Apocalypse of Paul (Visio Pauli, Latin)

Introduction

There are texts that survive the centuries through sheer institutional force — preserved in monastery libraries, copied by dutiful scribes, endorsed by councils and bishops. And then there are texts that survive despite everything: despite condemnation, despite deliberate suppression, despite the determined efforts of ecclesiastical authority to erase them from the record of Christian thought. The document you are about to read belongs emphatically to the second category. It was hidden, denounced, burned, and forgotten — and yet it kept returning, kept circulating, kept finding readers who recognized in its pages something that official theology could not quite provide: a vivid, visceral, emotionally overwhelming account of what awaits the human soul after death.

To understand why this text matters — why it mattered then and why it continues to matter now — you have to understand the particular hunger it was written to satisfy. The canonical scriptures of early Christianity speak of heaven and hell, of judgment and mercy, of reward and punishment, but they speak of these things in ways that are often frustratingly oblique. Paul's second letter to the Corinthians contains one of the most tantalizing passages in all of ancient religious literature: the apostle describes being 'caught up to the third heaven,' of hearing 'inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell.' It is a vision so overwhelming that Paul refuses to describe it, or perhaps cannot describe it, or perhaps was forbidden to describe it. For centuries, readers of that passage felt the pull of what was left unsaid. What did Paul see? What were those inexpressible things? What does the architecture of the divine realm actually look like, and what happens to souls when they arrive there?

The text presented in this volume is the ancient answer to those questions. It purports to be the very vision that Paul declined to describe — the full account of his journey through the heavens and through the regions of punishment, the complete record of what he witnessed when he was taken beyond the veil of mortal experience. Whether one approaches this as a genuine apostolic document, as a sophisticated piece of early Christian theology dressed in narrative form, or as a window into the religious imagination of late antiquity, the experience of reading it is unlike almost anything else in ancient literature. It is strange, beautiful, terrifying, and deeply human all at once.

The story of how this text came to be written, how it was received, how it was condemned and yet survived, is one of the great untold dramas of early Christian intellectual history. It touches on questions that were absolutely central to the formation of Christianity as a world religion: What is the nature of divine justice? Is mercy compatible with eternal punishment? What role do angels play in the administration of the cosmos? How should ordinary Christians — not theologians, not bishops, not scholars — understand their own fate after death? These were not abstract questions in the early centuries of the common era. They were urgent, practical, existential concerns for communities living under Roman persecution, facing martyrdom, watching loved ones die, and trying to make sense of a world in which suffering seemed to have no obvious divine explanation.

What makes this particular vision so remarkable is the way it handles these questions. It does not retreat into abstraction or theological qualification. It takes the reader by the hand and walks them through the landscape of the afterlife with the confidence of an eyewitness account. The souls of the righteous are described with specificity and tenderness. The punishments of the wicked are depicted with a graphic intensity that would have shocked and fascinated early readers in equal measure. Angels speak. Rivers of fire flow. The geography of paradise is laid out with the precision of a traveler's guide. And throughout all of it, Paul himself serves as the reader's surrogate — asking the questions we would ask, expressing the horror and wonder we would feel, interceding on behalf of the condemned with a compassion that complicates any simple theology of retributive justice.

This is not a text for the faint of heart, nor is it a text that can be read with detached academic interest and nothing more. It demands emotional engagement. It was designed to produce a specific effect in its readers: a heightened awareness of moral consequence, a deepened sense of the reality of the divine, and — perhaps most importantly — a feeling of intimate connection with the apostle whose name it bears. To read it is to be drawn into a world where the boundaries between the living and the dead, between the human and the divine, between this age and the age to come, are suddenly and startlingly permeable.

Discovery of Paul's Revelation at Tarsus

At what time was this made manifest? In the consulship of the younger Theodosius Augustus and Cynegius, a certain man of good standing was living at Tarsus, in the house that had once been the house of Saint Paul. An angel appeared to him by night and gave him a revelation, telling him to break up the foundation of the house and publish what he found there. But he took this for a lying vision and did nothing.

A third time the angel came, scourged him, and compelled him to dig up the foundation. He dug, and found a marble box inscribed on its sides. Inside it was the revelation of Saint Paul, and the sandals he had worn when he went about teaching the word of God. The man was afraid to open the box, and brought it to the magistrate. The magistrate, finding it still sealed with lead, sent it to the emperor Theodosius, fearing it might contain something out of the ordinary. The emperor received it, opened it, and found the revelation of Saint Paul. A copy he sent to Jerusalem; the original he kept for himself.

Paul's Vision of Heaven, Hell, and Paradise

Now while I was still in the body in which I was caught up to the third heaven, the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Speak to this people. How long will you transgress, and heap sin upon sin, and tempt the Lord who made you? You call yourselves children of Abraham, yet you do the works of Satan. You walk in the confidence of God and boast in his name alone, while you are made poor by sin. Remember and understand that the whole creation is subject to God, but mankind alone sins. Humanity has dominion over all creation, yet sins more than all the rest of nature.

For many times the sun, that great light, has appealed to the Lord, saying: O Lord God Almighty, I look out upon the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. Give me leave, and I will deal with them according to my power, so that they may know that you alone are God. And a voice came to it, saying: I know all these things, for my eye sees and my ear hears; but my patience bears with them until they turn and repent. If they do not return to me, I will judge them all.

And at times the moon and the stars have appealed to the Lord, saying: O Lord God Almighty, you have given us rule over the night. How long must we look upon the ungodliness, the fornications, and the murders that the children of men commit? Give us leave to deal with them according to our powers, so that they may know that you alone are God. And a voice came to them, saying: I know all these things, and my eye looks upon them and my ear hears; but my patience bears with them until they turn and repent. If they do not return to me, I will judge them.

Many times also the sea has cried out, saying: O Lord God Almighty, men have polluted your holy name within me. Give me leave, and I will rise up and cover every forest and field and all the world, until I have blotted out all the children of men from before your face, so that they may know that you alone are God. And again a voice came, saying: I know all things, for my eye sees and my ear hears; but my patience bears with them until they turn and repent. If they do not return to me, I will judge them.

At times also the waters have appealed against the children of men, saying: O Lord God Almighty, the children of men have defiled your holy name throughout us. And a voice came, saying: I know all things before they come to pass, for my eye sees and my ear hears all things; but my patience bears with them until they turn. And if they do not, I will judge. Many times also the earth has cried out to the Lord against the children of men, saying: O Lord God Almighty, I suffer harm more than all your creation, bearing the fornications, adulteries, murders, thefts, perjuries, sorceries, and witchcrafts of men, and all the evils they do, so that the father rises up against the son and the son against the father, and stranger against stranger, each one defiling his neighbor's wife. The father goes up to his son's bed, and the son likewise goes up to the couch of his father. And with all these evils, even those who offer sacrifice in your name have polluted your holy place. Therefore I suffer harm more than all creation, and I would withhold my goodness and my fruits from the children of men. Give me leave, and I will destroy the richness of my fruits. And a voice came and said: I know all things, and there is none who can hide himself from his sin. Their ungodliness I know full well, but my holiness bears with them until they turn and repent. If they do not return to me, I will judge them.

See then, you children of men: all creation is subject to God, but mankind alone sins.

Therefore, you children of men, bless the Lord God without ceasing, at every hour and on every day — but especially when the sun sets. For in that hour all the angels go to the Lord to worship him and to present the deeds of men, everything each person has done from morning until evening, whether good or evil. And there is an angel who goes forth rejoicing from the man in whom he dwells.

When the sun has set, at the first hour of the night, the angel of every people and of every man and woman — those who protect and keep them, because man is the image of God — goes forth likewise. And at the hour of morning, which is the twelfth hour of the night, all the angels of men and women go to meet God and present all the work that every person has done, whether good or evil. Every day and every night the angels present to God the full account of all the deeds of mankind. To you, therefore, I say, O children of men: bless the Lord God without ceasing all the days of your life.

At the appointed hour, then, all the angels come forth together before God, rejoicing, to meet him and worship him at the hour that is set. And behold, suddenly at the appointed time there was a gathering, and the angels came to worship in the presence of God, and the Spirit came forth to meet them, and a voice said: Where have you come from, our angels, and what news do you bring?

They answered and said: We have come from those who have renounced the world for the sake of your holy name, wandering as strangers in caves among the rocks, weeping throughout every hour they dwell on the earth, hungering and thirsting for your name's sake, their loins girded, holding in their hands the incense of their hearts, praying and giving blessing at every hour, enduring anguish and subduing themselves, weeping and lamenting more than all who dwell on the earth. We who are their angels mourn with them. Command us therefore wherever it pleases you to send us and minister, for they are the poor above all who dwell on the earth. And the voice of God came to them, saying: Know that from this time forward my grace shall rest upon you, and my help — which is my dearly beloved Son — shall be with them, ruling over them at all times. He shall minister to them and never forsake them, for their place is his dwelling.

When those angels had departed, behold, other angels came to worship in the presence of the Majesty, coming to meet him, and they were weeping. And the Spirit of God went forth to meet them, and the voice of God came, saying: Where have you come from, our angels, you who bear burdens as ministers bringing news of the world? They answered and said in the presence of God: We have come from those who have called upon your name, but the snares of the world have made them wretched. They devise many excuses at every turn, and throughout the whole of their lives they have not offered so much as a single pure prayer from their whole heart. Why then must we remain with men who are sinners? And the voice of God came to them: You must minister to them until they turn and repent. But if they do not return to me, I will judge them.

Know this, then, children of men: whatever you do, the angels report it to God, whether it is good or evil.

And the angel answered and said to me: Follow me, and I will show you the place of the righteous, where they are taken when they die. After that I will take you to the bottomless pit and show you the souls of sinners, and into what kind of place they are taken when they die.

I went after the angel, and he took me up into heaven. I looked upon the firmament and saw there the powers; and there was forgetfulness, which deceives and draws the hearts of men to itself, and the spirit of slander, and the spirit of fornication, and the spirit of wrath, and the spirit of insolence, and there were the princes of wickedness. These things I saw beneath the firmament of heaven.

And again I looked and saw angels without mercy, having no pity, whose faces were full of fury and whose teeth jutted out of their mouths. Their eyes shone like the morning star of the east, and from the hair of their heads and from their mouths went forth sparks of fire. And I asked the angel, saying: Who are these, Lord? And the angel answered and said to me: These are they who are appointed over the souls of sinners in the hour of their need — those who did not believe that they had the Lord as their helper, and did not trust in him.

And I looked up into the height and saw other angels whose faces shone like the sun, and their waists were girded with golden belts. They held palms in their hands and the sign of God, and they were clothed in garments on which was written the name of the Son of God, and they were full of all gentleness and mercy. And I asked the angel and said: Who are these, Lord, who are of such great beauty and compassion? And the angel answered and said to me: These are the angels of righteousness, sent to bring the souls of the righteous in the hour of their need — those who believed that they had the Lord as their helper. And I said to him: Do the righteous and the sinners necessarily meet when they die? And the angel answered and said to me: The way by which all pass to God is one; but the righteous, having a holy helper with them, are not troubled when they go to appear in the presence of God.

And I said to the angel: I would see the souls of the righteous and of the sinners as they depart out of the world. And the angel answered and said to me: Look down upon the earth. And I looked down from heaven upon the earth and beheld the whole world, and it was as nothing in my sight; and I saw the children of men as though they were nothing at all, and utterly failing. And I marveled, and said to the angel: Is this the greatness of men? And the angel answered and said to me: This it is, and these are they who do harm from morning until evening. And I looked and saw a great cloud of fire spread over the whole world, and said to the angel: What is this, Lord? And he said to me: This is the unrighteousness that is stirred up by the princes of sinners.

When I heard this I sighed and wept, and said to the angel: I would wait for the souls of the righteous and of the sinners, and see in what fashion they depart out of the body. And the angel answered and said to me: Look again upon the earth. And I looked and saw the whole world, and men were as nothing, and utterly failing. And I looked and saw a certain man about to die, and the angel said to me: He whom you see is righteous. And again I looked and saw all his works that he had done for the name of God, and all his desires, both those he remembered and those he had forgotten — all of them stood before his face in the hour of his need. And I saw that the righteous man had grown in righteousness and found rest and confidence. Before he departed out of the world, holy angels stood by him, and evil ones also; and I saw them all. But the evil ones found no dwelling in him, and the holy ones had power over his soul and governed it until it went out of the body. And they stirred up the soul, saying: O soul, take note of your body, from which you are departing; for you must return into that same body on the day of resurrection, to receive what has been promised to all the righteous. They received the soul therefore out of the body, and at once kissed it as one well known to them, saying to it: Take courage, for you have done the will of God while you lived on the earth. And there came to meet it the angel who had watched over it day by day, and he said to it: Take courage, O soul, for I rejoice in you, because you did the will of God on the earth; for I reported all your works to God, just as they were. Likewise the spirit also came forth to meet it and said: O soul, do not be afraid or troubled, until you come to a place you have never known; for I will be your helper, since I found in you a place of refreshment in the time when I dwelt in you upon the earth. And the spirit strengthened it, and its angel took it up and carried it into heaven. And an angel said: Where are you hurrying, O soul, presuming to enter heaven? Wait — let us see whether there is anything of ours in you. And behold, we have found nothing in you. I see also the help of God and your angel, and the spirit rejoices with you because you did the will of God upon earth. And they brought it until it worshiped in the presence of God. And when they had finished, Michael and all the host of the angels fell down and worshiped at the footstool of his feet and before his gates, and said together to the soul: This is the God of all, who made you in his image and likeness. And the angel returned and declared, saying: Lord, remember his works; for this is the soul of whom I reported the works to you, Lord, acting according to your judgment. And likewise the spirit said: I am the spirit of life who breathed upon it; for I had refreshment in it in the time when I dwelt within it, acting according to your judgment. And the voice of God came, saying: Just as this soul has not grieved me, neither will I grieve it; for just as it has shown mercy, I also will show mercy. Let it therefore be delivered to Michael, the angel of the covenant, and let him lead it into the paradise of rejoicing, that it may become a fellow heir with all the saints. And after that I heard the voices of thousands upon thousands of angels and archangels and the cherubim and the twenty-four elders, uttering hymns and glorifying the Lord and crying: Righteous are you, O Lord, and just are your judgments, and there is no partiality with you, but you reward every man according to your judgment. And the angel answered and said to me: Have you believed and understood that whatever each one of you has done, he sees it in the hour of his need? And I said: Yes, Lord.

And he said to me: Look down again upon the earth and watch for the soul of a wicked man departing from the body — one who provoked the Lord day and night, saying: I know nothing else in this world; I will eat and drink and enjoy whatever this world has to offer. For who has ever gone down into hell and come back up to tell us that there is a judgment there? And again I looked and saw all the contempt of the sinner, and all that he had done, and everything stood before him together in his hour of need. And it came to pass in that hour, when he was led out of his body to judgment, that he said: It would have been better for me had I never been born. After that the holy angels and the evil angels and the soul of the sinner came together, and the holy angels found no place in it. But the evil angels threatened it, and when they brought it forth out of the body, the angels admonished it three times, saying: O wretched soul, look upon your flesh from which you have come out, for you must return into your flesh on the day of resurrection to receive the due reward for your sins and your wickedness.

And when they had brought it forth, the angel appointed to it went before it and said: O miserable soul, I am the angel who was joined to you, and day by day I reported to the Lord all your evil deeds, whatever you did by night or by day. If it had been in my power, I would not have served you even a single day; but I could do nothing about that, for God is merciful and a just judge, and he commanded us not to cease ministering to your soul until you should repent. But you have wasted the time of repentance. I have now become a stranger to you, and you to me. Let us go then to the just judge. I will not leave you until I know that from this day I am truly a stranger to you. And the spirit confounded it, and the angel troubled it. When therefore they came to the principalities, and it was about to enter into heaven, one burden was laid upon it after another: error and forgetfulness and slander met it, and the spirit of fornication and the rest of the powers, and said to it: Where do you think you are going, wretched soul, daring to press forward into heaven? Stop here, so that we may see whether we have any claim on you, for we see no holy helper with you. And after that I heard voices in the heights of heaven saying: Bring this miserable soul before God, so that it may know that there is a God whom it has despised. When therefore it entered into heaven, all the angels — thousands upon thousands — saw it, and all cried out with one voice saying: Woe to you, miserable soul, for the deeds you did upon the earth! What answer will you give to God when you draw near to worship him? The angel that was with it answered and said: Weep with me, my beloved, for I have found no rest in this soul. And the angels answered him and said: Let this soul be taken away from our midst, for since it came in, the stench of it has spread over us all. And after that it was brought forward to worship in the presence of God, and the angel showed it the Lord God who had made it after his own image and likeness. And its angel ran before it, saying: O Lord God Almighty, I am the angel of this soul, whose works I presented to you day and night, and it did not act according to your judgment. And likewise the spirit said: I am the spirit that dwelt in it from the time it was made, and I know it from within, and it did not follow my will. Judge it, Lord, according to your judgment. And the voice of God came to it and said: Where is your fruit — what have you yielded that is worthy of all the good things you received? Did I place any distance between you and the righteous, even for a single day? Did I not make the sun rise upon you just as upon the righteous? And it was silent, having nothing to answer. And again the voice came, saying: The judgment of God is just, and there is no favoritism with God, for whoever has shown mercy will receive mercy, and whoever has shown no mercy, neither shall God show mercy on him. Let him therefore be delivered to the angel Tartaruchus, who is set over the torments, and let him cast him into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, and let him remain there until the great day of judgment. And after that I heard the voice of the angels and archangels saying: Righteous are you, O Lord, and just is your judgment.

And again I looked, and behold, a soul was being brought by two angels, weeping and saying: Have mercy on me, O righteous God, O God the judge, for today it is seven days since I departed from my body, and I was delivered to these two angels, and they have brought me to places I had never seen. And God the righteous judge said to it: What have you done? You never showed mercy, and therefore you were delivered to such angels as have no mercy, and because you did not act rightly, neither have they dealt compassionately with you in your hour of need. Confess therefore the sins you committed while you were in the world. And it answered and said: Lord, I have not sinned. And the righteous Lord God was filled with anger when it said: I have not sinned, for it had lied. And God said: Do you imagine you are still in the world? There, when people sin, they hide and conceal their sins from their neighbors; but here nothing is hidden, for when souls come to worship before the throne, the good works and the sins of every one of them are made plain. And when the soul heard this, it fell silent, having no answer. And I heard the Lord God, the righteous judge, speak again: Come, angel of this soul, and stand in the midst. And the angel of the sinful soul came forward, holding a document in his hands, and said: These, Lord, that are in my hands, are all the sins of this soul from its youth until this day, from the time it was ten years old. And if you command me, Lord, I can recount its deeds from the time it was fifteen years old. And the Lord God the righteous judge said: I tell you, O angel, I do not require from you an account from the time it was fifteen years old; but declare its sins from the five years before it died and came here. And again God the righteous judge said: For I swear by myself, and by my holy angels and by my power, that if it had repented five years before it died — even for the space of one year — there would have been forgiveness of all the evil it had committed before, and it would have received pardon and remission of sins. But now let it perish. And the angel of the sinful soul answered and said: Command, Lord, that angel to bring forth those souls.

And in that same hour the souls were brought forward into the midst, and the soul of the sinner recognized them. And the Lord said to the soul of the sinner: I say to you, O soul, confess what you did to these souls whom you see before you, when they were in the world. And it answered and said: Lord, it is not yet a full year since I killed this one and shed its blood upon the earth, and with another I committed fornication; and not only that, but I did it great harm by taking away its possessions. And the Lord God the righteous judge said: Did you not know that whoever does violence to another — if the one who suffered the violence dies first, that person is kept in this place until the one who harmed them also dies, and then both appear before the judge? And now each one has received according to what they did. And I heard a voice saying: Let that soul be delivered into the hands of Tartaruchus, and let it be taken down into hell. Let him take him into the lower prison and cast him into torments, and let him remain there until the great day of judgment. And again I heard thousands upon thousands of angels singing a hymn to the Lord and saying: Righteous are you, O Lord, and just are your judgments.

And the angel answered and said to me: Have you perceived all these things? And I said: Yes, Lord. And he said to me: Follow me again, and I will take you and show you the places of the righteous. And I followed the angel and he took me up to the third heaven and set me before the door of a gate. I looked at it and saw that the gate was of gold, and there were two pillars of gold covered with golden letters. And the angel turned to me and said: Blessed are you if you enter through these gates, for it is not permitted to any to enter save only those who have kept goodness and purity of body in all things. And I asked the angel and said: Lord, tell me, for what reason are these letters set upon these pillars? The angel answered and said to me: These are the names of the righteous who minister to God with their whole heart, who dwell upon the earth. And again I said: Lord, then their names and their very likeness are known in heaven, and the angels know those who serve God with their whole heart before they depart out of the world.

And when I had entered within the gate of paradise, there came to meet me an old man whose face shone like the sun. He embraced me and said: Hail, Paul, dearly beloved of God! And he kissed me with a joyful countenance, but he wept. And I said to him: Father, why do you weep? And again, sighing and weeping, he said: Because we are troubled on account of men, and they grieve us greatly. For many are the good things which the Lord has prepared, and great are his promises, but many do not receive them. And I asked the angel and said: Who is this, Lord? And he said to me: This is Enoch, the scribe of righteousness.

