Babylon Is Fallen Part 3
The Book of Revelation • Sermon • Submitted
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Introduction:
One of the points that really stood out to me last week was the last one.
Where we spoke to you about in verse 5 about a “concept preserved” and how the text tells us that, “God remembers”.
There are approximately 73 times in the Bible where it says that God remembered.
God does not forget.
Sometimes that is a good thing.
And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged;
And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.
And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.
And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.
Sometimes, it is not a good thing; for the heathen.
For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.
It is with this verse in 1 Samuel that I want to give some focus because it is there that we learn a lesson about the remembrance of God.
What exactly did Amalek do?
Well, the text does not tell us detailed here in 1 Samuel, but other passages give us insight into why God remembered them for judgment.
First, God made a promise to Moses to also tell Joshua.
And the LORD said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.
Exodus 17:14
God promised Moses that He would completely destroy from the memory of men, the Amalakites.
But why did God remember them for destruction?
Because, it tells us the 1 Samuel, what they did to Israel.
What did they do?
Remember what Amalek did unto thee by the way, when ye were come forth out of Egypt;
How he met thee by the way, and smote the hindmost of thee, even all that were feeble behind thee, when thou wast faint and weary; and he feared not God.
Therefore it shall be, when the LORD thy God hath given thee rest from all thine enemies round about, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to possess it, that thou shalt blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven; thou shalt not forget it.
So there orders that God gave to Samuel to give to Saul was in remembrance of what they did to Israel.
Because God remembers Judgment.
You say, “well, it was not complete because Saul disobeyed and many of the Amalekites escaped and God’s promise was to wipe them out”.
Then enters David.
Remember in when David and his men returned to Ziglak from cooperative battle with the Philistines, they found that the city had been burned and their wives, sons and Daughters had been kidnapped by an invigorated Amalakite army.
After David wept, he went into prayer to see what they Lord wanted him to do.
The Lord said to pursue them and that they would win the battle.
And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad upon all the earth, eating and drinking, and dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.
And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.
And David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away: and David rescued his two wives.
And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to them: David recovered all.
And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drave before those other cattle, and said, This is David’s spoil.
1 Samuel 30:16:20
But notice verse 17.
And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.
Well, David got all but 400 of them.
But the Promise of God was to totally wipe them out.
In steps Simeon.
Simeon had been blessed by God and his family and needed to expand their territory.
And in order to do that he had to move others out.
Guess who God put there that needed to be moved out?
And they smote the rest of the Amalekites that were escaped, and dwelt there unto this day.
1 Chronicles 4:
You see, God keeps his promises.
He promised to judge and wipe out the Amalakites because of what they did to Israel, and He did it.
And he is going to judge the antichrist and his final form of religious and commercial empire and that fulfillment is layout for us in this chapter.
I. Judgment Announced (vs. 1-3)
The Character of the Messenger (vs. 1-2a)
He Has Great Dominion
He has Great Delight
He Has Great Distinction
The Components of the Message (vs. 2-3)
The Fall Will Be Great (vs. 2)
The Fortress Will Be Grotesque (vs. 2)
The Filthiness Will BE Global (vs. 3)
II. Judgment Avoided (vs. 4-5)
a. A Command Proclaimed (vs. 4)
b. A Combination Prohibited (vs. 4)
c. A Curse to Pass (vs. 4)
d. A Condition Packed (vs. 5)
e. A Concept Preserved (vs. 5)
III. Judgment Defined (vs. 6-8)
Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
Thus far we have paid close attention to the fact of what is the message that the angel will be bringing and how intense and global the destruction will be.
The next section of verses that we are going to look at will really answer the question why.
What are the circumstances that will bring about the destruction of Babylon; which remember is the final religious and commercial empire of the AntiChrist.
This will be the final destruction of the world.
Remember that the Scripture says in the verses that we have already looked that the kings of earth go after her, so the sin will be global and so the destruction will be global as well.
But let us look more closely at the why.
The Request Directed (vs. 6a)
Reveal
Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
“Reward” is “ἀποδίδωμι” and literally means to “pay back, to recompense whether it is for the good or for the bad”.
And of course, in this context it is for the bad.
Of course, the context also indicates to us a difference in the one that is being addressed.
The angel is no longer speaking to John but is speaking directly to God.
The request of the angel parallels the prayer of the saints in chapter 6.
And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Revelation 6:9-10
Revelation 12–22: The MacArthur New Testament Commentary Judgment Defined
The angel’s prayer for justice is based on the Old Testament principle of lex talionis, the law of retaliation, the principle of “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth”
The angel’s prayer for justice is based on the Old Testament principle of lex talionis, the law of retaliation, the principle of “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth”
Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,
Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him;
Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again.
Lev
And thine eye shall not pity; but life shall go for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.
Now, what Jesus Christ did was to take the OT law and taught Grace and forgiveness.
But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also.
And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.
Matt. 5:39:42
Revelation 12–22: The MacArthur New Testament Commentary Judgment Defined
Babylon has been extended enough grace and heard enough warnings. It is time for vengeance. It is time for her destruction.
Understand, that there will come a time when Grace and Mercy will end and the destruction that has accumulated for years will finally be poured out.
God is not going to be mocked.
Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
And right now, Babylon is sowing destruction and the day will come when what they have sown, will be reaped.
This angels plea’s for the rightful destruction of Babylon has been a message that has been echoed throughout the OT.
O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed; happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us.
Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the LORD.
Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand: her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the LORD: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her.
Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the LORD, against the Holy One of Israel.
And I will render unto Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight, saith the LORD.
Because the spoiler is come upon her, even upon Babylon, and her mighty men are taken, every one of their bows is broken: for the LORD God of recompences shall surely requite.
I think that it is important at this point to pause and reflect that recompense and vengeance belongs to God alone.
Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the LORD, and he shall save thee.
Our attitude should be thus:
Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
1 Thess. 5:
Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.
Now, those commands do not preclude the holy, righteous God from judging sinners.
As Satan’s empire has done to Christians, so God will do back to them.
Which is why God told the saints under the altar and tells us now, “wait, rest. Judgment is coming. It is not for you to judge. I will take care of it.
b. A Recompense Detailed (vs. 6b)
Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
Not only does the angel request of the Lord that she be paid back just as she paid out, but the angels requests that she be paid double what she paid out.
Revelation 12–22: The MacArthur New Testament Commentary Judgment Defined
The angel’s request that God give back to Babylon double according to her deeds (literally in the Greek “double the double things”) is a request that Babylon’s punishment fit her crimes. Double has been her iniquity; double must be her punishment. Babylon’s sins have overflowed, piling up as high as the heavens, and the angel calls for God’s judgment to overflow on her in equal measure.
The request of the angel actually has an OT precedent.
If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double.
If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man’s house; if the thief be found, let him pay double.
For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.
So this angel is requesting the exact same thing that God’s law has always allowed.
Let them be confounded that persecute me, but let not me be confounded: let them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed: bring upon them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction.
Revelation 12–22: The MacArthur New Testament Commentary Judgment Defined
Further stating his request that God fully punish Babylon, the angel asks that in the cup which she has mixed, God would mix twice as much for her. Fittingly, in the very cup that Babylon used to deceive the nations (v. 3; 14:8; 17:2, 4; Jer. 51:7) she is to receive a double portion of God’s wrath.
As believers, we must always keep in mind that the ways of the world are not going unnoticed by holy God.
He is remembering everything that they do, and the cup that they mix to us, will one day be mixed double to them.