Revelation 18:1-24
1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundancea of her delicacies.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
6 Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
7 How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
8 Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
9 And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
11 And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
12 The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyineb wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
13 And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves,c and souls of men.
14 And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
16 And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
24 And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
From Now to the End of Time
Revelation
Ian Mackervoy
Chapter 18
The funeral of Babylon - Revelation 18:1-24
v1 Then I saw another *angel come down from heaven. This *angel had great power. The bright light that shone from him lit up the whole world. v2 And he called out with a loud voice. He said, ‘*Ruined, *ruined is the great city called Babylon. Babylon has become the place where *demons live. All kinds of evil spirits are prisoners there. Babylon has become like a cage that holds dirty birds. The birds that people hate will stay there. v3 All the nations have drunk Babylon’s wine. This wine means the anger of Babylon’s *sins of sex. And the kings of the earth are guilty with Babylon. It is as if they have slept with Babylon. And the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the great wealth of Babylon’s luxury.’
v4 Then I heard God speak from heaven. He said, ‘Come out of that city, my people. Do not share Babylon’s *sins. And then you will not share Babylon’s punishment. v5 Babylon’s *sins are so many. They have become like a pile that reaches up to the sky. And God has not forgotten Babylon’s evil deeds. v6 Do to Babylon as Babylon has done to other people. Babylon is like a woman who owes a debt. Make her pay twice as much for what she has done. Fill her cup with a drink twice as strong as the drink that she gave to other people. v7 She made herself very great and she lived a life full of luxury. So now, make her suffer! Her pain should be as great as the luxury that she used to have. She said to herself, “I am a queen. I sit on my *throne. I am not a widow and I will never be sad.” v8 For this reason, Babylon’s punishment will come suddenly. The people in Babylon will suffer. They will be sad when many of them die. There will be no food and they will be hungry. And fire will destroy the city. The *Lord God has announced his judgement against Babylon. And he is powerful.’
v9 The kings of the earth were guilty with Babylon. It was as if they had sex with Babylon. They had lived in luxury with Babylon’s wealth. They will see the smoke of the fire that destroys Babylon. Then they will weep and they will be sad. v10 These kings will stand a long way from Babylon. They will be afraid that they too may suffer with Babylon. They will say, ‘How terrible, how awful it is for that great city! Babylon was such a strong city! But in only one hour, Babylon’s judgement and punishment came.’
v11 The merchants of the world will weep very much for Babylon. They will be sad because nobody will buy their *goods. v12 They sold gold, silver, precious stones, and *pearls. They sold beautiful white cloth, purple cloth, silk and bright red cloth. They sold things that people made from wood with a pleasant smell. They sold things that people made from ivory (the teeth of animals). They sold things that people made from expensive wood, *bronze, iron and marble (beautiful rock). v13 They sold all kinds of oils and powders that were sweet to smell. They sold wine and oil, flour and wheat. They sold cows, sheep, horses and carriages. They sold other people as slaves.
v14 The merchants will speak as if they are speaking at a woman’s funeral: ‘Babylon, you have lost all the good things that you desired. You have lost all your luxuries and riches. You will never get them back again.’ v15 The merchants had become rich because of the city called Babylon. But they will stand a long way off. They will be afraid because of what Babylon suffers. And they will weep and be sad. v16 They will say, ‘How terrible! How awful it is for that great city! Babylon was like a woman who dressed in beautiful clothes. Her clothes were white, purple and bright red. She wore gold, precious stones and *pearls. v17 But in just one hour, Babylon lost all of its great wealth.’
All who work on ships will stand far off. These include all the captains of the ships, all those who travel by sea, and the sailors. v18 They will see the smoke of the fire that destroys Babylon. They will cry aloud, ‘There has never been a city as great as this one.’ v19 They will throw dust on their heads to show how sorry they are. They will weep and they will cry out. They will say, ‘How terrible! How awful for the great city! All the people who had ships on the sea became rich because of her wealth. But in one hour, God has destroyed her. v20 You, who live in heaven, be glad. God has destroyed Babylon. And God’s people, his *apostles and his *prophets, be glad. God has punished Babylon because of what Babylon did to you.’
v21 Then a strong *angel picked up a very large stone. He threw it into the sea. He said, ‘With such force, God will destroy the great city called Babylon. It will never exist again.’ v22 Then he said, as if he were speaking to Babylon, ‘There will not be any music in your streets. There will be no sound of *harps, singers, *flutes or *trumpets. All your skilled workers will disappear, and your mills will have no grain to make flour. v23 Never again will people see the light of a lamp in Babylon. Nobody will hear the voices of bridegroom and bride in Babylon. This is because Babylon’s merchants were the great people of the earth. And it was Babylon’s magic that caused all the nations to believe lies. v24 Babylon was guilty of the death of the *prophets and of God’s people. Babylon was guilty of the death of people all over the world.’
