1 He answered me then, and said, Measure thou the time diligently in itself: and when thou seest part of the signs past, which I have told thee before,
2 Then shalt thou understand, that it is the very same time, wherein the Highest will begin to visit the world which he made.
3 Therefore when there shall be seen earthquakes and uproars of the people in the world:
4 Then shalt thou well understand, that the most High spake of those things from the days that were before thee, even from the beginning.
5 For like as all that is made in the world hath a beginning and an end, and the end is manifest:
6 Even so the times also of the Highest have plain beginnings in wonder and powerful works, and endings in effects and signs.
7 And every one that shall be saved, and shall be able to escape by his works, and by faith, whereby ye have believed,
8 Shall be preserved from the said perils, and shall see my salvation in my land, and within my borders: for I have sanctified them for me from the beginning.
9 Then shall they be in pitiful case, which now have abused my ways: and they that have cast them away despitefully shall dwell in torments.
10 For such as in their life have received benefits, and have not known me;
11 And they that have loathed my law, while they had yet liberty, and, when as yet place of repentance was open unto them, understood not, but despised it;
12 The same must know it after death by pain.
13 And therefore be thou not curious how the ungodly shall be punished, and when: but enquire how the righteous shall be saved, whose the world is, and for whom the world is created.
14 Then answered I and said,
15 I have said before, and now do speak, and will speak it also hereafter, that there be many more of them which perish, than of them which shall be saved:
16 Like as a wave is greater than a drop.
17 And he answered me, saying, Like as the field is, so is also the seed; as the flowers be, such are the colours also; such as the workman is, such also is the work; and as the husbandman is himself, so is his husbandry also: for it was the time of the world.
18 And now when I prepared the world, which was not yet made, even for them to dwell in that now live, no man spake against me.
19 For then every one obeyed: but now the manners of them which are created in this world that is made are corrupted by a perpetual seed, and by a law which is unsearchable rid themselves.
20 So I considered the world, and, behold, there was peril because of the devices that were come into it.
21 And I saw, and spared it greatly, and have kept me a grape of the cluster, and a plant of a great people.
22 Let the multitude perish then, which was born in vain; and let my grape be kept, and my plant; for with great labour have I made it perfect.
23 Nevertheless, if thou wilt cease yet seven days more, (but thou shalt not fast in them,
24 But go into a field of flowers, where no house is builded, and eat only the flowers of the field; taste no flesh, drink no wine, but eat flowers only;)
25 And pray unto the Highest continually, then will I come and talk with thee.
26 So I went my way into the field which is called Ardath, like as he commanded me; and there I sat among the flowers, and did eat of the herbs of the field, and the meat of the same satisfied me.
27 After seven days I sat upon the grass, and my heart was vexed within me, like as before:
28 And I opened my mouth, and began to talk before the most High, and said,
29 O Lord, thou that shewest thyself unto us, thou wast shewed unto our fathers in the wilderness, in a place where no man treadeth, in a barren place, when they came out of Egypt.
30 And thou spakest saying, Hear me, O Israel; and mark my words, thou seed of Jacob.
31 For, behold, I sow my law in you, and it shall bring fruit in you, and ye shall be honoured in it for ever.
32 But our fathers, which received the law, kept it not, and observed not thy ordinances: and though the fruit of thy law did not perish, neither could it, for it was thine;
33 Yet they that received it perished, because they kept not the thing that was sown in them.
34 And, lo, it is a custom, when the ground hath received seed, or the sea a ship, or any vessel meat or drink, that, that being perished wherein it was sown or cast into,
35 That thing also which was sown, or cast therein, or received, doth perish, and remaineth not with us: but with us it hath not happened so.
36 For we that have received the law perish by sin, and our heart also which received it.
37 Notwithstanding the law perisheth not, but remaineth in his force.
38 And when I spake these things in my heart, I looked back with mine eyes, and upon the right side I saw a woman, and, behold, she mourned and wept with a loud voice, and was much grieved in heart, and her clothes were rent, and she had ashes upon her head.
39 Then let I my thoughts go that I was in, and turned me unto her,
40 And said unto her, Wherefore weepest thou? why art thou so grieved in thy mind?
41 And she said unto me, Sir, let me alone, that I may bewail myself, and add unto my sorrow, for I am sore vexed in my mind, and brought very low.
42 And I said unto her, What aileth thee? tell me.
43 She said unto me, I thy servant have been barren, and had no child, though I had an husband thirty years,
44 And those thirty years I did nothing else day and night, and every hour, but make my prayer to the Highest.
45 After thirty years God heard me thine handmaid, looked upon my misery, considered my trouble, and gave me a son: and I was very glad of him, so was my husband also, and all my neighbours: and we gave great honour unto the Almighty.
