Ch 18: The Fall of Babylon
Artwork by Duncan Long
2. The fall of Babylon (18:1).
18:1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendour. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted:
"Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great! She has become a home for demons and a haunt for every evil spirit, a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird. 3 For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries."
Rev 18:4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
"Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; 5 for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. 6 Give back to her as she has given; pay her back double for what she has done. Mix her a double portion from her own cup. 7 Give her as much torture and grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. In her heart she boasts, 'I sit as queen; I am not a widow, and I will never mourn.' 8 Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death, mourning and famine. She will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.
For background see the following passages:
- The Fall of Lucifer is described in Isa 14:12.
- A dirge against the king of Tyre, Ezek 27:1-11.
- Doom song of Babylon, Isa 13:19-22.
- Doom song of Edom, Isa 34:11-15.
- Doom songs of Babylon, Jer 50:39, see also Jer 51 which contains many of the thoughts in Rev 18.
- Doom song of Nineveh, Zep 2:13-15.
v1 - After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendour. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted: - The angel has great authority delegated to him by God, just as Satan gave beast great authority. The angel is going to announce the fall of the great city which is the city of the beast. The earth was illuminated by his splendour which comes from the glory of God when the angel was in God's presence in heaven. Just as Moses face shone with the glory of God after he had been in God's presence. The angel is similar in description to that in Ezek 43:1-2 in which the land was radiant with God's glory. The glory of the angel is appropriate to the greatness of his announcement and his authority to proclaim the word of God concerning the demise of Babylon.
v2 - Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great - The angel announces the fall of Babylon the Great, this is a repetition of the angel's announcement in 14:8, see also Isa 21:9: 'Babylon has fallen, has fallen! All her idols lie shattered on the ground'. This also reminds us of the fall of the ancient Babylonian king, Belshazzar, in Dan 5:26, 'God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end'. The repetition of Fallen indicates the certainty of judgement.
v2 - She has become a home for demons and a haunt for every evil spirit, a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird. - After her destruction she will be deserted, this is enlarged upon by the angel in 18:21-24. She is already inhabited by unclean spirits who provoke men into unclean acts (xxxx). After man is no longer there the demons move around seeking rest (Luke 11:24). The description in this verse is a classical biblical description of a desolate city, Jer 9:11, 50:39, 51:37, Isa 13:19-22, 34:8-15.
v3 - For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries." - The angel gives the reasons for her destruction, she seduced the nations, kings and merchants to be unfaithful to God, see also 17:2. See Jer 51:7, 'Babylon was a gold cup in the Lord's hand; she made the whole earth drunk. The nations drank her wine; therefore they have now gone mad' and Isa 51:17-23. The kings join in with her in her sins against God, they also share in her power and luxury, see verse 9. The merchants also get rich from her desire for greater and greater luxury, we see this now in the world the rich get richer while the poor get poorer, what is condemned here is excessive luxury. The merchants will lament the loss of their profitable trade, Rev 18:11, 15, 23.
v4 - Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; - This is clearly a warning to the saints. There are two meanings here, first to come out meaning to be separate from her in her sins and secondly to flee from her in order to avoid her judgement (see 1 Cor 11:32, Jer 51:6, 45). Just as Lot fled Sodom before its destruction (Gen 19:12 ff.); the Israelites fled Egypt; God's people fled Babylon (Jer 51:45); and the early church fled Jerusalem to avoid persecution before her destruction; so God's people are told to leave Babylon before her destruction comes upon her. This is a personal command of God. This has an echo throughout scripture starting with Abraham who was told to leave his own country (Gen 12:1). He was looking forward to a better country, a heavenly one, and God has prepared a city for him (Heb 11:8-16). This finds its fulfilment with the heavenly Jerusalem later in Revelation. It finds an echo in 2 Cor 6:16 in which God's people are called out, that is they are to be a holy people separate from the world and its sin. Note that the word church in the NT is ekklesia meaning an assembly of God's called out ones. This should be read with the warnings to the churches at Pergamum (Balaam, idolatry, immorality) and Thyatira (Jezebel, idolatry, immorality) in mind. They saints do not belong to the world, but have been chosen out of the world (John 15:19 cf. James 4:4 and 1 John 2:15-17).
v5 - for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. - Just as man tried to make a tower at Babel that reached to heaven (Gen 11:4), so now her sins have piled up to heaven instead and God has remembered her crimes, He has not forgotten (cf. Jer 51:9). In the seventh bowl God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of his wrath, 16:19. Note that this is in contrast with the saints whose sins He will remember no more (Heb 8:12, 10:17, Jer 31:33)
v6 - Give back to her as she has given; pay her back double for what she has done. Mix her a double portion from her own cup. - In Exo 22:4 a thief must payback double the property that was stolen v4, v7, v9. Babylon must be repaid for her deeds, her punishment is according to her deeds, Jer 50:29, Psa 137:8. In Jer 16:18 they are paid back double for the sin of idolatry (cf. Isa 40:2). Just as she used the gold cup to tempt the world away from God so it will be used to judge her (cf. Rev 17:2, 4, 18:3, Jer 25:15, 51:7) and she will drink from the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath (16:19) which involves the destruction of the cities of the earth by an earthquake.
v7 - Give her as much torture and grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. In her heart she boasts, 'I sit as queen; I am not a widow, and I will never mourn.' - We see here that her punishment is just, she gets as much torture and grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. 'In her heart she boasts "I sit as queen; I am not a widow, and I will never mourn" ' Isa 47:5-12, she is arrogant, but God sees all and judges her accordingly, the fall of Babylon described in Isa 47. This is also a denouncement of the Queen of Heaven, Jer 7:18, 44:17. This is also a warning to the church at Laodicea who had the same attitude, which said 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing' (3:17). John is using the harlot to show the church, especially the comfortable Laodiceans, the true nature of the harlot. The Christian is not to love the world or anything in it, the world and its desires pass away but the man who does the will of God lives forever (1 John 2:15-17).
v8 - Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death, mourning and famine. She will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her. - The 'therefore' relates to v 4-7. The one day indicates the suddenness of her judgement. The plagues are probably the seven bowls, especially the seventh but also the fifth. God judges her according to her words, 'I sit as queen; I am not a widow, and I will never mourn.' I sit as a queen and death comes to her; I am not a widow and mourning comes to her; she lived in luxury and famine comes to her. She gets the double portion from her own cup v6. God uses the beast and ten kings to judge her, they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire, 17:16 (Zec 9:4, Isa 47:9). In Lev 21:9 the punishment for a priests daughter being a prostitute was to be burned in the fire. Finally note that however powerful Babylon is the Lord God who judges her (as shown by the angel with great authority in verse 1) is mightier than her.
2.1. Mourning for Babylon (18:9).
This has much in common with the lament for Tyre in Ezek 26 and 27. Babylon is described as a city of power and of great wealth, in one hour she loses both of these. See also Isa 23:1-18 for a lament over Tyre. Notice the triple emphasis given by the kings, merchants and seamen of the one hour of her doom and ruination, verses 10, 17, 19, this is another example of the use of three in describing the structure of the city, cf. 11:8, 16:19 (Milligan). Because these people have based their life and their hope on the woman who represents the wealth and pleasures of this life, when she is destroyed their hope has gone and therefore they mourn her passing. These people were in love with the world and the things of this world (see 18:12 ff.) and therefore mourn its passing (1 John 2:15-17), this is in contrast to the saints who rejoice over her destruction because the world persecuted her (18:20, 19:2).
The kings mourn their loss of power and luxury; the merchants and seamen mourn their loss of wealth through trading in the things of the world. Notice the merchants carry out their trade over the land while the seamen carry out their trade by the sea, thus covering the whole world. Jesus warns us that a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions (Luke 12:15 ff.).
2.1.1. The kings of the earth mourn (18:9).
Rev 18:9 "When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry:
"'Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power! In one hour your doom has come!'
v9 - "When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. - The kings shared her luxury which is now destroyed therefore they weep and mourn over her (cf. Ezek 26:16, 27:35). The smoke of her burning arises because she is destroyed by fire, see previous verse and 17:16. John uses a similar expression to 'smoke of her burning' to describe the torment of those who worship the beast, 14:11. In 19:3 the saints, apostles and prophets who had been persecuted by her shout 'Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever'. Note that the beast, false prophet and the dragon are cast into the lake of fire, 20:10.
v10 - Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry: "'Woe! Woe, O great city, O Babylon, city of power! In one hour your doom has come!' - The kings mourn for their loss of power. Without her their power has gone. They are terrified because their security is gone, they know they are next because they committed adultery with her. They had committed adultery with her and were thus united to her in her fate (xxxx), cf. those who committed adultery with Jezebel who share her fate unless they repent of her ways (2:20-23). The kings of the earth are dispatched later (19:19-21). Babylon has lost her power in one hour which is the same time that the ten kings receive authority as kings along with the beast (17:12). Their sorrow is worldly sorrow not godly sorrow which leads to repentance (2 Cor 7:10), their sorrow is totally self centred. Caird comments that the one hour of persecution (17:12) is balance by the one hour of retribution, this assumes that the ten kings are the same as the kings of the earth, it should also be born in mind that the ten kings help destroy the whore so they are unlikely to be the same group. Consider the lament over the destruction of Egypt (Ezek 32:10) 'I will cause many peoples to be appalled at you, and their kings will shudder with horror because of you when I brandish my sword before them. On the day of your downfall each of them will tremble every moment for his life'.
2.1.2. The merchants mourn (18:11).
11 "The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more-- 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; 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 bodies and souls of men. 14 "They will say, 'The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your riches and splendour have vanished, never to be recovered.' 15 The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn 16 and cry out:
"'Woe! Woe, O great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls! 17 In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!'
v11-13 there are seven categories of goods, most of which are luxuries:
- treasures: gold, silver, precious stones and pearls
- fine fabrics: fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth
- fancy building materials: every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble
- spices etc.: cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense
- Foods: of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat;
- Livestock: cattle and sheep; horses and carriages;
- Slaves: and bodies and souls of men
v11 - "The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more-- The merchants mourn not over Babylon but because they have lost their trade. There follows a seven-fold list of goods which the merchants traded in.
v12 - 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; - The woman was decorated with many of these things, she was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls, 17:4, compare with her description given by the merchants in Rev 18:16 'Woe! Woe, O great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!' They traded in pearls but missed the pearl of great price that would have gained them entry to the New Jerusalem (Mat 13:45, Rev 21:21).
v13 - 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 bodies and souls of men. - Wine and oil were not damaged by the third seal (6:6) wheat was scarce, Barley is not traded by the merchants because it is poor mans food, it is not a luxury.
v14 - "They will say, 'The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your riches and splendour have vanished, never to be recovered.' - The fruit you longed for is likely to be those things listed in the previous verses. They note the finality of her destruction.
v15 - The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn - They mourn because they have lost their source of wealth, 18:3. Her torment is to be burned by fire, 17;16, 18:8, 9. They stand far off from her at a safe distance from her burning as did the kings. They could be next and join in her punishment since they too grew rich from her luxury.
v16 - and cry out: "'Woe! Woe, O great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls! - In 17:4 we find that the woman was also dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. These items were also part of their cargoes.
v17 - In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!' - Her wealth described in the previous verse has been ruined in a short time, one hour. cf. 18:10 the kings mourn, 18:19 the seamen mourn, the one hour corresponds to the period of the authority of the ten kings along with the beast (17:12) who bring her to ruin (17:16).
2.1.3. The sea captains mourn (18:17).
"Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. 18 When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, 'Was there ever a city like this great city?' 19 They will throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning cry out:
"'Woe! Woe, O great city, where all who had ships on the sea became rich through her wealth! In one hour she has been brought to ruin!
20 Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets! God has judged her for the way she treated you.'"
v17 - Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. - The seamen are mentioned here because they compliment those who trade over land, the merchants, thus together they trade by land and sea over the whole world, which is the devil's kingdom (But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! 12:12). They mourn as do the merchants because they have lost their source of wealth, see Ezek 27:25. They also like the kings and merchants stand afar off terrified by her torment.
v18 - When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, 'Was there ever a city like this great city?' - The kings of the earth also saw the smoke of her burning (18:9). See also the lament over Tyre in Ezek 27:32.
v19 - They will throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning cry out: "'Woe! Woe, O great city, where all who had ships on the sea became rich through her wealth! In one hour she has been brought to ruin! - Taken from the lament over Tyre in Ezek 27:30. They weep and mourn their loss of wealth rather than over their sins.
