(9) And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, (10) Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. (11) And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more: (12) The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble, (13) And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men. (14) And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all. (15) The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, (16) And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! (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, (18) And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! (19) And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
The oftener I read this funeral lamentation of the mourners, that follow the whore to her burying; the more I am struck with astonishment, at the impudence of her deceptions, and the forbearance of the Lord. To think that such a mummery should have gulled the nations so many hundreds of years is wonderful! And indeed it would be hardly possible to reconcile it with the common sense of mankind, were it not that so many profited by the cheat. Let the Reader take notice of some of the many.
First. The kings of the earth, who have committed fornication, and lived deliciously with her. These are those who have profited by the same tricks, as the whore herself hath played off, to keep the lower order in subjection. For when confession, and penance, and the profits of all the trumpery of forms and ceremonies are done away, they as well as she, will find cause to lament that their juggling is over.
Secondly. The Merchants of the earth will mourn also at her downfall. These are not only the common traders at Rome, who take advantage of the religion of the place, to impose upon the foreigners which come to their markets, but chiefly is intended, the whore's merchants; namely, the dealers in pardons and indulgencies, who sell licences for sin, and pray people out of purgatory for money. It is said, Revelation 18:13, that their merchandize, is the souls of men. And this indeed is the chief traffic. All such must follow the funeral procession, for they will forever shut up shop, when the whore's plagues come; for as it is here said, no man buyeth her merchandize. anymore.
Thirdly. Every ship-master, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, are involved in the calamity. And well they may. For both at home and abroad, by sea and by land, wherever the whore's influence extendeth, and her priests and people find the trade profitable, the loss of it in money matters must be ruinous. So that the whore's downfall brings after it, the total overthrow of the whorish trade.
Fourthly. But one feature deserves to be noticed under all, namely, while they all bewail and lament her, it is said, that they all stood afar off. Here is a striking feature. Though sinners herd together in sin, yet in judgment, they wish to separate. No one helpeth his fellow. Like the first transgressor in the garden, they rather accuse than soften each other's crime. They stand afar off. Oh! the awful State of the ungodly.