Revelation Chapter 18 Verses 21-24

21 Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “So shall Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and shall be found no more; 22 and the sound of harpers and minstrels, of flute players and trumpeters, shall be heard in thee no more; and a craftsman of any craft shall be found in thee no more; and the sound of the millstone shall be heard in thee no more; 23 and the light of a lamp shall shine in thee no more; and the voice of bridegroom and bride shall be heard in thee no more; for thy merchants were the great men of the earth, and all nations were deceived by thy sorcery. 24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on earth.”

A great millstone is thrown into the sea by a mighty angel to explain how the great city would be thrown down and found no more. A similar image is used in Jeremiah 51:63-64 to describe the fall of literal Babylon:

When you finish reading this book, bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, and say, ‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the evil that I am bringing upon her.’

Rome, like Babylon, would fall never to rise again. There would be no revived Roman empire.

It is interesting (but not surprising) that premillennialists teach just the opposite! They say that the so-called antichrist will rule from a revived Roman empire.

Verses 22-23 show us five aspects of normal Roman life that would vanish. The sound of musical instruments and rejoicing would go away. The sound of craftsmen plying their trade would never be heard again. The sound of the mill would disappear. No lights in the houses or in the streets would be seen again. The sounds of weddings would no longer be heard. Rome is to become a terrible silent and dark desolation. Rome, which had once set Christians aflame to provide light for Nero’s drunken orgies, would be plunged into darkness and silence.

We find similar descriptions in the Old Testament:

Jeremiah 25:10 (concerning Judah) “Moreover, I will banish from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the grinding of the millstones and the light of the lamp.”

Ezekiel 26:13 (concerning Tyre) “And I will stop the music of your songs, and the sound of your lyres shall be heard no more.”

Why did this happen? Verses 23-24 give us three reasons: (1) Thy merchants were the great men of the earth, (2) all nations were deceived by thy sorcery, and (3) in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on earth.

Was Rome a great nation? Yes, it was the greatest the world had ever seen from an earthly perspective. But Rome had not used that greatness for a good purpose. Instead, Rome had used its greatness to deceive and mislead the world. Rome had made its material greatness the goal of its existence. Rome had used its great power to persecute and murder the people of God. Rome had caused all nations to adopt her false standards and her false worship.

Rome fell because Rome was covered with the blood of God’s people, and, like Tyre in Ezekiel 24:6, was truly a “bloody city.” Rome fell because Rome worshipped wealth and luxury. Rome fell because Rome lived a prodigal and wanton life. Rome fell because Rome found no pleasure except in materialism and perversity. Rome fell because Rome was lifted up with pride and felt it had no need for God.   

Waste? Materialism? Wantonness? Perversity? Pride? The shedding of innocent blood? Do we see any modern day parallels in that list?

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