Many of us, at one point or another, have found ourselves desiring a different kind of life. A better life, with nicer stuff. A life with "more." This desire for more tends to run in four directions:
(1) Power/fame. At times, we get tired of having no voice, no say, no authority. We are tired of life not going the way we want. We want to be someone.
(2) Wealth. We get tired of having to budget, of limping along with old cars, of having no A/C in our apartments or houses, of wearing old clothes, of eating cheap. We wonder what it'd be like to have marble, instead of laminate. To have gold, instead of copper. To have a Lexus, instead of a Kia. To have more steak, and less pasta.
(3) Pleasure. We want to have more moments where we can relax, and feel good.
(4) Security. We want to be safe from persecution (Revelation 13:7). From foreign invaders. From gangs. From thieves.
What keeps us from having this lifestyle of "more"?
Often, the answer to that, is that we follow Jesus. When you are committed to following the Lamb, wherever He goes, you'll find that the paths He takes tend to be hard, and costly. With money, and wealth, in particular, Jesus expects his people to give sacrificially. To live open-handed, generously, toward those in need (Luke 12:32-33).
And then, if you add persecution to that, it can get even harder. In many parts of the world, at many times, Christians are given the Bud Light treatment. Doors are shut to them, financially. If you don't toe the line, and give your allegiance to the Beast, you'll be boycotted financially (Revelation 13:16-17).
Most of the time, maybe, we accept the cost to following Jesus. We know that Jesus, and his kingdom, are a pearl of great value, and worth giving up everything. We don't find ourselves looking sideways at the world, and wanting more power, or fame, or wealth, or pleasure, or security.
But once in a while, maybe, we do.
Now, when we read the book of Revelation, we see that these four things-- power, wealth, pleasure, and security-- are all offered by satan. Satan holds out his hand to all people, and invites them to give their allegiance to him.
Now, in Revelation, satan doesn't do this directly. It's not like when Jesus was driven into the wilderness, to be tested by satan one-on-one.
In Revelation, satan offers these things through his minions. We saw in Revelation 13 that he uses human empires to achieve these things. Satan is given the right to pick out nations, to raise them up, to give them his power and authority and throne, and to elevate them over all other nations. Basically, satan can turn nations into evil superpowers. Or, in the language of Revelation, satan can turn nations, into the Beast. And this beast has two main purposes: (1) to harm the church, and (2) to deceive people into bowing down, and serving it. If you can make people patriotic, and get them to swear allegiance to a flag, you can keep them away from the Lamb.
In the first century, this beast took the form of the Roman empire. But the beast is active throughout the life of the church. We will always find ourselves in war with the beast.
All of this is familiar ground, at this point in Revelation. But what we will see today, adding to this, is that satan has a third minion. This minion is given several names: Babylon, the great city, the great prostitute. And Satan uses Babylon to offer people the four desirable things I talked about earlier: power, wealth, pleasure, and security. Babylon's job is to seduce people into chasing these things. She makes people unfaithful to the Lamb, because you can only chase one thing. You either chase the Lamb, or you turn aside, and chase the whore.
Now, who, exactly, is Babylon? This is not a literal city. [And we shouldn't be so literal in reading Revelation, that we find ourselves hoping someone will rebuild it, and give it new birth. I remember when fundamentalists were excited about Saddam Hussein rebuilding it.] It's symbolic. And the key to understanding the symbolism, is to see how it's rooted in the OT.
