REVELATION 18: EARTH'S FINAL WARNING AND THE JUDGMENT OF BABYLON
The final message to mankind, described in the first four verses of Revelation 18, is given with power and great glory. It is a repetition of the three angels’ messages of Revelation 14, and is made up of the following five points:
• The extension of salvation and mercy with a call to righteousness
• A final and dire warning
• A denunciation for truth rejected
• A call for separation from the evil and rebellion of Babylon
• A warning that judgment comes upon Babylon for the rejection of light and acceptance of darkness
Revelation 18:1
And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
“And after these things I saw another angel”
John’s vision in chapter 17 closed with the judgment of the great whore. But before that takes place, in chapter 18 he is shown God’s final warning to the world. When that is rejected, the subsequent destruction of Babylon is described. Thus, “after these things” indicates a new vision or scene, although not necessarily given in a chronological sequence of events.
This term “another angel,” as used in Revelation, represents a messenger to the people of this world, or a heavenly being carrying on some special work related to the plan of salvation and to the controversy between truth and error. (See comments under Revelation 14:6.) The angel messenger in this chapter represents the coming of Christ through His Holy Spirit, to empower the saints of God to bear the last message and to bring conviction to the hearts of all.
Through His followers (angels or messengers) God communicates the message of heaven to mankind, for Jesus declared, “As My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you” (John 20:21). The message is the “hour of judgment,” when every individual will make their decision for or against Christ, salvation, and truth.
Much like in the days of Noah, people’s eternal destiny will be decided based on their acceptance or rejection of this call to separation and repentance. Also as in Noah’s day, God uses men to communicate His final message to other men. Throughout time, most individuals’ eternal destiny has closed at death. Now the final message is determining the fate of all while yet living. As in the days of Noah, the door of mercy will forever shut, and it will do so unknown to the vast majority, who have despised the truth. Thus, while this message comes with the glory and power of Christ in love and mercy, it contains a life-and-death warning.
“Having great power”
Then I saw another angel descending from heaven, possessing great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his radiance and splendor. (Revelation 18:1 AMP)
And Moses besought the Lord his God, and said, Lord, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand? (Exodus 32:11. God, by His great power, brought the people up from Egypt.)
[Nehemiah prayed,] Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. (Nehemiah 1:10)
Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite. (Psalm 147:5)
Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee. (Jeremiah 32:17)
And when they [the disciples] had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all. (Acts 4:31, 33)
Manifestations of God’s Great Authority or Power:
• For the deliverance of His people
• For the redemption of those who yield to Him
• By Creation and in redemption, which is re-creating the human heart and turning it from a life of sin
• A Holy Spirit–empowered message for the exaltation of Jesus and the truth
“Lightened with his glory”
And ye [all Israel] said, Behold, the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth. (Deuteronomy 5:24. God showed His glory on Mount Sinai in giving His law.)
Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvellous works among all nations. (1 Chronicles 16:24. We are to declare God’s glory, character, and goodness by our lives and by our testimonies.)
O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth. Sing unto the Lord, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people. For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the Lord made the heavens. (Psalm 96:1–5. This Psalm parallels the message of Revelation 14:6–7 and 18:1.)
Praise ye the Lord. Praise, O ye servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and for evermore. From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the Lord’s name is to be praised. The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens. Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth! (Psalm 113:1–6. God’s glory is revealed in His kindness to the children of men, which is also revealed in the final message to mankind in Revelation 18.)
Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.
According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence. So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. (Isaiah 59:15–19. When God takes control, His name will be glorified, and He shall put the enemy to flight. These verses of Isaiah describe well the work under the loud cry of Revelation 18.)
Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. (Isaiah 60:1–3. Gross darkness covers the earth, but the glory of God’s Spirit and the power of His message is with His people.)
A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet upon Shigionoth. O Lord, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy. God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power. Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet. He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld, and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are everlasting. (Habakkuk 3:1–6. Habakkuk is very descriptive of God’s glory that will fill the earth with the last offer of mercy, just before the pouring out of the seven last plagues.)
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: the grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that bringest good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! (Isaiah 40:3–9. This message foretells of John the Baptist, who prepared the way of Jesus’ first advent. Malachi reveals an Elijah is to come. John was an Elijah for his day. (See Malachi 4:5; Matthew 17:10–13.)
Just before the day of the Lord and the coming of Christ the second time, God’s people will sound an Elijah-like message, calling for repentance and a decision to stand on the side of error or truth, thus preparing the way for Christ’s second advent.
