The Fall of Babylon Lesson 12
in The Judgments on Earth, the second of three studies of Study the Revelation by Paige Ramsey
Revelation
18:1-24
The Fall of Babylon the Great
18 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[a] 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[b] to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. 6 Render to her just as she rendered to you,[c] 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[d] her.
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,[e] 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.’
20 “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you holy apostles[f] and prophets, for God has avenged you on her!”
Finality of Babylon’s Fall
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.”
Footnotes:
Some scholars believe Babylon in the eighteenth chapter of the Revelation is actually Rome, and that this is a continuation of the destruction of the Roman Catholic Church and Rome itself as we saw in chapter seventeen. I have always believed that theory as it was always presented to me in that light. However, as these chapters are of a more figurative nature, and I have never been nor do I pretend to be an expert on prophecy, I enjoy looking at the various viewpoints and the reasoning behind them.
Since we looked at the prospect of Babylon symbolizing Rome and more specifically, the Roman Catholic religious system in the last lesson, we will look at another approach to this chapter. Some scholars, even when they recognize that chapter seventeen is speaking of Rome, believe chapter eighteen is referring to actual Babylon in Babylonia (Iraq) and that the city of Babylon must be rebuilt in order for this prophecy to be fulfilled. The only problem I see with this theory is the time factor involved. In order for Babylon to be rebuilt, become the world’s greatest trade center and financial strength, then fall, it would seem to require much time – at least one hundred years. Prophecy is being fulfilled much quicker than to allow for an extra hundred years. But, as I am not an expert in the matter, I will simply present the material, giving you the option to make your opinion.
First, we will examine the European Common Market. On March 25, 1957, the treaty of Rome brought France, Belgium, West Germany, Luxembourg, Italy and the Netherlands in economic union (6 members). This was the first meeting of the European Confederacy. On January 1, 1973, Great Britton, Denmark, and Ireland became members (nine members). On January 1, 1981, Greece joined (ten members). In April 1985, Spain and Portugal were admitted (twelve members). Some believe the European Common Market will be the 10 horns or the ten puppet kings who serve the Beast (anti-christ).
History of the City of Ancient Babylon.
Gen. 10:8-10 – “And Cush begat Nimrod. He began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord. … And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.” Who is Cush?
Gen 10:6 – The sons of Ham were Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan.
2000 BC (approx.) – Babel or Babylon was built by Nimrod, became a great and
mighty city, and remained an important city even until
Nebuchadnezzar’s time.
605 BC – Nebuchadnezzar first led his armies into Jerusalem to take captives
(According to Jerimiah 25:11-12, God would only allow the Jews to be
captive for seventy years. 605 BC + 70 = 535 BC. Just as the seventy
years were completed, Babylon fell.)
597 BC – Nebuchadnezzar came back for more captives
585 BC – Nebuchadnezzar came back a final time
536 BC – The Babylonian empire fell to the Medes and the Persians, led by Cyrus.
(Dan 5:18-30)
Note: Saddam Hussain, just before he died, claimed to be Nebuchadnezzar
reincarnated.
Babel = confusion; Babylon = the gate of the gods
Babylon must be rebuilt for practical and prophetic reasons.
Rev 18:2, 21 – Although the city of Babylon was destroyed, the land where it existed is now the country of Iraq. If Babylon must fall in the future, it must be rebuilt.
Daniel 2:31-45 – Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of an image with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron and feet of iron and clay. According to Daniel, who interpreted the dream, Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold, and after him, another king (silver) would come which would be inferior, then another that would rule over all the earth, and then one that is strong as iron that breaks all the others, but mixed with clay so that it will be partly broken. Persia is the second king of silver, the Greek kingdom is the brass, and Rome is the iron. All of these are still in existence today. Babylon is Iraq. The Persian kingdom is Iran. Greece is still alive, but seems to be dormant - watch to see what Greece will do. Rome rules the greater part of this world today. Therefore, if all these kingdoms are to exist in the end times and this prophecy is to be taken more literally, Babylon must be rebuilt.
