Revelation 21:17

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible

And he measured the wall thereof, - a hundred and forty-four cubits: the measure of a man, which is the measure of a messenger.

Parallel Translations

Easy-to-Read Version
The angel also measured the wall. It was 144 cubits high. (The angel was using the same measurement that people use.)

Revised Standard Version
He also measured its wall, a hundred and forty-four cubits by a man's measure, that is, an angel's.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And he measured the wall therof. an cxliiii. cubittes: the measure that ye angell had was after the measure that man vseth.

Hebrew Names Version
He measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits, by the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

New American Standard Bible
And he measured its wall, 144 cubits, by human measurements, which are also angelic measurements.

New Century Version
The angel also measured the wall. It was 216 feet high, by human measurements, which the angel was using.

Update Bible Version
And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, [according to] the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Webster's Bible Translation
And he measured the wall of it a hundred [and] forty four cubits, [according to] the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

World English Bible
He measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits, by the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred forty-four reeds, the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Weymouth's New Testament
And he measured the wall of it--a wall of a hundred and forty-four cubits, according to human measure, which was also that of the angel.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And he mat the wallis of it, of an hundrid and `foure and fourti cubitis, bi mesure of man, that is, of an aungel.

English Revised Version
And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Berean Standard Bible
And he measured its wall to be 144 cubits, by the human measure the angel was using.

Contemporary English Version
Then the angel measured the wall, and by our measurements it was about two hundred sixteen feet high.

Amplified Bible
He measured its wall also—a hundred forty-four cubits (about 200 feet), according to man's measurements, which are [also] angelic [measurements].

American Standard Version
And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Bible in Basic English
And he took the measure of its wall, one hundred and forty-four cubits, after the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Complete Jewish Bible
He measured its wall at 216 feet by human standards of measurement, which the angel was using.

Darby Translation
And he measured its wall, a hundred [and] forty-four cubits, [a] man's measure, that is, [the] angel's.

International Standard Version
He also measured its wall. According to the human measurement that the angel was using it was 144 cubits.[fn]

Etheridge Translation
And he measured the wall of it, an hundred and forty and four measures of the cubits of a man, that is, of the angel.

Murdock Translation
And he measured its wall, a hundred and forty and four measures of the cubits of a man, that is, of the angel.

King James Version (1611)
And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred, and fourtie, and foure cubites, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the Angel.

New Living Translation
Then he measured the walls and found them to be 216 feet thick (according to the human standard used by the angel).

New Life Bible
The angel found out that the walls were the same as a man taking seventy-two long steps. The angel used the same way to find out about the city as a man would have used.

New Revised Standard
He also measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits by human measurement, which the angel was using.

English Standard Version
He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel's measurement.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And hee measured the wall thereof, an hundreth fourtie and foure cubites, by the measure of man, that is, of the Angell.

George Lamsa Translation
And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he measured the wall thereof an hundred forty-four cubits, the measure of a man, which is of an angel.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And he measured the wall thereof an hundreth and fourtie and foure cubites, by the measure of man, that is of the angell.

Good News Translation
The angel also measured the wall, and it was 216 feet high, according to the standard unit of measure which he was using.

Christian Standard Bible®
Then he measured its wall, 144 cubits according to human measurement, which the angel used.

King James Version
And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

Lexham English Bible
And he measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits according to human measure, which is the angel's.

Literal Translation
And he measured its wall, a hundred and forty four cubits, a measure of a man, which is of an angel.

Young's Literal Translation
and he measured its wall, an hundred forty-four cubits, the measure of a man, that is, of the messenger;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And he measured the wall therof, an cxliiij. cubittes, after ye measure of a man, which the angel had.

Mace New Testament (1729)
he measured the wall, and it was an hundred and forty four cubits, according to the common measure, which was what the angel employed.

New English Translation
He also measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits according to human measurement, which is also the angel's.

New King James Version
Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.

Simplified Cowboy Version
He measured the wall to be 216 feet high.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
And he measured its wall, seventy-two yards, according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements.

Contextual Overview

⁹ And there came one of the seven messengers which had the seven bowls, that were full of the seven last plagues, and spake with me, saying - Hither! I will point out to thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb. ¹⁰ And he carried me away, in spirit, unto a mountain great and high, and pointed out to me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God; ¹¹ having the glory of God, - her lustre, like unto a stone most precious, as a jasper stone, shining as crystal; ¹² having a wall great and high, having twelve gates, and, at the gates, twelve messengers, and names inscribed, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel, - ¹³ on the east, three gates, and, on the north, three gates, and, on the south, three gates, and, on the west, three gates; ¹⁴ and, the wall of the city, having twelve foundations, and, upon them, twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. ¹⁵ And, he that was talking with me, had, for a measure, a reed of gold, that he might measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof. ¹⁶ And, the city, four-square, lieth, and, the length thereof, is as great as the breadth. And he measured the city, with the reed, - twelve thousand furlongs: the length, and the breadth, and the height thereof, are, equal. ¹⁷ And he measured the wall thereof, - a hundred and forty-four cubits: the measure of a man, which is the measure of a messenger. ¹⁸ And, the structure of the wall thereof, was jasper, and, the city, was pure gold, like unto pure glass.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

an: Revelation 7:4, Revelation 14:3

Reciprocal: 1 Kings 6:2 - threescore Isaiah 8:1 - a man's pen Revelation 13:18 - the number Revelation 21:12 - a wall

