Revelation 18
English Standard Version
The Fall of Babylon
18 After this I saw (A)another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and (B)the earth was made bright with his glory. 2 And he called out with a mighty voice,
(C)“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
She has become (D)a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt (E)for every unclean spirit,
a haunt (F)for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
3 For all nations have drunk[a]
(G)the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality,
and (H)the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her,
and (I)the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
(J)“Come out of her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
5 for (K)her sins are heaped high as heaven,
and (L)God has remembered her iniquities.
6 (M)Pay her back as she herself has paid back others,
and repay her (N)double for her deeds;
mix a double portion for her (O)in the cup she mixed.
7 (P)As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning,
since in her heart she says,
(Q)‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.’
8 For this reason her plagues will come (R)in a single day,
death and mourning and famine,
and (S)she will be burned up with fire;
for (T)mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”
9 And (U)the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, (V)will weep and wail over her (W)when they see the smoke of her burning. 10 (X)They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
“Alas! Alas! (Y)You great city,
you mighty city, Babylon!
For (Z)in a single hour your judgment has come.”
11 And (AA)the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.[b]
14 “The fruit for which your soul longed
has gone from you,
and all your delicacies and your splendors
are lost to you,
never to be found again!”
15 (AB)The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, (AC)will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,
16 “Alas, alas, for the great city
(AD)that was clothed in fine linen,
in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold,
with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For (AE)in a single hour all this wealth (AF)has been laid waste.”
And (AG)all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and (AH)cried out (AI)as they saw the smoke of her burning,
(AJ)“What city was like the great city?”
19 And they threw (AK)dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out,
“Alas, alas, for the great city
(AL)where all who had ships at sea
grew rich by her wealth!
For (AM)in a single hour she has been laid waste.
20 (AN)Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you saints and (AO)apostles and prophets,
for (AP)God has given judgment for you against her!”
21 Then (AQ)a mighty angel (AR)took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,
“So will Babylon (AS)the great city be thrown down with violence,
and will be found no more;
22 and (AT)the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters,
will be heard in you no more,
and a craftsman of any craft
will be found in you no more,
and (AU)the sound of the mill
will be heard in you no more,
23 and the light of a lamp
will shine in you no more,
and (AV)the voice of bridegroom and bride
will be heard in you no more,
for (AW)your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
and all nations were deceived (AX)by your sorcery.
24 And (AY)in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of (AZ)all who have been slain on earth.”
Footnotes
- Revelation 18:3 Some manuscripts fallen by
- Revelation 18:13 Or and slaves, and human lives
Revelation 18
English Standard Version
The Fall of Babylon
18 After this I saw (A)another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and (B)the earth was made bright with his glory. 2 And he called out with a mighty voice,
(C)“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
She has become (D)a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt (E)for every unclean spirit,
a haunt (F)for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
3 For all nations have drunk[a]
(G)the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality,
and (H)the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her,
and (I)the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
(J)“Come out of her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
5 for (K)her sins are heaped high as heaven,
and (L)God has remembered her iniquities.
6 (M)Pay her back as she herself has paid back others,
and repay her (N)double for her deeds;
mix a double portion for her (O)in the cup she mixed.
7 (P)As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning,
since in her heart she says,
(Q)‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.’
8 For this reason her plagues will come (R)in a single day,
death and mourning and famine,
and (S)she will be burned up with fire;
for (T)mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”
9 And (U)the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, (V)will weep and wail over her (W)when they see the smoke of her burning. 10 (X)They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
“Alas! Alas! (Y)You great city,
you mighty city, Babylon!
For (Z)in a single hour your judgment has come.”
11 And (AA)the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.[b]
14 “The fruit for which your soul longed
has gone from you,
and all your delicacies and your splendors
are lost to you,
never to be found again!”
15 (AB)The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, (AC)will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,
16 “Alas, alas, for the great city
(AD)that was clothed in fine linen,
in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold,
with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For (AE)in a single hour all this wealth (AF)has been laid waste.”
And (AG)all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and (AH)cried out (AI)as they saw the smoke of her burning,
(AJ)“What city was like the great city?”