Characteristics of the Glory of God in the Last Message:
• The law is set forth with power
• The whole earth is to be given an understanding of God’s character
• God will judge the earth by His truth and His righteousness, which will be known by the glory of His word and truth shown to the heathen
• God’s glory is shown in His humbling Himself to save mankind
• God takes the work of the gospel proclamation into His own hands and puts the enemy to flight
• Amidst the darkness of this world, God’s people are to shine with His Spirit
• The mountains of pride are laid low, and all flesh is seen as but grass, and the word of the Lord is exalted
• Righteousness and salvation are revealed brightly through the people of God to the Gentiles and kings
• God’s people come to fruition in character as the fruit of the Spirit blossoms and buds before a corrupt world
Revelation 18:1 is the first angel’s message of Revelation 14:6–7, repeated with increased splendor. The everlasting gospel—fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come—is encompassed in Revelation 18:1.
Revelation 18:2
And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
And he shouted with a mighty voice, She is fallen! Mighty Babylon is fallen! she has become a resort and dwelling place for demons; a dungeon haunted by every loathsome spirit, an abode for every filthy and detestable bird. (Revelation 18:2 AMP)
Babylon the great is fallen through the rejection of the truth. Now the cup of iniquity is nearly full, for the religions of the world have largely united with the Vatican and the mark of the beast has been implemented. As in the second angel’s message of Revelation 14, denunciation is the focus of the message, with the added emphasis that time is nearly at an end.
“Babylon the great is fallen”
Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. (Hebrews 3:12–13; 4:11)
There are the workers of iniquity fallen: they are cast down, and shall not be able to rise. (Psalm 36:12)
Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. (Galatians 5:4. Those who seek to be saved by works, believing they are earning merit with God, are fallen.)
Destroy thou them, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions; for they have rebelled against thee. (Psalm 5:10. Babylon is fallen by their own counsels, which took them away from the Lord.)
Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18)
At a time when “all the world wondered” (Revelation 13:3), at a time of apparent peace and prosperity—a new world order has dawned—“they shall say, Peace and safety.” At the apex of their accomplishments, the woman, the kings of the earth, and the earth’s inhabitants will have “sudden destruction [come] upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:3).
Now comes the startling denunciation against “Mystery Babylon.” She is filled with demons and with birds of prey that smell death. Though she has promised life to the world, she has fallen from God and is inwardly corrupt. Babylon appears outwardly beautiful to the kings and inhabitants of the earth, who are fallen because of iniquity, unbelief, and rebellion. All except a remnant of faithful people have been deceived and are fallen through exalting human religion above God’s truth. They are filled with spiritual pride, and are soon to be judged and found wanting.
Why Babylon in Ancient Times Fell and the Parallels to Mystery Babylon
Wherefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will do judgment upon her graven images: and through all her land the wounded shall groan. (Jeremiah 51:52)
• Much of the religion of Babylon involves the worship of images, icons, relics, and the things and ideas made by man.
Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountain, saith the Lord, which destroyest all the earth: and I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, and roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain. (Jeremiah 51:25)
• Babylon is behind the destruction of the earth.
Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel. (Jeremiah 50:29)
• Babylon has exalted itself against God in pride of human opinion, which is in opposition to the will and Word of God.
I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the Lord. (Jeremiah 50:24)
• Babylon is guilty of striving or warring against God through false religion.
A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up: for it is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon their idols. (Jeremiah 50:38)
• The waters of human support will eventually be dried up, leading to Babylon’s fall. The people have become deluded and deceived by trust in the idols of human opinion and those made by their own hands.
Therefore hear now this, thou that art given to pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of children: But these two things shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments. For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me.
Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me. Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know. Stand now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, wherein thou hast laboured from thy youth; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail. Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counsels. Let now the astrologers, the stargazers, the monthly prognosticators, stand up, and save thee from these things that shall come upon thee. (Isaiah 47:8–13)
• Human religion and human philosophy perverted Babylon as she exalted herself above the God she claimed to serve. Babylon is involved in the witchcraft of rebellion and trusts in her wise men and counselors. Much of the falsehood of ancient Babylon is to be found in modern Babylon. Therefore is she fallen and doomed to judgment.
And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. (Revelation 14:8)
• Mystery Babylon is guilty of deceiving the nations through the wine of falsehood.
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. (Revelation 17:6)
• Mystery Babylon is guilty of the persecution of the children of God.
The same sins and attitudes of ancient Babylon are found within the teachings and practices of the woman “Mystery Babylon.” For these things God brought His judgments upon ancient Babylon and will bring the seven last plagues and utter destruction upon “Mystery Babylon,” whose rebellion is far worse, for she sinned against great light. “Mystery Babylon” set herself in the place of God, instigating a global system of conformity to receive her mark of authority in opposition to the commandments of God. Because of this she, with all her adherents, shall “drink of the wine of the wrath of God” (Revelation 14:10).
“Habitation of Devils”
For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him. For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. (2 Corinthians 11:4, 13–15. A false Christ, false gospel, and false Holy Spirit is taught by men guided by Satan.)
And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. (Revelation 16:13–14. The three religious entities that make up Babylon teach and propagate their falsehood with the aid of unclean demon spirits.)
