THE FALL OF BABYLON

Rev. 18:20 ... "Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her.”

      Chapter 18 describes the destruction of the primary enemies of God and His kingdom. The adver-sary, like most other things in this book, is presented in symbolic form. The symbol used is the great city of Babylon, the ancient capital of Mesopotamia, where Nebuchadnezzar and other famous kings had ruled. It was from this city and its empire that a powerful army had marched to destroy Jerusalem, and it was to this city and its environs that the Jews had been taken captive (586 BC). Several of the Old Testament prophets had spoken against Babylon because of its gross idolatry, extreme worldliness, and wicked political aggression. They foretold its eventual destruction and consequent perpetual desola-tion. These prophecies have all been fulfilled to the letter.

      In Revelation, Babylon is used as a symbol for the world as a place of godless materialism and determined opposition to the church as a body and Christians as individuals. In v.3 she is accused of immorality, political evil, and economic corruption. In v.7 she is charged with sinful pride over her successes in polluting human enterprises; and in vs. 14 and 16 her lust for wealth and pleasure are emphasized. Furthermore, v.24 points out her zeal in killing Christians in particular and causing death in general through widespread wars and destruction.

      As Christians suffer from the efforts of Babylon to turn men away from God to the worship of materialism, to the lust for pleasure, to pride in human ingenuity, and finally to avowed enmity to God, we must not be made to worry or driven to despair. Neither must we adopt the same tactics as Babylon and respond with aggressive force through political and economic channels. We must rather apply the Lord’s instruction in Rom. 12:19, “Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’”

      This is not to say that Christians should stand silent and passive while Babylon permeates society, controlling politics, economics, and education. It simply means that it is not our place to wage war in the political arena with political weapons, or go to combat on economic fields with economic imple-ments of battle. If we do this, we shall lose. It is not given to Christians to fight evil with the weapons and tactics developed by evil. We are instructed in II Cor 10:3-5, “Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” Therefore, the correct response by Christians to Babylon is to live by faith in the Gospel way and to preach the truth from God boldly and without compromise.

      Revelation 18 assures us that God Himself will take vengeance upon Babylon. The cry of His mighty angel in v.2, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit ... and hateful bird.” God Himself will judge and punish terribly those in society who promote immorality, corrupt political processes, and manipulate economics to their own selfish ends. He will overthrow those who enter into every human activity to defile it, who worship wealth, and who spend their energy lusting for pleasure. With the prospect of His judgment of Babylon in view, God warns Christians in v.4 to “Come out of her, My people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues.” We must, therefore, draw a line between us and the worldly pollu-tion of Babylon.

FINAL VICTORY WITH CHRIST

Rev. 17:14 ... "These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.”

      Although this statement occurs two-thirds of the way through the Book of Revelation, it is neverthe-less the one that states its central theme. Essentially it says that, though Christ has many opponents in the world, He shall in the end be victorious over them all. Furthermore, He will share His decisive victory with those who are His "called," His "chosen," and His "faithful."

       This final book of the Bible is universally declared to be the most difficult to interpret and under-stand. However, if all of the puzzling symbols and cryptic statements are studied in the light of the text above, their general sense can be deciphered even if their specific meaning remains obscure or even hidden. Whatever the grotesque beasts and fantastic beings pictured in the visions represent, it is clear they are enemies of Christ and devoted to the destruction of His church. But our featured text empha-sizes that none of them shall gain the victory. They shall all go down in utter defeat, because the Lamb is too powerful for them. They might gain control of the lords and kings among men and marshal their strength against Christ, but they shall altogether fail, since Christ is "Lord of lords and King of kings."

      This seventeenth chapter speaks of such enigmatic figures as the woman sitting on a scarlet beast, a beast which "was and is not," and the ten kings "who have not yet received a kingdom, but ... receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour." In an extended and intensive study of Revelation, I would labor to suggest specific interpretations of these figures and then defend my conclusions. But in this brief article that is an impossible task. It is nevertheless obvious that these beings signify dangerous enemies of Christ and His church. The woman was devoted to killing Christians, for v. 6 says she was "drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus." The beast was allied with this wicked woman in persecuting Christians, because in v.3 we see that it carried her upon its back. Its own wickedness is indicated by wearing "blasphemous names" to the extent that it was "full" of them. The ten kings were in perfect league with the beast since v.12 says they "receive authority ... with the beast for one hour." And v.13 adds, "These have one purpose and they give their power and authority to the beast."

      We can say that, in general, the great harlot, the scarlet beast, and the ten kings are symbols of the combined forces of the anti-Christian world that pervade the earth. They are the instruments through which Satan works to try to destroy Christ and annihilate His church. They include evil governments, false religions, gross immorality, and all people who support or participate in these things. When v.14 declares that "these will wage war against the Lamb,” the demonstrative pronoun “these” is referring directly to the evil forces being represented.

      The great consolation and joy of every Christian is that no matter how foreboding these powers might seem, they are doomed to certain destruction. In their wicked energy and malice they will indeed "wage war against the Lamb," but the Lamb (Jesus) "will overcome them." He will bring them down in utter defeat, for that is the meaning of the word "niksei" which is here translated as "will overcome." These enemies will be removed eternally from the presence of those who are the "called and chosen" of Christ. No more will they persecute those who are faithful to their Savior. This passage, therefore, is telling us where to turn to be on the winning side when the last scene of the last act of the great human drama is finally played out.

