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The Tribulation Part 12: The Fall of Babylon.
In Part 11, God sent the most fearsome, destructive judgments that ever struck the Planet Earth in its history: The Bowl Judgments. As it stands, the Earth now lies in utter ruins, uninhabitable and devoid of most civilization. Yet Man still stands defiantly against his creator, curing him to the last even after being stoned by the worst hailstorm that ever existed. But unlike the other parts in this series, we are going to go back in time a bit as Scripture does in Revelation 17 and 18. We are following the order that Revelation reveals the end of Man's system on earth, and we pick up in Revelation 17, as one of the angels who poured the bowls takes John to see the punishment of the Great Harlot."Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality.” (Revelation 17:1-2, NASB)
In Scripture, God considered worshiping other "gods" to be prostitution; hence He calls Babylon "the great prostitute." The fact that she sits on "many waters" means "her" influence is worldwide, and that many nations have joined her in her adultery, as mentioned in verse 15 of the chapter.
"And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns. The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality," (Revelation 17:3-4, NASB)
As noted previously, the beast she rides is the Beast of Revelation; she is supported politically by the Beast. Note that fact that she is riding the Beast and is not the Beast herself: this indicates that she is not representative of political power, but of ecumenical power. She represents the "religion" of the world; that she is called a prostitute and what God considers spiritual prostitution in Scripture supports this. Being atop the Beast, she seemingly controls the political system that empowers her and holds her up. The description of this beast is the SAME as the description of the Beast in Revelation chapter 13; without question, this is the same Beast. As for the woman's description: she is decked in purple and scarlet, the colors of royalty in ancient times. The gold, pearls and precious stones indicate that she is wealthy, rich with the offerings of the world. Essentially, Babylon has the appearance of piety and purity, but her actions are heinous and foul. A beautiful woman that looks so inviting, but once alone with her, the vileness and uncleanness become apparent and you end up choking from her odor! The gold cup in her hand is filled with her abominations; she flaunts it for all the world to see, unashamed of her lust and debauchery.
"And on her forehead a name was written, a mystery,“BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” (Revelation 17:5, NASB)
Anytime we hear the word "mystery” in Scripture, it means "a secret that has not been known." In this case, the word "mystery" is describing the title that follows and is not part of the title, hence why it is separate from the rest of the term " Babylon the Great". We are seeing a "secret" revealed: that "Babylon" has always been, and until its destruction, the source of apostasy. Babylon represents the religion of Man, (i.e. worshiping himself) and salvation by self-effort; this extends to all "religions". Any that exalt the self and reject the faith in the shedding of the Blood of Christ as the sole means of salvation alone are of "Babylon."
"And I saw that the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of witnesses of Jesus." (Revelation 17:6a, NASB)
During the first half of the Tribulation, “The Great Whore” will be directly responsible for the blood of those martyred, just as the Beast will be solely responsible for the blood of those martyred in the second half. Being "drunk with the blood" means that she is so sated with the murder of the saints that she is elated; during this time, people will think they are doing their "religious duty" to God and country by murdering those who have faith in Christ.
"When I saw her, I wondered greatly. And 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. The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come." (Revelation 17:6b-8, NASB)
The beast, whom is the Beast of Revelation 13, is not just the Antichrist but the political system he controls; this system existed one before, but was destroyed. What the angel is telling John is that this system will make a return under the Antichrist: that the Antichrist is described in such similar terms as this world system indicates how close a relationship he has with this system, to the point that essentially, he IS the system.
“Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while”. (Revelation 17:9-10, NASB)
Here, the seven hills are an allusion to the Seven Hills of Rome; this denotes the system that was destroyed. The coming one world religion will most likely not be “Roman Catholic” per se, but an umbrella under which any belief that doesn’t claim exclusivity is accepted. Just as in the time of Imperial Rome, any “god" was acceptable. In ancient Rome, there was a building where statues of all worshipped Gods were displayed. As long as tribute was paid to Caesar, no one cared who you worshiped. But Christianity demands that there are to be no other gods but God Almighty. Just like in those times, if you are a Christian during the Tribulation, you would be considered a heathen in the One World Religion. And fair game.
As for the heads being kings, they represent kingdoms that have come and gone, i.e. governments of the world or empires. At the time John wrote his vision, one kingdom was still in power, with one more to come before the Beast's system, the Beast being "the eighth king".
“The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction. The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast. These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.” (Revelation 17:11-14, NASB)
This tells us that there will be 10 nations that will rule with the beast for "one hour", or a short time, as "a week" in Daniel 9:27 means 7 years. If we were to use that reckoning to break it down, a day of that week would be a year; half a day would be 12 months, a quarter of a day would be 6 months (3 hours), and hour would essentially be 3 months. It's possible that after the beast ousts the religious system, he allows these "kings" to rule with him for a short time.
In any event, this is speculation at best; and so we should just let the Lord worry about these details and move on…
John continues with the angel’s explanation of what was just seen:
"And he said to me, “The waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire. For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled. The woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth." (Revelation 17:15-18, NASB)
The angel confirms that the waters are the peoples and nations of the world. In all of this, we see the situation of the world for the first half of the Tribulation, up to the point of the False Prophet setting up the Abomination of Desolation in the Temple. Once he and his system are done with Babylon, they have no further use for "her". The Beast alone will be the center of worship, and he will allow NONE OTHER.
