THE BOOK OF REVELATION
Part 37
Babylon Is Fallen
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After this I saw another angel coming down from Heaven. He had
great authority, and the Earth was illuminated by his splendor. With a mighty
voice he shouted:
"Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!
She has become a home for demons
and a haunt for every evil spirit,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable bird.
For all the nations have drunk
the maddening wine of her adulteries.
The kings of the earth committed adultery with her,
and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive
luxuries."
Then I heard another Voice from Heaven say:
"Come out of her, My people,
so that you will not share in her sins,
so that you will not receive any of her plagues;
for her sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her crimes.
Give back to her as she has given;
pay her back double for what she has done.
Mix her a double portion from her own cup.
Give her as much torture and grief
as the glory and luxury she gave herself.
In her heart she boasts,
'I sit as queen; I am not a widow,
and I will never mourn.'
Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her:
death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God Who judges her.
"When the kings of the Earth who committed adultery with
her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and
mourn over her. Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry:
"'Woe! Woe, O great city,
O Babylon, city of power!
In one hour your doom has come!'
"The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her
because no one buys their cargoes any more— cargoes of gold, silver, precious
stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of
citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze,
iron and marble; cargoes of cinnamon and
spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour
and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and bodies and souls of men.
"They will say, 'The fruit you longed for is gone from you.
All your riches and splendor have vanished, never to be recovered.' The merchants who sold these things and gained
their wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will
weep and mourn and cry out:
"'Woe! Woe, O great city,
dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet,
and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!
In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!'
"Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the
sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. When they see the smoke of her burning, they
will exclaim, 'Was there ever a city like this great city?' They will throw
dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning cry out:
"'Woe! Woe, O great city,
where all who had ships on the sea
became rich through her wealth!
In one hour she has been brought to ruin!
Rejoice over her, O Heaven!
Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets!
God has judged her for the way she treated you.'"
Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large
millstone and threw it into the sea, and said:
"With such violence
the great city of Babylon will be thrown down,
never to be found again.
The music of harpists and musicians, flute players and trumpeters,
will never be heard in you again.
No workman of any trade
will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
will never be heard in you again.
The light of a lamp
will never shine in you again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in you again.
Your merchants were the world's great men.
By your magic spell all the nations were led astray.
In her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints,
and of all who have been killed on the Earth."
Rev. 18 NIV
The Fall of Babylon the Great is precisely
Revelation 18.
Her lament begins in verse 9.
At this time, the antichrist, who once was
worshipped by the entire world [all those whose names are not written in the
Lamb’s Book of Life], and his “Babylon-kingdom” will be defeated—this is after
the Battle of Armageddon, when the kings of the Earth will turn on him after
their defeat at the hands of the King of kings (seen in chapter 17).
Several things are notable in this passage.
1.)
The very glorying this empire engages in
will be a catalyst for its judgment. Its economic prowess and the fistshaking
at God that results from that independence will turn on it and become one of
the reasons for its destruction.
2.)
The kings of the Earth will mourn for
Babylon—from afar off, because they fear “her torment.”
3.)
Babylon’s destruction comes in “one
hour” [a prophetic hour]. The Bible says that the “ten kings” will turn against
“Babylon.”
4.)
Violently shall Babylon be thrown down,
and shall be found no more.
STRONG is THE LORD GOD
Who judges her!
The Voice which John heard from Heaven in verse 4 is
the Voice of GOD.
Just as deliverance was promised to the children of
Israel out of the land of ancient Babylon, so God promises deliverance for the
sons of God out of “Mystery Babylon.”
In Isaiah 48:20, the Lord instructed the people of
Israel saying:
“Go ye forth of Babylon, flee ye from the Chaldeans, with a
voice of singing declare ye, tell this, utter it even to the end of the earth; say
ye, The Lord hath redeemed His servant Jacob (KJV).
In Revelation 18, Apostle John heard the Voice of
the Lord 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.
For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered
her iniquities.
Rev 18:4-5 KJV
Since the days of the Old Testament prophets,
Babylon has been doomed to destruction (Rev.18:6; Psa.137:8; Isa. 21:9), and so
all who worship the beast and take its mark shall be doomed also (Rev 14:10).
Babylon must fall because of Israel's slain (Jer.
51:49); and “in her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints, and of
all who have been killed on the Earth" (Rev 18:24).
Apostle John “saw that the woman [the city of
Babylon] was drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of those who bore
testimony to Jesus (Rev 17:6).
Rev 16:6 prophesies:
“…for they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and
you have given them blood to drink as they deserve" (NIV).
With great violence the great city of Babylon will
be thrown down, never to be found again (Rev 18:21).
The entire hosts of Heaven, the saints and apostles
and the prophets shall rejoice—even the Earth too, when GOD brings Judgment on
Babylon.
Rejoice over her, O Heaven!
Rejoice, saints and apostles and prophets!
God has judged her for the way she treated you.'"
Rev 18:20 NIV
Then Heaven and Earth and all that is in them
will shout for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north
destroyers will attack her,"
declares the Lord.
Jer 51:48 NIV
Amazingly, Prophet Jeremiah prophesied against
“Babylon the Great” by figuratively referring to ancient Babylon.
Jeremiah had written on a scroll about all the disasters that
would come upon Babylon — all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. He
said to Seraiah, "When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these
words aloud. Then say, 'O Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so
that neither man nor animal will live in it; it will be desolate forever.' When
you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the
Euphrates. Then say, 'So will Babylon sink to rise no more because of the
disaster I will bring upon her.
Jer. 51:60-64 NIV
Babylon the Great—“the
city of power”; ‘a home of excessive luxuries’—“a home for demons,” ‘and all sorts
of idolatry,’ shall be consumed by fire.
All her riches and
splendor will vanish, never to be recovered.
MYSTERY
BABYLON THE GREAT
THE MOTHER OF
PROSTITUTES
AND OF THE
ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
“The great
prostitute, who sits on many waters” shall be hurled down, never to be found
again!
