Revelation17

Revelation 17.

Revelation chapter 17 goes back and fills in some of what has already happened during the Tribulation. Chapter 16 actually is when the Tribulation is finished, now chapter 17 covers the specifics of when Babylon the Harlot or the Religious Babylon is Destroyed. Babylon the Harlot

Archaeologists tell us that Babylon is the cradle of civilization. Located on the shores of the Euphrates River, the ruins of this city have revealed some of the most ancient documents of past generations.

This city begun by Nimrod, who was a rebel before the Lord, authored some of the greatest evils ever to fall on humankind. Two of these evils will be destroyed during the Tribulation period. Revelation 17 is the destruction of the religious Babylon that takes place about the center of the seven years after the Antichrist declares himself to be God and no longer news the One World Religion.

In chapter 18 we will read about the destruction of the commercial, political Babylon when takes place at the end of the Tribulation.

In ancient days Satan seemed to make Babylon the capital of this evil operation. From this headquarters was started false religion, humanity's attempt for self government in defiance of God's will and city dwellings for commercial and social purposes contrary to God's command to "be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth." (Gen. 1 v.28)

These great evils, which have damned the souls of millions by substituting counterfeit solutions to natural human problems that would ordinarily lead a person to God, will all be destroyed at the end of the Tribulation period. Chapter 17 describes the coming judgment of God on the religious system that has enslaved the human race in superstitious darkness for centuries.

The woman is a great city: "The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth" (Rev. 17 v.18) Many have taken this to mean that the woman represents the capital city of Antichrist's kingdom, but his cannot be, for Antichrist himself rules over the kings of the earth.

If, then, the women is not the Antichrist, what other possible explanation can we have for such unanimous world dominance? The only answer is the one system before which all kings, dictators, and nations have been forced to bow down throughout history, that is, the Babylonian religion of idolatry. One cannot go anywhere in the world without being confronted with some semblance of the idolatry.

No system in the world's history has enslaved more people than this awful religion. It should not take us by surprise that this prostitute woman, the religious system, is referred to as a city. When used symbolically, a woman is always intended throughout the Scripture to signify a spiritual or religious movement. If a good woman, it is "Jehovah's wife" or "the bride of Christ". If an evil woman, such as "a prostitute," it represents the evil religious system of idolatry.

Since the woman who rides the beast gets her authority from the beast, the Holy Spirit uses this description to show how religious Babylon and governmental Babylon are so intertwined they are presented together. However, they are destroyed at different times. The prostitute (religious Babylon) is destroyed by "beast and the kings of the earth," who "hate the prostitute" and kill her.

This clears the way for Antichrist to fulfill the lifetime dream of Satan to get people to worship him. She is destroyed in the middle of the Tribulation; Babylon the governmental system will be destroyed at the end, when commercial, political Babylon is destroyed (Rev. 18). With "Mystery Babylon, the Mother of Prostitutes" out of the way, "all inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast, all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world". (Rev. 13 v.8)

The Vision of the Woman - Ten details describe this woman:

1. The great prostitute
2. Who sits on many waters
3. With her the kings of the earth committed adultery.
4. The inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.
5. A woman sitting on a scarlet beast
6. Dressed in purple and scarlet
7. Glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls
8. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.
9. On her forehead: Mystery Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes and of the Abomination of the Earth.
10. 10. Drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus

Even before we come to the angel's interpretation of this vision, it is clear that we are not dealing with a mere human being, for no one woman can commit fornication with the kings of the earth, nor can a woman be "drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus."

Chapter 17

17:1 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:

This "whore" here is not a literal woman. In Hosea, his wife (who was a whore) was speaking of Israel. Here, this "whore" is speaking of the idolatrous church. Mystery, Babylon the Harlot

This statement "sitteth upon many waters", speaks of large groups of people. This is not the true church. This is the apostate church.  God calls it the harlot church; the church that is not faithful to God, the church that is worldly. This church, while claiming to be Christian, finds many reasons to conform to the beast and the evil world system. This will be the one world religion which will appear which the church (Christians) have been raptured. One World Church

This, without question, is the part of the church that has compromised with the world and is no longer a chaste virgin in the sight of God. I truly believe that a large portion of the church falls into this category today.  Worldliness has crept into our churches. The sad thing is that if she would repent, God would take her back, but she will not repent.

