Revelation 18:9

9 The kings of the earth who went whoring with her and shared her luxury will sob and wail over her when they see the smoke as she burns.

Revelation 18:9 Meaning and Commentary

Revelation 18:9

And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication,
&c.] Idolatry, ( Revelation 17:2 ) ( 18:3 )

and lived deliciously with her;
( Revelation 18:3 Revelation 18:7 ) joining with her in her sensual, as well as in her idolatrous practices:

shall bewail her, and lament for her:
shall mourn inwardly, and by various gestures outwardly express their sorrow at her desolation; see ( Ezekiel 27:30-32 ) these will not be the ten kings who will burn the whore with fire, and then repent of what they have done, and weep over her, as Titus did at the destruction of Jerusalem, as some Popish writers have fancied, for they will hate the whore, and eat her flesh; but earthly and idolatrous kings, who will be in the communion of the church of Rome:

when they shall see the smoke of her burning:
as Abraham saw the smoke of Sodom and Gomorrah go up like the smoke of a furnace; by which they will perceive that her judgment is come, and her ruin begun.

Revelation 18:9 In-Context

7 "Give her as much torment and sorrow as the glory and luxury she gave herself! For in her heart she says, 'I sit a queen - I am not a widow, I will never see sorrow.'

8 "Therefore, her plagues will come in a single day - death, sorrow and famine; and she will be burned with fire, because ADONAI, God, her Judge, is mighty"

9 The kings of the earth who went whoring with her and shared her luxury will sob and wail over her when they see the smoke as she burns.

10 Standing at a distance, for fear of her torment, they will say, "Oh no! The great city! Bavel, the mighty city! In a single hour your judgment has come!"

11 The world's businessmen weep and mourn over her, because no one is buying their merchandise any more -