Revelation 18:20 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!"

NIV: "Rejoice over her, you heavens! Rejoice, you people of God! Rejoice, apostles and prophets! For God has judged her with the judgment she imposed on you."

NASB: Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her.'

CSB: Rejoice over her, heaven, and you saints, apostles, and prophets, because God has pronounced on her the judgment she passed on you!

NLT: Rejoice over her fate, O heaven and people of God and apostles and prophets! For at last God has judged her for your sakes.

KJV: Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.

NKJV: “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you holy apostles and prophets, for God has avenged you on her!”

This passage has described the fall of a city—possibly representing an entire nation or culture—as judgment from God for their wickedness and evil. Whereas three groups of mourners lament the fall of Babylon, three groups are encouraged to rejoice that Babylon has fallen. Those groups are saints, apostles, and prophets. Interestingly, this declaration comes in the same section as the seafarers' mourning, suggesting they are the ones telling the saints to rejoice. Ancient writings were not composed with paragraphs as is modern text. The statement of rejoicing might be an aside, not necessarily something the world's sailors themselves said. That being the case, the seafarers might well recognize that what is happening to Babylon is divine judgment and react accordingly.

Heaven rejoices over one sinner that repents (Luke 15:7), and it rejoices when Babylon collapses. God and God alone is in the business of securing vengeance for his people (Romans 12:19). His vengeance may not come immediately, or as soon as we would prefer (Habakkuk 1:2; Revelation 6:10). But when it does, it comes with full recompense. He does not let wrong triumph over right (Psalm 37:28). The beast's end-times reign (Revelation 13:1–10) is characterized by ego, greed, cruelty, and injustice, but with one powerful stroke God puts an end to it. God's judgment vindicates His righteous, holy character.

As used in the Bible, "saints" are believers: saved Christians whom God has set apart to Himself. "Saints" is not a term for specially-holy persons; it means anyone who has believed in Christ (John 3:16). "Apostles" are those who saw the risen Lord and received a commission from Him to preach the gospel (Acts 1:2). "Prophets" were those gifted by the Lord to disclose His will to the church before the New Testament was complete. They were also foretellers of the Word.

It seems all three groups view Babylon's judgment from heaven. Babylon's judgment was recompense for what the saints, apostles, and prophets had suffered.

Revelation 18:9–20 reports the reactions of kings, merchants, and seafarers to the fall of Babylon. While the fall of ''religious Babylon'' in chapter 17 was un-mourned, these men will passionately lament the demise of ''political Babylon.'' Ezekiel 26:15–21 records similar lamenting at the demise of Tyre. Realted passages such as Revelation chapter 16 described the bowl judgments directed at the beast and his kingdom. Jesus warned about the folly of building one's life on material things instead of on his Word (Matthew 6:19–24; 7:24–27). Paul and James did the same (1 Timothy 6:3–10, 17–19; James 5:1–6). Revelation 19:11–21 reveals the destructive end of the beast and his followers at the return of Jesus to the earth.

A glorious angel announces the fall of Babylon, here used to name a dwelling place for demons and the source of corrupt commercialism. Another angel summons believers to get out of Babylon and avoid being caught up in the judgment for her sins. God is ready to punish Babylon for extensive wickedness. He promises to burn the city with fire. The kings of the earth mourn Babylon's demise, and they keep a safe distance from her as she burns. Merchants, too, weep because no one can purchase cargo from her and profit from selling her goods. Like the kings, the merchants try to put distance between themselves and Babylon for fear of sharing her destructive fate. Their mourning is intense. They throw dust on their heads, weep, mourn, and lament how quickly she fell from prominence and prosperity to a wasteful state. A mighty angel announces Babylon's doom and desolation. The city that once included renowned merchants, deceived the nations, and martyred believers, is now shattered into silence and desolation.

Revelation 18:1–8 contains a glorious angel's pronouncement of doom on Babylon. This Babylon here appears to be a literal physical city, whereas the Babylon described in chapter 17 is a corrupt religious system. The Babylon of chapter 17 was associated with a political system but was not the political power. The Babylon of chapter 18 is the center of a demonic political, commercial, and economic system. The fall of Babylon parallels what happened to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:1–29). Religious Babylon falls in the middle of the tribulation to the delight of kings. Commercial Babylon falls at the end of the tribulation, and kings lament her fall.

The word ''revelation'' means ''an unveiling or disclosure.'' This writing unveils future events such as the rapture, three series of judgments that will fall on the earth during the tribulation, the emergence of the Antichrist, the persecution of Israel and her amazing revival, as well as Jesus' second coming with His saints to the earth, the judgment of Satan and his followers, and finally, the eternal state. This content, combined with the original Greek term apokalypsis, is why we now refer to an end-of-the-world scenario as ''an apocalypse.''