19 And they threw (AK)dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out,
“Alas, alas, for the great city
(AL)where all who had ships at sea
grew rich by her wealth!
For (AM)in a single hour she has been laid waste.
20 (AN)Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you saints and (AO)apostles and prophets,
for (AP)God has given judgment for you against her!”
21 Then (AQ)a mighty angel (AR)took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,
“So will Babylon (AS)the great city be thrown down with violence,
and will be found no more;
22 and (AT)the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters,
will be heard in you no more,
and a craftsman of any craft
will be found in you no more,
and (AU)the sound of the mill
will be heard in you no more,
23 and the light of a lamp
will shine in you no more,
and (AV)the voice of bridegroom and bride
will be heard in you no more,
for (AW)your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
and all nations were deceived (AX)by your sorcery.
24 And (AY)in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of (AZ)all who have been slain on earth.”
Footnotes
- Revelation 18:3 Some manuscripts fallen by
- Revelation 18:13 Or and slaves, and human lives
Habakkuk 2 - Zephaniah 2
English Standard Version
2 I will (A)take my stand at my watchpost
and station myself on the tower,
and (B)look out to see (C)what he will say to me,
and what I will answer concerning my complaint.
The Righteous Shall Live by His Faith
2 And the Lord answered me:
(D)“Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3 For still (E)the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, (F)wait for it;
(G)it will surely come; it will not delay.
4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but (H)the righteous shall live by his faith.[a]
5 “Moreover, wine[b] is (I)a traitor,
an arrogant man who is never at rest.[c]
His greed is as wide as Sheol;
like death (J)he has never enough.
(K)He gathers for himself all nations
and collects as his own all peoples.”
Woe to the Chaldeans
6 Shall not all these (L)take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say,
(M)“Woe to him (N)who heaps up what is not his own—
for (O)how long?—
and (P)loads himself with pledges!”
7 (Q)Will not your debtors suddenly arise,
and those awake who will make you tremble?
Then you will be spoil for them.
8 (R)Because you have plundered many nations,
all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you,
(S)for the blood of man and (T)violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell in them.
9 (U)“Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house,
(V)to (W)set his nest on high,
to be safe from the reach of harm!
10 You have devised shame for your house
(X)by cutting off many peoples;
you have forfeited your life.
11 For (Y)the stone will cry out from the wall,
and the beam from the woodwork respond.
12 (Z)“Woe to him (AA)who builds a town with blood
and founds a city on iniquity!
13 Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts
that (AB)peoples labor merely for fire,
and nations weary themselves for nothing?
14 (AC)For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of (AD)the glory of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
15 (AE)“Woe to him (AF)who makes his neighbors drink—
you pour out your wrath and make them drunk,
in order to gaze (AG)at their nakedness!
16 You will have your fill (AH)of shame instead of glory.
(AI)Drink, yourself, and show your uncircumcision!
(AJ)The cup in the Lord's right hand
will come around to you,
and (AK)utter shame will come upon your glory!
17 (AL)The violence (AM)done to Lebanon will overwhelm you,
as will the destruction of the beasts that terrified them,
(AN)for the blood of man and violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell in them.
18 (AO)“What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, (AP)a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes (AQ)speechless idols!
19 (AR)Woe to him (AS)who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and (AT)there is no breath at all in it.
20 But (AU)the Lord is in his holy temple;
(AV)let all the earth keep silence before him.”
Habakkuk's Prayer
3 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to Shigionoth.
2 O Lord, (AW)I have heard the report of you,
and (AX)your work, O Lord, do I fear.
In the midst of the years (AY)revive it;
in the midst of the years make it known;
(AZ)in wrath remember mercy.
3 God came from (BA)Teman,
(BB)and the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah
His splendor covered the heavens,
and the earth was full of his praise.
4 (BC)His brightness was like the light;
rays flashed from his hand;
and there he veiled his power.
5 (BD)Before him went pestilence,
and plague followed (BE)at his heels.[d]
6 He stood (BF)and measured the earth;
he looked and shook the nations;
then the (BG)eternal mountains (BH)were scattered;
the everlasting hills sank low.
