King James Version
Revelation 17
18 verses with commentary
The Woman and the Beast
And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:...</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and sy...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **And there came . . .**—One of the vial-bearing angels summons the seer, saying, *Hither I will show thee the judgment of the great harlot that sitteth upon many waters* (or, *the many waters*—comp. Revelation 17:15). *The kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and they who inhabit the earth were made drunken* (lost their reason and self-control) *from the wine, the delicious...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last; and--**The oldest manuscripts, omit all this clause.
**write in a book--**To this book, having such an origin, and to the other books of Holy Scripture, who is there that gives the weight which their importance demands, preferring them to the many books of the world? [Bengel].
**seven churches--**As there were many other churches in Proconsul...
Read full commentary →With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
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<strong>With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalypt...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12. see the voice--**that is, ascertain whence the voice came; to see who was it from whom the voice proceeded.
**that--**Greek, "of what kind it was which." The voice is that of God the Father, as at Christ's baptism and transfiguration, so here in presenting Christ as our High Priest.
**spake--**The oldest manuscripts, versions, and Fathers read, "was speaking."
**being--**"having turned...
Read full commentary →So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek te...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **So he carried. . . .**—Better, *And he carried me away into a wilderness in spirit: and I saw a woman sitting upon a wild beast of scarlet colour, teeming with names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.* We recognise the wild beast as that described in Revelation 13. Now the wild beast carries the woman; for she draws her support from the great world-power. The scene is the wilder...
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13. His glorified form as man could be recognized by John, who had seen it at the Transfiguration.
**in the midst--**implying Christ's continual presence and ceaseless activity in the midst of His people on earth. In Re 4:1-3, when He appears in heaven, His insignia undergo a corresponding change yet even there the rainbow reminds us of His everlasting covenant with them.
**seven--**omitted in...
Read full commentary →And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: decked: Gr. gilded
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:...</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbo...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **And the woman was arrayed . . .**—Better, *arrayed* (or, *clad*)* in purple* (the colour of the robe which was in mockery put on our Lord—John 19:2) *and scarlet, gilded* (not “decked”) *with gold, *&c. Her appearance is one of imperial splendour. (Comp. the description of Tyre in Ezekiel 28:13.)
**Having a golden cup in her hand . . .**—Translate, *Having a golden cup in her hand teeming wi...
Read full commentary →And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. harlots: or, fornications
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<strong>And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic language characteristic...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **And upon her forehead . . .**—It was usual with harlots to wear their name on the forehead; but the name here is more than a name. Like the name impressed upon the foreheads of the saints, it is “the expression of her nature”—
**“MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”**
The word “mystery” is, perhaps, part of the name; it is, at any rate,...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**15. fine brass--**Greek, "chalcolibanus," derived by some from two Greek words, "brass" and "frankincense"; derived by Bochart from Greek, "chalcos," "brass," and Hebrew, "libbeen," "to whiten"; hence, "brass," which in the furnace has reached a white heat. Thus it answers to "burnished (flashing, or glowing) brass," Eze 1:7; Re 10:1, "His feet as pillars of fire." Translate, "Glowing brass, as ...
Read full commentary →And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
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<strong>And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid ap...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. he had--**Greek, "having." John takes up the description from time to time, irrespective of the construction, with separate strokes of the pencil [Alford].
**in ... right hand seven stars--**(Re 1:20; Re 2:1; 3:1). He holds them as a star-studded "crown of glory," or "royal diadem," in His hand: so Is 62:3. He is their Possessor and Upholder.
**out of ... mouth went--**Greek, "going fort...
Read full commentary →And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
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KJV Study Commentary
The angel's promise to explain the mystery of the woman and beast indicates that apocalyptic symbols require divine interpretation. Human wisdom cannot decode these visions; God must reveal their meaning. The 'mystery' (Greek 'mystērion') refers not to incomprehensibility but to truth hidden until divinely disclosed. Reformed theology emphasizes that Scripture interprets Scripture—the angel will e...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
17. So fallen is man that God's manifestation of His glorious presence overwhelms him.
**laid his right hand upon me--**So the same Lord Jesus did at the Transfiguration to the three prostrate disciples, of whom John was one, saying, Be not afraid. The "touch" of His hand, as of old, imparted strength.
