“We give you thanks, Lord God, the All-Powerful, 2
the one who is and who was,
because you have taken your great power
and begun to reign. 3
11:19 Then 4 the temple of God in heaven was opened and the ark of his covenant was visible within his temple. And there were flashes of lightning, roaring, 5 crashes of thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm. 6
12:1 Then 7 a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and with the moon under her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars. 8
15:1 Then 12 I saw another great and astounding sign in heaven: seven angels who have seven final plagues 13 (they are final because in them God’s anger is completed).
“Great and astounding are your deeds,
Lord God, the All-Powerful! 17
Just 18 and true are your ways,
King over the nations! 19
17:1 Then 22 one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke to me. 23 “Come,” he said, “I will show you the condemnation and punishment 24 of the great prostitute who sits on many waters,
“Fallen, fallen, is Babylon the great!
She 26 has become a lair for demons,
a haunt 27 for every unclean spirit,
a haunt for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detested beast. 28
“Woe, woe, O great city,
Babylon the powerful city!
For in a single hour your doom 29 has come!”
18:17 because in a single hour such great wealth has been destroyed!” 30
And every ship’s captain, 31 and all who sail along the coast 32 – seamen, and all who 33 make their living from the sea, stood a long way off
19:2 because his judgments are true and just. 34
For he has judged 35 the great prostitute
who corrupted the earth with her sexual immorality,
and has avenged the blood of his servants 36 poured out by her own hands!” 37
19:17 Then 38 I saw one angel standing in 39 the sun, and he shouted in a loud voice to all the birds flying high in the sky: 40
“Come, gather around for the great banquet 41 of God,
1 tn Grk “saying.”
2 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.”
3 tn The aorist verb ἐβασίλευσας (ebasileusa") has been translated ingressively.
4 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence on events within the vision.
5 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?…).”
6 tn Although BDAG 1075 s.v. χάλαζα gives the meaning “hail” here, it is not clear whether the adjective μεγάλη (megalh) refers to the intensity of the storm or the size of the individual hailstones, or both.
7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
8 sn Sun…moon…stars. This imagery is frequently identified with the nation Israel because of Joseph’s dream in Gen 37.
9 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s directions.
10 tn Or “vine.” BDAG 54 s.v. ἄμπελος a states, “τρυγᾶν τοὺς βότρυας τῆς ἀ. τῆς γῆς to harvest the grapes fr. the vine of the earth (i.e. fr. the earth, symbol. repr. as a grapevine) Rv 14:18f; but ἀ may be taking on the meaning of ἀμπελών, as oft. in pap., possibly PHib. 70b, 2 [III bc].” The latter alternative has been followed in the translation (ἀμπελών = “vineyard”).
11 tn Although the gender of μέγαν (megan, masc.) does not match the gender of ληνόν (lhnon, fem.) it has been taken to modify that word (as do most English translations).
12 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
13 tn Grk “seven plagues – the last ones.”
14 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
15 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
16 tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
17 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.”
18 tn Or “righteous,” although the context favors justice as the theme.
19 tc Certain
20 tn BDAG 699 s.v. οἰκουμένη 1 states, “the inhabited earth, the world…ὅλη ἡ οἰκ. the whole inhabited earth…Mt 24:14; Ac 11:28; Rv 3:10; 16:14.”
21 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.”
22 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
23 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.”
24 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.”
25 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style
26 tn Or “It” (the subject is embedded in the verb in Greek; the verb only indicates that it is third person). Since the city has been personified as the great prostitute, the feminine pronoun was used in the translation.
27 tn Here BDAG 1067 s.v. φυλακή 3 states, “a place where guarding is done, prison…Of the nether world or its place of punishment (πνεῦμα 2 and 4c) 1 Pt 3:19 (BReicke, The Disobedient Spirits and Christian Baptism ’46, 116f). It is in a φ. in the latter sense that Satan will be rendered harmless during the millennium Rv 20:7. The fallen city of Babylon becomes a φυλακή haunt for all kinds of unclean spirits and birds 18:2ab.”
28 tc There are several problems in this verse. It seems that according to the ms evidence the first two phrases (i.e., “and a haunt for every unclean spirit, and a haunt for every unclean bird” [καὶ φυλακὴ παντὸς πνεύματος ἀκαθάρτου καὶ φυλακὴ παντὸς ὀρνέου ἀκαθάρτου, kai fulakh panto" pneumato" akaqartou kai fulakh panto" orneou akaqartou]) are to be regarded as authentic, though there are some ms discrepancies. The similar beginnings (καὶ φυλακὴ παντός) and endings (ἀκαθάρτου) of each phrase would easily account for some
29 tn Or “judgment,” condemnation,” “punishment.” BDAG 569 s.v. κρίσις 1.a.β states, “The word oft. means judgment that goes against a person, condemnation, and the sentence that follows…ἡ κ. σου your judgment Rv 18:10.”
30 tn 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.”
31 tn On κυβερνήτης (kubernhth") BDAG 574 s.v. 1 states, “one who is responsible for the management of a ship, shipmaster, lit. Rv 18:17.”
32 tn 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).”
33 tn Grk “and as many as.”
34 tn Compare the similar phrase in Rev 16:7.
35 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.
36 tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.
37 tn Grk “from her hand” (referring to her responsibility in causing the blood of God’s followers to be shed).
38 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
39 tn The precise significance of ἐν (en) here is difficult to determine.
40 tn On μεσουρανήματι (mesouranhmati) here see L&N 1.10: “high in the sky, midpoint in the sky, directly overhead, straight above in the sky.” The birds mentioned here are carrion birds like vultures, circling high overhead, and now being summoned to feast on the corpses.
41 tn This is the same Greek word (δεῖπνον, deipnon) used in 19:9.