Revelation 16:20 kjv
And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Revelation 16:20 nkjv
Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Revelation 16:20 niv
Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found.
Revelation 16:20 esv
And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found.
Revelation 16:20 nlt
And every island disappeared, and all the mountains were leveled.
Revelation 16 20 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 46:2-3 | Therefore we will not fear, though the earth gives way and the mountains... | Earth's dissolution, God as sole stability |
| Isa 2:12-14 | For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be against all that is proud... | Mountains and hills are brought low in judgment |
| Isa 24:19-20 | The earth is utterly broken, the earth is split apart... | Earth is shaken and removed like a tent |
| Nah 1:5 | The mountains quake before him; the hills melt... | God's power causes mountains to tremble |
| Mic 1:3-4 | For behold, the LORD is coming out of his place... the mountains will melt | Divine presence melts mountains |
| Jer 4:24-26 | I looked on the earth, and behold, it was formless and empty... | Vision of primeval chaos due to judgment |
| Heb 12:26-27 | "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens"... | Removal of created things, leaving the unshakable |
| Rev 6:14 | The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved from their places. | Mountains/islands moved (prelude to disappearance) |
| Rev 21:1 | Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away... | The complete passing away of the old order |
| 2 Pet 3:10-12 | But the day of the Lord will come like a thief... elements will melt with fervent heat. | Universe dissolved by fire |
| Job 9:5-6 | He removes mountains, and they know it not, when he overturns them... | God's sovereign power over earth's geography |
| Ps 97:5 | The mountains melt like wax before the LORD... | Mountains' instability before God's presence |
| Lk 23:30 | Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’... | No hiding place from wrath |
| Amos 9:2-3 | If they dig into Sheol, from there shall my hand take them... | God's inescapable judgment, no hiding place |
| Zeph 1:2-3 | “I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the earth,” declares the LORD. | Total destruction and removal of creation |
| Ps 104:32 | he who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke! | God's touch causes geological terror |
| Isa 13:13 | Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken from its place... | Earth shaken out of its orbit |
| Isa 34:4 | All the host of heaven shall rot away... and the mountains shall melt with blood. | Cosmic and earthly dissolution under wrath |
| Hag 2:6-7 | For thus says the LORD of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth... | God's shaking of heaven and earth |
| Rev 11:13 | And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell... | Earthquakes and destruction are divine tools |
| Joel 2:10 | The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened... | Cosmic disturbance accompanies divine judgment |
| Ps 18:7 | Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations of the mountains trembled... | Earth's response to God's anger |
| Nah 1:3 | The LORD has his way in whirlwind and storm, and clouds are the dust of his feet... | God's might evident in cosmic elements |
Revelation 16 verses
Revelation 16 20 Meaning
Revelation 16:20 describes a cataclysmic cosmic upheaval at the climax of God's wrath, where fundamental geographical features, once symbols of stability and refuge, utterly vanish. This signifies the comprehensive and absolute nature of divine judgment, leaving no stable ground, no place for escape, and dissolving all earthly systems and powers before the sovereign God. It heralds a complete eradication of the former order, clearing the way for new creation or judgment.
Revelation 16 20 Context
Revelation 16:20 forms part of the seventh and final bowl judgment. This chapter details God's complete and universal outpouring of wrath upon the earth, which has rejected Him and persecuted His people. The preceding verses of the seventh bowl (Rev 16:17-19) describe a pronouncement from the throne, a great voice proclaiming "It is done!" followed by thunder, lightning, and an unparalleled global earthquake, splitting the great city of Babylon into three parts. Amidst this ultimate tremor, Rev 16:20 specifies the disappearance of all islands and mountains. This climatic natural chaos underscores the absolute devastation of the old world order. This dissolution is then immediately followed by a massive hailstorm (Rev 16:21), signifying the full completion of God's final judgments leading to the downfall of Babylon and the subsequent return of Christ. Historically, for the original audience living in a Roman world, islands (like Patmos where John received the vision) and mountains represented stability, refuge, and specific locales for worship or pagan deities. Their disappearance challenged the notion of any earthly permanence or protection against the Almighty.
Revelation 16 20 Word analysis
- Every (Gk. πᾶς - pas): Denotes totality, absolute comprehensiveness. It signifies that not a single island or mountain is excluded from this event. The scope is universal, not partial.
- island (Gk. νῆσος - nesos): Refers to land masses surrounded by water. In ancient cultures, islands were often seen as isolated refuges or distinct entities. Their vanishing signifies the lack of any place to hide or find seclusion from divine judgment. It challenges the concept of geographical boundaries providing safety.
- fled away (Gk. ἔφυγον - ephugon, from φεύγω - pheugō): This verb means to flee, to escape, to vanish, or to be put to flight. The use of "fled" suggests an active, dynamic disappearance, as if these massive geographical features are retreating in terror or being decisively removed. It conveys a powerful, intentional, and rapid vanishing.
- and (Gk. καί - kai): A simple conjunctive, linking the disappearance of islands and mountains. It shows these are simultaneous and related phenomena, part of the same catastrophic event.
- the mountains (Gk. ὄρη - ore): Large, elevated landforms, traditionally symbols of permanence, strength, refuge, and stability throughout the Bible. Their removal highlights the ultimate instability of all created things before God's power. It challenges human reliance on seemingly indestructible natural foundations.
- were not found (Gk. οὐχ εὑρέθησαν - ouch heurethēsan, from οὐ - ou 'not' + εὑρίσκω - heuriskō 'to find'): This phrase indicates a complete absence, a thorough removal such that no trace remains. They simply ceased to exist or be visible. The passive voice implies an external force is responsible, namely God. There is no possibility of rediscovering or rebuilding them.
Words-group by words-group analysis
- Every island fled away: Emphasizes the global and comprehensive nature of this disappearance. The personification of islands "fleeing" conveys the terrifying power of God's judgment that even inert landmasses cannot withstand.
- and the mountains were not found: This phrase parallels the previous one, reinforcing the utter and complete destruction of earth's topography. Mountains, representing steadfastness, dissolving highlights the utter instability of all earthly reality in the face of divine judgment. The passive "were not found" underlines the finality and the external divine agency behind their disappearance, leaving no possibility of their existence or discovery.
Revelation 16 20 Bonus section
This verse's imagery serves as a powerful polemic against any pagan or humanistic belief system that anchors security or deity to specific earthly locales or mountains (like Olympus). God's power obliterates these symbolic bastions, asserting His solitary, universal supremacy over all creation and false gods. The removal of islands and mountains can also be interpreted eschatologically, signifying the collapse of established worldly powers and the old order that has stood against God. It echoes prophetic language from the Old Testament where geological upheavals symbolize periods of great judgment or the shaking of human kingdoms. The "passing away" of the old earth prepares the way for the New Jerusalem and a transformed cosmos (Rev 21:1-2).
Revelation 16 20 Commentary
Revelation 16:20 depicts a profound and literal or symbolic dissolution of the very structure of the earth. As part of the seventh bowl, the most intense outpouring of God's wrath, the vanishing of all islands and mountains signifies an unprecedented and total cosmic judgment. These topographical features, universally regarded as the most stable elements of creation, losing their existence highlights that nothing in the created order can stand or offer refuge from God's final wrath. This complete erasure prepares the canvas for the ultimate new creation, where "the former things have passed away" (Rev 21:4). It is a stark warning to those who place their trust in earthly structures, whether physical, political, or social, reminding them of their absolute impermanence before the power of the Creator. It illustrates that when God's final "It is done!" is declared, there is nowhere left to hide, no bastion of human strength that can endure.