“The salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the ruling authority 12 of his Christ, 13 have now come,
because the accuser of our brothers and sisters, 14
the one who accuses them day and night 15 before our God,
has been thrown down.
12:12 Therefore you heavens rejoice, and all who reside in them!
But 16 woe to the earth and the sea
because the devil has come down to you!
He 17 is filled with terrible anger,
for he knows that he only has a little time!”
18:21 Then 18 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 19
Babylon the great city will be thrown down 20
and it will never be found again!
1 tn Grk “behold” (L&N 91.13).
2 sn See the note on synagogue in 2:9.
3 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast between what these people claimed and what they were.
4 tn The verb here is ποιέω (poiew), but in this context it has virtually the same meaning as δίδωμι (didwmi) used at the beginning of the verse. Stylistic variation like this is typical of Johannine literature.
5 tn The verb here is προσκυνήσουσιν (proskunhsousin), normally used to refer to worship.
6 tn Or “and know,” “and recognize.”
7 tn Or “who is victorious”; traditionally, “who overcomes.”
8 tn Grk “I will make him,” but the pronoun (αὐτόν, auton, “him”) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.
9 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
10 sn This description of the city of my God is parenthetical, explaining further the previous phrase and interrupting the list of “new names” given here.
11 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
12 tn Or “the right of his Messiah to rule.” See L&N 37.35.
13 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
14 tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited). The translation “fellow believer” would normally apply (L&N 11.23), but since the speaker(s) are not specified in this context, it is not clear if such a translation would be appropriate here. The more generic “brothers and sisters” was chosen to emphasize the fact of a relationship without specifying its type.
15 tn Or “who accuses them continually.”
16 tn The word “But” is not in the Greek text, but the contrast is clearly implied. This is a case of asyndeton (lack of a connective).
17 tn Grk “and is filled,” a continuation of the previous sentence. Because English tends to use shorter sentences (especially when exclamations are involved), a new sentence was started here in the translation.
18 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
19 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.
20 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.
21 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s announcement.
22 tn Grk “I fell down at his feet.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב. has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion or humility, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”
23 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
24 tn On the elliptical expression ὅρα μή (Jora mh) BDAG 720 s.v. ὁράω B.2 states: “Elliptically…ὅρα μή (sc. ποιήσῃς) watch out! don’t do that! Rv 19:10; 22:9.”
25 tn The lowliness of a slave is emphasized in the Greek text with the emphatic position of σύνδουλος (sundoulo"). The use of “only” helps to bring this nuance out in English.
26 tn Grk “fellow slave.” See the note on the word “servants” in v. 2.
27 tn The Greek term “brother” literally refers to family relationships, but here it is used in a broader sense to connote familial relationships within the family of God (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 2.a).
28 tn The genitive ᾿Ιησοῦ (Ihsou) has been translated as an objective genitive here. A subjective genitive, also possible, would produce the meaning “who hold to what Jesus testifies.”
29 tn Grk “its”; the referent (the city, the new Jerusalem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
30 tn The Greek word πλατεῖα (plateia) refers to a major (broad) street (L&N 1.103).
31 tn Grk “From here and from there.”
32 tn Or “twelve crops” (one for each month of the year).
33 tn The words “of the year” are implied.