Revelation 18:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and 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 the sound of the mill will be heard in you no more,

NIV: The music of harpists and musicians, pipers and trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No worker of any trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again.

NASB: And the sound of harpists, musicians, flute players, and trumpeters will never be heard in you again; and no craftsman of any craft will ever be found in you again; and the sound of a mill will never be heard in you again;

CSB: The sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters will never be heard in you again; no craftsman of any trade will ever be found in you again; the sound of a mill will never be heard in you again;

NLT: The sound of harps, singers, flutes, and trumpets will never be heard in you again. No craftsmen and no trades will ever be found in you again. The sound of the mill will never be heard in you again.

KJV: And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;

NKJV: The sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters shall not be heard in you anymore. No craftsman of any craft shall be found in you anymore, and the sound of a millstone shall not be heard in you anymore.

These verses continue to poetically describe the fall of "Babylon," used here in reference to the political and economic empire of the "beast" of the end times (Revelation 13:1–10). Revelation mentions many of the common components of a city of culture in explaining the total annihilation of this evil empire. That includes noting that its music, industry, and production will all be dissolved.

Music can be used to honor God or to dishonor Him. Psalm 150 calls upon God's people to praise Him with the trumpet, the lute and harp, the tambourine, strings and pipe, and cymbals. Music that honors God lifts the human spirit and assists worshipers to praise God. However, music can dishonor God. Nebuchadnezzar used music to signal his subjects to fall down and worship the image he had erected on the plain of Dura. The king's edict announced: "You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up" (Daniel 3:4–5). Perhaps the beast used music to summon his subjects to worship him. Or he may have used it in connection with sensual practices. However, music is never heard again in fallen Babylon.

Artisans will no longer practice their trades in Babylon. Tools and craftsmen will be completely destroyed when God judges the city. Also, the sound of grinding grain will cease. There will no longer be a need for food because the population will cease to exist.

Revelation 18:21–24 provides a description of Babylon—the political and economic center of the Antichrist—after its fall. Isaiah predicted Babylon's fall and wrote about its desolation after God overthrows it (Isaiah 13:19). Daniel 2:34–35 and Daniel 2:40–45 describe the collapse of the beast's empire at the return of Jesus Christ. Jesus referred to the end of the times of the Gentiles in Luke 21:24. The times of the Gentiles began with the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylonian forces and the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, and it will end with the destruction of Babylon.

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.''