Section 17:1–18
John saw the woman Babylon and the beast
In this section, John saw a woman sitting on a red beast. The woman had the symbolic name “Babylon.” An angel referred to her as a prostitute. The red beast had seven heads and ten horns. The beast worked together with her, but later he destroyed her.
Other examples of headings for this section are:
The great/famous prostitute with the ⌊symbolic⌋ name Babylon ⌊was destroyed⌋
-or-
The red beast turned against the woman Babylon ⌊and destroyed her⌋
Paragraph 17:1–2
17:1a–b
Come: In this vision, after speaking to John, the angel took him to a wilderness (17:3). So the word Come is an invitation for John to accompany the angel. For example:
Come with me. (New Living Translation (2004))
I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as punishment often refers to the decision of a judge about whether someone is guilty or not. It can also refer to the declaration of what the punishment will be. For example, the Revised Standard Version says:
judgment
In 17:16–17, the angel shows John how the great prostitute is punished. If your word for “judgment” clearly implies here that the prostitute is punished as well, you may want to follow the Revised Standard Version.
The noun punishment refers to that event. In some languages it is more natural to use a verb. For example:
I will show you how the great prostitute will be punished.
-or-
I will show to you how God will punish the great prostitute.
great: Here this word means “important” or “well-known.” It does not mean that the woman was large or fat. It does not indicate that the woman was good or had good character. The context implies that she was a bad person. Other ways to translate this word are:
notorious (God’s Word)
-or-
famous (Good News Translation)
prostitute: This word refers to a woman who has sexual relations for money. A prostitute often entices men to have sexual relations with her.
Here the word is a metaphor for an evil and powerful city. Like a prostitute, this evil city enticed the kings of the earth. But in this case it enticed them to live in luxury with her and to worship idols with her. The English versions translate this word literally here. For example:
harlot (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
whore (New Revised Standard Version)
Be careful to use a word or phrase that is not vulgar. Use a word that can be read aloud in church without people being embarrassed by the word.
In some languages people will not understand the meaning of the metaphor. If that is true in your language, you may want to:
• Explain the meaning in your translation. For example:
I will show you how the famous prostitute is to be punished, that great city… (Good News Translation)
• Include a footnote. For example:
This word refers to an evil and powerful city. Like a prostitute who entices men to have sexual relations with her, this evil city enticed the kings of the earth to live in luxury with her and to worship idols with her.
17:1c
who sits on many waters: The phrase who sits on many waters indicates figuratively that this city was located near many rivers. It controlled the trade on these rivers. This was true of the city of Babylon at the time when it was a powerful city. At that time, most goods were carried by ship, so being near rivers meant that the city had power over trade there.
In some languages a literal translation would not indicate the figurative meaning of the word on. If that is true in your language, you may want to:
• Indicate that the word is symbolic. For example:
who ⌊symbolically⌋ sits on many waters
• Explain the meaning in your translation. For example:
who sits over/by many waters ⌊and controls them⌋
many waters: The phrase many waters refers to rivers, streams, canals, and so on. In some languages it is not possible or natural to use the word waters for that general meaning. If that is true in your language, use the correct word or phrase. For example:
many rivers (Good News Translation)
In some languages it is better to list several kinds of bodies of water. For example:
many rivers and canals
-or-
many rivers and waterways
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