**unto me--**omitted in the oldest manuscripts.
**the first ... the last--**(Is 41:4; 44:6...
Read full commentary →The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was , and is not, and yet is.
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The beast 'was, and is not, and yet is' parodies God's eternal existence ('which is, and which was, and which is to come,' 1:4). This satanic counterfeit astonishes earth-dwellers whose names aren't in the book of life. The beast's emergence from the bottomless pit identifies it as demonic. The going into perdition reveals its certain doom despite temporary power. Reformed theology emphasizes that...
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18. Translate as Greek, "And THE Living One": connected with last sentence, Re 1:17.
**and was--**Greek, "and (yet) I became."
**alive for evermore--**Greek, "living unto the ages of ages": not merely "I live," but I have life, and am the source of it to My people. "To Him belongs absolute being, as contrasted with the relative being of the creature; others may share, He only hath immortality:...
Read full commentary →The Mystery Explained
And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth .
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<strong>And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic language characteristic of Jewish prophet...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **And here is the mind . . .**—Better, *Here* (omit “and”) *is the mind, *&c. Attention is asked to the fuller explanation which follows. It needs true wisdom to behold many incidents of the world’s history and not find stumbling-blocks in them (Psalm 73:2-3; Psalm 119:165). *The seven heads are seven mountains where the woman sitteth upon them.* The description seems to be drawn from Rome, th...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
19. The oldest manuscripts read, "Write therefore" (inasmuch as I, "the First and Last," have the keys of death, and vouchsafe to thee this vision for the comfort and warning of the Church).
**things which are--**"the things which thou hast seen" are those narrated in this chapter (compare Re 1:11). "The things which are" imply the present state of things in the churches when John was writing, a...
Read full commentary →And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
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<strong>And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic languag...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **And there are seven kings. . . .**—Better. *They are seven kings: five* (not “are fallen,” but *fell, the one is, the other is not yet come; and when he shall come, he must continue a short time.* It has been debated whether these kings are individual sovereigns, or forms of government, or kingdoms The last view is the one adopted in this Commentary. The wild beast belongs to no one age, bu...
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**20. in--**Greek, "upon My right hand."
**the mystery ... candlesticks--**in apposition to, and explaining, "the things which thou hast seen," governed by "Write." Mystery signifies the hidden truth, veiled under this symbol, and now revealed; its correlative is revelation. Stars symbolize lordship (Nu 24:17; compare Da 12:3, of faithful teachers; Re 8:10; 12:4; Jude 13).
**angels--**not as A...
Read full commentary →And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
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<strong>And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic language characteristic of Jewish prophe...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **And the beast . . .**—Better, *And the wild beast which was, and is not, even he himself is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into destruction.* The wild beast himself, forming as it were an eighth, has to be reckoned with. There are seven heads; when these fall no eighth head will rise, but the wild beast, whose vitality has been seen in these successive heads, forms, as it were, ...
Read full commentary →And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
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<strong>And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic lang...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **And the ten** **horns . . .**—The explanation of the ten horns. They are the kings, not necessarily, as we have seen, personal kings, but rather kingdoms or nationalities, who received not a kingdom as yet; as they are on the seventh head, the hour of their power is not yet, but comes at the fall of the sixth head: then they receive power one hour. (Comp. “short time” in Revelation 17:10.) ...
Read full commentary →These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
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<strong>These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic language characteristic of Jewish prophetic literature, drawing heavi...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 2 Re 2:1-29. Epistles to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira.
Each of the seven epistles in this and the third chapter, commences with, "I know thy works." Each contains a promise from Christ, "To him that overcometh." Each ends with, "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." The title of our Lord in each case accords with the nature of the address, and...
