Revelation Chapter 17 (NASB)

In chapters 17 and 18 we have a recap of the seven bowl judgments. By and large the judgments recorded in chapter 16 describe the physical impact of God's wrath upon the earth. Recall that the earth still is under the sin curse (Genesis 3:17-21). While the bowl judgments have many physical phenomena, we now will get a glimpse into how the impostor religious system and the "puppet" governments of any remaining countries will be treated.

In this and the following chapter, an angel will show John the symbolic meaning or maybe in more understandable terms, the effects of the physical events on the emotional (Revelation 18:15-19), political (Revelation 18:3), and economic (Revelation 18:11-14) domains.



























Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 1 (NASB)

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1. And one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, "Come here, I shall show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters,


We first heard of these angels in Revelation 15:1 ,6 ,7 ,8 and Revelation 16:1 . It is as if John was puzzled by the judgments of the seven bowls and needed further explanation. In particular, the final bowl judgment (Revelation 16:17-21) so distorts the earth that geopolitical boundaries are erased. Governments are in shambles, and economies are struggling. These effects of the GREAT EARTHQUAKE needed further discussion.


Through the imagery of a GREAT HARLOT, the angel will explain the character, the life, and the end of Satan's imitation religious system. The system is purposely devised to be confusion and deceiving. Right until the end, the devil does not or will not let the simple truth of God's salvation gift come forth.

Verse 15 in this chapter explains that the "many waters" are "peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues." Since the expression "many waters" is used, it is clear that these next two chapters will be mostly symbolic.

That is not to say this concept is new. In the Old Testament, the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 8:5-8 equates the waters of the Euphrates River with the kingdom of Assyria. Assyria has always been a thorn in the side of Israel much like the Satanic mock religious governments have been to true believers.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 







Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 2 (NASB)

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2. with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality." A curious side of human nature is that when something rather scandalous is made known, the person tends to want to investigate it. The "harlot" is just such a curiosity. Even the leadership of the EARTH is not immune to this phenomena (Proverbs 25:1-2-5-7). Little do they realize that the allure of the "harlot" (wicked) leads to IMMORALITY (lack of righteousness).

From ages past, the KINGS of the EARTH are against God (Psalm 2:2). By this time in the tribulation period, the KINGS (as part of the whole world - Revelation 13:3-4) are totally involved with the sea beast (antiChrist). The whole world has been deceived (Revelation 18:3), and the nations have gone mad (Jeremiah 51:5-10).

Harlotry implies cohabitation. The inference here is that the socio-economic world will be merged into the religious world (or vice versa). James 4:4 points out this will not work. The "harlot" also discovers this too (Revelation 17:16).

So intoxicating is this religious and socio-economic tryst, that those who dwell on the earth (unbelievers of the TRUTH) are reeling about as DRUNKARDS. This is totally opposite of believer's behavior (2 Corinthians 4:1-6).

As Tim LaHaye points out in his book, Revelation Unveiled, 1 "In viewing the Hindus, Buddhists, Confucianists, Taoists, Muslims, and primitive religionists, I have found that none of them teaches the moral standards of God. Instead, their practices are based on a loose form of behavior that permits sensual activities, producing guilt complexes that the religion in turn uses to enslave its people in forms of personal sacrifice and self abuse to atone for their own sin. The Babylonian religions of the world, whether they be Greek, Indian, African, Roman, or Chinese, are arrayed in gold, precious stones, and costly array. They use mystery and idolatry."

To make this alliance complete, the full force of "instant" marketing will be brought to bear upon those who dwell on the earth. When something is seen "to be good" enough times, it is human nature to accept that IMMORAL behavior. With the true believers taken from the earth by this time, there are precious few witnesses left to contradict the hype. The state of the earth is one acting as though it is on a collective DRUNK.
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Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 3 (NASB)

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3. And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.


John knows this feeling of being in the Spirit (Revelation 4:2). In this state, John is protected from the ravages of the wilderness (symbolically, Satan's imitation religious system). This wilderness is an antichrist developed place (Daniel 9:24-27).


This is not a rising feminist leader but rather she is used to accentuate the sensual, enticing aspects of the false religious system. Just as in television commercials, this WOMAN is used during this tribulation to sell a product, antiChrist's world empire.


