2nd Doom – Revelation Chapter 18 refers.
Rev
18:1-8
Fall
of Babylon the Great
After
these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having
great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his glory.
2
And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, "Babylon the
great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling
place of demons,
a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and
hated bird!
3
For all the nations
have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings
of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants
of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her
luxury."
4
And I heard another voice from heaven saying, "Come out of her,
my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of
her plagues.
5
For her sins have reached to
heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.
6
Render to her just as she rendered to you, and repay her double
according to her works; in the cup which she has mixed, mix double
for her.
7
In the measure that she glorified herself and lived
luxuriously,
in the same measure give her torment and sorrow; for she says in her
heart, 'I sit as queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.'
8
Therefore her plagues will come in one
day —
death and mourning and famine.
And
she will be utterly
burned with fire,
for strong is the Lord God who judges her.
The
angel in Verse 2, announces twice "fallen","fallen",
which is to emphasize her fall or that the fall takes place
in two stages.
The
first fall is the ecclesiastical Babylon and the second that of
political/commercial Babylon. The latter is a literal
city.
There has been much
argument as to the rebuilding of literal Babylon city at its ancient
site. It is appropriate therefore to assume that the commercial
Babylon stated in Revelation is symbolic of the Ancient Babylon.
For
example in John's time Rome, a city of seven hills, was the symbolic
Babylon. Rome was also the chief commercial center in the
ancient world and was known as the Master of the Great Sea (ie. the
Mediterranean)
The
author of "Is the U.S.A in Prophecy?", Franklin Logsdon, is
of the view that the symbolism of
Babylon could well be applied to the US (see
further down on this statement).
According to other commentators various other cities such as London,
New York, Paris, Washington D.C could also be candidates.
Bear in mind that when these things happen the believers/ Christians will be raptured and those left behind would be those ripe of the wine press of God's wrath.
The
following verses from Revelation speaks more of Babylon's destruction
and is a continuation to that above.
This portion of scripture
definitely does not fit Rome.
REMINDER:
This event takes place after the Rapture and during the final 3.5
years of the Tribulation period.
Rev
18:9-19
The
World Mourns Babylon's Fall
9
"The kings of the earth who committed fornication and lived
luxuriously with her will weep and lament for her, when they see the
smoke of her burning,
10
standing at a distance for fear of her torment, saying, 'Alas, alas,
that great city Babylon, that mighty city! For in one hour your
judgment has come.'
11
"And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her,
for no one buys their merchandise anymore:
12
merchandise of gold and silver, precious stones and pearls, fine
linen and purple, silk and scarlet, every kind of citron wood, every
kind of object of ivory, every kind of object of most precious wood,
bronze, iron, and marble;
13
and cinnamon and incense, fragrant oil and frankincense, wine and
oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and
bodies and souls of men.
14
The fruit that your soul longed for has gone from you, and all the
things which are rich and splendid have gone from you, and you shall
find them no more at all.
15
The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand at
a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
16
and saying, 'Alas, alas, that great city that was clothed in fine
linen, purple, and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones
and pearls!
17
For in one hour such great riches came to nothing.' Every shipmaster,
all who travel by ship, sailors, and as many as trade on the sea,
stood at a distance
18
and cried out when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, 'What
is like this great city?'
19
"They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and
wailing, and saying, 'Alas, alas,
that great city, in which all who had ships on the sea became rich by
her wealth! For in one hour she is made desolate.'
(New York?)
The 2 Babylons compared -extracted "Daniel's 70th week" by Shashikant Salvi
In Revelation 18:12 and 13, more than 20 articles of commerce are mentioned.
"Babylon the great" will be a great commercial center of the world.
It will gain importance after the "Beast" (Antichrist) makes it his capital.
The merchants, the great men of the earth, would make enormous profits by trading with her, but after her destruction they will have no business.
Hence, They will weep over her destruction. they will stand afar off, lamenting and saying. "Alas, alas that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For in one hour so great riches is come to naught."
Finality of Babylon's Fall
In:
Rev 18:21-24
21
Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw
it into the sea, saying, "Thus with violence the great city
Babylon shall be thrown down, and shall not be found anymore.
22
The sound of harpists, musicians,
flutists, and trumpeters shall not be heard in you anymore.
No craftsman of any craft shall be found in you anymore, and the
sound of a millstone shall not be heard in you anymore.
23
The light of a lamp shall not shine in you anymore, and the voice of
bridegroom and bride shall not be heard in you anymore. For your
merchants were the great men of the earth, for by your sorcery all
the nations were deceived.
24
And in her was found the blood of
prophets and saints, and of all who
were slain on the earth."
Concluding
on the 2nd Doom, it is pertinent now to quote the following extracts
from the late Jack Van Impe, a renowned Bible scholar and eschatology
preacher, in reference to Revelation Chapter 18:
"A walk
through New York City, Detroit, Chicago, Los Angles, Hollywood, or
San Francisco would be helpful at this point. America's major cities-
and minor ones as well are loaded with lust-ridden sinners seeking
sex thrills through prostitutes, R- and X-rated movies, and
pornographic bookstores. Our beloved America could possibly fit
the description of political Babylon as a cage [containing] every
unclean and hateful bird controlled by foul spirits and demons who
inhabit the land and its people. God help us to have an
old-fashioned, Holy Spirit-empowered revival in "the land of the
free and the home of the brave." Otherwise, God's
judgment may soon fall."....
"Who is Babylon?
Certain scholars think that the term refers to the ancient air of
Babylon on the banks of the Euphrates River in present-day Iraq.
Interestingly the city is currently being rebuilt. Others, including
such prophecy scholars as Dr. S. Franklin Logsden, believe
Babylon to be the United States of America- a leader of the Western
world aligned with the Antichrist's ten-toed kingdom.
Some
great scholars believe that America and Babylon the great are
one and the same because of the information presented in the
prophecies of Isaiah and Jeremiah, plus the words of John the seer in
Revelation, chapter 18.
Consider the following momentarily.
Isaiah 18:1, 2 depicts a latter-day nation that amazingly
resembles modern America. This nation
has the insignia of wings- similar to our national emblem, the bald eagle;
is a land that is beyond the sea from Israel;
is scattered and peeled- meaning it is widely spread out or has great land areas;
is meted out- or staked out by acres and miles; and
is a land whose rivers are spoiled or polluted.
Likewise, in chapters 50 and 51 of the book bearing his name, Jeremiah presents conclusive evidence that a latter-day Babylon far different from and superior to ancient Babylon will spring into existence. As one studies Jeremiah's remarks, he is amazed to see that modern America seems to be the fulfillment of these predictions because:
she is a nation of mingled people (Jeremiah 50:37);
she is a nation whose mother shall be sorely confounded and who coexists with the "mother" at the hour of her decline (50:12);
she dwellest upon many waters (51:13);
her wealth plagues the nations of the earth to the point of insane jealousy (51:7);
her space exploits are so utterly fantastic that she tries to mount up to heaven (51:53); and
she exists when Israel is back in her land."
The political Babylon is finally destroyed.
Authors thoughts on the two Babylons:
My own thoughts are that the Religious and the Political Babylons pertain to the same religious system and country. Babylon in both Chapter 17 & 18 both refer to the New York and the USA. This is probably why we don't see the US featured in Prophecy. The nations of Europe are well represented, having migrated from all parts of Europe and Asia especially - “peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues”.
Recollect, the Church of God would have been raptured before these Dooms.
People here have accepted the Mark of the Beast. Those that did not would have been killed/martyred.
Untold sufferings and murder would take place during this great Tribulation. Martyrs of Christ would be killed by forces of the Antichrist. Satanic worship is introduced instead of worship of God Almighty.
Folks this cannot be Rome, the Vatican or the Catholic Church. Remember the Papal church is the Church of Thyatira in Revelation 2.
The woman/harlot that sits on 7 hills (Rev 17:9) is none other than New York where a Satanic religious system will be established. Where are the 7 hills of New York? Prophecy symbolically sees the woman as the Statue of Liberty with a crown of 7 spikes – count them. The Beast is the Antichrist that heads the Revived Roman Empire and this Empire will hate the woman/harlot (verse 16). Rome does not fulfill this verse (v15) - "The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.” At some point during the Great Tribulation (last 3 ½ years), when the Church has been raptured, the “Restrainer”/ Holy Spirit taken away, the women/harlot is going to be “drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” Rev 17:6
This is going to be rampant carnage and fornication. All Satanic worship and idolatry is always referred to as “fornication” in the Bible.
At some point this City the Antichrist is going to “make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire.” - Verse 16
Babylon in Chapter 18 can also fits New York/ Manhatten or some similar city in the US in respect to the following verses:
Rev 18:2-3
"Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird! 3 For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury."
7 In the measure that she glorified herself and lived luxuriously, in the same measure give her torment and sorrow; for she says in her heart, 'I sit as queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.' 8 Therefore her plagues will come in one day — death and mourning and famine. And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judges her.
9 "The kings of the earth who committed fornication and lived luxuriously with her will weep and lament for her, when they see the smoke of her burning, 10 standing at a distance for fear of her torment, saying, 'Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! For in one hour your judgment has come.'
7 For in one hour such great riches came to nothing.' Every shipmaster, all who travel by ship, sailors, and as many as trade on the sea, stood at a distance 18 and cried out when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, 'What is like this great city?'
Does the above reflect Babylon in Iraq or a city some where else?
Has Babylon ever been a sea-port?
20 "Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you holy apostles and prophets, for God has avenged you on her!"
Note: Chapter 17 its the Antichrist and his Revived Roman Empire that destroys the Religious Babylon but in Chapter 18 its God Almighty Himself who will destroy the Political Babylon. Babylon in both cases refer to one and the same city. It cannot be Rome nor the Babylon in Iraq.
What would be the role of President Obama after his Presidency? Reflect about it with guidance from the Holy Spirit.
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