Revelation 16:19

Context
16:19 The¹ great city was split into three parts and the cities of the nations² collapsed.³ So⁴ Babylon the great was remembered before God, and was given the cup⁵ filled with the wine made of God’s furious wrath.⁶

Revelation 18:16-19

Context
18:16 saying,

“Woe, woe, O great city –

dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet clothing,⁷

and adorned with gold,⁸ precious stones, and pearls –

18:17 because in a single hour such great wealth has been destroyed!”⁹

And every ship’s captain,¹⁰ and all who sail along the coast¹¹ – seamen, and all who¹² make their living from the sea, stood a long way off 18:18 and began to shout¹³ when they saw the smoke from the fire that burned her up,¹⁴ “Who is like the great city?” 18:19 And they threw dust on their heads and were shouting with weeping and mourning,¹⁵

“Woe, Woe, O great city –

in which all those who had ships on the sea got rich from her wealth –

because in a single hour she has been destroyed!”¹⁶

[16:19] ¹tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[16:19] ²tn Or “of the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).

[16:19] ³tn Grk “fell.”

[16:19] ⁴tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of Babylon’s misdeeds (see Rev 14:8).

[16:19] ⁵tn 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”).

[16:19] ⁶tn 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.

[18:16] ⁷tn The word “clothing” is supplied to clarify that the words “purple” and “scarlet” refer to cloth or garments rather than colors.

[18:16] ⁸tn Grk “gilded with gold” (an instance of semantic reinforcement, see L&N 49.29).

[18:17] ⁹tn On ἠρημώθη (hrhmwqh) L&N 20.41 states, “to suffer destruction, with the implication of being deserted and abandoned – ‘to be destroyed, to suffer destruction, to suffer desolation.’ ἐρημόομαι: μιᾷ ὥρᾳ ἠρημώθη ὁ τοσοῦτος πλοῦτος ‘such great wealth has been destroyed within a single hour’ Re 18:17.”

[18:17] ¹⁰tn On κυβερνήτης (kubernhth") BDAG 574 s.v. 1 states, “one who is responsible for the management of a ship, shipmaster, lit. Rv 18:17.”

[18:17] ¹¹tn Or perhaps, “everyone who sails as a passenger.” On πλέων (plewn) BDAG 825 s.v. πλέω states, “πᾶς ὁ ἐπὶ τόπον πλέων everyone who sails to a place = seafarer, sea traveler…Rv 18:17. The vv.ll.…have led to various interpretations. Some render: everyone who sails along the coast…See EbNestle, Einführung in das Griech. NT 1909, 182; AFridrichsen, K. Hum. Vetensk.-Samf. i Upps. Årsb. ’43, 31 note ὁ ἐπίτοπον πλέων=one who sails occasionally, a passenger. – S. also IHeikel, StKr 106, ’34/’35, 317).”

[18:17] ¹²tn Grk “and as many as.”

[18:18] ¹³tn Here the imperfect ἔκραζον (ekrazon) has been translated ingressively.

[18:18] ¹⁴tn Grk “from the burning of her, saying.” For the translation “the smoke from the fire that burned her up,” see L&N 14.63. Here the participle λέγοντες (legontes, “saying”) has not been translated because it is redundant in contemporary English.

[18:19] ¹⁵tn Grk “with weeping and mourning, saying.” Here the participle λέγοντες (legontes) has not been translated because it is redundant in contemporary English.

[18:19] ¹⁶tn On ἡρημώθη (Jhrhmwqh) L&N 20.41 states, “to suffer destruction, with the implication of being deserted and abandoned – ‘to be destroyed, to suffer destruction, to suffer desolation.’ ἐρημόομαι: μιᾷ ὥρᾳ ἠρημώθη ὁ τοσοῦτος πλοῦτος ‘such great wealth has been destroyed within a single hour’ Re 18:17.”