Revelation 18:1–22:21

Lament Over Fallen Babylon

18 After this I saw another angelm coming down from heaven.n He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor.o 2 With a mighty voice he shouted:

“ ‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’a p

She has become a dwelling for demons

and a haunt for every impure spirit,q

a haunt for every unclean bird,

a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal.r

3 For all the nations have drunk

the maddening wine of her adulteries.s

The kings of the earth committed adultery with her,t

and the merchants of the earth grew richu from her excessive luxuries.”v

Warning to Escape Babylon’s Judgment

4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say:

“ ‘Come out of her, my people,’b w

so that you will not share in her sins,

so that you will not receive any of her plagues;x

5 for her sins are piled up to heaven,y

and God has rememberedz her crimes.

6 Give back to her as she has given;

pay her backa doubleb for what she has done.

Pour her a double portion from her own cup.c

7 Give her as much torment and grief

as the glory and luxury she gave herself.d

In her heart she boasts,

‘I sit enthroned as queen.

I am not a widow;c

I will never mourn.’e

8 Therefore in one dayf her plagues will overtake her:

death, mourning and famine.

She will be consumed by fire,g

for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.

Threefold Woe Over Babylon’s Fall

9 “When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with herh and shared her luxuryi see the smoke of her burning,j they will weep and mourn over her.k 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far offl and cry:

“ ‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,m

you mighty city of Babylon!

In one hourn your doom has come!’

11 “The merchantso of the earth will weep and mournp over her because no one buys their cargoes anymoreq—12 cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble;r 13 cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and human beings sold as slaves.s

14 “They will say, ‘The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your luxury and splendor have vanished, never to be recovered.’ 15 The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from hert will stand far off,u terrified at her torment. They will weep and mournv 16 and cry out:

“ ‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,w

dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet,

and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!x

17 In one houry such great wealth has been brought to ruin!’z

“Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea,a will stand far off.b 18 When they see the smoke of her burning,c they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever a city like this great cityd?’e 19 They will throw dust on their heads,f and with weeping and mourningg cry out:

“ ‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,h

where all who had ships on the sea

became rich through her wealth!

In one hour she has been brought to ruin!’i

20 “Rejoice over her, you heavens!j

Rejoice, you people of God!

Rejoice, apostles and prophets!

For God has judged her

with the judgment she imposed on you.”k

The Finality of Babylon’s Doom

21 Then a mighty angell picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea,m and said:

“With such violence

the great cityn 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.o

No worker of any trade

will ever be found in you again.

The sound of a millstone

will never be heard in you again.p

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.q

Your merchants were the world’s important people.r

By your magic spells all the nations were led astray.

24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,t

of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”u

Threefold Hallelujah Over Babylon’s Fall

19 After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitudev in heaven shouting:

“Hallelujah!w

Salvationx and glory and powery belong to our God,

2 for true and just are his judgments.z

He has condemned the great prostitutea

who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.

He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”b

3 And again they shouted:

“Hallelujah!c

The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.”d

4 The twenty-four elderse and the four living creaturesf fell downg and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried:

“Amen, Hallelujah!”h

5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying:

“Praise our God,

all you his servants,i

you who fear him,

both great and small!”j

6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude,k like the roar of rushing watersl and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

“Hallelujah!m

For our Lord God Almightyn reigns.o

7 Let us rejoice and be glad

and give him glory!p

For the wedding of the Lambq has come,

and his brider has made herself ready.

8 Fine linen,s bright and clean,

was given her to wear.”

(Fine linen stands for the righteous actst of God’s holy people.)

9 Then the angel said to me,u “Write this:v Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”w And he added, “These are the true words of God.”x

10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him.y But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God!z For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”a

The Heavenly Warrior Defeats the Beast

11 I saw heaven standing openb and there before me was a white horse, whose riderc is called Faithful and True.d With justice he judges and wages war.e 12 His eyes are like blazing fire,f and on his head are many crowns.g He has a name written on himh that no one knows but he himself.i 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood,j and his name is the Word of God.k 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen,l whitem and clean. 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp swordn with which to strike downo the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.”a p He treads the winepressq of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:r

king of kings and lord of lords.s

17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birdst flying in midair,u “Come,v gather together for the great supper of God,w 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people,x free and slave,y great and small.”z

19 Then I saw the beasta and the kings of the earthb and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horsec and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophetd who had performed the signse on its behalf.f With these signs he had deludedg those who had received the mark of the beasth and worshiped its image.i The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lakej of burning sulfur.k 21 The rest were killed with the swordl coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse,m and all the birdsn gorged themselves on their flesh.

The Thousand Years

20 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven,o having the keyp to the Abyssq and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan,r and bound him for a thousand years.s 3 He threw him into the Abyss,t and locked and sealedu it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nationsv anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.

4 I saw thronesw on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge.x And I saw the souls of those who had been beheadedy because of their testimony about Jesusz and because of the word of God.a Theya had not worshiped the beastb or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands.c They came to life and reignedd with Christ a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection.e 6 Blessedf and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second deathg has no power over them, but they will be priestsh of God and of Christ and will reign with himi for a thousand years.

The Judgment of Satan

7 When the thousand years are over,j Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nationsk in the four corners of the earthl—Gog and Magogm—and to gather them for battle.n In number they are like the sand on the seashore.o 9 They marched across the breadth of the earth and surroundedp the camp of God’s people, the city he loves.q But fire came down from heavenr and devoured them. 10 And the devil, who deceived them,s was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur,t where the beastu and the false prophetv had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.w

The Judgment of the Dead

11 Then I saw a great white thronex and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence,y and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small,z standing before the throne, and books were opened.a Another book was opened, which is the book of life.b The dead were judgedc according to what they had doned as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hadese gave up the deadf that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done.g 14 Then deathh and Hadesi were thrown into the lake of fire.j The lake of fire is the second death.k 15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of lifel was thrown into the lake of fire.

A New Heaven and a New Earth

21 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new …