I think I've sung that in probably 13 years since I left the church in Kentucky where we were pastoring at the time. We used to sing that frequently there. And I'm glad you found that chorus somewhere. And I'm eager for all of you to learn it. It's a great chorus. Well, let's open our Bibles this evening to Revelation chapter 18. As you're turning there, I would like to introduce some of my family here.
I don't usually do this because, I don't know, I guess I feel a little awkward about it and they do as well. But they're here tonight, more of them than usual on one occasion, so I'm going to ask them to stand up back there. Row two, back section, would you stand up? I will start on my right. Marilyn Hall is Jeanette's sister. And next to her, Lindsay and David Mitchell, the children of my sister and brother-in-law from Kansas.
They came up with Grandpa, my stepfather, John Duffield, who's next to David there and lives in Kansas. And then Harmon Eggleston and his wife, the Miracle Lady, my mother-in-law, the Lord delivered from that accident a couple of weeks ago. She's looking good, isn't she? Now that last comment will be worth an extra big sliver of pie when I eat at her place. Revelation chapter 18. Chronologically speaking, chapter 19, the next chapter, follows chapter 16.
So chapter 17 and 18, sandwiched in between those two chapters, are an informational interlude. This is not the first time we've seen this in the book of Revelation. These two chapters are not coming to us in the book in chronological order, but they're given to us to fill out some details that take place throughout the period. These two chapters deal with Babylon. Babylon is both a system and a city. Babylon symbolically represents the rebellion of man against God.
It was founded, Babylon, the original city of Babylon was founded by Nimrod back in Genesis chapter 10. Babylon has always represented that which is opposed to God. These two chapters give us two aspects of Babylon in its final form. Chapter 17 deals with religious Babylon. We've dealt with that. It is a religious conglomerate.
It is the final ecumenical movement that will at its heart be anti-Christ, but will on its surface be nice and religious and perhaps even Christian, but broadly speaking, Christian. This religious system that we looked at a few weeks ago in chapter 17 will be used by the political system for what is probably the first half of the tribulation period. The political system headed up by anti-Christ will use the religious system to accomplish its ends.
It's not the first time we've seen political powers use religious groups for their own purposes. But this religious system will be hated by the people that it dominates and will ultimately be destroyed by them. We saw all of that in a previous study. Now as we come to chapter 18, we see a second aspect of Babylon. Here it's not the religious aspect. It's the commercial and political aspect of this system city that is headed by anti-Christ.
This aspect of Babylon is loved by its citizens, unlike the religious system. This is the part of Babylon that enriches them and makes their lives fun. It fills their lives with the devil's anesthetic. They love it. It is not destroyed by them as the religious system was. This aspect of Babylon is destroyed by God. Now the political economic Babylon that we look at here in chapter 18 seems best understood as the beast's empire, the empire of anti-Christ.
As well as being an empire and a system though, it is a city because several times in this chapter, in verse 10, verse 16, verse 19, verse 21, it's called that great city. And so it seems that there is something more than a system here, but there is actually a city which might be described as a capital city of this empire of anti-Christ. Now who is this Babylon?
We have identified the religious Babylon as being a religious movement, a conglomeration of many different kinds of religions that will come together under one banner in the last days. And it seems as though it focuses on Rome. In chapter 17 it talks about the city of seven hills. And so Rome, the city of Rome, seems to be the headquarters for this final religious movement that anti-Christ will use in the first part of the tribulation period.
But what is the capital of his empire, of the political, commercial, economic Babylon? Well there are some who say that it is Rome itself, that Rome will not only be headquarters for the religious Babylon, but for political Babylon as well, and that is very possible. If that is the case, then the word Babylon here stands symbolically for Rome. And it seems that that was rather customary for the people of the New Testament days when it was being written to refer to Rome as Babylon.
It was sort of a code word. And it helped keep them from getting into trouble when they talked about the godlessness of Babylon and the judgment of God upon Babylon. And they meant Rome, by saying Babylon, then they might not get into trouble. It was a code word. But then there are others who believe that this Babylon, this Babylon is a rebuilt, restored city of Babylon, which would be located in the modern country of Iraq.
That it will be a new power, that Antichrist will somehow tie Europe together with the Middle East and the Arab nations. And all of that will play into his movements in Israel. I guess personally I lean away from that thinking that probably because Antichrist will arise out of the European power base, that his capital city will be in Europe and maybe the city of Rome. Nonetheless, whatever its identity will be, we see in this chapter its complete and utter judgment and destruction.
