Behold, a throne of white magnificence
And him who sat thereon, from whose dread face
Earth and heaven fled in terror, seeking
No place of refuge, for no place remained.
I saw the dead, both small and great, arrayed
Before the presence of almighty God,
While books lay opened wide, and one among them—
The book of life—revealed its sacred roll.
The dead, according to their works, were judged
From all that in those opened books was writ.
The sea surrendered up its watery dead,
And death and hell delivered those they held
In bondage, each receiving judgment due
For deeds accomplished in their mortal frame.
Then death and hell were hurled into the lake
Of fire—this is the second death proclaimed.
And whosoever was not found inscribed
Within the book of life was likewise cast
Into that lake of everlasting flame.
Construct an ark of gopher wood, for lo,
I, even I, shall send the flood of death
Upon this earth to end all breathing flesh
Wherein the breath of life doth make its home,
Yet with thee will I my covenant
Establish firm, and thou shalt enter in—
The ark—thou and thy sons, thy wife, and all
Thy sons' wives with thee, and of every thing
That lives, of all flesh, two of every sort
Shalt thou bring forth into the ark to keep
Them living with thee; male and female both
They shall be. Thus did Noah, as the Lord
Commanded him in all particulars,
According to the word, so did he.
Now more than all the beasts which God had made
Was subtle that great serpent, who with voice
That seemed to flow like honey from the comb
Yet carried poison in its sweetest depths,
Approached the woman where she walked alone
Among the trees whose fruit hung ripe and fair.
And speaking thus, with words that wound themselves
Around her thoughts like coils around their prey,
He questioned what the Lord had set as law:
"Hath God indeed commanded that ye shall
Not eat of every tree within this garden
Where all delights in endless plenty grow?"
Then, seeing how she wavered at his words,
Pressed on with bolder lies: "Ye shall not die,
For well the Lord doth know that in the day
When ye partake thereof and taste its flesh,
Your eyes, now dim with innocence, shall burst
Wide open to behold what gods behold—
The knowledge of both good and evil's depths,
And ye shall be as those who rule the heavens,
No longer bound by mortality's dark chains
The sovereign Lord, who shaped both earth and sky,
Took man, his creature fashioned from the dust,
And placed him in that garden paradise
Where Eden's rivers watered every tree.
Then spake the Lord with voice of thunder deep,
Commanding thus the first of mortal men:
"Of every tree that flourishes and grows
Within these blessed bounds thou mayest eat
And take thy fill of all their sweetest fruit—
But one tree stands forbidden in thy sight,
The tree whose branches bear the fruit of knowledge,
Of good and evil, life and death entwined.
Touch not, taste not its deadly, tempting flesh,
For in the day thou eatest of that tree
Death shall most surely seize upon thy soul."
When from the dust of earth's terrestrial realm
The Lord God, sovereign maker of all breath,
Did shape with hands divine the mortal frame
That Adam in the tongues of men would bear
As name, and breathing deep into the void
Of lifeless nostrils sent his sacred breath—
The pneuma that transforms mere clay to soul—
Then lived the man, by heaven's essence moved,
A breathing temple wrought of dust and fire.
When time had passed and God would test the faith
Of Abraham, He spoke with voice divine:
"Take now your son, your only beloved child,
Isaac, whom your heart holds most dear, and make
Of him a burnt offering upon the mount
I shall reveal." Then Abraham arose,
With trembling hand outstretched, seized fast the blade
That would his son destroy, when from the heavens
Rang forth the angel's voice: "Hold back your hand!
Touch not the innocent child, for now I know
Your reverence runs deep within your breast."
"By Mine own self I swear," declares the Lord,
"Because you have accomplished this great deed
And have not withheld your beloved son,
That blessing shall I heap upon your head,
Multiplying your descendants as the stars
That wheel in heaven's vault, or as the sand
That covers all the margins of the sea.
Your seed shall hold dominion at the gates
Of enemies, and through your lineage all
The nations of the earth shall find their blessing,
For you have hearkened to My sacred voice."
When Isaac sent his son Jacob away
To journey forth to Padan-aram's realm
Where Laban dwelt, the young man traveled long
Until the sun had set, and finding stones
Beneath the darkening sky, he made his bed
And laid his weary head upon the rock.
