18:21 Then 5 one powerful angel picked up a stone like a huge millstone, threw it into the sea, and said,
“With this kind of sudden violent force 6
Babylon the great city will be thrown down 7
and it will never be found again!
11:18 The 10 nations 11 were enraged,
but 12 your wrath has come,
and the time has come for the dead to be judged,
and the time has come to give to your servants, 13
the prophets, their reward,
as well as to the saints
and to those who revere 14 your name, both small and great,
and the time has come 15 to destroy those who destroy 16 the earth.”
14:8 A 18 second 19 angel 20 followed the first, 21 declaring: 22 “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great city! 23 She made all the nations 24 drink of the wine of her immoral passion.” 25
“Fallen, fallen, is Babylon the great!
She 35 has become a lair for demons,
a haunt 36 for every unclean spirit,
a haunt for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detested beast. 37
18:3 For all the nations 38 have fallen 39 from
the wine of her immoral passion, 40
and the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her,
and the merchants of the earth have gotten rich from the power of her sensual behavior.” 41
1 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
2 tn On this term BDAG 2 s.v. ἄβυσσος 2 states, “netherworld, abyss, esp. the abode of the dead Ro 10:7 (Ps 106:26) and of demons Lk 8:31; dungeon where the devil is kept Rv 20:3; abode of the θηρίον, the Antichrist 11:7; 17:8; of ᾿Αβαδδών (q.v.), the angel of the underworld 9:11…φρέαρ τῆς ἀ. 9:1f; capable of being sealed 9:1; 20:1, 3.”
3 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
4 tn Some translations take the ὅτι (Joti) here as causal: “because he was, and is not, but is to come” (so NIV, NRSV), but it is much more likely that the subject of the ὅτι clause has been assimilated into the main clause: “when they see the beast, that he was…” = “when they see that the beast was” (so BDAG 732 s.v. ὅτι 1.f, where Rev 17:8 is listed).
3 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
4 tn On ὅρμημα ({ormhma) BDAG 724 s.v. states, “violent rush, onset ὁρμήματι βληθήσεται Βαβυλών Babylon will be thrown down with violence Rv 18:21.” L&N 68.82 refers to the suddenness of the force or violence.
5 sn Thrown down is a play on both the words and the action. The angel’s action with the stone illustrates the kind of sudden violent force with which the city will be overthrown.
4 tn Or “a third of the living creatures in the sea”; Grk “the third of the creatures which were in the sea, the ones having life.”
5 tn On the term translated “completely destroyed,” L&N 20.40 states, “to cause the complete destruction of someone or something – ‘to destroy utterly.’ τὸ τρίτον τῶν πλοίων διεφθάρησαν ‘a third of the ships were completely destroyed’ Re 8:9.”
5 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
6 tn Or “The Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
8 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
9 tn Grk “who fear.”
10 tn The words “the time has come” do not occur except at the beginning of the verse; the phrase has been repeated for emphasis and contrast. The Greek has one finite verb (“has come”) with a compound subject (“your wrath,” “the time”), followed by three infinitive clauses (“to be judged,” “to give,” “to destroy”). The rhetorical power of the repetition of the finite verb in English thus emulates the rhetorical power of its lone instance in Greek.
11 tn Or “who deprave.” There is a possible wordplay here on two meanings for διαφθείρω (diafqeirw), with the first meaning “destroy” and the second meaning either “to ruin” or “to make morally corrupt.” See L&N 20.40.
6 sn Both the Hebrew Abaddon and the Greek Apollyon mean “Destroyer.”
7 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
8 tc There are several different variants comprising a textual problem involving “second” (δεύτερος, deuteros). First, several
9 tn Grk “And another angel, a second.”
10 tn The words “the first” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
11 tn For the translation of λέγω (legw) as “declare,” see BDAG 590 s.v. 2.e.
12 sn The fall of Babylon the great city is described in detail in Rev 18:2-24.
13 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
14 tn Grk “of the wine of the passion of the sexual immorality of her.” Here τῆς πορνείας (th" porneia") has been translated as an attributive genitive. In an ironic twist of fate, God will make Babylon drink her own mixture, but it will become the wine of his wrath in retribution for her immoral deeds (see the note on the word “wrath” in 16:19).
8 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
9 tn Grk “seven thousand names of men.”
9 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
10 tn Or “of the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
11 tn Grk “fell.”
12 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of Babylon’s misdeeds (see Rev 14:8).
13 tn Grk “the cup of the wine of the anger of the wrath of him.” The concatenation of four genitives has been rendered somewhat differently by various translations (see the note on the word “wrath”).