The arrival of judgment for Babylon has come. It began as the city of Babel all the way back in Genesis chapter 10. And over these thousands of years it has stood for rebellion against God. At times it has been a powerful entity in the world and at times it has been nothing but a place for the jackals of the desert to inhabit, as was prophesied. But in the last days this Babylon will face its final accounting from a sovereign God. We begin the chapter with the angel of judgment in verse 1.
After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his glory. Now John is still an ear and eye witness of the events that he is writing about. He describes an angel coming out of heaven that he calls another angel. This ties together with six angels in chapter 14 that were also described as another angel. They're the same kind of angels.
They are unnamed, they are faceless as far as we're concerned from the context here, but they are angels that are involved in God carrying out his judgment. This angel has great authority, it says, which seems to indicate that it is of superior rank perhaps even to those mentioned in chapter 14. So glorious is this angelic being that it says the earth is made bright with his glory. Some therefore take this to be Jesus Christ. I don't think that's a good interpretation of it.
Jesus isn't called an angel in this book. Here it's talking about an angel, a spiritual creature serving God who is of great prestige and so elaborate is his glory in serving God that in some measure the earth is illuminated by his glory as he passes over the earth. It might be good just to stop for a moment and to remind ourselves of the part that spirit beings play in the affairs of human history. It is immense.
I don't think we begin to understand how important a role they play in the affairs of men. We have it suggested to us, don't we, in the book of Daniel where we learn an awful lot about angels and how they interact with human history and what a role they play. And here we see angels acting once again in the book of Revelation and carrying out the judgment of God. Angels are real beings. You've probably heard the question how many angels can stand on the head of a pen.
Have you heard that debate from the Middle Ages? Well, it's really a nonsensical debate. And I say that because angels have no mass. They are spirit. And so to talk about an angel taking up any room is ludicrous. They don't. They're spirit. Now they can assume form. But they are spiritual in their essence. But they're real. They're real. That's sometimes hard for us to understand with the world view that we are given in our culture.
But angels are real and this spirit being now comes out of heaven bringing the judgment of God upon the city and the system of Babylon. This is followed by the announcement of judgment in verses 2 and 3. This angel cried mightily with a loud voice saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen. And has become a habitation of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird. 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 or the abundance of her sensuality, as some translations put it. Now remember that this is not the same Babylon precisely as chapter 17. That's the religious system. There there are 10 kings and the beast that rules over them who destroy religious Babylon. And there is no lamentation on the part of anyone over the destruction of that religious system.
That is not the case however in chapter 18 as we shall shortly see. The angel says Babylon has fallen, has fallen. The tense in the Greek language here is what is called a prophetic heiress which means it is spoken of as already happening but it's still in the future. The point is that it's so certain to happen that it's spoken of in a past sense.
The doom of this religious system that anti-Christ will rule over, and I think I can say, at least to my own satisfaction, that this system is being put together in our world today. The doom of this system is absolutely certain. There is no doubt that it will be crushed and destroyed by the action of God in bringing it into judgment. Now Babylon, this system is a stronghold of demonism.
You will notice that it is described as a habitation of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, which is another expression similar to that. And then it says a cage for every unclean and hated bird. Now it's not talking about your aunt's canary that you can't stand there, or the pigeons down at the park. It's talking about demons again. The birds here are symbolic of demons.
I don't know which of Peretti's books it was, but in one of them, the city where this evil person was doing his thing in the spiritual realm was overshadowed by a great cloud of demons. If you've read the book, I think it was the second one, wasn't it? And he pictures it this way, and remember it's fiction, okay? But it's pretty graphic. He sees above this area this swirling mass of darkness, like a slow moving tornado. And it goes up and up and up into the sky.
Now it's his way of picturing the fact that there is great evil that is overseeing what's happening in this place. Well, it's that kind of a word picture that John paints here about Babylon. It is amassed with evil and with demons, who again are real. They are spirits. They are followers of Satan. They are angels that fell out of heaven with him when he rebelled against God. And this whole system is fraught with demonic spirits.
They are involved in putting it together, and I think are working to do that today. There is so much more behind the scenes that you and I cannot know and are unaware of. Someone in the church mentioned to me a book, which I checked out of the library and my wife read, called Captains and the Kings. A book by Taylor Caldwell, a lady who I think has now passed away. She wrote this back in the 1970s.
