Revelation 1:8

Revelation 1:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
• New International Version (NIV)“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)"I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
• New King James Version (NKJV)“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Context of Revelation 1:8

6Jesus has brought us into his family, so that we belong to God's kingdom. He has made us priests, so that we serve his God and Father. So we praise Jesus Christ! He will always be very great! He has power for all time. Amen. This is true! 7Look! He will come on the clouds! At that time, everyone will see him! Even the people who pushed a spear into his body will see him. People from all the nations on earth will be sad when they see him. Yes, it is true! Amen! The Lord God says, ‘I caused all things to begin and I will cause the end of all things. I have all power and authority. I am alive. I have always been alive. I will continue to be alive for ever.’ 9I am John. I am a believer, as you are. I am like your brother and your friend. Because we belong to Jesus' kingdom, we are having trouble and pain. So we all need to be strong and patient, as Jesus helps us. The Roman leaders punished me because I taught God's message. I told people the true message about Jesus. That is why they sent me to Patmos island. 10On the Lord's day, God's Spirit caused me to see and to hear things. I heard a voice speak behind me. The sound was as loud as a trumpet.

Revelation 1:8 word by word

Ἐγώ εἰμι τὸ ἄλφα καὶ τὸ ὦ λέγει κύριος ὁ θεός, ὁ ὢν καὶ ὁ ἦν καὶ ὁ ἐρχόμενος, ὁ παντοκράτωρ.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Iἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• amεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• Alphaὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Alphaα, ἈλφαA · AlphaG1
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• Omegaω, ὮμέγαŌ · OmegaG5598
• the beginningἀρχήarchē · beginningG746
• the endingτέλοςtelos · goal/taxG5056
• saithλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• the Lordκύριοςkurios · lord: GodG2962
• which is to comeἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• the Almightyπαντοκράτωρpantokratōr · almightyG3841

Cross-references for Revelation 1:8

• Revelation 1:11The voice said: ‘When you see these things, write them in a book. Then you must send the book to the seven churches in these cities: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea.’
• Revelation 2:8‘Write this to the angel of the church at Smyrna: “This is the message to you from the one who is the first and the last. He was dead, but he became alive again.
• Revelation 21:6He also said to me, ‘Everything is now done! I caused all things to begin and I will cause the end of all things. I am the beginning and the end. If anyone is thirsty, I will give them water to drink. Nobody will have to pay anything for it. That water comes from a spring of water that gives life to people.
• Revelation 22:13I caused all things to begin and I will cause the end of all things. I am the first and the last. I am the beginning and the end.
• Isaiah 41:4Tell me, who has caused these things to happen? Who has decided what should happen, from the beginning, century after century? It is I, the Lord! I was there at the beginning, and I will always be there, through to the end.
• Isaiah 43:10The Lord says to his people, ‘You are the people who must say that I am right. I have chosen you as my servant. I chose you so that you may know me, and also believe in me. Then you would understand that I am the true God. There has never been any other god except me, and there never will be.
• Isaiah 44:6The Lord is Israel's King and Redeemer. He is the Lord Almighty. He says, ‘I am the first and I am the last. There is no God, except me.
• Isaiah 48:12So listen to me, descendants of Jacob! I called you to belong to me, you Israelite people. I am the only One. I am the first, and I am also the last.
• Revelation 1:4I am John. I am writing to the seven churches that are in the region of Asia. I pray that God will be very kind to you. I pray that he will give you peace in your minds. God is alive now. He has always been alive. He will continue to be alive for ever. God will help you, and the seven spirits that are in front of his throne will help you.
• Revelation 4:8Each of these four beings had six wings. They had eyes all over them, even under their wings. All day and all night they never stop saying: ‘The Lord God has all power and authority. He has no bad thing in him. He is completely good. He has always been alive. He is alive now. He will continue to be alive for ever.’
• Revelation 11:17They said: ‘We thank you, Lord God, because you have all authority! You are alive now and you have always been alive. You have great power and now you have begun to rule the whole world!
• Revelation 16:14Those bad spirits are the spirits of demons. They had the power to do miracles. They went to all the rulers in the whole world, to bring them together to fight in a big war. That war will happen on the great day of God, who has all power and authority.
• Revelation 19:15A sharp sword was coming out of his mouth. He will use this sword to attack the people of all the nations of the world. Then he will rule them with strong authority. He will punish them like someone who stamps on grapes in a winepress. That will show God's great anger against them. He is the Almighty God.
• Revelation 21:22When I looked, I saw that there was no temple in the city. The Lord God, who has all power and authority, is there himself. The Lamb is also there. So people do not need a special place to worship him there.
• Genesis 17:1When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to him. The Lord said, ‘I am God Almighty. In all your life, obey me and do nothing wrong.
• Genesis 28:3I pray that God Almighty will bless you. I pray that he will give you many children, so that your descendants become a large nation of people.

Commentaries on Revelation 1:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8I am Alpha and Omega - I am from eternity to eternity. This mode of speech is borrowed from the Jews, who express the whole compass of things by א aleph and ת tau, the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet; but as St. John was writing in Greek, he accommodates the whole to the Greek alphabet, of which alpha and omega are the first and last letters. With the rabbins ת ועד מא meeleph vead tau, "from aleph to tau," expressed the whole of a matter…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8I am Alpha and Omega - These are the first and the last letters of the Greek alphabet, and denote properly the first and the last. So in Revelation 22:13, where the two expressions are united, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” So in Revelation 1:17, the speaker says of himself, “I am the first and the last.” Among the Jewish rabbis it was common to use the first and the last letters of the Hebrew alphabet to denote…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-8Verses 4-8 There can be no true peace, where there is not true grace; and where grace goeth before, peace will follow. This blessing is in the name of God, of the Holy Trinity, it is an act of adoration. The Father is first named; he is described as the Jehovah who is, and who was, and who is to come, eternal, unchangeable. The Holy Spirit is called the seven spirits, the perfect Spirit of God, in whom there is a diversity of gifts and operations. The…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8I am is the name of God in the Old Testament (Exodus 3:13–14; 6:2; Deuteronomy 6:4). Jesus used this name for himself (compare John 4:26). Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. They show that God's actions cover everything. God is completely in control.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. Greek, "I am the Alpha and the Omega." The first and last letters of the alphabet. God in Christ comprises all that goes between, as well as the first and last. the beginning and the ending--omitted in the oldest manuscripts, though found in Vulgate and Coptic. Transcribers probably inserted the clause from Re 21:6. In Christ, Genesis, the Alpha of the Old Testament, and Revelation, the Omega of the New Testament, meet together: the last book…Read the comment

Topics related to Revelation 1:8

• Alpha
• Jesus Continued
• Omega

In the dictionaries

• Alpha and Omega
• Alpha
• Beginning
• Jehovah
• Key
• Omega
• Star
• Alliance
• Asia Minor
• Canon of the New Testament

Commentaries on Revelation 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings