Both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation indicate that this verse is not part of the narrative as such but is a word from the Lord Jesus Christ. Revised Standard Version does this by means of quotation marks and parentheses, Good News Bible by quotation marks and a paragraph. It will be appropriate to say specifically, as Bible en français courant does, “The Lord says….”

Lo: as in “Behold” in 1.7.

I am coming like a thief: suddenly and undetected (see 3.3).

Blessed: see 1.3.

Who is awake: that is, who stays awake; who doesn’t fall asleep; who keeps watch. The verb is used in the sense of “wake up” in 3.2, 3.

Keeping his garments that he may not go naked: this can mean “keeping his clothes on” (New Jerusalem Bible, Translator’s New Testament, New Revised Standard Version [“is clothed”]); but it may also mean “keeps his clothes ready (to put on),” as Revised English Bible, New American Bible, Revised, Phillips, Barclay translate. This seems to be preferable. It is possible that the Greek phrase (which says, simply, “keeping his clothes”) means “keeping his clothes clean” (as is said clearly in 3.4), but this is rather unlikely.

Be seen exposed: this translates the Greek “they see his shame,” where “shame” is regarded by many as a euphemism for “private parts” of the body. The third plural active of the verb “to see” is an impersonal plural, meaning simply “and be seen,” as Revised Standard Version has it. The noun translated exposed occurs in the New Testament only here and in Rom 1.27, “shameless” (see in 3.18 the more complete phrase “the shame of your nakedness”).

An alternative translation model for this verse is:

• The Lord says, “Pay attention! I am coming just like a thief comes (at night). How fortunate is the person who stays awake, keeping his clothes ready so that he will not walk around naked and be ashamed (or, lose face) when people look at him.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .