Season 6 Podcast 14 Book of Revelation “Opening of the Seven Seals, V, Chapter 17:1-6 “Babylon the Great.” Episode

Season 6 Podcast 14 Book of Revelation “Opening of the Seven Seals, V, Chapter 17:1-6 “Babylon the Great.”

Last week we studied Revelation 16, Armageddon. This week we shall focus on Revelation 17, “Babylon the Great.”

We have talked before of the three tempters: (1) wiles of the devil, (2) the craftiness of man, and (3) the alluring powers of the flesh referred to in the scriptures as “the natural man.” All three tempters are at play in the story of ‘Babylon the Great.’ In Revelation 17 Babylon the Great represents the world or the natural man or temptations of the flesh. Those are used both by Satan and his angels, who have no mortal bodies, as well as those mortals who get rich selling and exploiting human flesh, appealing to man’s natural appetites and unholy desires in unrighteous, unlawful, immoral, and criminal ways.

To those who repent, all can be forgiven. That is why Christ died for our sins. However, the Holy Scriptures come down hard on those who don’t repent while they have the chance. Some of the last words of John the Revelator are: 

Revelation 22:11-15

“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.”

In Chapter 17 John is speaking of the Seven angels with the Seven Last Plagues.

Revelation 17:1-2

“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: 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.”

John is speaking of the intoxication of lust. Using the unabashed language of the King James Version, John compares Babylon to a whore who sells herself for money. We cannot overlook the fact that money is the core motive of Babylon. Babylon will sell anything for money: sex, drugs, fame, power, position, kingdoms, principalities, governments.  We naturally associate the image with sexual promiscuity and sometimes focus on poor abused women as the criminals rather than victims. Merciful God will judge righteously, and justice will strike unerringly in the right place. Babylon symbolizes the unbridled lust for money, power, glory, fame, position, and promiscuity. In Babylon everything has a price, even if some are made slaves against their will. In fact, in the next chapter John clearly defines the merchandise.

Revelation 18:12-13

“ 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.”

We cannot overlook the language of John. He refers to Babylon the ‘Great.’ He also refers to the ‘great’ whore. Even a cursory study of the Holy Bible teaches one to count every word. The language of the Bible is incredibly economical, even in translation. I think we can assume that the word ‘great’ does not have the connotation of “excellent, amazing, outstanding. It perhaps fits better with Huge, Vast, Enormous.