Revelation 17–20

The Scarlet Woman and the Scarlet Beast

17Then ^aone of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, saying ¹to me, “Come, ^bI will show you the judgment of ^cthe great harlot ^dwho sits on many waters, ^2ewith whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and ^fthe inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.”

³So he carried me away in the Spirit ^ginto the wilderness. And I saw a woman sitting ^hon a scarlet beast which was full of ⁱnames of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. ⁴The woman ^jwas arrayed in purple and scarlet, ^kand adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, ^lhaving in her hand a golden cup ^mfull of abominations and the filthiness of ²her fornication. ⁵And on her forehead a name was written:

ⁿMYSTERY,

BABYLON THE GREAT,

THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH

⁶I saw ^othe woman, drunk ^pwith the blood of the saints and with the blood of ^qthe 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 ³mystery 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 ^rwill ascend out of the bottomless pit and ^sgo to ⁴perdition. And those who ^tdwell on the earth ^uwill marvel, ^vwhose 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 ⁵yet is.

^9w“Here is the mind which has wisdom: ^xThe 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 ^ycontinue a short time. ¹¹The ^zbeast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to ⁶perdition.

^12a“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. ^14bThese will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will ^covercome them, ^dfor He is Lord of lords and King of kings; ^eand those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”

¹⁵Then he said to me, ^f“The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, ^gare peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues. ¹⁶And the ten horns which you ⁷saw on the beast, ^hthese will hate the harlot, make her ⁱdesolate ^jand naked, eat her flesh and ^kburn her with fire. ^17lFor God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, ^muntil the words of God are fulfilled. ¹⁸And the woman whom you saw ⁿis that great city ^owhich reigns over the kings of the earth.”

The Fall of Babylon the Great

18After ^athese things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, ^band the earth was illuminated with his glory. ²And he cried ¹mightily with a loud voice, saying, ^c“Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and ^dhas become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and ^ea cage for every unclean and hated bird! ³For all the nations ^fhave drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, ^gand the merchants of the earth have become rich through the ²abundance of her luxury.”

⁴And I heard another voice from heaven saying, ^h“Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. ⁵ⁱFor her sins ³have reached to heaven, and ^jGod has remembered her iniquities. ^6kRender to her just as she rendered ⁴to you, and repay her double according to her works; ^lin the cup which she has mixed, ^mmix double for her. ⁷ⁿIn the measure that she glorified herself and lived ⁵luxuriously, in the same measure give her torment and sorrow; for she says in her heart, ‘I sit as ^oqueen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.’ ⁸Therefore her plagues will come ^pin one day—death and mourning and famine. And ^qshe will be utterly burned with fire, ^rfor strong is the Lord God who ⁶judges her.

The World Mourns Babylon’s Fall

^9s“The kings of the earth who committed fornication and lived luxuriously with her ^twill weep and lament for her, ^uwhen they see the smoke of her burning, ¹⁰standing at a distance for fear of her torment, saying, ^v‘Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! ^wFor in one hour your judgment has come.’

¹¹“And ^xthe merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, for no one buys their merchandise anymore: ^12ymerchandise of gold and silver, precious stones and pearls, fine linen and purple, silk and scarlet, every kind of citron wood, every kind of object of ivory, every kind of object of most precious wood, bronze, iron, and marble; ¹³and cinnamon and incense, fragrant oil and frankincense, wine and oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and bodies and ^zsouls of men. ¹⁴The fruit that your soul longed for has gone from you, and all the things which are rich and splendid have ⁷gone from you, and you shall find them no more at all. ¹⁵The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand at a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, ¹⁶and saying, ‘Alas, alas, ^athat great city ^bthat was clothed in fine linen, purple, and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls! ^17cFor in one hour such great riches ⁸came to nothing.’ ^dEvery shipmaster, all who travel by ship, sailors, and as many as trade on the sea, stood at a distance ^18eand cried out when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ^f‘What is like this great city?’

^19g“They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city, in which all who had ships on the sea became rich by her wealth! ^hFor in one hour she ⁹is made desolate.’

²⁰ⁱ“Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you ¹holy apostles and prophets, for ^jGod has avenged you on her!”

Finality of Babylon’s Fall

²¹Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, ^k“Thus with violence the great city Babylon shall be thrown down, and ^lshall not be found anymore. ^22mThe sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters shall not be heard in you anymore. No craftsman of any craft shall be found in you anymore, and the sound of a millstone shall not be heard in you anymore. ²³ⁿThe light of a lamp shall not shine in you anymore, ^oand the voice of bridegroom and bride shall not be heard in you anymore. For ^pyour merchants were the great men of the earth, ^qfor by your sorcery all the nations were deceived. ²⁴And ^rin her was found the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who ^swere slain on the earth.”

Heaven Exults Over Babylon

19After these things ^aI ¹heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! ^bSalvation and glory and honor and power belong to ²the Lord our God! ²For ^ctrue and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He ^dhas avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.” ³Again they said, “Alleluia! ^eHer smoke rises up forever and ever!” ⁴And ^fthe twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, ^g“Amen! Alleluia!” ⁵Then a voice came from the throne, saying, ^h“Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, ⁱboth ³small and great!”

^6jAnd I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For ^kthe ⁴Lord God Omnipotent reigns! ⁷Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for ^lthe marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” ⁸And ^mto her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, ⁿfor the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

⁹Then he said to me, “Write: ^o‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, ^p“These are the true sayings of God.” ¹⁰And ^qI fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, ^r“See that you do not do that! I am your ^sfellow servant, and of your brethren ^twho have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the ^utestimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Christ on a White Horse

^11vNow I saw heaven opened, and behold, ^wa white horse. And He who sat on him was called ^xFaithful and True, and ^yin righteousness He judges and makes war. ^12zHis eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. ^aHe ⁵had a name written that no one knew except Himself. ^13bHe was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called ^cThe Word of God. ^14dAnd the armies in heaven, ^eclothed in ⁶fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. ¹⁵Now ^fout of His mouth goes a ⁷sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And ^gHe Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. ^hHe Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶And ⁱHe has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

^jKING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS

¹⁷Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, ^k“Come and gather together for the ⁸supper of the great God, ^18lthat you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, ⁹free and slave, both small and great.”

^19mAnd I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. ²⁰ⁿThen the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and ^othose who worshiped his image. ^pThese two were cast alive into the…