Revelation 17

King James Version

17 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

²With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.

³So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

⁴And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

⁵And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon The Great, The Mother Of Harlots And Abominations Of The Earth.

⁶And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

⁷And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.

⁸The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

⁹And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

¹⁰And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.

¹¹And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.

¹²And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.

¹³These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

¹⁴These 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 are called, and chosen, and faithful.

¹⁵And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

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

¹⁷For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.

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

Revelation 17

New King James Version

The Scarlet Woman and the Scarlet Beast

17 Then ^(A)one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, saying ^[a]to me, “Come, ^(B)I will show you the judgment of ^(C)the great harlot ^(D)who sits on many waters, ²^(E)with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and ^(F)the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.”

³So he carried me away in the Spirit ^(G)into the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting ^(H)on a scarlet beast which was full of ^(I)names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. ⁴The woman ^(J)was arrayed in purple and scarlet, ^(K)and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, ^(L)having in her hand a golden cup ^(M)full of abominations and the filthiness of ^[b]her fornication. ⁵And on her forehead a name was written:

^(N)MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT,
THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS
OF THE EARTH.

⁶I saw ^(O)the woman, drunk ^(P)with the blood of the saints and with the blood of ^(Q)the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement.

The Meaning of the Woman and the Beast

⁷But the angel said to me, “Why did you marvel? I will tell you the ^[c]mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. ⁸The beast that you saw was, and is not, and ^(R)will ascend out of the bottomless pit and ^(S)go to ^[d]perdition. And those who ^(T)dwell on the earth ^(U)will marvel, ^(V)whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and ^[e]yet is.

⁹^(W)“Here is the mind which has wisdom: ^(X)The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. ¹⁰There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must ^(Y)continue a short time. ¹¹The ^(Z)beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to ^[f]perdition.

¹²^(AA)“The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. ¹³These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴^(AB)These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will ^(AC)overcome them, ^(AD)for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; ^(AE)and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”

¹⁵Then he said to me, ^(AF)“The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, ^(AG)are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues. ¹⁶And the ten horns which you ^[g]saw on the beast, ^(AH)these will hate the harlot, make her ^(AI)desolate ^(AJ)and naked, eat her flesh and ^(AK)burn her with fire. ¹⁷^(AL)For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, ^(AM)until the words of God are fulfilled. ¹⁸And the woman whom you saw ^(AN)is that great city ^(AO)which reigns over the kings of the earth.”

Footnotes

Revelation 17:1 NU, M omit to me
Revelation 17:4 M the fornication of the earth
Revelation 17:7 hidden truth
Revelation 17:8 destruction
Revelation 17:8 NU, M shall be present
Revelation 17:11 destruction
Revelation 17:16 NU, M saw, and the beast

Revelation 17

New American Standard Bible

The Doom of Babylon

17 ^(A)Then one of the ^(B)seven angels who had the ^(C)seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you ^(D)the judgment of the ^(E)great prostitute who ^(F)sits on many waters, ²with whom ^(G)the kings of the earth committed acts of sexual immorality, and ^(H)those who live on the earth ^(I)became drunk with the wine of her sexual immorality.” ³And ^(J)he carried me away ^[a]^(K)in the Spirit ^(L)into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a ^(M)scarlet beast, full of ^(N)blasphemous names, having ^(O)seven heads and ten horns. ⁴The woman ^(P)was clothed in purple and scarlet, and ^[b]adorned with gold, precious ^[c]stones, and pearls, holding in her hand ^(Q)a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her sexual immorality, ⁵and on her forehead a name was written, ^[d]a ^(R)mystery: “^(S)BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF ^(T)THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” ⁶And I saw the woman drunk with ^(U)the blood of the ^[e]saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered ^[f]greatly. ⁷And the angel said to me, “Why ^[g]do you wonder? I will tell you the ^(V)mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the ^(W)seven heads and the ten horns.

⁸“^(X)The beast that you saw ^(Y)was, and is not, and is about to ^(Z)come up out of the ^(AA)abyss and ^[h]^(AB)go to destruction. And ^(AC)those who live on the earth, ^(AD)whose names have not been written in the book of life ^(AE)from the foundation of the world, will ^(AF)wonder when they see the beast, that he was, and is not, and will ^[i]come. ⁹^(AG)Here is the mind which has wisdom. The ^(AH)seven heads are seven mountains upon which the woman sits, ¹⁰and they are seven ^(AI)kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. ¹¹The beast which ^(AJ)was, and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he ^(AK)goes to destruction. ¹²The ^(AL)ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast ^(AM)for one hour. ¹³These have ^(AN)one ^[j]purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

Victory for the Lamb

¹⁴These will wage ^(AO)war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will ^(AP)overcome them because He is ^(AQ)Lord of lords and ^(AR)King of kings; and ^(AS)those who are with Him are the ^(AT)called and chosen and faithful.”

