This article provides the identity of the great h
The Last Command
Revelation 18After this I saw another angel descending from heaven with great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his glory. And he cried out in a mighty voice:
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
She has become a lair for demons
and a haunt for every unclean spirit,
every unclean bird,
and every detestable beast.All the nations have drunk the wine
of the passion of her immorality.
The kings of the earth were immoral with her,
and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy
from the extravagance of her luxury.”Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
“Come out of her, My people,
so that you will not share in her sins
or contract any of her plagues.
For her sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her iniquities.
Give back to her as she has done to others;
pay her back double for what she has done;
mix her a double portion in her own cup.
As much as she has glorified herself and lived in luxury,
give her the same measure of torment and grief.
In her heart she says, ‘I sit as queen;
I am not a widow and will never see grief.’
Therefore her plagues will come in one day—
death and grief and famine—
and she will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
Have you heard of the last command from God? If not, you are not alone. For many people, discovering that there is a ‘Last Commandment’ is truly a revelation. Within the book of Revelation is a command from God to Come out of Babylon and it is our mission to help you do so. In this book, we will attempt to follow this command by exploring how the Church or Rome fits this prophecy, and also how she fits the prophecy of apostasy. We will also explore how Babylon was foretold to deceive all the nations and how she fulfilled this prophecy.
We hope that this book will serve as a wake-up call for those who may be caught up in apostate churches or deceived by false teachings. We urge you to read with an open mind and heart, and to heed the warning to come out of the apostate church before it is too late. May the Holy Spirit guide you as you read and may the truth set you free.
The Mystery is Solved: Breaking Down Every Prophecy that The Church Of Rome Fulfilled as Babylon, the Great Harlot
The book of Revelation says that the identity of Babylon is a mystery, and it is, but it is a mystery that God expects His people to solve. To that end, He sent plenty of details with which to identify her.
Before the birth of Babylon was the prophecy of apostasy, which was the birth of the apostate church, Babylon.
1 Timothy 4 – The Prophecy of the Great Apostasy
But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods, which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth.
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will depart and fall from the faith ….
‘The faith’ mentioned in this verse is the faith of the apostles at the time this prophecy was recorded, called The Way. It is generally accepted by virtually all scholars of early Christianity and the New Testament that the followers of The Way, namely the apostles and early church, were monotheists who believed that YHVH, the Father of Jesus, was the only God as taught in the Hebrew Scriptures. This belief was based on the Jewish tradition of monotheism, which teaches that there is only one true God and that worshiping any other person/deity is idolatry. This belief is often referred to as “Jewish monotheism” and it was central to the religious worldview of the Jewish people, including the apostles and other early followers of Jesus. The New Testament writings also affirm the belief in one God, with Jesus being portrayed as His Son and the Holy Spirit as the power of God at work in the world.
A central and most important tenant of the faith of The Way was the Shema, which comes from Deuteronomy 6 and which states:
Hear, O Israel, YHVH is our God, YHVH is One.
It is a Jewish tradition to recite the Shema twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. This practice is based on a verse in the Torah that states: “And you shall speak of them [these words] when you sit at home, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up” it is a Jewish tradition to recite the Shema twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening. This practice is based on a verse in the Torah that states: “And you shall speak of them [these words] when you sit at home, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up” (Deuteronomy 6:7). The rabbis interpreted this to mean that the Shema should be recited in the morning and evening, as these are the times when people typically lie down and rise up.
Their belief in God’s oneness originates from YHVH Himself, who declares that He is the only God and there will never be another:
“You are My witnesses,” declares YHVH, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me. I, even I, am YHVH, And there is no savior besides Me. It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,” declares YHVH, “I am God. Even from eternity I am He; (Isaiah 43:10-13)
The early followers of Jesus were primarily Jewish, and they saw themselves as part of the Jewish tradition. They continued to worship in synagogues, observe Jewish customs and laws, and see Jesus as the Jewish messiah. They were raised in a Jewish culture that was deeply committed to monotheism, and they continued to hold this belief even after they became followers of Jesus. The belief in one God was central to their faith, and they saw Jesus as the unique and divine Son of God who was sent by the Father to redeem humanity and reconcile them to God.
The apostles’ monotheistic belief in God is reflected in the New Testament writings of the apostles, which affirm the oneness of YHVH. In fact, the apostle Paul wrote extensively about the oneness of God and the importance of worshiping Him alone. In his letter to the Corinthians, for example, Paul writes:
“Although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many ‘gods’ and many ‘lords’— yet for us there is but one God, the Father” (1 Corinthians 8:6 NASB). Similarly, Jesus himself identified the Father as the only true God (John 17:3), while also revealing his own unique relationship with the Father as the Son.
However, over time, as more non-Jewish people became followers of Jesus, (specifically as pagans and Greek philosophers became converts) a new movement began to evolve and differentiate from mainstream Judaism, eventually becoming a distinct religion. This sect would later become the Catholic faction of the early church, which consisted largely of pagan converts, who departed from the faith of “The Way” (who are also called the first followers of Jesus) by introducing the concept of the Trinity.
The Trinity idea began to take shape in the second and third centuries in response to various theological disputes among mostly pagan converts.
It’s important to note that the Roman Empire outlawed the Jewish monotheistic faith of the apostles and early church, which was a significant turning point that nearly eradicated the faith forever after they made the doctrine of the Trinity the Imperial Religion of the Roman Empire, thus giving birth to Babylon, the Great Harlot.
…by follow deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons which come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.…
Those who fell from the faith were led astray by people who were following deceiving spirits, these people propagated falsehoods or, in other words, straight-up lied.
“How can you say, ‘We are wise, And the Law of the LORD is with us’? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes Has made it into a lie.”
The most eye-opening step on the path to the truth is discovering that the Bible was corrupted by these liars foretold in 1 Timothy in an attempt to provide evidence of the Trinity in the Bible. The Catholic Church has acknowledged that many verses that were inserted into the Bible to support the doctrine of the Trinity were not present in the earliest Bible manuscripts (and for that reason have been removed in modern Bibles). Including some of these examples:
- 1 John 5:7-8: This is perhaps the most well-known example of a verse that is not present in the earliest Bible manuscripts. It is often referred to as the “Johannine Comma” and is believed to have been added in the 4th or 5th century to support the doctrine of the Trinity.
- Matthew 28:19: This verse, which contains the phrase “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” is also sometimes considered suspect by scholars. Some believe that the verse was added in the 2nd or 3rd century to support the doctrine of the Trinity.
- John 1:1: While this verse is present in the earliest Bible manuscripts, there is some debate about its interpretation. Some scholars argue that the original Greek suggests that Jesus is “a god” rather than “God” and that the verse was later interpreted to support the doctrine of the Trinity. However, this interpretation is not accepted by all scholars.
- 1 John 5:7-8 – This verse is known as the “Johannine Comma” and reads, “For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness on earth.” However, this verse is not found in any Greek manuscript prior to the 16th century.
- Mark 16:9-20 – The last twelve verses of the Gospel of Mark are not found in the two oldest Greek manuscripts we have of the New Testament. While these verses do not explicitly mention the Trinity, they do contain references to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit working together.
More evidence of the fulfillment of this prophecy of Bible forgeries here.
3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.
The two doctrines mentioned in the prophecy of apostasy with which we could identify the group that departed from the faith (forbidding marriage and practices of abstaining from foods) were both identifying characteristics of the Catholic Church at the time of the apostasy from Jewish Monotheism. These doctrines are significant because they were debated and addressed in the early church councils, including the Council of Nicaea after which the Roman Empire became intolerant to the faith and subsequently outlawed it, thereby aiding the apostate church in becoming the ‘Great’ Harlot. These identifying doctrines make it easy to identify the Catholic Church as the apostate church as it is known for forbidding its priests to marry, while also promoting practices of abstaining from certain foods during Lent.
