Revelation 14:6-18:24
English Standard Version
The Messages of the Three Angels
6 Then I saw another angel (A)flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to (B)those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. 7 And he said with a loud voice, (C)“Fear God and (D)give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and (E)worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the (F)springs of water.”
8 Another angel, a second, followed, saying, (G)“Fallen, fallen is (H)Babylon the great, (I)she who made all nations drink (J)the wine of the passion[a] of her sexual immorality.”
9 And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone (K)worships the beast and its image and receives (L)a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he also will drink (M)the wine of God's wrath, (N)poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and (O)he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And (P)the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and (Q)they have no rest, day or night, these (R)worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”
12 (S)Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who (T)keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.[b]
13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: (U)Blessed are the dead (V)who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, (W)“that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”
The Harvest of the Earth
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one (X)like a son of man, (Y)with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 And another angel (Z)came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, (AA)“Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for (AB)the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” 16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.
17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came out from the altar, (AC)the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, (AD)for its grapes are ripe.” 19 So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great (AE)winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And (AF)the winepress was trodden (AG)outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as (AH)a horse's bridle, for 1,600 stadia.[c]
The Seven Angels with Seven Plagues
15 Then (AI)I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, (AJ)seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.
2 And I saw (AK)what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those (AL)who had conquered the beast and its image and (AM)the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass (AN)with harps of God in their hands. 3 And they sing (AO)the song of Moses, (AP)the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
(AQ)“Great and amazing are your deeds,
O Lord God the Almighty!
(AR)Just and true are your ways,
O King of the nations![d]
4 (AS)Who will not fear, O Lord,
and glorify your name?
For you alone are (AT)holy.
(AU)All nations will come
and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
5 After this I looked, and (AV)the sanctuary of (AW)the tent[e] of witness in heaven was opened, 6 and out of the sanctuary came (AX)the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright (AY)linen, (AZ)with golden sashes around their chests. 7 And one of (BA)the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven (BB)golden bowls full of the wrath of God (BC)who lives forever and ever, 8 and (BD)the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and (BE)no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
The Seven Bowls of God's Wrath
16 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling (BF)the seven angels, “Go and (BG)pour out on the earth (BH)the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
2 So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful (BI)sores came upon the people who bore (BJ)the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.
3 The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and (BK)it became like the blood of a corpse, and (BL)every living thing died that was in the sea.
4 The third angel poured out his bowl into (BM)the rivers and the springs of water, and (BN)they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel in charge of the waters[f] say,
(BO)“Just are you, (BP)O Holy One, (BQ)who is and who was,
for you brought these judgments.
6 For (BR)they have shed the blood of (BS)saints and prophets,
and (BT)you have given them blood to drink.
It is what they deserve!”
7 And I heard (BU)the altar saying,
“Yes, Lord God the Almighty,
(BV)true and just are your judgments!”
8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to scorch people (BW)with fire. 9 They were scorched by the fierce heat, and (BX)they cursed[g] the name of God who had power over these plagues. (BY)They did not repent (BZ)and give him glory.
10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on (CA)the throne of the beast, and (CB)its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in anguish 11 and cursed (CC)the God of heaven for their pain and (CD)sores. (CE)They did not repent of their deeds.
12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on (CF)the great river Euphrates, and (CG)its water was dried up, (CH)to prepare the way for the kings (CI)from the east. 13 And I saw, coming out of the mouth of (CJ)the dragon and out of the mouth of (CK)the beast and out of the mouth of (CL)the false prophet, three (CM)unclean spirits like (CN)frogs. 14 For they are (CO)demonic spirits, (CP)performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, (CQ)to assemble them for battle on (CR)the great day of God the Almighty. 15 (“Behold, (CS)I am coming like a thief! (CT)Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, (CU)that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”) 16 And (CV)they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called (CW)Armageddon.
The Seventh Bowl
17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into (CX)the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, (CY)“It is done!” 18 And there were (CZ)flashes of lightning, rumblings,[h] peals of thunder, and (DA)a great earthquake (DB)such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. 19 (DC)The great city (DD)was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God (DE)remembered (DF)Babylon the great, (DG)to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 And (DH)every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. 21 And (DI)great hailstones, about one hundred pounds[i] each, fell from heaven on people; and (DJ)they cursed God for (DK)the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.
The Great Prostitute and the Beast
17 Then (DL)one of the seven angels who had (DM)the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of (DN)the great prostitute (DO)who is seated on many waters, 2 (DP)with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and (DQ)with the wine of whose sexual immorality (DR)the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” 3 And (DS)he carried me away in the Spirit (DT)into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on (DU)a scarlet beast that was full of (DV)blasphemous names, and (DW)it had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman (DX)was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned (DY)with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand (DZ)a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. 5 And on her forehead was written a name of (EA)mystery: (EB)“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth's abominations.” 6 And I saw the woman, drunk (EC)with the blood of the saints, the blood of (ED)the martyrs of Jesus.[j]
When I saw her, I marveled greatly. 7 But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you (EE)the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 8 The beast that you saw (EF)was, and is not, and (EG)is about to rise from (EH)the bottomless pit[k] and (EI)go to destruction. And (EJ)the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in (EK)the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because (EL)it was and is not and is to come. 9 (EM)This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; 10 they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. 11 As for the beast (EN)that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. 12 And (EO)the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings (EP)for one hour, together with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. 14 They (EQ)will make war on the Lamb, and (ER)the Lamb will conquer them, for he is (ES)Lord of lords and (ET)King of kings, and those with him are (EU)called and chosen and faithful.”
15 And the angel[l] said to me, (EV)“The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. 16 And (EW)the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast (EX)will hate the prostitute. They will make her (EY)desolate and (EZ)naked, and (FA)devour her flesh and (FB)burn her up with fire, 17 for (FC)God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and (FD)handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. 18 And the woman that you saw is (FE)the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”
The Fall of Babylon
18 After this I saw (FF)another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and (FG)the earth was made bright with his glory. 2 And he called out with a mighty voice,
(FH)“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
She has become (FI)a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt (FJ)for every unclean spirit,
a haunt (FK)for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
3 For all nations have drunk[m]
(FL)the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality,
and (FM)the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her,
and (FN)the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,
(FO)“Come out of her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
5 for (FP)her sins are heaped high as heaven,
and (FQ)God has remembered her iniquities.
6 (FR)Pay her back as she herself has paid back others,
and repay her (FS)double for her deeds;
mix a double portion for her (FT)in the cup she mixed.
7 (FU)As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning,
since in her heart she says,
(FV)‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.’
8 For this reason her plagues will come (FW)in a single day,
death and mourning and famine,
and (FX)she will be burned up with fire;
for (FY)mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”
9 And (FZ)the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, (GA)will weep and wail over her (GB)when they see the smoke of her burning. 10 (GC)They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say,
“Alas! Alas! (GD)You great city,
you mighty city, Babylon!
For (GE)in a single hour your judgment has come.”
11 And (GF)the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.[n]
14 “The fruit for which your soul longed
has gone from you,
and all your delicacies and your splendors
are lost to you,
never to be found again!”
15 (GG)The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, (GH)will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud,
16 “Alas, alas, for the great city
(GI)that was clothed in fine linen,
in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold,
with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For (GJ)in a single hour all this wealth (GK)has been laid waste.”
And (GL)all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and (GM)cried out (GN)as they saw the smoke of her burning,
(GO)“What city was like the great city?”
19 And they threw (GP)dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out,
“Alas, alas, for the great city
(GQ)where all who had ships at sea
grew rich by her wealth!
For (GR)in a single hour she has been laid waste.
20 (GS)Rejoice over her, O heaven,
and you saints and (GT)apostles and prophets,
for (GU)God has given judgment for you against her!”
21 Then (GV)a mighty angel (GW)took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,
“So will Babylon (GX)the great city be thrown down with violence,
and will be found no more;
22 and (GY)the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters,
will be heard in you no more,
and a craftsman of any craft
will be found in you no more,
and (GZ)the sound of the mill
will be heard in you no more,
23 and the light of a lamp
will shine in you no more,
and (HA)the voice of bridegroom and bride
will be heard in you no more,
for (HB)your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
and all nations were deceived (HC)by your sorcery.
24 And (HD)in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of (HE)all who have been slain on earth.”
Footnotes
- Revelation 14:8 Or wrath
- Revelation 14:12 Greek and the faith of Jesus
- Revelation 14:20 About 184 miles; a stadion was about 607 feet or 185 meters
- Revelation 15:3 Some manuscripts the ages
- Revelation 15:5 Or tabernacle
- Revelation 16:5 Greek angel of the waters
- Revelation 16:9 Greek blasphemed; also verses 11, 21
- Revelation 16:18 Or voices, or sounds
- Revelation 16:21 Greek a talent in weight
- Revelation 17:6 Greek the witnesses to Jesus
- Revelation 17:8 Greek the abyss
- Revelation 17:15 Greek he
- Revelation 18:3 Some manuscripts fallen by
- Revelation 18:13 Or and slaves, and human lives
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.