Revelation 18:4-24
In the last section in verse 3 we read about an angel speaking to John telling him how all the nations and all the kings have “drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality”.
Being drunk on her wine (Babylon), really just means that the world has become intoxicated by sin, that they lust for sin. Yes there was sexual immorality as it says but there was much more than that going on I can assure you. Every imaginable sin against God was in full flow.
4 “Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues; 5 for her sins are heaped high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. 6 Pay her back as she herself has paid back others, and repay her double for her deeds; mix a double portion for her in the cup she mixed. 7 As she glorified herself and lived in luxury, so give her a like measure of torment and mourning, since in her heart she says, ‘I sit as a queen, I am no widow, and mourning I shall never see.’
As mentioned there are Christians still on earth “my people” even still now at the end of this great war against evil. Imagine how strong these Christians must be to endure everything that they have lived through.
Now being we don't know the length of time of everything that transpires in Revelation, we don't know if these believers were there at the beginning or were born somewhere along the way and became believers.
But for sure this group of believers who are still there have been a part of the army of Christ fighting to the point of victory.
I can assure you they are not in any way weak or soft Christians. They are the strongest of the strong both physically and spiritually. This is what we should be striving for today.
The day has come, God has called out His people, away from the final destruction so they don't get caught up in it. The kings mentioned and their kingdoms who all followed the Antichrist will see there last, and they will suffer the torment along with their master.
8 For this reason her plagues will come in a single day, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her.”
Read v18 again ~ “her plagues will come in a single day” is this a literal single day? Did all these plagues happen in one day? I'm not sure, can famine happen in one day?
9 And the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning. 10 They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say, “Alas! Alas! You great city, you mighty city, Babylon! For in a single hour your judgment has come.”
All these kings, the rich, the false churches, the politicians who all took part in the sins of the world under the Antichrist will run off to the outer areas where they will watch it all burn. I bet they think they are safe on the outskirts, but they are not. They may have momentarily escaped God's wrath but their final judgment will happen, they can't escape it.
11 And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, 12 cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, 13 cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls.
There is this saying that I remember, it says “he who dies with the most toys wins,” the stuff we put value on will be worthless, no one buys it anymore, and I can assure you no one will care about it anymore.
Reality has hit everyone and what is of true value differs here. For the lost it is survival and for the believer it is Christ and salvation. Everything comes to complete clarity.
Romans 3:16-17 ~ in their paths are ruin and misery, 17 and the way of peace they have not known This is the life of the unbeliever.
14 “The fruit for which your soul longed has gone from you, and all your delicacies and your splendors
are lost to you, never to be found again!” 15 The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud, 16 “Alas, alas, for the great city
that was clothed in fine linen, in purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold, with jewels, and with pearls!
17 For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.” And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off 18 and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning. 19 And they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out, “Alas, alas, for the great city where all who had ships at sea
grew rich by her wealth! For in a single hour she has been laid waste.
Anyone who was a part of making or selling all these things and that have become wealthy from their sales will see it all burn. No one to sell to because other things are so much more important.
You see all this stuff takes us away from Christ and Satan knows it so he brings stuff into our lives to distract us from what's important. Satan brings stuff into our lives and he makes us busy with things that are meaningless to God.
What if we did away with most of the stuff and most of the things that pull us away from God and instead put our time and our effort into serving Christ? What if instead of purchasing stuff our money went to building the kingdom? What if the majority of our time was was spent praising and worshiping and building each other up? What if we spent our time out in the world sharing the gospel as we are called to?
20 “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!”
God it says here will bring judgment to the world for His people. God brought judgment once before for all those who would be saved in Christ Jesus. The judgment was cast upon Christ for our sins. This time God brings judgment and wrath to the world for us through Christ Jesus.
21 Then a mighty 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 be found no more;
22 and the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters, will be heard in you no more, and a craftsman of any craft will be found in you no more, and the sound of the mill will be heard in you no more, 23 and the light of a lamp will shine in you no more, and the voice of bridegroom and bride
will be heard in you no more, for your merchants were the great ones of the earth, and all nations were deceived by your sorcery. 24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on earth.”
Many have thought on who Babylon is but any guess would just be that, a guess. I am more to the side that it is the entire world and not just one place because that would make much more sense.