It's a fiction, a fascinating book, and as you read this novel, it's very clear, at least I think it's clear, that she is describing a family that is very powerful in our nation today, and I'm not going to name it. But in the book, it talks about how many things are happening by subterfuge in our government. And the fact that politicians are easily and cleverly manipulated. The citizenry never sees this. We don't hear about the kinds of money that are passed behind the scenes.
The manipulation that takes place, the way that presidential candidates are groomed and then put into place and promoted by the powerful interests, the financial interests in the world. There is so much more that we don't recognize, that we don't see. And if you'd like to have your mind just kind of challenged and you enjoy reading novels, that would be a good one to get a hold of. Go to a library and check it out so you don't have to buy it.
But it's an interesting fiction because it gets behind the scenes on the kind of thing we're talking about here. Now, she doesn't in that novel talk about demons. That's not a part of her whole thing. But she talks about the human element. You add to that what is being said here regarding the fact that it is all being demonically manipulated. And you see that what the world system really is. This system is in for judgment. The cause for her judgment is cleared.
It's a ruthless system that enriches itself off of people. It is an alliance of government and business which preys upon the average person. And it excludes God entirely. It is a conspiracy. A conspiracy between the economic powers of the world and the political systems to victimize the common people. And they don't even realize what's taking place.
It mentions here merchants who are traveling brokers in the language of the New Testament who were middlemen who were robbing both producers and consumers. And they have become wealthy by the power of their sensuality, their excess, their self-indulgence. Now beginning in verse 4 and on into verse 5 we have an appeal before judgment. It seems as though this is Christ speaking. It is a voice out of heaven. And here is the appeal.
Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins and lest you receive of her plagues, for her sins have reached to heaven and God has remembered her iniquities. So here is an appeal from God to believers in that day to come out and to separate themselves from this system, this godless commercialism. Why? In the first place not to be fellowshipers with Babylon in her sins and secondly so that they will not receive, be a part of the plagues that are about to come upon her.
Now I take this to be a literal physical separation. Certainly there is to be a moral and spiritual separation of God's people from anything like this and it is true in our world today. It is frightening, it is convicting to consider how much the world's tentacles have already come around us and hold us as the people of God. How much we are held and controlled in our thinking, in our values by the world.
God calls us to come out and to be different, to separate from the godlessness in a moral and spiritual sense. We are not to partake of that system. Now we have to work in it, we have to live in it, but we are not to have the same values, we are not to allow the thinking of this anti-Christ system around us to dominate our minds. But it seems to me here there is something even more than that involved. God is calling his people physically to separate themselves, to get out of the city.
But this wouldn't be the first time God has done that would it? God has called people to come out before his judgment fell. God has a very good memory. And all of the centuries and the millennia of rebellion against him represented by Babylon will be brought to bear at this time of judgment. Now the act of judgment is described beginning in verse 6. Render to her, just as she rendered to you, and repay her double according to her works. In the cup which she has mixed, mix for her double.
In the measure that she glorified herself and lived luxuriously or sensually, 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. That's what Babylon says. Therefore her plagues will come in one hour, death and mourning and famine. And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judges her. And so perfect justice is now going to be fulfilled on this system of evil.
As she has worked iniquity, so she will receive double to herself because of the enormity of her sin. The attitude of Babylon is one of taking for granted, of continued self-indulgence. Prosperity and luxury has blinded Babylon to the judgment of God. But judgment is about to come. In one day, some translations say in one hour or one day rather, what it really refers to is the suddenness with which it will come, this destruction.
It's not going to be a process it seems, but it's going to be a blow that will come against Babylon. Some kind of a blow that God will give or that God will permit that will utterly in one act, one event bring this whole system down. It involves death, it involves mourning, famine and fire, utter and total devastation. It will be meted out, this judgment, by the Lord who is strong and who is able to do it. What is the response to Babylon's destruction? Two contrasting responses.
In verses 9 through 19, it is weeping. It is mourning on the part of the citizens of the earth. What happens in Babylon will create a panic that will far supersede anything that has been known to man thus far, including the collapse of the stock market in 1929. The economic and political structure will just collapse in Babylon, in one event the whole rug will be pulled out of the system and everybody will be thrown into chaos. It mentions the kings specifically.
It says 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, standing at a distance for fear of her torment saying, alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city, in one hour your judgment has come. They are in unbelief. They just can't believe that this whole system that seemed to be so secure and so powerful could come down so quickly and they cry out mourning, alas, in one hour it's gone.
They stand afar off to avoid the fire. Complete speculation. Is this an atomic act of some sort that God allows to be perpetrated against Babylon? Is that the way God will choose to do this? I don't know. But it does involve fire. It involves fear to get near this city as it is burning and being destroyed. Now the merchants are specifically mentioned. They will weep and mourn over her for no one buys their merchandise anymore. Now we understand why they're crying.
Not because the city's been wicked, not because they're sorry for its sin, but because they don't have anybody to sell to anymore. Their system has collapsed. They can't make any more money.
Merchandise of gold and silver, precious stones and pearls, fine linen and purple, silk and scarlet, every kind of citrine wood and every kind of object of ivory, every kind of object of most precious wood, bronze, iron and marble and cinnamon, incense, fragrant oil and frankincense, wine and oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and bodies and souls of men. You see here the kind of self-indulgence that these merchants were involved in, in the price.
The price was the enslavement of men, body and soul. Raymond Strauss says, the last commodity, the souls of men, reveals how low Babylon has stooped in order to fill her coffers with wealth of this world. We have an ugly picture of what the world system is really like. It grinds and it crushes the common man in order for those in power to be enriched. And for that it is judged. These merchants lose the fruits that their souls had lusted after.
Verse 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, and you will find them no more. The merchants of these things who became rich by her will stand at a distance for fear of her torment. Notice the same separation here as with the kings. Weeping and wailing and saying, alas, alas, that great city that was clothed with fine linen and purple and scarlet and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls.
In one hour such great riches came to nothing. Oh, the people of Wall Street could understand what that says. The people of our world who are living for money and whose whole lives are given for the pursuit of greed and whose souls are wrapped up by demons who are giving them wealth. If only they could understand that all of those material things come to nothing in the end. They mean nothing. Nothing. Babylon is here in its greed, in its self-indulgence, unmasked and stripped naked.
Then we see the ship masters. In one hour with such great riches they came to nothing, it says, in every ship master. And all who traveled by ship, sailors and as many as trade on the sea, stood at a distance and cried out when they saw the smoke of her burning saying, what is like this great city?
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. She's been laid to waste in one event. Now all that they have bargained for and all the commerce that made them rich, it's over, it's done. Alas, the mourning and the weeping that takes place.
So when this system is done in, when this angel acts out the judgment that God places upon it, the citizens of the world just go to pieces. What they've lived for, what they thought was important, is now nothing. In contrast to the weeping in the world is the shouting in heaven. So often what makes the world sad causes heaven to rejoice. But what causes heaven to rejoice the world could care less about. Here we see the citizens of heaven rejoicing. This is you and me. This is the saints of God.
These are the angels of God that are seen here. Verse 20, rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has avenged you on her. In the twelfth chapter of Romans we are told never to take our own vengeance. If you have been abused, cruelly mistreated, victimized, it's hard not to want to take your vengeance.
What parent here couldn't identify with that father who screamed in the courtroom in West Memphis this week to that young man who had killed those and abused those three boys, I'll chase your soul to hell. And he lunged for him. We want vengeance. But we are told not to take our own vengeance. God says vengeance is mine. I will repay you.
We look out at the world and we say, God, there is so much evil, there is so much injustice, there is so much wrong, and it just seems to increase and it's not judged, it's not dealt with. Lord, where is justice? God says to us saints, be patient, vengeance is mine. But God, don't you see what they are doing to people, how they are mistreating children? Don't you see how poor people, impoverished people are oppressed? Don't you see how innocent victims are dying in places like Bosnia?
God, don't you see these things? God says to us, saints, all sin and evil ultimately is directed against me. I'm the giver of life. The world is mine. Vengeance is mine and I will repay. What we see here is payday for Babylon. And all of the accumulated sin and oppression that has taken place throughout the thousands of years by this evil system will now be dealt with and the citizens of heaven are called upon to rejoice. We have a completely different viewpoint than the people of the world.
It is not wrong to rejoice when God brings His judgment. Indeed, we ought to rejoice in God's judgment. When we are devoted to the holiness and the righteousness of God, our hearts can't help but sense joy when God and His name and His righteousness are vindicated. What is signaled here is the vengeance of God upon a proud world system and it will very quickly consummate now with the second coming of Jesus Christ as we get into chapter 19.
In chapter 17, religious Babylon seems to be destroyed about midway in the tribulation period. What we see in chapter 18 seems to take place toward the end of the last three and a half years, if not right at the very end of it. And as I say, it will be consummated with the second coming of Christ. Notice the things that are no more in Babylon. Let's begin in verse 21 and catch up in our reading.
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. The sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters shall not be heard in you anymore. And no craftsman of any craft shall be found in you anymore. And the sound of a millstone shall not be heard in you anymore. And the light of the lamp shall not shine in you anymore.