The color of the beast is not mentioned in Revelation 13:1 ; however, Revelation 12:3 describes a red dragon using the same characteristics. Recall the dragon was the devil. Thus this WOMAN is being transported about the earth to do her sales job by the devil. The scarlet color just reinforces that many believers have shed their blood because they opposed this SCARLET BEAST.


Blasphemy, by definition, is against God and the TRUTH (Revelation 13:5 ,6). No need to expend energy running down something that is rotten and filthy already. These names are an attempt to disgrace God and to usurp His authority (on earth, at least).

Here we also see the devil's need for names. Without a name, it is difficult to receive accolades or to heap boastful kudos on devil workers. Compare this with our "Unknown-Name" Christ (Revelation 19:12).


Many scholars believe the seven heads are a revived Roman Empire. They use verse 9 to support their conclusion. However, this is a fairly limited viewpoint. From a symbolic view, this could be a way of saying seven major religions merge into one world religion (perhaps out of the need to survive). Or it could be interpreted as a succession of seven major religions. The former probably is more logical as this one world "church" would be supported by the political systems (10 of them - verse 12 ). It is left to the reader to determine the seven religions most likely to merge.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 









Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 4 (NASB)

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4. And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality,

From physics, purple is the combination of blue and red colors. Symbolically, blue is heaven(ly) and red is earth(ly). Thus we again see the earthly masquerading as religious (antiChrist at the head).

These two colors also represent wealth and prosperity and are associated with royalty (Judges 8:22-26-28 ; Proverbs 31:10-22-31 ; Ezekiel 27:12-16-24 (used for commerce along with emeralds, rubies, and artisan works); and Daniel 5:5-7-9).

Bright colors are used in advertising to attract your attention. Likewise the woman will attract those in power and ordinary persons alike using their earthly desires.

Contrast this adornment with how godly women are to be ADORNED (1 Timothy 2:9-15).

AntiChrist will use these items to honor a "god of fortresses" (Daniel 11:36-38-39). While much of the world today has abandoned the "gold standard", in the end times, the antiChrist will revive it as standard payment/honor. This implies that electronic or floating currencies will have failed, or that inflation after the seal, trumpet, and bowl judgments will have forced a return to these items as the mediums of exchange.

What a contrast to the Lord's cup of His blood! Also, at this time, those who drink of it are "guilty of the blood of the Lord" (1 Corinthians 11:17-27-34).

UNCLEANNESS and idolatry go together (2 Corinthians 6:14-18). Abominations or detestable things irritate God and require purging (Ezekiel 20:27-39). Note: this woman, too, will disappear (Revelation 17:16 -17).
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 









Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 5 (NASB)

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5. and upon her forehead a name was written, a mystery, "BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH."


The devil has a need to know names. Without a name, it is difficult to recognize a person's accomplishments, to take credit, or to show pride. So it is not unusual for this woman to have a name on her forehead. Furthermore, at the time the Revelation was written, prostitutes wore a band around their forehead to indicate they were "available". So, too, this woman is saying to the earth, "I am here, choose me!" (Jeremiah 3:1-3-5)

There are two previous mysteries in Revelation: 1) "mystery of the seven stars" (Revelation 1:20) and 2) "mystery of God" (Revelation 10:7). Those two mysteries are good mysteries. This mystery is of the imitation church and also is "spiritual" in nature. A mystery is associated with any religion; for TRUE BELIEVERS, the mystery of Christ (Ephesians 3:1-4-13) and the mystery of the gospel (Ephesians 6:10-19-20). To the earth (and particularly those who took the mark of the beast), the religion of this harlot also is a mystery.


Nimrod (name means 'the rebel') founded Babylon (Genesis 10:6-10-20) as the center of a cultist and idolatrous religion. Historians indicate that it was Nimrod's wife who championed this religion. Almost all religions that are against true God worship demonstrate some of the characteristics of that Babylonian religion. Throughout the Old Testament and even today, Jews have struggled to remain apart and untainted by the Babylonian influence.

Babylon = wicked woman (Zechariah 5:1-11).

