(1)In warfare
(2)In sports In order to compete against somebody or some team, one needs to know as much as possible about them in order to compete against them.
(3) It applies in Christianity as well.
• If we are to avoid sin, we have to know what is sinful.
• If we are to avoid demonic forces, we have to understand how the operate.
This does not mean we have to indulge in sin.
Illus: Bob Harrington
Chapters 17-18 describe the ultimate end of the demonic forces that oppose God.
Let me summarize where we left off in Revelation and how it applies to this chapter:
These judgments were designed to teach the inhabitants of the world that God is in charge.
During these judgements on earth some will survive. For example in Rev. 20 we read of Jesus ruling on earth. Jesus has to rule over "somebody", therefore some has to survive. ,
This leads to Chapters 17-18: The destruction of "Babylon". These two chapters fill in some details from previous chapters.
What is Babylon, why is it destroyed and why should we care?
Babylon was an ancient city that was the capital of the Babylonian Empire. It is located in modern Iraq. Part of the city has been excavated and it is now inhabited, although it is no longer either a capital or even a significant city.
• The term "Babylon" has its roots in Genesis. The "Tower of Babel" is in that location. (That story in Genesis 11)
• It was about a mighty hunter (of men) named Nimrod (Genesis 10:9) who organized the first rebellion against God.
The term "Babylon" refers to a literal city, BUT it can also refer to any and all organized rebellion against the God.
The Babylonian religion had multiple gods.
The point is even though the Babylonian city and empire fell a long time ago, its influence, especially on pagan gods, was still around at the time of the Romans during John's writings and today in our society.
Babylon is a literal location. It is also a symbol term for any religious system that opposes the God of the Bible.
These two chapters (17 and 18) focus on the destruction of Babylon.
This chapter is about the destruction of Babylon which is not just the destruction of:
1) An organized government that opposes God,
2) But an organized religious system as well.
Remember Chapter 17 covers the entire Great Tribulation era.
Verse 1 describes the purpose of these chapters (17 and 18). In these verses, an angel ("one of the seven") tells John, who is writing Revelation to come and see the "punishment of the great prostitute who sits on many waters".
Before we discuss this "great prostitute", let's set the scene a little. John spent the last two chapters 17-18) describing the final judgment on earth.
Chapter 16 described seven angels with seven bowls. Each bowl was filled with some sort of "judgment". One at a time, each angel poured his bowl out on earth, and then some judgment happened on earth.
Here in Chapter 17, the seven angels are all done. This chapter is like one of the angels saying, "Hey John, now that it's all over, let me fill in some details about one of those seven specific judgments.”
You see, there is this great prostitute who sits on many waters. Let me explain what that means.
This chapter is filled with what is known as word pictures. For example, the first word picture is a PROSTITUTE.
Let’s look at some of these word-picture means.
(1)Let's start with the "prostitute".
Look at Revelation 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." That means the prostitute is not a literal woman. Also, we will see in verse 18 says the prostitute is a city.
If you haven't figured it out yet, the city is "Babylon".
(2) Next word pitcures is in Verse 1 this prostitute "sits on many waters". Chapter 17:15, "The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages."
The point is this city "sits" on peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. The idea is this city controls and influences a large worldwide empire. (Rev. 13 All the world)
• At the time of John's writing, Babylon was an insignificant city.
• At the time of John's writing Rome controlled the world.
It would make sense that if John is writing about life in his time, the word "Babylon" is a code word for Rome, as the Roman Empire ruled the world. The point is when the antichrist runs this worldwide empire, there will be a central city that benefits from being the head city of that empire.
1) Some believe it will be Rome.
2) Some believe it will be the City of Babylon resurrected.
Revelation 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."
The key to understanding this sentence is to understand the word-pictures.
First, let's start with the word "her".
• The "her" refers to the prostitute of Verse 1.
• Again, Verse 18 of this chapter says the prostitute is a city, not a person.
Now let's talk about the rest of the sentence. Remember that in the bible, the words adultery and idolatry are synonyms.
• Adultery is to be unfaithful to one's spouse.
• Idolatry is to be unfaithful to God.
This is why the term "adultery" is used as a substitute for "idolatry". If you think about it, one cannot have a literal adulterous relationship with a city. My point is we know this is not meant to be taken literally. It is a word picture.
Revelation uses this picture of a prostitute as the city is tempting people to follow the anti-christ.
This verse says the kings of the earth are "intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries". This verse is being compared to the temptation of giving in to adultery. That is why this city is compared to a prostitute.
Remember the purpose of Revelation 17 and 18 are to show the final judgment of this city (called a prostitute).
Revelation 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.
Just when you thought Revelation was simple, it gets difficult to understand.
The secret to understanding Revelation is to take it in "bite size chunks" and the pieces all make sense.
Let's talk about where John was when he wrote this:
He was on an island called Patmos.(Rev. 1:9) This was a Roman penal colony where John was sentenced for the crime of Christianity.
John was "taken" up to heaven where he sees all of the visions described so far in this book. Look at the rest of the verse: "A woman was sitting on a scarlet beast". There are two characters in focus: A woman and a beast.
The woman is the same prostitute described in the first two verses.
Again, it is not a literal woman, but a "city" as stated in Verse 15.
The "beast" is a little easier, because it was already described earlier in Revelation. Look at Revelation 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
Back in Chapter 13, we saw this beast is the antichrist.
Verses 9 and 10 of this chapter describe the seven heads and ten horns. We'll save that commentary for those verses.
For now, just know that it describes the governmental system that is lead by the antichrist.
(3)This verse says the woman rides the beast. That means that the woman (again, a city) "benefits" from being on the back of the beast.
Illus: It also can mean that this woman/city has some control, like a horse rider pulling the reigns.
(4) Revelation 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.
When I read this what popped in my head is the old expression, "Never try to teach a pig how to sing. It's a waste of your time and it irritates the pig.” Here is this prostitute all dressed up in purple and scarlet with all sorts of jewelry. She's still a prostitute.
Remember in Verse 3 this woman "rides the beast", which is the government controlled by the antichrist. Here we read of the financial benefits of partnering with the antichrist and his system.
(4)The "gold cup" is a sign of kingly authority and power (See Genesis 44:5). The "cup" here is not meant to be literal as the prostitute is not a literal woman. It is another word-picture of the power this woman based on the antichrist and his world's power. (It is a danger for the church to get to chummy with the government)
Revelation 17:5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH
The idea is when the Great Tribulation occurs, there will be a key city that is the central location for this organized "spiritual" rebellion against God.
What's really going on here? The idea is when this antichrist comes to power, there is an organized, world religion that is associated with this person. This world religion is a separate entity, but is still associated with this final world government.
Remember this woman "rides" the beast. The idea is that this woman (city) benefits from the rise to power of the antichrist.
Remember that people need to worship something. In order for Satan to turn people from God, he needs to offer a substitute.
My personal view of this religious movement is it will include the tag line, "All religions are right and as long as we're nice to each other and help each other, it doesn't matter what is our concept of God".
This "harlot" is the center of some sort of false-religion worship where people are free to worship God however they want with no significant changes to their lifestyle. She "prostitutes" people to accept this religion.
The point of this chapter (and the next chapter) is this "Babylon" gets judged and destroyed.
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.
Remember this woman is not a literal woman, but a city. This city is the capital of a worldwide empire that is openly rebellious to God. Here in Verse 6, we see that the woman is "drunk with the blood of the saints".
The Book “Fox book of Martyrs tells how there were Roman Emperors who would torture and kill Christians. It became a "game" as Christians were given over to be eaten by lions and other disgusting acts.
Illus: Even during the Middle Ages, there were periods where the Roman Catholic Church would put to death Christians who would not declare their allegiance to the pope. Many Protestant and Jewish people were horribly tortured and killed during that time era.
The King James has a problem here, we read, and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
It should read in the last part of Verse 6: When I saw her, I was greatly astonished.
Stop and think about all the things John has seen in Revelation:
• John has seen Jesus appear in all sorts strange visions.
• John has seen angels destroying the world.
• John has seen visions of the antichrist and demonic forces.
Yet, despite all of this, this woman (shocked) him in verse 6!
The question is what is so special about this vision that caused John to be astonished as opposed to everything he's seen so far in Revelation?
The fact this woman persecuted Christians would not be astonishing to John. There must be something more to it.
Notice John saw two groups. The verse says the woman was drunk "with the blood of the saints, (and) the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus.
The idea is this woman was "drunk" from the saints and those who were martyred for Jesus. If one believes it is two groups, most likely it refers to Gentile and Jewish Christians.
Verse 7: Then the angel said to me: "Why are you astonished?
The actual explanation is in the rest of this chapter.
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.
John was shocked but he said let me tell you what is going on in the remaining part of this chapter.
Personally, I love when the bible explains stuff directly, as it makes my job easier. If the bible interprets itself, we are done!
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.
Remember that this chapter has a number of "characters":
1) A woman,
2) A beast that the woman rides,
3) And "many waters" which are multitudes of people.
Verse 8 begins by describing "the beast" itself. Verse 8 says the beast, "Once was (past tense), now is not (present tense), and will come up (future tense) out of the Abyss."
The Abyss is a Greek world that refers to hell. It means a "bottomless pit". We know this "beast" is demonic, because it comes out of hell.
Based on Verse 11 coming up, most likely it refers to the antichrist. The text says
• This guy existed at one time,
• Currently does not exist,
• But will exist again.
The word "antichrist" means one who opposes Christ. The "will come" is the key point. The idea is that during the Great Tribulation, this "coming world leader" (the antichrist) comes back again.
Verse 9: "This calls for a mind with wisdom”. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits.
Verse 10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for a little while.
Remember what this chapter is about: It is about the judgment of a "woman". Here in Verses 9-11, the text is giving some information about the beast himself.
Verse 7 says, "I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns."
Verses 9-10 explain the seven heads. We'll get to the ten horns in a moment.
Verse 9 says, "The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.." Verse 10 says, "They are also seven kings."
First let's talk about the "seven hills". The Greek word here actually means "mountains".
Let me explain why this is important. Rome is traditionally known as a city built on seven hills.
Also Verse 10 says the seven hills/mountains are also seven kings, five of which are fallen during the time of Israel."
There were five great empires that had previously existed:
1) The Egyptian Empire,
2) The Assyrian Empire,
3) The Babylonian Empire,
4) The Mede-Persian Empire and
5) Greek Empire.
At the time of John's writing Rome ruled over Israel. That was the sixth king (or empire) that is "present tense".
In the bible, the word "mountain" can be used as a word-picture for government. The idea is a mountain stands out over the land just as the government stands over the people.
Now let's move on to: "Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come".
There is also a 7th king that is "yet to come". The rest of Verse 10 says, "But when he does come, he must remain for a little while". (Three and a half years)
This is referring to the "final king", which would be the antichrist himself. The point of this phrase is God allows the antichrist to rule, ultimately to serve God's purpose and plan.
The antichrist is thrown into hell in Chapter 19. The point here is that the antichrist is "future", but he does not rule forever.
The Great Tribulation describes a future, final empire that rules over Israel, and most of the world. That’s the “seventh king”.
Revelation 17:12 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.
Remember that in Verse 3, John saw this beast with seven heads and ten horns. Most likely, the mountains are nicknames for the seven kings.
Also, some argue the seven mountains refer to Rome, as that city is known as the "city on seven hills".
We are now done describing the seven heads. Now we get to the 10 horns (10 kings).
Verse 12 says the "Ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast."
In other words, the "beast" (antichrist) works with 10 other future-kings. This final world-empire is controlled by 10 kings. They eventually turn their power over to the antichrist, as we'll see in Verse 13.
Let's stop for a breather. ? Why are we getting all of these details?
Remember the purpose of this chapter is to show John (and us) how the woman "riding" the beast is going to be judged in the end. In order to describe the judgment, God first has to explain just who is this woman (a city) and who is this beast (the antichrist and his empire).
The point is to show us there once was a first organized rebellion against God in the Tower of Babel story. There will be a last organized rebellion against God here in Revelation 17.
God calls it "Babylon" to tie it to the "Tower of Babel" rebellion.
What's the application?
Throughout history, there have been organized rebellions against the God of the bible. There have also been Christian churches that have been corrupted by partnering with governments or false teachers.