v20 - Rejoice over her, O heaven! Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets! God has judged her for the way she treated you.'" - Compare with Jer 51:48 'Then heaven and earth and all that is in them will shout for joy over Babylon, for out of the north destroyers will attack her," declares the LORD'. In contrast to the mourning of the kings, merchants and sea captains those in heaven and God's people in heaven are called to rejoice over her because God has judged her for the way she treated the saints while they were on earth. In the NIV the quotation marks seem to be misplaced here but the speaker is most likely to still be the voice from heaven in verse 4. This is just an initial command for those in heaven to rejoice over her destruction, there follows a description of her destruction and after this in, 19:1, heaven erupts with a great roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting praise to God that he has condemned the great prostitute and avenged the blood of his servants. There is similar rejoicing in heaven when Satan is expelled 12:12. It is those in heaven who have been persecuted by the great city, their blood has been avenged, and so they are to rejoice. She had killed the saints, Rev 17:6 and prophets 18:24, God has at last vindicated His servants the martyrs when they cried out for justice and their blood to be avenged, Rev 6:9, 19:2. This is the only time that God's apostles are mentioned in the book, they are included because they have been persecuted as well as the saints and prophets (Luke 11:49, Rev 18:24). Prophets are mentioned more often than apostles because there is a stronger tradition of prophets being persecuted (Mat 5:12). Both apostle and prophet is a church ministry (1 Cor 12:28). God has treated her the same way she treated His people, this principle is also seen in 18:6, 'Give back to her as she has given', it is the principle of sowing and reaping (Gal 6:7).
2.2. Final destruction (18:21).
Rev 18:21 Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said:
"With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again. 22 The music of harpists and musicians, flute players and trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No workman of any trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again. 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. Your merchants were the world's great men. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. 24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have been killed on the earth."
Note the six fold repetition of never indicating the compete destruction of Babylon (Hendriksen):
- Babylon never to be found again.
- The music of.... never to be heard in you again
- no workman... will ever be found in you again.
- The sound of the millstone will never be heard in you again
- The light of a lamp will never shine in you again.
- The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again
v21 - Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: "With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again. - This is based on the scroll upon which Jeremiah had written all the disasters that would come upon Babylon, the staff officer Seraiah was to read it and tie it to a stone and throw it into the Euphrates, and say 'So Babylon will sink to rise no more because of the disaster I will bring upon her. And her people will fall' Jer 51:60-64. This is followed by a six fold statement of what will not be found in her again (Ezek 26:21). This should also remind us that Jesus said: 'But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea' Mat 18:6. The true crime of the harlot is that she tempts God's people to sin.
v22 - The music of harpists and musicians, flute players and trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No workman of any trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again. - Compare this with the words of the Lord to Tyre in Ezek 26:13 and to the inhabitants of the earth in Isa 24:8. Contrast the lack of music with the redeemed, Rev 14:2, who play their harps.
v23-24 - The light of a lamp will never shine in you again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again. Your merchants were the world's great men. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. 24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have been killed on the earth." - 'The light of a lamp will never shine in you again' in contrast to the New Jerusalem in which the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp (21:23). In the New Jerusalem where the Lamb is the bridegroom and the church is the bride and voices will be very much in evidence, see 19:6. Her merchants were the world's great men (Isa 23:8) who mourned for her in 18:11-17. Compare this to Jeremiah's words to the people of Judah as they were about to go into captivity because they did not obey the Lord or listen to his prophets, Jer 25:10 'I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp'. Contrast this to the blessedness of the wedding supper of the Lamb, 19:9. This also reminds us of two other earlier judgements: in the days of Noah people were eating, drinking, marrying and the flood destroyed them all; in the days of Lot people were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building (notice that marriage was not mentioned) but then they were destroyed by fire and sulphur from heaven; then Jesus reminds us that it will be just like this when he comes again (Luke 17:26-30); a contemporary example was Pompeii in AD 79 (Sweet). The reasons for judgement are given as:
- By your magic spell all the nations were led astray (cf. Nahum 3:4).
- In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of all who have been killed on the earth c.f. the souls under the altar (6:9) and 19:2 where he has avenged on her the blood of his servants (Jer 51:49).
Nineveh was known for its bloodshed, sorcery and witchcraft (Nahum 3:4) 'all because of the wanton lust of a harlot, alluring, the mistress of sorceries, who enslaved nations by her prostitution and peoples by her witchcraft'. Verse 24 is similar in thought to Jer 51:49 'Babylon must fall because of Israel's slain, just as the slain in all the earth have fallen because of Babylon'. Nineveh and Jerusalem (Mat 23:37) are types of Babylon depicted here by John. In her was found the blood of the prophets and of the saints, in 17:6 we saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, she persecuted the saints and got her just retribution. She is not just a persecutor but is responsible for the blood of all those killed on the earth. So she is much more than just the apostate church, she represent that lust for power and wealth that causes nations to go to war for. She reigns over the kings of the earth and she is therefore, in her greed, responsible for all wars.