Bible Evidence of the Apostasy: Paul, Who Is Credited With Foretelling The Apostasy, Called Out the “Different Jesus” and “False Gospels”
After Jesus’ death, the apostles planted small home churches throughout the Roman Empire. Each apostle ministered to their brood and, especially in the case of Paul – who spent a lot of time ministering from prison, oftentimes circumstances dictated that they minister by letter. As a result, Paul’s letters provide evidence that the seeds of the apostasy, and a different Jesus, were present in his day. In fact, almost as soon as it was born, Satan and his demon horde sent deceiving spirits to keep the faithful from following the true gospel. With his quiver full of tares, Satan sent them into the harvest with gospels aplenty, and all of them false. False gospels, prophets, apostles, and doctrines flooded the new church overwhelming the new believers with polar opposite doctrines and creating a multitude of diverse sects all believing in different gospels.
Approximately fifty years after Jesus’ death, while Paul was still ministering, and as the church grew and spread into the pagan world, differing gospels began to emerge that conflicted with the gospel that the apostles preached. The false gospels (as Paul called them) sprang up during Paul’s ministry and they frustrated Paul because he knew they were circulating and some of his people believed them.
In his epistles, Paul railed against the false brethren (aka Tares) who spread the false version of Jesus and the false gospels.
18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, 19 for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. (1 Corinthians)
“..we have heard that some persons have gone out from us and troubled you with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions..” (Acts)
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a GOSPEL CONTRARY to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.
9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a GOSPEL CONTRARY to the one you received, let him be accursed. (Galatians)
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a DIFFERENT GOSPEL – (Galatians)
“For if someone comes and proclaims ANOTHER JESUS than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a DIFFERENT GOSPEL from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.” (2 Corinthians)
These statements by Paul provide ancient evidence that the seeds of apostasy were sown in his day when some departed from their faith in Jewish Monotheism to embrace ‘another Jesus’ fashioned by pagans and adherents of Greek philosophy.
The Development of the Trinity & The Arian Controversy
“For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you submit to it readily enough.”
Paul’s epistles reveal that some of his flock were easily swayed by any new doctrine that came along; specifically, many fell for the apostate version and Paul wasn’t too thrilled about it.
The idea of “another Jesus” that Paul warns about in 2 Corinthians 11:4 is thought by some scholars to refer to a distorted version of Jesus’ identity that was being propagated by false teachers in the early Christian church. This “another Jesus” may have been an attempt to reconcile Greek philosophical ideas about the nature of the divine with the teachings of Jesus.
Over time, this distortion of Jesus’ identity and nature evolved into the doctrine of the Trinity, which asserts that there is one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This doctrine is at odds with ‘the faith’ of the apostles and Jewish monotheism, which maintains that there is only one God who is indivisible.
Thus, the creation of “another Jesus” different from the Jesus of Jewish Monotheism is a warning against departing from the strict monotheism of the Jewish faith and embracing a pagan-influenced understanding of the divine. The development of the Trinity is an example of how this warning was not heeded, leading to a departure from the faith that was established by Jesus and the apostles.
The Catholic doctrine of the Trinity is a departure from the earliest followers of Christ who were monotheists who believed in one God, the God of Israel, whom they believed had sent his son, Jesus Christ, to redeem humanity. In the New Testament, Jesus is portrayed as the Son of God, and the Holy Spirit is identified as the power of God at work in the world.
In the 2nd and 3rd centuries, various theological controversies emerged that challenged the Church’s understanding of the nature of God. One of the most significant of these was the debate over the relationship between the Father and the Son, which came to be known as the Arian controversy.
The Arian Controversy is characterized by faith in the same God understood by the apostles. Their theological position emphasizes the oneness of God the Father, who is considered the one true God of the Old Testament and who is the Father of Jesus Christ. Arius, a Christian priest from Alexandria who later become a bishop, argued that the Son was a created being, and therefore subordinate to the Father as stated in the New Testament. This position was rejected by the Council of Nicaea in 325, which affirmed that the Son was of the same substance (homoousios) as the Father, and therefore fully divine.
The doctrine of the Trinity began to take shape in the 2nd through 4th centuries, as theologians sought to articulate the relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They argued that the three persons of the Trinity were distinct but equal, and that the unity of the Godhead was found in their shared nature or substance (ousia). This concept of the Trinity as three persons in one substance became the orthodox teaching of the Church.
In the centuries that followed, the doctrine of the Trinity became a central tenet of Christian theology, and, overall, the doctrine of the Trinity emerged over several centuries of arguments and debates.
Conclusion: The Catholic faction departed from the faith of the apostles to a continually evolving doctrine of the Trinity, while the Arians held fast to the faith of the disciples fulfilling the great apostasy with the infamous Arian Controversy.
This apostasy from the faith of the apostles was the birth of Babylon, the Great Harlot. Mother of Harlots and Abominations.
Identifying Mystery Babylon, the Great Harlot, Mother of Harlots and Abominations, Through Bible Clues
“and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, ‘BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.'”
The Bible says that Babylon’s identity is a mystery but it’s a mystery that God intends us to solve because He has commanded all of His people who have been deceived by her to come out!
To this end, he has left us with dozens of clues that all point to one body of believers, and this section will unwrap how each of these clues points to only one entity on earth: The Church of Rome.
The Mystery Is Solved
After examining each and every verse describing Babylon, it becomes evident that she can only refer to the apostate Church of the Roman Empire.
Let’s look at each verse in detail.
‘…on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”
God, in His infinite wisdom, intentionally kept the identity of Babylon a mystery because if He had revealed it directly, the Roman Empire would have destroyed the revelation as they did with almost every other early Bible manuscript. Thus, the mystery surrounding Babylon’s identity allowed the message to survive and be passed down to future generations.
She’s Called The Great Harlot
“Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 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.”
As you will see below, some of the descriptions of Babylon are quite literal while others are symbolic metaphors that are very easy to understand.
Harlotry is a simple metaphor for idolatry.
Because God is the husband of His people, whenever God’s people were unfaithful by following false religions (idolatry), God called them harlots.
Examples of this come from the Old Testament which is largely one instance after another of God rebuking his people who seemed to constantly stray from God.
Verses that provide examples of this:
- 31 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.
- 6 During the reign of King Josiah, the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what faithless Israel has done? She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree and has committed adultery there. 7 I thought that after she had done all this she would return to me but she did not, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it. 8 I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery. 9 Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood (stone and wood are idols). 10 In spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return to me with all her heart, but only in pretense,” declares the Lord.
- “Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; “for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” (Jer. Jer. 3:14)
- Bring charges against your mother (meaning: Israel) bring charges; For she is not My wife, nor am I her Husband! Let her put away her harlotries (meaning: idolatry) from her sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts . . . (Hos. 2:2)
- She will chase her lovers (meaning: idols), but not overtake them; yes, she will seek them, but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better for me than now.’ (Hos. 2:7)
- It shall be, in that day,” says the Lord, “That you will call Me ‘My Husband,’ And no longer call Me ‘My Master.’ ” (Hos. 2:16)
This verse sums it up nicely:
“Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry and children of harlotry, for the land has committed great harlotry by departing from YHVH.” (Hosea 1:2)
Fornicating with Kings
Fornication is a Bible metaphor for being unfaithful to God through the practice of idolatry. When God’s people worship idols or follow false religions, as described above, it is described metaphorically as committing adultery or fornication, which leads to one being called a harlot.