When we read the OT, we find that Babylon is exceptional in its wickedness (the key passages, helpfully listed by William Hendriksen, More than Conquerors, 168, are: Genesis 11; Isaiah 13-14; 21; 46; 47; Jeremiah 25; 50; 51; Daniel 2; 4:30; 7; Habakkuk 3; Revelation 17 also picks up echoes from Tyre, in Ezekiel 27-28). From almost the very beginning of time, Babylon was the place where people intentionally opposed God's vision for the world. In Genesis 11, at the Tower of Babylon-- in Hebrew, it's the Tower of Babylon, not the Tower of Babel-- the people worked together to fight God's desire that people expand across the world. Instead, they built up, so that their name would be great. When we read Isaiah and Jeremiah, we see that Babylon is marked by its pride (Isaiah 13:11; 14:13-14; 47:7-8; Jeremiah 50:31-32), by its intentional opposition to God (Genesis 11, compare with Jeremiah 51:9; Jeremiah 50:24, 29), by its great wealth, (Isaiah 13:17; Jeremiah 50:10; 51:13), by its luxuries (Isaiah 13:22; 14:8), by its power (Isaiah 13:22; 14:10, 16-17, 21; **47:1**; Jeremiah 51:30, 58), by its idolatry (Isaiah 21:9; 46:1-7; Jeremiah 50:2, 38; 51:17-18, 47, 52), by its sorcery (Isaiah 47:9-15), and perhaps most importantly, by its violence and cruelty toward all people, and toward God's people in particular (Isaiah 14:3, 17, 20; 21:2, 10; 47:6; Jer. 50:15-17, 33; 51:34-35, 49).
Listing all of these things maybe leaves you a little cold. The list of Babylon's evils is long, and overwhelming. But let me just read from one passage, Isaiah 47 (NRSV updated no reason), to spark your imaginations:
47 Come down and sit in the dust,
virgin daughter Babylon!
Sit on the ground without a throne,
daughter Chaldea!
For you shall no more be called
tender and delicate.
2 Take the millstones and grind meal;
remove your veil;
strip off your robe; uncover your legs;
pass through the rivers.
3 Your nakedness shall be uncovered,
and your shame shall be seen.
I will take vengeance,
and I will spare no one.[a]
4 Our Redeemer—the LORD of hosts is his name—
is the Holy One of Israel.
5 Sit in silence, and go into darkness,
daughter Chaldea!
For you shall no more be called
the mistress of kingdoms.
6 I was angry with my people;
I profaned my heritage;
I gave them into your hand;
you showed them no mercy;
on the aged you made your yoke
exceedingly heavy.
7 You said, “I shall be mistress forever,”
so that you did not lay these things to heart
or remember their end.
8 Now therefore hear this, you lover of pleasures,
who sit securely,
who say in your heart,
“I am, and there is no one besides me;
I shall not sit as a widow
or know the loss of children”—
9 both these things shall come upon you
in a moment, in one day:
the loss of children and widowhood
shall come upon you in full measure,
in spite of your many sorceries
and the great power of your enchantments.
10 You felt secure in your wickedness;
you said, “No one sees me.”
Your wisdom and your knowledge
led you astray,
and you said in your heart,
“I am, and there is no one besides me.”
11 But evil shall come upon you,
which you cannot charm away;
disaster shall fall upon you,
which you will not be able to ward off,
and ruin shall come on you suddenly,
of which you know nothing.
12 Stand fast in your enchantments
and your many sorceries,
with which you have labored from your youth;
perhaps you may be able to succeed;
perhaps you may inspire terror.
13 You are wearied with your many consultations;
let those who study[b] the heavens
stand up and save you,
those who gaze at the stars
and at each new moon predict
what[c] shall befall you.
14 See, they are like stubble;
the fire consumes them;
they cannot deliver themselves
from the power of the flame.
No coal for warming oneself is this,
no fire to sit before!
15 Such to you are those with whom you have labored,
who have trafficked with you from your youth;
they all wander about in their own paths;
there is no one to save you.
Babylon reigned as Queen. She was the Mother of the world (verse 9). She was the center of a great empire. The pinnacle of the empire's wealth, and luxuries, and power, and violence. We talk today about wealth flows "up." You could also say that wealth flows "in," toward the center of every nation. That center, is Babylon.
Now, Babylon was confident that her reign would last forever. She looked at her armies, and military bases, and felt invulnerable. But God humiliated her, and destroyed her. God made good on his promises, and Babylon, as a literal human superpower, is no longer a threat.
I say that, but when we turn to the NT, we see that Babylon lives on. Babylon becomes a symbol for the heart of evil human empires. Any Christian reading Revelation 17 in the first century would've easily applied this language about Babylon to Rome. Rome was a modern-day Babylon. The city was the "Mother" of the evil found throughout the empire.
