What Does Revelation 18:22 Mean in the King James?
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;
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The same Greek word names both the musicians’ voice and the millstone’s sound, so the silence takes celebration and daily labor together.
THE MEANING
The passage shows a city emptied of every sound of life: its celebration, skilled making, and even the steady grinding that turns grain into food. The silence reaches from public pleasure to ordinary provision, making the collapse total.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The belief this undoes is that a city’s music and commerce prove it is still alive; here their disappearance reveals its collapse.
THE ROOT
φωνή
phōnē
GROWS FROM
φων-
phōn-
Sound or voice made audible.
“voice / sound” in this verse is phōnē. The Greek repeats phōnē for the musicians’ “voice” and the millstone’s “sound,” where English uses two words. Celebration and the ordinary noise of work share one name, and both vanish.
ALSO GROWS
phōneō: to sound, call aloud
φωνέω
This related verb carries the same sound-making sense found in the musicians’ voices.
aphōnos: voiceless, soundless
ἄφωνος
The word’s opposite makes the city’s silence vivid: its familiar sounds become voiceless.
τεχνίτης
technitēs
GROWS FROM
τεχν-
techn-
Skillful making; craft or art.
“craftsman / craft” in this verse is technitēs. Greek links the craftsperson with the craft itself through technitēs and technē. The city loses both the maker and the practiced capacity to make.
ALSO GROWS
technē: craft, skill, art
τέχνη
The verse pairs the artisan with every kind of craft, joining the person to the skilled work.
technitēs: craftsperson, artisan
τεχνίτης
This is the maker who is no longer found in the city.
ἀκουσθῇ
akousthē
GROWS FROM
ἀκου-
akou-
To hear, listen, or receive a sound or report.
The verse repeats “be heard no more” after each sound, using a form of akouō. Its silence closes both the sound itself and its reception: nothing of this life is heard within the city.
ALSO GROWS
akoē: hearing; report
ἀκοή
This related noun can name either the act of hearing or what reaches the ear.
hypakoē: obedience; responsive listening
ὑπακοή
The hearing family can also extend toward response, sharpening the absence here: no sound reaches anyone who could respond.
THE PATTERN
When a city’s life is stripped away, the silence reaches its songs, its skilled work, and the everyday sounds that sustain people.
Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle.And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard.And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.THE THREAD
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:The Greek word phōnē, “voice,” in John is the same word translated “voice” for the musicians and “sound” for the millstone here. Babylon’s sounds disappear, while this voice is heard, recognized, and followed.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us