There, as he slept, a vision came to him:
A ladder stretched from earth to heaven's height
With angels climbing up and climbing down,
Their wings like whispered prayers against the night.
Above the ladder stood the Lord himself,
Who spoke: "I am the God thy father served,
And Isaac's God. This land whereon thou liest
Shall be thine own, and to thy seed, which shall
Be as the dust of earth in multitude,
And thou shalt spread to east and west, to north
And south, until the world's four corners know
Thy name, and in thy seed shall all the earth's
Great families find blessing." Thus the Lord,
Whose voice like thunder rolled across the dream,
Pronounced the covenant that would endure
Through ages yet unborn, while Jacob slept
Beneath the stars that witnessed heaven's word
Descending to the pilgrim on the stone.
When God appeared to Jacob, newly come
From Padan-aram's distant fertile lands,
And blessed him with the weight of heaven's voice—
The Lord declared: "Though Jacob be thy name,
No longer shall the name of Jacob cling
To thee, but Israel henceforth thou art called,
For Israel shall thy name be evermore."
Then spoke the voice of God Almighty thus:
"Be fruitful, multiply upon the earth;
A nation, yea a company of nations,
Shall issue from thy loins, and mighty kings
From thy seed shall arise to rule the world;
And this same land—which unto Abraham
I gave, and unto Isaac after him—
To thee I give it, and thy seed forever
Shall hold this promised ground as inheritance."
And I, John, witnessed heaven's portal wide
Unfold, and there beheld a horse of white
Whose rider bore the sacred names of Faith
And Truth, who judges all in righteousness
And wages war. His eyes, like flames of fire,
Blazed forth, while many crowns adorned his head,
And there a name was written, known to none
Save he himself who bears it. Blood-stained robes
Enwrapped him, and men call him by the name
The Word of God. Behind him came the host
Of heaven's armies, mounted each upon
White steeds, in linen pure and spotless clothed.
From out his mouth there issued forth a sword
Sharp-edged to smite the nations of the earth,
And with an iron rod he shall them rule,
And treads alone the winepress of the wrath
And fierceness terrible of God Almighty.
Upon his garment and upon his thigh
A name is written: KING OF KINGS, and LORD
OF LORDS, supreme above all earthly power.
I saw an angel descend from heaven's height,
Bearing the key to the bottomless pit
And in his hand a great chain wrought of steel.
He seized the dragon, that old serpent who
Is called the Devil and Satan, and bound him
A thousand years, then cast him to the pit
Bottomless, shutting him up and setting
A seal upon him, that he should deceive
The nations no more, till the thousand years
Should be fulfilled; and after that he must
Be loosed a little season from his bonds,
Released to walk the earth one final time.
Behold! The beast I saw, and earthly kings
Arrayed in martial hosts, their armies vast
Assembled to wage war against the One
Who rode upon the white horse, and against
His heavenly host. But lo! Captured was
The beast, and with him he whose lying signs
And false miracles, wrought before the beast,
Deceived all those who had received his mark
And worshipped his abominable image.
These two, alive, were hurled into the lake
Of fire burning fierce with brimstone's flame.
The remnant fell beneath the gleaming sword
That issued from the mouth of Him who sat
Upon the steed, whose blade spoke judgment sure,
And all the fowls of heaven gorged their fill
With flesh of those whom righteousness had slain.
When thousand years expire and time completes
Its destined course, then shall the Adversary
Be loosed from prison's adamantine bonds
To wander forth among the nations dwelling
In earth's four corners, seeking there to find
The peoples called by ancient names of dread—
Gog and Magog—and gather them as one
Vast multitude for battle, numberless
As grains of sand that stretch along the shores
Of restless seas. And upward they shall march
Across earth's breadth and compass round about
The camp wherein the saints abide secure
And that beloved city; but from heaven,
From God's eternal throne, consuming fire
Shall then descend to utterly devour
The assembled host. The deceiver himself,
He who led nations astray, shall be cast
Into the lake of fire and brimstone, where
The beast already dwells and false prophet,
There to endure torment both day and night
Through endless ages, world without an end.