Study Desk

I heard another voice from heaven, saying, "^(C1)Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive any of her plagues;

for her sins have ^(F1)(C1)piled up as high as heaven, and God has ^(C2)remembered her offenses.

"^(C1)Pay her back even as she has paid, and ^(F1)give back to her double according to her deeds; in the ^(C2)cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her.

"^(C1)To the extent that she glorified herself and ^(C2)lived luxuriously, to the same extent give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, '^(C3)I sit as a queen and I am not a widow, and will never see mourning.'

"For this reason ^(C1)in one day her plagues will come, ^(F1)plague and mourning and famine, and she will be ^(C2)burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her ^(C3)is strong.

"And ^(C1)the kings of the earth, who committed acts of sexual immorality and ^(C2)lived luxuriously with her, will ^(C3)weep and mourn over her when they ^(C4)see the smoke of her burning,

^(C1)standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, '^(C2)Woe, woe, ^(C3)the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in ^(C4)one hour your judgment has come.'

"And the ^(C1)merchants of the earth ^(C2)weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargo any more—

cargo of ^(C1)gold, silver, precious ^(F1)stones, and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet; every kind of citron wood, every article of ivory, and every article made from very valuable wood, ^(F2)bronze, iron, and marble;

cinnamon, ^(F1)spice, incense, perfume, frankincense, wine, olive oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle, sheep, and cargo of horses, carriages, ^(F2)slaves, and ^(C1)human lives.

"The fruit ^(F1)you long for has left you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and people will no longer find them.

"The ^(C1)merchants of ^(C2)these things, who became rich from her, will ^(C3)stand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning,

saying, '^(C1)Woe, woe, ^(C2)the great city, she who ^(C3)was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and ^(F1)adorned with gold, precious ^(F2)stones, and pearls;

for in ^(C1)one hour such great wealth has been laid ^(C2)waste!' And ^(C3)every shipmaster and every ^(F1)passenger and sailor, and all who ^(F2)make their living by the sea, ^(C1)stood at a distance,

and were ^(C1)crying out as they ^(C2)saw the smoke of her burning, saying, '^(C3)What city is like ^(C4)the great city?'

"And they threw ^(C1)dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, '^(C2)Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea ^(C3)became rich from her prosperity, for in ^(C2)one hour she has been laid ^(C4)waste!'

"^(C1)Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you ^(F1)saints and ^(C2)apostles and prophets, because ^(C3)God has ^(F2)pronounced judgment for you against her."