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron. (1 Timothy 4:1–2)
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:1–5. Superficial Christianity, which turns from the truth, becomes filled with devils.)
The cage or hold of unclean birds tells us Babylon is filled with death, such that the scavenger birds are seen symbolically caged up within her domains. There is no light, no truth, no Christ. The true witness declares, “I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead” (Revelation 3:1). Babylon has taught and propagated a false Christ, a false gospel, and a false Holy Spirit, for she has rejected the faith and truth of Scripture to receive seducing spirits and therefore propagates the doctrines and teachings of devils.
Babylon has attracted the vast majority of earth’s inhabitants, who have a form of godliness and who desire salvation but want it on their own terms so they can be saved by their own works or in their sins. Further, much of Babylon’s worship revolves around the worship or adoration of the dead. Christ is supposedly slain over and over again in the mass. Crucifixes of a dying Christ are exalted. The veneration of Mary and saints who are all dead, and the prayers and masses for the departed souls in purgatory, are but some examples of the worship of the dead. Prophecy reveals that evil lies behind the façade of apparent beauty.
Revelation 18:3
For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
“All nations have drunk of the wine”
Babylon was a golden cup in the Lord’s hand, making all the earth drunken. The nations drank of her wine, therefore the nations have gone mad. (Jeremiah 51:7 AMP)
Revelation 18:3 parallels Revelation 14:9 and the warning against the mark of the beast. At the time of verse 3 all nations have come under the sway of this system, while the mark of the beast is tightening its grip on society. For “no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name” (Revelation 13:17). The kings and rulers of the world and the multinational companies have yielded heart and soul to this system. They have become insanely drunk with the intoxication of falsehood, power, and wealth. However, the handwriting is on the wall. Doom is sure. The only safety now is to heed the words of Revelation 18:4.
Revelation 18:4
And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
There is no room for repentance for Babylon as a system. But God in mercy sees His children who had not fully known and seen her corruption. To them, as to Lot and his family, the call is given: “Escape for thy life” ( Genesis 19:17).
“Come out of her”
My people, come out of the midst of her [Babylon]! and let every man save his life from the fierce anger of the Lord! (Jeremiah 51:45)
And the men [two angels] said unto Lot, hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: for we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it. (Genesis 19:12–13)
So, come out from among [unbelievers], and separate (sever) yourselves from them, says the Lord, and touch not [any] unclean thing; then I will receive you kindly and treat you with favor. (2 Corinthians 6:17 AMP)
This call to come out of Babylon includes all aspects of affiliation or service to the systems that make up Babylon. It is a call to stand apart from the falsehood and rebellion of the world’s system of religion; it means to refuse the mark of the beast. This call is urgent. It is a matter of life and death, for to remain in Babylon through physical association or personal spiritual compromise will end in destruction. The urgency of the message is no less than the urgency of the message to Lot.
And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. (Genesis 19:15–17)
“Be not partakers of her sins”
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. (Revelation 17:2)
• Illicit connection with the rulers of earth is maintained, while claiming to be faithful to God alone. Babylon deceives the inhabitants of the world with her false teachings and miracles.
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. (Revelation 17:4)
• Great influence and wealth with outward religious show is used to hide the evil within Babylon, manifested by the perversion of the truth of Scripture.
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. (Revelation 17:6)
• Babylon is drunk with the blood of the saints in the past and will be again when in the future she regains her former power to persecute.
For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. (Revelation 18:3)
• The inhabitants of the world are in a spiritual stupor because of Babylon’s falsehoods. The merchants or leaders of global commerce have joined with her in apostasy.
How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. (Revelation 18:7)
• Babylon is guilty of the sin of arrogance and pride because of her influence, wealth, and power.
And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. (Revelation 18:23)
• By sorcery, witchcraft, rebellion and sin (see 1 Samuel 15:23), empowered by demon spirits, Babylon deceived the world.
And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth. (Revelation 18:24)
• Babylon becomes guilty of all the persecution and warfare of earth, for she unites with the men of commerce and governments guilty of these things. Further, behind the scenes, Babylon has at times encouraged or utilized governments to accomplish her ends, including warfare and persecution.
To remain affiliated with Babylon and its organizations, or to lend sympathy to or partake of Babylon’s sins, even on the level of personal belief and experience, makes you guilty of all the sins of Babylon. This leaves you but two choices: remain with Babylon and receive of the plagues, or stand with God and His truth and live for eternity. The vast majority of the world’s inhabitants will ignore this call to come out of Babylon, just as so many of the Jews refused the call to return to Israel from Babylonian captivity, and just as most of the family of Lot refused to give heed to the message to come out of Sodom.
“Receive not of her plagues”
Those who receive the plagues are confirmed in the rebellion. They reap the fruit of their own sins and are guilty of not only their own rebellion but also of the collective sins of the worldwide apostasy of the Babylonian beast system for being affiliated with it.
Revelation 18:4 parallels the message of Revelation 14:9–12, as the same dire warning is given of experiencing the wrath of God unmixed with mercy in the seven last plagues. These plagues fall upon those who stay with the rebellious system of the beast and receive its mark of authority.
God has a people who have come out of Babylon previously and “follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth” (Revelation 14:4). They are the saints who bear God’s last message of Revelation 18. Now, at this final call, a further remnant shall be saved. These people are but a small group in contrast to the vast majority of the earth’s inhabitants, who have received the mark of the beast and who “shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God” (Revelation 14:10).
Revelation 18:5
For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
For her iniquities (her crimes and transgressions) are piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her wickedness and [her] crimes [and calls them up for settlement]. (Revelation 18:5 AMP)
“Her sins have reached unto heaven”
It is time for thee, Lord, to work: for they have made void thy law. (Psalm 119:126)
Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with You—they who frame and hide their unrighteous doings under [the sacred name of] law? They band themselves together against the life of the [consistently] righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the Lord has become my high Tower and Defense, and my God the Rock of my refuge. And He will turn back upon them their own iniquity and will wipe them out by means of their own wickedness; the Lord our God will wipe them out. (Psalm 94:20–23 AMP)
“And God hath remembered her iniquities”
Remember—to exercise memory, i.e. to recollect; by implication to punish1
As applied to God, the word remembered commonly denotes that He is about to pass judgment or extend mercy to men for a particular course of action, whether good or evil. God is not like a man who overlooks this or that and then, at a point in time, recalls what He forgot.
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are discovered, so that in all your doings your sins do appear; because, I say, that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand. (Ezekiel 21:24)
Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the Lord; and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out. (Psalm 109:14)
And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged [subsided]. (Genesis 8:1)
And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt. (Genesis 19:29)
Rebellion and wickedness have ever been the rule of life on earth. Why at this time does God declare the cup of iniquity full? Rebellion is now on an organized planetary level. Just as in the days of Noah, men are sinning away the day of grace despite the great work of God in mercy to warn them of their doom.
A confederacy of evil has been established. A mark of rebellion has been implemented. In the full light of revealed truth, as the message of the glory of God enlightens the world, those who have rejected truth have now fully confirmed themselves on the side of falsehood. Thus God, who has ever tempered His judgments with mercy in the hope of redeeming mankind, now holds accountable the whole world for the rejection of truth and the love of sin. The cup of iniquity being full indicates that judgment is soon to fall, no longer mixed with mercy.
Revelation 18:6
Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
Repay to her what she herself has paid [to others] and double [her doom] in accordance with what she has done. Mix a double portion for her in the cup she mixed [for others]. (Revelation 18:6 AMP)
“Reward her even as she rewarded you”
As Babylon caused the slain of Israel to fall, so at Babylon shall fall the slain of all [her] land. (Jeremiah 51:49 AMP)
O Daughter of Babylon [you devastator, you!], who [ought to be and] shall be destroyed, happy and blessed shall he be who requites you as you have served us. (Psalm 137:8 AMP)
Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the Lord. … Take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her. (Jeremiah 50:14–15)
And I will render unto Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 51:24)
The character and work of ancient Babylon, as well as much of its religious philosophy, are part of “Mystery Babylon.” The destruction of the ancient kingdom of Babylon finds its counterpart in the doom of spiritual Babylon at the end of time. In substituting, counterfeiting, and opposing God’s truth and His people, who have suffered loss of liberty and life at her hands, Babylon is now to reap what she has sown. “Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you” (Deuteronomy 19:19).
Wickedness and rebellion may prosper for a moment, but in the end, it is the sting of death. Scripture clearly declares “your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23). Sin will have its sure reward. Let us take heed, “lest any man fall after the same manner of unbelief” (Hebrews 4:11). (For further study on this point review the comments under Daniel 6:24.)
“In the cup which she hath filled fill to her double”
And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. (Revelation 14:8)
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. (Revelation 17:2)
Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out. Thus saith thy Lord the Lord, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again. (Isaiah 51:17, 22)
For thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. (Jeremiah 25:15)
Thou [Jerusalem] shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria. Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and thou shalt break the sherds [earthen vessel] thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord God. Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy whoredoms. (Ezekiel 23:33–35)
We can see from the above verses that the cup is a symbolic container filled with deception and falsehood. The cup also represents the drinking or experiencing of the bitter experience of passing through judgment because of sin and rebellion. Babylon caused the earth and its inhabitants to be deceived with the wine of her falsehood, which led the people into rebellion against the Lord. Now her cup is doubled or increased, for she is held guilty of all the evil in the world. The cup of falsehood she offered to the world is now turned back to her and doubled with the wine of judgment and wrath.
