Глава XVIII

Retribution for Babylon and lamentation for its destruction. The appearance of an Angel with the news of this death and an explanation of its cause (1–3). An invitation to the righteous to come out of Babylon, doomed to destruction in retribution for its former debauchery and luxury (4-8). Lamentation for Babylon: the kings of the earth who lived in luxury there before, the warriors who took advantage of its rich trade and sailed on ships to trade with Babylon (9-19). The joy of the inhabitants of heaven over the destruction of Babylon with its temptations and crimes (20–24). Rev.18:1. After this I saw another angel descending from heaven and having great power; the earth was illuminated by his glory. Rev.18:2. And he cried mightily, with a loud voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become a habitation of demons, and a haven for every unclean spirit, and a refuge for every unclean and loathsome bird; for she made all nations drink of the wrathful wine of her fornication, Rev. 18:3. and the kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth became rich from her great luxury. John sees another Angel descending from heaven. His glory and greatness indicate that he was a messenger with a great mission, with the news of a terrible judgment of retribution against sinful Babylon 83 . An angel with a strong voice announces the same fall of the same Babylon, which was announced by Rev. 14:8 and Rev. 16:19. Babylon, in accordance with this prophecy of the Angel, after its fall will become a habitation of demons and a refuge for every unclean spirit. The city will become a complete desert, a place of gloomy ruins. The reason for the fall of Babylon is the corrupting influence of its policies and morals on all earthly nations. The devastation, as a matter of retribution according to Divine judgment, reflects the complete opposite of the previous state of the city. Just as much as in the days of its power and prosperity Babylon was the center of state power, world influence on life and morals and an object of imitation for the entire worldwide anti-Christian kingdom, just as much as it was previously the center of world trade, it is just as insignificant now. Rev.18:4. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying: Come out from her, my people, so that you do not share in her sins and do not receive her plagues; From 4 tbsp. begins the speech of another person, by whom it is more correct to understand Jesus Christ Himself, who addresses in His name the chosen Christians as the people of His Kingdom (cf. Exodus 19:6). The command of the Lord: “come out of her, My people” means the final separation of the society of chosen Christians of the last time from the wicked anti-Christian society. God's patience has ended and the time of retribution must come. God remembered all the iniquities of Babylon, all its iniquities, they exceeded the limit. Rev.18:5. for her sins have reached heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Rev. 18:6. Repay her as she repaid you, and repay her twice according to her deeds; in the cup in which she prepared the wine for you, prepare double it for her. “Render her” is a command from the same person to whom the voice of Rev. 18:4 belongs, but to a different subject. These executors of the Divine command are obviously the same kings who were appointed executors of the Divine will regarding the judgment of Babylon. They are commanded to repay, repay Babylon, just as he repaid “you,” for from his corrupt life, from his violence, not only the chosen Christians, persecuted and persecuted, suffered, but even the wicked kings and peoples themselves. Babylon fully deserved a strong double punishment and suffering for her extreme wickedness, her corrupting example and influence. His guilt was revealed in fact in the fact that he gave the nations to drink the wine of his fornication (Rev. 14:8, 17:2, 4). Rev.18:7. As much as she was famous and luxurious, give her so much torment and sorrow. For she says in her heart: “I sit as a queen, I am not a widow and will not see sorrow!” Rev.18:8. Therefore in one day plagues will come upon her, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned with fire, because the Lord God is strong, who judges her. His former pride and self-confidence, as the capital of the anti-Christian kingdom, as a real queen, and not as a widow without a husband, a king, will be in complete contrast to his sudden death. He considered himself omnipotent, eternal, but death would befall him and suddenly, in one day, and at the same time executions would fall on him 84. Through this it will be proven that the Lord God who judges him is strong (v. 8). The effect these plagues will make is described in the following verses. First of all, the kings, the rulers of individual provinces and states that make up a single anti-Christian kingdom, will cry; For them, the devastation of the capital city will be especially sensitive. But they will only watch the execution from afar and will not dare to come to the rescue and prevent death and will only exclaim: woe, woe! Next, the merchants mourn the destruction, which naturally and directly