Verses 1 to 8 – the first part of the funeral song for Babylon
Verse 1 This chapter is in the style of a song at the funeral of Babylon. Of course, Babylon was a city and there would not normally be a funeral for a city. But the end of Babylon will be very sudden. People will feel as if someone important has died. They will speak about Babylon in the same manner as people speak about a great queen.The song is in three parts. In the first 8 verses, it describes the *ruin of Babylon. And the song tells God’s people to leave Babylon. In verses 9 to 20, three groups of people cry and are sad because of the *ruin of Babylon. These are the kings, the merchants and the sailors. The third part describes the *ruin of Babylon (verses 21-24).
An *angel came down from heaven. He came with great authority from God. As he came, he shone with a great light. That light was so bright that it lit up the whole world.
Verse 2 With a strong voice, the *angel shouted the news. His voice was so loud that all people on the earth could hear him. He declared that Babylon had fallen. That great city was now in *ruins. Nothing remained there and nobody could still live there.
Evil spirits of all kinds lived in the *ruins. It became the home of all kinds of nasty birds. Perhaps these birds were eating the dead bodies of people who used to live there.
Verse 3 The reason for the *ruin of Babylon is her *sin. Babylon was like an evil queen who caused the nations, the kings and the merchants to *sin. She attracted the nations to share in her *sins. The kings of the earth joined her in her evil ways. The merchants made a profit and they became rich by their trade with her.
Verse 4 The word from God calls to his people. They must come out of the city. They must run from the fate of the city. They must escape while they have the chance. They must not involve themselves in the evil deeds that are round about them.
Verse 5 The *sins of Babylon are like a vast pile, which reaches up to the sky. God knows all that she has done. He will punish her for all her evil actions.
Verse 6 Babylon is like a woman who deserves a terrible punishment. And the voice from heaven now speaks to those who must destroy Babylon. They must do to her as she had done. They must give back to her double the trouble for all that she has done. They must punish her with twice the pain that she had caused. To give back double the amount means that the payment will be complete. The cup that she must now drink means the anger of God.
Verses 7-8 The voice from heaven continues to describe Babylon as if she were a woman. This woman was proud and she made herself great. In her *sin, she had lived a life of luxury. She saw herself as the most powerful woman in the world.
Her pain will be terrible because she was so proud. God is against all who are proud. They raise themselves up but God will bring them down.
The evil woman thought that she was safe. She had ruled as queen in the *kingdoms of the earth. She had never had to suffer the loss of a husband. Nothing could go wrong to make her sad. But God will punish her.
God will ruin the city called Babylon. There will be disease and hunger. And fire from God will destroy Babylon. There will remain nothing except for *ruins.
God will destroy all that the woman and the city called Babylon mean. God alone has all power and he is a fair judge. So, he will punish Babylon.
Verses 9 to 20 – the second part of the funeral song for Babylon
Verses 9 to 20 are the second part of the song. Here are three groups of people whom the loss of Babylon affects. They are the kings, the merchants and the sailors.Verses 9-10 The kings of the world had shared sex with the woman. This means that Babylon’s evil ways had spread through their *kingdoms. Because of Babylon, they had *worshipped the *beast. They had lived with Babylon in luxury and *sin. They had turned from God and become his enemies. They had fought against God’s people.
The fire will destroy Babylon and the kings will see the smoke. It will be as if the woman called Babylon will die in the flames. As they see this, the kings will weep. They will be sad but they will not try to help Babylon. They just stand at a great distance.
They know that God punished Babylon because of *sin. Babylon was so strong but the end came in only one hour. God had destroyed that great city. One hour means that this will happen quickly and in a short period.
These kings were worried. They could see what God did to Babylon. They were afraid that they would share the same fate. They could suffer as Babylon had suffered.
Verse 11 The merchants weep for Babylon. They did not really care about the city. They will weep aloud because they have lost trade and profit. They know that this will mean the loss of their wealth.
Verses 12-13 The merchants sold a great variety of things to Babylon. In the list, there are all kinds of things that show the wealth and luxury of life in Babylon.
Verse 14 All this rich trade had gone. It will never be the same again. Babylon will not recover and nobody will ever buy such things again.
Verses 15-17a (Verse 17a means the first part of verse 17.) The merchants were wealthy because of their trade with Babylon. But in such a short time, the great city was in *ruins. They were afraid and they kept a long way off. They weep because they have lost their trade.
They saw the city as their customer to whom they sold many things. The city was like a beautiful woman who wore fine clothes. She had excess riches, which she wore. The merchants cry out. It is terrible that such a thing should have happened. In one hour, she lost all her wealth.