And I entered further into that place and straightway I saw Elijah, and he came and greeted me with gladness and joy. And when he had seen me, he turned himself away and wept, and said to me: Paul, may you receive the reward of the labor you have done among mankind. As for me, I have seen the great and manifold good things which God has prepared for all the righteous, and great are the promises of God, but the greater part do not receive them. Indeed, it is only through much toil that one here and another there enters into these places.

And the angel answered and said to me: Whatever things I now show you here, and whatever you hear, do not reveal them to anyone upon earth. And he led me and showed me, and I heard words there which it is not lawful for a man to utter. And again he said: Follow me once more, and I will show you what you must openly relate and tell.

And he brought me down from the third heaven and led me into the second heaven, and again he led me to the firmament, and from the firmament he led me to the gates of heaven. And the beginning of its foundation rested upon the river that waters all the earth. And I asked the angel and said: Lord, what is this river of water? And he said to me: This is the Ocean. And suddenly I came out of heaven and perceived that it is the light of heaven that shines upon all the earth. And there the earth was seven times brighter than silver. And I said: Lord, what is this place? And he said to me: This is the land of promise. Have you not yet heard what is written: Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth? The souls of the righteous, therefore, when they have gone forth from the body, are sent for a time into this place. And I said to the angel: Will this land then be revealed after a time? The angel answered and said to me: When Christ, whom you preach, comes to reign, then by the decree of God the first earth shall be dissolved, and then shall this land of promise be revealed, and it shall be like dew or a cloud. And then shall the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal king, be manifested and shall come with all his saints to dwell therein. And he shall reign over them a thousand years, and they shall eat of the good things which I will now show you.

And I looked around that land and saw a river flowing with milk and honey. And there were trees planted along the bank of the river, full of fruits. Every tree bore twelve fruits in the year, and they had various and diverse fruits. And I saw the fashion of that place and all the work of God, and there I saw palm trees of twenty cubits and others of ten cubits. And that land was seven times brighter than silver. And the trees were full of fruits from the root even to the uppermost branches. And I said to the angel: Why does every tree bring forth such abundance of fruits? The angel answered and said to me: Because the Lord God of his bounty gives his gifts in abundance to the worthy, for they also of their own will afflicted themselves when they were in the world, doing all things for his holy name's sake.

And again I said to the angel: Lord, are these the only promises which the most holy Lord God has promised? And he answered and said to me: No, for there are things greater by seven times than these. But I tell you this: when the righteous have gone forth from the body and shall see the promises and the good things which God has prepared for them, they will sigh and cry out, saying: Why did we ever speak a word out of our mouths to provoke our neighbor, even for a single day? And I asked again and said: Are these then the only promises of God? And the angel answered and said to me: These which you now see are for those who are married and keep the purity of their marriage, living in continence. But for the virgins, and for those who hunger and thirst after righteousness and afflict themselves for the name of the Lord, God will give things seven times greater than these, which I will now show you.

After that he took me out of that place where I had seen these things, and I saw a river whose waters were exceedingly white, whiter than milk. I said to the angel, "What is this?" And he said to me, "This is the lake Acherusa, where the city of Christ stands. But not every person is permitted to enter that city, for this is the way that leads to God. If anyone has been a fornicator or ungodly, and turns and repents and bears fruit worthy of repentance, then when he departs from the body he is brought before God and worships him, and by the commandment of the Lord he is delivered to the angel Michael, who washes him in the lake Acherusa and brings him into the city of Christ together with those who have committed no sin." And I marveled and blessed the Lord God for all the things I had seen.

And the angel answered and said to me, "Follow me, and I will bring you into the city of Christ." He stood by the lake Acherusa and placed me in a golden ship, and angels, some three thousand of them, sang a hymn before me until I came to the city of Christ. Those who dwelt in the city of Christ rejoiced greatly when I came to them, and I entered in and saw the city. It was all of gold, and twelve walls encircled it, and within it were twelve towers, with a furlong between each wall all the way around. I said to the angel, "Lord, how great is one furlong?" The angel answered and said to me, "It is as great as the distance between the Lord God and the people on earth, for the great city of Christ stands alone." There were twelve gates in the circuit of the city, of great beauty, and four rivers flowed around it — a river of honey, a river of milk, a river of wine, and a river of oil. I said to the angel, "What are these rivers that flow around the city?" And he said to me, "These are the four rivers that flow abundantly for those who dwell in this land of promise. Their names are these: the river of honey is called Phison, the river of milk is called Euphrates, the river of oil is called Geon, and the river of wine is called Tigris. Because the righteous, while they were in the world, did not indulge in these things but instead hungered and afflicted themselves for the sake of the Lord God, when they enter this city the Lord will give them these things without number and without measure."

When I entered through the gate I saw before the doors of the city great tall trees that bore no fruit, only leaves. And I saw a few men scattered among the trees, and they mourned bitterly whenever they saw anyone enter the city. The trees themselves seemed to do penance for them, bowing down and humbling themselves, then rising up again.

I watched and wept with them, and I asked the angel, "Lord, who are these who are not permitted to enter the city of Christ?" He said to me, "These are those who earnestly renounced the world day and night with fasting, but whose hearts were proud above all other people — glorifying and praising themselves, doing nothing for their neighbors. Some they greeted warmly, but to others they would not even say hello. They opened their doors to whomever they chose, and if they did any small thing for a neighbor they became puffed up with pride." I said, "What then, Lord — has their pride prevented them from entering the city of Christ?" The angel answered and said to me, "Pride is the root of all evils. Do they think themselves better than the Son of God, who came to the Jews in great humility?" I asked him, "But why do the trees humble themselves and then rise up again?" The angel answered and said to me, "All the time these people spent on earth serving God, they were at times ashamed and humbled themselves because of the scorn and reproaches of other people — but they were not truly grieved, nor did they repent so as to be rid of the pride within them. That is why the trees bow down and rise up again." I asked, "For what reason are they allowed to remain near the gates of the city?" The angel answered and said to me, "Because of the great goodness of God, and because this is the entrance through which all his saints pass when they enter the city. Therefore they are left in this place, so that when Christ the eternal king enters with his saints, all the righteous will intercede for them, and then they will enter the city together with them. Yet none of them can have the same confidence as those who humbled themselves and served the Lord God all their lives."

I went on, and the angel led me to the river of honey. There I saw Isaiah and Jeremiah and Ezekiel and Amos and Micah and Zechariah, both the lesser and the greater prophets, and they greeted me in the city. I said to the angel, "What is this place?" And he said to me, "This is the place of the prophets. Everyone who has grieved his soul and not followed his own will for God's sake — when he departs from the world and is brought before the Lord God and worships him — is by the commandment of God delivered to Michael, who brings him into the city to this place of the prophets. And they greet him as a friend and neighbor, because he has performed the will of God."

Again he led me to the river of milk, and there I saw all the children whom King Herod had slaughtered for the name of Christ, and they greeted me. The angel said to me, "All those who have kept chastity in purity — when they depart from the body and have worshiped the Lord God — are delivered to Michael and brought to these children, who greet them saying, 'These are our brothers and friends and fellow members.' Among them shall they inherit the promises of God."

And again he took me and brought me to the north side of the city, and led me to where the river of wine was, and I saw there Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Lot and Job and other saints, and they greeted me. And I asked: What is this place, Lord? The angel answered and said to me: All those who have shown hospitality to strangers, when they depart from the world, first worship the Lord God, and then are delivered to Michael and brought by this path into the city, and all the righteous greet them as a son and brother, and say: Because you kept kindness and welcomed strangers, come and receive your inheritance in the city of our Lord God. Every one of the righteous shall receive the good things of God in the city according to his deeds.

And again he took me to the river of oil on the east side of the city. And I saw there men rejoicing and singing psalms, and I said: Who are these, Lord? And the angel said to me: These are they who devoted themselves to God with their whole heart and had no pride in them. For all who rejoice in the Lord God and sing his praises with their whole heart are brought here into this city.

And he took me into the midst of the city, between the twelve walls. Now there was in that place a higher wall, and I asked: Is there in the city of Christ a wall more excellent in honor than this? And the angel answered and said to me: The second is better than the first, and likewise the third than the second, for each excels the one before it all the way to the twelfth wall. And I said: Why, Lord, does one excel another in glory? Show me. And the angel answered and said to me: All those who carry in them even a little slander, or envy, or pride — something is taken away from their glory, even if they dwell in the city of Christ. Look behind you.

And I turned and saw golden thrones set at each of the gates, and upon them men wearing golden crowns and jewels. And I looked and saw within, among the twelve, thrones set in another order, which appeared of such great glory that no man is able to describe their splendor. And I asked the angel: Lord, who sits upon those thrones? And the angel answered and said to me: These are the thrones of those who had goodness and understanding of heart, and yet made themselves simple for the sake of the Lord God, knowing neither the Scriptures nor many psalms, but keeping one chapter of the commandments of God in mind and carrying it out with great diligence, and having a right and sincere intent before the Lord God. And because of this, great wonder shall come upon all the saints before the Lord God, and they shall speak to one another, saying: Come and see the unlearned who knew nothing — how they have earned such beautiful raiment and such great glory because of their innocence.

And I saw in the midst of the city an exceedingly high altar. And there was one standing by the altar whose face shone like the sun, and he held in his hands a psaltery and a harp and sang praises, saying: Alleluia. And his voice filled all the city. And when all those who were upon the towers and the gates heard him, they answered: Alleluia — so that the very foundations of the city were shaken. And I asked the angel: Who is this, Lord, who has such great power? And the angel said to me: This is David. This is the city of Jerusalem. And when Christ the king of eternity comes in the fullness of his kingdom, David shall again go before him to sing praises, and all the righteous together shall sing praises in answer: Alleluia. And I said: Lord, why is it that David alone, above all the rest of the saints, begins the singing of praises? And the angel answered and said to me: When Christ the Son of God sits at the right hand of his Father, David shall sing praises before him in the seventh heaven. And as it is done in the heavens, so likewise is it below — for without David it is not lawful to offer a sacrifice to God, but it must be that David sing praises at the hour of the offering of the body and blood of Christ. As it is performed in heaven, so also it is upon earth.

And I said to the angel: Lord, what is Alleluia? And the angel answered and said to me: You examine and inquire into all things. And he said to me: Alleluia is spoken in Hebrew, which is the language of God and of the angels. The interpretation of Alleluia is this: tecel cat marith macha. And I said: Lord, what does tecel cat marith macha mean? And the angel answered and said to me: It means: Let us all bless him together. I asked the angel: Lord, do all those who say Alleluia bless God? And the angel answered and said to me: It is so. And further — if anyone sings Alleluia and those who are present do not sing with him, they commit sin in that they do not join him. And I said: Lord, does a man likewise sin if he is feeble-minded or very old? The angel answered and said to me: Not so. But he who is able and does not sing with him — know that such a one is a despiser of the word, for it would be proud and unworthy of him not to bless the Lord God his creator.