Read full commentary →These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
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<strong>These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The G...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. borne ... patience--**The oldest manuscripts transpose these words. Then translate as Greek, "persevering endurance ... borne." "Thou hast borne" My reproach, but "thou canst not bear the evil" (Re 2:2). A beautiful antithesis.
**and ... hast laboured, and hast not fainted--**The two oldest manuscripts and oldest versions read, "and ... hast not labored," omitting "and hast fainted." The di...
Read full commentary →And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
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<strong>And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic language chara...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **And he said unto me . . .**—Better, *And he *(*i.e., *the angel mentioned in Revelation 17:1) *saith, &c.* The waters on which the harlot sits are explained as “multitudes.” We have thus a key to the imagery employed here and elsewhere (Revelation 13:1). The wild beast and the harlot both draw much of their power from the people. The easily-moved passions or the fickle crowd, its generous, ...
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**4. somewhat ... because--**Translate, "I have against thee (this) that," &c. It is not a mere somewhat"; it is everything. How characteristic of our gracious Lord, that He puts foremost all He can find to approve, and only after this notes the shortcomings!
**left thy first love--**to Christ. Compare 1Ti 5:12, "cast off their first faith." See the Ephesians' first love, Ep 1:15. This epist...
Read full commentary →And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
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<strong>And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text u...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **And the ten horns . . .**—Translate, *And the ten horns which thou sawest* (not, as in English version, “on the beast,” but), *and the wild beast, these shall hate the harlot.* The harlot was seen in splendid apparel riding on the wild beast; now the wild beast, in the day of the seventh head, turns with the ten horns of his power upon her, makes her deserted, strips her of her adornments, ...
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**5. whence--**from what a height.
**do the first works--**the works which flowed from thy first love. Not merely "feel thy first feelings," but do works flowing from the same principle as formerly, "faith which worketh by love."
**I will come--**Greek, "I am coming" in special judgment on thee.
**quickly--**omitted in two oldest manuscripts, Vulgate and Coptic versions: supported by one old...
Read full commentary →For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree , and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
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<strong>For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalypt...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **For God hath put . . .**—Better, *For God gave it into their hearts to do his mind, and *(*to do*)* one mind, and to give their kingdom, &c.* The kings give their kingdom to the wild beast; their authority and might is used for him, whether in making war upon the Lamb (Revelation 17:14) or in casting down the harlot. In these enterprises they act unitedly; there is given to them to make “on...
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**6. But--**How graciously, after necessary censure, He returns to praise for our consolation, and as an example to us, that we would show, when we reprove, we have more pleasure in praising than in fault-finding.
**hatest the deeds--**We should hate men's evil deeds, not hate the men themselves.
**Nicolaitanes--**Irenæus [Against Heresies, 1.26.3] and Tertullian [Prescription against Heretics...
Read full commentary →And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
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<strong>And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth....</strong> This verse from Revelation's vision of babylon the harlot - false religion, political-religious alliance judged employs apocalyptic imagery rich with Old Testament allusions and symbolic meaning. The Greek text uses vivid apocalyptic language characteristic of Jewish prophetic litera...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(18) **And the woman which thou** **sawest . . .**—Read, *And the woman whom thou sawest is* (not “that,” but) *the great city, which has a kingdom over the kings of the earth.* With these words the angel’s explanation of “the mystery of the woman” (see Revelation 17:7) ends. The harlot is a city; the Babylon of the past lives again in Rome; the woman is Rome, the goddess of lands and peoples.”
“S...
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**7. He that hath an ear--**This clause precedes the promise in the first three addresses, succeeds it in the last four. Thus the promises are enclosed on both sides with the precept urging the deepest attention as to the most momentous truths. Every man "hath an ear" naturally, but he alone will be able to hear spiritually to whom God has given "the hearing ear"; whose "ear God hath wakened" and ...
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