Cross-References

Genesis 15:1
After these things, came the word of Yahweh unto Abram, in a vision saying, - Do not fear Abram, am a shield to thee, thine exceeding great reward.

Genesis 16:9
And the messenger of Yahweh said to her, Return unto thy lady, - and humble thyself under her hands.

Genesis 16:11
And the messenger of Yahweh said to her, Behold thee! with child, and about bearing a son - and thou shalt call his name Ishmael for Yahweh hath hearkened unto thy humiliation.

Genesis 21:1
Now, Yahweh, visited Sarah, as he had said, - And Yahweh did for Sarah as he had spoken.

Genesis 21:2
So, Sarah, conceived and bare, to Abraham, a son, for his old age, at the set time, of which God had spoken with him.

Genesis 21:4
And Abraham circumcised Isaac his son, when eight days old, - as God commanded him.

Genesis 21:6
And Sarah said, A laughing, hath God made for me, - Everyone that heareth will laugh with me.

Genesis 21:13
Yet even the son of the bondwoman, will I appoint to become, a nation, because thy seed, he is.

Genesis 21:14
So Abraham rose up early in the morning - and took bread and a skin of water and gave unto hagar, - putting them on her shoulder and the child, and sent her forth, - so she went her way and wandered, in the desert of Beer-sheba.

Genesis 46:3
And he said - Behold me! And he said: I, am GOD himself, the God of thy father, - Be not afraid of going down to Egypt, seeing that for a great nation, will I plant thee there.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits,.... The root of which is twelve, for twelve times twelve is a hundred and forty four; which number is mystical and apostolical, and suited to the perfect state of this church: hence twelve gates, and twelve angels at them, and the names of the twelve tribes on them, and twelve foundations of the wall, and twelve thousand furlongs, the measure of the city.

According to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel; who talked with John, and measured the city, gates, and wall, and who appeared in the form of a man; and his reed might be, as some have supposed, the length of a man, six cubits, or six feet, as in Ezekiel 40:5 and may denote that this business requires the utmost wisdom and understanding of a man, and even of an angel, to look into, and find out; see

Revelation 13:18 and also may signify the angelic state of the saints at this time, when the children of the resurrection will be like the angels of God, for immortality and glory.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And he measured the wall thereof - In respect to its “height.” Of course, its length corresponded with the extent of the city.

An hundred and forty and four cubits - This would be, reckoning the cubit at eighteen inches, two hundred and sixteen feet. This is less than the height of the walls of Babylon, which Herodotus says were three hundred and fifty feet high. See the introduction to chapter 13 of Isaiah. As the walls of a city are designed to protect it from external foes, the height mentioned here gives all proper ideas of security; and we are to conceive of the city itself as towering immensely above the walls. Its glory, therefore, would not be obscured by the wall that was thrown around it for defense.

According to the measure of a man - The measure usually employed by men. This seems to be added in order to prevent any mistake as to the size of the city. It is an “angel” who makes the measurement, and without this explanation it might perhaps be supposed that he used some measure not in common use among people, so that, after all, it would be impossible to form any definite idea of the size of the city.

That is, of the angel - That is, “which is the measure employed by the angel.” It was, indeed, an angel who measured the city, but the measure which he employed was that in common use among people.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Revelation 21:17. The wall-a hundred and forty and four cubits — This is twelve, the number of the apostles, multiplied by itself: for twelve times twelve make one hundred and forty-four.

The measure of a man, that is, of the angel. — The cubit, so called from cubitus, the elbow, is the measure from the tip of the elbow to the tip of the middle finger, and is generally reckoned at one foot and a half, or eighteen inches; though it appears, from some measurements at the pyramids of Egypt, that the cubit was, at least in some cases, twenty-one inches.

By the cubit of a man we may here understand the ordinary cubit, and that this was the angel's cubit who appeared in the form of a man. Or suppose we understand the height of the man as being here intended, and that this was the length of the measuring rod. Now allowing this height and rod to be six feet, and that this was intended to have some kind of symbolical reference to the twelve tribes, mentioned Revelation 21:12, represented by the twelve gates; and to the twelve apostles, represented by the twelve thresholds or foundations; then twenty-four, the number of the tribes and apostles, multiplied by six, make precisely the number one hundred and forty-four.