Revelation 17
17
Babylon the Great
1One of the seven angels who held the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of that notorious prostitute who sits on raging waters. 2The kings of the earth had sex with her, and those living on earth became drunk on the wine of her sexual sins.” 3Then the angel carried me by his power into the wilderness.
I saw a woman sitting on a bright red beast covered with insulting names. It had seven heads and ten horns. 4The woman wore purple clothes, bright red clothes, gold jewelry, gems, and pearls. In her hand she was holding a gold cup filled with detestable and evil things from her sexual sins. 5A name was written on her forehead. The name was Mystery: Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes and Detestable Things of the Earth. 6I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people and of those who testify about Jesus. I was very surprised when I saw her.
7The angel asked me, “Why are you surprised? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and the beast with the seven heads and the ten horns that carries her.
8“You saw the beast which once was, is no longer, and will come from the bottomless pit and go to its destruction. Those living on earth, whose names were not written in the Book of Life when the world was created, will be surprised when they see the beast because it was, is no longer, and will come again.
9“In this situation a wise mind is needed. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is sitting. 10They are also seven kings. Five of them have fallen, one is ruling now, and the other has not yet come. When he comes, he must remain for a little while. 11The beast that was and is no longer is the eighth king. It belongs with the seven kings and goes to its destruction.
12“The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet started to rule. They will receive authority to rule as kings with the beast for one hour. 13They have one purpose—to give their power and authority to the beast. 14They will go to war against the lamb. The lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. Those who are called, chosen, and faithful are with him.”
15The angel also said to me, “The waters you saw, on which the prostitute is sitting, are people, crowds, nations, and languages. 16The ten horns and the beast you saw will hate the prostitute. They will leave her abandoned and naked. They will eat her flesh and burn her up in a fire. 17God has made them do what he wants them to do. So they will give their kingdom to the beast until God’s words are carried out. 18The woman you saw is the important city which dominates the kings of the earth.”
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Revelation 17
17
The Woman on the Animal
1One of the seven angels came and spoke to me. This was one of the angels that had the seven bowls. He said, “Come, and I will show you the punishment that will be given to the famous prostitute. She is the one sitting over many waters. 2The kings of the earth sinned sexually with her. And the people of the earth became drunk from the wine of her sexual immorality.”
3Then the angel carried me away by the Spirit to the desert. There I saw a woman sitting on a red beast. He was covered with names against God written on him. He had seven heads and ten horns. 4The woman was dressed in purple and red. She was shining with the gold, jewels, and pearls she was wearing. She had a golden cup in her hand. This cup was filled with evil things and the uncleanness of her sexual immorality. 5She had a title written on her forehead. This title has a hidden meaning. This is what was written:
THE GREAT BABYLON MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND THE EVIL THINGS OF THE EARTH.
6I saw that the woman was drunk. She was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people. She was drunk with the blood of those who were killed because of their faith in Jesus.
When I saw the woman, I was fully amazed. 7Then the angel said to me, “Why are you amazed? I will tell you the hidden meaning of this woman and the beast she rides—the one with seven heads and ten horns. 8The beast that you saw was once alive. He is not alive now. But he will be alive and come up out of the bottomless pit and go away to be destroyed. The people who live on earth will be amazed when they see the beast. They will be amazed because he was once alive, is not alive now, but will come again. These are the people whose names have never been written in the book of life since the beginning of the world.
9“You need a wise mind to understand this. The seven heads on the beast are the seven hills where the woman sits. They are also seven kings. 10Five of the kings have already died. One of the kings lives now. And the last king is coming. When he comes, he will stay only a short time. 11The beast that was once alive but is not alive now is an eighth king. This eighth king also belongs to the first seven kings. And he will go away to be destroyed.
12“The ten horns you saw are ten kings. These ten kings have not yet begun to rule. But they will receive power to rule with the beast for one hour. 13All ten of these kings have the same purpose. And they will give their power and authority to the beast. 14They will make war against the Lamb. But the Lamb will defeat them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. He will defeat them with his chosen and faithful followers—the people that he has called.”
15Then the angel said to me, “You saw the water where the prostitute sits. These waters are the many peoples, the different races, nations, and languages. 16The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will take everything she has and leave her naked. They will eat her body and burn her with fire. 17God made the ten horns want to carry out his purpose: They agreed to give the beast their power to rule. They will rule until what God has said is completed. 18The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.