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Revelation 17

KJV · Chapter 17/22

1And 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:

2With 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.

3So 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.

4And 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:

5And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

6And 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.

7And 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.

8The 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.

9And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

10And 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.

11And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.

12And 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.

13These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

14These 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.

15And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

16And 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.

17For 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.

18And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

An angel shows John a vision of the great prostitute Babylon, seated on a scarlet beast, drunk with the blood of the saints and dressed in excessive luxury. The angel explains that the beast and its ten horns will eventually destroy the prostitute herself, fulfilling God's plan.

Explanation

The image of the 'great prostitute' seated on 'many waters' and later identified as 'the great city that reigns over the kings of the earth' (17:18) was understood by early readers as a symbolic representation of Rome, with its wealth, political power, and corrupting influence over vassal nations. The description of seven mountains on which the woman sits (17:9) reinforces this identification, since Rome was famous in antiquity for being built on seven hills. The surprising point of the vision is that the beast's own political allies will eventually turn against the prostitute and destroy her, showing how corrupt systems of power often destroy themselves through their own unstable alliances. Today's practical application is recognizing that wealth and power built on exploitation and corruption carry within themselves the seeds of their own ruin.

Fun facts

  • The reference to the 'seven mountains' on which the woman sits (17:9) was a widely recognized symbol in the ancient world for the city of Rome, famous for being built on seven hills, including the Palatine and Capitoline, something Roman coins of the time even celebrated.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Revelation 17:1The chapter itself explains, further on, that these ‘waters’ represent peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues; the image describes influence over many peoples, not a specific geographic place.
  2. Revelation 17:2Introduces the “great whore” mentioned in the previous verse as someone who corrupted kings and peoples with an influence compared to drunkenness, suggesting a seductive political and economic power more than literal sexual immorality.
  3. Revelation 17:3John is carried away in the spirit to see this woman sitting on a beast with seven heads and ten horns, the same combination of symbols already seen in the beast of chapter 13, linking the two figures.
  4. Revelation 17:4Purple and scarlet fabrics were extremely expensive luxury goods in antiquity, made with rare dyes extracted from mollusks. The description paints a picture of extravagant wealth and status, tied to a life of corruption.
  5. Revelation 17:5The text explicitly calls this a mystery, a symbol that needs explaining, and it later clarifies that it refers to the great city that dominates the kings of the earth. The earliest readers would have recognized in this description traces of the dominant imperial power of their own time, though the text never names it directly.
  6. Revelation 17:6The woman appears drunk with the blood of Christian martyrs, an image that shocks even John himself, who reacts with amazement at the scene.
  7. Revelation 17:7The angel offers to explain the “mystery” behind this vision, a direct invitation to decode the symbols that follow.
  8. Revelation 17:8The description of the beast, “was, and is not,” distorts and imitates the formula used for God (“which is, and which was, and which is to come”), a false imitation of eternity applied to a political power.
  9. Revelation 17:9The text itself draws attention to this riddle, saying that solving it requires wisdom, a direct invitation for readers of the time to connect the image to something in their own historical moment. Different traditions have proposed different identifications over the centuries, and this reading is deliberately left open here.
  10. Revelation 17:10The seven kings mentioned here, along with the seven heads explained in the previous verse as seven mountains, have been read in very different ways over the centuries, linked by different traditions to rulers from various eras, without the text settling this identification for today's reader.
  11. Revelation 17:11The beast described as an “eighth” king who belongs to the seven before it is another point that Christian traditions interpret in different ways, though they always end with the same verdict: it is headed for destruction.
  12. Revelation 17:12As with the seven heads, the text itself explains this symbol: they are rulers who act together with the beast for ‘one hour,’ a short, limited period, not a literal hour on the clock.
  13. Revelation 17:13The ten kings mentioned in the previous verse share a single purpose: handing over their own power to the beast, joining forces with it.
  14. Revelation 17:14This alliance of political power will confront the Lamb directly, and the outcome is announced even before the battle: the Lamb wins, because He is described with the title “Lord of lords, and King of kings.”
  15. Revelation 17:15The angel explains the symbol of the “many waters” mentioned at the start of the chapter: they represent peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues — the foundation that supports the whore.
  16. Revelation 17:16An ironic turn: the same powers that supported the whore turn against her and destroy her, showing how alliances built on corruption end up turning on themselves.
  17. Revelation 17:17Explains this turn as part of God's own plan, using even the ambition of these rulers to fulfill a greater purpose.
  18. Revelation 17:18Closes the chapter by revealing the central symbol: the woman represents a great city with power over the kings of the earth, without the text identifying it by a specific name for today's readers.

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