Revelation 18
Expanded Bible
Babylon Is Destroyed
18 After ·the vision of these things [L these things], I saw another angel coming down from heaven. This angel had great ·power [authority], and his ·glory [splendor] ·made the earth bright [illumined the earth]. 2 He ·shouted [cried out] in a ·powerful [mighty; strong] voice:
“·Ruined, ruined [L Fallen, fallen] is ·the great city of Babylon [L Babylon the great]!
She has become a ·home [haunt; dwelling place] for demons
and a ·prison [or haunt] for every ·evil [L unclean] spirit,
and a ·prison [or haunt] for every unclean bird and unclean beast.
3 She has ·been ruined [fallen], because all the ·peoples [nations] of the earth
have ·drunk [some manuscripts read “have fallen from”] the wine of the ·desire [passion] of her ·sexual sin [promiscuity; fornication; 14:8; 17:2].
She has been ruined also because the kings of the earth
have ·sinned sexually [fornicated] with her,
and the merchants of the earth
have grown rich from the ·great wealth [power] of her ·luxury [sensuality].”
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven saying:
“Come out of that city, my people,
so that you will not share in her sins,
so that you will not receive ·the disasters that will come to her [L her plagues; Gen. 19:15, 17].
5 [L Because] Her sins have ·piled up [heaped; reached] as high as ·the sky [heaven],
and God has ·not forgotten [remembered] ·the wrongs she has done [her crimes; her sins].
6 ·Give [Pay back] that city the same as she ·gave to [paid] others.
Pay her back ·twice as much as [double what] she did.
·Prepare wine for her that is twice as strong
as the wine she prepared for others [L In the cup she mixed, mix double for her; 14:8].
7 She gave herself much glory and ·rich living [sensual luxury].
Give her that much ·suffering [torment; torture] and ·sadness [grief; mourning].
She says ·to herself [L in her heart], ‘I am a queen sitting on my throne.
I am not a widow; I will never ·be sad [know grief; mourn].’
8 So these ·disasters [plagues] will come to her in one day:
death, and ·crying [sadness; grief; mourning], and ·great hunger [famine],
and she will be ·destroyed [consumed; burned up] by fire,
because the Lord God who judges her is ·powerful [strong].”
9 The kings of the earth who ·sinned sexually [fornicated] with her and ·shared her wealth [lived in luxury/sensuality with her] will see the smoke from her burning. Then they will ·cry [weep] and ·be sad [mourn] because of her death. 10 They will be afraid of her ·suffering [torment; torture] and stand far away and say:
“·Terrible! How terrible for you [L Woe, woe; 8:13], great city,
·powerful [strong; mighty] city of Babylon,
because your ·punishment [judgment; doom] has come ·in one hour [suddenly]!”
11 And the merchants of the earth will ·cry [weep] and be sad about her, because now there is no one to buy their cargoes— 12 cargoes of gold, silver, ·jewels [precious stones], pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, ·red [scarlet] cloth; all kinds of citron wood and all kinds of things made from ivory, expensive wood, bronze, iron, and marble; 13 [and cargoes of] cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle, sheep, horses, carriages [wagons], ·slaves, and human lives [L bodies and human souls].
14 The merchants will say [C implied by the context],
“Babylon, the ·good things [L fruit] you ·wanted [desired; longed for] are gone from you.
All your ·rich [expensive; luxurious] and ·fancy [glamorous; L shining] things have disappeared.
You will never ·have [find] them again.”
15 The merchants [L of these things] who became rich ·from selling to her [L from her] will be afraid of her ·suffering [torment; torture] and will stand far away. They will ·cry [weep] and ·be sad [mourn] 16 and say:
“·Terrible! How terrible [L Woe, woe; 8:13] for the great city!
She was dressed in fine linen, purple and ·red [scarlet] cloth,
and she was ·shining [glittering; adorned] with gold, precious jewels, and pearls [17:4]!
17 All these riches have been ·destroyed [made desolate] in one hour [C suddenly or in a short time]!”
Every sea captain, every passenger, the sailors, and all those who ·earn their living from [trade; work on] the sea stood far away from Babylon. 18 As they saw the smoke from her burning, they cried out loudly, “·There was never a city [What city was…?] like this great city!” 19 And they threw dust on their heads [C a ritual of mourning] and cried out, weeping and ·being sad [mourning]. They said:
“·Terrible! How terrible [L Woe, woe] for the great city!
[L In which] All the people who had ships on the sea
became rich because of her wealth!
But she has been ·destroyed [made desolate] in one hour [C suddenly or in a short time]!
20 ·Be happy [rejoice] ·because of this [L over her], heaven!
·Be happy [Rejoice], ·God’s holy people [T saints] and apostles and prophets!
[L For] God has ·punished [judged] her ·because of what she did to you [or on your behalf; or for the judgment/punishment she imposed on you].”
21 Then a ·powerful [strong; mighty] angel picked up a large stone, like ·one used for grinding grain [a millstone], and threw it into the sea [Jer. 51:63–64]. He said:
“In the same way, the great city of Babylon will be thrown down [with violence],
and it will never be found again.