When temples to idols were built on the high places and hill country of Judah it led God’s people to commit idolatry. As you can see by the verses below, idolatry was described metaphorically as whoredom, prostitution, fornication, harlotry, and unfaithfulness. When you see these words used in the Bible they usually mean idolatry.
Below are several different translations of 2 Chronicles 21:11. Each translation uses a different word that is synonymous with unfaithfulness to God as the husband of His people. As you can see by these verses (from Biblehub.com), different Bible translations use different words in place of adultery but each has the same meaning.
English Standard Version
Moreover, he made high places in the hill country of Judah and led the inhabitants of Jerusalem into whoredom and made Judah go astray.
Berean Study Bible
Jehoram had also built high places on the hills of Judah; he had caused the people of Jerusalem to prostitute themselves and had led Judah astray.
King James Bible
Moreover he made high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication, and compelled Judah thereto.
New King James Version
Moreover he made high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit harlotry, and led Judah astray.
New American Standard Bible
Furthermore, he made high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be unfaithful, and led Judah astray.
Fornication, whoredom, and prostitution are the same thing.
High Places Are Temples To False Gods, Often Under Spreading Trees, With Idols Made Of Wood and Stone
‘Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed fornication with stone and wood.‘
The verse above describes Israel committing adultery with stone and wood. When we see references to stone and wood it means idols made from stone and wood. Under spreading trees and on high places are places where idolatry is committed.
“They say, ‘If a man divorces his wife, and she goes from him and becomes another man’s, may he return to her again?’ Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers; yet return to Me,” says the Lord. (Jer. Jer. 3:1)
Israel was continually accused of harlotry. Her unfaithfulness was so extensive that the Old Testament books by the prophets are largely one instance after another of God rebuking His harlot wives, Israel and Judah, for going up onto high mountains and under spreading trees, with abominations (idols) made of wood and stone, and committing metaphorical “adultery” against Him.
As you’ll see in the verses below, Biblically speaking, the symbolic use of a harlot always depicts people of God who practice idolatry or false religions.
They will play the harlot, but not increase, because they gave up devoting themselves to the LORD. Infidelity, wine, and new wine take away the understanding. My people consult their wooden idol, and their diviner’s wand informs them; For a spirit of infidelity has led them astray, And they have been unfaithful, departing from their God. They offer sacrifices on the tops of the mountains And burn incense on the hills, Under oak, poplar, and terebinth, Because their shade is pleasant.
Therefore your daughters play the prostitute, And your brides commit adultery. I will not punish your daughters when they play the prostitute, Or your brides when they commit adultery, Because the men themselves slip away with the prostitutes. And offer sacrifices with temple prostitutes;
So the people without understanding are ruined. Though you, Israel, play the prostitute, Judah must not become guilty; Also you are not to go to Gilgal, Nor go up to Beth-aven And take the oath: “As the LORD lives!” Since Israel is stubborn Like a stubborn cow, Will the LORD now pasture them Like a lamb in a large field? Ephraim is allied with idols; Leave him alone. Their liquor is gone, They prostitute themselves continually; Their rulers dearly love shame. The wind wraps them in its wings, And they will be put to shame because of their sacrifices.” Hosea 4
Babylon is accused of “fornicating with kings” and this can be seen in her unholy union with the Roman Empire where the apostate church’s theolgy/idolatry is enshrined as the Imperial Religion of Rome.
Demons and Deception
The hallmark of the apostasy is one of deception. 1 Timothy 4 says that the fallen church would follow “deceiving spirits and a doctrine of demons”. They would go from the true faith to a false doctrine.
Revelation says the great harlots is ‘a lair for demons and a haunt for every unclean spirit.’
Evidence that Babylon used deception to deceive the world comes through massive evidence of Bible corruptions. Significantly, virtually all significant Bible corruptions are related to supporting the Trinity.
This is significant! And worth saying again: Virtually all Bible corruptions are related to supporting the Trinity.
And Babylon is to blame: Many of the major and significant Bible corruptions were introduced during a time when the Roman Catholic Church held significant power and influence over the Church and its teachings. For example, the Codex Vaticanus and the Codex Sinaiticus, two of the oldest and most significant manuscripts of the Bible, were both discovered and kept by the Roman Catholic Church. These manuscripts have been found to contain numerous corruptions, including changes to key theological doctrines such as the nature of Christ and the Trinity. Described in detail here.
Other examples of Bible corruptions made to support Babylon’s theology include the addition of the Apocrypha to the Old Testament canon, changes to the text of the Lord’s Prayer, and the omission of key verses that contradict Catholic doctrines, such as the doctrine of Purgatory.
For example, the doctrine of Purgatory is a teaching within Catholicism that refers to a temporary state of purification after death, in which souls undergo a process of cleansing to prepare them for heaven. However, there are several key verses in the Bible that contradict this doctrine, such as:
- Hebrews 9:27, which states that “it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” This verse implies that there is no intermediate state of purification after death.
- 2 Corinthians 5:8, which says that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. This verse suggests that when believers die, they are immediately present with God.
- Luke 23:43, in which Jesus tells the thief on the cross, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” This verse seems to suggest that there is no intermediate state of purification before entering heaven.
While it’s important to note that not all Bible corruptions are directly related to supporting Catholic theology, some are simply copying errors; however, the influence of the Catholic Church on the corruption of the Bible cannot be ignored.
In 1 Timothy 4:1-3, it is written that “in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons which come through liars…” This passage warns of false teachings and doctrines that will mislead people through deception. These Bible corruptions fulfill the prophecy of the liars who were foretold to cause the apostasy (also known as the counterfeit tares that Satan has placed within the body of Christ to reduce the harvest) by leading the faithful astray through deception.
Similarly, Revelation 18:23 describes Babylon as deceiving “all nations’ through her ‘sorcery.’ The word “sorcery” refers to the power of evil spirits and is often associated with deception and trickery. In Revelation 18:3, Babylon is also described as “a dwelling for demons and a haunt for every impure spirit.” This idea reinforces the notion that Babylon represents a spiritual entity characterized by deception and demonic influence, which is exactly how the apostate church fulfilled the prophecy of apostasy.
The apostate church was led astray through lies and deception, through deceiving spirits and demons. Babylon is the apostate church and she deceived all the nations through lies and deception fueled by the power of deceiving spirits.
Come I will Show You the Punishment of the Great Prostitute
The Body of Christ represents God’s people. Babylon represents the fallen church that departed from the faith.
“Come,” he said, “I will show you the judgment upon the great harlot (some translations say prostitute), who is seated on deep waters. (Revelation 17:1)
Abominations and Detestable Things are Idols and False Religion
The following verse is a perfect example of “abominations” and detestable things.
And there I saw the glory of the God of Israel, like the vision I had seen in the plain. “Son of man,” He said to me, “now lift up your eyes to the north.”
So I lifted up my eyes to the north, and in the entrance north of the Altar Gate I saw this idol of jealousy.
“Son of man,” He said to me, “do you see what they are doing—the great abominations that the house of Israel is committing—to drive Me far from My sanctuary? Yet you will see even greater abominations.”
Then He brought me to the entrance to the court, and I looked and saw a hole in the wall.
“Son of man,” He told me, “dig through the wall.”
So I dug through the wall and discovered a doorway.
Then He said to me, “Go in and see the wicked abominations they are committing here.”
So I went in and looked, and engraved all around the wall was every kind of crawling creature and detestable beast, along with all the idols of the house of Israel.
The portion of scripture above is a reference to Israel committing idolatry. Their objects of idolatry are called abominations and detestable things. Then, God says that Ezekiel will see even greater abominations and tells Ezekiel to dig through the wall. When he digs through the wall he sees crawling creatures, detestable beasts, and idols. These “greater abominations” are all references to the detestable things of idolatry which is another metaphor for things that defile God’s people.
