REV 12:1 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT And a great sign was seen in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and a crown of 12 stars on her head,

UST Then something very significant appeared in the sky. It was a woman who was wearing the sun as her clothing. She was standing on the moon. On her head was a crown that was made of 12 stars.

BLB And a great sign was seen in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars,

AICNT And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars;

OEB Then a great portent was seen in the heavens – a woman whose robe was the sun, and who had the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

WEBBE A great sign was seen in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET Then a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and with the moon under her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars.

LSV And a great sign was seen in the sky: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars,

FBV Then an amazing sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head.

TCNT Then a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head.

T4T Then something very unusual appeared in the sky. It was a woman, whose appearance and clothing were [MET] as bright as the sun. The moon was under her feet. On her head was a crown that was made of twelve stars.

LEB And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun and with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars,

BBE And a great sign was seen in heaven: a A woman clothed with the sun, and with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

Moff And a great portent was seen in heaven, a woman clad in the sun--with the moon under her feet, and a tiara of twelve stars on her head;

Wymth And a great marvel was seen in Heaven— a woman who was robed with the sun and had the moon under her feet, and had also a wreath of stars round her head, was with child,

ASV And a great sign was seen in heaven: a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars;

DRA And a great sign appeared in heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars:

YLT And a great sign was seen in the heaven, a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars,

Drby And a great sign was seen in the heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars;

RV And a great sign was seen in heaven; a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars;

SLT And a great sign was seen in heaven; a woman surrounded by the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

Wbstr And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

KJB-1769 And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

KJB-1611 ¶ And there appeared a great [fn]wonder in heauen, a woman clothed with the Sunne, & the Moone vnder her feete, and vpon her head a Crowne of twelue starres:
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation and footnotes)

12:1 Or, signe.

Bshps And there appeared a great wonder in heauen: A woman clothed with the sunne, & the moone vnder her feete, and vpo her head a crowne of twelue starres:
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)

Gnva And there appeared a great wonder in heauen: A woman clothed with the sunne, and the moone was vnder her feete, and vpon her head a crowne of twelue starres.
(And there appeared a great wonder in heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. )

Cvdl And there appeared a greate token in heauen. A woman clothed with the Sonne, and the mone vnder her fete, and vpon her heed a crowne of twolue starres.
(And there appeared a great token in heaven. A woman clothed with the Son, and the moon under her feet, and upon her heed a crown of twelve stars.)

TNT And ther appered a gret wonder in heven A woman clothed with the sunne and the mone vnder her fete and apon her heed a croune of xii. starres.
(And there appeared a great wonder in heaven A woman clothed with the sun and the moon under her feet and upon her heed a crown of 12 stars. )

Wycl And a greet signe apperide in heuene; a womman clothid with the sunne, and the moone vndur hir feet, and in the heed of hir a coroun of twelue sterris.
(And a great sign appeared in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and in the head of her a crown of twelve stars.)

Luth Und es erschien ein groß Zeichen im Himmel: ein Weib, mit der Sonne bekleidet, und der Mond unter ihren Füßen und auf ihrem Haupt eine Krone von zwölf Sternen.
(And it appeared a large sign in_the heaven: a woman, with the/of_the sun clothed, and the/of_the moon under your(pl) feet and on/in/to their head a/one crown from twelve Sternen.)

ClVg Et signum magnum apparuit in cælo: mulier amicta sole, et luna sub pedibus ejus, et in capite ejus corona stellarum duodecim:[fn]
(And sign/signal magnum appeared in/into/on the_sky: woman dressed sole, and moon under feet his, and in/into/on head his corona starrum twelve: )

12.1 Et signum. Et ex his vidi istud procedere, scilicet fidei gratiam, id est quiddam magnum significantem. Hic facit mentionem de revelatione mysteriorum quæ fuerunt in secunda visione, et de injuncto officio prædicationis, quod habuimus in tertia, ut istam quartam quæ de pugna Ecclesiæ et diaboli est, ex his duabus, id est secunda et tertia, ostendat pendere. Luna sub pedibus. Licet mundanis sustentetur Ecclesia, ea tamen non affectat. Et in capite ejus corona, etc. Id est duodecim apostoli, quibus mundus credidit, vel in quibus mundum vicit Ecclesia.

12.1 And sign/signal. And from his I_saw this proceed, namely of_faith grace, that it_is quiddam magnum significantem. Here/This he_does mention from/about revelatione mysteryrum which they_were in/into/on the_second vision, and from/about inyuncto officio preaching, that I_hadmus in/into/on third, as that_(one) fourth which from/about fight Assemblies/Churches and devils it_is, from his two, that it_is the_second and third, show pendere. Luna under feet. It’s_possible cleannis sustentetur Assembly/Church, them nevertheless not/no affectat. And in/into/on head his corona, etc. That it_is twelve apostles, to_whom world believed, or in/into/on to_whom the_world won Assembly/Church.