¹⁵And he *said to me, “The ^(AU)waters which you saw where the prostitute sits are ^(AV)peoples and multitudes, and nations and languages. ¹⁶And the ^(AW)ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the prostitute and will make her ^(AX)desolate and ^(AY)naked, and will ^(AZ)eat her flesh and will ^(BA)burn her up with fire. ¹⁷For ^(BB)God has put it in their hearts to execute His ^[k]purpose ^[l]by ^(BC)having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the ^(BD)words of God will be fulfilled. ¹⁸The woman whom you saw is ^(BE)the great city, which ^[m]reigns over the kings of the earth.”

Footnotes

Revelation 17:3 Or in spirit
Revelation 17:4 Lit gilded
Revelation 17:4 Lit stone
Revelation 17:5 Or “MYSTERY...”
Revelation 17:6 Lit holy ones; i.e., God’s people
Revelation 17:6 Lit with great wonder
Revelation 17:7 Lit have you wondered
Revelation 17:8 One early ms is going
Revelation 17:8 Lit be present
Revelation 17:13 Or mind
Revelation 17:17 Or mind
Revelation 17:17 Lit even to do one mind and to give
Revelation 17:18 Lit has a kingdom

Revelation 17

New International Version

Babylon, the Prostitute on the Beast

17 One of the seven angels^(A) who had the seven bowls^(B) came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment^(C) of the great prostitute,^(D) who sits by many waters.^(E) ²With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”^(F)

³Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit^(G) into a wilderness.^(H) There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet^(I) beast that was covered with blasphemous names^(J) and had seven heads and ten horns.^(K) ⁴The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls.^(L) She held a golden cup^(M) in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.^(N) ⁵The name written on her forehead was a mystery:^(O)

babylon the great^(P)

the mother of prostitutes^(Q)

and of the abominations of the earth.

⁶I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people,^(R) the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.

When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. ⁷Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery^(S) of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns.^(T) ⁸The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss^(U) and go to its destruction.^(V) The inhabitants of the earth^(W) whose names have not been written in the book of life^(X) from the creation of the world will be astonished^(Y) when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.

⁹“This calls for a mind with wisdom.^(Z) The seven heads^(AA) are seven hills on which the woman sits. ¹⁰They 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. ¹¹The beast who once was, and now is not,^(AB) is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction.

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

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

Revelation 17

Young's Literal Translation

17 And there came one of the seven messengers, who were having the seven vials, and he spake with me, saying to me, `Come, I will shew to thee the judgment of the great whore, who is sitting upon the many waters,

²with whom the kings of the earth did commit whoredom; and made drunk from the wine of her whoredom were those inhabiting the earth;'

³and he carried me away to a wilderness in the Spirit, and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet-coloured beast, full of names of evil-speaking, having seven heads and ten horns,

⁴and the woman was arrayed with purple and scarlet-colour, and gilded with gold, and precious stone, and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and uncleanness of her whoredom,

⁵and upon her forehead was a name written: `Secret, Babylon the Great, the Mother of the Whores, and the Abominations of the earth.'

⁶And I saw the woman drunken from the blood of the saints, and from the blood of the witnesses of Jesus, and I did wonder -- having seen her -- with great wonder;

⁷and the messenger said to me, `Wherefore didst thou wonder? I -- I will tell thee the secret of the woman and of the beast that [is] carrying her, which hath the seven heads and the ten horns.

⁸`The beast that thou didst see: it was, and it is not; and it is about to come up out of the abyss, and to go away to destruction, and wonder shall those dwelling upon the earth, whose names have not been written upon the scroll of the life from the foundation of the world, beholding the beast that was, and is not, although it is.

⁹`Here [is] the mind that is having wisdom; the seven heads are seven mountains, upon which the woman doth sit,

¹⁰and there are seven kings, the five did fall, and the one is, the other did not yet come, and when he may come, it behoveth him to remain a little time;

¹¹and the beast that was, and is not, he also is eighth, and out of the seven he is, and to destruction he doth go away.

¹²`And the ten horns that thou sawest, are ten kings, who a kingdom did not yet receive, but authority as kings the same hour do receive with the beast,

¹³these have one mind, and their own power and authority to the beast they shall give over;

¹⁴these with the Lamb shall make war, and the Lamb shall overcome them, because Lord of lords he is, and King of kings, and those with him are called, and choice, and stedfast.'

¹⁵And he saith to me, `The waters that thou didst see, where the whore doth sit, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues;'

¹⁶and the ten horns that thou didst see upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her in fire,

¹⁷for God did give into their hearts to do its mind, and to make one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast till the sayings of God may be complete,

¹⁸and the woman that thou didst see is the great city that is having reign over the kings of the land.'

King James Version (KJV)

Public Domain

New King James Version (NKJV)

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

New American Standard Bible is made available by The Lockman Foundation

New International Version (NIV)

Revelation 17

King James Version