Revelation 18:10

standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

Standing afar off ... They make no move to help Babylon; they do not wish to be involved; it has not yet dawned upon them that all things rest upon divine authority (even as inadequately taught and delivered by the harlot), and they still do not see that in burning her they have burned down their own kingdoms. They still seem to think that they shall escape the holocaust.

Woe, woe, the great city, the strong city ... "The imagery here is from Ezekiel 26-27."[46] Barclay quoted a number of Old Testament passages called the dirge songs of Tyre, Nineveh, Edom and Babylon;[47] but John's words here do not come from any of them. The terrible judgments of the Old Testament do, however, have one utility; they show that, "God looks upon worldly wickedness at any time according to the same principles with which he regarded Babylon and Tyre of old."[48] Regarding the terrible judgments here predicted, Eller commented that, "In spite of the propriety of evil's collapse, the event itself nevertheless carries overtones of tragedy."[49]

For in one hour is thy judgment come ... "Three times we are told that the desolation is to be accomplished in one hour, and we are reminded of the ten kings' reign with the monster."[50] This makes it certain that these events are prior to the actual judgment day; they are the last act, we might say, leading up to it. Of course, the judgment is already done (Revelation 18:1-3), and thus this is a playback showing some of the antecedent particulars connected with it. Beasley-Murray thought the kings of this passage were different from the "ten kings" (Revelation 17:16,17); but we view them as positively identical.

[46] James D. Strauss, op. cit., p. 222.

[47] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 150.

[48] J. R. Dummelow, Commentary on the Holy Bible (New York: Macmillan Company, 1937), p. 1087.

[49] Vernard Eller, The Most Revealing Book of the Bible (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1974), p. 171.

[50] G. B. Caird, op. cit., p. 225.