us….”

As elsewhere, blood here is a way of speaking of Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross for the salvation of the world. So Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje “by means of his death on the cross”; Bible en français courant “by his death.” Biblia Dios Habla Hoy has “by shedding his blood,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “he has poured out his blood.”

And made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father: the literal rendition of Revised Standard Version makes for an unnatural sentence in English. The meaning is better brought out by Good News Translation “a kingdom of priests,” the kingdom established by God and Christ, in which the followers of Christ serve as priests (see Exo 19.6 “and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation”; and in 1 Peter 2.9 “a royal priesthood, a holy nation” reflects the Greek Septuagint translation of Exo 19.6). The Revised Standard Version literal priests to has been improved in New Revised Standard Version to “priests serving….” In any society, especially one that has a large established religion, priests are a professional minority, the duly authorized mediators between the people and God or gods. However, in so-called animistic societies it may be difficult to find a suitable word for priest. The shaman or the medicine man is the closest equivalent and would not be recommended in translation. In certain languages one may use a descriptive phrase; for example, “sacrificer to God,” or “go-between,” or “a person who contacts God for others.” A number of different expressions for priest are used in various languages. The important thing is that the term chosen designates the correct function of priest in this context, namely, that in the coming kingdom all believers are priests, and every believer has a direct and constant access to God (see Heb 10.19-22). Where the concept of kingdom may be difficult to represent, the word for “people” or “nation” will serve, since here the idea of a king as head of the country is not in focus, but rather a unified group of people who have a common identity.

To his God and Father: the preposition to here is a way of saying “serve.” In the phrase God and Father, care must be taken that the two refer to one being, not to two. The possessive his God may cause a problem if somehow his seems exclusive—that is, the God of Jesus Christ alone and of no one else. If there is a problem, in some languages it will be helpful to restructure the phrase and say “God his Father.” As for his … Father, there should be no problem, inasmuch as it is clear here and elsewhere in the New Testament that God is the Father of Jesus Christ in a special way. Other ways of translating the whole phrase are “to serve God, who is his Father” or “to serve God, who is the Father of Jesus.”

To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever: to him repeats the opening words of the sentence (verse 5b) in order to continue the statement that began there. If necessary, either at the beginning or here, or even in both places, “Jesus Christ” may be named in order to avoid any ambiguity. The wish expressed by to him be is in effect a prayer, that for ever and ever Jesus Christ will continue to have glory and dominion. As elsewhere, glory is a difficult term to translate. It represents basically the shining light of the divine presence, manifested particularly in God’s (and Christ’s) acts on behalf of his people. Some translations may wish to treat this as a technical term, with an explanation in the glossary. In this context it means the greatness and the consequent fame, or honor, associated with Christ’s dominion, that is, his power as ruler of the world (Louw and Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, 76.13; 87.4; 87.23).

For ever and ever translates what is literally “to the ages of the ages,” a typical Semitic expression meaning “for all time to come” or “for all eternity.” This phrase occurs thirteen times in this book.

Amen is the Hebrew word meaning “So be it” or “May it happen this way,” a fitting conclusion to a prayer.

Revised Standard Version and others (New Revised Standard Version, New International Version, Revised English Bible, New American Bible, Revised, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible) have reproduced the Greek text, using one sentence for verses 5b-6. This makes for a long and fairly difficult passage to read, and it is recommended that a translation imitate Good News Translation and others (Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, New Jerusalem Bible), with a declarative statement first, “He loves us and…,” followed by the prayer, or wish, “To him be…” or “May he have….”

An alternative translation model for this passage is:

• He (Jesus) loves us. He has used his death (or, blood) as a sacrifice to help us escape from the power of our sins. Because of this we have become a family (tribe, nation) of priests who serve God, his Father. May Jesus Christ therefore receive glory and power always. So be it!

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .