18:20 (Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you saints and apostles and prophets,
for God has pronounced judgment 1 against her on your behalf!) 2
19:1 After these things I heard what sounded like the loud voice of a vast throng in heaven, saying,
“Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
19:2 because his judgments are true and just. 3
For he has judged 4 the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth with her sexual immorality,
and has avenged the blood of his servants 5 poured out by her own hands!” 6
19:3 Then 7 a second time the crowd shouted, “Hallelujah!” The smoke rises from her forever and ever. 8 19:4 The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures threw themselves to the ground 9 and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne, saying: “Amen! Hallelujah!”
19:5 Then 10 a voice came from the throne, saying:
“Praise our God
all you his servants,
and all you who fear Him,
both the small and the great!”
19:6 Then 11 I heard what sounded like the voice of a vast throng, like the roar of many waters and like loud crashes of thunder. They were shouting: 12
“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God, 13 the All-Powerful, 14 reigns!
19:7 Let us rejoice 15 and exult
and give him glory,
because the wedding celebration of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready.
96:11 Let the sky rejoice, and the earth be happy!
Let the sea and everything in it shout!
96:12 Let the fields and everything in them celebrate!
Then let the trees of the forest shout with joy
96:13 before the Lord, for he comes!
For he comes to judge the earth!
He judges the world fairly, 16
and the nations in accordance with his justice. 17
148:1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the sky!
Praise him in the heavens!
148:2 Praise him, all his angels! 19
Praise him, all his heavenly assembly! 20
148:3 Praise him, O sun and moon!
Praise him, all you shiny stars! 21
148:4 Praise him, O highest heaven,
and you waters above the sky! 22
49:13 Shout for joy, O sky! 23
Rejoice, O earth!
Let the mountains give a joyful shout!
For the Lord consoles his people
and shows compassion to the 24 oppressed.
55:12 Indeed you will go out with joy;
you will be led along in peace;
the mountains and hills will give a joyful shout before you,
and all the trees in the field will clap their hands.
55:13 Evergreens will grow in place of thorn bushes,
firs will grow in place of nettles;
they will be a monument to the Lord, 25
a permanent reminder that will remain. 26
2:14 “Glory 27 to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among people 28 with whom he is pleased!” 29
1 tn On the phrase “pronounced judgment” BDAG 567 s.v. κρίμα 4.b states, “The OT is the source of the expr. κρίνειν τὸ κρ. (cp. Zech 7:9; 8:16; Ezk 44:24) ἔκρινεν ὁ θεὸς τὸ κρίμα ὑμῶν ἐξ αὐτῆς God has pronounced judgment for you against her or God has pronounced on her the judgment she wished to impose on you (HHoltzmann, Hdb. 1893 ad loc.) Rv 18:20.”
2 tn Grk “God has judged a judgment of you of her.” Verse 20 is set in parentheses because in it the saints, etc. are addressed directly in the second person.
3 tn Compare the similar phrase in Rev 16:7.
4 tn Or “has punished.” See BDAG 568 s.v. κρίνω 5.b.α, describing the OT background which involves both the vindication of the innocent and the punishment of the guilty.
5 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
6 tn Grk “from her hand” (referring to her responsibility in causing the blood of God’s followers to be shed).
7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
8 tn Or “her smoke ascends forever and ever.”
9 tn Grk “creatures fell down.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב. has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion or humility, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
10 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
11 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
12 tn Grk “like the voice of a large crowd…saying.” Because of the complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the words “They were.”
13 tc Several
14 tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22…κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν ὁ π. Rv 19:6.”
15 tn This verb and the next two verbs are hortatory subjunctives (giving exhortations).
16 tn The verbal forms in v. 13 probably describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, though they may depict in dramatic fashion the outworking of divine judgment or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions, in which case they could be translated “will judge the world.”
17 tn Heb “and the nations with his integrity.”
18 sn Psalm 148. The psalmist calls upon all creation to praise the Lord, for he is the creator and sovereign king of the world.
19 tn Or “heavenly messengers.”
20 tn Heb “all his host.”
21 tn Heb “stars of light.”
22 sn The “water” mentioned here corresponds to the “waters above” mentioned in Gen 1:7. See also Ps 104:3. For a discussion of the picture envisioned by the psalmist, see L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, 47.
23 tn Or “O heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heavens” or “sky” depending on the context.
24 tn Heb “his” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
25 tn Heb “to the Lord for a name.” For שֵׁם (shem) used in the sense of “monument,” see also 56:5, where it stands parallel to יָד (yad).
26 tn Or, more literally, “a permanent sign that will not be cut off.”
27 sn Glory here refers to giving honor to God.
28 tn This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") referring to both males and females.
29 tc Most witnesses (א2 B2 L Θ Ξ Ψ Ë1,13 Ï sy bo) have ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκία (en anqrwpoi" eudokia, “good will among people”) instead of ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκίας (en anqrwpoi" eudokia", “among people with whom he is pleased”), a reading attested by א* A B* D W pc (sa). Most of the Itala witnesses and some other versional witnesses reflect a Greek text which has the genitive εὐδοκίας but drops the preposition ἐν. Not only is the genitive reading better attested, but it is more difficult than the nominative. “The meaning seems to be, not that divine peace can be bestowed only where human good will is already present, but that at the birth of the Saviour God’s peace rests on those whom he has chosen in accord with his good pleasure” (TCGNT 111).
30 sn The whole of heaven is said to rejoice. Joy in the presence of God’s angels is a way of referring to God’s joy as well without having to name him explicitly. Contemporary Judaism tended to refer to God indirectly where possible out of reverence or respect for the divine name.