According to John Phillips, Napoleon planned to rebuild the city of Babylon. The Kaiser schemed to build a railroad to the location of Babylon. Russia has plans for the location. Toimby has predicted it will become the world’s natural population center.
If all this is true, and plans are in the making to rebuild Babylon, there would be no better place for it to be built than on the great river Euphrates where the ancient city once stood.
Remember in Rev. 16:13-14 that three unclean spirits like frogs came out of the mouths of the dragon (Satan), the Beast (anti-christ), and the false prophet. These frog demons released 200,000,000 demons that were bound in the river Euphrates. Satan rewards his followers for a time with power, fame, and fortune.
Rev. 18:3-6 tells us that Babylon will be the height of depravity. If this city is to be revived, it will be the most wicked city the world today has ever seen. Satanism, spiritism, astrology, witchcraft, soothsayers, and all abominable religion will dominate. Sexual perversions will run rampant throughout.
Rev. 18:7-8 tells us that it will also be the height of self-righteousness.
Rev. 18:9-10 tells us that the kings of the earth will weep and mourn for Babylon’s destruction.
Rev. 18:11-16 tells us that the merchants will weep and mourn for Babylon, because of the business they have lost.
Rev. 18:17-20 tells us that the ships of the sea will cry and mourn for Babylon.
Rev. 18:21-24 gives us the final and utter defeat of Babylon.
While the earth grieves over Babylon, there will be rejoicing in heaven over the destruction of Babylon.
Compare Rev. 18:24 and Rev. 6:9-10
Babylon was a perfect square of 14 miles – the outer wall was 56 miles long, 311 ft high, 87 ft thick, with 250 towers on the wall, one of them being the famous tower of Babel. There was also an inner wall. Around the outer wall was a mote that was fed by the river Euphrates, and the Euphrates ran diagonally through the city itself. It was one of the wonders of the world!
The Fall of Babylon the Great
18 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[a] 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[b] to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. 6 Render to her just as she rendered to you,[c] 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[d] her.
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,[e] 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.’
20 “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you holy apostles[f] and prophets, for God has avenged you on her!”
Finality of Babylon’s Fall
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.”
Footnotes:
- Revelation 18:2 NU-Text and M-Text omit mightily.
- Revelation 18:5 NU-Text and M-Text read have been heaped up.
- Revelation 18:6 NU-Text and M-Text omit to you.
- Revelation 18:8 NU-Text and M-Text read has judged.
- Revelation 18:14 NU-Text and M-Text read been lost to you.
- Revelation 18:20 NU-Text and M-Text read saints and apostles.
Some scholars believe Babylon in the eighteenth chapter of the Revelation is actually Rome, and that this is a continuation of the destruction of the Roman Catholic Church and Rome itself as we saw in chapter seventeen. I have always believed that theory as it was always presented to me in that light. However, as these chapters are of a more figurative nature, and I have never been nor do I pretend to be an expert on prophecy, I enjoy looking at the various viewpoints and the reasoning behind them.
Since we looked at the prospect of Babylon symbolizing Rome and more specifically, the Roman Catholic religious system in the last lesson, we will look at another approach to this chapter. Some scholars, even when they recognize that chapter seventeen is speaking of Rome, believe chapter eighteen is referring to actual Babylon in Babylonia (Iraq) and that the city of Babylon must be rebuilt in order for this prophecy to be fulfilled. The only problem I see with this theory is the time factor involved. In order for Babylon to be rebuilt, become the world’s greatest trade center and financial strength, then fall, it would seem to require much time – at least one hundred years. Prophecy is being fulfilled much quicker than to allow for an extra hundred years. But, as I am not an expert in the matter, I will simply present the material, giving you the option to make your opinion.
First, we will examine the European Common Market. On March 25, 1957, the treaty of Rome brought France, Belgium, West Germany, Luxembourg, Italy and the Netherlands in economic union (6 members). This was the first meeting of the European Confederacy. On January 1, 1973, Great Britton, Denmark, and Ireland became members (nine members). On January 1, 1981, Greece joined (ten members). In April 1985, Spain and Portugal were admitted (twelve members). Some believe the European Common Market will be the 10 horns or the ten puppet kings who serve the Beast (anti-christ).