22 The ·music [L sound] of ·people playing harps [harpists] and ·other instruments [musicians; singers], ·flutes [flutists], and ·trumpets [trumpeters],
will never be heard in you again.
No ·workman [craftsman] doing any ·job [trade]
will ever be found in you again.
The sound of ·grinding grain [the millstone]
will never be heard in you again.
23 The light of a lamp
will never shine in you again,
and the voices of a bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in you again.
[L For; Because] Your merchants were the world’s great people,
and all the nations were ·tricked [deceived; led astray] by your ·magic [sorcery].
24 ·You are guilty of the death of the prophets and God’s holy people [L In you was found the blood of the prophets and the saints]
and all who have been ·killed [slaughtered; slain] on earth.”
Revelation 18
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 18
The Fall of Babylon.[a] 1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth became illumined by his splendor.(A) 2 [b]He cried out in a mighty voice:
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great.(B)
She has become a haunt for demons.
She is a cage for every unclean spirit,
a cage for every unclean bird,
[a cage for every unclean] and disgusting [beast].
3 For all the nations have drunk[c]
the wine of her licentious passion.
The kings of the earth had intercourse with her,
and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her drive for luxury.”(C)
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
“Depart from her,[d] my people,
so as not to take part in her sins
and receive a share in her plagues,(D)
5 for her sins are piled up to the sky,
and God remembers her crimes.(E)
6 Pay her back as she has paid others.
Pay her back double for her deeds.
Into her cup pour double what she poured.(F)
7 To the measure of her boasting and wantonness
repay her in torment and grief;
for she said to herself,
‘I sit enthroned as queen;
I am no widow,
and I will never know grief.’(G)
8 Therefore, her plagues will come in one day,
pestilence, grief, and famine;
she will be consumed by fire.
For mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
9 The kings of the earth who had intercourse with her in their wantonness will weep and mourn over her when they see the smoke of her pyre. 10 They will keep their distance for fear of the torment inflicted on her, and they will say:
“Alas, alas, great city,
Babylon, mighty city.
In one hour your judgment has come.”
11 The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn for her, because there will be no more markets[e] for their cargo: 12 their cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls; fine linen, purple silk, and scarlet cloth; fragrant wood of every kind, all articles of ivory and all articles of the most expensive wood, bronze, iron, and marble; 13 cinnamon, spice,[f] incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine, olive oil, fine flour, and wheat; cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human beings.
14 “The fruit you craved
has left you.
All your luxury and splendor are gone,
never again will one find them.”(H)
15 The merchants who deal in these goods, who grew rich from her, will keep their distance for fear of the torment inflicted on her. Weeping and mourning, 16 they cry out:
“Alas, alas, great city,
wearing fine linen, purple and scarlet,
adorned [in] gold, precious stones, and pearls.(I)
17 In one hour this great wealth has been ruined.”
Every captain of a ship, every traveler at sea, sailors, and seafaring merchants stood at a distance 18 and cried out when they saw the smoke of her pyre, “What city could compare with the great city?” 19 (J)They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and mourning:
“Alas, alas, great city,
in which all who had ships at sea
grew rich from her wealth.
In one hour she has been ruined.
20 Rejoice over her, heaven,
you holy ones, apostles, and prophets.
For God has judged your case against her.”(K)
21 A mighty angel picked up a stone like a huge millstone and threw it into the sea and said:
“With such force will Babylon the great city be thrown down,
and will never be found again.(L)
22 No melodies of harpists and musicians,
flutists and trumpeters,
will ever be heard in you again.
No craftsmen in any trade
will ever be found in you again.
No sound of the millstone
will ever be heard in you again.(M)
23 No light from a lamp
will ever be seen in you again.
No voices of bride and groom
will ever be heard in you again.
Because your merchants were the great ones of the world,
all nations were led astray by your magic potion.(N)
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and holy ones
and all who have been slain on the earth.”(O)
Footnotes
- 18:1–19:4 A stirring dirge over the fall of Babylon-Rome. The perspective is prophetic, as if the fall of Rome had already taken place. The imagery here, as elsewhere in this book, is not to be taken literally. The vindictiveness of some of the language, borrowed from the scathing Old Testament prophecies against Babylon, Tyre, and Nineveh (Is 23; 24; 27; Jer 50–51; Ez 26–27), is meant to portray symbolically the inexorable demands of God’s holiness and justice; cf. Introduction. The section concludes with a joyous canticle on the future glory of heaven.
- 18:2 Many Greek manuscripts and versions omit a cage for every unclean…beast.
- 18:3–24 Rome is condemned for her immorality, symbol of idolatry (see note on Rev 14:4), and for persecuting the church; cf. Rev 19:2.
- 18:4 Depart from her: not evacuation of the city but separation from sinners, as always in apocalyptic literature.
- 18:11 Ironically, the merchants weep not so much for Babylon-Rome, but for their lost markets; cf. Ez 27:36.
- 18:13 Spice: an unidentified spice plant called in Greek amōmon.
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