The Bride of Christ is called a city, and that is the portion of the church which has not compromised.  The other (opposite) side of that is the harlot. It is also called a city but is evil because of compromise.  This is not only the apostate church in Rome, but the apostate in many other churches, as well. Again, the waters let us know that this apostate church is throughout the masses of people.

17:2 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.

We see here, that this universal apostasy (unfaithfulness to God) does not affect just one class of people. This unfaithfulness is from the very rich and powerful (kings) to the very poor.

The same way a drunken person naturally has no earthly idea what he is doing, this apostate group is so carried away with the world that they, too, do not realize the terribleness of what they are doing. God will judge this idolatrous church. Judgment begins at the house of God.

17:3 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.

This "wilderness" here, I believe, means the world. This "scarlet coloured beast" shows evil world power.

Since this woman sits upon this beast, it means that her power comes from this evil beast in Revelation 18 verse 2, Babylon the Great  as It supports her. This woman, it appears, has decided to trust the powers of this world over God's power.

Seven denotes spiritually complete, ten denotes world government, and horns denote power.

You can easily see, since she is on top of this thing, she guides it, but receives her support from the beast. The word "scarlet" can be very good or very evil. In this case, it is very evil. This great evil (blasphemy) that this woman (church) has committed is spiritual adultery (the watering down or changing of the Word).

17:4 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:

The elegant clothing and jewelry of the woman show her wealth and attractiveness, but her activities are filthy and abominable to God. Her mystery name is Babylon the Great verse 5. Ancient Babylon is a type or prefigure of this future Babylon. Babylon the City The harlot will do what literal Babylon did in the past:

(1) Oppress God's people, and

(2) Propagate a false religious system. Much of the world's idolatry can be traced back to historical Babylon (Gen. 11:1-9), including the mother-child cult of Semiramis -Tammuz (Jer.44:16-19; Ezek. 8:9, 14), which entered other cultures as Ashtaroth - Baal, Aphrodite-Eros, Venus-Cupid, and even Madonna-Child.

Semiramis, who was both Nimrod's wife and mother, was worshiped as the "mother of god" and a "fertility goddess" because she had to be extremely fertile to give birth to all the pagan incarnate gods that represented Nimrod.

Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.

The color scheme of this one world religion as defined in Rev. 17 v.4 is most revealing: "The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet." If you are familiar with pictures of the Vatican Council as published in national magazines, you will have observed that the bishops and cardinals wore purple and scarlet robes.

You will also see that the pope and other church leaders are "glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls." They hold "a golden cup in their hand, filled with abominable things and the filthiness of their adulteries." These abominable things and adulteries are the idolatry and worship of gods other than Jesus Christ. In Rome can be seen all manner of idols in the very headquarters of the Roman Church. More costly surroundings can scarcely be found than in the Vatican.

The Catholic Church is many times decorated this way, but I believe this includes all of the apostate church, Protestant and Catholic.  Perhaps this is people sitting on a church pew, but not really being the bride of Christ.  There are some in all churches, but most assuredly the church in Rome.  You can see great masses of gold, silver, and jewels.  Usually when a church building is decked out like this, it is in an area where there is abject poverty.

"purple" indicates that this was in the church, because purple means godliness. This was a false godliness.

This "golden cup" also indicates this is inside the church, because gold symbolically means the purity of God. We know this "cup" belonged to God. To me, it just means that the sins of the world have been brought into the church.

This "fornication" here spoken of, I truly believe is spiritual adultery or compromise with the world. God will tolerate most anything except the worship of someone else or something else. I truly believe this has to do with the watering down of Jesus.

17:5 And upon her forehead [was] a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

Just as God marked the 144,000 with the name of the Father, and just as the bride of Christ is marked with the name of Christ, we see here this group marked on the forehead. This name alone makes you know how evil and worldly this church is.

This worldly part of the church, though nominally Christian, is yet more faithful to the world than to God. Notice here, that the church that pretends to be Christian and is not, does more to cause harm than those worldly people who claim to be lost. The worldly church always persecutes the faithful church. This evil in the church is an abomination to God. It is a mystery how this could happen in the church.

