Destruction of Babylon
SYNOPSIS – The complete destruction of Babylon is God’s response to the persecution by “her” of the “saints” – Revelation 18:9-24.
The stress falls on two main misdeeds committed by the “Great
Whore” – First, her involvement in world commerce and, second, her “sorcery.”
The latter became manifest in her efforts to destroy the “saints.”
The description of her judgment uses language from the
books of Jeremiah and Ezekiel - Judicial pronouncements made
originally against the ancient cities of Babylon and Tyre. Both of those cities
depended on maritime trade for their prosperity - (Jeremiah 50-51, Ezekiel
26-27).
However, passages from the Hebrew Bible that referred originally
to the enemies of Israel are now applied to the foes of the churches. Furthermore,
prophecies made against the two city-states of Babylon and Tyre are now applied
to the single “great city, Babylon.”
End-time “Babylon” is the world-city in
which Jesus was executed, a city set on “seven mountains” that reigns
over the “kings of the earth” and the “peoples, multitudes,
nations, and tongues,” a world-power deeply involved in commerce throughout
the known world. The first-century audience of Revelation could only have
identified this “Babylon” with the Roman Empire.
In One Hour
- (Revelation 18:9-19) – “And they shall weep and wail over her—shall the kings of the earth who, with her, committed lewdness and waxed wanton,— as soon as they see the smoke of her burning,— afar off standing, because of their fear of her torment, saying— Alas! alas! the great city! Babylon, the mighty city! That in one hour hath come thy judgment. And the merchants of the earth weep and grieve over her, because their cargo no one buyeth any more: cargo of gold and silver and precious stone, and pearls and fine linen and purple, and silk and scarlet and all thyine wood, and every article of ivory and every article of wood most precious, and of copper, and of iron, and of marble, and cinnamon, and spice, and incense, and unguent, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and cattle, and sheep, and [cargo] of horses, and of chariots, and of bodies, and lives of men. And the fruit of the coveting of thy soul hath departed from thee, and all things rich and bright have perished from thee; and no more in anywise for them shall they seek. The merchants of these things who were enriched by her, afar off shall stand because of their fear of her torment, weeping and grieving, as they say— Alas! alas! the great city! She that was arrayed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stone, and pearl,— That in one hour hath been laid waste such great wealth as this! And every pilot, and every passenger, and mariners, and as many as by the sea carry on traffic afar off did stand, and they cried out, seeing the smoke of her burning, saying— What city is like unto the great city? And they cast dust upon their heads, and cried out, weeping and grieving, saying— Alas! alas! the great city! Whereby were made rich all that had ships in the sea, by reason of her costliness,— that in one hour she hath been laid waste!” – (The Emphasized Bible).
The primary allies of the “Great Whore” are the “kings
of the earth,” a group over which Babylon presumes to “reign.”
These “kings” were seduced into thralldom by “fornicating” with her.
Elsewhere, the “kings of the earth” are allied with the “Beast” in
its war against the “Lamb” - (Revelation 6:15, 16:14, 17:18, 19:19).
The “kings of the earth” mourn when they see the “smoke
of her burning.” They withdraw from her so as not to be consumed with the
“Great City.” In the preceding chapter, John was informed that the “ten
kings” would hate the woman, “eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.”
God had put this into their hearts to fulfill His will - (Revelation 17:16-17).
The “smoke of her burning” is conceptually
parallel to the “smoke of the torment” produced by the punishment
of the men who rendered homage to the “Beast” described previously in Chapter
14 - (Revelation 14:11 – “The smoke
of their torment ascends forever and ever”).
“Alas, the
great city, Babylon.” This is the
same “great city” that rejoiced over the dead bodies
of the “Two Witnesses”
slain by the “Beast from the Abyss.” She is the “city” called “spiritually
Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.” It is the same
“city” where the “winepress of the wrath of God was trodden” without its walls. She
is the “great city that reigns over the kings of the earth,” the “Great
Whore” that sits on “seven mountains” - (Revelation 11:7-13,
14:8-20, 17:9, 17:18).
