Revelation of John 17

The Great Prostitute and the Beast

1 Then a one of the seven angels who had b the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of c the great prostitute d who is seated on many waters, 2  e with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and f with the wine of whose sexual immorality g the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” 3 And h he carried me away in the Spirit i into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on j a scarlet beast that was full of k blasphemous names, and l it had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman m was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned n with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand o a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. 5 And on her forehead was written a name of p mystery: q “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” 6 And I saw the woman, drunk r with the blood of the saints, the blood of s the martyrs of Jesus. ▼
▼ Greek  the witnesses to Jesus

When I saw her, I marveled greatly. 7 But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you u the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. 8 The beast that you saw v was, and is not, and w is about to rise from x the bottomless pit ▼
▼ Greek  the abyss
 and z go to destruction. And aa the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in ab the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because ac it was and is not and is to come. 9  ad This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; 10 they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. 11 As for the beast ae that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. 12 And af the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings ag for one hour, together with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. 14 They ah will make war on the Lamb, and ai the Lamb will conquer them, for he is aj Lord of lords and ak King of kings, and those with him are al called and chosen and faithful.”

15 And the angel ▼
▼ Greek he
 said to me an “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. 16 And ao the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast ap will hate the prostitute. They will make her aq desolate and ar naked, and as devour her flesh and at burn her up with fire, 17 for au God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and av handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. 18 And the woman that you saw is aw the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”

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