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And all of the language about Rome being the Mother of all prostitutes is a deliberate twisting of official Roman propaganda:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roma_(personification)
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Rome pushed emperor worship, and idolatry. She offered people wealth, power, pleasure, and security.
Today, there's no one city that offers everything that Rome did. But if you combined Hollywood, Las Vegas, New York City, and Washington D.C., you'd find Babylon. Those four cities, combined, can give you anything you want from satan. Those four cities, combined, actively promote satan's agenda on earth.
That, in a nutshell, is what we find ourselves reading about today. Revelation 17 encourages Christians to ignore Babylon, the great prostitute. Don't get seduced by what she offers. Don't chase after the things that she offers. Stay away from her, and keep following the Lamb.
That's basically the whole passage. That's the main point of the chapter, and the main point of this sermon.
But how the passage teaches this, is a complicated thing. This is the kind of chapter where I'm not going to explain everything right. There are parts that I'm going to gloss over, and you'll maybe realize I somehow "accidentally" missed. But the application is clear, and I'm hoping you won't lose sight of that. The application is what we need to make sure we take home, even if we get lots of other stuff wrong.
Let's start reading today in Revelation 16:17. In the seventh bowl judgment, Babylon, the Great City, was introduced (without any explanation):
(17) and the seventh one poured out his bowl upon the air,
and a great voice came out of the temple from the throne saying,
"It has happened,"
(18) and there were lightnings and sounds and thunders, [Exodus 19:16-18; Ezekiel 38:20]
and a great earthquake, there was,
such as hasn't ever happened from when humans have been on the earth-- so great [was] the earthquake in this way--
(19) and the great city was [split] into three parts ("great city"= Revelation 11:18, 13; 14:20; 16:19),
and the cities of the nations fell,
and Babylon the Great was remembered before God-- to give to her the cup of the wine of the fury of this wrath [Revelation 14:9-10; cf. Jeremiah 25:1-38; a twist on Jeremiah 51:7],
(20) and every island fled,
and mountains weren't found [as has already happened in Revelation 6:14-- not chronological],
(21) and great/large hailstones weighing about a talent (100 pounds?) come down from heaven upon the people, [Exodus 9:24]
and the people blasphemed/cursed God because of the plague of hail,
because very great, its plague was.
What we see, in verses 18 and 19, is multiple different pictures of judgment on a place called "the great city." It's torn apart by earthquakes. It's then called "Babylon the Great," and then drinks from the cup of the wine of God's wrath. It then receives great hail.
In many ways, all of these things sound like the end-- like the final judgment. But at the same time, it's very obviously not. At the end of chapter 16, people are still alive, walking around, cursing God. So what we're seeing here, I think (unless I'm pressing the details too literally), is more like what we see throughout the OT. God is slow to anger, rich in love, and abounding in mercy. But there are times when nations push God too far, for too long. God's patience runs out, and He actively brings judgment on the nations. His goal in doing this, is two-fold. God brings judgment, so that people repent. And He brings judgment, to fight for his people, and free them from those who attack them.
But what we see, in verse 21, is that God doesn't get what He wants here. People respond to God's judgments by cursing him. They know that God is the source of the judgments. God got their attention, and they understand what's going on. But they refuse to repent. They curse God.
All of this is something that happens throughout human history. God actively judges the nations, and people make their own choice about how they will respond.
And who again, is the great city Babylon? Babylon is a symbolic way of describing the heart of evil human empires. In the first century, "Babylon" was the city of Rome. But there are many Babylons. Or, you could say, maybe, that Babylon takes many forms.
So what we saw last week, in chapter 16, is God's judgment on Babylon, the center of the Beast. What we will see today, in chapter 17, is something like a zoomed-in perspective on this judgment of Babylon. It's not talking about something later, or different. It's a more detailed description, that uses a different set of images and symbols.
So let's read Revelation 17:1-2:
(1) And one of the seven angels having the seven bowls came,
and he spoke with me, saying,
"Come!
I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute [Nahum 3:4]-- the one seated upon many waters
[Jeremiah 51:13],
with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality,
and the ones dwelling on the earth were made drunk by the wine of her sexual immorality," [Jeremiah
51:7]
So what John "hears," in verses 1-2, is that angel will "show" him the judgment of the "great prostitute." This prostitute is linked to Babylon by calling it the one seated upon many waters. Rome wasn't built on many waters. Babylon was.
So this prostitute is the central source of unfaithfulness for the rest of the world. The kings of the earth joined themselves to the prostitute. And "all of the ones dwelling on the earth" drank from the wine of her sexual immorality.
What we are seeing here is symbolic language. It's not literal. But what exactly does this mean?
We get our answer starting in verse 3. What John "sees," interprets what he "hears." There is an interplay between seeing and hearing:
(3) and he brought me away into the wilderness in the Spirit,
and I saw a woman being seated upon a scarlet beast,
[the beast] being full of blasphemous names,
having seven heads and ten horns,
So what does John see in verse 3?
In verse 3, John sees that there is a close link between the woman, and the beast. "She's seated upon a scarlet beast." This beast, is the Beast that rose up from the sea in chapter 13. Beast #1. What we saw in chapter 13, is that Beast #1 is a symbol for evil human empires, who are used by satan to do two main things: (1) deceive people into worshipping it (Revelation 13:3), and (2) attack the church (Revelation 13:7). In the first century, Beast #1 was [manifested as] the Roman empire. But the Beast is bigger than that. The Beast is given authority by God throughout the entire time of the church (all 3 1/2 years; Revelation 13:5).
If we strip away all the symbolism here, we could say that what John sees, is that the capital city of Rome is seated upon the Roman empire. Rome rules over the empire. And her strength, comes from the satanic strength of the empire.
I say that, but it's a little bit off. If the Beast is active throughout the entire history of the church, then the woman must be active as well. If the Beast is bigger than the Roman empire, then the woman is bigger than the capital of Rome.
I think the easiest way to explain this, is that the Beast, and the woman, take different forms throughout history. Satan has authority to turn nations and empires into his servants, and use them for his evil purposes. (Revelation 13:2). And those nations and empires have key cities within them, that serve as the focal point, and as the height of demonic things. Those cities are the source of the wickedness that spreads throughout the empire, and throughout the world.
So if I was brave, and tried to apply this through analogy to the U.S., I would say that it looks something like this: If you look at the warts of the United States-- at its abortion of thousands of unborn babies every year, at the way it promotes violence throughout the world, at the way it tortures prisoners, at the way it supports evil dictators who are aligned with us economically-- if you look at all these things, you will probably conclude that the United States is a/the current form of the Beast. And if you zoom in on the United States, you'd probably conclude that there are four locations, together, that are Babylon today: Hollywood, Las Vegas, New York City, and Washington D.C.
And the kings of the earth, from verse 2, have chosen to align themselves to Washington D.C., instead of to the Lamb. And throughout the world, people have drunk from the cup of our wine. Our main exports are violence, sexual immorality, greed, and idolatry. And that's what people drink, when they consume what the Prostitute offers them, and pattern their lives after her.
Verse 4:
(4) and the woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, [Jer. 4:30]
and wearing gold and precious stones and pearls,
having a golden cup in her hand being filled with detestable things and the unclean things of her sexual immorality,
(5) and upon her forehead a name having been written, a mystery [3:12; 7:3; 9:4; 14:1]:
"Babylon the Great,"
"The Mother of prostitutes and of the detestable things of the earth,"
In verse 2, we were told that all the ones dwelling on earth were drunk because of the woman. Here, that symbolic language of drunkenness is unpacked. The woman offers the world two main things: (1) detestable things, and (2) the unclean things of her sexual immorality. She's the source-- the Mother-- of all of the detestable things of the earth. And other nations, copying her example, become prostitutes as well.
So the situation we see, is that there are many prostitutes, who offer themselves as bait, to draw people away from God, and toward idolatrous things.
What draws people away from God? If we just stick to Revelation, we'd say there's four things:
(1) idolatry ["blasphemous names" = emperor worship, and state-promoted idolatry]
(2) power ["horns"; verse 3]
(3) wealth [verse 4]
(4) pleasure [the whole "prostitute" imagery]
People who live in accordance with the flesh find all of these things attractive. When they see the Great Prostitute, they see a good-looking woman, who can give them power, and wealth, and happiness, and security. They chase after her-- and she's not running from them.
