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mystery, and all prophetic foretelling. And I heard a voice from heaven again, speaking with me and saying, Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the earth. And I went to the angel, saying to him, "Give me the little book." And he said to me, "Take it and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth." And I took the little book from the angel’s hand and ate it, and it was in my mouth 124 as sweet as honey; and when I had eaten it, my stomach became bitter. And he said to me, "You must prophesy again concerning many peoples and nations and tongues and kings." And the voice which I heard from heaven, he says he heard it again speaking with me. And what did it say? To take the book from the angel. Which, he says, having taken I ate and it was sweet in my mouth, but after eating, bitter in my stomach. Since the divine evangelist both saw and heard the punishments against the impious, so that he might be taught by deed and not by hearing alone how the iniquities of men are hateful to God, being both bitter and abominable, he is taught this through the vision—for he did not know this from experience, being a holy man and a virgin—and through this to know that the wrath of God against the impious is just. For the little book held both the names and the sins of those who had greatly transgressed, as was said before. He was therefore commanded to eat this, and as it were in a taste and a certain intelligible experience through the vision to become aware of the bitterness of sins. And having eaten he found them sweet in the mouth, but bitter in the stomach after eating; for such is all sin. Sweet when being committed, but bitter when completed. For it becomes a cause of punishment, but also by repentance, it embitters those who have practiced it. Such also was the tree forbidden by God in paradise, which all interpret allegorically as sin, producing knowledge of both good and evil: of good in the taste, but of evil after the experience. And he says to me, he says, "You must prophesy again concerning many peoples and nations and kings," as if 125 he were saying: Do not, because in a vision you have seen both the end of the present age and the wrath against the impious, think that the day of the end is already present in deed; there is much time in between, so that you shall prophesy to many nations and kings. Therefore, even until now the divine John prophesies through both the gospel and his catholic epistles and through the present apocalypse; for all things have been both spoken and prophesied by him in the spirit. And a reed like a rod was given to me, saying, "Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. And the court which is outside the temple, cast outside the temple; cast it out, and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months." In what came before, the vision showed to the divine John the multitude of the saints who are with Christ and behold the divine throne, among whom those from the nations were many times more than those from Israel. But now it shows him another thing, how many are those who were well-pleasing in the time of the old covenant, and how many in the time of the new. And see how elegantly this is sketched out for him. A measuring reed is given to him so that he might measure the temple of God and the altar in the temple, that is, the one in Jerusalem, and those who worship in it. And he measured; for those who pleased God during the times of the old [covenant] were measurable because of their small number. 126 And the court, he says, which is outside the temple, cast it out and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations. Having measured the temple and the altar and those sacrificing in it, he heard that it was necessary to cast out the court to the outside and to widen it, but not to measure it as it was beyond measure. But to the nations, he says, the court is given, and it is adjacent to the temple and is outside of it; and the new covenant is adjacent to the old. for the shadowy things in it