Observation: One often hears militant Arabs use the phrase "the Mother of all ....". Here, this woman is MOTHER of many other HARLOTS. She also is "the Mother of the ABOMINATIONS". These are not localized to the Middle East but rather are "of the earth". Most likely the abominations are forms of evil and idolatry (Deuteronomy 7:17-25-26). At this point during the tribulation, the world will be practicing a unified religion that is evil to its core and centered around idolatry (Revelation 13:4 ,15)
 
 
 




 
 
 
 
 
 
 











Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 6 (NASB)

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6 And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. And when I saw her, I wondered greatly.

Many churches/religions claim they have many moral virtues, but if they take the life from people (saints, witnesses of Jesus, or ordinary people), they are exposed as not being the TRUE church (Revelation 16:5 -6)

It is this BLOOD which will be the evidence to seal the doom of the apostate church (woman/Babylon). This blood is the guilty verdict against them (Revelation 18:21-24).

Many scholars distinguish the use of 'saints' here to mean those people who stood for righteousness and fought against idolatry and evil prior to Christ. Recall that Babylon physically existed long before Christ (Hebrews 11:32-38).

It is difficult to understand why the devil thinks he can destroy us by killing us. Apparently, he doesn't believe that the BLOOD of Jesus is an everlasting life event. Jesus knew, though, that the devil would try (Matthew 10:16-23).

The expression "drunk with the blood" has been used from old to mean "lust for violence". It is in this context, the expression is used here. Somehow, we, too, understand this through the use of words like "jihad", "holy war", etc.
 

The anti-TRUE church/religion thrives on murder and bloodshed. It is part of the "Babylonian" religious system to try to eliminate anyone who doesn't believe what they believe (whatever that may be). To think that was only in the past is faulty thinking. It still is going on today, and among liberal churches it includes abortions ..... how can a tiny heart in a fetus not be pumping the very BLOOD being talked about here?

I feel that what caused John to WONDER GREATLY was the duration and intensity of this DRUNKENNESS. While he personally grieved over the violent losses of fellow apostles, this must have been overwhelming to him when he saw this vision.

This verse concludes the vision (verses 1 - 6); the interpretation by the angel follows.



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 







Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 7 (NASB)

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7. And the angel said to me, "Why do you wonder? I shall tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.
  This is the angel (verses 1 and 3 ) who came from the temple with one of the seven bowls. I point this out because this implies that what is to be shown to John (and us) is spiritual in nature. To be sure, there are physical attributes portrayed, but they have spiritual meaning.

That this angel is going to 'coach' John is not unusual. This is what angels do (Psalm 104:1-4 (see footnotes) and Hebrews 1:4-14). However, it is curious how the angel knew that John was WONDERing. Either John verbalized his 'spirit thoughts' (verse 3), or the angel read John's thoughts. Less likely, John's facial expression showed his WONDERment. We probably have no idea what our guardian angel knows about us!

One could read this to be a mild rebuke. It's like saying, "John, aren't you aware of spiritual events around you?" More than a few times, people have told me, "I study the Bible but I skip the Revelation because it's too hard to understand". If you are reading this, praise God, you are making an attempt to be spiritually alert.
See verse 5 for a discussion of MYSTERY in the Bible.
Part of John's WONDERing may be that the BEAST is carrying her (instead of devouring her). This may be the first time that John realizes the WOMAN, the immoral and idolatrous religious system during the tribulation, is directly involved with the BEAST, the dictator of a unified church-state totalitarian regime - the devil's twisted spiritual empire.
The BEAST is introduced to us in Revelation 11:7 . We see him described in similar terms in Revelation 13:1-8 . Lastly his destruction is told in Revelation 19:19-20 .

The angel now proceeds to try to unravel the MYSTERY. He will start with the BEAST in the next verse .
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 









 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 8 (NASB)

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8. "The beast that you saw was and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth will wonder, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come. This is the same BEAST referenced in verse 3 and in Revelation 13:1 .