In the last verse, Babylon is described as a city.
"WAIT!!" you say. "First she’s a system, now she’s a city?!!”
Let’s take a closer look here and try to make some sense of this:
Most likely, the world religious system will be represented by a city, much like when "Washington" is mentioned, the US is meant, or when "Moscow" is said the person speaking means Russia. An even better example is when the Vatican is mentioned, one thinks of the Roman Catholic Church. Babylon the city is the place where Babylon the system is embodied. When the Beast rids himself of that system, he and the kings with him will destroy the city as well, with fire as described in Revelation 17:15-18. The Lord has used Satan's masterpiece to affect His will; how's that for a slap to Satan’s ugly puss?
Now we read in Chapter 18 the fall of Babylon described in detail:
“After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory. And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird. For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality.” (Revelation 18:1-3, NASB)
At this point, an angel who has been specially sent by the Lord and having authority and splendor informs us that the city is destroyed. He explains that because of her crimes and fornications with the nations of the world, she has been destroyed. While it is the Beast and the kings with him who destroyed her, the Lord is the one who has used them to do this, much like He has used nations in the past as His tools of judgment.
The Lord has used Satan's masterpiece to affect His will.
"I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her. To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, ‘I SIT as A QUEEN AND I AM NOT A WIDOW, and will never see mourning.’ 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 she is strong.” (Revelation 18:4-8, NASB)
This warning I take as being issued before all of this happens; the last verse indicates that this will happen to her, and that a warning is given for his people to leave before any of this takes place. Also, it wouldn't make much sense to leave during the destruction, as by that time, it is too late. And the Lord has always removed his people before a catastrophe, such as Sodom and Gomorrah, the fall of Jerusalem, and such.
As for the voice from heaven speaking to "repay" Babylon, the voice is speaking to God and not to the people who leave, being that it speaks of God in the third person. It is imploring the Lord to repay Babylon double for what she has done. It is also in keeping with what Paul writes:
"Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY," says the Lord”. (Romans 12:19, NASB)
We read on as John describes the scene of the city’s demise:
"“And the kings of the earth, who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning, standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.’” (Revelation 18:9-10, NASB)
Amongst the first to mourn will be the governments of the world that were not part of the ten nations under the beast. They will be shocked and dismayed by her destruction, caught off guard by the suddenness of it "in one hour."
"“And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes any more— cargoes of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and every kind of citron wood and every article of ivory and every article made from very costly wood and bronze and iron and marble, and cinnamon and spice and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and cargoes of horses and chariots and slaves and human lives. The fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and men will no longer find them. The merchants of these things, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, she who was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls; for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!’'" (Revelation 18:11-17a, NASB)
The fall of Babylon is not merely political: economic repercussions will be so great that industries, corporations, and stock markets all over the world will mourn and cry out. Traders in commodities, sundries, building materials, foods, luxuries, you name it.
“And every shipmaster and every passenger and sailor, and as many as make their living by the sea, stood at a distance, and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What city is like the great city?’ “And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth, for in one hour she has been laid waste!’” (Revelation 17b-19, NASB)
Since the world depends upon ships to move cargo around the world, and ship depend upon cargo to make their living, those involved in the shipping industry will also be taken aback and stunned by the loss of Babylon. This doesn't simply mean oil tankers and cargo ships; this also includes yachts, sailboats, cruise ships and the like. The "jet set" will be affected too. Much as cities like Rome, the Vatican, Dubai, Rio e Janeiro and others are places for people to visit and tour, Babylon will be such a place. Her breathtaking beauty will be stripped away in one fell swoop.
“Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her." (Revelation 18:20, NASB)
Heaven celebrates because unlike the world or man, the saints and the host of Heaven see Babylon for what she truly is, and remember her for what she has done. The world may not have cared what Babylon did to the "little people"...
BUT GOD DOES…. AND GOD DOESN'T PLAY GAMES.
“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. And the sound of harpists and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters will not be heard in you any longer; and no craftsman of any craft will be found in you any longer; and the sound of a mill will not be heard in you any longer; and the light of a lamp will not shine in you any longer; and the voice of the bridegroom and bride will not be heard in you any longer; for your merchants were the great men of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery. And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.” (Revelation 18: 21-24, NASB)
An angel physically demonstrates the fate of Babylon; cast down as violently as a heavy millstone (one of the large ones that would have been powered by oxen or other animals rather than the smaller ones people would use); the city and the system based in it will never exist again. The city will be in ruins for eternity, and all that made her a sight to behold, a place to go and a city to trade with are gone. We are told that because of her, the world was led astray, and that she was responsible for the murder of so many of God's saints and prophets.
Her hands were full of blood… and God judged her for it.
In Part 13, we take a seat as we witness alongside John the last war ever fought by man on Planet Earth…
THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON.
I bid you all peace.
YBIC,
-Sojo414
