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19 And the great city was [divided] into three parts; and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon was remembered before God to give her the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath.

20 And every island fled, and mountains were not found;

21 and a great hail, as of a talent weight, comes down out of the heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of hail, for the plague of it is exceeding great.

17 And one of the seven angels, which had the seven bowls, came and spoke with me, saying, Come here, I will shew thee the sentence of the great harlot who sits upon the many waters;

with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication; and they that dwell on the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.

And he carried me away in spirit to a desert; and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and had ornaments of gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and the unclean things of her fornication;

and upon her forehead a name written, Mystery, great Babylon, the mother of the harlots, and of the abominations of the earth.

And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. And I wondered, seeing her, with great wonder.

And the angel said to me, Why hast thou wondered? *I* will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast which carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.

The beast which thou sawest was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go into destruction: and they who dwell on the earth, whose names are not written from the founding of the world in the book of life, shall wonder, seeing the beast, that it was, and is not, and shall be present.

Here is the mind that has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains, whereon the woman sits.

10 And there are seven kings: five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes he must remain [only] a little while.

11 And the beast that was and is not, he also is an eighth, and is of the seven, and goes into destruction.

12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have not yet received a kingdom, but receive authority as kings one hour with the beast.

13 These have one mind, and give their power and authority to the beast.

14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them; for he is Lord of lords and King of kings: and they [that are] with him called, and chosen, and faithful.

15 And he says to me, The waters which thou sawest, where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.

16 And the ten horns which thou sawest, and the beast, these shall hate the harlot, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her with fire;

17 for God has given to their hearts to do his mind, and to act with one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast until the words of God shall be fulfilled.

18 And the woman which thou sawest is the great city, which has kingship over the kings of the earth.

18 After these things I saw another angel descending out of the heaven, having great authority: and the earth was lightened with his glory.

And he cried with a strong voice, saying, Great Babylon has fallen, has fallen, and has become the habitation of demons, and a hold of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hated bird;

because all the nations have drunk of the wine of the fury of her fornication; and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have been enriched through the might of her luxury.

And I heard another voice out of the heaven saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye have not fellowship in her sins, and that ye do not receive of her plagues:

for her sins have been heaped on one another up to the heaven, and God has remembered her unrighteousnesses.

Recompense her even as she has recompensed; and double [to her] double, according to her works. In the cup which she has mixed, mix to her double.

So much as she has glorified herself and lived luxuriously, so much torment and grief give to her. Because she says in her heart, I sit a queen, and I am not a widow; and I shall in no wise see grief:

for this reason in one day shall her plagues come, death and grief and famine, and she shall be burnt with fire; for strong [is the] Lord God who has judged her.

And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication, and lived luxuriously with her, shall weep and wail over her, when they see the smoke of her burning,

10 standing afar off, through fear of her torment, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! for in one hour thy judgment is come.

11 And the merchants of the earth weep and grieve over her, because no one buys their lading any more;

12 lading of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and pearl, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet dye, and all thyine wood, and every article in ivory, and every article in most precious wood, and in brass, and in iron, and in marble,

13 and cinnamon, and amomum, and incense, and unguent, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and cattle, and sheep, and of horses, and of chariots, and of bodies, and souls of men.

14 And the ripe fruits which were the lust of thy soul have departed from thee, and all fair and splendid things have perished from thee, and they shall not find them any more at all.

15 The merchants of these things, who had been enriched through her, shall stand afar off through fear of her torment, weeping and grieving,

16 saying, Woe, woe, the great city, which [was] clothed with fine linen and purple and scarlet, and had ornaments of gold and precious stones and pearls!

17 for in one hour so great riches has been made desolate. And every steersman, and every one who sailed to any place, and sailors, and all who exercise their calling on the sea, stood afar off,

18 and cried, seeing the smoke of her burning, saying, What [city] is like to the great city?

19 and cast dust upon their heads, and cried, weeping and grieving, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, in which all that had ships in the sea were enriched through her costliness! for in one hour she has been made desolate.

20 Rejoice over her, heaven, and [ye] saints and apostles and prophets; for God has judged your judgment upon her.

21 And a strong angel took up a stone, as a great millstone, and cast [it] into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall Babylon the great city be cast down, and shall be found no more at all;

22 and voice of harp-singers and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters shall not be heard any more at all in thee, and no artificer of any art shall be found any more at all in thee, and voice of millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee,

23 and light of lamp shall shine no more at all in thee, and voice of bridegroom and bride shall be heard no more at all in thee; for thy merchants were the great ones of the earth; for by thy sorcery have all the nations been deceived.