And when he had finished speaking to me, he led me out beyond the city through the midst of the trees and away from the place of the land of good things, and set me at the river of milk and honey. And after that he led me to the ocean that bears the foundations of heaven.

And the angel said to me: Do you understand that you are departing from here? And I said: Yes, Lord. And he said to me: Come, follow me, and I will show you the souls of the ungodly and the sinners, so that you may know what manner of place they inhabit. And I went with the angel, and he took me by the way of the sunset, and I saw the beginning of heaven founded upon a great river of water, and I asked: What is this river of water? And he said to me: This is the ocean that encircles the whole earth. And when I had passed beyond the ocean, I looked, and there was no light in that place, but only darkness and sorrow and sadness, and I sighed.

And I saw there a river of fire burning with heat, and in it was a multitude of men and women — some sunk up to their knees, others up to their navels, others up to their lips, and others up to their hair. I asked the angel and said: Lord, who are these people in the river of fire? The angel answered and said to me: They are neither hot nor cold, for they were found neither among the righteous nor among the wicked. They passed their lives on earth spending some days in prayer and other days in sin and fornication, until they died. And I asked: Who are those sunk up to their knees in the fire? He answered and said to me: These are those who, when they come out of church, occupy themselves with idle and contentious talk. Those sunk up to their navels are those who, after receiving the body and blood of Christ, went and committed fornication and did not cease from their sins until they died. Those sunk up to their lips are those who slandered one another when they gathered in the church of God. And those sunk up to their eyebrows are those who signal to one another and secretly devise evil against their neighbors.

And I saw on the north side a place of many and varied torments, full of men and women, and a river of fire flowed down upon them. I looked and saw pits of exceeding depth, and in them many souls crowded together, and the depth of that place was as it were three thousand cubits. I saw them groaning and weeping and saying: Have mercy on us, Lord. And no one had mercy on them. I asked the angel and said: Lord, who are these? The angel answered and said to me: These are those who did not trust in the Lord or believe that he could be their helper. And I said: Lord, if these souls remain here like this, with thirty or forty generations cast one upon another, and if they are cast down yet deeper, I wonder whether the pits could even contain them. He said to me: The abyss has no measure, for beneath it there follows yet another depth below. It is as when a strong man takes a stone and casts it into an exceedingly deep well, and after many hours it reaches the bottom — so also is the abyss. For when souls are cast into it, they scarcely reach the bottom even after five hundred years.

When I heard this I mourned and lamented for the human race. The angel answered and said to me: Why do you mourn? Are you more merciful than God? For God is good, and knowing that these torments exist, he bears patiently with mankind, leaving every person to do his own will for the time he dwells on the earth.

Yet again I looked upon the river of fire, and I saw there a man seized by the throat by angels who were the keepers of hell. They held in their hands an iron instrument with three hooks, and with it they pierced the entrails of that old man. I asked the angel and said: Lord, who is this old man upon whom such torments are inflicted? The angel answered and said to me: He whom you see was a priest who did not fulfill his ministry well, for while he was eating and drinking and committing fornication he offered the sacrifice to the Lord at his holy altar.

And not far off I saw another old man whom four evil angels brought running swiftly. They sank him up to his knees in the river of fire, struck him with stones, and battered his face like a storm, and would not allow him to say: Have mercy on me. I asked the angel, and he said to me: He whom you see was a bishop, and he did not fulfill his office well. He received a great name but throughout his life never entered into the holiness of the one who gave him that name. He did not judge righteously and had no compassion on widows and orphans. Now he is repaid according to his wickedness and his deeds.

And I saw another man in the river of fire sunk up to his knees. His hands were stretched out and bloody, worms came out of his mouth and his nostrils, and he was groaning and lamenting and crying out: Have mercy on me, for I suffer more than all the rest who are in this torment. I asked: Lord, who is this? He said to me: He whom you see was a deacon who devoured the offerings and committed fornication and did not act rightly before God. Therefore he pays the penalty without ceasing. And I looked and saw beside him another man whom they brought in haste and cast into the river of fire, where he stood up to his knees. The angel who presided over the torments came forward holding a great razor that was red-hot, and with it he cut the lips of that man, and his tongue likewise. I sighed and wept and asked: Lord, who is this man? He said to me: He whom you see was a reader who read to the people, but he did not keep the commandments of God. Now he too pays his own penalty.

And I saw another multitude of pits in that same place, and in the midst of them a river filled with a multitude of men and women, and worms devoured them. I wept and sighed and asked the angel: Lord, who are these? He said to me: These are those who exacted usury upon usury and put their trust in their riches, having no hope in God or belief that he was their helper.

After that I looked and saw a very narrow place, and there was what appeared to be a wall, with fire all around it. Inside I saw men and women gnawing their own tongues, and I asked: Lord, who are these? He said to me: These are those who mocked the word of God in the church, paying no attention to it, treating God and his angels as though they were nothing. Therefore now they too pay the penalty that is due.

And I looked and saw another pool beneath in the pit, and its appearance was like blood. I asked, "Lord, what is this place?" He said to me, "All the torments flow down into this pit." And I saw men and women sunk up to their lips, and I asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are the sorcerers who gave men and women magical enchantments, and they found no rest until they died."

And again I saw men and women of very dark countenance in a pit of fire, and I sighed and wept and asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are whoremongers and adulterers who, having wives of their own, committed adultery, and likewise the women committed adultery in the same way, having their own husbands. Therefore they pay the penalty without ceasing."

