• “For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong,” (Revelation 18:8).
• “Then a strong angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, ‘So will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down with violence, and will not be found any longer,” (Revelation 18:21).

Revelation is a highly symbolic book, and interpreting it can be difficult. Annihilationists frequently cite different verses in it that deal with various forms of destruction and judgment and interpret them to mean that in the final judgment, people will cease to exist. They sometimes raise Revelation 18:8 and 21 in their agenda.

But does the context of Revelation 18:8 and 21 necessitate that nonexistence of the wicked is a proper interpretation? I don’t think so because the question of Babylon’s existence is the issue, not people. There are different interpretations of what Babylon might mean. I’ve heard everything from the United States, to a new unified governmental system in Europe, to the Roman Catholic Church set at the Vatican in Rome. Nevertheless, consider the following quotes.

• “A major city in central Mesopotamia, located on the Euphrates (32°33´N; 44°24´E). It played an important role in the history of the ANE during the 2d and 1st millennia B.C.”¹Freedman, David Noel, Gary A. Herion, David F. Graf, John David Pleins, and Astrid B. Beck, eds. The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary. New York: Doubleday, 1992.
• “Land and people of southern Mesopotamia. Politically, Babylonia refers to the ancient kingdoms that flourished in southern Mesopotamia, especially in the 7th and 6th centuries BC, whose capital city was Babylon (or Bab-ilu, meaning “gate of god”). The term can also be used geographically to designate a whole region (in present-day SE Iraq). The adjective “Babylonian” has an even looser meaning; it may refer to the land or its inhabitants, to the kingdom or its subjects, or to a dialect of one of the principal ancient Mesopotamian languages.”²Elwell, Walter A., and Barry J. Beitzel. Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988.
• “A major civilization in southern Mesopotamia, situated between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which flourished from the middle of the third through the late first millennia B.C.”³Myers, Allen C. The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1987.

In the NASB

In the NASB Bible, the word “Babylon” occurs 294 times. In the New Testament, the word occurs 12 times, six outside of the book of Revelation, and six times within it. In each case it is a place (Matt. 1:11,12, 17; Acts 7:43; 1 Pet. 5:13). In the six occurrences found in the book of Revelation, we find the following.

• Babylon has fallen, Revelation 14:8; 18:2
• God gave Babylon the cup of his wrath, Revelation 16:19
• Babylon is the mother of harlots, relation 17:5
• Babylon is tormented, Revelation 18:10
• Babylon is a city, Revelation 18:21

Conclusion

Revelation 18:8 and verse 21 speak of the destruction of the city of Babylon. Verse 8 says the city will be burned with fire. Verse 21 says the city will not be found anymore. Good, that evil system must perish. But, it’s the city that is not found anymore in the context of its destruction, not individuals. To say that these verses necessitate the annihilation of the wicked people is to read into the text far too much. Therefore, these verses cannot be used to prove that the annihilation of the wicked is a true doctrine.