Revelation 18:3

τοῦ οἴνου τ. θ. τ. π. AC omit τοῦ οἴνου. C has τοῦ θυμοῦ after τῆς πορνείας. Primas[633] omits τοῦ θυμοῦ.

[633] Primasius, edited by Haussleiter.

πέπωκαν. AC have πέπτωκαν, אB2 πεπτώκασιν by a common clerical error which here makes sense. P1 have πέποκεν, Text. Rec[634] πέπωκε. The Versions preserve the true text.

[634] Rec. Textus Receptus as printed by Scrivener.

3. τοῦ οἴνου. See crit. note.

οἱ βασιλεῖς, Revelation 17:2.

οἱ ἔμποροι τῆς γῆς. Merchants are alluded to as frequenting the literal Babylon in Isaiah 47:15; but the prominence given to them suggests the analogy not of Babylon but of Tyre: see on Revelation 17:1. Rome was in St John’s day a wealthy and luxurious city, not a commercial city primarily, in the same sense as ancient Tyre and modern London, but a city with an immense commerce, the commerce really belonging to the city, though the port of Ostia was considerably further from the Capitol than the Docks are from Westminster. What Rome was then it may, and probably will, be again: and there is no need to look elsewhere than at Rome for the literal fulfilment of St John’s description, though some have thought it inappropriate to the geographical position of the city.

τοῦ στρήνους. This word is used 2 Kings 19:28 to translate the Hebrew word translated πικρία in the parallel passage of Isaiah (Isaiah 37:29); A. V[687] translates “tumult,” R. V[688] text “arrogancy” and margin “careless ease” in both places. The compound verb 1 Timothy 5:11 throws no further light on the meaning, which probably includes wanton pride.

[687] Authorised Version.
[688] Revised Version.