Clearly this is visual imagery used to depict something spiritual. Recall the angel who is speaking here came from the temple (Revelation 15:6). Saying that John "SAW" this, denotes that these predictions are taking place in the time frame of the vision (not during John's lifetime on the island of Patmos (Revelation 1:9) as some commentators indicate).
This is the believer's view of how Satan is trying to emulate the TRUE MESSIAH. Apparently, Satan believes if he is successful, he can make himself God since he, Satan, has given his power(s) to the BEAST (Revelation 13:1-4). Normally the ABYSS is 'locked', but in Revelation 9:1 , Satan is given the keys to the ABYSS. The way this verse puts it, there isn't much time for the BEAST to leave the ABYSS and then go to DESTRUCTION (Daniel 5:22-28).
Satan's purpose is to deceive, first, God's chosen people to believe that the BEAST is their long awaited Messiah. The deception is so good that, second, many non Jews will be caught up in this too. This is what is meant by "whose name has not been written in the BOOK of LIFE".

Also, this portion of scripture is NOT proof that you are predestined for heaven if your name IS written in the BOOK of LIFE from the FOUNDATION of the world. Scripture clearly teaches that mankind has made and can make choices. Rather, this portion shows that the eternal, all-knowing God knows what your choices will be. By God's grace, you and I still can make the choice to follow Jesus Christ as the TRUE Messiah. Sadly, those 'who dwell on the earth' at the time of this vision WILL WONDER if they made the right choice.
This is a restatement of the first part of this verse but this time it is from the non-believers viewpoint. These people have a nagging suspicion that they have been deceived. They HOPE upon HOPE that the BEAST WILL COME to set up the ultimate kingdom. But the BEAST is destined for DESTRUCTION.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 





 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 9 (NASB)

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9 "Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits,
Wisdom and understanding in end time visions require awareness or the ability to calculate (Daniel 12:5-10-13 and Revelation 13:18). This sentence is placed here to say, in effect, "Don't predetermine what the content of this triplet of verses (verses 9-11) may mean." (Romans 11:33-36)

Ever since the seven angels came from the temple with the seven bowl judgments (Revelation 15:8 and Revelation 17:1), the context of this scripture is spiritual. To try to place this triplet into geopolitical terms (mostly Rome) is not demonstrating WISDOM in my viewpoint. Rather, we must continue to be alert to current events to recognize when these things will come to pass (perhaps within our lifetimes???). This is equivalent to having oil in the lamps in anticipation for the wedding (Matthew 25:1-13).
MOUNTAINS in prophetical writings have referred to world powers (Isaiah 2:2-4 ; Jeremiah 51:24-26 ; Daniel 2:31-35 ; Zechariah 4:1-7). In this context, these are worldwide spiritual powers.

Consistently throughout Revelation, the number seven indicates completeness. Then this portion means that the seven HEADS are the complete organizational embodiment of the evil power of the beast. Also, the woman, the socioreligious organization in power at this time, is freely transported worldwide by the beast. That is, there will be no travel restrictions on those who have taken the mark of the beast. Note, though, that the beast puts up with this arrangement as long as the woman is useful to him (verse 16).

With the hindsight of September 11th, one could argue this represents seven major terrorist cells operating worldwide. What little we do know of al Quaida, it has strong religious overtones and is well funded with "oil money" (Revelation 18:15).
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 













 
 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 10 (NASB)

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10. and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while.
 
This is the middle verse of the triplet which explains the seven heads of the beast.
Nearly all commentaries try to identify these KINGS as either great empires or great leaders. Many try to name specific empires, but, this is risky in light of the first sentence of the previous verse .

The most that should be said is that seven is the number of completion in Revelation. Therefore, this should be interpreted as being the sum of the "character" of the beast. Furthermore, since the Bible is primarily an "Abraham" book, the Jewish and Arabic viewpoints should be predominant.
At the time this vision/explanation is happening, five spiritual eras or entities (this verse doesn't distinguish) that have tormented the Jews will have disappeared. While they could have been empires in the distant past of Jewish history, they could also be abstract entities which have spiritual impact. For example, they may be humanism (Genesis 3:1-7), naturism (Romans 1:24-25), atheism (1 John 5:6-10-12), polytheism (1 Corinthians 8:1-6), or materialism (Revelation 18:9-16). After the 7 seal judgments, the 7 trumpet judgments, and the 7 bowl judgments, these KINGS (kingdoms) are likely to be greatly diminished.