And I saw there girls clad in black garments, and four fearful angels holding red-hot chains in their hands, and they put the chains upon the girls' necks and led them away into darkness. And again I wept and asked the angel, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are they who, being virgins, defiled their virginity without their parents' knowledge, and therefore they pay the due penalty without ceasing."

And again I beheld men and women with their hands and feet cut off, naked in a place of ice and snow, and worms devoured them. When I saw it I wept and asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are they who injured the fatherless and widows and the poor, and put no trust in the Lord. Therefore they pay the due penalty without ceasing."

And I looked and saw others hanging over a channel of water, their tongues parched with thirst, while many fruits were set before their eyes and they were not permitted to take any of them. And I asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are they who broke their fast before the appointed time, and therefore they pay this penalty without ceasing."

And I saw other men and women hanging by their eyebrows and their hair, and a river of fire swept them along. And I said, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are they who did not give themselves to their own husbands and wives, but gave themselves to adulterers, and therefore they pay the due penalty without ceasing."

And I saw other men and women covered with dust, their appearance like blood, cast into a pit of pitch and brimstone and swept down in a river of fire. And I asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are they who committed the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah, men with men, and therefore they pay the penalty without ceasing."

And I looked and saw men and women clad in white apparel, blind in their eyes, set in a pit. And I asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are the people of the heathen who gave alms but did not know the Lord God, and therefore they pay the due penalty without ceasing."

And I looked and saw other men and women on a spit of fire, with beasts tearing at them, and they were not permitted to say, "Lord, have mercy on us." And I saw the angel of the torments laying the most fierce torments upon them and saying, "Acknowledge the Son of God, for it was told to you before, but when the scriptures of God were read to you, you paid no heed. Therefore the judgment of God is just, for your evil deeds have overtaken you and brought you into these torments." But I sighed and wept, and I asked, "Who are these men and women who are strangled in the fire and pay the penalty?" He answered me, "These are the women who defiled the creation of God when they destroyed the children they brought forth from the womb, and these are the men who lay with them. But their children appealed to the Lord God and to the angels set over the torments, saying, 'Avenge us of our parents, for they defiled the creation of God. Bearing the name of God but not observing his commandments, they gave us as food to dogs and to be trampled by swine, and others they cast into the river.'" But those children were delivered to the angels of Tartarus, that they might be brought into a spacious place of mercy, while their fathers and mothers were dragged away into everlasting torment.

And after that I saw men and women clad in rags full of pitch and burning brimstone, and dragons were twined about their necks and shoulders and feet, and angels with horns of fire drove them on and struck them and stopped up their nostrils, saying to them, "Why did you not know the time when it was right for you to repent and serve God, and yet you did not?" And I asked, "Who are these, Lord?" He said to me, "These are they who seemed to renounce the world, wearing our garb, but the snares of the world made them wretched. They showed no charity and had no pity on widows and the fatherless. The stranger and the pilgrim they did not take in, nor did they offer a single oblation or show pity to their neighbor, and their prayer did not rise up even one day pure to the Lord God. The many snares of the world held them back, and they were not able to do right in the sight of God." And the angels carried them away into the place of torments, and those who were already in torment saw them and said to them, "We, when we lived in the world, neglected God, and you did likewise. We, when we were in the world, knew that we were sinners — but of you it was said, 'These are righteous men and servants of God.' Now we see that you were called by the name of the Lord in name only." And therefore they too pay the due penalty.

And I sighed and wept and said, "Woe to men! Woe to sinners! To what end were they born?" And the angel answered and said to me, "Why do you weep? Are you more merciful than the Lord God, who is blessed forever, who has established the judgment and left every man free to choose good or evil and to do as he pleases?" Yet again I wept very bitterly, and he said to me, "Do you weep, when you have not yet seen the greater torments? Follow me, and you shall see torments sevenfold greater than these."

He took me to the north side and placed me over a well, which I found sealed with seven seals. The angel who was with me spoke to the angel of that place and said: Open the mouth of the well, so that Paul, the dearly beloved of God, may look upon it, for power has been given to him to see all the torments of hell. Then the angel said to me: Stand back, so that you can bear the stench of this place. When the well was opened, there rose out of it immediately a stench so harsh and foul that it surpassed all the other torments. I looked down into the well and saw masses of fire burning on every side, and anguish, and the mouth of the pit was so narrow that only one person could pass through it. The angel answered and said to me: If anyone is cast into the well of the abyss and it is sealed over him, he will never again be remembered in the presence of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, or of the holy angels. I said: Who are they, Lord, that are cast into this well? He said to me: They are those who do not confess that Christ came in the flesh, that the Virgin Mary bore him, and those who say of the bread and the cup of blessing of the Eucharist that it is not the body and blood of Christ.

Then I looked from the north toward the west and saw there the worm that never sleeps, and in that place was gnashing of teeth. The worms were about a cubit in length and had two heads, and I saw men and women there in cold and gnashing of teeth. I asked: Lord, who are they in this place? He said to me: These are those who say that Christ did not rise from the dead and that the flesh does not rise again. I asked further: Lord, is there no fire or heat in this place? He said to me: In this place there is nothing but cold and snow. And he added: Even if the sun were to rise upon them, they would not be warmed, because of the extreme cold of this place and the snow. When I heard this I spread out my hands and wept and sighed, and said again: It would have been better for us never to have been born, all of us who are sinners. But when those who were in that place saw me weeping with the angel, they too cried out and wept, saying: Lord God, have mercy upon us.