15:4 Who will not fear you, O Lord,
and glorify 28 your name, because you alone are holy? 29
All nations 30 will come and worship before you
for your righteous acts 31 have been revealed.”
18:14 (The ripe fruit 43 you greatly desired 44
has gone from you,
and all your luxury 45 and splendor 46
have gone from you –
they will never ever be found again!) 47
18:21 Then 48 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 49
Babylon the great city will be thrown down 50
and it will never be found again!
20:11 Then 51 I saw a large 52 white throne and the one who was seated on it; the earth and the heaven 53 fled 54 from his presence, and no place was found for them.
1 tn Although the first possessive pronoun σου (sou) is connected to τὰ ἔργα (ta erga) and the second σου is connected to ὑπομονήν (Jupomonhn), semantically κόπον (kopon) is also to be understood as belonging to the Ephesian church. The translation reflects this.
2 tn The translation “tolerate” seems to capture the sense of βαστάσαι (bastasai) here. BDAG 171 s.v. βαστάζω 2.b.β says, “bear, endure…κακούς Rv 2:2.…bear patiently, put up with: weaknesses of the weak Ro 15:1; cf. IPol 1:2; evil Rv 2:3.”
3 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the participle was broken off from the previous sentence and translated as an indicative verb beginning a new sentence here in the translation.
4 sn That is, the teaching of Jezebel (v. 20).
5 tn Grk “deep things.” For the translation “deep secrets” see L&N 28.76; cf. NAB, NIV, CEV.
7 tn The expression πῶς εἴληφας καὶ ἤκουσας (pw" eilhfa" kai hkousa") probably refers to the initial instruction in the Christian life they had received and been taught; this included doctrine and ethical teaching.
8 tn Grk “keep it,” in the sense of obeying what they had initially been taught.
9 tn The negation here is with οὐ μή (ou mh, the strongest possible form of negation in Koine Greek).
10 tn Or “come on.”
10 tn Or “who overcomes.”
11 tn Grk “thus.”
12 tn Or “white robes.”
13 tn The negation here is with οὐ μή (ou mh), the strongest possible form of negation in Koine Greek.
14 tn Or “will never wipe out.”
15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
16 tn Grk “will confess.”
13 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
14 tn Grk “voice, saying”; the participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.
15 tn The expression ἕως πότε (ews pote) was translated “how long.” Cf. BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.γ.
16 tn The Greek term here is δεσπότης (despoths; see L&N 37.63).
16 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
17 tn Grk “men”; but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense here of both men and women.
18 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
19 tn The phrase “not be able to” was used in the translation to emphasize the strong negation (οὐ μή, ou mh) in the Greek text.
19 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
20 tn For the translation “ruling authority” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.
21 tn For this meaning see BDAG 342 s.v. ἐνώπιον 4.b, “by the authority of, on behalf of Rv 13:12, 14; 19:20.”
22 tn Or “and praise.”
23 sn Because you alone are holy. In the Greek text the sentence literally reads “because alone holy.” Three points can be made in connection with John’s language here: (1) Omitting the second person, singular verb “you are” lays stress on the attribute of God’s holiness. (2) The juxtaposition of alone with holy stresses the unique nature of God’s holiness and complete “otherness” in relationship to his creation. It is not just moral purity which is involved in the use of the term holy, though it certainly includes that. It is also the pervasive OT idea that although God is deeply involved in the governing of his creation, he is to be regarded as separate and distinct from it. (3) John’s use of the term holy is also intriguing since it is the term ὅσιος (Josios) and not the more common NT term ἅγιος (Jagios). The former term evokes images of Christ’s messianic status in early Christian preaching. Both Peter in Acts 2:27 and Paul in Acts 13:35 apply Psalm 16:10 (LXX) to Jesus, referring to him as the “holy one” (ὅσιος). It is also the key term in Acts 13:34 (Isa 55:3 [LXX]) where it refers to the “holy blessings” (i.e., forgiveness and justification) brought about through Jesus in fulfillment of Davidic promise. Thus, in Rev 15:3-4, when John refers to God as “holy,” using the term ὅσιος in a context where the emphasis is on both God and Christ, there might be an implicit connection between divinity and the Messiah. This is bolstered by the fact that the Lamb is referred to in other contexts as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (cf. 1:5; 17:14; 19:16 and perhaps 11:15; G. K. Beale, Revelation [NIGTC], 796-97).
