Revelation 17:1-2

The Great Prostitute and the Beast

17:1 Then ¹  one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke to me. ²  “Come,” he said, “I will show you the condemnation and punishment ³  of the great prostitute who sits on many waters, 17:2 with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality and the earth’s inhabitants got drunk with the wine of her immorality.” ⁴ 

Revelation 17:13

17:13 These kings ⁵  have a single intent, and they will give their power and authority to the beast.

Revelation 16:12

16:12 Then ⁶  the sixth angel ⁷  poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates and dried up its water ⁸  to prepare the way ⁹  for the kings from the east. ¹⁰ 

Isaiah 13:17-18

13:17 Look, I am stirring up the Medes to attack them; ¹¹ 

they are not concerned about silver,

nor are they interested in gold. ¹² 

13:18 Their arrows will cut young men to ribbons; ¹³ 

they have no compassion on a person’s offspring, ¹⁴ 

they will not ¹⁵  look with pity on children.

Jeremiah 50:41-42

50:41 “Look! An army is about to come from the north.

A mighty nation and many kings ¹⁶  are stirring into action

in faraway parts of the earth.

50:42 Its soldiers are armed with bows and spears.

They are cruel and show no mercy.

They sound like the roaring sea

as they ride forth on their horses.

Lined up in formation like men going into battle,

they are coming against you, fair Babylon! ¹⁷ 

[17:1]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[17:1]  ² tn Grk “with me.” The translation “with me” implies that John was engaged in a dialogue with the one speaking to him (e.g., Jesus or an angel) when in reality it was a one-sided conversation, with John doing all the listening. For this reason, μετ᾿ ἐμοῦ (met’ emou, “with me”) was translated as “to me.”

[17:1]  ³ tn Here one Greek term, κρίμα (krima), has been translated by the two English terms “condemnation” and “punishment.” See BDAG 567 s.v. 4.b, “mostly in an unfavorable sense, of the condemnatory verdict and sometimes the subsequent punishment itself 2 Pt 2:3; Jd 4…τὸ κ. τῆς πόρνης the condemnation and punishment of the prostitute Rv 17:1.”

[17:2]  ⁴ tn This is the same word translated “sexual immorality” earlier in the verse, but here the qualifier “sexual” has not been repeated for stylistic reasons.

[17:13]  ⁵ tn The word “kings” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to clarify the referent.

[16:12]  ⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[16:12]  ⁷ tn Grk “the sixth”; the referent (the sixth angel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:12]  ⁸ tn Grk “and its water was dried up.” Here the passive construction has been translated as an active one.

[16:12]  ⁹ tn Grk “in order that the way might be prepared.” Here the passive construction has been translated as an active one.

[16:12]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “from the rising of the sun.” BDAG 74 s.v. ἀνατολή 2.a takes this as a geographical direction: “ἀπὸ ἀ. ἡλίου…from the east Rv 7:2; 16:12; simply ἀπὸ ἀ. …21:13.”

[13:17]  ¹¹ tn Heb “against them”; NLT “against Babylon.”

[13:17]  ¹² sn They cannot be bought off, for they have a lust for bloodshed.

[13:18]  ¹³ tn Heb “and bows cut to bits young men.” “Bows” stands by metonymy for arrows.

[13:18]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the fruit of the womb.”

[13:18]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “their eye does not.” Here “eye” is a metonymy for the whole person.

[50:41]  ¹⁶ sn A mighty nation and many kings is an allusion to the Medo-Persian empire and the vassal kings who provided forces for the Medo-Persian armies.

[50:42]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “daughter Babylon.” The word “daughter” is a personification of the city of Babylon and its inhabitants.