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The Judgment of Mystery Babylon
Scripture Passage:
Revelation 17 Attached audio files:
- THE VISION OF THE GREAT WHORE (Revelation 17:1-6 [1] And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
[2] With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
[3] So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
[4] And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
[5] And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
[6] And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
See All...) - The Revelation of the Great Whore (Revelation 17:1And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
See All...) - Shown by one of the seven angels
- The revelation of her judgment
- Found sitting on many waters; NOTE: the “many waters” are interpreted as the peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues of the earth (Revelation 17:15And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
See All...) - The Fornication of the Great Whore (Revelation 17:2With 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.
See All...) - A spiritual fornication (Exodus 34:15-16 [15] Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice;
[16] And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.
See All...; Jeremiah 3:6-7 [6] The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot. [7] And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.
See All...; Ezekiel 6:9And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their whorish heart, which hath departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall lothe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.
See All...; Hosea 4:12My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God.
See All...) - Committed with the kings of the earth
- Making drunk the inhabitants of the earth with her wine (cp. Revelation 14:8And 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.
See All...) - The Appearance of the Great Whore (Revelation 17:3-4 [3] So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
[4] And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
See All...) - She sat on the scarlet colored beast (Revelation 17:3So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
See All...) - This is the antichrist (Revelation 13:1And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
See All...) - She is connected with the one-world government, but she is not identical to that government
- She is arrayed in costly clothes and jewels (Revelation 17:4And 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:
See All...) - In purple and scarlet; the colors of wealth and royalty
- With gold and precious stones and pearls
- That is, she is exceedingly rich
- She has a golden cup full of the abominations of her filthiness; that is, she spreads her filthiness around to those in the world (cp. Jeremiah 51:7Babylon hath been a golden cup in the LORD's hand, that made all the earth drunken: the nations have drunken of her wine; therefore the nations are mad.
See All...) - The Name of the Great Whore (Revelation 17:5And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
See All...) - MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT
- This connects her with the Babylonian religion going all the way back to Nimrod (Genesis 10:8-10 [8] And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.
[9] He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD.
[10] And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
See All...; 11:1-9
See All...; Isaiah 21:9And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
See All...; Zechariah 5:5-11 [5] Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth. [6] And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth. [7] And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah. [8] And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof. [9] Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven. [10] Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? [11] And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.
See All...) - This connects her with the Babylonian mystery religions
- THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS
- She has daughters who are also harlots
- These daughters are the churches that come out of Roman Catholicism, like the Eastern Orthodox and the Protestant denominations.
- AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH
- She is the worst of the abominations of the earth
- She is the source of other abominations in the earth
- NOTE: The Mystery Religions of Babylon
- The Eastern Religions
- From Persia and Asia
- Centered around Babylon
- Offered man a spiritual release from death
- Promised eternal happiness
- Required initiations
- Provided a mediator between God and man
- The Babylonian Mystery Religions has a direct influence on Roman Catholicism (Easter, the sacraments, etc.)
- Babylonian Mystery Religions
- Orphic Cult
- Taught dualism between good and evil. (Although this may sound proper at first, eastern dualism tried to make a complete distinction between good and evil. If the flesh was evil, then it had to be punished, etc.)
- Taught celibacy and abstention from meat and wine for priests
- Magna Mater
- Means “the Great Mother”
- Baptism required for membership: required to forgive sins; was in blood
- Their priests “were eunuchs who wore female garb, who kept their hair long and perfumed with ointment, and who celebrated the goddess’ rites with wild music and dancing until their frenzied excitement found its culmination in self-scourging, self-laceration, or exhaustion.” –Encyclopedia Britannica in the article on “Mystery Religions”
- Mythraism
- Taught triumph of light over darkness
- Taught baptismal regeneration
- Had sacramental meal
- Isis Mysteries
- Originated in Egypt
- Related to Ishtar, Ashtaroth and Astarte
- Centered around mother (Isis) and her son
- “The Christian representations of the Madonna and child are clearly the continuation of the representations of Isis and her son suckling the breast.” –Encyclopedia Britannica
- Feasts
- Easter
- Term is of pagan origin
- Was first observed as a celebration of the resurrection of Christ at the time of the Jewish Passover
- Later observance was changed to match the pagan celebration of Easter
- Pagan traditions were brought over into the celebration (eggs, rabbits, etc.)
- Celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs either on or after the vernal equinox of March 21st. This formula was first developed in Egypt. It means that Easter can occur anywhere from March 22 to April 25.
- Christmas
- The development of the feast celebrating the birth of Jesus is directly connected to fading expectations of the imminent return of Christ
- The Christian celebration of Christmas replaced the Roman festival of Dies Invicti Solis (the Day of the Invincible Sun) which was introduced by the Emperor Aurelian in the 3rd century and was celebrated on December 25th
- December 25th was also the birthday of Mithra, the Persian god of light; the day was devoted to the invincible sun
- Festivities of the pagan holiday included:
- All work and business suspended
- The giving of gifts
- Many celebrations and parties
- Easing of certain moral restrictions
- Many Christian writers (including Clement of Alexandria, Origen and Epiphanius) opposed the celebration of Christmas in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. In like manner, the Puritans of the 16th and 17th centuries opposed the celebration of Christmas.
- The celebration of holidays is a personal decision according to the scriptures. No one should be forced to keep a holiday or refused a chance to celebrate—as long as the acts of celebration themselves are scriptural. See Romans 14:4-10 [4] Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
[5] One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
[6] He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
[7] For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
[8] For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
[9] For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
[10] But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
See All... and Colossians 2:16-17 [16] Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: [17] Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
See All.... - Deified Mother
- During this period of time, Mary began to be exalted above what is stated in scripture. However, many of the teachings concerning Mary did not develop for many centuries and will be considered later.
- Pagan cultures had a long tradition of goddesses of fertility
- Ashtaroth (Canaanite)
- Astarte (Phoenician)
- Ishtar (Babylonian and Assyrian)
- Isis, the mother of Horus (Egyptian). Isis is often shown as a mother with her infant son.
- Aphrodite (Greek)
- Venus (Roman)
- The Mary of the Bible was slowly being transformed into “the queen of heaven” (Jeremiah 44:17-19 [17] But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.
[18] But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine.
[19] And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men?
See All..., 25) - The Drunkenness of the Great Whore (Revelation 17:6And 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.
See All...) - She was drunk with the blood of the saints
- She was drunk with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus
- Her drunkenness was a cause of great wonder to John
- John would not have been amazed if the great whore had been the Roman Empire. He had seen and was presently experiencing persecution from Rome.
- John wondered because he saw Christians being killed in great numbers by others who called themselves Christians.
- NOTE: The Donatists of the Early Fourth Century
- Arose in North Africa following the Diocletian Persecution (284-303AD). Resulted from the total willingness of the catholic churches to receive back into the churches those who had denied the faith
- The split came in 311 with the election of Caecilian as biship of Carthage.
- The Donatists unwisely appealed the decision to Constantine who turned the decision over to the bishop of Rome who at the Council of Arles in 314 condemned the Donatists.
- Constantine therefore declared the Donatists heretics and persecution of the 400 Donatist churches began. The Donatists were the first Christians to be persecuted and have their blood shed by other Christians.
- The movement was, to a great extent, an opposition to the worldliness of the catholic churches. They maintained that the churches should be made up only of visibly true believers.
- They seem to have rejected infant baptism but many of them did believe in baptismal regeneration (which was the common doctrine of the catholic church of this time).
- However, they rejected the authority of the catholic church to baptize and thus rebaptized those who came to them from those churches. As such, they were called Re-baptizers or Anabaptists.
- After their initial run-in with Constantine, they came to believe in the separation of the church and state.
- They opposed many of the superstitions which were becoming common in the catholic churches, such as the worship of relics.
- They continued in North Africa until somewhere in the seventh century.
- THE INTERPRETATION OF THE VISION (Revelation 17:7-15 [7] And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
[8] The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
[9] And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
[10] And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
[11] And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
[12] And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
[13] These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
[14] These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
[15] And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
See All...) - The Announcement of the Interpretation (Revelation 17:7And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
See All...) - The mystery of the woman
- The mystery of the beast
- The Beast on which the Woman Sits (Revelation 17:8The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
See All...) - The beast that was and is not and yet is (see Revelation 13:3And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
See All..., 12, 14) - The beast that shall ascend out of the bottom less pit (cp. Revelation 9:1-2 [1] And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.