As the fountainhead of idolatry, Babylon the harlot is the MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH; the harlot has killed many of God's saints and Christian martyrs throughout the ages, and will do so again during the Tribulation period.

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.

The faithless part of the church is guilty of the blood of the saints.  In Matthew 12:20 we read that Jesus says "He that is not with me is against me". This watered down church is actually causing great problems for those who are sold out to God. We do know that Rome had a great deal to do with the death of the martyrs and even had a hand in crucifying Jesus.

Of course, the Jews (church) of that day had even more to do with the crucifixion of Jesus. However, the most blame for His death has to be placed on each of us. Sin placed Jesus on the cross. He went to the cross to crucify sin. His sacrifice stopped us from being a servant to sin.

The wonder of it all is, that with the Bible as their guide, how could these people get so far away from God and still occupy a pew? The answer is quite simple. They never read or study their Bible themselves. They allow someone else to read it and tell them what it is saying.

I truly believe that much of the problem lies at the shepherd's feet. So many preachers are overlooking the need for the spiritual growth of their people. In the 34th chapter of Ezekiel, it says God will take the sheep away from the shepherds that do not care for them. Shepherds BEWARE! We are not to be as concerned with "our" needs as we are with the needs of "our people".

We see from the last few scriptures above that this is probably speaking of Rome and the Catholic Church, who have brought the compromise.  Even more than that, it is speaking to individuals in all churches who have compromised themselves.

"Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away." 2 Timothy 3 verse 5. A person claiming to be a Christian on the outside, but who is not on the inside. It's so easy to point to someone else, but in so doing we should examine ourselves as well.

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.

The Vision of the Beast - Five details describing the beast are given:

1. Blasphemous names (v.3)
2. Had seven heads (v.3)
3. And ten horns (v.3)
4. The prostitute rides it (v.7)
5. The beast was, and is not, and will come up out of the bottomless pit (Abyss) and go to his destruction (v.11)

The careful Bible student will immediately recognize this beast even before examining the angel's interpretation. In the first place, it is similar to the beast of Rev. 13 and doubtless represents what all beasts used symbolically represent: either a king or a kingdom that opposes God's will.

When John sees the great prostitute, he is "greatly astonished?" Actually, some parts of this vision should have been familiar to John, for it is obviously the same beast as that described in chapter 13.

The angel introduces his explanation with the words, "This calls for a mind with wisdom" (v.9), which indicate that only someone with the wisdom of God (found in the Word of God) can understand this vision.

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.

Go to chapter 13 and re-read the first 2 verses and the descriptive comments of those two verses for an accurate description of what the beginning of verse eight's meaning is. Revelation Chapter 13 Verse 1 - 2

This word "perdition" means ruin, loss, or damnable.

"The beast that thou sawest" - Beast

"Whose names were not written in the book of life". The false religious system of the end times will be very convincing and popular among the unsaved, but those who have committed themselves to Christ will understand that anything idolatrous is not of God.

17:9 And here [is] the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

We will see in this scripture that the city of seven hills is where this evil system has its headquarters. This is a marvel to the world who are not fully aware of the implications of the Bible it shows. Of course the bride of Christ, the Christians who have their names written in the Lamb's book of life since the world began, are aware of all of this and why it happened.

The seven heads of the Beast represent, seven mountains, on which the woman "sitteth". Seven Heads - Seven Mountains The city of Romewas known throughout the ancient world as a city built on seven hills or mountains. John notes that the wise mind will make the proper identification. The woman apparently represents idolatrous, anti-God civilization, centered at Rome but with worldwide influence (v.15).

The identification of the seven heads as Rome shows that the Beast will initially have his major base of operations at Rome. It is thought by many studying the end times that after the Harlot has been killed, the beast will move his headquarters to the actual city of Babylon during the last three and one half years.

17:10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, [and] the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.

The seven heads of this beast mentioned, according to Tim LaHaye, are kings of the Roman Empire. The best definition is that they represent five kings up to the time of John; the sixth, Domitian, was the Roman king at the time of John, who then skips forward to the end time for the seventh head, which will bring the king of the revived Roman Empire. This Roman Empire was in great power; it fell, and will be revived again. Then see verse 11 as this is describing the antichrist who will be the eighth and final king who will rule the entire world (kingdom).