There are historical applications of these verses happening on a smaller scale. The key is to beware of who we "partner" with as Christians.
Meanwhile, back to the beast. Verse 13: They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast.
Who are they "they"? "They" refers to the ten kings of the previous verse.
Illus: For example, when the European Union was formed in the last few decades, some thought, "Aha, this is that final world empire!" The problem is there is now more than ten (28) nations in this union and nobody is submitting power to anyone.
This Union could eventually lead to the antichrist, but the European Union as it stands right now does not fit the prophecy of this chapter.
If you think about people in power, they never want to submit their power to anyone else. What is unusual about this prophecy is ten kings are willing to submit their power to a single person. That would be an "unusual sign" and would help us to recognize this event when it happens.
Revelation 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.
This verse is saying there are the ten kings, lead by the antichrist, who war against Jesus. Jesus is described earlier as "The (sacrificial) Lamb" for our sins. Rev. 5:6, 12)
The verse goes on to say Jesus will win, because, "He is king of kings…"
Verse 14 says those people with Jesus will be OVERCOMES. That means when this war happens, Christians will follow Jesus into battle. That does not mean Christians can die in this war. When we get to the battle in Chapter 19, it is more of an "instant wipeout" than it is a war.
With that said, this is a verse that is troubling to me.
Here are these ten kings, which govern over a worldwide empire, making war against God! In other words, I don't have a problem with what God can do. It still baffles me to this day what man is capable of doing in a sinful state. I suspect these ten kings are fooled in that they don't believe Jesus is God. Obviously, if they believed Jesus was the true God, they would not be convinced they could win this battle
This verse contains the only "praise-line" in the chapter. Here, Jesus is called "King of kings".
To use a popular cliché today: God is large and He is in charge!"
Revelation 17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
Back in Verse 1, it read, “…Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters."
The purpose of this chapter is to show the punishment of this prostitute.
Revelation 17:16 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.
Again, Verse 1 stated the purpose of this chapter: To show the punishment of this prostitute.
Revelation 17:17-18 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. And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
The second sentence these rulers will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire." Remember this "woman "is a city.
The idea is the antichrist will double-cross this city (religious center of worship) and destroy it.
Those kings have partnered with the religious leaders in order to rise to power. Kings and emperors never want to share their power with anyone. Once they achieve the power they want, the religious leaders are no longer useful to them, and there is no reason to keep those religious leaders alive. The kings kill the religious leaders as the kings see those religious leaders as a threat to their power.
One of the issues I brought up earlier is the danger of the Christian church partnering with government leaders. Such churches then become dependant upon the government for their survival. In such cases, Christian churches have to compromise what they believe in order to appease that government.
The irony here is that it is the antichrist who destroys this city and not God Himself.
The antichrist himself will be punished in a few chapters. The point is God Himself did not have to "zap" this woman/city/movement as the antichrist himself does the damage.
The lesson is to be careful who we partner with in life. That is another reason why I call this lesson, "Know thy enemy".
The point here is that God, "working behind the scenes" has the power to convince these 10 kings to give their power to the antichrist. The kings think it is their idea to give up their power. Here in Verse 17, we realize that God is "pulling the strings".
The point of all of this is to teach and remind us how God works and how God is capable of working when He chooses.
The bible teaches that all government leaders are God ordained.(See Romans 13:1). God works behind the scenes to raise up leaders, both good and bad, ultimately for His own purposes.
God "allows" the antichrist to rise to power. The "unusual miracle" is that ten kings willingly give up their power in order for this antichrist to rise to power. The point is, it is not demonic influence that allows these kings to give up their power. It is "God ordained".
One has to take comfort in the fact that "God is large and God is in charge" and trust in the fact that whatever is happening, ultimately happens for God's glory. This may not alleviate the pain, but it will help us to understand the eternal perspective.
Conclusion:
One thing I pondered is:
Why wait until Verse 18 to announce this prostitute is a city?
I believe the idea is not for us to be fooled and think this prostitute is literal. As a prostitute she may look pretty all "fixed up" as described in her clothes and jewelry earlier in the chapter. In the end, she's still a prostitute.