The first audience to hear this vision was comprised of the
seven churches of Asia, congregations
of believers who lived under Roman rule, the overlord over the entire
Mediterranean basin, southern Europe, and much of the Near East. The imperial Roman
economy was dependent heavily on maritime commerce. This does not mean that ancient
Rome exhausted the application of this vision; however, it certainly is included
it - (“There are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is
not yet come”).
As previously, language from the judicial pronouncement of
Jeremiah against ancient Babylon is adapted to describe the downfall of end-time
“Babylon”:
- (Jeremiah 51:8-9) – “Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed…We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed: forsake her, and let us go everyone into his own country: for her judgment reaches unto heaven.”
“In one
hour has been laid waste such great wealth.” The judgment period
of “one hour” is repeated three times in this passage and
corresponds to the “in one day” from the last chapter. The
same term is applied elsewhere for the final “hour” when
the “Lamb” arrives in judgment, the climax toward which the book moves on
multiple levels. Note the following verses:
- (Revelation 3:3) – “If you do not watch, I will come as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.”
- (Revelation 3:10) – “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of trial that will come on the whole habitable earth.”
- (Revelation 9:15) – “And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.”
- (Revelation 11:13) – “And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell…”
- (Revelation 14:7) – “Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come.”
The condemnation of the “merchants of the earth”
and the listing of their merchandise borrows heavily from the pronouncement of the
prophet Ezekiel against the old seafaring city-state of Tyre. Because of its
exploitation of the kingdom of Judah, God pronounced the destruction of its commercial
empire - (“Thus saith Yahweh, Behold, I am against thee, O Tyre, and will
cause many nations to come up against thee”). Note well the parallels with
the passage from the book of Revelation:
- (Ezekiel 26:15-19) – “Thus saith the Lord Yahweh to Tyre: Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded groan, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee? Then all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and lay aside their robes, and strip off their broidered garments: they shall clothe themselves with trembling; they shall sit upon the ground, and shall tremble every moment, and be astonished at thee. And they shall take up a lamentation over thee, and say to thee, How art thou destroyed, that wast inhabited by seafaring men, the renowned city, that was strong in the sea, she and her inhabitants, that caused their terror to be on all that dwelt there! Now shall the isles tremble in the day of thy fall; yea, the isles that are in the sea shall be dismayed at thy departure. For thus saith the Lord Yahweh: When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and the great waters shall cover thee.”
- (Ezekiel 27:1-25) – “Take up a lamentation over Tyre; O thou that dwellest at the entry of the sea, that art the merchant of the peoples unto many isles…Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded for thy wares. Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy traffickers; they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass for thy merchandise. They of the house of Togarmah traded for thy wares with horses and war-horses and mules. The men of Dedan were thy traffickers; many isles were the mart of thy hand: they brought thee in exchange horns of ivory and ebony. Syria was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of thy handiworks: they traded for thy wares with emeralds, purple, and broidered work, and fine linen, and coral, and rubies. Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy traffickers: they traded for thy merchandise wheat of Minnith, and pannag, and honey, and oil, and balm…These were thy traffickers in choice wares, in wrappings of blue and broidered work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords and made of cedar, among thy merchandise. The ships of Tarshish were thy caravans for thy merchandise: and thou wast replenished, and made very glorious in the heart of the seas.”
Ancient Babylon and the city of Tyre both suffered great losses long before John found himself on the Isle of Patmos.
In its economic critique of end-time “Babylon,” Revelation adapts
the list of trade goods from the Ezekiel to correspond to the kind of commodities
ships transported to Rome from around her empire.
“The
merchants who were enriched by her stand afar off weeping.” This statement corresponds to Ezekiel 27:31 - The merchants of
Tyre “make themselves utterly bald for
thee, and gird them with sackcloth, and they shall weep for thee with
bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.” Likewise, in Revelation
– Though they mourn her and their loss, the “merchants” and the “kings
of the earth” have no desire to partake of the plagues inflicted on “Babylon.”
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| Photo by Matin Tavazoei on Unsplash |
“For in one hour so great riches are made desolate.” The same Greek verb rendered “desolate” in Revelation 17:16 is used here - The agent that desolates the commercial empire of Babylon is the group of “ten kings” - (“The ten horns will hate the harlot and make her desolate”).
