Revelation 18:9

(9) And the kings of the earth. . . .—Read, And there shall weep and mourn over her the kings of the earth, who with her committed fornication and luxuriated, when they see the smoke of her burning, standing afar off because of the fear of her torment, saying, Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon the strong city; because in one hour is come thy judgment. Kings, merchants (Revelation 18:11-17), shippers (Revelation 18:17-19) join in lamenting the overthrow of the great city; all stand afar off, as though fearing to be involved in her ruin; all cry, “Woe” (or, Alas!) at the beginning of their lament; and at the close the words, “in one hour,” telling the suddenness of the great city’s overthrow, recur (Revelation 18:10; Revelation 18:17; Revelation 18:19) with the monotony of a passing bell heard at intervals amid the strains of sad music. The parallel passages in Ezekiel 26:15-16; Ezekiel 27:35, should be compared. The grief described is the result of fear mingled with selfishness; the mourners remember with a regret, only tempered with terror, the voluptuous life, the quick-growing profits, and the varied commercial advantages which they have lost in her overthrow.

THE LAMENT OF THE MERCHANTS (Revelation 18:11-17).—The lament proper, that is, the actual words put in the mouths of the merchants, is contained in Revelation 18:16-17. The immediately preceding verses describe the various kinds of merchandise which were dealt in.