[2] And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.
See All..., 11; 11:7
See All...) - The beast that shall go into perdition (Revelation 19:20And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
See All...) - The Key to Identifying the Woman (Revelation 17:9And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
See All...) - For the mind that has wisdom
- The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits
- Rome is known as the city of seven hills or seven mountains. It is named such after the first seven hills which made up the heart of the city and is known historically by this designation.
- John would have automatically known to whom this referred
- The Identity of the Seven Heads (Revelation 17:10And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
See All...) - “And there are seven kings’ – obviously, the kings are distinct from the seven hills which identify the woman
- They refer to seven historical kingdoms on the earth; probably, seven great kingdoms on the earth.
- Five are fallen; that is, five of these kingdoms have already come and gone. Although there is disagreement, the five kingdoms very likely are:
- Egypt, the kingdom of Pharaoh
- Assyria, the kingdom of Sennacherib
- Babylon, the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar (earlier, the kingdom of Nimrod)
- Persia, the kingdom of Cyrus
- Greece, the kingdom of Alexander
- One is: this must be Rome, the kingdom of Caesar
- The other is not yet come
- Evidently, some form of revived Roman Empire
- The iron mixed with clay in the ten toes of Daniel’s beast (Daniel 2:40-44 [40] And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.
[41] And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.
[42] And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.
[43] And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.
[44] And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
See All...) - The ten horns of the fourth beast in Daniel (7:7-8, 19-23)
- The ten horns of Revelation (Revelation 13:1-2 [1] And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
[2] And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
See All...) - Only continues for a short space
- The Identity of the Revived Beast (Revelation 17:11-13 [11] And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
[12] And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
[13] These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
See All...) - He is the eighth king
- However, he is of the seventh kingdom
- He is distinguished because of his destruction and resurrection (Revelation 17:8The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
See All...; 13:3
See All..., 12, 14) - He is the Antichrist
- He will go into perdition (Revelation 19:20And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
See All...) - He rules for one hour with the ten kings (Revelation 17:12And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
See All...; Daniel 7:7-8 [7] After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns. [8] I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.
See All...) - He receives full allegiance from the ten kings (Revelation 17:13These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
See All..., 17) - The War They Make with the Lamb (Revelation 17:14These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
See All...) - These shall make war with the Lamb and the saints (Revelation 11:7And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
See All...; Daniel 7:21-22 [21] I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; [22] Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
See All..., 25) - The Lamb shall overcome them (Daniel 2:44And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
See All...; 7:26-27
See All...) - The power of the Lamb: Lord of lords and King of kings (1 Timothy 6:15Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
See All...) - The testimony of the saints
- Called
- Chosen
- Faithful
- The Identity of the Waters (Revelation 17:15And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
See All...) - The waters on which the whore sits (Revelation 17:1And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
See All...) - The waters are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues
- THE DESTRUCTION OF THE GREAT WHORE (Revelation 17:16-18 [16] And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
[17] For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
[18] And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
See All...) - She is Destroyed by the Ten Horns (Revelation 17:16And 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.
See All...) - The ten horns hate the whore
- The ten horns make her desolate and naked; that is, they turn on her and persecute the persecutor
- The ten horns eat her flesh and burn her with fire; that is, they destroy her entirely
- Her Kingdom is Given to the Beast (Revelation 17:17For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
See All...) - God put it in the hearts of the ten kings to fulfill His will (Psalm 76:10Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.
See All...) - The ten kings give her kingdom to the beast until God’s word is fulfilled
- The Identity of the Woman Verified (Revelation 17:18And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
See All...) - She is that great city – Rome
- She reigns over the kings of the earth
- Again, this points back to the Roman Catholic marriage of church in state resulting in a religious political power. It will be used to gain power by the ten kings and the antichrist. Then, they will turn on her and destroy her entirely in a fulfillment of the judgment of God.
Proverbs 23:25
Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.