Revelation, 17

1. 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:

1. Then one of the seven angels of the seven cups came to me and said, "Now I will show you the judgment of the sovereign prostitute who dwells on the great waters.

2. 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.

2. She it is who let the kings of the earth sin with her; and with the wine of her lewdness the inhabitants of the earth have become drunk."

3. 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.

3. The angel brought me to the desert: it was a new vision. There a woman was seated on a red beast. The beast, which had seven heads and ten horns, covered itself with titles and statements that offend God.

4. 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:

4. The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, with ornaments of gold, precious stones and pearls. She held in her hands a golden cup full of loathsome idolatry and impure prostitution.

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

5. Her name could be read on her forehead, written in a mysterious way: Babylon the Great, mother of prostitutes and of the loathsome idols of the whole world.

6. 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.

6. And I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the holy ones and the martyrs of Jesus. What I saw greatly surprised me,

7. 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.

7. but the angel said to me, "Why are you surprised? I will reveal to you the secret of this woman and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that she mounts.

8. 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.

8. The beast you saw has been, though it IS not. It will come up from the abyss and then go to perdition. What a surprise for the inhabitants of the earth whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the creation of the world! They will marvel on discovering that the beast who has been IS not and passes away.

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

9. Let us see if you guess: the seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. And they are also seven kings,

10. 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.

10. five of which have already fallen, one is in power, and the seventh has not yet come but will remain only a short while.

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

11. The beast that has been but IS not can be considered as the eighth though it takes place among the seven; and it goes to perdition.

12. 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.

12. The ten horns are ten kings who have not yet received power but will have authority for an hour with the beast.

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

13. They all have only one aim and they place their authority and power at the service of the beast.

14. 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.

14. They will fight against the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings; and with him will be his followers who have been called and chosen and are faithful.

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

15. The angel went on, "Those waters you saw, on which the prostitute is seated, are peoples, multitudes and nations of every language.

16. 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.

16. The ten horns, and the beast itself, will plan evil against the prostitute. They will destroy her and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and set her on fire.

17. 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.

17. God makes use of them to carry out his plan, so he has inspired them with their common purpose and they will place their power at the service of the beast until the words of God are fulfilled. A last word:

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

18. the woman you saw is the Great City which reigns over the kings of the whole world."