Revelation 18:7
How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
To the degree that she glorified herself and reveled in her wantonness [living deliciously and luxuriously], to that measure impose on her torment and anguish and tears and mourning. Since in her heart she boasts, I am not a widow; as a queen [on a throne] I sit, and I shall never see suffering or experience sorrow. (Revelation 18:7 AMP)
“She hath glorified herself”
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (Romans 1:21)
Babylon and its adherents have brought forth religious worship contrary to the commandments and Word of God as her mark of authority. So, while the global system of apostasy claims to serve God, its worship and service is vain and useless, for the heart has become darkened by sin and rebellion. Rather than giving glory to God, Babylon has sought glory for herself, and the degree to which she has done that is the degree of her torment.
“So much torment and sorrow give her”
But these two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day: loss of children and widowhood. They shall come upon you in full measure, in spite of the multitude of [your claims to] power given you by the assistance of evil spirits, in spite of the great abundance of your enchantments. For you [Babylon] have trusted in your wickedness; you have said, No one sees me.
Your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray, and you said in your heart and mind, I am, and there is no one besides me. Therefore shall evil come upon you; you shall not know the dawning of it or how to charm it away. And a disaster and evil shall fall upon you that you shall not be able to atone for [with all your offerings to your gods]; and desolation shall come upon you suddenly, about which you shall know nothing or how to avert it. (Isaiah 47:9–11 AMP)
With literal Babylon anciently, and with modern spiritual Babylon, the attitude, actions, and consequent judgment are similar. Exalting herself, exalting man’s genius, Babylon said, “I am,” thereby setting herself up as a god before the people and leaders of the world. The folly of her claim will be shown before the entire world. The shame of her nakedness will be exposed. She shall lose her place as an exalted queen.
“I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow”
And thou [O daughter of the Chaldeans] saidst, I shall be a lady for ever: so that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart, neither didst remember the latter end of it. Therefore hear now this, thou that art given to pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of children. (Isaiah 47:7–8)
Ancient Babylon fell at the height of its pride of accomplishment. So it will be with spiritual Babylon. “She hath been proud against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel” (Jeremiah 50:29). This boastful spirit will make even more apparent the judgment of God that will humble man’s Babylonian system of religious, economic, and political apostasy.
Revelation 18:8
Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
“Therefore shall her plagues come in one day”
Behold, I am against thee, O thou most proud, saith the Lord God of hosts: for thy day is come, the time that I will visit thee. (Jeremiah 50:31)
Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: howl for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed. (Jeremiah 51:8)
Some might believe that the expression “in one day” indicates a prophetic year and that the seven last plagues shall be poured out over a period of one year. However, day is probably used here figuratively since in Revelation 18:10, 17, and 19, punishment is said to come in one hour. Day then would mean a short period of time rather than a prophetic year. No doubt it will take some time for the rulers, merchants, and people of this world to learn the madness of their rebellion. Blaming the remnant people of God for the calamities is much easier than admitting that the great Babylon they have built is at war with heaven.
The results of the plagues shall steadily frustrate ruled and ruler alike, until finally, by the sixth plague, Babylon’s support shall dry up. Then, according to Revelation 17:16, a final terrific judgment of fire shall destroy Babylon’s seat of power. Like a child who, in a fit of impatient anger, breaks a favorite toy, Babylon’s supporters will burn her with fire. This could likely be military weaponry used against her. In the Old Testament, we find times of God’s fighting for His people and His judging the wicked by means of the wicked turning upon one another. So it is at this time.
“She shall be utterly burned with fire”
Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. (Revelation 16:19)
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. (Revelation 17:16–17)
The judgment of fire upon Babylon, particularly its religious component, will signal its utter ruin, from which there will be no recovery. The rest of mankind, which has also been in rebellion, will soon meet its own doom, as described in Revelation 19.
Revelation 18:9–10
And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning.
And the rulers and leaders of the earth who joined her in her immorality (idolatry) and luxuriated with her will weep and beat their breasts and lament over her when they see the smoke of her conflagration. (Revelation 18:9 AMP)
Torment—extreme pain; anguish; the utmost degree of misery, either of body or mind2
“For the fear of her torment”
Babylon’s children mourn for the “mother of harlots,” but not out of great love and respect; rather, “for the fear of her torment,” which they recognize will soon be theirs.
Revelation 18:11–15
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more: the merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble, and cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men. And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all. The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing.