Now, when you look at the woman, what do you see?
That's the real question Revelation 17 answers. When you see the woman, is she attractive? She's clothed in all kinds of wealth. What she offers, she offers in a beautiful, golden cup. Do you drink her cup? Do you pursue idolatry, and power, and wealth, and pleasure? Do you watch the trashy movies, and align yourselves with the woman's values? It's tempting.
But if you stop, and look inside the cup before you drink, you'll see that what she offers is detestable. And if you seek those things, and drink that cup, you are being unfaithful to God.
In verse 6, John sees something more:
(6) and I saw the woman being drunk with the blood of the holy ones,
and with the blood of the witnesses to Jesus,
and I marveled, seeing her, a great marvel [halfway to the world's reaction; Revelation 13:3],
So the cup the woman held, was filled with detestable things. And now that symbolism is bent a little bit, and reworked. The woman is drunk on something that looks like wine, but isn't. She's drunk on the blood of the holy ones.
Rome persecuted Christians. The holy ones were jailed, and harmed financially, and killed. Now, this wasn't the fate for every Christian. Some did just fine, living under the Roman empire. But some, were harmed. And we keep hearing this reminder about persecution, because God doesn't want us to gloss over this wart. Christians throughout history have found themselves living in empires where they prosper financially, and live a good life. That empire works for them, quite nicely. If that empire is actively persecuting Christians, it's a Beast. And we can't let our bank accounts, and the woman's wealth, blind us to the truth.
So John has heard about the woman, and he's seen two pictures of her. He responds to this, still in verse 6, by marveling. This is the wrong reaction. Let's turn to Revelation 13:1-3 (NRSV updated no reason):
13 1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, and on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads were blasphemous names. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have received a death blow, but its fatal wound[a] had been healed. In amazement ["marvel"] the whole earth followed the beast. 4 They worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”
John sees the woman riding the beast, and he reacts like the world. He marvels. He's taken in by the power, and the wealth, and the greatness of the woman (h/t J. Ramsey Michaels, Revelation). She's a success, as a prostitute.
The only thing John doesn't do, at this point, that world does, is bow down and worship. But John here messes up. His reaction-- the natural reaction-- is to see the wrong thing. He gets taken in by the wealth, and power, and beauty, of the Great Prostitute. He sees the wrong thing, and draws the wrong conclusion.
So in verse 7, the angel helps him:
(7) and the angel said to me,
"Why are you marveling?
I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast-- the one carrying her, the one having the seven heads and the ten horns.
So the angel here, basically, tells John to snap out of it (h/t J. Ramsey Michaels). Don't get seduced by the prostitute.
He then tells John that he will explain the vision. And here again we find an interplay between what John "sees" and "hears." In verses 1-2, John "heard" about the Great Prostitute. In verses 3-5, what John "sees," explains what he "hears." And now, flipping it around, what John "hears," will explain what he saw.
Now, the catch is that what John hears is really complicated. This is the part where things kind of fall apart. So I'm just going to read from verses 8-18. The main thing I want you to listen for, is the answer to one question: "What is the final fate of the woman, and the beast?" If there's one thing we need to pull out of it, it's this.
(8) The beast that you saw was, and it is not, and it is about to rise up from the Abyss/Netherworld,
and to destruction it is going ["to destruction" is focused],
and the ones dwelling upon the earth will marvel-- the ones whose names haven't been written upon the book of life from the foundation of the world,
seeing the beast,
that it was, and it is not, and it will be present.
(9) This calls for a mind with wisdom:
The seven heads, seven mountains they are ["seven mountains" is focused],
where the woman is seated upon them,
and seven kings, they are [seven kings is focused].
Five have fallen.
One, is.
The other has not yet come,
and whenever he comes, a short time, he must remain ["a short time" is focused],
(11) and the beast that was, and it is not-- he also, an eighth, he is ["an eighth" is focused],
and of the seven, he is,
and to destruction he is going, [the Beast here morphs from the empire, to a Caesar]
(12) and the ten horns that you saw, ten kings, they are, [Daniel 7:24]
who a kingdom, they have not yet taken/received,
but authority as kings for one hour they will take/receive with the beast (16:12? 16:14-16?].
