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The Fall of Babylon

18 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority; and the earth was made bright with his splendour. He called out with a mighty voice,

‘Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
    It has become a dwelling-place of demons,
a haunt of every foul spirit,
    a haunt of every foul bird,
    a haunt of every foul and hateful beast.[a]
For all the nations have drunk[b]
    of the wine of the wrath of her fornication,
and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,
    and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power[c] of her luxury.’

Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,

‘Come out of her, my people,
    so that you do not take part in her sins,
and so that you do not share in her plagues;
for her sins are heaped high as heaven,
    and God has remembered her iniquities.
Render to her as she herself has rendered,
    and repay her double for her deeds;
    mix a double draught for her in the cup she mixed.
As she glorified herself and lived luxuriously,
    so give her a like measure of torment and grief.
Since in her heart she says,
    “I rule as a queen;
I am no widow,
    and I will never see grief”,
therefore her plagues will come in a single day—
    pestilence and mourning and famine—
and she will be burned with fire;
    for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.’

And the kings of the earth, who committed fornication and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning; 10 they will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,

‘Alas, alas, the great city,
    Babylon, the mighty city!
For in one hour your judgement has come.’

11 And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo any more, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels and pearls, fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet, all kinds of scented wood, all articles of ivory, all articles of costly wood, bronze, iron, and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, choice flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, slaves—and human lives.[d]

14 ‘The fruit for which your soul longed
    has gone from you,
and all your dainties and your splendour
    are lost to you,
    never to be found again!’

15 The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,

16 ‘Alas, alas, the great city,
    clothed in fine linen,
        in purple and scarlet,
    adorned with gold,
        with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For in one hour all this wealth has been laid waste!’

And all shipmasters and seafarers, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning,

‘What city was like the great city?’

19 And they threw dust on their heads, as they wept and mourned, crying out,

‘Alas, alas, the great city,
    where all who had ships at sea
    grew rich by her wealth!
For in one hour she has been laid waste.’

20 Rejoice over her, O heaven, you saints and apostles and prophets! For God has given judgement for you against her.

21 Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,

‘With such violence Babylon the great city
    will be thrown down,
    and will be found no more;
22 and the sound of harpists and minstrels and of flautists and trumpeters
    will be heard in you no more;
and an artisan of any trade
    will be found in you no more;
and the sound of the millstone
    will be heard in you no more;
23 and the light of a lamp
    will shine in you no more;
and the voice of bridegroom and bride
    will be heard in you no more;
for your merchants were the magnates of the earth,
    and all nations were deceived by your sorcery.
24 And in you[e] was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
    and of all who have been slaughtered on earth.’

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 18:2 Other ancient authorities lack the words a haunt of every foul beast and attach the words and hateful to the previous line so as to read a haunt of every foul and hateful bird
  2. Revelation 18:3 Other ancient authorities read She has made all nations drink
  3. Revelation 18:3 Or resources
  4. Revelation 18:13 Or chariots, and human bodies and souls
  5. Revelation 18:24 Gk her

Lament Over Fallen Babylon

18 After this I saw another angel(A) coming down from heaven.(B) He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor.(C) With a mighty voice he shouted:

“‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’[a](D)
    She has become a dwelling for demons
and a haunt for every impure spirit,(E)
    a haunt for every unclean bird,
    a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal.(F)
For all the nations have drunk
    the maddening wine of her adulteries.(G)
The kings of the earth committed adultery with her,(H)
    and the merchants of the earth grew rich(I) from her excessive luxuries.”(J)

Warning to Escape Babylon’s Judgment

Then I heard another voice from heaven say:

“‘Come out of her, my people,’[b](K)
    so that you will not share in her sins,
    so that you will not receive any of her plagues;(L)
for her sins are piled up to heaven,(M)
    and God has remembered(N) her crimes.
Give back to her as she has given;
    pay her back(O) double(P) for what she has done.
    Pour her a double portion from her own cup.(Q)
Give her as much torment and grief
    as the glory and luxury she gave herself.(R)
In her heart she boasts,
    ‘I sit enthroned as queen.
I am not a widow;[c]
    I will never mourn.’(S)
Therefore in one day(T) her plagues will overtake her:
    death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,(U)
    for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.

Threefold Woe Over Babylon’s Fall

“When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her(V) and shared her luxury(W) see the smoke of her burning,(X) they will weep and mourn over her.(Y) 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off(Z) and cry:

“‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,(AA)
    you mighty city of Babylon!
In one hour(AB) your doom has come!’

11 “The merchants(AC) of the earth will weep and mourn(AD) over her because no one buys their cargoes anymore(AE) 12 cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble;(AF) 13 cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and human beings sold as slaves.(AG)

14 “They will say, ‘The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your luxury and splendor have vanished, never to be recovered.’ 15 The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her(AH) will stand far off,(AI) terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn(AJ) 16 and cry out:

“‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,(AK)
    dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet,
    and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!(AL)
17 In one hour(AM) such great wealth has been brought to ruin!’(AN)

“Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea,(AO) will stand far off.(AP) 18 When they see the smoke of her burning,(AQ) they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever a city like this great city(AR)?’(AS) 19 They will throw dust on their heads,(AT) and with weeping and mourning(AU) cry out:

“‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,(AV)
    where all who had ships on the sea
    became rich through her wealth!
In one hour she has been brought to ruin!’(AW)

20 “Rejoice over her, you heavens!(AX)
    Rejoice, you people of God!
    Rejoice, apostles and prophets!
For God has judged her
    with the judgment she imposed on you.”(AY)

The Finality of Babylon’s Doom

21 Then a mighty angel(AZ) picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea,(BA) and said:

“With such violence
    the great city(BB) of Babylon will be thrown down,
    never to be found again.
22 The music of harpists and musicians, pipers and trumpeters,
    will never be heard in you again.(BC)
No worker of any trade
    will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
    will never be heard in you again.(BD)
23 The light of a lamp
    will never shine in you again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
    will never be heard in you again.(BE)
Your merchants were the world’s important people.(BF)
    By your magic spell(BG) all the nations were led astray.
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,(BH)
    of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”(BI)

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 18:2 Isaiah 21:9
  2. Revelation 18:4 Jer. 51:45
  3. Revelation 18:7 See Isaiah 47:7,8.