“And the merchants of the earth”
Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth? (Isaiah 23:8)
Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy [Tyrus’] merchants: they traded in thy market wheat of Minnith, and Pannag, and honey, and oil, and balm. Arabia, and all the princes of Kedar, they occupied with thee in lambs, and rams, and goats: in these were they thy merchants. The merchants of Sheba and Raamah, they were thy merchants: they occupied in thy fairs with chief of all spices, and with all precious stones, and gold. (Ezekiel 27:17, 21–22)
Who are these merchantmen of Revelation 18? As our Bible references above indicate, they are businessmen the world over involved in trade and commerce. The term merchants could be taken figuratively, implying those who assisted Babylon with her deceptions, marketing or promoting her influence and lies. However, considering the global nature of this final apostasy, which involves the religions, the rulers, and the inhabitants of the world, it would seem that the large regional and international commercial enterprises and individuals who manage or own these commercial interests are the ones spoken of.
The merchantmen are mainly the global trans-nationalist companies. They also represent significant companies that dominate in certain regions. These merchants trade in manufactured goods, farm products, and mineral wealth. In the end, these merchants are seen to be exploiting men and women, using them as pawns for their own enrichment. “Slaves” may refer to literal slaves who, for religious convictions or issues of conscience, refuse to go along with the Babylonian system. As we look at the exploitation of workers even today who are subject to known unhealthy and dangerous conditions and low wages, no wonder the Bible writer James declared in his epistle:
Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth [Lord of Heaven’s Armies]. (James 5:1–4)
Who Are the Merchantmen?
Global in their vision and their activities, these individuals operate from the power base of finance, industry, and technology. Entrepreneurial in their occupations, the men in this circle are described as “transnationalists.” They exercise their businesses on a worldwide basis. Bypassing barriers of language, race, culture, and nationalism, they view the economic world as theirs for the taking. They seek global development to enrich and establish themselves in power while bringing the so-called good life of consumerism to as many as possible.
A group related to the merchantmen who are at the forefront of global governance, and who will also be co-opted into the global new order of religion, are the internationalists. These are the power brokers in government, working in intergovernmental relationships, and in international politics. Their goal is the development of new and ever wider interrelationships between the governments of the world using international law. Their purpose is to promote increasing cooperation on an international basis by maintaining the peace. Both classes through commerce and international law often accomplish what war has rarely achieved: the breakdown of all the natural and artificial barriers between nations.
The coming Babylonian confederacy will not likely create a fully functional one-world government, rather there will be an unprecedented level of cooperation for a time in religion, politics, and economics.
It is important to discuss the merchantmen, as the Scriptures tell us that a time is coming when none can buy or sell except those who have the mark, the name, or the number of the beast. The interlocking of the world’s financial systems and economies is a key element to the implementation of this worldwide economic extortion. Revelation 13 reveals that America—the two-horned beast—will be influential in bringing in the new system.
Economic boycott is often America’s first line of attack. Though not 100 percent effective, these boycotts create hardship on those nations they are directed against. How much greater will the hardship be when economic sanctions are leveled against individual nonconformists globally culminating in a death penalty!
Revelation 18 reveals more clues about the merchants’ influence in the last days and the fact that an economic boom is coming. At least it will seem so, but it will only be short lived. Jesus said:
But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. (Matthew 24:37–38)
There was probably never a time in human history when everyone felt so secure in the enjoyment of peace and prosperity as just before the flood.
Another clue to the apparent prosperity at the end of time, just before judgment falls, is in relationship to the condition of the church during the time of the judgment. Laodicea represents the condition of the church in the last days, when it considers itself to be rich and increased with goods. Pride, formalism, and worldliness cause the unrepentant in Laodicea to be judged and spewed out, an indication that Jesus no longer considers them His own. They will be ready followers of the Babylonian religious system.
God has told us through the apostle Paul:
For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. (1 Thessalonians 5:2–3)
Peace—to join; by implication, prosperity3
Safety—security4
God is to be our safety and security, not the confederacy of world religion, government, and economics. Thus, the admonition to us is:
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. (1 Thessalonians 5:4–6)
Technology and Monetary Control
If we were to enter into some type of global structure to implement the mark of the beast and to control buying and selling, it would seem that “Mystery Babylon,” with the leaders and merchants of the world, would need to introduce some kind of international currency system. As you may know, this is being attempted the EU where they are finding national resistance to the point that several countries in the EU have opted out of currency union. However, because of the rapid advances in banking technology, this universal currency may not be necessary. Electronic cashless systems are steadily emerging even in less developed nations.
The slow but steady focus now is the promoting of debit cards and cash cards linked to national and international banking databases. This cashless system is gaining more and more acceptance because of its apparent advantages, including elimination of large losses due to forged, stolen, or bad checks and from robberies and bank holdups, to say nothing of the time saved from not having to make deposits, count money, and approve credit. This system represents a great deal of convenience for both merchants and consumers.
While these technologies promise short-term convenience, in the end this technology can be devastatingly effective in controlling the buying and selling of the nations and of individuals. For billions of earth’s inhabitants who are just trying to survive, even primitive and low-tech means will prove adequate to control the vast majority of buying or selling. In the end, only those who have received the mark of the beast, the mark of this religious power’s authority, will be allowed to buy and sell.
