The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
Parallel translations
- WEB The merchants of these things, who were made rich by her, will stand far away for the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning;
- BSB The merchants who sold these things and grew their wealth from her will stand at a distance, in fear of her torment. They will weep and mourn,
- NKJV The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand at a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
- NASB The merchants of these things, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning,
- NLT The merchants who became wealthy by selling her these things will stand at a distance, terrified by her great torment. They will weep and cry out,
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The merchants who grew rich from her stand far off in fear, weeping and mourning. They lament their lost wealth, not their sin.
Overview
Like the kings, the merchants keep their distance from the judged city, terrified of sharing her torment. Their grief centers on the riches they can no longer gain. The repeated pattern of distant, selfish mourning highlights the emptiness of lives invested in Babylon's prosperity rather than in God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Rev 18:3For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
- Acts 19:24–27For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, which made silver shrines for Diana, brought no small gain unto the craftsmen;
- Rev 18:10–11Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
- Ezek 27:31And they shall make themselves utterly bald for thee, and gird them with sackcloth, and they shall weep for thee with bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.
- Acts 16:19And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,
- Zech 11:5Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD; for I am rich: and their own shepherds pity them not.
- Mark 11:17And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.
- Hos 12:7–8He is a merchant, the balances of deceit are in his hand: he loveth to oppress.
- Amos 5:16–17Therefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the LORD, saith thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.
- Judg 18:23–24And they cried unto the children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said unto Micah, What aileth thee, that thou comest with such a company?
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Christ at the center
Revelation ends the story with the slain-yet-standing Lamb who is worthy, the Lion of Judah, the Alpha and Omega, the returning King who makes all things new and dwells with his people forever.
How Revelation 18:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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