Translation
Then I saw something like a sea,
glassy in nature,
and mixed with fire;
Go to footnote numberthose who come out victorious
Go to footnote numberfrom their encounters with the BEAST and with his image, and with the number
of his name, were
standing upon
the glass-like sea,
holding harps
they received from GOD.
Go to footnote numberParaphrase
Then I saw something pertaining to the threat of death, but it had been subdued and was no threat at all for those who are pure.
Those who come out
victorious from their encounters with the FEROCIOUS CREATURE,
and his living replica,
and the summary of
his reputation and inner qualities, were demonstrating their power over
the subdued threat of death, with proof that they had earned the privilege of continually praising THE CREATOR AND OWNER OF ALL THINGS.
Footnotes
1
Remember that fire can represent either punishment or purification. In this case it is purification.
2: “victorious from their encounters with…”
A literal rendering of the Greek would be, “Those conquering out from the beast.” The preposition “from, of, or out from,” cannot be taken as “over”; therefore, I have expanded the English rendering to portray the idea of this preposition, even though it requires additional wording.
3: “holding harps they received from God”
Not only are they able to give praise to God continually, but God wants to hear their praises. By their pure lives they have earned the distinction that God wants to hear them praising Him. This cannot be said of someone who has been rebellious against God or is playing games with God.