A rather interesting scripture regarding the Holy Spirit's description of the beasts that represent kingdoms appears in the book of Daniel. When one thinks of world governments, they take on a beautiful shape, as did king Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Daniel. In his dream, the beast contained 4 different types of metals. Each section of that image represented one of the four coming world kingdoms which at that time were coming (Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon was already there and was the first of the four).

Two governments had already come and gone at that time which were Assyria and Egypt.

Those 4 beasts found in Daniel 2 verse 35 are explained as Daniel interprets Nebuchadnezzar's dream for him. The four beasts in his dream is Babylon represented by head of gold. The two arms of silver represented the kingdoms of Media and Persia. The belly and thighs of brass (or bronze) represented Greece. And the fourth kingdom described the Roman Empire as the legs or iron. When God describes the coming world kingdoms, He uses beasts to symbolize them. Human beings look favorably on government as a great help to them, whereas God looks on government as a great hindrance to them, as does anyone who has studied history and observed government's bestial treatment of humanity.

Whether this scripture is describing kings or kings doesn't matter as they still mean the same which makes up the beast described here. The seven kingdoms or empires throughout history that have ruled over Israel and much of the known world are:

• Egypt
• Assyria
• Babylonia
• Medo-Persia
• Greece
• Rome - The Roman Empire existing at the time of John which ceased to exist
• And then the seventh, the revived Rome which has not yet come
• Then the eighth and final will be the Antichrist (see verse 8)

This revived Roman Empire is represented in the book of Daniel by the 10 toes in the image of Daniel 2:41 - 44 and by the 10 horns on the fourth beast of Daniel 7:7, 20, 24, and in Revelation by the 10 horns on the first Beast (13:1; 17:3, 12, 13). It will exist as a major power only a short while, since it will then give its authority to the Beast (11-13).

17:11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.

The beast, the final world kingdom ruled by the Antichrist, is the eighth king or kingdom. He is of the seven in that he is the culmination of all the previous, pagan, idolatrous empires and the reason many think the Antichrist will arise up out of the revised Roman Empire. But then he will go into perdition, the lake of fire.

Put another way, the beast that John saw is the Antichrist, the satanic ruler of the last and most powerful empire in human history, who will serve as Satan's instrument to attack Israel, persecute believers, conquer the world for Satan and oppose Christ. The Beast - Eight King

Scripture portraits him as an intellectual genius Dan. 7 v.8; an outstanding orator Dan. 7 v.20; a military leader without parallel in human history Dan. 7 v.23; a shrewd calculating and manipulating politician Dan 8 v.25; 11 v.21; and the ultimate religious charlatan 2 Thess. 2 v.4; The angel briefly reviews the detailed description of him given in Rev. 13 verses 1 -10.

17:12-13 "And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast." "These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast."

Reading in Daniel 2 v.45 the ten toes of the fourth beast (Roman Empire) were made of iron and miry clay making a brittle substance. This is speaking of the 10 kingdoms or kings which will emanate from the Roman Empire and be in existence at the time of Christ's return. Ten Horns - Ten Kings Their worldwide power will come in association with the beast. One hour indicates a relatively short time (18:10, 17, 19).

This is speaking of the reforming of the old Roman Empire. Presently the old Roman Empire has been reformed by ten common market nations in Europe today. There are more currently, but only 10 will come to prominence during the end time. In my opinion, these "ten horns" are those ten common market nations. The headquarters for these ten nations is in Rome.

These rulers of a ten nation federation will unite to give their political authority and military power to the beast to conquer the earth and make war against Christ (16:14; 19:19) The purpose of Satan through the Beast and fellow kings is to establish an invincible kingdom that Christ cannot overcome when He returns. But Christ is King of all kings, and will overcome the beast and his kingdom when He returns (19:11-21). Those who follow Christ are called and chosen by Him, and faithful to Him (19:7-8, 14)

At this point in his career the Beast will have total control of the world, for he will command ten "kings" who rule the nations of the earth: The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast.

These are of one mind, and they give their power and authority to the beast" Then the Beast's kingdom starts to come apart. He hears rumors of insurrection, which fill him "with great fury to destroy and annihilate many," in Daniel's terminology (Dan. 11 v.44).

