Revelation 15-17

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

The Angels with the Seven Last Plagues

15 Then I saw another portent in heaven, great and amazing: seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is ended.^(A)

² And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mixed with fire and those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.^{(B) 3} And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:

⁵ After this I looked, and the temple of the tent^[b] of witness in heaven was opened, ⁶ and out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues, robed in pure bright linen,^[c] with golden sashes across their chests. ⁷ Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever;^{(E) 8} and the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were ended.^(F)

The Bowls of God’s Wrath

16 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”^(G)

² So the first angel went and poured his bowl on the earth, and a foul and painful sore came on those who had the brand of the beast and who worshiped its image.^(H)

³ The second angel poured his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing in the sea died.^(I)

⁴ The third angel poured his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood.^{(J) 5} And I heard the angel of the waters say,

⁷ And I heard the altar respond,

⁸ The fourth angel poured his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to scorch people with fire; ⁹ they were scorched by the fierce heat, but they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues, and they did not repent and give him glory.^(M)

¹⁰ The fifth angel poured his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness; people gnawed their tongues in agony^{(N) 11} and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and sores, and they did not repent of their deeds.

¹² The sixth angel poured his bowl on the great River Euphrates, and its water was dried up in order to prepare the way for the kings from the east.^{(O) 13} And I saw three foul spirits like frogs coming from the mouth of the dragon, from the mouth of the beast, and from the mouth of the false prophet.^{(P) 14} These are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.^{(Q) 15} (“See, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and is clothed,^[d] not going about naked and exposed to shame.”)^{(R) 16} And the demonic spirits^[e] assembled the kings^[f] at the place that in Hebrew is called Harmagedon.

¹⁷ The seventh angel poured his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” ¹⁸ And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a violent earthquake, such as had not occurred since people were upon the earth, so violent was that earthquake.^{(S) 19} The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. God remembered great Babylon and gave her the wine cup of the fury of his wrath.^{(T) 20} And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found, ²¹ and huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds,^[g] dropped from heaven on people, until they cursed God for the plague of the hail, so fearful was that plague.^(U)

The Great Whore and the Beast

17 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great whore^[h] who is seated on many waters,^{(V) 2} with whom the kings of the earth have engaged in sexual immorality^[i] and with the wine of whose prostitution the inhabitants of the earth have become drunk.”^{(W) 3} So he carried me away in the spirit^[j] into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns.^{(X) 4} The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her prostitution,^{(Y) 5} and on her forehead was written a name, a mystery: “Babylon the great, mother^[k] of whores^[l] and of earth’s abominations.”^{(Z) 6} And I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the witnesses to Jesus.

When I saw her, I was greatly amazed.^{(AA) 7} But the angel said to me, “Why are you so amazed? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. ⁸ The beast that you saw was and is not and is about to ascend from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the inhabitants of the earth, whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will be amazed when they see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come.^(AB)

⁹ “This calls for a mind that has wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; also, they are seven kings,^{(AC) 10} of whom five have fallen, one is living, and the other has not yet come, and when he comes he must remain only a little while. ¹¹ As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth, but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. ¹² And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast.^{(AD) 13} These are united in yielding their power and authority to the beast; ¹⁴ they will wage war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”^(AE)

¹⁵ And he said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the whore^[m] is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.^{(AF) 16} And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the whore;^[n] they will make her desolate and naked; they will devour her flesh and burn her up with fire.^{(AG) 17} For God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by agreeing to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled.^{(AH) 18} The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”^(AI)