14 tn Following BDAG 461 s.v. θυμός 2, the combination of the genitives of θυμός (qumo") and ὀργή (orgh) in Rev 16:19 and 19:15 are taken to be a strengthening of the thought as in the OT and Qumran literature (Exod 32:12; Jer 32:37; Lam 2:3; CD 10:9). Thus in Rev 14:8 (to which the present passage alludes) and 18:3 there is irony: The wine of immoral behavior with which Babylon makes the nations drunk becomes the wine of God’s wrath for her.
10 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style
11 tn Or “It” (the subject is embedded in the verb in Greek; the verb only indicates that it is third person). Since the city has been personified as the great prostitute, the feminine pronoun was used in the translation.
12 tn Here BDAG 1067 s.v. φυλακή 3 states, “a place where guarding is done, prison…Of the nether world or its place of punishment (πνεῦμα 2 and 4c) 1 Pt 3:19 (BReicke, The Disobedient Spirits and Christian Baptism ’46, 116f). It is in a φ. in the latter sense that Satan will be rendered harmless during the millennium Rv 20:7. The fallen city of Babylon becomes a φυλακή haunt for all kinds of unclean spirits and birds 18:2ab.”
13 tc There are several problems in this verse. It seems that according to the ms evidence the first two phrases (i.e., “and a haunt for every unclean spirit, and a haunt for every unclean bird” [καὶ φυλακὴ παντὸς πνεύματος ἀκαθάρτου καὶ φυλακὴ παντὸς ὀρνέου ἀκαθάρτου, kai fulakh panto" pneumato" akaqartou kai fulakh panto" orneou akaqartou]) are to be regarded as authentic, though there are some ms discrepancies. The similar beginnings (καὶ φυλακὴ παντός) and endings (ἀκαθάρτου) of each phrase would easily account for some
11 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
12 tc ‡ Several
13 tn See the notes on the words “passion” in Rev 14:8 and “wrath” in 16:19.
14 tn According to BDAG 949 s.v. στρῆνος and στρηνιάω, these terms can refer either to luxury or sensuality. In the context of Rev 18, however (as L&N 88.254 indicate) the stress is on gratification of the senses by sexual immorality, so that meaning was emphasized in the translation here.
12 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
13 tn The shift here to past tense reflects the Greek text.
14 tn On the phrase “broad plain of the earth” BDAG 823 s.v. πλάτος states, “τὸ πλάτος τῆς γῆς Rv 20:9 comes fr. the OT (Da 12:2 LXX. Cp. Hab 1:6; Sir 1:3), but the sense is not clear: breadth = the broad plain of the earth is perh. meant to provide room for the countless enemies of God vs. 8, but the ‘going up’ is better suited to Satan (vs. 7) who has recently been freed, and who comes up again fr. the abyss (vs. 3).” The referent here thus appears to be a plain large enough to accommodate the numberless hoards that have drawn up for battle against the Lord Christ and his saints.
15 tn Or “surrounded.”
16 tn On the term παρεμβολή (parembolh) BDAG 775 s.v. states, “Mostly used as a military t.t.…so always in our lit.…1. a (fortified) camp…ἡ παρεμβολὴ τῶν ἁγίων Rv 20:9 is also to be understood fr. the OT use of the word.”
17 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
18 tn See L&N 20.45 for the translation of κατεσθίω (katesqiw) as “to destroy utterly, to consume completely.”
13 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the summons by the fourth creature.
14 tc The reading “and I looked” (καὶ εἶδον, kai eidon) or some slight variation (e.g., ἶδον, idon) has excellent ms support ({א A C P 1611}) and its omission seems to have come through the
15 tn The phrase “and here came” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).
16 tn A sickly pallor, when referring to persons, or the green color of plants. BDAG 1085 s.v. χλωρός 2 states, “pale, greenish gray…as the color of a pers. in sickness contrasted with appearance in health…so the horse ridden by Death…ἵππος χλωρός Rv 6:8.” Because the color of the horse is symbolic, “pale green” is used in the translation. Cf. NIV, NCV “pale”; NASB “ashen.”
17 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
18 tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”
19 tn Grk “And Hades was following with him.” The Greek expression μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ (met’ autou, “with him”) is Semitic and indicates close proximity. The translation “followed right behind” reflects this.
20 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
21 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
22 tn Grk “with death.” θάνατος (qanatos) can in particular contexts refer to a manner of death, specifically a contagious disease (see BDAG 443 s.v. 3; L&N 23.158).