Revelation 18:21

Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “Thus with violence the great city Babylon shall be thrown down, and shall not be found anymore.

·         Reminds us of what Jesus said in Matthew 18:6: But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea. This applies to Babylon in Revelation 18, because she led others into sin. It is a terrible thing to sin unto yourself; it is even more terrible to lead others into sin.  (DG)

·         Will this fall hurt us? We will only be hurt to the extent that we invest ourselves in the mentality of commercial Babylon’s materialism and worldliness. (DG)

Revelation 18:20

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

·         Should God’s people rejoice when judgment comes? Yes, but we don’t rejoice in the destruction in judgment. Rather, we rejoice in the righteous resolution God’s judgment brings.  (DG)

·         The joy and triumph there was both in heaven and earth at the irrecoverable fall of Babylon (MH)

Revelation 18:19

“They threw dust on their heads and cried, weeping and wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city, in which all who had ships on the sea became rich by her wealth!  For in one hour she is made desolate.’

·         They made a grievous outcry (MH)

·         Those who have most indulged themselves in pride and pleasure are the least able to bear calamities.  (MH)

Revelation 18:17-18

“For in one hour such great riches came to nothing.’  Every shipmaster, all who travel by ship, sailors, and as many as trade on the sea, stood at a distance and cried out when they say the smoke of her burning, saying, “What is like this great city?’

·         Even Babylon’s friends will stand at a distance from her fall. (MH)

·         Though they had been partakers with her in her sinful pleasures and profits, they were not willing to bear a share in her plagues.  (MH)

Revelation 18:15-16

“The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand at a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city that was clothed in fine linen, purple, and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls!

·         So great is the heat and smoke of her burning that these kings must stand at a distance.   (DG)

·         “With a touch of grim humour he paints them as standing at a safe distance from the conflagration, and contenting themselves with idle lamentations.” (Swete)

Revelation 18:14

“The fruit that your soul longed for has gone from you, and all the things which are rich and splendid have gone from you, and you shall find them no more at all.

·         “The combined picture is one of complete abandonment to the wealth of this world and complete disregard of the God who gave it.” (Walvoord)

·         Ultimately, hell will be a place of unfulfilled desire. (DG)

Revelation 18:11-13

“And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, for no one buys their merchandise anymore; merchandise of gold and silver, precious stones and pearls, fine linen and purple, silk and scarlet, every kind of citron wood, every kind of object of ivory, every kind of object of most precious wood, bronze, iron, and marble; and cinnamon and incense, fragrant oil and frankincense, wine and oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and bodies and souls of men.

·         Those who have most indulged themselves in pride and pleasure are the least able to bear calamities. (MH)

·         The cause of their mourning:  not their sin, but their punishment – the wealth and merchandise of this city which was suddenly lost (MH)