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μυστήριον, καὶ πᾶσα προφητικὴ προαγόρευσις. καὶ φωνὴν ἤκουσα ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ πάλιν, λαλοῦσαν μετ' ἐμοῦ καὶ λέγουσαν· ὕπαγε λάβε τὸ βιβλίον τὸ ἀνεῳγμένον ἐν τῇ χειρὶ τοῦ ἀγγέλου τοῦ ἑστῶτος ἐπὶ τὴς θαλάσσης καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. καὶ ἀπῆλθον πρὸς τὸν ἄγγελον λέγων αὐτῷ· δός μοι τὸ βιβλίον. καὶ λέγει μοι· λάβε καὶ φάγε αὐτό· καὶ πικρανεῖ σου τὴν κοιλίαν, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ στόματί σου ἔσται γλυκὺ ὡς μέλι. καὶ ἔλαβον τὸ βιβλιδάριον ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ ἀγγέλου καὶ κατέφαγον αὐτό, καὶ ἦν ἐν τῷ στόματί μου 124 ὡς μέλι γλυκύ· καὶ ὅτε ἔφαγον αὐτό, ἐπικράνθη ἡ κοιλία μου. καὶ λέγει μοι· δεῖ σε πάλιν προφητεῦσαι ἐπὶ λαοῖς καὶ ἔθνεσι καὶ γλώσσαις καὶ βασιλεῦσι πολλοῖς. καὶ ἡ φωνὴ ἣν ἤκουσα ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, πάλιν αὐτήν φησιν ἤκουσα λαλοῦσαν μετ' ἐμοῦ. τί δὲ ἐλάλει; λαβεῖν τὸ βιβλίον ἐκ τοῦ ἀγγέλου. ὃ λαβών φησιν ἔφαγον καὶ ἦν μὲν γλυκὺ ἐν τῷ στόματί μου, μετὰ δέ γε τὴν βρῶσιν, πικρὸν ἐν τῇ κοιλίᾳ μου. ἐπειδὴ εἶδέ τε καὶ ἤκουσεν ὁ θεσπέσιος εὐαγγελιστὴς τὰς κατὰ τῶν ἀσεβῶν κολάσεις, ὅπως παιδευθῇ ἔργῳ καὶ οὐκ ἀκοῇ μόνῃ ὅπως ἀπηχθημέναι τυγχάνουσι τῷ Θεῷ τῶν ἀνθρώπων αἱ ἀνομίαι, πικραί τε οὖσαι καὶ βδελυκταί, διὰ τῆς θεωρίας τοῦτο διδάσκεταιοὐ γὰρ ἐκ πείρας τοῦτο ἠπίστατο, ἀνὴρ ἅγιος καὶ παρθένος γεγονὼςκαὶ διὰ τούτου γνῶναι δικαίαν εἶναι τὴν κατὰ τῶν ἀσεβῶν ὀργὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ. τὸ μὲν γὰρ βιβλίον εἶχε τά τε ὀνόματα τάς τε ἁμαρτίας τῶν λίαν πεπλημμεληκότων καθὼς πρόσθεν εἴρηται. κεκέλευσται οὖν τοῦτο φαγεῖν, καὶ οἷον ἐν γεύσει καὶ νοητῇ τινι πεῖρᾳ διὰ τῆς ὀπτασίας γενέσθαι τῆς τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν πικρίας. καὶ φαγὼν εὗρεν αὐτὰς γλυκείας μὲν τῷ στόματι, πικρὰς δὲ τῇ κοιλίᾳ μετὰ τὴν βρῶσιν· τοιαύτη γὰρ πᾶσα ἁμαρτία. γλυκεῖα μὲν ἐνεργουμένη, πικρὰ δὲ ἀποτελεσθεῖσα. κολάσεως γὰρ γίνεται πρόξενος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ μεταμελείᾳ, πικραίνει τοὺς χρησαμένους. τοιοῦτον ἦν καὶ τὸ ἀπηγορευμένον ὑπὸ Θεοῦ ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ ξύλον, ὃ πάντες εἰς τὴν ἁμαρτίαν τροπολογοῦσι, γνῶσιν ἐμποιοῦν καλοῦ τε καὶ πονηροῦ· καλοῦ μὲν ἐν τῇ γεύσει, κακοῦ δὲ μετὰ τὴν πεῖραν. καὶ λέγει μοί φησι δεῖ σε πάλιν προφητεῦσαι ἐπὶ λαοῖς καὶ ἔθνεσι καὶ βασιλεῦσι πολλοῖς, ὥσει 125 ἔλεγε· μὴ ἐπειδὴ ἐν ὀπτασίᾳ τήν τε συντέλειαν τοῦ παρόντος αἰῶνος ἑώρακας καὶ τὴν κατὰ τῶν ἀσεβῶν ὀργήν, ἤδη νόμιζε καὶ ἔργῳ παρεῖναι τὴν τῆς συντελείας ἡμέραν· χρόνος πολὺς ἐν μέσῳ ὡς καὶ προφητεῦσαί σε πολλοῖς ἔθνεσί τε καὶ βασιλεῦσι. τοιγαροῦν ἄχρι τοῦ νῦν ὁ θεσπέσιος Ἰωάννης προφητεύει διά τε τοῦ εὐαγγελίου καὶ τῶν καθολικῶν αὐτοῦ ἐπιστολῶν καὶ διὰ τῆς παρούσης ἀποκαλύψεως· πάντα γὰρ αὐτῷ ἐν πνεύματι εἴρηταί τε καὶ προεφήτευται· καὶ ἐδόθη μοι κάλαμος ὅμοιος ῥάβδῳ, λέγων· ἔγειραι καὶ μέτρη σαι τὸν ναὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον, καὶ τοὺς προσ κυνοῦντας ἐν αὐτῷ. καὶ τὴν αὐλὴν τὴν ἔξωθεν τοῦ ναοῦ ἔκβαλε ἔξωθεν τοῦ ναοῦ· ἔκβαλε, καὶ μὴ αὐτὴν μετρήσῃς, ὅτι ἐδόθη τοῖς ἔθνεσι, καὶ τὴν πόλιν τὴν ἁγίαν πατήσουσι μήνας τεσσαρακονταδύο. ἐν τοῖς φθάσασιν ἔδειξεν ἡ ὀπτασία τῷ θεσπεσίῳ Ἰωάννῃ τὴν τῶν ἁγίων πληθὺν τῶν συνόντων Χριστῷ καὶ τὸν θεῖον ἐποπτευόντων θρόνον, ἐν οἷς πολλαπλασίους ἦσαν οἱ ἐξ ἐθνῶν τῶν ἐξ Ἰσραήλ. νῦν δέ γε ἕτερον αὐτῷ δείκνυσι, πόσοι τέ τινές εἰσιν οἱ ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ τῆς παλαιᾶς διαθήκης ηὐδοκιμηκότες, καὶ πόσοι κατὰ τὸν τῆς νέας καιρόν. καὶ ὅρα ὅπως ἀστείως τοῦτο αὐτῷ σκιαγραφεῖται. δίδοται μὲν αὐτῷ κάλαμος γεωμετρικὸς ἵνα μετρήσῃ τὸν ναὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον τὸ ἐν τῷ ναῷ, δηλονότι τῷ ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ, καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῷ προσκυνοῦντας. καὶ ἐμέτρησε· μετρητοὶ γὰρ ἦσαν δι' ὀλιγότητα οἱ κατὰ τοὺς τῆς παλαιᾶς χρόνους εὐαρεστήσαντες τῷ Θεῷ. 126 καὶ τὴν αὐλήν φησιν τὴν ἔξωθεν τοῦ ναοῦ, ἔκβαλε ἔξω καὶ μὴ αὐτὴν μετρήσῃς, ὅτι ἐδόθη τοῖς ἔθνεσι. μετρήσας τὸν ναὸν καὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῷ θύοντας, ἤκουσε δεῖν τὴν αὐλὴν ἐκβαλεῖν ἐπὶ τὰ ἔξω καὶ πλατῦναι, οὐ μὴν μετρῆσαι ὡς κρείττονα μέτρου τυγχάνουσαν. τοῖς δὲ ἔθνεσί φησιν δέδοται ἡ αὐλή, καὶ ἔχεται τοῦ ναοῦ καὶ ἔξωθεν αὐτοῦ τυγχάνει· καὶ ἡ καινὴ διαθήκη ἔχεται τῆς παλαιᾶς. τὰ γὰρ ἐν αὐτῇ σκιώδη