It is to fulfill prophecy. Kings and Kingdoms, good and evil, have to do exactly what God wants. Sometimes they are not even aware of why they are doing it. God puts the idea into their head, while all the time, they think it is their clever idea.

He marches to the Valley of Megiddo, where he meets other armies of the world, and there they do an amazing thing as we see in the next scripture.

17:14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him [are] called, and chosen, and faithful.

These shall make war with the Lamb. Make War with the Lamb This will occur when these kings kill His faithful followers and come out to fight against Christ in the Battle of Armageddon. Armageddon Those who join with Christ to overcome them are called "chosen, and faithful," titles used in other Scriptures to describe true believers (1 Pet. 2:9).

You see, as has been said so many times before, we Christians are in a battle. Our leader is the Lamb (Jesus Christ). We are fighting a very real enemy. The devil and his demons are our enemies. This war we are in is a war of the spirit.  We must come against the devil in hand to hand combat everyday. Our weapon is the two edged sword (Bible).

This war is fought by an army of believers who always have their weapon (Bible) at their side.  Besides having it at their side, they have its contents inside of them (their food is the Word of God). When they are in hot combat, the sword comes from their mouth.  They are willing to lay down their lives for the cause of Jesus.

The flag we Christians fly is the banner of righteousness. It is red because of the blood of our leader, it is white because of the righteousness of believers, and it is blue for our heavenly calling. This is a voluntary army. This battle is in the final hours before the return of the Lord. This army will be made up of boys, girls, men and women. God has called a vast army, as He did in Gideon's day.

This group will be sold out completely to God.  They will be willing to give up homes, family, friends, wealth, and position in their community to work for God. They will be loyal to Jesus even to the death. They will have a peculiar uniform described in Ephesians chapter 6. This uniform will be provided to us by our Lord (Jesus). Loins girded about with truth, breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with the preparation of the gospel, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.

The big difference is that this army will have patches on their knees. This battle will be fought with much prayer (on our knees). You see this victory is the Lord's. We must fight the good fight. Give it everything you have. The war is peaking now. God needs good Christians who will not compromise for any reason. The battle is hard, but the rewards are beyond comprehension; a home in heaven forever with Jesus and the opportunity to hear Him say, "Well done thy good and faithful servant".

You see, we soldiers shall be kings and priests (Rev. 1 v.6; Rev 5 v.10), but He will be Lord and King over all. We are the called, chosen and faithful. Hallelujah!

17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

The Prostitute Explained - Then the angel explains to John the meaning of the water on which the woman is sitting: It is the peoples of the earth. Peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages designate all humanity in the book of Revelation. As in the saying, "sea of humanity"

Those who are followers of the evil system will be from all nations. There will be hundreds of millions lost.

17:16-17 "And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire." "For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled."

The Coming Destruction of the Babylonian Prostitute Babylonian Harlot -The Antichrist will permit the one world (apostate) church to govern his actions during the first three and one half years of the Tribulation while he is gathering more and more power. One World Religion But in the middle of the Tribulation, when he feels he can become an autocratic ruler, he and the ten kings will throw off the prostitute because, in reality, while being dominated by her, they "hate the prostitute".

None of the world's political leaders have enjoyed subjugation to religious leaders, but have continued in a servile role only for expediency. When it is no longer necessary, the ten kings will "bring her to ruin and leave her naked", meaning they will confiscate her temples, her gold, and her costly apparel. In so doing, they will unwittingly be the instruments of God in destroying this awful Babylonian system once and for all: "For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose."

Here, we see these evil ten nations turning against the world and the world church. This power, these evil nations have been, and are being used to rule the little people. This fire speaks of war. These ten nations will do a way with this church, even though it is the apostate church.

When Will the Prostitute Religion Be Destroyed - The religious Babylon of Rev. 17, which is destroyed, comes in two parts. One occurs during the first part of the Tribulation when the governmental system of Babylon (pictured as this ugly "beast") is gaining world control but has to permit the "prostitute" to sit on and ride the beast. We see this as meaning she exercises a degree of control over the Babylonian system by bringing the nations of the world under her idolatrous religious power.

