In Chapter 14 John was told, "Babylon is fallen," and in Chapter 16 he was told that God would make Babylon drink the cup of His wrath. Those things have not yet happened at this point in Revelation but they are as good as done because God says so. There is a pause now in the action moving toward Armageddon so that it can be explained to us that the "Babylon" of Revelation represents both the religious system and the political system of the end times. First we are going to take a look at the religious system.
Many times in the Scriptures we find the word "Babylon" used to represent any place that is filled with idolatry, with rebellion against the things of God, and with persecution of the people of God. The area of the world that would later become ancient Babylon is the same place where the first organized rebellion took place against God in Genesis 11 when the people decided to build a tower to heaven. They didn't believe God when He said He would never again send a worldwide flood, so they were organizing a means of escape from future worldwide floods. They didn't obey God when He told them to spread out over the earth and populate it but instead banded together in order to accomplish their sinful ambitions. They didn't respect God as God but in their pride thought the strength of their numbers would enable them to actually enter heaven on their own terms from the tower they erroneously believed they could build tall enough to reach God's throne room. Ancient Babylon lies in ruins today, but the attitude of Babylon is still alive and well. Man's final rebellion against God, and the capital city of the Antichrist, are referred to as Babylon because the same attitude will be present in the end times as was present at the construction site of the tower of Babel. In fact, that same attitude is already present in the world today, for many human beings still don't believe God, don't obey God, and don't worship God as God. Many human beings still think they can enter heaven on their own terms, not on God's terms.
The seven angels with the seven bowls of wrath have already poured their bowls out, but one of them steps forward now to explain to John the corrupt religious system of the end times. This system has already been present throughout Revelation, but it's only now that we receive a clearer description of it. "One of the angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, 'Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters. With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries." (Revelation 17:1-2) Not a great deal has been said up til now about the apostate church, but she has been perpetrating her deception on the people of the earth ever since the Lord called His church out of the world.
Just look at the contrast between the false church and the true church! The church of the Lord Jesus Christ is referred to in the Scriptures as a bride, beautiful and pure, dressed in white. But the church of the end times---the hideous "bride" of Satan---is a drunken prostitute. She is impure in every way she can be impure. She is not ashamed of it but instead takes delight in it.
The angel says in verse 1 above that this prostitute "sits by many waters". These waters represent the nations of the world, as will be explained to us near the end of the chapter when John is told that the waters symbolize "peoples, multitudes, nations and languages". By this we know that the false religious system has permeated every nation on earth. By this we can also assume that the false religion is made up of a hodgepodge of world religious all mixed together. It will be a religion that offends no one, tells no one he or she is a sinner, and helps no one. If it teaches a need for redemption at all, it will teach people that they can obtain redemption on their own. The one thing we can be certain it won't do is point anyone toward the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.
The angel calls the apostate church a prostitute and says she has caused the inhabitants of the earth to become drunk with the wine of her adulteries. In the Bible we often find the Lord referring to idolatry as adultery. In the Old Testament, when a number of the people of Israel began turning to idolatry, the Lord accused them of adultery because they were being unfaithful to Him. They were breaking their vows to Him. They had accepted the covenant He made with them in the wilderness after He rescued them from Egypt, and now they were breaking that covenant by running after other gods.
In saying that the prostitute of Revelation has made the people of the world drink the wine of her adulteries, the angel is saying that the religious system of the end times is idolatrous and that it has led many people all over the world into idolatry. Everyone involved in the false church is committing adultery against the living God who created them and who loves them and who offers them a means of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. They are not being true to the One who has always been true to them. The message of the false church is intoxicating to those who don't want to bow their knees to God. If they feel a need for redemption at all, something in them wants to obtain it on their own, and the false religious system is going to tell them they can do it on their own. Those who doubt the existence of God or who have no interest in God may join the church for other reasons: because it is popular to be a member of the church, because it gives them a sense of belonging, because it provides an element of structure to their lives as they go through the motions of rituals, or because they want to please the Antichrist by joining the church that he will use to accomplish his dark goals. There are all sorts of reasons why a person might join the apostate church, but whatever satisfaction they gain from it will be a surface satisfaction only. It will never satisfy their deep spiritual needs, but it will allow them to ignore that fact because they will feel like they are doing something productive.
It's going to take us several days to study the apostate church, so please join us tomorrow when John describes her appearance to us and provides us with some clues about where her headquarters will be located.
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