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

The Finality of Babylon’s Doom

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

“With such violence
    the great city(E) 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.(F)
No worker of any trade
    will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
    will never be heard in you again.(G)
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.(H)
Your merchants were the world’s important people.(I)
    By your magic spell(J) all the nations were led astray.
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,(K)
    of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”(L)

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20 Rejoice over her, heaven,
and you saints, apostles, and prophets,(A)
because God has executed your judgment on her![a]

The Finality of Babylon’s Fall

21 Then a mighty angel(B) picked up a stone like a large millstone and threw it into the sea, saying:

In this way, Babylon the great city
will be thrown down violently(C)
and never be found again.(D)
22 The sound of harpists, musicians,
flutists, and trumpeters
will never be heard in you again;(E)
no craftsman of any trade
will ever be found in you again;
the sound of a mill
will never be heard in you again;
23 the light of a lamp
will never shine in you again;
and the voice of a groom and bride
will never be heard in you again.(F)
All this will happen
because your merchants
were the nobility of the earth,
because all the nations were deceived
by your sorcery,[b]
24 and the blood of prophets and saints,
and of all those slaughtered on earth,
was found in you.[c](G)

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Footnotes

  1. Revelation 18:20 Or God pronounced on her the judgment she passed on you; see Rv 18:6
  2. Revelation 18:23 Ancient sorcery or witchcraft often used spells and drugs. Here the term may be non-literal, that is, Babylon drugged the nations with her beauty and power.
  3. Revelation 18:24 Lit in her