Revelation 17 · Verse 7

Revelation 17:7

And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.

Revelation 17:7, King James Version

Revelation 17:7 in other translations

BSB	“Why are you so amazed?” said the angel. “I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.
WEB	The angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.
ASV	And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou wonder? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and the ten horns.
YLT	and the messenger said to me, ‘Wherefore didst thou wonder? I--I will tell thee the secret of the woman and of the beast that is carrying her, which hath the seven heads and the ten horns.
DARBY	And the angel said to me, Why hast thou wondered? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast which carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.
BBE	And the angel said to me, Why were you surprised? I will make clear to you the secret of the woman, and of the beast on which she is seated, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.
Webster	And the angel said to me, Why didst thou wonder? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.

What does Revelation 17:7 mean?

Barnes' Notes

Verse 7. And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? He was doubtless struck with the appearance of John as he stood fixed in astonishment. The question asked him why he wondered, was designed to show him that the cause of his surprise would be removed or lessened, for that he would proceed so to explain this that he might have a correct view of its design.

I will tell thee the mystery of the woman. On the word mystery, Rev 17:5. The sense is, "I will explain what is meant by the symbol--the hidden meaning that is couched under it." That is, he would so far explain it that a just view might be obtained of its signification. The explanation follows, Rev 17:8-18.

And of the beast that carrieth her, etc. Rev 17:3.

(c) "woman" Rev 17:1 (d) "beast" Rev 17:3

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel! I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carried her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns - The apostle was greatly astonished, as well he might be, at the woman's being drunk with the blood of the saints, when the beast which carried her abounded with sacred appellations, such as holy, most holy, most Christian, sacred, most sacred. The angel undertakes to explain to St. John the vision which had excited in him so great astonishment; and the explication is of such great importance, that, had it not been given, the mystery of the dragon and the beast could never have been satisfactorily explained in all its particulars. The angel begins with saying: -

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Revelation 17:7-14

The beast on which the woman sat was, and is not, and yet is. It was a seat of idolatry and persecution, and is not; not in the ancient form, which was pagan: yet it is; it is truly the seat of idolatry and tyranny, though of another sort and form. It would deceive into stupid and blind submission all the inhabitants of the earth within its influence, except the remnant of the elect. This beast was seven heads, seven mountains, the seven hills on which Rome stands; and seven kings, seven sorts of government. Five were gone by when this prophecy was written; one was then in being; the other was yet to come. This beast, directed by the papacy, makes an eighth governor, and sets up idolatry again. It had ten horns, which are said to be ten kings who had as yet no kingdoms; they should not rise up till the Roman empire was broken; but should for a time be very zealous in her interest. Christ must reign till all enemies be put under his feet. The reason of the victory is, that he is the King of kings, and Lord of lords. He has supreme dominion and power over all things; all the powers of earth and hell are subject to his control. His followers are called to this warfare, are fitted for it, and will be faithful in it.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Revelation 17:7 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

καὶkaiAndG2532

εἶπένeipensaidG2036

μοιmoito meG3165

ὁhotheG3588

ἄγγελος·angelosangel;G32

διὰdiaBecause ofG1223

τίtiwhyG5101

ἐθαύμασας;ethaumasasdid you marvel?G2296

ἐγὼegōI myselfG1473

ἐρῶerōwill tellG4483

σοιsoiyouG4771

τὸtotheG3588

μυστήριονmustērionmysteryG3466

τῆςtēsof theG3588

γυναικὸςgunaikoswomanG1135

καὶkaiandG2532

τοῦtouof theG3588

θηρίουthērioubeastG2342

τοῦtouwhoG3588

βαστάζοντοςbastazontosis carryingG941

αὐτὴνautēnherG846

τοῦtouwhoG3588

ἔχοντοςechontosis havingG2192

τὰςtastheG3588

ἑπτὰheptasevenG2033

κεφαλὰςkephalasheadsG2776

καὶkaiandG2532

τὰtatheG3588

δέκαdekatenG1176

κέρατα.¶keratahorns.G2768

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Revelation 17:7

Revelation 17:1-6
And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: …
Revelation 17:8
The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

I will.
1-6,8

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Revelation 17:6
And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
Revelation 17:7
And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
Revelation 17:8
The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Read all of Revelation 17

Revelation 17:7 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	Y el ángel me dijo: ¿Por qué te maravillas? Yo te diré el misterio de la mujer, y de la bestia que la trae, la cual tiene siete cabezas y diez cuernos.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et l’ange me dit: Pourquoi es-tu étonné? Je te dirai, moi, le mystère de la femme et de la bête qui la porte, qui a les sept têtes et les dix cornes.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und der Engel sprach zu mir: Warum verwundertest du dich? Ich will dir das Geheimnis des Weibes sagen und des Tieres, das sie trägt, welches die sieben Köpfe und die zehn Hörner hat.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Et dixit mihi angelus: Quare miraris? ego dicam tibi sacramentum mulieris, et bestiæ, quæ portat eam, quæ habet capita septem, et cornua decem.