End times series:
Revelation 18
By Liaf
Chapter 18 is what I believe is a description and fate of "commercial Babylon". We’ve dealt with the religious "harlot" aspect in chapter 17. I will not quote every verse in this chapter, but want merely to point out some key verses that indicate the fate of this city. As I said before, I believe this will be a literal and rebuilt Babylon. Some people call any apostate religious or economic system a "Babylon" in the figurative sense, but a literal city fulfills both requirements as to being a place and a system. Let’s turn our King James Bibles to Revelation chapter 18 and understand:
Revelation 18:1-4: And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
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.
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.
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.
In essence, a great city will fall, and this is a city of fornication albeit a wealthy one. Yet, God’s people are warned not to partake in her sins (and this is good advice for all generations, even though this is a specific end-time event). Let’s skip just a few to focus in more on her attributes:
Revelation 18:7-11: 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.
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.
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,
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.
And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
Fat ‘ol cow this woman Babylon becomes. She is living "high off the hog" as the cliché goes, and thinks nothing will ever become of her. Sounds like government sometimes. They get this power head-trip and think they are indestructible. They persecute the righteous and even say the way of the righteous is apostate while they revel in the supposed fact that they are correct. What does she get? Fire. Fire is always symbolic of judgement expressed in an actual event. In other words, God uses literal fire for judgement, which is what it symbolizes as well.
Verses 12 to 14 specify her goods. It reemphasizes the wealth that she will attain to only to later become judged in which verse 15 tells of the reaction of those who will be made rich by her:
Revelation 18:15: The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
Skeptics of the Bible (or those who take a historic view of Revelation) claim that a city of the future will not become rich with things like "gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls". Precious metals and fine materials appealed to people of the past, but not a technological society of the future. What they fail to realize is that John is merely describing the elements that make her rich. People have a single-track mind. They think of gold or silver as in coins or precious objects only. The same goes for precious stones. True, even in this advanced society there are gold and diamond rings, precious stone rings or jewelry, and other such items. But in a technological society, such precious things are used in the making of equipment. Trust me, I worked in a semiconductor fabrication plant where integrated circuits used some precious metals. Likewise, even before our high-tech society, we used "precious stones" as crystals for oscillators in radio and television. You see, this argument does not hold any water because John did not know what integrated circuits, radio or television was back then.
Revelation 18:16-19: 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!
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,
And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
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.
Some may think this is an atomic blast since the city is gone in one hour. As I stated in an earlier message, I am really not concerned with the method that God uses, only that they will happen. Whatever the mechanism to Babylon’s destruction, there will be lots of fire and smoke and it will be swift. That’s the essence of these verses. There is one other thing that catches my eye. Everyone is watching this great fire from afar yet wailing over the city. For as much as they supposedly cared for Babylon, you do not see them trying to put out the fire, do you? They are wailing because their money is gone --- their living came out of Babylon (hence this chapter deals with the commercial aspect). Nevertheless, in spite of their livelihood being lost, they will not risk their skins to save the city (see verse ten). They are doing what any of us must confessed to have done. They are watching a "good fire" from a distance. I used to live in Allentown Pa. that had many old factories. Whenever one would burn down, my brother, dad and I would watch. Then we’d reminisce as to what things were like before the fire (with a certain melancholy tone). These guys are doing the same, but as they watch Babylon burn, they have more to lose. Thus they are more grieved. The chapter ends with the reason for Babylon’s fall. These two verses summarize it nicely:
Revelation 18:20: Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
AND
Revelation 18:24: And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
Need I say more? Notice that the judgement on Babylon was for the sins of Babylon of the past as well as the future Babylon. This is why I believe it must be a literal city.
The next chapter should be a glorious chapter for any of us who expect the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. For Jesus’ enemies, it will be a terrifying chapter. Either way, it tells of Jesus’ glorious and victorious SECOND COMING with his SAINTS.