We know that the beast (devil) has kingdoms. He tried to give them to Jesus if only Jesus would worship before the devil (Luke 4:5-8). Apparently, at this point in the tribulation, five of these kingdoms, whatever they may be, are done away with.
Relative to our lifetime, this probably is the Moslem world. However, this also could be hypocrite Christianity (Matthew 7:21-29).
Since this is beyond our relative horizon, we cannot know what this seventh KING (kingdom) is. We do know that the Antichrist is part of it (next verse).
This final attempt at suppressing or exterminating God's chosen people (see verse 14) will only last a short time (as in Revelation 12:12).

What is striking about this phrase is its indefiniteness. Normally, earlier in the Revelation, times are very precise (Revelation 9:5 , Revelation 9:15 , and Revelation 11:3). Perhaps it is written this way so that the devil will not know how much "little while" he has. He can read or hear scripture, too.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 










 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 11 (NASB)

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11. "And the beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth, and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.
This verse restates verse 8 . This is the same BEAST described in Revelation 13:1-8 . The conclusion then is that this is the antiChrist himself.

"which was" refers to his mortal life, "is not" refers to his apparent dearth, and "is himself" denotes his 'resurrection' into his supermortal life. To Jews still looking for the Messiah, the antiChrist through his imitation of Jesus' life, crucifixion, and resurrection is very convincing. Jesus himself had warned this would happen (Mark 13:14-23). Ironically, for Jews to accept the antiChrist as the Messiah, the antiChrist must either be a Jew or an exceptional impostor.

To be the EIGHTH means that not only does the antiChrist wholeheartedly participate in the wickedness of all the seven kingdoms, but also is the embodiment of this wickedness in superhuman form. The dragon (Revelation 13:4) has given him a personal pride and arrogance which will set him apart from all other mortals. See the "little horn" of Daniel 7:8 .
In the previous verse, we defined the SEVEN as abstract concepts. They could just as easily be socioreligious entities such as Protestants, Catholics, Moslems, Buddhists, Jews, and such. We are not given a clue what the seven "kingdoms" are; so the reader/student of the Revelation MUST ever be aware of the world's religious landscape. Since the Bible is so closely tied to the Jews, God's chosen people, true believers must ever watch events in Israel. Interestingly, even the secular press instinctively knows this and gives disproportionate news coverage about Israel
After "remaining a little while" (previous verse), this simple sentence marks the end of the BEAST. Revelation 19:20 identifies the location of this DESTRUCTION.

This verse completes the triplet of verses concerning the seven heads of the BEAST.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 












 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 12 (NASB)

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12. "And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings, who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.
Was this what Daniel saw (Daniel 7:1-7-11)?

"who have not yet received a KINGDOM" could be interpreted as:
  1. during John's lifetime
  2. until the tribulation period
  3. until the brief "loosing" of the Devil (Revelation 20:7-10)
  4. without geopolitical boundaries but nonetheless an operational unit, e.g. al Quada.
If you take the Daniel 9:27 one week as the seven years of tribulation as most scholars do, then this one hour is roughly 15 days. On the other hand, if you take 2 Peter 3:8-13 , then we have a time range of a hundred of a second to 41+ days. Given these large time conversion differences, many scholars take this to mean for a brief period of time.

Due to the precision of time in the rest of Revelation, this probably is a literal one hour. The 9/11/2001 initial acts took place within one hour so this is plausible. One cannot be sure how long one hour is, though, at this time in the tribulation given the "time changes" that may have occurred during earlier judgments (for example, the fourth trumpet in Revelation 8:12).
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 










 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 13 (NASB)

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13. "These have one purpose and they give their power and authority to the beast.  

The description of the ten horns (KINGS) continues from the previous verse .  Usually political kingdoms can't agree. Consider how many countries have been formed due to ethnic differences alone. Even in the Mideast where one would hope to find unity among ethnic lines, we find many splinter (often violent) organizations. So something unusual has taken place to cause this oneness of purpose.
Strange way to put this since the BEAST is a "puppet" regime too (Revelation 13:2). Or another view, the devil uses these 10 short-term rulers, powers, and world forces of this darkness (Ephesians 6:10-20) to fulfill Revelation 13:2 .
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 














 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 14 (NASB)

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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."
This is just a statement of what actually happens in Revelation 19 . This is a spiritual WAR and fulfills the prophesy given in Zechariah 14:1-2 .
This fulfills the continuation of the prophesy in Zechariah 14:3-8 . The details of how this will be accomplished are given in Revelation 19:11-21 .

