A Revelation to John
18 After these things I saw another angel descending from heaven, with great authority;+ and the earth was lighted up from his glory.+ 2 And he cried out with a strong voice,+ saying: “She has fallen! Babylon* the Great has fallen,+ and she has become a dwelling place of demons and a lurking place of every unclean exhalation*+ and a lurking place of every unclean and hated bird!+ 3 For because of the wine of the anger of her fornication* all the nations have fallen [victim],+ and the kings of the earth committed fornication+ with her, and the traveling merchants+ of the earth became rich due to the power of her shameless luxury.”+
4 And I heard another voice out of heaven say: “Get out of her, my people,+ if YOU do not want to share with her in her sins,+ and if YOU do not want to receive part of her plagues. 5 For her sins have massed together clear up to heaven,+ and God has called her acts of injustice to mind.+ 6 Render to her even as she herself rendered,+ and do to her twice as much, yes, twice the number of the things she did;+ in the cup+ in which she put a mixture put twice+ as much of the mixture for her.+ 7 To the extent that she glorified herself and lived in shameless luxury, to that extent give her torment and mourning.+ For in her heart she keeps saying, ‘I sit a queen,+ and I am no widow,+ and I shall never see mourning.’+ 8 That is why in one day her plagues+ will come, death and mourning and famine, and she will be completely burned with fire,+ because Jehovah* God, who judged her, is strong.+
9 “And the kings+ of the earth who committed fornication with her and lived in shameless luxury will weep and beat themselves in grief over her,+ when they look at the smoke+ from the burning of her, 10 while they stand at a distance because of their fear of her torment and say,+ ‘Too bad, too bad, you great city,+ Babylon you strong city, because in one hour your judgment has arrived!’+
11 “Also, the traveling merchants+ of the earth are weeping and mourning over her,+ because there is no one to buy their full stock anymore, 12 a full stock+ of gold and silver and precious stone and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet; and everything in scented wood* and every sort of ivory object and every sort of object out of most precious wood and of copper and of iron and of marble;+ 13 also cinnamon and Indian spice* and incense and perfumed oil and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and horses and coaches and slaves* and human souls.*+ 14 Yes, the fine fruit that your soul desired*+ has departed from you, and all the dainty things and the gorgeous things have perished from you, and never again will people find them.+
15 “The traveling merchants+ of these things, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance because of [their] fear of her torment and will weep and mourn,+ 16 saying, ‘Too bad, too bad—the great city,+ clothed with fine linen and purple and scarlet, and richly adorned with gold ornament and precious stone and pearl,+ 17 because in one hour such great riches have been devastated!’+
“And every ship captain and every man that voyages anywhere,+ and sailors and all those who make a living by the sea, stood at a distance+ 18 and cried out as they looked at the smoke from the burning of her and said, ‘What city is like the great city?’+ 19 And they threw dust upon their heads+ and cried out, weeping and mourning,+ and said, ‘Too bad, too bad—the great city, in which all those having boats at sea+ became rich+ by reason of her costliness, because in one hour she has been devastated!’+
20 “Be glad over her, O heaven,+ also YOU holy ones+ and YOU apostles+ and YOU prophets, because God has judicially exacted punishment for YOU from her!”+
21 And a strong angel lifted up a stone like a great millstone+ and hurled it into the sea,+ saying: “Thus with a swift pitch will Babylon the great city be hurled down, and she will never be found again.+ 22 And the sound of singers who accompany themselves on the harp and of musicians and of flutists and of trumpeters will never be heard in you again,+ and no craftsman of any trade* will ever be found in you again, and no sound of a millstone will ever be heard in you again, 23 and no light of a lamp will ever shine in you again, and no voice of a bridegroom and of a bride will ever be heard in you again;+ because your traveling merchants+ were the top-ranking men+ of the earth, for by your spiritistic+ practice* all the nations were misled. 24 Yes, in her was found the blood+ of prophets+ and of holy ones+ and of all those who have been slaughtered on the earth.”+