KJV ORIGINAL
And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
Close to the original. Clear modern English.
✦ MADE SIMPLE
They weren't allowed to kill people, but they could torture them for five months straight. And we're talking about the kind of agony you feel when a scorpion stings you — that level of pain.
⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE
Sometimes the worst punishments aren't about ending life, but about making you feel every second of it.
📜 Historical Context — Why was this verse written?
The book of Revelation was written by a figure named John to seven churches in Asia Minor during the late first century CE. It was written to encourage Christians facing persecution and to affirm God's ultimate sovereignty amidst Roman imperial pressure and suffering.
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