"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: "This is the message from the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who walks among the seven gold lampstands.

"I am the first and the last," says the Lord God Almighty, who is, who was, and who is to come.

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."

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.