The Fall of Babylon the Great

1After this I saw ²⁸⁷another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his glory.

2He cried out ²⁸⁸with a mighty voice,
“ ²⁸⁹Fallen is Babylon the great!
She has become a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt for every unclean ²⁹⁰spirit,
and a haunt for every unclean and hated bird.

3For ²⁹¹all the nations have fallen
because of the ²⁹²wine of the wrath of her fornication.
The kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,
and the merchants of the earth have become rich from the power of her luxury.”

4Then I heard another voice from heaven say,
“Come out of her, my people,
so that you do not participate in her sins,
²⁹³and so that you do not receive any of her plagues;

5for her sins ²⁹⁴are heaped as high as heaven,
and God has remembered her unrighteous acts.

6Render to her as she herself has ²⁹⁵rendered;
²⁹⁶make it double, as she has done, even according to her works.
Mix a double portion for her in the cup she has mixed.

7As much as she has glorified herself and lived in luxury,
give her the same amount of torment ²⁹⁷and mourning,
for in her heart she says,
‘I ²⁹⁸sit enthroned as a queen;
I am not a widow
and will never see mourning.’

8Therefore her plagues will come in a single day—
death, mourning, and famine.
She will be burned up with fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who ²⁹⁹has judged her.”

9The kings of the earth who have committed fornication with her and lived in luxury with her will ³⁰⁰weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning.

10In fear of her torment they will stand at a distance and say,
“Alas, ³⁰¹alas, for the great city,
Babylon, the mighty city!
For in a single hour yoʋr judgment has come.”

11The merchants of the earth ³⁰²will weep and mourn ³⁰³over her, because no one buys their cargo anymore,

12cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of citron wood, all kinds of articles made of ivory, all kinds of articles made of costly wood, bronze, iron, and marble;

13cargo of ³⁰⁴cinnamon, incense, myrrh, frankincense, ³⁰⁵wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, ³⁰⁶sheep, cattle, horses and chariots, and bodies and souls of men.

14“The ripe fruit that was the desire of yoʋr soul
³⁰⁷is gone from yoʋ,
and all yoʋr delicacies and splendors
³⁰⁸are lost to ³⁰⁹yoʋ;
yoʋ will never find them again!”

15The merchants of these wares, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,

16“Alas, ³¹⁰alas, for the great city
that was clothed in fine linen,
in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold,
with precious stone and pearls!

17For in a single hour such great wealth has been laid waste!”
And every shipmaster and seafaring man, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood at a distance

18and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning,
“What city is like the great city?”

19They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and mourning aloud,
“Alas, alas, for the great city,
where all who had ships at sea
grew rich from her valuable merchandise!
For in a single hour she has been laid waste.

20Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you ³¹¹saints, apostles, and prophets,
for God has given judgment for you against her.”

21Then a mighty angel picked up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, and said,
“With ³¹²such violence Babylon the great city
will be thrown down,
never to be found again.

22The sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters
will never be heard in yoʋ again.
No craftsman of any trade
will ever be found in yoʋ again.
The sound of a mill
will never be heard in yoʋ again.

23The light of a lamp
will never shine in yoʋ again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in yoʋ again,
³¹³for yoʋr merchants were the magnates of the earth,
and all the nations were deceived by yoʋr sorcery.”

24And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.