¹ When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

² And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets.

³ Then another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, along with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne.

⁴ And the smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, rose up before God from the hand of the angel.

⁵ Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder, and rumblings, and flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

The First Four Trumpets

⁶ And the seven angels with the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.

⁷ Then the first angel sounded his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, along with a third of the trees and all the green grass.

⁸ Then the second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned to blood,

⁹ a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

¹⁰ Then the third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star burning like a torch fell from heaven and landed on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.

¹¹ The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter like wormwood oil,¹ and many people died from the bitter waters.

1. Literally became wormwood

¹² Then the fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun and moon and stars were struck. A third of the stars were darkened, a third of the day was without light, and a third of the night as well.

¹³ And as I observed, I heard an eagle flying overhead, calling in a loud voice, “Woe! Woe! Woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the remaining three angels!”