The doom of the kingdom of this world

We are going to try cover chapter 17

INTRODUCTION

Chapter 17 and 18 continue the implications of the seventh bowl judgement and its destruction. Chapter 16 began that description with the huge hail storm and earthquake. Chapter 17 speak more on the spiritual implications of the final judgement which is the destruction of the world system. That os what Babylon the Great represents.

Revelation 17:1–2 “Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality.”

The Great harlot

This in the first century would have represented the city of Rome. But the it also has significance for all times.

She stands for the dominant world system of ungodliness.

1 John 2:15–17 “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”

Sitting on many waters

the waters are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages

The kings of the earth

These are nations that Rome has enticed to pick up her practices of immorality

Made drunk with her immorality is a figure of speech to communicate the draw of people to unfaithfulness

We referenced some ways this happens today: the world tries to fit us into its mold, which is a mold without God

Revelation 17:3–6 “And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns. The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality, and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus.”

The Great Harlot is now sitting on the beast

The beast is the beast from chapter 13

This is the supreme enemy of the church

The idea here is that the two are joined together

“having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality”

This is the great system of godlessness that leads people away from the true worship of God

Luxury: adorned with gold and precious stones

Moral Corruption:

Power

“And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus.

The blood of the saints is the same blood of the witnesses of Jesus who have gives their lives for the faithful testimony to Jesus

Application

QUESTION: Does the world hate God?

QUESTION: Why do you think the world is so against God?

Light in darkness exposes sin. People simply do not want to give up the pleasures of sin nor be uncomfortable in their sin

They would rather silence it

Revelation 17:6b-8 “When I saw her, I wondered greatly. And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. “The beast that you saw was (alive), and is not (alive), and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was (alive) and is not (alive) and will come.”

There is a direct correlation between this beast and the Lamb

Just like the Lamb of God was killed but raised from the dead, so this beast is killed and raised from the dead

He is the same beast described in chapter 13 that we spoke about

“The beast you saw was (alive), and is not (alive), and is about to come up out of the abyss”

What we see here is that antichrist spirit raised and killed over and over again in world history

The antichrist spirit that John spoke about in his letter:

1 John 4:3 “and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.”

Lets think back over history at who this may pertain to

Antiochus who desecrated the temple in 167BC by sacrificing a pig on the alter to Zeus

Nero who persecuted the church and blamed the Christians for burning Rome turning the entire city against them. he died in 68 AD which was before John wrote Revelation. This is why John said, “and is not, but will come again”

Possibly Hitler, Stalins, and others throughout history

BUT this one who is coming again will be the very incarnation of evil. It will be someone so opposed to God that he will be incomparable to the others in the past.

It is possible that we could see an antichrist figure in our lifetime or The Antichrist ion our lifetime

Application: We must be very carefully making these predictions about when Jesus will come or the Tribulation period. I see people making these predictions all the time and so far none of them have been right. And by being constantly wrong, it makes the world think the second coming of Jesus is a fairy tale.

I just heard something about Israel today. Tomorrow is the “feast of trumpets” something held every year by Jews.

BUT there is also going to be a solar eclipse tomorrow that will only be seen from or that area.

The rapture of the church is believed to happen on the feast of trumpets

Economical despair

corruption

falling away from the church

He did not say that this is when the rapture was going to happen tomorrow, but he was implying that all the signs are there for the rapture

Revelation 17:9–13 ““Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. “The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction. “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. “These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.”

Seven mountains: most likely referring to Rome which was a city built upon 7 hills.

Seven hills are seven kings: there is much difficulty with interpreting this.

Some think this refers to emperors but the numbers do not add up

The other option is to interpret 7 as symbolic referring to the Roman empire as a whole

The beast is the 8th king:

By calling him the eighth, he stands out among the rest because again he is the manifestation of evil itself

He will come into human history as a man, but pure evil in heart

He goes to destruction meaning that he will be conquered by the Lamb

The ten horns

The angel said these are the ten kings who have not received their power. When they do, they will turn it over to the beast and join him in war against the Lamb.

These 10 (symbolic for completeness) kings likely represent the powers of the earth who join up with the antichrist to go to war against God

Revelation 17:14–18 ““These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.” And he said to me, “The waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. “And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire. “For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled. “The woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth.””

(v 14) “and Lamb will over come them”

Why does the Lamb overcome them? Because He is the Lord of lords and King of Kings

This speaks of the sovereignty of Almighty God

The supreme ruler of all the earth

No power, not even all the power of the earth combined can compare to His power

(v 16-17) “The ten horns will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and burn her up with fire, For aGod has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose”

That means even evil serves God

What an example of His sovereign power over the earth. Even the evil who opposes God serves God

Application

Genesis 50:19–20 “But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place? “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.”

God uses bad things to bring about good results all the time.

When bad things come into our lives, we must never forget this!

It is easy to think God is against us, or is punishing us, or doesn’t even exists, but the reality is that God works all things together for good for those who love Him