The Story of My Life: June 2014

An angel spoke to John in Revelation 17, and said, "Come hither, I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters."

John was carried away by the angel "into the wilderness" and saw a woman sitting on a scarlet colored beast. She was sumptuously dressed in purple and scarlet, with rings of gold and precious stones dripping from her fingers, and bracelets, and bangles and necklaces of gold and precious stones and pearls - probably the jawbreaker size.

And she had a name, "Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth." Not only that, but she was drunk, "with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus." One might suppose she drank this from the golden goblet she was holding, but John says the goblet was "full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication. John was extremely impressed with her, and the angel asked, "Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will shew thee the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carrieth her."

The angel went on to talk in riddles. He wanted to discuss the beast that she sat on first, saying that the beast "was, and is not, and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition." Is this the Antichrist or Satan she's sitting on? Like the Great Red Dragon of Revelation 12, who is Satan, and the beast of Revelation 13, who is the Antichrist, this beast has seven heads and ten horns. However, the chapter 12 dragon is called a dragon, is said to be red, which seems like scarlet to me, but most of all, there are seven crowns on the seven heads of the dragon. This beast in chapter 17 is not said to have any crowns. Why? Likewise, the beast in chapter 13 has ten crowns on his ten horns. This is to tell us the status of the seven kings represented by the seven heads and the ten kings represented by the ten horns. One is to understand, assuming one is a prophet, that if the heads are crowned, it indicates that all these kings have come to power and been crowned, or that all the kings represented by the ten horns are in power. The Great Red Dragon is said to have fallen from heaven, the beast of chapter 13 rises up out of the sea, but the beast of chapter 17 ascends out of the bottomless pit, meaning the abyss, the place where bad demons go. Aren't they all bad? There are degrees of bad. Suffice it to say, there is a special place for a special breed of demon, but during the Tribulation, they all get out. But the Antichrist wouldn't ascend out of the abyss, because it's a place for demons, not people. Looking at the text, the beast "was, is not, and yet is."

The beast was alive, died, and he's alive again, as we were told in chapter 13, when the Beast of the Sea came back to life after a fatal head injury inflicted by an assassin. Before he is killed, the Antichrist is bad and has power, but after he comes back from the dead, everyone on earth is amazed, and begins to worship both the Dragon, who gives power to the Beast, and the Beast, because beside coming back from the dead, other miracles begin to happen around the Beast. It seems to me that when the Beast dies and comes back to life, the body of the Beast is now under complete control of Satan. He probably had to die in order for Satan to get rid of the man's own spirit, and take over. Is the spirit that comes out of the abyss Satan or another demon? Well, this is what I know. Satan is thrown from heaven during the Tribulation. A beast ascends from the abyss and inhabits the body of the Antichrist about that time, most likely Satan. When I say about that time, it must be before or after the seventh empire, because the Great Red Dragon has all seven crowns, and the beast in chapter 17 doesn't have any crown on his heads or his horns. While chapter 17 is close to the end of the book, the events described are throughout the Tribulation, so I would say at the beginning of the Tribulation the beast ascends from the bottomless pit, which was described in Revelation 7. So far, the seventh empire isn't in place. Soon after that Satan is banned from heaven and falls to earth, and the seventh empire by then has come into being. The Antichrist is gathering political momentum for the first three and a half years of the Tribulation, which is also when the beast ascends out of the bottomless pit. Just before the beginning of the last three and a half years of the Tribulation, Satan is cast out of heaven, and thrown to earth. The Great Tribulation begins, and that would be when someone has had enough of the Antichrist and assassinates him. Satan inhabits the dead body of the Antichrist and the Antichrist comes back to life, completely under the power of Satan. Then Satan lives in human form on the earth in the Antichrist's body. This beast "that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition." (Revelation 15:11) This person is the person that the Harlot of Babylon is sitting on.

Back to the Harlot of Babylon. She is said to sit on many waters. She is said to be sitting on the beast and to be in the wilderness. She is said to be sitting on seven mountains. The Harlot of Babylon is a woman. Does this tell us something about her role...wife, mother, sister, daughter? Probably closest to wife, because she is being unfaithful. But, in the same way that a man may marry a woman that reminds him of his mother, this figure may have some of the attributes of a mother, like the level of control she has over the "many waters," the beast, the kings, (the seventh empire and ten kings), and the political and economic and religious systems in place. Also, being a wife or mother, she represents "home," where people live, the great city.

The Harlot of Babylon is a great city, one that rules commerce on a world scale, the seat of the Antichrist, the capital of the new empire, a seaport, a multicultural city, a city that "sits on seven mountains," and a leader in the persecution of Christians. How do I know all this? Verse 18 states that she is "that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth." Verse 15 states that the many waters are "peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues," a large city, but one whose influence extends over everyone on earth. She persecutes Christians. There are places where this is happening now, but not a great city in control of world commerce. So this will have to be something new. It sounds a lot like Rome, since she "sits on seven mountains." Some say mountains are not hills, but I think it's close enough. But then, the seven kings are spoken of. Well, it could refer to both Rome and the seven kings, except, six of these kings are gone now, meaning the past six world empires. Also, the possible reference to Rome may be metaphorical, meaning having the place in the seventh empire that Rome had in the old Roman Empire, and also, comprising the same cultural roots as Rome, politically especially and ancestral. Even sitting is metaphorical here. The ones that Sister Babylon sits on are the ones that she controls. She rides them and steers them around. How? Probably through control of money.

In the days of the seventh empire, the empire will be divided into ten regions, governed by ten kings. Kings? The rulers of the ten regions. These ten kings will hate the Harlot of Babylon. Why? The Harlot of Babylon controls them. They've had enough. Does this mean that the house of evil is divided? I think the kings, and the Harlot, are earthly manifestations of an unseen evil spiritual kingdom. The earth is being manipulated from start to finish, by the evil spiritual kingdom. While the spiritual forces remain undivided, this evil force will eliminate any earthly manifestation that doesn't continue to serve its purpose. Anyway, the kings band together, "having one mind," and agree to give their kingdoms to the beast! Why? To rid themselves of the Harlot of Babylon.

Revelation 17:16 "And the ten horns which thou sawest, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire."

They decide to give their power, their strength and their kingdoms to the beast, and the Antichrist becomes the absolute ruler of the entire world. This is in order to destroy the Harlot of Babylon. They also "make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them." Why didn't the Lamb overcome them to start with? There is a saying, "Give them enough rope and they will hang themselves." God has put it in their hearts to fulfill His will. (Revelation 18:17)

"...Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication." Revelation 14:8

written from memory

1. 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,
2. 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.
3. So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness, and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
4. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication.
5. And upon her forehead was a name written: MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
6. And I saw the woman was drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus, and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
7. And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
8. The beast that thou sawest was, and is not, and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
9. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
10. And there are seven kings. Five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come, and when he cometh he must continue a short space.
11. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
12. And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet, but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
13. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
14. These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings, and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
15. And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
16. And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
17. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
18. And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.