lading of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and pearl, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet dye, and all thyine wood, and every article in ivory, and every article in most precious wood, and in brass, and in iron, and in marble,
This verse lists a shipment of cargo that nobody will buy any more. It belongs to Babylon, the city whose fall this chapter announces.
The list is not random. One writer sorts the goods into groups. The range itself is the point: Babylon draws the produce of every country to herself.
Walter ScottBesides her religious character, Babylon is viewed here as the centre of vast commercial interests. The merchandise is of every kind — the product of all countries. This shows the wide influence of Babylon, and how she draws the world's riches to herself, as to a centre… In the list of Babylon's merchandise she is simply the world's storehouse, or universal marketplace. She takes in everything most valued, right down to what is counted of least value. The various articles fall into seven groups. (1) Valuables and ornaments, such as gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls. (2) Costly clothing, such as fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet. (3) Expensive furniture, such as vessels made from the most precious woods, ivory, and metals.
Why record the shopping list at all? Because a list of what a person buys is a portrait of what a person is.
J. N. DarbyWhy does the Spirit of God list all these articles of luxury and commerce? (v. 11-13). It is to show us what the children of Babylon are occupied with. Everything was merchandise to her. She was the centre of all those things which the inhabitants of the earth enjoy. And if the bodies and the souls of men could help in any way towards this enjoyment, they too would be traded… To trade and to become rich — that is the spring of all the politics of the world today. If the trade of souls can serve that end, it does not matter. All that counts is reaching the aim: to make much gain and to beautify this world, of which Satan is the prince.
The merchants of the previous verse are not grieving friends. Their tears are for their books, not for her.
Walter Scott"The merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living." This group has traded with her for gain. There have always been a great many people who attach themselves to religion for what they can get out of it. They use the Church as a stepping-stone to advance their worldly interests. Babylon will offer a tempting bait to all such.
The order of the list matters. It opens here with gold, and by the next verse it has reached human beings — the last item, priced lowest.
Arno Clemens GaebeleinNotice that they mention twenty-eight things. The first is gold and the last is the souls of men. How this describes Rome! She is the trafficker in souls and the destroyer of souls as well. And when we study the goods traded by a Christendom that has fallen away from God, we notice that these are nearly all luxury items. The greatest panic has then come and there will be no recovery of the market.
The same fine linen listed here appears again on a very different woman later in Revelation. The difference is not the fabric but how each woman got it.
Hamilton SmithThe prostitute bought her fine linen as merchandise (Rev. 18:12). The Bride received hers as a gift… Outwardly, many acts of righteousness may look alike, whether done by believers or unbelievers. Yet the motive may be very different. The acts of righteousness of the false woman had a legal and selfish motive. The righteousnesses of the saints are acts done for the love of Christ.
It would be easy to read the chapter as a verdict on wealth alone. One commentator warns against stopping there.
William KellyGod condemns her far-reaching and harmful influence as the centre, driver and patron of the world's luxury. Yet it is a deep mistake to conclude that this vast push to commerce is Babylon's worst poison. She calls herself the church, yet she plays the prostitute instead of being a pure virgin for Christ. That is no doubt monstrously false and evil. But to combine idolatry with the Lord's name is viler still, and unpardonable before God. Add to that her relentless and deadly hatred of all who truly bear witness to God and His Anointed.
- Storehouse — the twenty-eight goods span every country and every price bracket. Babylon is the world's marketplace, the centre that pulls all riches to itself.
- Occupation — the Spirit lists the cargo to show what she lives for. Everything, without exception, was merchandise to her.
- Traffickers — her mourners joined religion for what they could get. Her luxury was the bait, and their tears are for lost trade.
- Price tag — the list starts with gold and ends with human souls, valued last. She bought even her fine linen; the Bride received hers as a gift.
- Verdict — commerce is not the deepest charge against her. Commentators point past the luxury to idolatry under Christ's name, and to her hatred of God's true witnesses.
and cinnamon, and amomum, and incense, and unguent, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and cattle, and sheep, and of horses, and of chariots, and of bodies, and souls of men.
