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before the war a Turkish governor found enough people there to pay taxes to the Sultan's
government. An indication of the character of Babylon is found in the list of things
which made up the merchandise whereby the merchants of the earth grew rich:--
"Gold, and silver, and precious stones, and pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk,
and scarlet, and citron wood, and all manner of vessels of ivory, and all manner of vessels
of most costly wood, and of copper, and iron, and marble, and cinnamon, and spice, and
incense, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and wheat, and cattle, and
sheep, and horses, and carriages, and bodies, and souls of men" (Rev. 18: 12, 13).
It will be observed that while gold and silver are included, iron as a raw material is not
wanted. Vessels of iron already made are included. The timber too is costly and
beautiful (not the timber of commerce); spices, incense and unguents speak of luxury and
ritual, and lastly the merchandise includes the "bodies and souls of men". The papyri use
the word "body" as a synonym for a "slave"; here the slavery is so deep that it includes
both body and soul. The traffic in these articles with Babylon was so great that the
merchants of the earth grew rich in their trade--"the abundance of her luxury" (verse 3).
Babylon is not a commercial city. She imports luxuries, but does not export in exchange.
It will be observed that shipmasters and mariners are included. Herodotus is referred to
by Rawlinson as saying that the Euphrates was navigable 500 miles from its mouth. Not
only do the kings of the earth, the merchants and ship owners raise a cry at the fall of
Babylon, but the call goes forth:--
"Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye saints, and ye apostles, and ye prophets, seeing
that God hath avenged you on her" (Rev. 18: 20).
This rejoicing is recorded in the opening verses of chapter 19: Then comes the great
symbol of utter destruction with the wonderful accompaniment of the prophetic dirge:--
"A mighty angel took up a stone like a millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus
with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found NO
MORE AT ALL" (Rev. 18: 21).
"Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her"
(Jer. 51: 64).
Music and mirth, craftsmanship and domestic work, the lamp and light of hearth and
home, the voice of bride and bridegroom shall be known in Babylon NO MORE AT
ALL. We do not know how words could be used to express more thoroughly and
irrevocably the destruction that falls upon Babylon the great. Finally:--
"by her sorceries were all nations deceived, and in her was found the blood of
prophets, and of saints, and of all the slain upon the earth" (Rev. 18: 23, 24).
Such is the twofold indictment, deceiver and destroyer. With the judgment of
Babylon is introduced the first of a blessed series of "no more's", which expand and
include the sea, sorrow, sin, death, and the curse.