In fact, Paul begins to make mention of the false doctrines at the same time that the first
Babylon has followed suit and is the world epicenter of false religion and idolatry.
Biblical scholars such as Alan James Beagley, David Chilton, J. Massyngberde Ford, Peter Gaskell, Kenneth Gentry, Edmondo Lupieri, Bruce Malina, Iain Provan, J. Stuart Russell, Milton S. Terry point out … that the symbolism of the harlot refers to an apostate false queen, a former “bride” who has been unfaithful and who, even though she has been divorced and cast out because of unfaithfulness, continues to falsely claim to be the “queen” of the spiritual realm. (Wikipedia)
The irony is that this group has the appearance of godliness because of their “works”. They forbid marriage out of “devotion” to God. They encourage fasting because fasting is required to make them righteous.
With her, the kings of the earth committed adultery. (Rev 18:3)
The Two Opposing Doctrines Leads to the Great Arian Controversy
Eventually, c. 325 AD, the magnitude of the division caused by the two opposing doctrines caused such a stir in the Roman Empire that it came to Emperor Constantine’s attention and he became involved in settling the dispute. Constantine’s concern was for the peace of his empire. His ego was of legendary proportions, and anything that threatened his legacy was dealt with swiftly.
Constantine decided that the matter would be settled once and for all by calling all the church elders together to deal with the issues causing the controversy. This council is now known as the infamous Council of Nicaea.
The Council was called mainly to decide if Jesus was God or not. More than 1,800 church leaders from all over the empire were invited to the council. Less than twenty percent of those invited showed up to vote.
During the Council, and after a seemingly endless debate, with no foreseeable end, Constantine urged those present to end the controversy by voting.
Apparently, those in attendance knew how the Emperor wanted the vote to go because Eusebius of Nicomedia wrote to Constantine and said, “We committed an impious act, O Prince, by subscribing to a blasphemy for fear of you.” (‘Are you Really that Stupid? Observations of a Skeptical Believer‘ by Dr. Joshua Christian)
Eusebius admitted that he and his associates voted for the Catholic doctrine because they were afraid of what would happen if they didn’t.
Their fears were well-founded.
It was at this point that the Emperor Constantine, who had convened the council, stepped in and sided with Athanasius. He argued that everyone present should sign the new creed that stated Jesus was of the same exact essence (Homoousios) as the Father: “Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten not made, by the Father as his only Son, of the same essence (Homoousios) with the Father, God of God, Light of Light.”
Constantineʼs desire to deify Jesus was not in the least surprising. It was a natural carry over from his pagan past when he had his father, Constantius, deified. It is thus natural that he would want to see the founder of his new religion put on the same pedestal as well. Constantine added that whoever agreed to the new creed would be invited to his twentieth anniversary celebration, while those who did not agree would face immediate banishment.
As a result, all but seventeen die-hard Arians signed the new creed. One can only speculate how many of the bishops signed due to Constantineʼs threat. We do know that many of the bishops who agreed initially, due to the emperorʼs threat, withdrew their agreements after returning to their own cities. Thus Eusebius, one of the signatories to the new creed, wrote (on behalf of himself and two other bishops) to Constantine upon return to Nicomedia: “We committed an impious act, O Prince, by subscribing to a blasphemy for fear of you.” Whatever may be the reaction of the bishops who signed the formula unwillingly, the emperor was quick to act. He ordered the banishment of Arius and the burning of his writings. The leading Arian bishops were also deposed.
https://etb-biblical-errancy.blogspot.com/2012/03/arian-controversy-theodosian-code.html
Eusebius’ letter is evidence that those present knew how Constantine wanted the vote to go and, of those in attendance, only three had the courage to vote against the Trinity.
After the Nicaean Council vote, the fears of those who voted under duress were substantiated when the Emperor exiled the men who refused to vote for the Trinity.
The false gospel of Jesus that Paul worked so hard to eliminate was now the official doctrine of “Christianity” within the Roman Empire.