Revelation 18 shows the fall of Babylon the great. Verses 12–13 list everything she bought and sold, and the list ends with human beings.
One writer sorts the cargo into departments, and notes what the merchants grieve over:
Walter Scott"The merchants of the earth" grieve over Babylon. They have no love for the system. They grieve because their trade and wealth are ruined. Besides her religious character, Babylon appears here as the centre of vast commercial interests... In this list of her merchandise she is simply the world's storehouse, holding everything from what people value most down to what they count as worth least... The articles fall into seven departments. (1) Valuables and ornaments: gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls. (2) Expensive clothing: fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet. (3) Luxury furniture: objects made from the most precious woods, ivory, and metals. (4) Rich perfumes: cinnamon, frankincense, and ointments. (5) Rich food: wine, oil, flour, wheat, cattle, and sheep. (6) Grand parades: horses and chariots. (7) A shameful trade in the bodies and souls of men.
The cinnamon, incense and frankincense of this verse are not neutral goods. They belong to the holy anointing oil of Israel's worship, and here they are stock for a market:
Samuel RidoutAll this wealth of love and grace stands in solemn contrast to the blasphemy of that adulterous woman. She claims these fragrant perfumes for herself, and uses them to attract godless people (Proverbs 7:17)... There she also trades in a stolen fragrance, for she has no heart for Christ — "cinnamon and incense and frankincense". Wherever people see her for what she is, let the saints of God heed the call: "Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues."
The word translated "slaves" is worth noticing:
Morrish Bible DictionaryThis word appears in the King James Version only in Revelation 18:13, where it should read "bodies", as the margin note says.
Peter warns of teachers who exploit believers for money. One writer sets his words beside this verse:
W. T. P. Wolston"And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep." Here he strips bare the pretensions of religious systems. Babylon sells the souls of men (Revelation 18:13). It is a serious thing to be linked in practice with such a state of things. Through greed and hypocritical words these false teachers would trade in Christians for their own profit. This points to what is called simony — the sale of souls. But God's judgment will overtake all such people.
Gold opens the catalogue; souls close it. The sequence is a valuation, and it turns into a test for the reader:
H. H. SnellClearly this list presents what the lusts and pride of people in all nations most want. Gold stands at the head of the list, because man values it most. The souls of men come at the bottom, because man counts the soul as least important... So salvation is the last thing people think about. But with true believers the soul matters most, and having eternal life now is the starting point.
One writer asks why the Spirit of God lists the goods at all:
J. N. DarbyWhy does the Spirit of God list all these articles of luxury and commerce? It is to describe to us the occupation of the children of Babylon. Everything was merchandise to her... And if the bodies and souls of men could help her enjoyment in any way, she would trade in them too... Trading and getting rich is the spring of all the politics of the world today. If the trade in souls serves that end, it does not matter, as long as the aim is reached: to make much gain and to beautify this world, of which Satan is the prince.
The same writer names the danger for Christians:
J. N. DarbySatan rules over the hearts of men through these things, and so becomes the prince of this world through all the pleasures of life, which the world calls innocent. People say, What harm is there in riches, in music, in drawing, and in so many other things? This harm: through them Satan rules the world and enslaves the hearts of men for eternity. This is the character of Babylon. It is a terrible thing when a Christian can put up with Babylon's principles and shape his taste to match them.
- Priced — the cargo falls into seven classes, from ornaments to food to transport. Babylon is the world's storehouse, and everything in her has a price.
- Stolen — the cinnamon and frankincense are a stolen fragrance. She has no heart for Christ, and uses the perfume to attract godless people.
- Sold — the last item is bodies and souls. Peter names the same trade among false teachers, and God's judgment is not asleep.
- Last — souls come at the bottom because man values them least. For the believer the soul matters most, and eternal life is the starting point.
- Tested — when gain decides everything, Satan enslaves hearts. A Christian who takes on Babylon's tastes has already joined her market.