UGNT καὶ σημεῖον μέγα ὤφθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ: γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον, καὶ ἡ σελήνη ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς στέφανος ἀστέρων δώδεκα,
(kai saʸmeion mega ōfthaʸ en tōi ouranōi: gunaʸ peribeblaʸmenaʸ ton haʸlion, kai haʸ selaʸnaʸ hupokatō tōn podōn autaʸs, kai epi taʸs kefalaʸs autaʸs stefanos asterōn dōdeka,)

SBL-GNT Καὶ σημεῖον μέγα ὤφθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον, καὶ ἡ σελήνη ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς στέφανος ἀστέρων δώδεκα,
(Kai saʸmeion mega ōfthaʸ en tōi ouranōi, gunaʸ peribeblaʸmenaʸ ton haʸlion, kai haʸ selaʸnaʸ hupokatō tōn podōn autaʸs, kai epi taʸs kefalaʸs autaʸs stefanos asterōn dōdeka,)

RP-GNT Καὶ σημεῖον μέγα ὤφθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον, καὶ ἡ σελήνη ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς στέφανος ἀστέρων δώδεκα·
(Kai saʸmeion mega ōfthaʸ en tōi ouranōi, gunaʸ peribeblaʸmenaʸ ton haʸlion, kai haʸ selaʸnaʸ hupokatō tōn podōn autaʸs, kai epi taʸs kefalaʸs autaʸs stefanos asterōn dōdeka;)

TC-GNT Καὶ σημεῖον μέγα ὤφθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον, καὶ ἡ σελήνη ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς στέφανος ἀστέρων δώδεκα,
(Kai saʸmeion mega ōfthaʸ en tōi ouranōi, gunaʸ peribeblaʸmenaʸ ton haʸlion, kai haʸ selaʸnaʸ hupokatō tōn podōn autaʸs, kai epi taʸs kefalaʸs autaʸs stefanos asterōn dōdeka, )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 12:1–17: The woman fled from the dragon

In this section, John saw several signs or symbols representing spiritual reality. The first sign was a woman, representing the people of God. The second sign was a dragon, representing Satan. The woman was about to give birth, and the dragon wanted to kill the child. The child is symbolic of Jesus as the Christ. God took the son to heaven and protected the woman.

In 12:7–12, John interrupted the story of the woman and the dragon to tell about the war between the dragon and the angels. These verses help explain why the dragon wanted to kill the woman. In 12:13, John continued the story of the woman and the dragon.

Other examples of headings for this section are:

The sign of the dragon chasing the woman

The vision of the woman and the dragon

The spiritual conflict of God’s people and Satan

12:1a

And a great sign appeared in heaven:

¶ A great sign/portent appeared in heaven,
¶ A spectacular/amazing sign came into view/sight in heaven.

And a great sign: The Greek phrase that the BSB literally translates as a great sign refers to something that has a symbolic meaning. A sign suggests or points to something other than itself. Other ways to translate the Greek phrase are:

a great and wondrous sign (NIV84)

a great and mysterious sight (GNT)

a great portent (RSV)

a great wonder (KJV)

great: Here the word great refers to the intensity or importance of the sign. The word does not refer to size here. Other ways to translate this word are:

spectacular

amazing

appeared: This word indicates that before this time the sign was not visible and then suddenly it was visible.

heaven: The Greek word can mean either “heaven” or “sky.” There are two ways to interpret the Greek word:

The word means heaven here, as in the BSB. This word refers generally to the location where John saw these things. The vision appeared or occurred in the spiritual realm. (BSB, RSV, NIV, NJB, NASB, NLT, NET, REB, NCV, ESV, KJV)
The word means sky here. This word further indicates that the sign appeared above the ground with the sky as its background. For example:
the sky (GNT) (GNT, NABRE, GW, CEV)

People in John’s time generally understood the spiritual realm to be up in the sky. Greek only has one word to refer to both heaven and sky. Some languages, like English, have two different words. If that is true in your language, it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), because the same Greek word in 11:19 clearly refers to heaven.Beale (page 625), Aune (page 650), Lenski (page 361), Osbourne (page 455), Smalley (page 299), Hughes (on TW), and Kistemaker (page 351) support interpretation (1).

12:1b–c

The symbols of the sun, moon, and twelve stars indicate that the woman probably represents Israel. Or it may represent all people who believe in Jesus as the Christ. These believers are then represented as the spiritual Israel. In either case, the woman represents the people of God.

12:1b

a woman clothed in the sun, with the moon under her feet

a woman with the sun as her clothing, the moon under her feet,
It was a woman. Her clothes were the sun. The moon was under her feet.

a woman clothed in the sun: This clause refers to the sun covering the woman like clothing covers a person. Other ways to translate this clause are:

a woman whose clothes were the sun (CEV)

a woman robed with the sun (REB)

with the moon under her feet: This phrase can mean either:

The bottom of the woman’s feet touched the moon.
The moon was a small distance below her feet.

Translate this phrase so that it allows both meanings. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

and who had the moon under her feet (GNT)

and the moon was under her feet (NCV)

12:1c

and a crown of twelve stars on her head.

and a wreath/crown made of twelve stars.
Her head was wreathed/encircled with twelve stars.

a crown of twelve stars on her head: The phrase on her head is emphasized in the Greek. For example:

on her head a crown of twelve stars (RSV)

her head was crowned/wreathed with twelve stars

If possible, emphasize the phrase on her head in a way that is natural in your language.

a crown of twelve stars: This phrase probably indicates that the stars were placed around her head like a crown. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

a crown/wreath made of twelve stars

twelve stars in a circle like a crown

crown: The Greek word that the BSB translates as crown refers to a victor’s wreath. It was worn on the head as a sign of having won a contest.

But here, the word probably refers to the twelve stars placed around her head so that it looked like a wreath of stars. Other ways to translate this word are:

wreath

headdress

Parallel REV 12:1

Section 12:1–17: The woman fled from the dragon

12:1a

12:1b–c

12:1b

12:1c