46 And I nourished him with great travail.
47 So when he grew up, and came to the time that he should have a wife, I made a feast.
1 He answered, “Consider all these things very carefully. When you see that some of the signs I have told you about have appeared, 2 you will know that the time has come when God Most High will bring judgment on the world he has created. 3 There will be earthquakes, national rebellions, international intrigues, unstable leaders, and confused rulers. When you see these things happening, 4 you will know that they are what God Most High has spoken about since the beginning of creation. 5 The beginning and the end of everything that happens in this world are clear. 6 The same is true in the world above: wonders and miracles show the beginning of events, and mighty signs show when they end.
7 “Some people will escape destruction and be saved by their good works or by their faith. All of them 8 will survive the dangers I have described and will enjoy the salvation provided in the land that I have set apart from eternity as my own. 9 Then those who have ignored my ways and held them in contempt will be surprised when they find themselves in continual torment. 10 This will include all those who ignored me while they were alive, even though they accepted the blessings I gave them. 11 It will include all those who scorned my Law during the time they were free to do so and all those who refused to repent when they still had the chance. 12 The torment they will have to suffer after death will force them to recognize the truth. 13 Therefore, Ezra, you should stop asking questions about how the wicked will be punished. Instead, be concerned about how and when the righteous will be saved. The world was created for them and belongs to them.”
14 I said, 15 “I must repeat what I said before. The lost far outnumber those who are saved— 16 it is like a wave compared with a drop of water.”
17 He answered, “The seed to be planted depends on the soil; the color of the flower depends on the kind of flower; the quality of a product depends on the skill of the worker; and the size of the harvest depends on how hard the farmer has worked. 18 Before I created this world or the people who would live in it, no one opposed me, because no one existed. 19 When I had created the world, I supplied it with an abundance of food and a Law of profound wisdom, but the people I created lived corrupt lives. 20 I looked at my world and saw that it was ruined. I saw that my earth was in danger of being destroyed by the wicked plans of the people who had come into it. 21 When I saw this, I found it very difficult to spare them, but I saved a few for myself, one grape out of a bunch and one tree out of a great forest. 22 So let them perish—all those people who were born only to be lost. But let my chosen people be kept safe—those for whom I worked so hard to bring to perfection.
23 “And now, Ezra, you must wait seven more days, but do not fast this time. 24 Go to a field of wild flowers where no one has ever lived and eat nothing but the flowers—do not eat any meat or drink any wine. 25 Pray the whole time to God Most High. Then I will come and talk with you again.”
THE FOURTH VISION
The Law Remains
26 I obeyed the angel's command and went to a field called Ardat. I sat there among the flowers and ate the wild plants, and that was enough food for me. 27 After seven days I was lying on the grass, and once again my thoughts began to trouble me. 28 Then I began to speak and said to God Most High, 29 “O Lord, you revealed yourself to our ancestors when they were traveling through the trackless, barren desert after they had left Egypt. You said to them, 30 ‘Listen to me, people of Israel. 31 I am giving you my Law. It will be like a seed planted among you that produces fruit, and it will be your crowning glory forever.’ 32 Our ancestors received the Law, but they disobeyed its commands. Yet the fruit of the Law was not destroyed—it could not be destroyed because it was yours. 33 Those who had received the Law were destroyed because they did not guard the good seed that was sown in them. 34-35 The usual thing is that the container remains after its contents have been destroyed, for example, seed in the ground, a ship on the sea, or food in a bowl. But this is not the case with us sinners. 36 The Law was placed in our hearts, and we are the ones who will be destroyed because we have sinned. 37 The Law will not be destroyed; it will remain in all its glory.”
The Vision of the Weeping Woman
38 While I was saying these things to myself, I looked around and saw a woman on my right. She was weeping and wailing, terribly upset; her clothes were torn, and there were ashes on her head. 39 I immediately put my own troubles out of my mind, turned to the woman, 40 and asked, “Why are you crying? Why are you so upset?”
41 “Please, sir,” she answered, “leave me alone and let me go on crying and mourning; I am bitter and depressed.”
42 “Tell me what's wrong,” I said.
43 She answered, “Sir, I was married for thirty years, but I was never able to have a child. 44 During those thirty years I prayed every day and every hour, day and night, to God Most High for a child. 45 After thirty years God answered my prayer; he saw my suffering, took away my distress, and gave me a son. What great joy this brought to my husband and me and to all our neighbors! We sang the praises of the Almighty. 46 I brought our son up with the greatest care, 47 and when he was grown, I chose a wife for him and prepared for the wedding.