Apocalisse 12
1 POI apparve un gran segno nel cielo: una donna intorniata del sole, di sotto a' cui piedi [era] la luna, e sopra la cui testa era una corona di dodici stelle.
Then something very unusual appeared in the sky. It was a woman, whose [appearance and] clothing were [MET] as bright as the sun. The moon was under her feet. On her head was a crown [that was made] of twelve stars.
2 Ed essendo incinta, gridava, sentendo i dolori del parto, e travagliava da partorire.
She was pregnant. Then, as she was about to give birth, she cried out because she was suffering pain.
3 Apparve ancora un altro segno nel cielo. Ed ecco un gran dragone rosso, che avea sette teste, e dieci corna; e in su le sue teste [v'erano] sette diademi.
Something else very unusual appeared in the sky. It was a huge red dragon. It had seven heads and ten horns. On each of its heads was a royal crown.
4 E la sua coda strascinava [dietro a sè] la terza parte delle stelle del cielo, ed egli le gettò in terra. E il dragone si fermò davanti alla donna che avea da partorire, acciocchè, quando avesse partorito, egli divorasse il suo figliuolo.
The dragon’s tail dragged a third of the stars from the sky and threw them to the earth. The dragon set himself in front of the woman who was about to give birth, in order that he might eat her child as soon as it was born.
5 Ed ella partorì un figliuol maschio, il quale ha da reggere tutte le nazioni con verga di ferro; e il figliuol d'essa fu rapito, [e portato] appresso a Dio, ed appresso al suo trono.
The woman gave birth to a son, who [is destined] to rule all the nations with [complete authority as if he was using] [MET] an iron rod [MET]. [God] snatched away her child and took him to [rule from] his throne.
6 E la donna fuggì nel deserto, dove ha un luogo apparecchiato da Dio, acciocchè sia quivi nudrita milledugensessanta giorni.
The woman fled to a desert. She has a place there that God has prepared for her, in order that [the angels] may take care of her for 1,260 days.
7 E si fece battaglia nel cielo; Michele, e i suoi angeli, combatterono col dragone; il dragone parimente, e i suoi angeli, combatterono.
[In the vision I saw that] there was a battle in heaven. Michael and the angels that he [commanded] fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back [against Michael and his angels].
8 Ma non vinsero, e il luogo loro non fu più trovato nel cielo.
But the dragon did not win the battle, so [God] did not allow the dragon and his angels to stay in heaven any longer.
9 E il gran dragone, il serpente antico, che è chiamato Diavolo e Satana, il qual seduce tutto il mondo, fu gettato in terra; e furono con lui gettati ancora i suoi angeli.
The huge dragon was thrown {[Michael and his angels] threw the huge dragon} out [of heaven]. The dragon is the ancient serpent, [the one] who is called the Devil and Satan. He is the one who deceives [people all over] the earth. He was thrown down to the earth, along with all his angels.
10 Ed io udii una gran voce nel cielo, che diceva: Ora è venuta ad esser dell'Iddio nostro la salute, e la potenza, e il regno; e la podestà del suo Cristo; perciocchè è stato gettato a basso l'accusatore de' nostri fratelli, il quale li accusava davanti all'Iddio nostro, giorno e notte.
Then I heard [someone] in heaven shout loudly, saying, Now our God has saved his people by his power, and he rules everyone! Now the Messiah, the one who is the supreme ruler whom God appointed, has authority to rule all people, because our God has thrown out of heaven the one who accuses our fellow believers! The dragon is the one who accuses them day and night before our God, saying that they have sinned and that God ought to punish them.
11 Ma essi l'hanno vinto per il sangue dell'Agnello, e per la parola della loro testimonianza; e non hanno amata la vita loro; fin [là, che l'hanno esposta] alla morte.
Our fellow believers overcame the dragon because they never stopped trusting (OR, never stopped telling people about) Jesus, and because they trusted in what Jesus, the one who is like a lamb, accomplished when his blood flowed when he died. Even though those believers wanted to live, they were willing to let people kill them for speaking the truth about him.
12 Perciò, rallegratevi, o cieli, e [voi] che abitate in essi. Guai a [voi], terra, e mare! perciocchè il Diavolo è disceso a voi, avendo grande ira, sapendo che egli ha poco tempo.
So, all you angels living [MTY] in heaven, rejoice! But terrible things will happen to you ungodly people who [MTY] live on the earth and on the ocean, because the devil has come down to you! He is very angry because he knows that he has only a short time during which he can harm people.
13 E quando il dragone vide ch'egli era stato gettato in terra, perseguitò la donna, che avea partorito il [figliuol] maschio.
When the dragon realized that he had been thrown {that [the angels] had thrown him} down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to a son.
14 Ma furono date alla donna due ale della grande aquila, acciocchè se ne volasse d'innanzi al serpente nel deserto, nel suo luogo, per esser quivi nudrita un tempo, de' tempi, e la metà d'un tempo.
But the woman was given two wings like the wings of a very large eagle, in order that she might fly to a desolate place. That is a place [that God] has prepared for her. There she was taken care of {[God’s angels] took care of her} for three and a half years. The serpent, [that is, the dragon], was not able to reach her there.
15 E il serpente gettò dalla sua bocca, dietro alla donna, dell'acqua, a guisa di fiume; per far che il fiume la portasse via.
The serpent spewed water like a river from his mouth in the direction of the woman, in order that the water might sweep her away.
16 Ma la terra soccorse la donna; e la terra aperse la sua bocca, ed assorbì il fiume, che il dragone avea gettato della sua bocca.
But the ground helped the woman [by] opening up and swallowing the river that the dragon spewed out from his mouth!
17 E il dragone si adirò contro alla donna, e se ne andò a far guerra col rimanente della progenie d'essa, che serba i comandamenti di Dio, ed ha la testimonianza di Gesù Cristo.
Then the dragon was very angry with the woman, so he went away to fight against [the people who are like] the rest of her descendants. They are the people who obey God’s commandments and who tell other people about Jesus (OR, hold fast to what Jesus taught them).
