Scripture Reading: Rev. 14:8; 17:1—19:4; 2:18-24; Matt. 13:33
Ⅰ
Revelation 17 is an unveiling of religious Babylon— the apostate Roman Catholic Church:
A
In the eyes of God the Roman Catholic Church, which perpetuates much of Judaism and has assimilated much of paganism, is Babylon.
B
Mystery in verse 5 indicates that Babylon the Great in chapter seventeen is the apostate church; she is mysterious in what she is, in what she practices, and in what she teaches.
C
The woman in Matthew 13:33 is the Jezebel in Revelation 2:20, and Jezebel becomes the great harlot in 17:1:
１
Jezebel, the pagan wife of Ahab, is a type of the apostate church—1 Kings 16:31.
２
The principle of the deeds of the apostate church is to mix the heathen, pagan things with the worship of God by His people—Matt. 13:33; Rev. 17:4.
３
Jezebel, the apostate church, is a self-appointed prophetess, who presumes to be authorized to speak for God and demands that people listen to her rather than to God—2:20.
４
In the apostate church are "the deep things of Satan," the mysterious teachings of Satan—v. 24:
ａ
Satan dwells in the apostate church in a subtle way through the teaching of the deep things of Satan.
ｂ
The deep thought of Satan has saturated the apostate church, causing it to become the embodiment of Satan.
D
The harlot in 17:1 is the apostate Roman Catholic Church:
１
The fornication of the apostate church consists of her having sinful relationships with the kings of the earth for her profit—v. 2a:
ａ
The Roman Catholic Church is intimately involved with worldly politics, and the kings of the earth commit fornication directly with her.
ｂ
In the eyes of God, this is spiritual fornication.
２
The "wine of her fornication" signifies the heretical doctrines of the apostate church in her fornicating relationships with the governments on the earth—v. 2b.
３
The apostate church is in a wilderness, a desert, where there are no springs of water prepared by God—v. 3.
４
The harlot is "gilded with gold and precious stone and pearls"—v. 4a:
ａ
Gold, precious stone, and pearls are the materials with which the New Jerusalem is built—21:18-19, 21.
ｂ
The apostate church is gilded (not solidly built) with these treasures as ornaments for outward display and as a deception intended to entice people.
５
The harlot has in her hand "a golden cup full of abominations and the unclean things of her fornication"—17:4b:
ａ
Since gold signifies the divine nature, the golden cup indicates that in her outward appearance the apostate church has something of God.
ｂ
Her "golden cup" is full of idolatry, pagan practices, and satanic things.
ｃ
The Roman Catholic Church has certain holy things, but she has mixed in many evil and unclean things.
６
The great harlot is the "mother of the harlots"—v. 5:
ａ
The harlots, the daughters of the great harlot, are the sects and groups in Christianity that hold to some extent the teachings, practices, and traditions of the apostate church.
ｂ
The denominations and groups that still practice some of the great harlot's Babylonian traditions belong in the category of Babylon.
ｃ
Only the pure, genuine local churches have no evil transmitted from the great harlot, the apostate church—1:11-12.
E
Because God hates the apostate church, at the beginning of the great tribulation, God will cause Antichrist and his ten kings to destroy the Roman Catholic Church—17:16-17.
Ⅱ
Revelation 18 is an unveiling of material Babylon— the city of Rome:
A
In Revelation 17 and 18 two aspects of Babylon— the religious aspect and the material aspect— are mixed together:
１
The harlot in 17:16 denotes religious Babylon, signifying the Roman Catholic Church, whereas the woman in verse 18 denotes material Babylon, signifying the city of Rome.
２
In 18:3 the aspects of religious and material Babylon are both mentioned:
ａ
The Roman religion makes all nations drunk with her religious, devilish wine.
ｂ
The city of Rome enriches the merchants of the earth by the power of her luxury.
３
Since Babylon the Great is twofold, to come out of her means to come out of both religious Babylon and material Babylon—v. 4.
B
Material Babylon, the city of Rome, will become hateful in the eyes of God because it has been the source of both devilish politics and devilish religion— vv. 6-8, 20-24.
C
Christ as another Angel will shine over the earth to destroy Babylon the Great, the city of Rome, with His great authority—vv. 1-2.
Ⅲ
Babylon the Great will have two falls—the fall of religious Babylon and the fall of material Babylon—14:8; 18:2:
A
The fall of religious Babylon will take place at the beginning of the great tribulation—17:16-17.
B
The fall of material Babylon will take place at the end of the great tribulation—18:2, 21.
C
The praise in 19:1-4 is related not mainly to the fall of material Babylon but to the fall of religious Babylon, because in the eyes of God religious Babylon is more hateful than material Babylon.