History of the City of Ancient Babylon.
Gen. 10:8-10 – “And Cush begat Nimrod. He began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord. … And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.” Who is Cush?
Gen 10:6 – The sons of Ham were Cush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan.
2000 BC (approx.) – Babel or Babylon was built by Nimrod, became a great and
mighty city, and remained an important city even until
Nebuchadnezzar’s time.
605 BC – Nebuchadnezzar first led his armies into Jerusalem to take captives
(According to Jerimiah 25:11-12, God would only allow the Jews to be
captive for seventy years. 605 BC + 70 = 535 BC. Just as the seventy
years were completed, Babylon fell.)
597 BC – Nebuchadnezzar came back for more captives
585 BC – Nebuchadnezzar came back a final time
536 BC – The Babylonian empire fell to the Medes and the Persians, led by Cyrus.
(Dan 5:18-30)
Note: Saddam Hussain, just before he died, claimed to be Nebuchadnezzar
reincarnated.
Babel = confusion; Babylon = the gate of the gods
Babylon must be rebuilt for practical and prophetic reasons.
Rev 18:2, 21 – Although the city of Babylon was destroyed, the land where it existed is now the country of Iraq. If Babylon must fall in the future, it must be rebuilt.
Daniel 2:31-45 – Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of an image with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron and feet of iron and clay. According to Daniel, who interpreted the dream, Nebuchadnezzar is the head of gold, and after him, another king (silver) would come which would be inferior, then another that would rule over all the earth, and then one that is strong as iron that breaks all the others, but mixed with clay so that it will be partly broken. Persia is the second king of silver, the Greek kingdom is the brass, and Rome is the iron. All of these are still in existence today. Babylon is Iraq. The Persian kingdom is Iran. Greece is still alive, but seems to be dormant - watch to see what Greece will do. Rome rules the greater part of this world today. Therefore, if all these kingdoms are to exist in the end times and this prophecy is to be taken more literally, Babylon must be rebuilt.
According to John Phillips, Napoleon planned to rebuild the city of Babylon. The Kaiser schemed to build a railroad to the location of Babylon. Russia has plans for the location. Toimby has predicted it will become the world’s natural population center.
If all this is true, and plans are in the making to rebuild Babylon, there would be no better place for it to be built than on the great river Euphrates where the ancient city once stood.
Remember in Rev. 16:13-14 that three unclean spirits like frogs came out of the mouths of the dragon (Satan), the Beast (anti-christ), and the false prophet. These frog demons released 200,000,000 demons that were bound in the river Euphrates. Satan rewards his followers for a time with power, fame, and fortune.
Rev. 18:3-6 tells us that Babylon will be the height of depravity. If this city is to be revived, it will be the most wicked city the world today has ever seen. Satanism, spiritism, astrology, witchcraft, soothsayers, and all abominable religion will dominate. Sexual perversions will run rampant throughout.
Rev. 18:7-8 tells us that it will also be the height of self-righteousness.
Rev. 18:9-10 tells us that the kings of the earth will weep and mourn for Babylon’s destruction.
Rev. 18:11-16 tells us that the merchants will weep and mourn for Babylon, because of the business they have lost.
Rev. 18:17-20 tells us that the ships of the sea will cry and mourn for Babylon.
Rev. 18:21-24 gives us the final and utter defeat of Babylon.
While the earth grieves over Babylon, there will be rejoicing in heaven over the destruction of Babylon.
Compare Rev. 18:24 and Rev. 6:9-10
Babylon was a perfect square of 14 miles – the outer wall was 56 miles long, 311 ft high, 87 ft thick, with 250 towers on the wall, one of them being the famous tower of Babel. There was also an inner wall. Around the outer wall was a mote that was fed by the river Euphrates, and the Euphrates ran diagonally through the city itself. It was one of the wonders of the world!