The rapidly approaching world order will (initially) be an
integrated mix of governmental and religious authority. The world will not only
come under the control of a one world government, but it will also be subject to
control from a one world religion. On the heels of the Rapture and the War of
Gog and Magog, the world will experience the supernatural in a way it will have
no context other than religion to make sense of. The coming one world religion
will exploit the desire for answers to obtain power and wealth. It will play a
key role (at least initially) in bringing about and maintaining total control
over people by the Antichrist.
First Read Revelation 17 & Revelation 18
The prophet John not only gave us many details about this coming
one world religion, but he tells us what this religious system is. In Revelation 17:3-4, John describes this religious system:
3 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.4 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,
In this description, we see two things a woman and a beast. In
the Bible a woman symbolizes a church. (There are more, but for the sake of
brevity here are a few examples: Isaiah 54:5-6, 2 Corinthians 11:2, Ephesians 5:31-32, Matthew 9:14-15, Revelation 19:7-8, Revelation 12:14). This is a very important point that must
not be overlooked as it tells us that this “WOMAN” with mystery Babylon written
upon her head and riding a beast (Kingdom) has to be a Church. Here, John is
telling us that the one world religious system (The woman) is ridding, or more
accurately stated, being carried (and used) by the one world government (the
beast). The purpose of the alliance between the woman and the beast is that both
are seeking world domination. When this is finally achieved, as the end of
Revelation chapter 17 tells us it will be, the political power will no longer
need the religious power to support it.
Who is the Harlot?
The Book of Revelation speaks at great length in chapters 17-18
about the fall of “Babylon the Great” (Revelation 18:2) which has lead many fine Bible scholars to
mistakenly conclude that the Bible is actually talking about the ancient city of
Babylon. Many good Bible scholars point to Isaiah 13:7-22 where a very clear prophecy is given that
Babylon will lose its glory after its defeat by the Medes and that it
will cease to be inhabited forever. They state that this hasn’t happened and
thus must be a prophecy pertaining to a time during Tribulation. In accordance
with this prophecy, Babylon was conquered by the Medes, and it began a long
decline that ultimately resulted in its abandonment to the forces of nature. By
the time of Christ, one eyewitness reported that the city was nothing but
"mounds and stones and ruins."
Could the ancient city of Babylon be rebuilt and then destroyed?
Yes it could, but the destruction of Mystery Babylon in the book of Revelation
is not the destruction of the rebuilt ancient city of Babylon.
David Reagan writes:
The argument over the location of end time Babylon has been sharpened recently by the publication of a book called The Rise of Babylon (Tyndale House, 1991). It was authored by Charles Dyer, a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary.Dyer takes the position that the end time Babylon is the same as ancient Babylon, and he strives valiantly to prove his point by reproducing photos of what he asserts to be the rebuilding of Babylon. But the photos do not show that the city is being rebuilt for habitation. Rather, they show that Saddam Hussein is simply building a tourist center.I went to hear the author speak about Babylon. I wanted to see how he would handle the passage in Isaiah 13:17-18 which says that Babylon will become a waste city and never be built again after it is taken by the Medes. The author started reading with verse 9, and when he completed reading verse 16, he simply said, "Now let's skip to verse 19." In short, he completely ignored the passage about the Medes. I guess that is better than trying to explain that it really doesn't mean what it says.Unfortunately, that is exactly what the author tries to do in his book. He argues that the prophecy regarding the Medes refers to the modern day Kurds who will join with a multinational force that will destroy Babylon. The argument is unconvincing.This kingdom is personified as “the great whore” (Revelation 17:1) who has seven heads and ten horns and, according to Revelation 17:5 bears the title “Mystery Babylon”. This woman is described as being “drunk with the blood of the saints… who bore testimony to Jesus” (Revelation 17:6). The seven heads are “seven hills on which the woman sits” (Revelation 17:9), and the ten heads are the “ten kings” who are yet to come (Revelation 17:12). The woman herself is “the great city that rules over the kings of the earth” (Revelation 17:18). There is little doubt that John is talking about Rome, the great city that ruled the world of his own day.
This city must not only have shed the blood of the martyrs, be
located on seven hills, and commit political-religious fornication with the
leaders of the world, but it must also be seen, when on fire, from the sea.
There is no other city on earth that fits the fourfold criteria mentioned. Only
Rome qualifies. The very fact that John calls her identity a mystery should be
enough to indicate that he does not intend us to take Babylon literally as many
tend to do.
Here is no mystical or allegorical language but an unambiguous
statement in plain words: "The woman...is that great city". Furthermore, she is
a city built on seven hills. That specification eliminates ancient Babylon. Only
one city has for more than 2000 years been known as the city on seven hills.
That city is Rome. The Catholic Encyclopedia states:"It is within the
city of Rome, called the city of seven hills, that the entire area of Vatican
State proper is now confined" (The Catholic
Encyclopedia, Thomas Nelson, 1976, s.v. Rome).
The qualifying information the Bible gives us for identifying
this woman (who is a city) is specific, conclusive, and irrefutable. There is no
city upon earth, past or present, which meets all of these criteria except
Catholic Rome (Vatican City). That inescapable conclusion will become
increasingly clear with a closer look at the facts.
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