Revelation 11:8a
Re-evaluation Translation:
11:8 Confusion’s broad walls of lies and vanity now fall, symbolized by the ancient corrupt cultures of Sodom and Egypt where oppression was established.
Bible, KJV Translation:
11:8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.
Significant Words and Comments:
Commentary on Revelation 11:8 (15 February 2008): “Their dead bodies,” in Greek is literally “the downfall of it.” Bodies is from ptoma [G4430], meaning “a fall, downfall; a failure, defeat, calamity, an error, lapse into sin; the fallen body of one dead, a corpse, a carcass,” from the alternate of pipto, G4098, “to descend from a higher place to a lower,” which is discussed in detail in notes on Revelation 8:10. Ptoma is used only in this and the following verse in Revelation and in both speaks of this beast being brought down. “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.” Revelation 18:2.
“Shall lie,” is totally supplied and not present or implied in the Greek text.
“In the street,” is from plateia [G4113], “a broad way,” from platus [G4116], “broad.” “Thus saith Yehuveh of hosts; The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken, and her high gates shall be burned with fire; and the people shall labour in vain, and the folk in the fire, and they shall be weary.” “Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand: her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of Yehuveh: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her.” Jeremiah 51:58; 50:15.
“The great city,” in Greek is from two words, megas [G3173, great] and polis [G4172, city], which are used together eleven times in Revelation [11:8, 13; 14:8; 16:19; 17:18; 18:10, 16, 18, 19, 21; 21:10]. In all excepting the last reference these words describe “that great city Babylon, that mighty city!” The last reference, however, regards “that great city, the holy Jerusalem. . . .” This context refers to a corrupt city, not to the restored and holy city where Yehuveh will establish His righteous global government. Revelation 18:10; 21:10.
“Spiritually,” is from pneumatikos [G4153], meaning “spiritual,” having to do with matters of the soul and spirit. It threads back to the root word pneo [G4152], “to breathe (to be alive), to blow; of the wind.” It is used here to establish an allegorical use of these next two locations. Pneumatikos is used only twice in the New Testament, once in 1 Corinthians 2:14 [“The natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of Elohim: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”] and once here.
Gael Bataman
Originally Written: 15 February 2008
Latest Update: 30 May 2008
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