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more: The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones [Mineral commodities], and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet [jewelry, fashions, textiles and clothing], and all thyine wood [Timber and wood products], and all manner of vessels [implements, equipment, tools], of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble [manufacturing and building], and cinnamon, and odors, and ointments, and frankincense [cosmetic industry], and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat [agricultural commodities], and beasts, and sheep, and horses [livestock industry], and chariots [automobile and transportation industry], and slaves, and souls of men [those individuals and Christians who will not go along with the new system or for other reasons are considered expendable by society]. (Revelation 18:11–13)
Revelation 18:11–13 speaks of great economic activity, as confirmed in verses 17–19. The commerce will have been booming before the judgment of the great whore.
As in John’s day, so in the modern world, commerce and shipping is a gauge of world economic activity. When Babylon falls and is destroyed, the merchants will weep and lament, for global prosperity will have come to an end.
With prosperity and apparent security on one hand, versus economic boycotts and death on the other, many people, even professed Christians, will opt to receive the mark on the right hand and “go along to get along.”
Those Christians who warn the world of the evil nature of this religious, political, and economic confederacy as being the Antichrist system will be mocked, derided, imprisoned, and killed. This persecution will happen because most of the world will accept the new order as a good thing, or at the very least necessary for the good of all nations. As Jesus warned us, “They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service” (John 16:2).
What kind of men are at the forefront of world monetary control and business, who would stand to benefit in promoting and cooperating with the great whore and the beast system?
• A Canadian multibillionaire whose family fortune has included huge holdings in Time-Warner and DuPont corporations. He also headed, at one time, one of the world’s largest liquor-manufacturing companies.
• A rich South African tycoon who is considered planet earth’s king of diamonds. His family dynasty controls large amounts of the world’s store of diamonds and much of its gold and precious metals.
• The American dynasty that controls one of the nation’s largest banks and a significant part of the oil industry. The head of this dynasty gave the money for the purchase of the land for the U. N. headquarters.
• A European banking family that goes back hundreds of years and which guides the governments of Britain, Germany, and France. They got their start in part by helping to fund the Illuminati conspiracy in the 1700s. This banking family manages or controls wealth in the hundreds of billions of dollars.
• The American software magnate whose wealth exceeds that of many countries.
• The Mexican cement mogul who controls a large portion of the world’s cement companies and is one of the world’s richest men.
• The Indian businessman who controls large portions of the world’s steel companies.
It is people with the influence, wealth and power of global commerce, like the examples cited above, who will make up the merchantmen of the Apocalypse unless they accept the everlasting gospel. They will unite (or already have united) with the religious whore who dominates world politics in the end.
The global elite, who gather at such meetings as the world economic forum every year in Davos, Switzerland, or at Mikhail Gorbachev’s state-of-the-world forums and other such meetings, give us a glimpse of the types of individuals of economic and political power who will join the last great apostasy against God, be it willingly or because they are deceived.
Today, behind the scenes, the agencies of evil are combining. Their forces are consolidating, gaining strength and influence for the last great crisis. In the future, great changes will take place in our world. The final movements of apostasy will be rapid ones: the result of many little but progressive steps made over the centuries. Jesus said, “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame” (Revelation 16:15).
Revelation 18:16–19
And saying, Alas, alas that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, and cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
“And all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off”
They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters. … (Psalm 107:23)
She [the virtuous woman] is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar. (Proverbs 31:14)
Despite various worldwide economic problems and imbalances and the constant worry of global recession, it appears from verses 16 to 19 that a time of general prosperity will prevail in the end times.
Throughout history, and even more so today in a global economy, the volume of the movement of goods by ship between the continents is an indication of the general prosperity of the world system of trade. In the coming Babylonian system, for a short time, those with ships and those involved in trade and commerce will grow wealthy as manufactured goods, farm products, and mineral wealth and commodities are bought and sold. In this time of apparent prosperity, God’s people will be despised when they bear the message that “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” (Revelation 18:2).
“Alas, alas that great city … for in one hour is she made desolate”
Thy [Tyrus’] riches, and thy fairs, thy merchandise, thy mariners, and thy pilots, thy calkers, and the occupiers of thy merchandise, and all thy men of war, that are in thee, and in all thy company which is in the midst of thee, shall fall into the midst of the seas in the day of thy ruin. The suburbs shall shake at the sound of the cry of thy pilots. And all that handle the oar, the mariners, and all the pilots of the sea, shall come down from their ships, they shall stand upon the land; and shall cause their voice to be heard against thee, and shall cry bitterly, and shall cast up dust upon their heads, they shall wallow themselves in the ashes: and they shall make themselves utterly bald for thee, and gird them with sackcloth, and they shall weep for thee with bitterness of heart and bitter wailing. And in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and lament over thee, saying, what city is like Tyrus, like the destroyed in the midst of the sea? The merchants among the people shall hiss at thee; thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt be any more. (Ezekiel 27:27–32, 36)
The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them. Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth? The Lord of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth. Pass through thy land as a river, O daughter of Tarshish: there is no more strength. He stretched out his hand over the sea, he shook the kingdoms: the Lord hath given a commandment against the merchant city, to destroy the strong holds thereof. (Isaiah 23:1, 8–11)
Ezekiel and Isaiah record the fate of another city of wealth and power and the judgment of God that came upon it. Tyrus was a Mediterranean power. Babylon is global in its reach and influence, yet for each one the devastation and destruction was and will be complete. The demise and judgment of Tyrus will be repeated with “Mystery Babylon.”