His were (BI)the everlasting ways.
7 I saw the tents of (BJ)Cushan in affliction;
(BK)the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble.
8 (BL)Was your wrath against the rivers, O Lord?
Was your anger against the rivers,
(BM)or your indignation against the sea,
(BN)when you rode on your horses,
(BO)on your chariot of salvation?
9 You stripped the sheath from your bow,
calling for many arrows.[e] Selah
(BP)You split the earth with rivers.
10 (BQ)The mountains saw you and writhed;
the raging waters swept on;
(BR)the deep gave forth its voice;
(BS)it lifted its hands on high.
11 (BT)The sun and moon stood still in their place
(BU)at the light of your arrows as they sped,
at the flash of your glittering spear.
12 (BV)You marched through the earth in fury;
(BW)you threshed the nations in anger.
13 (BX)You went out for the salvation of your people,
for the salvation of (BY)your anointed.
(BZ)You crushed the head of the house of the wicked,
laying him bare from thigh to neck.[f] Selah
14 You pierced with his own arrows the heads of his warriors,
who came like a whirlwind to scatter me,
rejoicing as if to devour the poor in secret.
15 (CA)You trampled the sea with your horses,
the surging of mighty waters.
16 (CB)I hear, and (CC)my body trembles;
my lips quiver at the sound;
(CD)rottenness enters into my bones;
my legs tremble beneath me.
Yet (CE)I will quietly wait for the day of trouble
to come upon people who invade us.
Habakkuk Rejoices in the Lord
17 Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
18 (CF)yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
(CG)I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
19 God, the Lord, is my strength;
(CH)he makes my feet like the deer's;
he makes me (CI)tread on my (CJ)high places.
1 The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah, (CM)in the days of (CN)Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
The Coming Judgment on Judah
2 (CO)“I will utterly sweep away everything
from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord.
3 “I will sweep away (CP)man and beast;
I will sweep away the birds of the heavens
and (CQ)the fish of the sea,
and (CR)the rubble[h] with the wicked.
I will (CS)cut off mankind
from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord.
4 “I will stretch out my hand against Judah
and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem;
(CT)and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Baal
and the name of the idolatrous priests along with the priests,
5 (CU)those who bow down on the roofs
to the host of the heavens,
(CV)those who bow down and swear to the Lord
and yet swear by (CW)Milcom,[i]
6 (CX)those who have turned back from following the Lord,
(CY)who do not seek the Lord or inquire of him.”
The Day of the Lord Is Near
7 (CZ)Be silent before the Lord God!
For (DA)the day of the Lord is near;
(DB)the Lord has prepared a sacrifice
and (DC)consecrated his guests.
8 And on the day of the Lord's sacrifice—
(DD)“I will punish the officials and the king's sons
and (DE)all who array themselves in foreign attire.
9 On that day I will punish
everyone (DF)who leaps over the threshold,
and those who fill their master's[j] house
with violence and fraud.
10 “On that day,” declares the Lord,
“a cry will be heard from (DG)the Fish Gate,
(DH)a wail from (DI)the Second Quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
11 (DJ)Wail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the traders[k] are no more;
all who weigh out silver are cut off.
12 At that time (DK)I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men
(DL)who are complacent,[l]
(DM)those who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will not do good,
nor will he do ill.’
13 Their goods shall be (DN)plundered,
and their houses laid waste.
(DO)Though they build houses,
they shall not inhabit them;
(DP)though they plant vineyards,
they shall not drink wine from them.”
14 (DQ)The great day of the Lord is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter;
(DR)the mighty man cries aloud there.
15 (DS)A day of wrath is that day,
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of (DT)ruin and devastation,
(DU)a day of darkness and gloom,
(DV)a day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 (DW)a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
(DX)against the fortified cities
and against the lofty battlements.
17 (DY)I will bring distress on mankind,
so that they shall walk (DZ)like the blind,
because they have sinned against the Lord;
(EA)their blood shall be poured out like dust,
and their flesh (EB)like dung.