During the first half of the Tribulation she incurs the wrath of the ten kings who see her use the authority of the Antichrist to advance her religious causes. So they plot to kill her. The reason we know this killing of the prostitute of "mystery Babylon" is done in the middle of the Tribulation is twofold:

1. "The deadly wound" of Antichrist is healed by the indwelling of Satan himself, simulating the resurrection of Christ, in the middle of the Tribulation.
2. From then on the world does not worship mystery Babylon but the image of the beast. The False Prophet will do away with all religion except the worship of Antichrist Satan, which he will enforce. That begins in the middle of the Tribulation, that's described in Rev. 13.This is the time when people will have to take the mark of the beast and swear their loyalty to the beast of face death. No middle ground, either accept Jesus or accept the beast.

Since the woman who rides the beast gets her authority from the beast, the Holy Spirit uses this description to show how religious Babylon and governmental Babylon are so intertwined they are presented together. However, they are destroyed at different times. The prostitute (religious Babylon) is destroyed by "beast and the kings of the earth," who "hate the prostitute" and kill her.

This clears the way for Antichrist to fulfill the lifetime dream of Satan to get people to worship him. She is destroyed in the middle of the Tribulation. Then Babylon the governmental system will be destroyed at the end of Tribulation, when commercial Babylon is destroyed (Rev. 18).

With "Mystery Babylon the Mother of Prostitutes" out of the way, "all inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast, all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world". (Rev. 13 v.8)

Religious Babylon Destroyed - Archaeologists tell us that Babylon is the cradle of civilization. Located on the shores of the Euphrates River, the ruins of this city have revealed some of the most ancient documents of past generations. This city begun by Nimrod, who was a rebel before the Lord, authored some of the greatest evils ever to fall on humankind. Two of these evils will be destroyed during the Tribulation period, according to Rev. 17, 18.

In ancient days Satan seemed to make Babylon the capital of this evil operation. From this headquarters was started false religion, humanity's attempt for self government in defiance of God's will and city dwellings for commercial and social purposes contrary to God's command to "be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth." (Gen. 1 v.28) These great evils, which have damned the souls of millions by substituting counterfeit solutions to natural human problems that would ordinarily lead a person to God, will all be destroyed at the end of the Tribulation period.

Chapter 17 describes the judgment of God on the religious system that has enslaved the human race in superstitious darkness for centuries.

You see, all are subject to God whether they are following the beast or God. Even the devil has to do exactly what God tells him to do. Some of this has happened to fulfill God's word.  The devil is not only subject to God, but he is subject to us, as well, through the mighty name of Jesus. We may dismiss the devil, just as Jesus did. The only difference was that Jesus used His own power, and we have no power of our own. We do it in the name of Jesus.  It is Jesus' power.

17:18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

Many have taken this to mean that the woman represents the capital city of Antichrist's kingdom, but his cannot be, for Antichrist himself rules over the kings of the earth.

If then, the woman is not the Antichrist, what other possible explanation can we have for such unanimous world dominance? The only answer is the one system before which all kings, dictators, and nations have been forced to bow down throughout history, that is, the Babylonian religion of idolatry. One cannot go anywhere in the world without being confronted with some semblance of the idolatry.

No system in the world's history has enslaved more people than this awful religion. It should not take us by surprise that this prostitute woman, the religious system, is referred to as a city. When used symbolically, a woman is always intended throughout the Scripture to signify a spiritual or religious movement. If a good woman, it is "Jehovah's wife" or "the bride of Christ". If an evil woman, such as "a prostitute," it represents the evil religious system of idolatry.

Here we see again, Rome. In its heyday Rome was thought of as the capital of the world. They truly did reign over all of Europe.

We conclude, then, that chapter 17 describes the destruction of the religious system, whereas chapter 18 denotes the destruction of "Satan's seat," the commercial and governmental city of Babylon, marking the prelude to the consummation of the Tribulation.

No longer does the seer John have the ecclesiastical religious system in view but now turns the spotlight of God's judgment on the commercial and governmental systems that originated there. Babylon has had the most harmful effect on mankind of all the cities of the world. For all idolatrous religion, greed-based commerce, and secular government were begun there. At the end of the Tribulation, God will destroy them all in the seventh or last vial judgment in fulfillment of the  prophecy in Isaiah 47:1 - 9 (Isaiah 21:9).