24 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
25 tn Or perhaps, “your sentences of condemnation.” On δικαίωμα (dikaiwma) in this context BDAG 249 s.v. 2. states, “righteous deed…δι᾿ ἑνὸς δικαιώματος (opp. παράπτωμα) Ro 5:18. – B 1:2 (cp. Wengst, Barnabas-brief 196, n.4); Rv 15:4 (here perh.= ‘sentence of condemnation’ [cp. Pla., Leg. 9, 864e; ins fr. Asia Minor: LBW 41, 2 [κατὰ] τὸ δι[καί]ωμα τὸ κυρω[θέν]= ‘acc. to the sentence which has become valid’]; difft. Wengst, s. above); 19:8.”
25 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “thus” to indicate the implied result of the bowl poured on the sun.
26 tn Grk “men,” but this is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") and refers to both men and women.
27 tn On this phrase BDAG 536 s.v. καῦμα states, “burning, heat Rv 7:16…καυματίζεσθαι κ. μέγα be burned with a scorching heat 16:9.”
28 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
29 tn For the translation “ruling authority” for ἐξουσία (exousia) see L&N 37.35.
28 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
29 tn Or “sounds,” “voices.” It is not entirely clear what this refers to. BDAG 1071 s.v. φωνή 1 states, “In Rv we have ἀστραπαὶ καὶ φωναὶ καὶ βρονταί (cp. Ex 19:16) 4:5; 8:5; 11:19; 16:18 (are certain other sounds in nature thought of here in addition to thunder, as e.g. the roar of the storm?…).”
30 tn The singular ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used generically here to refer to the human race.
31 tn “As much as” is the translation of ὅσα (Josa).
32 tn On the term ἐστρηνίασεν (estrhniasen) BDAG 949 s.v. στρηνιάω states, “live in luxury, live sensually Rv 18:7. W. πορνεύειν vs. 9.”
33 tn Grk “said in her heart,” an idiom for saying something to oneself.
34 tn On ὀπώρα (opwra) L&N 3.34 states, “ἡ ὀπώρα σου τῆς ἐπιθυμίας τῆς ψυχῆς ‘the ripe fruit for which you longed’ Re 18:14. In this one occurrence of ὀπώρα in the NT, ‘ripe fruit’ is to be understood in a figurative sense of ‘good things.’”
35 tn Grk “you desired in your soul.”
36 tn On λιπαρός (liparo") BDAG 597 s.v. states, “luxury Rv 18:14.”
37 tn On τὰ λαμπρά (ta lampra) BDAG 585 s.v. λαμπρός 4 states, “splendor…in which a rich man takes delight (cp. Jos., Ant. 12, 220 δωρεὰς δοὺς λαμπράς) Rv 18:14.”
38 tn Verse 14 is set in parentheses because in it the city, Babylon, is addressed directly in second person.
37 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
38 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.
39 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.
40 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
41 tn Traditionally, “great,” but μέγας (megas) here refers to size rather than importance.
42 tn Or “and the sky.” The same Greek word means both “heaven” and “sky,” and context usually determines which is meant. In this apocalyptic scene, however, it is difficult to be sure what referent to assign the term.
43 tn Or “vanished.”
43 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
44 tn Here BDAG 552 s.v. κοινός 2 states, “pert. to being of little value because of being common, common, ordinary, profane…b. specifically, of that which is ceremonially impure: Rv 21:27.”
45 tn Or “what is abhorrent”; Grk “who practices abominations.”
46 tn Grk “practicing abomination or falsehood.” Because of the way βδέλυγμα (bdelugma) has been translated (“does what is detestable”) it was necessary to repeat the idea from the participle ποιῶν (poiwn, “practices”) before the term “falsehood.” On this term, BDAG 1097 s.v. ψεῦδος states, “ποιεῖν ψεῦδος practice (the things that go with) falsehood Rv 21:27; 22:15.” Cf. Rev 3:9.
47 tn Grk “those who are written”; the word “names” is implied.