Revelation 18

CHAPTER 18

Fallen Is Babylon

¹After these things I saw another ^aangel ^bcoming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was ^cillumined with his glory.

²And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, “^1aFallen, fallen is Babylon the great! And she ^bhas become a dwelling place of demons and a ²prison of every ^cunclean spirit, and a ³prison of every unclean bird ⁴and a ⁵prison of every unclean and hateful beast.

³“For all the nations ¹have drunk of the ^awine of the wrath of her sexual immorality, and ^bthe kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her, and the ^cmerchants of the earth have become rich by the power of her ^2dsensuality.”

⁴And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “^aCome out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues;

⁵for her sins have ^1apiled up as high as heaven, and God has ^bremembered her iniquities.

⁶“^aPay her back even as she paid, and ¹give her back double according to her deeds; in the ^bcup which she has mixed, mix double for her.

⁷“^aTo the degree that she glorified herself and ^blived ¹sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning, for she says in her heart, ‘^cI sit as a queen and I am not a widow, and will never see mourning.’

⁸“For this reason ^ain one day her plagues will come, ¹pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be ^bburned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her ^cis strong.

⁹“And ^athe kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and ^blived ¹sensuously with her, will ^ccry and lament over her when they ^dsee the smoke of her burning,

^10astanding at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, ‘^bWoe, woe, ^cthe great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in ^done hour your judgment has come.’

¹¹“And the ^amerchants of the earth ^bcry and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargo anymore—

¹²cargo of ^agold and silver and precious ¹stones and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and every kind of citron wood and every article of ivory and every article made from precious wood and ²bronze and iron and marble,

¹³and cinnamon and amomum and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and cargo of horses and carriages and ¹human beings and ^2ahuman lives.

¹⁴“And the fruit ¹you long for has gone from you, and all things that were splendid and shining have passed away from you and men will no longer find them.

¹⁵“The ^amerchants of ^bthese things, who became rich from her, will ^cstand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, crying and mourning,

¹⁶saying, ‘^aWoe, woe, ^bthe great city, she who ^cwas clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and ¹adorned with gold and precious ²stones and pearls;

¹⁷for in ^aone hour such great wealth has been laid ^bwaste!’ And ^cevery shipmaster and every ¹passenger and sailor, and as many as make their living by the sea, ^dstood at a distance,

¹⁸and were ^acrying out as they ^bsaw the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘^cWhat is like ^dthe great city?’

¹⁹“And they threw ^adust on their heads and were crying out, crying and mourning, saying, ‘^bWoe, woe, the great city, in which all who have ships at sea ^cbecame rich by her ¹wealth, for in ^done hour she has been laid ^ewaste!’

²⁰“^aRejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and ^bapostles and prophets, because ^cGod has ¹pronounced judgment for you against her.”

²¹Then ¹a ^astrong angel ^bpicked up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “So will Babylon, ^cthe great city, be thrown down with violence, and ^dwill not be found any longer.

²²“And ^athe sound of harpists and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters will not be heard in you any longer; and no craftsman of any craft will be found in you any longer; and the ^bsound of a mill will not be heard in you any longer;

²³and the light of a lamp will not shine in you any longer; and the ^avoice of the bridegroom and bride will not be heard in you any longer; for your ^bmerchants were the great men of the earth, because all the nations were deceived ^cby your sorcery.

²⁴“And in her was found the ^ablood of prophets and of saints and of ^ball who have been slain on the earth.”