Recall that the sword comes from Jesus mouth (Revelation 1:16) which means this WAR is a war of words of TRUTH (John 14:1-11). The words will be spoken by One who has AUTHORITY (verses physical control of the earth; although the Lamb has that also). It is the same AUTHORITY
            because HE is LORD of lords and KING of kings,

This is confirmed in Revelation 19:16 . Apparently these titles were commonly used among the New Testament believers (1 Timothy 6:11-15-16). In the Old Testament, the title was "God of gods" (Deuteronomy 10:17).
Those who are with Him are not spectators but active combatants (see Matthew 10:24-33 ; Jude 1:14 ; Daniel 7:9-10-11 ; and Zechariah 14:5).

Attribute:
 Related spiritually to:
CALLED (2 Timothy 1:9 and 1 Peter 2:4-10) and
 SALVATION (Romans 1:1-6-7)
CHOSEN (Ephesians 1:3-4-14; Colossians 3:12-17; Matthew 22:1-14; 1 Peter 2:4-6-10; and Psalm 89:19-37) and
 SERVICE
FAITHFUL." (Matthew 25:14-30 and 1 John 5:1-4-5)
STEWARDSHIP or Endurance (Revelation 22:11 and Revelation 2:8-10)
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



 
 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 15 (NASB)

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15. And he said to me, "The waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.
This most likely is the same angel speaking in verses 1 and 7 . Most often throughout the Revelation, angels are talking with John. The major exception, of course, is the original command to write the book of the Revelation (Revelation 1:10-19).
This expression seems a bit odd. When one sits on water (unless it is ice), one sinks under. However, read how Jesus describes the last days in Luke 21:25-28 and His use of  the sea and the waves. While the literal sea and waves may be "roaring" causing perplexity, if water is the container of spirit(s), then this verse here in Revelation indicates that the HARLOT will control or suppress any of the raging opposition to the beast (and the 10 kings). As a sidelight, look how much the 10 kings appreciate what the socioreligious organization (HARLOT) did for them (next verse).
 
Finally, the way this angel talks about "the WATERS", he may well be the angel of the WATERS (Revelation 16:4-7). The use of the past tense "SAW", indicates that the third angel has poured out his bowl already.
PEOPLES (individuals) and
MULTITUDES (groups of individuals) and
NATIONS (individuals within physical boundaries) and
TONGUES (individuals within ethnic cultures).
It is clear that this includes every being with a soul. Considering the major calamities the earth has gone through with the seal, trumpet, and bowl judgments, it is amazing that these people are not dispersed and off seeking their own revenge or salvation. However, these people are under the total control of the Babylonian HARLOT (socioreligious empire).

One should be aware that from these same WATERS, we, the redeemed, have come (Revelation 5:9). Praise the Lord that we are FROM these WATERS and not IN THEM (John 15:18-19-27)!



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 










 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 16 (NASB)

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16. "And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire.
This is a reference back to verse 12 . These are "evil" horns as they are on the BEAST. But there are "good" horns too (Revelation 5:6). So again we see the conflict between "good" and "evil" (Genesis 2:15-17). This conflict has kept all of us from the tree of life (Genesis 3:20-24 and Revelation 22:1-2,18-19 ). Since these horns are located on the head, where "thinking" takes place, this indicates that the four steps below are a CONSCIOUS effort.
The ten leaders will openly start showing contempt for the socioreligious consortium (harlot) now in control of the earth. However, because the BEAST wants everything, even this consortium must go. He, the BEAST, wants to control the entire earth himself. This implies that the ten leaders are puppet regimes.

Throughout history, it is not unusual for political organizations to tolerate or even embrace religion when it deems it convenient or expedient. Yet underneath, one gets the sense that there is a mistrust between both parties. Hatred and envy work like that.
After the hatred comes the conscious effort to deprive the consortium of its wealth. With the funding removed, the supporters will quickly leave, leaving the consortium NAKED. At this point the religious part of the consortium has nothing to offer, and the consortium loses its power to rule.
Just as the flesh is the outward appeal of our physical body, so, too, the appeal of the consortium disappears. The consortium is taken over (eaten) by the ten leaders and the BEAST.

