Revelation 18:17
For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.” And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
The verse isn't just listing types of sailors; it highlights the swiftness of destruction by showing how everyone connected to the sea, from the captains to the common hands and even those who "work the sea" for a living, are suddenly rendered irrelevant and stand watching from a distance. This emphasizes how completely this hub of commerce was undone, leaving even its most vital workforce with nothing to do.
As the world witnesses the sudden and total ruin of a wealthy, powerful city, those whose livelihoods depend on maritime trade react with shock and dismay. These shipmasters, sailors, and merchants, who once profited from this city's commerce, now stand at a distance, observing the destruction and lamenting the swiftness with which such immense wealth has vanished. They, like kings and merchants before them, keep their distance out of fear of being caught in the same devastating fate.
Understand the original words
erēmoō · Greek Verb
To be brought to nothing, destroyed, or rendered desolate. It signifies the absolute finality of God's judgment upon human systems of self-exaltation.
Ask a follow-up
Ask Sola things like:
Live chat about Revelation 18:17 is available in the Sola app.
This passage vividly describes the fall of Tyre, another great trading city, mirroring the sudden and complete destruction of wealth and the lament of those who profited from its commerce.
Luke 12:16-21Jesus tells the parable of the rich fool whose wealth suddenly becomes useless, highlighting the vanity of accumulating riches for oneself rather than for God, echoing the theme of sudden loss in Revelation 18.
Jonah 1:4-16This account shows how a great tempest threatened a ship and its crew, causing fear and a sense of helplessness, which parallels the fear of the seafaring people in Revelation 18 as they witness the destruction from a distance.
Matthew 24:27-28Jesus speaks of sudden destruction during His coming, comparing it to lightning that flashes across the sky, which resonates with the swiftness of Babylon's fall described as happening 'in one hour'.
barnesRevelation 18:17: "For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,"
For in one hour - In a very brief period - so short, that it seemed to them to be but one hour. In the prediction Revelation 18:8 , it is said that it would be "in one day" (see the notes on that place); here it is said that, to the on-lookers, it seemed to be but an hour. There is no inconsistency, therefore, betwee…
pulpitRevelation 18:17: "For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,"
Verse 17. - For in one hour so great riches is come to nought; because (ὅτι) in one hour was made desolate that so great wealth. This is given as the reason of the "Woe, woe!" of ver. 16, and is to be connected with the preceding clauses. (On "one hour," see ver. 10, where the same reason is given as in this verse.)…
The verse isn't just listing types of sailors; it highlights the swiftness of destruction by showing how everyone connected to the sea, from the captains to the common hands and even those who "work the sea" for a living, are suddenly rendered irrelevant and stand watching from a distance. This emphasizes how completely this hub of commerce was undone, leaving even its most vital workforce with nothing to do.
As the world witnesses the sudden and total ruin of a wealthy, powerful city, those whose livelihoods depend on maritime trade react with shock and dismay. These shipmasters, sailors, and merchants, who once profited from this city's commerce, now stand at a distance, observing the destruction and lamenting the swiftness with which such immense wealth has vanished. They, like kings and merchants before them, keep their distance out of fear of being caught in the same devastating fate.
As the world witnesses the sudden and total ruin of a wealthy, powerful city, those whose livelihoods depend on maritime trade react with shock and dismay. These shipmasters, sailors, and merchants, who once profited from this city's commerce, now stand at a distance, observing the destruction and lamenting the swiftness with which such immense wealth has vanished. They, like kings and merchants before them, keep their distance out of fear of being caught in the same devastating fate.
"For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.”
And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off" — The verse isn't just listing types of sailors; it highlights the swiftness of destruction by showing how *everyone* connected to the sea, from the captains to the common hands and even those who "wor…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.