THE BLESSING FOR THOSE WATCH

Rev. 16:15 ... "Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”

      Since Jesus first announced that He would come again, people have been anxious to pinpoint the time of His arrival. Many have combed the Bible in the effort to collect information about various numbers and numerical symbolism in order to determine the time of that great event. Publicizing their conclusions, they managed to stir up great excitement among certain groups of people. The failure of their determinations did not always lead to discouragement, for those who were involved in some cases formalized their movement into a new denomination.

      Jesus once made a statement about the time of His coming that ought to stop people from the fool-ishness of date-setting. In Mt. 24:36 He said, "Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone." It is presumptuous in the extreme for someone to deny what Jesus here said that "no one knows" and to claim the knowledge that the "Father alone" possesses, viz., the date of Jesus' return. The complete failure of all such predictions proves that truly no one but God knows when the appointed time is.

      Jesus' warning in our featured text serves to reinforce His declaration that no one but God knows the time of His coming. He says, "Behold, I am coming like a thief." A thief does not announce the time when he plans to come, nor would he come if he thought his planned arrival had become known. Jesus' coming will be unannounced and without warning.

      Actually, our major concern should not be the time of Jesus' return, but rather our own state of pre-paration to meet Him. It is not as important for us to know the year, month, day, and hour as it is to be ready to meet Christ when He "descend(s) from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God," (I Ths. 4:16). Jesus warns us (Mt. 24:44) to “be ready." The faithful and true disciple will not waste time trying to determine the exact month and day of Jesus' return, but will use every day the Lord gives him to the fullest advantage to be ready when He does finally appear.

      Our text is a beatitude pronounced upon those who prepare themselves for Jesus' return. It is the third of the seven beatitudes given in Revelation. Our Lord says, "Blessed is the one who stays awake." This does not refer strictly to watching the sky for the first glimpse of Christ. It refers far more to the disciple watching his own life to hold it to the Christian standard laid out in the New Testament. The spelling of the word W-A-T-C-H tells us what we are supposed to watch: W- watch your Way of liv-ing; A-watch your Actions; T-watch your Tongue; C-watch your Character; and H-watch your Heart. Those who watch their lives in these respects will be ready when Christ appears.

      The reference to garments in the text is symbolic. Many times in Scripture a person's spiritual condition is referred to as clothing. Clean and white garments indicate a life that is pure and righteous, while soiled garments signify a life that is polluted with sin. In Rev. 7:14 we are told that our clothing can be washed and made white only "in the blood of the Lamb." Obedience to the teaching of Jesus and conformity to the model of life which He lived is the only way. His blood alone is able to wash the sin stains from our souls and create righteousness within us. Nothing else can prepare us to meet Him when He returns and answer His call to join Him "in the air ... (and) always be with the Lord," (I Ths. 4:17). 

THE BOWLS OF WRATH

Rev. 15:7 ... "Then one of the four Living Creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.”

      The colonial preachers in New England emphasized to their audiences that God is characterized by an overwhelming spirit of wrath, which He directs at all who sin and resist His will. The prevailing emphasis in the preaching of today, however, is that God is filled with love, mercy, and patient kindness toward erring mankind. It is obvious that from the seventeenth century to the twenty-first a great change has occurred in the way Americans perceive God.

      Actually, God is both a God of wrath and a God of merciful lovingkindness. Paul by inspiration wrote, "Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off," (Rom. 11:22). If a person is living in rebellion against God, he has every reason to conceive of Him as a God of wrath and venge-ance. If a person has humbly submitted to God in love, he has every reason to conceive of God as being merciful, kind, and loving. The way that a person responds to what God has done for him determines the nature of God's countenance toward that person. God loves us all, for He made us in His own image (Gen. 1:27) and has declared that He wants every one of us to be saved (II Pet. 3:9). But He will not compromise with sin to admit its presence (in the lives of those who cling to it) into His home in heaven, (Rev. 21:27).

      The featured text above is one of those statements in Scripture which call attention to God's wrath upon those who will not repent but continue defiantly in their sin. In a vision, John saw "the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven." Its door was standing open, and as he watched, seven angels emerged from it. Unto each was given a golden bowl which was filled with the wrath of God. We may be reminded here of the statement in Rom. 2:5, "Because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart  you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God." This statement suggests that the hardened persistence in sin and the refusal by people to repent results in increasing wrath in God. This wrath is being "stored up" in God's Spirit. It is as though it were a terribly potent liquid being held in a great vessel.

      At last that divine container will be filled to capacity. God then will permit His accumulated wrath toward the sin abounding on earth to be held in reserve no longer. Summoning the seven angels into His presence, He shall pour that great reservoir of wrath into seven large bowls and place one in the hands of each angel. This will be at the time chosen by God to recompense man for the sins in which he has so callously walked for so long. And so we read further, "Then I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, 'Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God,' (16:1). The rest of the chapter then describes what will happen when each angel pours out his bowl of wrath upon the earth and the people living there.

      The lesson to be learned here is that God's will must always be taken seriously. God is certainly full of mercy, love, and kindness toward us, and He wishes most fervently to save us and bless us forever in His presence. But God is equally full of justice. When His will is disregarded, and those who flaunt it refuse to repent, He will take vengeance upon the transgressor. God's delay in pouring out His wrath upon the impenitent must not be taken as a sign that His wrath has been dissolved in His lovingkind-ness, (II Pet. 3:7-10). Wisdom begs us to respond contritely to God's will each day, so that when the angels pour out the bowls of wrath, the fury will not fall upon our heads. We can be assured that God will protect His people in that awful day of divine retribution.