Revelation 18
1After
this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He
had great authority, and the earth was illuminated
by his splendor.
2With a mighty voice he shouted:
"Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!
She has become a home for demons
and a haunt for every evil[a]
spirit,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird.
3For all
the nations have drunk
the maddening wine of her adulteries.
The kings of the earth committed adultery with
her,
and the merchants of the earth grew rich from
her excessive luxuries."
4Then
I heard another voice from heaven say:
"Come out of her, my people,
so that you will not share in her sins,
so that you will not receive any of her
plagues;
5for her
sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her crimes.
6Give
back to her as she has given;
pay her back double for what she has done.
Mix her a double portion from her own cup.
7Give
her as much torture and grief
as the glory and luxury she gave herself.
In her heart she boasts,
'I sit as queen; I am not a widow,
and I will never mourn.'
8Therefore
in one day her plagues will overtake her:
death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.
9"When
the kings of the earth who committed adultery with
her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her
burning, they will weep and mourn over her.
10Terrified
at her torment, they will stand far off and cry:
" 'Woe! Woe, O great city,
O Babylon, city of power!
In one hour your doom has come!'
11"The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more— 12cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; 13cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and bodies and souls of men.
14"They
will say, 'The fruit you longed for is gone from
you. All your riches and splendor have vanished,
never to be recovered.'
15The
merchants who sold these things and gained their
wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her
torment. They will weep and mourn
16and cry
out:
" 'Woe! Woe, O great city,
dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet,
and glittering with gold, precious stones and
pearls!
17In one
hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!'
"Every sea captain, and all who
travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their
living from the sea, will stand far off.
18When
they see the smoke of her burning, they will
exclaim, 'Was there ever a city like this great
city?' 19They
will throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and
mourning cry out:
" 'Woe! Woe, O great city,
where all who had ships on the sea
became rich through her wealth!
In one hour she has been brought to ruin!
20Rejoice
over her, O heaven!
Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets!
God has judged her for the way she treated you.'
"
21Then
a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a
large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said:
"With such violence
the great city of Babylon will be thrown down,
never to be found again.
22The
music of harpists and musicians, flute players and
trumpeters,
will never be heard in you again.
No workman of any trade
will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
will never be heard in you again.
23The
light of a lamp will never shine in you again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in you again.
Your merchants were the world's great men.
By your magic spell all the nations were led
astray.
24In her
was found the blood of prophets and of the saints,
and of all who have been killed on the earth."