18 (EC)Neither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the Lord.
(ED)In the fire of his jealousy,
(EE)all the earth shall be consumed;
(EF)for a full and sudden end
he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.
Judgment on Judah's Enemies
2 Gather together, yes, gather,
O (EG)shameless nation,
2 (EH)before the decree takes effect[m]
—before the day passes away (EI)like chaff—
(EJ)before there comes upon you
the burning anger of the Lord,
before there comes upon you
the day of the anger of the Lord.
3 (EK)Seek the Lord, (EL)all you humble of the land,
who do his just commands;[n]
(EM)seek righteousness; seek humility;
(EN)perhaps (EO)you may be hidden
on the day of the anger of the Lord.
4 (EP)For Gaza shall be deserted,
and Ashkelon shall become a desolation;
Ashdod's people shall be driven out at noon,
and Ekron shall be uprooted.
5 Woe to (EQ)you inhabitants of the seacoast,
you nation of (ER)the Cherethites!
(ES)The word of the Lord is against you,
(ET)O Canaan, land of the Philistines;
and I will destroy you (EU)until no inhabitant is left.
6 (EV)And you, O seacoast, (EW)shall be pastures,
with meadows[o] for shepherds
and folds for flocks.
7 (EX)The seacoast shall become the possession
of (EY)the remnant of the house of Judah,
(EZ)on which they shall graze,
and in the houses of Ashkelon
they shall lie down at evening.
For the Lord their God (FA)will be mindful of them
and (FB)restore their fortunes.
8 “I have heard (FC)the taunts of Moab
and (FD)the revilings of the Ammonites,
how they have taunted my people
and made boasts (FE)against their territory.
9 Therefore, (FF)as I live,” declares the Lord of hosts,
the God of Israel,
“Moab shall become (FG)like Sodom,
and the Ammonites (FH)like Gomorrah,
a land possessed by nettles and salt pits,
and a waste forever.
The remnant of my people shall plunder them,
and the survivors of my nation shall possess them.”
10 This shall be their lot in return (FI)for their pride,
because they taunted and boasted
against the people of the Lord of hosts.
11 The Lord will be awesome against them;
(FJ)for he will famish all the gods of the earth,
and (FK)to him shall bow down,
each in its place,
all (FL)the lands of the nations.
12 (FM)You also, O Cushites,
shall be slain by my sword.
13 And he will stretch out his hand against the north
(FN)and destroy Assyria,
and he (FO)will make Nineveh a desolation,
a dry waste like the desert.
14 (FP)Herds shall lie down in her midst,
all kinds of beasts;[p]
(FQ)even the owl and the hedgehog[q]
shall lodge in her capitals;
a voice shall hoot in the window;
devastation will be on the threshold;
for (FR)her cedar work will be laid bare.
15 This is the exultant city
(FS)that lived securely,
that said in her heart,
“I am, and there is no one else.”
What a desolation she has become,
(FT)a lair for wild beasts!
(FU)Everyone who passes by her
hisses and (FV)shakes his fist.
Footnotes
- Habakkuk 2:4 Or faithfulness
- Habakkuk 2:5 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll wealth
- Habakkuk 2:5 The meaning of the Hebrew of these two lines is uncertain
- Habakkuk 3:5 Hebrew feet
- Habakkuk 3:9 The meaning of the Hebrew line is uncertain
- Habakkuk 3:13 The meaning of the Hebrew line is uncertain
- Habakkuk 3:19 Hebrew my stringed
- Zephaniah 1:3 Or stumbling blocks (that is, idols)
- Zephaniah 1:5 Or their king
- Zephaniah 1:9 Or their Lord's
- Zephaniah 1:11 Or all the people of Canaan
- Zephaniah 1:12 Hebrew are thickening on the dregs [of their wine]
- Zephaniah 2:2 Hebrew gives birth
- Zephaniah 2:3 Or who carry out his judgment
- Zephaniah 2:6 Or caves
- Zephaniah 2:14 Hebrew beasts of every nation
- Zephaniah 2:14 The identity of the animals rendered owl and hedgehog is uncertain
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
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