The FLESH here is used in similar manner as Micah (Micah 3:1-4) and David (Psalm 27:1-6) used this expression. It is the deliberate consuming of life sustaining organization.
This is consistent with the Old Testament punishment for Levitical harlotry (Leviticus 21:1-9). The socioreligious consortium will be totally eradicated. The ten leaders do not want this alliance to ever become viable again. Be aware however, that this is one of the ways a strong God executes judgment.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 










 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 17 (NASB)

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17. "For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God should be fulfilled.
 Even in judgment, God's plan ALWAYS is executed. Mankind may believe that they control a 'KINGDOM' (Psalm 75:6-8), but, at best, they can really only make choices for themselves individually . This is particularly true in spiritual matters. God doesn't accept the notion of 'power of attorney' or 'class actions'.

Compare how Paul describes this as a 'deluding influence' (2 Thessalonians 2:1-11-12).
This phrase echoes verse 13 .
The transfer is complete. In verse 13 , just their power and authority were given. But now these 10 horns give their KINGDOM (singular, implying they were only governors in a larger KINGDOM) to the BEAST.
While these WORDS may be taken to refer only to those spoken here in the Revelation of Jesus Christ, in a broader sense, they are those spoken throughout eternity (that we know about through the Bible). They would include the creation (Genesis 1:3-5 through Genesis 3:22-24), and correlate with the redemption process (Revelation 5:1). Before the "sin curse" was placed on the earth, God spoke and saw that "it was GOOD" (physically and spiritually). God now is using evil leadership to separate evil from good or the tares from the wheat (Matthew 13:24-30). Once the tares are burned, the earth can be returned to its "GOOD" status. Interestingly, it doesn't matter what status in life a person has attained. Whether primitive native or sophisticated socialite, politician or common citizen, highly educated or intellectually challenged, one always struggles with spiritual/moral values.  See the list in Revelation 21:8 of those persons who choose the wrong values.
 
From a prophetic viewpoint, this verse will confirm Revelation 14:8 , Jeremiah 25:8-14 , and Zechariah 14:1-9 .
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 














 

Revelation Chapter 17, Verse 18 (NASB)

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18. "And the woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth."
 Several times Babylon (the name of the WOMAN), is referred to as GREAT (Revelation 17:5 , Revelation 14:8 , Revelation 16:19 , and Revelation 18:10). One senses that THE GREAT CITY is not a specific city but rather refers to a large collection of people (that really is what cities are). In particular, these are people whose names are NOT written in the book of life (verse 8). They have openly and angrily directed their hatred at believers (names written in the book of life) to the point of spilling the believer's blood (verse 6).

Most often in the past, scholars have placed the GREAT CITY as Rome with its papacy or Jerusalem (Revelation 11:8). If one considers that since the bowl judgments, most of the Revelation is spiritual in nature, then Jerusalem makes good sense. Both Jews and Arabs, religously, uphold Jerusalem as one of their most sacred cities.
 Since the 10 kings/horns are not mentioned here specifically, this has a broader meaning. It means all the world's leadership at this time of the tribulation. Most likely there will only be one worldwide government which will have expunged organized religion (see verse 16). With the Beast (AntiChrist) now the only one left to worship, the only things remaining to be purged from the earth are the evils of idolatry and its friend, greed. As we will see in the next chapter, verses 8 and 11-19 , this economic structure too will be gone.

The difficulty we have in interpreting this verse is that we have a hard time imagining what will be left of this earth after the seals, trumpets, and bowls judgments. Certainly the population will have been severely reduced (Revelation 6:8 and Revelation 9:15), geography mostly rearranged and flattened (Revelation 16:20), and the World Health Organization will be backlogged trying to catalog and understand all the new medical plagues being experienced by the people (Revelation 16:2). All organized religion will be wiped out in favor of only worshipping the AntiChrist/Devil. One has to ask, what are the KINGS of the EARTH really controlling.........and what is the WOMAN controlling when she/they are reigning over the KINGS of the EARTH?