Revelation 18:22

And the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters, will never ring out in you again. Nor will any craftsmen of any trade be found in you again, nor the sound of a millstone be heard in you again.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The narrator reports the consequences of a mighty angel casting a millstone into the sea, declaring the permanent end of Babylon’s commercial and cultural life. The declaration addresses the fallen city, noting the cessation of its musicians, artisans, and laborers.

The words — φωνὴ (phōnē) means sound or voice, and κιθαρῳδῶν (kitharōdōn) refers specifically to harpists or lyre players. These terms describe the literal silencing of public musical performance.

The thread — This pattern of divine silencing appears in Ezekiel 26:13 regarding Tyre’s lost songs and Jeremiah 7:34 and Jeremiah 25:10 concerning Judah’s and the nations’ lost joy. The imagery extends across the prophets to signal total judgment.

Why it lands — The text states that worldly prosperity built on deception ends in absolute desolation and calls the reader to recognize the finality of divine judgment. It demands a clear distinction between temporary earthly systems and enduring divine authority.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;

Cross-references

Ezekiel 26:13 So I will silence the sound of your songs, and the music of your lyres will no longer be heard.
Jeremiah 25:10 Moreover, I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the lamp.
Jeremiah 7:34 I will remove from the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem the sounds of joy and gladness and the voices of the bride and bridegroom, for the land will become a wasteland.”
Jeremiah 16:9 For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: I am going to remove from this place, before your very eyes and in your days, the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom.
Isaiah 24:8 The joyful tambourines have ceased; the noise of revelers has stopped; the joyful harp is silent.
Ecclesiastes 12:4 when the doors to the street are shut and the sound of the mill fades away, when one rises at the sound of a bird and all the daughters of song grow faint,
Jeremiah 33:11 the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those bringing thank offerings into the house of the LORD, saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Hosts, for the LORD is good; His loving devotion endures forever.’ For I will restore the land from captivity as in former times, says the LORD.