Revelation 18:9–19 is a dirge of woe and lamentation for the rulers and merchantmen, while verses 20 and 21 begin the anthem of praise to God for finally vindicating His truth and His people.
Revelation 18:20
Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
“For God hath avenged you on her”
Then the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for Babylon: for the spoilers shall come unto her from the north, saith the Lord. (Jeremiah 51:48)
For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. (Revelation 19:2)
Babylon’s perversion of God’s truth and the persecution of God’s servants throughout the ages and at the end of time will finally be avenged as the great whore is judged. God’s long-delayed promise to His children is now to begin. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Romans 12:19).
Revelation 18:21
And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
“Thus … shall that great city Babylon be thrown down”
And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book [of warnings to Babylon], 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: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah. (Jeremiah 51:63–64)
As a heavy millstone cast into the sea sinks to the bottom, to be utilized and valued no more, so will be the fate of Babylon. In this acted parable of Jeremiah, the angel declares that what happened to physical Babylon will happen to spiritual Babylon at the end of time.
Revelation 18:22–23
And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; and the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
“No more at all in thee”
Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon, sit on the ground: there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called tender and delicate. Sit thou silent, and get thee into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called, The lady of kingdoms. (Isaiah 47:1, 5)
A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the Lord, and upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men. Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation. As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the Lord; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein. (Jeremiah 50:35, 39–40)
The day of Babylon’s greatness is ended as the peace and prosperity and the hoped-for dream of a millennium of peace is broken. Entertainment and gladness, commerce and business, marriages and plans for the future have all ended through the final judgment of God upon the whore in the seventh plague. (See Revelation 16:19–21.)
The last of the seven last plagues affects the world at large. Throughout the plagues that fell before the final judgment of Babylon, mankind more or less has carried on with the affairs of life. As in the days of Noah, “They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage” (Luke 17:27).
Also as in Noah’s day, rebellion against God will have become so entrenched that warnings and judgments are discounted, until “the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies.” (Isaiah 28:17). Then Babylon is broken, and the whole world will then be torn asunder by the mighty earthquake and the hail.
“For by thy sorceries were all nations deceived”
Sorceries—magic5
Magic—science of producing wonderful effects by the aid of superhuman beings, or of departed spirits; sorcery, enchantment6
Persist, then, with your enchantments and the multitude of your sorceries [Babylon], in which you have labored from your youth; and see if perhaps you will be able to profit, if you will prevail and strike terror! You are wearied with your many counsels and plans. Let now the astrologers, the stargazers, and the monthly prognosticators stand up and make known to you and save you from the things that shall come upon you [Babylon]. Behold, they are like stubble; the fire consumes them.
They cannot even deliver themselves from the power of the flame [much less deliver the nation]. There is no coal for warming or fire before which to sit! Such to you shall they [the astrologers and their kind] be, those with whom you have labored and such their fate, those who have done business with you from your youth; they will wander, every one to his own quarter and in his own direction. No one will save you. (Isaiah 47:12–15 AMP)
And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet [the three religious entities of Babylon]. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world. (Revelation 16:13–14)
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. (1 Samuel 15:23)
We see here that Babylon has been flattered and deceived by evil spirits and in turn leagues with them to deceive the world. This sorcery and rebellion will be punished even as it was with ancient Babylon, and God’s truth shall be vindicated.
Revelation 18:24
And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
Babylonia caused the death of people all over the world, and now Babylonia will fall because it caused the death of so many Israelites [people of God]. I, the Lord, have spoken. (Jeremiah 51:49 TEV)
The spirit of Babylon, which is rebellion against God and false worship, has been with us since the days before the flood. Babylon is held guilty for her sin of rejecting truth and persecuting God’s children. In continuing in the sins and persecutions of ages past, the guilt of past generations also rests upon her.
Endnotes
1. James Strong, LL.D., S.T.D., Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1987).
2. Noah Webster, American Dictionary of the English Language. (San Francisco, California: Foundation for American Christian Education, 1967).
3. James Strong, op. cit.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Noah Webster, op. cit.
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