But you are always the same, and your life never ends.

Who was it that made this happen? Who has determined the course of history? I, the LORD, was there at the beginning, and I, the LORD, will be there at the end.

"I am the LORD; there is no other god. I will give you the strength you need, although you do not know me.

The LORD created the heavens--- he is the one who is God! He formed and made the earth--- he made it firm and lasting. He did not make it a desolate waste, but a place for people to live. It is he who says, "I am the LORD, and there is no other god.

"Turn to me now and be saved, people all over the world! I am the only God there is.

I am your God and will take care of you until you are old and your hair is gray. I made you and will care for you; I will give you help and rescue you.

The LORD says, "Listen to me, Israel, the people I have called! I am God, the first, the last, the only God!

You will fold them up like a coat, and they will be changed like clothes. But you are always the same, and your life never ends."

It said, "Write down what you see, and send the book to the churches in these seven cities: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea."

"To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: "This is the message from the one who is the first and the last, who died and lived again.

The LORD has shown you this, to prove to you that he alone is God and that there is no other.

"I am the LORD; there is no other god. I will give you the strength you need, although you do not know me.

The LORD created the heavens--- he is the one who is God! He formed and made the earth--- he made it firm and lasting. He did not make it a desolate waste, but a place for people to live. It is he who says, "I am the LORD, and there is no other god.

"Turn to me now and be saved, people all over the world! I am the only God there is.

The LORD kills and restores to life; he sends people to the world of the dead and brings them back again.

When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes in dismay and exclaimed, "How can the king of Syria expect me to cure this man? Does he think that I am God, with the power of life and death? It's plain that he is trying to start a quarrel with me!"

God bandages the wounds he makes; his hand hurts you, and his hand heals.

Our God is a God who saves; he is the LORD, our Lord, who rescues us from death.

I am God and always will be. No one can escape from my power; no one can change what I do."

The people say, "Let's return to the LORD! He has hurt us, but he will be sure to heal us; he has wounded us, but he will bandage our wounds, won't he?

That is why I told you that you will die in your sins. And you will die in your sins if you do not believe that 'I Am Who I Am'."

When I saw him, I fell down at his feet like a dead man. He placed his right hand on me and said, "Don't be afraid! I am the first and the last.

I am the living one! I was dead, but now I am alive forever and ever. I have authority over death and the world of the dead.

You know that I am not guilty, that no one can save me from you.

"Listen to this, you that ignore me, or I will destroy you, and there will be no one to save you.

I am God and always will be. No one can escape from my power; no one can change what I do."

Those who are left among the nations will be like a lion hunting for food in a forest or a pasture: it gets in among the sheep, pounces on them, and tears them to pieces---and there is no hope of rescue.