24 And in her was found [the] blood of prophets and saints, and of all the slain upon the earth.

19 After these things I heard as a loud voice of a great multitude in the heaven, saying, Hallelujah: the salvation and the glory and the power of our God:

for true and righteous [are] his judgments; for he has judged the great harlot which corrupted the earth with her fornication, and has avenged the blood of his bondmen at her hand.

19 The great city(A) split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered(B) Babylon the Great(C) and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath.(D) 20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found.(E) 21 From the sky huge hailstones,(F) each weighing about a hundred pounds,[a] fell on people. And they cursed God(G) on account of the plague of hail,(H) because the plague was so terrible.

Babylon, the Prostitute on the Beast

17 One of the seven angels(I) who had the seven bowls(J) came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment(K) of the great prostitute,(L) who sits by many waters.(M) With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”(N)

Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit(O) into a wilderness.(P) There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet(Q) beast that was covered with blasphemous names(R) and had seven heads and ten horns.(S) The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls.(T) She held a golden cup(U) in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.(V) The name written on her forehead was a mystery:(W)

babylon the great(X)

the mother of prostitutes(Y)

and of the abominations of the earth.

I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people,(Z) the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.

When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery(AA) of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns.(AB) The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss(AC) and go to its destruction.(AD) The inhabitants of the earth(AE) whose names have not been written in the book of life(AF) from the creation of the world will be astonished(AG) when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.

“This calls for a mind with wisdom.(AH) The seven heads(AI) are seven hills on which the woman sits. 10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. 11 The beast who once was, and now is not,(AJ) is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction.

12 “The ten horns(AK) you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour(AL) will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast.(AM) 14 They will wage war(AN) against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over(AO) them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings(AP)—and with him will be his called, chosen(AQ) and faithful followers.”

15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters(AR) you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages.(AS) 16 The beast and the ten horns(AT) you saw will hate the prostitute.(AU) They will bring her to ruin(AV) and leave her naked;(AW) they will eat her flesh(AX) and burn her with fire.(AY) 17 For God has put it into their hearts(AZ) to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority,(BA) until God’s words are fulfilled.(BB) 18 The woman you saw is the great city(BC) that rules over the kings of the earth.”

Lament Over Fallen Babylon

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

“‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’[b](BG)
    She has become a dwelling for demons
and a haunt for every impure spirit,(BH)
    a haunt for every unclean bird,
    a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal.(BI)
For all the nations have drunk
    the maddening wine of her adulteries.(BJ)
The kings of the earth committed adultery with her,(BK)
    and the merchants of the earth grew rich(BL) from her excessive luxuries.”(BM)

Warning to Escape Babylon’s Judgment

Then I heard another voice from heaven say:

“‘Come out of her, my people,’[c](BN)
    so that you will not share in her sins,
    so that you will not receive any of her plagues;(BO)
for her sins are piled up to heaven,(BP)
    and God has remembered(BQ) her crimes.
Give back to her as she has given;
    pay her back(BR) double(BS) for what she has done.
    Pour her a double portion from her own cup.(BT)
Give her as much torment and grief
    as the glory and luxury she gave herself.(BU)
In her heart she boasts,
    ‘I sit enthroned as queen.
I am not a widow;[d]
    I will never mourn.’(BV)
Therefore in one day(BW) her plagues will overtake her:
    death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,(BX)
    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(BY) and shared her luxury(BZ) see the smoke of her burning,(CA) they will weep and mourn over her.(CB) 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off(CC) and cry:

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

11 “The merchants(CF) of the earth will weep and mourn(CG) over her because no one buys their cargoes anymore(CH) 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;(CI) 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.(CJ)

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(CK) will stand far off,(CL) terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn(CM) 16 and cry out:

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

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

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

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

The Finality of Babylon’s Doom

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

“With such violence
    the great city(DE) 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.(DF)
No worker of any trade
    will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
    will never be heard in you again.(DG)
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.(DH)
Your merchants were the world’s important people.(DI)
    By your magic spell(DJ) all the nations were led astray.
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,(DK)
    of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”(DL)

Threefold Hallelujah Over Babylon’s Fall

19 After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude(DM) in heaven shouting:

“Hallelujah!(DN)
Salvation(DO) and glory and power(DP) belong to our God,
    for true and just are his judgments.(DQ)
He has condemned the great prostitute(DR)
    who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.
He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”(DS)

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 16:21 Or about 45 kilograms
  2. Revelation 18:2 Isaiah 21:9
  3. Revelation 18:4 Jer. 51:45
  4. Revelation 18:7 See Isaiah 47:7,8.