responds to their interests, since world trade was closely connected with the world city of Babylon. The merchants will also exclaim, only from afar: woe, woe! This is also a grief for the merchants, for they have not only lost the market for their trade, but they themselves are in fear and danger of experiencing all the horrors that have already befallen the inhabitants of Babylon. – Sailors, expressing their grief over the destruction of Babylon, will even sprinkle ashes on their heads as a sign of their sadness. Rev.18:9. And the kings of the earth, who committed fornication and lived luxuriously with her, will weep and mourn for her, when they see the smoke from her fire, Rev. 18:10. standing from afar for fear of her torment and saying: Woe, woe to you, the great city Babylon, the strong city! for in one hour your judgment has come. Rev.18:11. And the merchants of the earth will weep and wail for her, because no one buys their goods anymore, Rev. 18:12. goods of gold and silver, and precious stones and pearls, and fine linen and purple, and silk and scarlet, and all kinds of fragrant wood, and all kinds of articles made of ivory, and all kinds of articles made of costly wood, and of copper and iron and marble, Rev. 18:13. cinnamon and incense, and myrrh and frankincense, and wine and oil, and flour and wheat, and cattle and sheep, and horses and chariots, and the bodies and souls of men. Rev. 18:14. And the fruits pleasing to your soul were no more, and everything that was fat and brilliant was removed from you; you won't find it anymore. Rev. 18:15. Those who traded in all these things, who became rich from her, will stand far away from the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing Rev. 18:16. and saying: Woe, woe to you, that great city, clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, Rev. 18:17. for in one hour such wealth perished! And all the pilots, and all those sailing on the ships, and all the sailors, and all those who traded on the sea, stood far away Rev. 18:18. and when they saw the smoke from its fire, they cried out, saying, “What a city is like a great city!” Rev. 18:19. And they sprinkled ashes on their heads, and cried out, weeping and sobbing: Woe, woe to you, the great city, in the treasures of which all who have ships on the sea were enriched, for it was deserted in one hour! Rev. 18:20 . Rejoice in this, heaven and holy apostles and prophets; for God has executed your judgment on him. But if the fall of Babylon for the inhabitants of the earth, standing under the direct influence of the Antichrist, was the cause of their grief, then for the inhabitants of heaven and for those who live for heaven, this event will be a matter of joy. Heaven, saints, apostles and prophets are invited to rejoice. The reason for the joy is the coming of the last and final judgment of God, which the famous martyrs asked and desired (Rev 6:10). This judgment is an object of joy for the inhabitants of heaven, for it is the triumph of Divine Justice. Rev. 18:21. And one strong angel took a stone like a large millstone and threw it into the sea, saying: with such a desire Babylon, the great city, will be overthrown, and it will no longer exist. Rev. 18:22. And the voices of those playing the harp, and singing, and playing the flutes, and blowing trumpets will no longer be heard in you; there will no longer be any artist in you, no artistry, and the noise from the millstones will no longer be heard in you; Rev. 18:23. and the light of the lamp will no longer appear in you; and the voices of the bride and groom will no longer be heard in you; for your merchants were the nobles of the earth, and by your magic all nations were deceived. Rev. 18:24. And in it was found the blood of prophets and saints and all those killed on earth. John sees a symbolic image of the suddenness and irreparability of the fall of Babylon. One (some) Angel threw a large stone into the sea. This image means that just as a heavy stone thrown into the sea disappears quickly and irrevocably, so by Divine judgment Babylon will perish without a trace and irrevocably. To this image the Angel further adds a verbal description of the emptiness and abandonment that will befall Babylon. In conclusion, the Angel explains the reason for the trial of the city and its inhabitants. Their first fault is that the merchants turned into nobles and gave an immoral direction to their trade. Further, the fault lies in his magic, that is, in his corrupting politics. Finally, the last and most important fault of Babylon is that the blood of prophets, saints and all those killed on earth was found in it (cf. Rev. 17:6). This means that Babylon, as a city at the end of the world, the capital of anti-Christianity and the place of the highest manifestation of hostility to God, was responsible for the shedding of the blood of all those killed on earth; since the evil and sins of the future anti-Christian world were the fruit and consequence of the entire long-term history of evil, then, in fairness, responsibility for all the world's evil falls on the anti-Christian world (Babylon). Ebrard, Kliefoth, Lutardt and others. You might be interested in: