- Joined
- Feb 9, 2004
- Messages
- 17,081
Revelation 18
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 abundance 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 thyine 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, 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. 14 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.
Commentary
Verses 1
18:1. Although this angel is introduced by the general word another, he is not one connected with the bowls of wrath mentioned in 17:1. Two features indicate his importance: (1) great power (there are degrees of authority among the angels), and (2) the ability to illuminate the earth … with his glory. The strong probability is that Christ is meant here as in 8:3 and 10:1. In the first reference He is the Angel-Priest; in the second He is the Angel-Redeemer; here He is the Angel-Avenger of His own.
Verses 2
2. Babylon the great is fallen. In 14:8 the announcement of the fall of Babylon was proleptic; similarly, in 16:19 the statement was brief and anticipatory. But here God's purpose concerning her is actualized. True, in chapter 17 Babylon's doom is brought about by the ten kingdoms and the Roman Beast (the political power); here, her downfall is seen as issuing directly from Christ. Surely, there is no discrepancy here; for 17:17 clearly states God's sovereign, righteous employment of the human factors in accomplishing His purpose. Just as idolatry came into the human sphere in Genesis 11 with Babylon of old (there is no record of idolatry before the flood of Noah), so it will have its hideous, unclean, hateful consummation in the Babylonish system of the future. The hold of every foul spirit, and a cage. All Satan's evil agencies will congregate in her. There will be no freedom there, as words used for “prison” are mentioned twice (NASB). It is a veritable cesspool of corruption.
Verses 3
3. All nations. Again, the universality of her sway is underscored as in 17:1, 2, 15, 18. All the nations are pointed out here as the subjects of her deceptions and seductions. Godless religion knows how to capture the attention of the unwary world by display, ritual, easy means of redemption, and vast amounts of wealth. The kings of the earth referred to now are not those included in the ten kingdom confederation; these kings are outside that conglomerate. An additional element is introduced by the merchants (Gr emporoi, to which the Eng emporium is related) of the earth, and their riches and wealth are set forth (along with sensuality). There is a commercial side to Mystery, Babylon.
Verses 4-5
4-5. The voice now is not that of the angel of verse 1. It is directed to God's people. Before judgment falls on the wicked (cf. Noah and his family, Gen 6:13-22; Lot and his daughters, Gen 19:12-22; and, as has been shown in this book, the church in the Rapture before the Tribulation Period, 4:1ff.), God mercifully warns His own in order to deliver them from the coming catastrophe. Thus, as far as the apostate system is concerned, the call is applicable at all times (cf. Heb 13:13). It will be all the more applicable in the time under consideration in this chapter. In short, both believing Jews and Gentiles will heed the warning and will escape the burning destruction.
Verses 6-8
6-8. Double unto her double according to her works. Because Babylon's sins have accumulated over so long a period of time, and she has been impervious over the centuries to God's loving entreaties to repent, the Mosaic law of recompense in kind is doubled (cf. Ex 21:23-25). In the light of I Corinthians 6:2, the summons in verses 6-7 could well be addressed to the church. The root of Babylon's degeneration was her pride, self-security, godlessness, and glorification of wealth and luxury, all directed toward self-exaltation. The Lord God in His omnipotence will be her Judge (cf. Isa 47:9-11). The visitation is detailed in five particulars: plagues, … death and mourning, and famine; and … fire. All this will come upon her in one day.
Verses 9-10
9-10. In the verses under consideration (vss. 9-20), weeping and mourning are repeated as a theme in a sonata. First, the kings of the earth, who have the most to lose in any economic or commercial collapse, shall bewail … and lament inconsolably over the torment and demise of the wicked system, which has interlocking interests throughout the civilized world. They cry out woe upon the great and strong city, whose judgment has overtaken her. The one day of verse 8 is now one hour, a clear indication that mathematical precision is not intended. It will be in a very short time. Fair-weather friends that they are, the kings bewail Babylon's calamity, but stand at a distance lest they become involved in her misery and agony.
Verses 11-17
11-17a. The merchants, who are directly involved in day-by-day transactions with her, mourn over the economic collapse of that vast system with its many commercial ramifications. The cargoes include some twenty-eight distinct items. Here there is a combination of the religious with the commercial, for it begins with gold and ends with human lives (vs. 14). The list includes costly ornaments, costly raiment, costly furniture, costly perfumes, costly food, costly equipages, and men's souls and bodies (cf. W. Pettingill, The Unveiling of Jesus Christ, p. 80). The wealth of the world will be thrown into confusion and hopeless collapse.
Verses 17-19
17b-19. Moreover, the fall of commercial Babylon has serious consequences for maritime projects, involving shipmasters, sailors, and passengers. All will be crippled in one hour (cf. vss. 17, 19). The losses will be irretrievable.
Verses 20
20. Rejoice over her, thou heaven. What a change is now before the reader. The scene is shifted to heaven and God's perspective. The dwellers there—“saints and apostles and prophets” (NASB), believers of every station—are summoned to rejoicing. Earth mourns, but heaven rejoices (cf. 19:1-6). This reveals how out of tune with heaven earth dwellers can be. When on their pilgrimage on earth, the saints suffered grievously at the hands of the apostate system; but now, in their hour of vindication, they exult in God's justice.
Verses 21-23
21-23. Her ruin is final, complete, and irreversible. The symbolism in verse 21 is related to Jeremiah 51:63-64, which bears out the impossibility of recovery from this judgment. Along with the passing of the city, there will be an end of music, crafts, housekeeping (sound of a millstone), illumination, and the joys of marriage. The cause of it all is her deception of all the nations with her religious sorcery, an activity promoted by demons and Satan. Included is the entire system of ungodliness from the beginning of man's sojourn on earth.
Verses 24
24. Any pity or compassion on her is misspent and misdirected, for she is worthy of all the misery and judgment God pours out on her. She is guilty of the blood of martyred prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth. This inclusive statement shows that more than one apostate organization is meant; it involves the totality of all of them, from man's appearance on earth until the coming of the Son of man to earth.
Scofield Reference Notes
18:1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
Cf. Isaiah 24:8 contra, Revelation 14:1-3.
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 abundance 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 thyine 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, 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. 14 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.
Commentary
Verses 1
18:1. Although this angel is introduced by the general word another, he is not one connected with the bowls of wrath mentioned in 17:1. Two features indicate his importance: (1) great power (there are degrees of authority among the angels), and (2) the ability to illuminate the earth … with his glory. The strong probability is that Christ is meant here as in 8:3 and 10:1. In the first reference He is the Angel-Priest; in the second He is the Angel-Redeemer; here He is the Angel-Avenger of His own.
Verses 2
2. Babylon the great is fallen. In 14:8 the announcement of the fall of Babylon was proleptic; similarly, in 16:19 the statement was brief and anticipatory. But here God's purpose concerning her is actualized. True, in chapter 17 Babylon's doom is brought about by the ten kingdoms and the Roman Beast (the political power); here, her downfall is seen as issuing directly from Christ. Surely, there is no discrepancy here; for 17:17 clearly states God's sovereign, righteous employment of the human factors in accomplishing His purpose. Just as idolatry came into the human sphere in Genesis 11 with Babylon of old (there is no record of idolatry before the flood of Noah), so it will have its hideous, unclean, hateful consummation in the Babylonish system of the future. The hold of every foul spirit, and a cage. All Satan's evil agencies will congregate in her. There will be no freedom there, as words used for “prison” are mentioned twice (NASB). It is a veritable cesspool of corruption.
Verses 3
3. All nations. Again, the universality of her sway is underscored as in 17:1, 2, 15, 18. All the nations are pointed out here as the subjects of her deceptions and seductions. Godless religion knows how to capture the attention of the unwary world by display, ritual, easy means of redemption, and vast amounts of wealth. The kings of the earth referred to now are not those included in the ten kingdom confederation; these kings are outside that conglomerate. An additional element is introduced by the merchants (Gr emporoi, to which the Eng emporium is related) of the earth, and their riches and wealth are set forth (along with sensuality). There is a commercial side to Mystery, Babylon.
Verses 4-5
4-5. The voice now is not that of the angel of verse 1. It is directed to God's people. Before judgment falls on the wicked (cf. Noah and his family, Gen 6:13-22; Lot and his daughters, Gen 19:12-22; and, as has been shown in this book, the church in the Rapture before the Tribulation Period, 4:1ff.), God mercifully warns His own in order to deliver them from the coming catastrophe. Thus, as far as the apostate system is concerned, the call is applicable at all times (cf. Heb 13:13). It will be all the more applicable in the time under consideration in this chapter. In short, both believing Jews and Gentiles will heed the warning and will escape the burning destruction.
Verses 6-8
6-8. Double unto her double according to her works. Because Babylon's sins have accumulated over so long a period of time, and she has been impervious over the centuries to God's loving entreaties to repent, the Mosaic law of recompense in kind is doubled (cf. Ex 21:23-25). In the light of I Corinthians 6:2, the summons in verses 6-7 could well be addressed to the church. The root of Babylon's degeneration was her pride, self-security, godlessness, and glorification of wealth and luxury, all directed toward self-exaltation. The Lord God in His omnipotence will be her Judge (cf. Isa 47:9-11). The visitation is detailed in five particulars: plagues, … death and mourning, and famine; and … fire. All this will come upon her in one day.
Verses 9-10
9-10. In the verses under consideration (vss. 9-20), weeping and mourning are repeated as a theme in a sonata. First, the kings of the earth, who have the most to lose in any economic or commercial collapse, shall bewail … and lament inconsolably over the torment and demise of the wicked system, which has interlocking interests throughout the civilized world. They cry out woe upon the great and strong city, whose judgment has overtaken her. The one day of verse 8 is now one hour, a clear indication that mathematical precision is not intended. It will be in a very short time. Fair-weather friends that they are, the kings bewail Babylon's calamity, but stand at a distance lest they become involved in her misery and agony.
Verses 11-17
11-17a. The merchants, who are directly involved in day-by-day transactions with her, mourn over the economic collapse of that vast system with its many commercial ramifications. The cargoes include some twenty-eight distinct items. Here there is a combination of the religious with the commercial, for it begins with gold and ends with human lives (vs. 14). The list includes costly ornaments, costly raiment, costly furniture, costly perfumes, costly food, costly equipages, and men's souls and bodies (cf. W. Pettingill, The Unveiling of Jesus Christ, p. 80). The wealth of the world will be thrown into confusion and hopeless collapse.
Verses 17-19
17b-19. Moreover, the fall of commercial Babylon has serious consequences for maritime projects, involving shipmasters, sailors, and passengers. All will be crippled in one hour (cf. vss. 17, 19). The losses will be irretrievable.
Verses 20
20. Rejoice over her, thou heaven. What a change is now before the reader. The scene is shifted to heaven and God's perspective. The dwellers there—“saints and apostles and prophets” (NASB), believers of every station—are summoned to rejoicing. Earth mourns, but heaven rejoices (cf. 19:1-6). This reveals how out of tune with heaven earth dwellers can be. When on their pilgrimage on earth, the saints suffered grievously at the hands of the apostate system; but now, in their hour of vindication, they exult in God's justice.
Verses 21-23
21-23. Her ruin is final, complete, and irreversible. The symbolism in verse 21 is related to Jeremiah 51:63-64, which bears out the impossibility of recovery from this judgment. Along with the passing of the city, there will be an end of music, crafts, housekeeping (sound of a millstone), illumination, and the joys of marriage. The cause of it all is her deception of all the nations with her religious sorcery, an activity promoted by demons and Satan. Included is the entire system of ungodliness from the beginning of man's sojourn on earth.
Verses 24
24. Any pity or compassion on her is misspent and misdirected, for she is worthy of all the misery and judgment God pours out on her. She is guilty of the blood of martyred prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth. This inclusive statement shows that more than one apostate organization is meant; it involves the totality of all of them, from man's appearance on earth until the coming of the Son of man to earth.
Scofield Reference Notes
18:1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
angel
(See Scofield "Hebrews 1:4") .
18:2 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. (See Scofield "Hebrews 1:4") .
Babylon
Babylon, "confusion," is repeatedly used by the prophets in a symbolic sense ((See Scofield "Isaiah 13:2") ), note 2. Two "Babylons" are to be distinguished in the Revelation: ecclesiastical babylon, which is apostate Christendom, headed up under the Papacy; and political babylon, which is the Beast's confederated empire, the last form of Gentile world-dominion. Ecclesiastical Babylon is "the great *****" Revelation 17:1 and is destroyed by political Babylon Revelation 17:15-18 that the beast may be the alone object of worship. ; 2 Thessalonians 2:3,4; Revelation 13:15. The power of political Babylon is destroyed by the return of the Lord in glory. (See "Armageddon,") ; Revelation 16:14; 19:17. The notion of a literal Babylon to be rebuilt on the site of ancient Babylon is in conflict with Isaiah 13:19-22. But the language of Revelation 18:10,16,18 seems beyond question to identify "Babylon," the "city" of luxury and traffic, with "Babylon" the ecclesiastical centre, viz. Rome. The very kings who hate ecclesiastical Babylon deplore the destruction of commercial Babylon.
18:4 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. Babylon, "confusion," is repeatedly used by the prophets in a symbolic sense ((See Scofield "Isaiah 13:2") ), note 2. Two "Babylons" are to be distinguished in the Revelation: ecclesiastical babylon, which is apostate Christendom, headed up under the Papacy; and political babylon, which is the Beast's confederated empire, the last form of Gentile world-dominion. Ecclesiastical Babylon is "the great *****" Revelation 17:1 and is destroyed by political Babylon Revelation 17:15-18 that the beast may be the alone object of worship. ; 2 Thessalonians 2:3,4; Revelation 13:15. The power of political Babylon is destroyed by the return of the Lord in glory. (See "Armageddon,") ; Revelation 16:14; 19:17. The notion of a literal Babylon to be rebuilt on the site of ancient Babylon is in conflict with Isaiah 13:19-22. But the language of Revelation 18:10,16,18 seems beyond question to identify "Babylon," the "city" of luxury and traffic, with "Babylon" the ecclesiastical centre, viz. Rome. The very kings who hate ecclesiastical Babylon deplore the destruction of commercial Babylon.
sins
Sin. (See Scofield "Romans 3:23") .
18:5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Sin. (See Scofield "Romans 3:23") .
sins
Sin. (See Scofield "Romans 3:23") .
18:10 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. Sin. (See Scofield "Romans 3:23") .
Babylon
(See Scofield "Isaiah 13:1") , note 2.
18:22 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; voice (See Scofield "Isaiah 13:1") , note 2.
Cf. Isaiah 24:8 contra, Revelation 14:1-3.