And the voice of the bridegroom and the bride shall not be heard in you anymore. Notice all the things that are to be no more in Babylon. The music, the arts, the entertainment. I'm tempted to elaborate there, but I won't. The crafts, the trades, society, happiness, even the joys of normal social events, all of those things are done as the judgment of God comes upon Babylon. It says, Your merchants were the great men of the earth, for by your sorcery all the nations were deceived.
This word sorcery is that one in Revelation found several times that is in the original language, pharmakeia, and you hear there the word pharmacy. It refers to magic spells and drugs that were part of sorcery. Now all of that is going to somehow be a part of Babylon. Does it perhaps suggest that this evil system will be deeply involved in drugs in the last days? That that will be a part of it? Certainly there is deceit and lies.
It says, and in her was found the blood of the prophets and saints and of all who were slain on the earth. God will hold this system accountable for its sins, just as He holds all people accountable for the works of their lives. This is kind of a heavy chapter as we deal here with the complete destruction of that system of politics and commerce and economics that I think is being put together today, but which will finally come into some flower under the leadership of Antichrist.
God is going to deal with it, and in chapter 19 the return of the Lord Jesus Christ will deal with Antichrist himself. We will soon be into that study, I think as soon as next week, if the Lord willing, as we get into chapter 19. I would like to close tonight though by turning back to the book of 2 Thessalonians. 2 Thessalonians chapter 1, here are some words that I think cause rejoicing in our hearts and a sense of hope.
Beginning in verse 3, we are bound to thank God always for you brethren as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, so that we ourselves boast of you among all the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure.
Now Paul is writing to a group of people in that day, but it is true that the people of God have been a suffering people for the most part really in the last 2000 years. And it seems as though in the cycle of things we are moving into a period like this. I was in a community meeting this last week in which one person who is a leader in our community got up and warned the whole group about people like you and me. It was a public meeting.
Now the words were couched very carefully, but it was very obvious what she was saying. We are cycling into a time when we are going to experience persecutions and tribulations. Should we be afraid? No. We ought to allow love for one another to grow and faith and patience in it. He says that this is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God.
We should not think it strange that we enter into the kingdom of God by suffering our Savior who charted the path for us. We follow in His steps. He suffered and we will suffer. For which you also suffer since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you. Here is the other side of the coin. We may face suffering in this world and will face suffering in this world.
But on the other side of it, God is working and He is repaying those who persecute us with tribulation to them. And He says He will give you who are troubled rest with us tomorrow afternoon. Is that what it says? No. It doesn't even say we are going to have rest in this world at all. We may go out of this world suffering and in persecution. But it says that we are going to have rest when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels.
In flaming fire, taking vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, these shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power when He comes in that day to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe because our testimony among you was believed. These are great words. They exhort you and me even as we face a darkening day in our world.
Even as we come down the line, I think, to the days that are described in the book of Revelation toward that. As we are coming into these last days and face what we are facing, these are words of encouragement. God hasn't forgotten us. He encourages us to be strong and patient and faithful and loving and to know that one day we are going to be rewarded when Jesus comes. We will be with Him. And at rest then. In the meantime, we are called to be His faithful people. Let's be that this week.
We don't rejoice in one sense that the ungodly will experience what they will. There is of course compassion in our hearts for them. But on the other hand, we do rejoice that God is going to be vindicated and that the blasphemy that has been given against His name is one day going to be answered by Him. And all of those who lift their fists against God in rebellion will one day find that their rebellion has brought them into judgment.
God is glorified even when His justice burns like fire, as it will on the city and the system of Babylon. Let's pray together. I invite you to stand with me as we close our service. And Father, as we study this chapter and the certain judgment that will come upon the system of evil under Antichrist, our deep desire is within our hearts that we might be faithful to you in the midst of this system as it begins to form and take shape.
Show us how we must come out and be separate from it as the people of God. Deliver us from compromise with it wherein it has influenced us and its tentacles are around our hearts and we have conformed our minds and our values to its way of thinking. Show us that we might repent and be delivered from that. We want to be your people.
And should we enter into suffering as a result of our faithfulness, we pray that you will give us strength and patience, that we might be a faithful people in the midst of that. And even this week as we go out and live and serve you, may we serve you well. May we serve you as your people, knowing that there will come one day when we will be at rest, when Jesus will come and we will share his glory and his kingdom. Hasten the day. In Christ's name we pray, amen. And good night to you.
God bless you.