(13) These ones, one mindset/purpose, they have,
and their power and authority, to the beast, they will give.
(14) These ones, with the Lamb they will wage war,
and the Lamb will conquer/overcome them,
because the Lord of lords, he is, and the king of kings, [contrast Ezekiel 26:7; Daniel 2:27; cf. Deut. 10:17;
Daniel 2:47; h/t Jürgen Roloff; "Lord of lords" is focused]
and the ones with him [are] called/invited and chosen and faithful,
(15) and he says to me,
"The waters that you saw where the prostitute is seated, peoples and crowds, they are, and nations and tongues ["peoples and crowds" is focused],
(16) and the ten horns that you saw and the beast-- these ones will hate the prostitute,
and they will make her desolate ("wilderness" her; same root as verse 3) and naked,
and her flesh they will eat/consume,
and her, they will burn with fire.
(17) For God put into their hearts to do/make his mind/purpose (same word as v. 13),
and to do/make one mind/purpose
and to give their kingdom to the beast until the words of God will be fulfilled,
(18) and the woman that you saw is the great city-- the one having kingship/royal rule over the kings of the earth."
So what is the final fate of the beast, and of the woman?
We are told first, of the fate of the Beast. In verse 8, the Beast goes "to its destruction." And then again, in verse 11, the Beast goes "to its destruction" (and it's even focused in Greek, which tells us we are pointing in the right direction).
And what is the fate of the woman?
In verse 16, we are told that the Beast will turn on the woman. The Beast, working with other kings, will hate her, and strip her of her wealth, and consume her, and burn her. She'll be left ruined (all of this plays off Ezekiel 23 probably)-- a total wilderness. [and the fact that the Beast is first described as destroyed, and then described as destroying the woman, encourages us to not press the details of the passage very literally, or too far].
Now, "when" will all of this happen? I think the answer to this is complicated, because the identity of the Beast, and of the Prostitute, is complicated. God's judgments are a "now and later" thing.
Throughout church history, the Beast will rise up from the Netherworld, to attack God's people and deceive the world. And then, it sort of fades away, only to rise again later. Satan raises up nations to attack the church, and deceive the world.
And God allows this to happen, time and again, for now. But when a nation falls under Satan's sway, God only tolerates it for so long. When a nation wages war with the Lamb, by attacking the church, the Lamb will fight back. And the Lamb will conquer. So when we look back at how superpower after superpower has fallen, what we are seeing, is the victorious Lamb. Nations that harm Christians, get wiped out. Cities that export all kinds of detestable things, and encourage people to be unfaithful spiritually, get conquered.
And one of the ways that the Lamb conquers, is in verses 16-17. Evil, violent nations turn on themselves.
Everyone in the world may serve Babylon, or Rome, or Washington D.C. But vassals are always open to turning the tables on their queen, and ruling for themselves. And what God does, at times, is unite people in opposition to superpowers, to topple them. God uses human means, to topple satanic empires.
So that's chapter 17, more or less. This chapter was a real struggle for me, and I'm hoping I was able to teach it in a way that's helpful. But if you find yourself a little lost, and overwhelmed, the application of this chapter is perfectly straightforward.
All of us live at a time when the Great Prostitute holds out a golden cup to us. Perhaps like never before in history, we have access to all sorts of satanic, detestable things. We can seek power, and wealth, and pleasure, and security from the world. We can accept the prostitute's call. And we can marvel at the power, and the beauty, of the woman and the Beast, and bow down to the Queen of the Earth.
OR.
We can stop ourselves, and think, and look inside the cup. We can see that what Hollywood, and Vegas, and D.C. offer us, is detestable. We can choose to faithfully follow the Lamb, wherever He goes (Revelation 14:4).
If we find ourselves struggling with this, Revelation 17 offers us help in two ways. First, it helps us to stop, and look inside the cup. When you find yourself being tested, desiring wealth, and power, and fame, and security, the key to avoiding being seduced, is to be able to stop, and think.