Verses 17b-18 (Verse 17b means the last part of verse 17.) Fire burned in Babylon and destroyed the city. The sailors and those who travel by ship could see the smoke. What they saw was a shock to them. And they cried out aloud. They said that there has never been a city as great as Babylon.
Verse 19 They were very sad to see what had happened. It was awful that the great city had gone. Babylon had traded much and the people from Babylon travelled. So, those who owned the ships had become wealthy. But now all that had ended. God had destroyed the great city. It all happened so quickly. It was sudden and they had not expected it.
Verse 20 This part of the song ends with joy in heaven. God the judge has found Babylon guilty of many crimes. Babylon has been an enemy of God’s people. Babylon opposed them. Babylon fought against them. And Babylon was responsible for the deaths of many of them. God has punished Babylon for its evil deeds.
Verses 21 to 24 – the last part of the funeral song for Babylon
Verse 21 This is the third part of the song and it describes the *ruin of Babylon (verses 21-24).A strong *angel took a huge stone. Then, he threw it into the sea. The stone sank quickly in the water with a great splash. It had gone below the surface and nobody will see it again.
With such force, God will destroy Babylon. It was a great city but in a moment, its end will come. Nobody will ever see that city again.
Verses 22-23 The passage describes some effects of the end of Babylon. All that people enjoyed has gone. There is no music. There is only silence in the streets of the city.
The sounds of the skilled workers have stopped. They have all gone. There is no sound from the mills. They do not produce flour. There is no more food in the city. Normal life will not be possible. There is no light in the houses. All is in darkness. There will be no happy events like weddings. Nothing will remain.
The merchants had been great because of their wealth. They had lived in luxury. This is one reason for the *ruin of the city.
All the nations had believed the lies of Babylon. They all followed Babylon’s evil ways. This is a second reason for the *ruin of the city.
Verse 24 Here is the main reason for the *ruin of Babylon. Babylon was guilty of the deaths of many of God’s people. People all over the world died because they did not *worship the *beast. Babylon fought against God. So, God punished Babylon severely.
angel ~ a servant of God from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages. So, angels are God’s servants from heaven. But there are evil angels who opposed God. These evil angels now serve the devil.ruined ~ a description of a city when its enemies have completely destroyed it.
ruined ~ a description of a city when its enemies have completely destroyed it.
demons ~ evil angels that serve the devil.
angel ~ a servant of God from heaven. God made angels to serve him and to take his messages. So, angels are God’s servants from heaven. But there are evil angels who opposed God. These evil angels now serve the devil.
sin ~ sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. Those who sin are called sinners.
throne ~ the special chair for the king or for an important person.
Lord ~ a title for God, or Jesus, to show that he is over all people and things.
lord ~ a title for someone who rules.
goods ~ possessions; especially the things that a trader sells.
pearl ~ a beautiful object that is like a precious stone. It is transparent and round. It comes from an animal (called the oyster) that lives in the sea.
bronze ~ a metal that glows when people put it into a fire. People polish bronze so that it shines in the light. It is a very strong metal.
apostle ~ someone whom God sends; especially one of the 12 men whom Jesus chose to be his helpers.
prophet ~ person who speaks for God. A prophet can sometimes say what will happen in the future. The Book of Revelation also describes a false prophet. This false prophet speaks on behalf of the Antichrist and Satan.
Antichrist ~ a powerful ruler who imitates and opposes Christ. The Book of Revelation also describes the Antichrist as ‘the beast’. The Antichrist hates Christ. The Bible also refers to many antichrists. These are people who hate Christ like the Antichrist.
Satan ~ the name of the devil.
beast ~ an animal. In this Book of Revelation, the beasts describe Satan, Antichrist and the false prophet.
harp ~ an instrument of music.
flute ~ a musical instrument; it makes a sound when a person blows into it.
trumpet ~ a musical instrument; it makes a sound when a person blows into it.
ruin ~ whatever remains after someone destroys a city or a building.
kingdom ~ the place or territory where a king rules.
worship ~ the act when someone shows honour to God (or to an idol). Someone who worships, praises God. That person thanks God. And that person respects God.
idols ~ objects that people worship instead of God.
beast ~ an animal. In this Book of Revelation, the beasts describe Satan, Antichrist and the false prophet.
Satan ~ the name of the devil.
Antichrist ~ a powerful ruler who imitates and opposes Christ. The Book of Revelation also describes the Antichrist as ‘the beast’. The Antichrist hates Christ. The Bible also refers to many antichrists. These are people who hate Christ like the Antichrist.
prophet ~ person who speaks for God. A prophet can sometimes say what will happen in the future. The Book of Revelation also describes a false prophet. This false prophet speaks on behalf of the Antichrist and Satan.