A Study of Revelation 18
Mystery Babylon the Great
1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
John recognized, by revelation, the seriousness of what he was seeing. This mighty angel was sent from the Throneroom of God with a great anointing of power and glory that lit up the Earth.
2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
This would have to be a momentous time, a time that would shock the whole Earth. A time like 9/11/01. The scene is Babylon, New York City. The two great towers that symbolize worldwide wealth and power are slammed into by passenger jets, loaded with passengers and commandeered by radical Islamic terrorists. The first tower is hit ("is fallen"), then the second tower is hit ("is fallen"). In the days after, multitudes attend churches throughout the land and the cry goes out, "God Bless America". No real repentance is shown and in the years after, the nation turns away from God and with a zeal, embraces everything that stands against Christianity, morality and even civility.
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
The US goes deep into sexual sin and exports its pornography throughout the world, via Hollywood movies, cable TV, magazines and the internet. Commerce grows worldwide and the US leads the economic revolution; from Silicone Valley in a technical revolution and from the bankers on Wall Street.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
Another heavenly voice cries out to the church to separate themselves from the harlot and her immoral ways because God was sending plagues unto her.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
Like Sodom and Gomorrah, there is a cup of iniquity and when it is filled, God will certainly punish the transgressors.
6 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.
God not only pronounces judgment upon her for her persecution of the saints but a double down judgment.
7 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.
She has become haughty and self indulgent and she will reap what she has sewn. She believes that she is royalty and invulnerable to any tragedy.
8 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.
Because of her great sin, God pronounces a swift judgment upon her. A surprise nuclear strike upon her land will leave her with immediate death, mourning and famine.
9 And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
The kings of the Earth, who have partaken of her sins and enriched themselves will cry for their misfortune when they see she has been destroyed.
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
They will lament her demise and note that she was judged and destroyed in just one hour.
11 And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
She was a great market for the goods of the merchants of the Earth and now they have no market.
12 The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
13 And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.
"...and slaves and souls of men." Right there tells us how evil NYC and the US has become. Nothing is more important than buying and selling and accumulating money and material goods. The nation has become so covetous and unmerciful that they use and abuse their workers and lead them away from God.
14 And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
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. (1 John 2:15-17)
15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
The merchants, who sold these things to Mystery Babylon the Great, will be in great despair as they realize they have no market for their goods anymore. It must be chemical or nuclear fallout that would cause these merchants to "stand afar off for the fear of her torment". They sound afraid to get too close as they might become contaminated.
16 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!
There is no city on Earth more opulent and as glorious as NYC.
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
In Jeremiah 51:8, it says, "Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed...". Only a surprise attack of nuclear missles could accomplish this, "in one hour".
18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
The shipmasters and sailors, who see the smoke of her burning, will be in great shock.
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
They will really feel sorry for themselves as they realize this has taken away their livelihood.
20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
For we know him who said, "Vengeance is mine; I will repay." (Hebrews 10:30).
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
The angel told Jeremiah to bind the book with a stone and cast it into the River Euphrates (Jeremiah 51:63,64).
This time, the angel casts a stone into the sea. The end of NYC will come in one hour, violently and it will be no more.
22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
There will be no more Broadway, no more skilled workmen, no more Wall Street.
23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
There will be no more electricity (no Gospel light, the saints have gone out), no more weddings ( possibly the rapture has taken place ). The captains of industry were headquartered there. The whole world was under the economic spell of the Wall Street bankers.
Sorcery - Witchcraft or enchantment. Webster's definition of enchantment: That which captivates the heart and senses; an influence or power which fascinates or highly delights.
Immediately this brings to mind TV and Movies of which we are by far the biggest influence and exporter in the world for about 50+ years. Our wicked, ungodly lifestyle has been exported all over the world and influenced the nations and peoples of the world to "commit fornication" with us and take part in our wickedness. Sorcery, in the Greek, means drug taking and we have influenced the world (TV, movies, internet, magazines) that drugs (legal and illegal) are good and even fun.
24 And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
God is laying the blame squarely on Mystery Babylon for deceiving and corrupting the whole earth. He is not saying that Mystery Babylon directly killed all the prophets and saints but, she influenced and caused them to be killed all over the earth. The US, through our media, has shown the world our nakedness, promoted homosexuality, perversions of every kind, alcohol and drugs and partying. In the third world countries, especially the muslim nations, these sins have caused multitudes of people to support muslim extremists that rail against the West and our decadence and even incite violence against our missionaries and citizens in their lands.