All of us, at one point or another, have grabbed a glass from the dishwasher that had some nasty residue in it, that we didn't see until we were halfway through drinking. I can still remember being a kid, drinking milk from a brown plastic cup, and not seeing the grossest, vilest stuff in it until the milk was mostly gone.
If you stop, and look, before you drink detestable things, you won't drink.
Second, Revelation 17 helps us be faithful, by showing us how it all ends. God is in the business of toppling evil human superpowers. He only tolerates evil, and violence, and detestable things for so long, before his patience runs out. And the parts of the empire that are centers for detestable things, will receive the worst judgment. So if the Lamb is coming in judgment on the Great Prostitute, you don't want to be found in bed with her. You want to wage war with the Lamb (verse 14), and not against him.
So don't drink with the prostitute. Don't marvel at the beauty and wealth of Babylon. Don't join her. Keep following the Lamb, and stick to the Lamb's army.
Translation:
(1) And one of the seven angels having the seven bowls came,
and he spoke with me, saying,
"Come!
I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute [Nahum 3:4]-- the one seated upon many waters [Jeremiah 51:13],
with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality,
and the ones dwelling on the earth were made drunk by the wine of her sexual immorality," [Jeremiah 51:7]
(3) and he brought me away into the wilderness in the Spirit,
and I saw a woman being seated upon a scarlet beast,
[the beast] being full of blasphemous names,
having seven heads and ten horns,
(4) and the woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, [Jeremiah 4:30]
and wearing gold and precious stones and pearls,
having a golden cup in her hand being filled with detestable things and the unclean things of her sexual immorality,
(5) and upon her forehead a name having been written, a mystery [3:12; 7:3; 9:4; 14:1]:
"Babylon the Great,"
"The Mother of prostitutes and of the detestable things of the earth,"
(6) and I saw the woman being drunk with the blood of the holy ones,
and with the blood of the witnesses to Jesus,
and I marveled, seeing her, a great marvel [halfway to the world's reaction; Revelation 13:3],
(7) and the angel said to me,
"Why are you marveling?
I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast-- the one carrying her, the one having the seven heads and the ten horns.
(8) The beast that you saw was, and it is not, and it is about to rise up from the Abyss/Netherworld,
and to destruction it is going ["to destruction" is focused],
and the ones dwelling upon the earth will marvel-- the ones whose names haven't been written upon the book of life from the foundation of the world,
seeing the beast,
that it was, and it is not, and it will be present.
(9) This calls for a mind with wisdom:
The seven heads, seven mountains they are ["seven mountains" is focused],
where the woman is seated upon them,
and seven kings, they are [seven kings is focused].
Five have fallen.
One, is.
The other has not yet come,
and whenever he comes, a short time, he must remain ["a short time" is focused],
(11) and the beast that was, and it is not-- he also, an eighth, he is ["an eighth" is focused],
and of the seven, he is,
and to destruction he is going, [the Beast here morphs from the empire, to a Caesar]
(12) and the ten horns that you saw, ten kings, they are, [Daniel 7:24]
who a kingdom, they have not yet taken/received,
but authority as kings for one hour they will take/receive with the beast (16:12? 16:14-16?].
(13) These ones, one mindset/purpose, they have,
and their power and authority, to the beast, they will give.
(14) These ones, with the Lamb they will wage war,
and the Lamb will conquer/overcome them,
because the Lord of lords, he is, and the king of kings, [contrast Ezekiel 26:7; Daniel 2:27; cf. Deut. 10:17; Daniel 2:47; h/t Jürgen Roloff]
and the ones with him [are] called/invited and chosen and faithful,
(15) and he says to me,
"The waters that you saw where the prostitute is seated, peoples and crowds, they are, and nations and tongues,
(16) and the ten horns that you saw and the beast-- these ones will hate the prostitute,
and they will make her desolate ("wilderness" her; same root as verse 3) and naked,
and her flesh they will eat/consume,
and her, they will burn with fire.
(17) For God put into their hearts to do/make his mind/purpose (same word as v. 13),
and to do/make one mind/purpose
and to give their kingdom to the beast until the words of God will be fulfilled,
(18) and the woman that you saw is the great city-- the one having kingship/royal rule over the kings of the earth."