“What city
is like unto the great city?” The lamentations of the “merchants”
and “sailors” echo the dirge of Ezekiel over Tyre, only now, they are applied
to end-time “Babylon” - “And in
their wailing, they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and lament over thee,
saying, What city is like Tyre, like the destroyed in the midst of the sea?”
(Ezekiel 27:32).
“Babylon” Laid Waste
- (Revelation 18:20-24) – “Be glad over her, thou heaven! And ye saints and ye apostles and ye prophets! For that God hath exacted your vindication from her. And one mighty messenger lifted a stone, as it were a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying— Thus, with main force shall be cast down Babylon, the great city,— and in nowise be found any more; And sound of harp-singers and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters,— in nowise be heard in thee anymore; and any artisan [of any art],— in nowise be found in thee anymore; and sound of millstone,— in nowise be found in thee anymore; And light of lamp,— in nowise shine in thee anymore; and voice of bridegroom and bride, — in nowise be heard in thee anymore; because thy merchants were the great ones of the earth, because with thy sorcery were all the nations deceived: And in her blood of prophets and saints was found,— and of all who had been slain upon the earth” – (The Emphasized Bible).
“Be glad
over her…you saints and apostles and prophets, for that God has exacted your
vindication from her.” The collapse of the economic system is not just a
punishment for her sins, but also a vindication of the “saints”
persecuted by the “Great Whore.” The inclusion of the “apostles
and prophets” demonstrates that those who were persecuted by her were
Christians – Followers of the “Lamb wherever he goes.”
The term “apostles”
occurs only two additional times in the book - For the “false apostles”
active in the Church at Ephesus, and for the names of the “twelve apostles of
the Lamb” engraved on the foundation stones of the New Jerusalem - (Revelation
2:2, 21:14).
The call for the “saints” to “rejoice”
echoes the pronouncement of Jeremiah against ancient Babylon for persecuting
the Jews:
- (Jeremiah 51:47-48) – “Therefore, behold, the days come, that I will do judgment upon the graven images of Babylon: and her whole land shall be confounded, and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her. Then, the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for Babylon.”
Next, an angel next cast a great
stone into the sea while proclaiming - “Thus, with main force, shall be cast
down Babylon the great city, and in nowise be found anymore. And sound
of harp-singers, and musicians, and flute-players, and trumpeters, — in nowise
be heard in thee anymore.” Once again, the passage alludes to Jeremiah’s
pronouncement against Babylon, and to Ezekiel’s lament over Tyre, as follows:
- (Jeremiah 51:63-64) – “And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of Euphrates: And thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her.”
- (Jeremiah 51:37) – “And Babylon shall become heaps, a dwelling place for serpents, an astonishment and a hissing, without an inhabitant.”
- (Ezekiel 26:13) – “And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard. And I will make thee a bare rock; thou shalt be a place for the spreading of nets; thou shalt be built no more: for I, Yahweh, have spoken it.”
“Because your merchants were the
great ones of the earth.” This identifies the “merchants”
with the “great ones” who, along with the “kings of the
earth,” attempted to hide from the “wrath of the Lamb” when the sixth seal was
opened. This description is a further echo from the book of Ezekiel:
- (Ezekiel 27:33) – “When thy wares went forth out of the seas, you filled many people; you enriched the kings of the earth with the multitude of your merchandise. In the time when you will be broken by the seas in the depths of the waters your merchandise and all your company in the midst of you will fall.”
“Because by your sorcery
were all the nations deceived.” “Sorcery” translates the
Greek noun pharmakeia, a term related to pharmakon or
“sorcery,” a Greek word used elsewhere in Revelation and the New
Testament for “sorcery” and “witchcraft” – as follows:
- (Revelation 9:21) – “And the rest of mankind, who were not killed with these plagues, repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and the idols of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood; which can neither see, nor hear, nor walk: and they repented not of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.”
- (Galatians 5:20) – “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife…”
Pharmakon (the neuter case) often included the
potions used by sorcerers in magical rituals and spells, whether to work good
or ill. Closely related is the noun pharmakeus - A “sorcerer” who
performed spells and prepared potions for use in them - (Revelation 21:8
– “But the fearful and unbelieving…and sorcerers will have
their part in the lake which burns with fire”).
In this passage, it is not sorcerers
and witches in general that are condemned, but the “great city” for her
“sorcery.” The term pharmakon in the masculine gender (pharmakos),
as here, in ancient Greece referred to human victims sacrificed or expelled as
scapegoats during times of societal crisis, very often criminals and other
undesirables. John may wish his readers to make this connection.
The “nations” and the “kings of the earth” were deceived by her “sorcery” into persecuting the saints, for the blood of the “saints” and “all who had been slain upon the earth” was found in her.
The Greek term rendered “slain”
refers to the “slaying” of sacrificial victims, not to killing in
general. The Greek verb sphazo
was used specifically for killing animals in sacrificial rituals. It is the same term applied previously to the
“slain” Lamb and the souls who were “slain for the word of
God” under the altar when the fifth seal
was opened (Revelation 5:6-12, 6:9, 13:8).
If this connection is correct, the “sorcery”
of Babylon refers to the offering of sacrificial victims to appease her gods
and, thereby, preserve societal order and prosperity, not to the practice of witchcraft
in general. Her sacrificial victims are the saints, apostles, and prophets
slain on account of their testimony.
When the “Beast from the Abyss”
killed the “Two Witnesses,” their corpses were left lying in
the street of the “Great City” where also “their Lord was crucified.”
The “inhabitants of the earth” rejoiced over their deaths because the Two
Witnesses had “tormented” them with their prophetic “testimony.” It
is for the “testimony of Jesus” that the “Dragon”
and his vassals slay the “saints” - (Revelation 11:7-13).
- (Revelation 1:5) – “Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead.”
- (Revelation 2:13) – “In the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwelleth.”
- (Revelation 12:11) – “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”
- (Revelation 12:17) – “And the dragon was angered against the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed—with them who were keeping the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus.”
- (Revelation 17:6) – “And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.”
- (Revelation 20:4) – “I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God.”
The judgment and
destruction of end-time “Babylon” is the response of God to her
persecution of the “saints,” as well as His vindication of their
faithful “word of testimony.” Ultimately, in the book of Revelation,
the conflict is between the Dragon and the Lamb, not
between nation-states and conventional military forces. And this “war”
plays out on the earth when the servants of the Devil persecute the followers
of Jesus.
Its troubling that you fail to mention the present Babylon. Also the term the whore of Babylon who sits on many waters is clearly pointing to a very large very famous statue of Ishtar thars sits on a small island off a major world city.The blood of millions of innocents cry out .Thousands upon thousands more daily.A modern sacrifice to molch.His statues adorn many locations within .Sorcery is modern drug use.To mislead and coddle sinners only seals their and your own doom.Magog Persia and Turkey are already in position. With Al-Assads assasination for Gogs war on Isreal Babylon must be eliminated first.The first time in history a city/state could be destroyed utterly in a day.The exact coalition God warns us of.The war and destruction of Syria also a first.America is Babylon.ive seen children come to this easily ascertained fact.With Assafs death and his palaces fiery destruction. Babylon will fall.Most are blind to this.Considering the millions of abortions rampant sorcery and a evil disdain for even the discussion of the almighty. Its deserved by our coyntriesnon chelance.We hate to offend. So we allow statues of moloch and ba'al
ReplyDeleteWhile the 10 commandments are protested. MILLIONS OF dead innocence but it's a women's right not to be inconvenienced. The residents of Sodom and Gomorrah wou5flee in horror knowing what's coming.Prophecy after prophecy fulfilled in our time.Coincedence.God is openly mocked in our schools in our government. The first beast is here already. Soon one comes who is a master peace maker.America will be destroyed. If you love God and you've read His Word more than once. You should be able to se what's coming.Winning souls has become harder.Eyes and hearts are being closed.The prophets show all these events and more. To deny Gods plan is great sin.Warn people. If you need Ezekiel Isiah Daniel Jeremiah and Jesus's prophecies explained I pity you.You shouldn't be teaching.Most our priests reverend ministers deacons fall in this lot.Thats why we have His word in this horrid time.Im busy running my race May .God watch over you.
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ReplyDeleteIts troubling that you fail to mention the present Babylon. Also the term the whore of Babylon who sits on many waters is clearly pointing to a very large very famous statue of Ishtar thars sits on a small island off a major world city.The blood of millions of innocents cry out .Thousands upon thousands more daily.A modern sacrifice to molch.His statues adorn many locations within .Sorcery is modern drug use.To mislead and coddle sinners only seals their and your own doom.Magog Persia and Turkey are already in position. With Al-Assads assasination for Gogs war on Isreal Babylon must be eliminated first.The first time in history a city/state could be destroyed utterly in a day.The exact coalition God warns us of.The war and destruction of Syria also a first.America is Babylon.ive seen children come to this easily ascertained fact.With Assafs death and his palaces fiery destruction. Babylon will fall.Most are blind to this.Considering the millions of abortions rampant sorcery and a evil disdain for even the discussion of the almighty. Its deserved by our coyntriesnon chelance.We hate to offend. So we allow statues of moloch and ba'al
ReplyDeleteWhile the 10 commandments are protested. MILLIONS OF dead innocence but it's a women's right not to be inconvenienced. The residents of Sodom and Gomorrah wou5flee in horror knowing what's coming.Prophecy after prophecy fulfilled in our time.Coincedence.God is openly mocked in our schools in our government. The first beast is here already. Soon one comes who is a master peace maker.America will be destroyed. If you love God and you've read His Word more than once. You should be able to se what's coming.Winning souls has become harder.Eyes and hearts are being closed.The prophets show all these events and more. To deny Gods plan is great sin.Warn people. If you need Ezekiel Isiah Daniel Jeremiah and Jesus's prophecies explained I pity you.You shouldn't be teaching.Most our priests reverend ministers deacons fall in this lot.Thats why we have His word in this horrid time.Im busy running my race May .God watch over you.
My name is Alan Finch. I surrendered my life to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in April of 1976.
ReplyDeleteThere is a popular belief today among many Christians that the main purpose of the "2 End-Time Witnesses" will be to confront our ever increasing sinful world.
However, that will not be the case. The main purpose for these 2 individuals will be to prepare the "Bride of Christ" for His soon return. They will do this through their message for God's people.
Believe it or not, God's Word tells us what their message will be.
I have put together a document which clearly explains what their message will be. The document is 8 pages in length which is too lengthy to post in this comment section.
If anyone would like a copy of my document, email me at: (candy33alan@aol.com), and I will be happy to email you a copy of the document.
My name is Jack Groshans. I have studied eschatology for a couple decades. The thing that always intrigued me about Babylon is that it will never be rebuilt nor inhabited. It does not mention vagabonds coming and going from the sight. It does not mention attempts to rebuild the city, but never realizing it's fulfillment.
ReplyDeleteI bring to you a ponderable. There have been many who say that scripture mentions America. It has been debunked and revived. Here is a thought. New York, Suffolk County, Long Island. There is a city that was named in the early 19th century. It's name, Babylon. It's founder named it for his wife. I do not know her nationality. Babylon sits on the water entry to New York City, one hour from TWIN TOWERS. In Revelation, a future Babylon it talked about. I submit that this Babylon is the one talked about. Revelation is written so the people of Johns' time would understand this future event. They would not know of New York state, New York City, Suffolk county, but, they would indeed know the name BABYLON. God does give warnings well in advance, sometimes 20 years, as in 9-11-2001. He was giving us a wake up call. The BABYLON that is about to be destroyed is at the harbor of New York City. This is not to say the entire country will be destroyed. It does have enemies both foreign, but MOSTLY DOMESTIC. Those who collude this very day with other countries. Who are these individuals, business leaders doing business with our enemies. Politicians, who make laws protecting our enemies and profiting from these laws. Is there anything that can be done? The answer is NO. The only thing is for each individual to prepare to face their GOD. I said, this is just a PONDERABLE. ponder it.