To ensure that the newly made doctrine stuck, Constantine created the Edict Against Arians which ordered that any and all literature that promoted the Arian version of God be destroyed by fire, and anyone who did not hand over the documents for destruction would be put to death.
In addition, if any writing composed by Arius should be found, it should be handed over to the flames, so that not only will the wickedness of his teaching be obliterated, but nothing will be left even to remind anyone of him. And I hereby make a public order, that if someone should be discovered to have hidden a writing composed by Arius, and not to have immediately brought it forward and destroyed it by fire, his penalty shall be death. As soon as he is discovered in this offence, he shall be submitted for capital punishment. …— Edict by Emperor Constantine against the Arians
Next: The Evidence: Babylon deceived all the nations.
References
It’s important to note that ‘Revelation‘ originally refers to itself as a scroll. The word ‘scroll’ is now translated ‘book’ in many translations but it’s important to note the distinction between scroll vs book because ‘Revelation‘ was its own separate entity before being compiled into the Bible.
The final contents of the Bible were decided upon after the Catholic Church became the official church of the Roman Empire in the fourth century under Constantine’s rule. Prior to that, the individual books of the Bible were separate books written by separate authors.
After the contents of the Bible canon were decided upon, the first official codex was translated into Latin by Jerome and produced on vellum into books (not scrolls) like the one you see below.
Codex Vaticanus – The Bible of the Fourth Century
Prior to this, all of the books which were later compiled into the Bible were written on individual scrolls without an intention to become part of a larger complete work. The authors who wrote the original letters (now called books) had no plans for them to become a part of a later book called the Bible.
The Book of Revelation Endorses Itself as the Book Sent From God, Which His People are Meant to Follow
Revelation 1.
3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy (the book of Revelation), and blessed are those who hear and obey what is written in it, because the time is near.
Revelation 12
Her children are the ones who keep God’s commands and hold on to the testimony of Jesus (Revelation 1 says that the book of Revelation is the testimony of Jesus)
Revelation 22
I am a fellow servant with … those who keep the words of this scroll.
God’s people are called to follow and obey the book of Revelation.
Obey What Is Written In It
Keeping the commands in Revelation is pretty simple because there is only one command within Revelation directed to all of God’s people. It is the last command from God and the only command from God to all of His people in the New Testament.
Why only one command? Because God promised (Jeremiah 31) that under the New Covenant His people would no longer follow written laws and instead God’s people would know and follow Him.
Proof that Revelation Came from God and Not Men:
Ancient Prophecies Come to Pass Over Hundreds and Thousands of Years
People say that there is no proof that Revelation is from God, some even say that John ate some bad berries on Patmos and was tripping. But, neither is true.
The proof that Revelation is of divine origins is in the prophecies. If Revelation truly is sent from God, then, the prophecies contained within Revelation will come to pass.
And many of them already have.
Using Forensic Research to Date the Publication of Revelation
We can establish if the prophecies within Revelation are divine in origin by first establishing when Revelation was written. Knowing the date of its publication is important because giving a prophecy after an event has already taken place is not much of a prophecy.
According to Bible scholars, Revelation (or ‘Apocalypse of John‘, as it is also known) was written at the end of the first century, c. 90 A.D.
Instead of trying to establish an exact date, which is nigh near impossible, we simply need to know if Revelation was written before the prophecies came to pass. We can accomplish this by doing a search back through history to discover the first times that the contents of Revelation were quoted.
The First Quote of the Contents of Revelation C. 180 A.D.
“Church Father” Irenaeus/Irenæus, Bishop of Lugdunum, wrote and published ‘Against Heresies – Book V,’ sometime in the neighborhood of 180 A.D.
In Chapter V of his book, Irenaeus makes mention that Revelation (then called the ‘Apocalypse of John’) was published ‘at the end of Domitian’s reign‘. He also mentions very specific details written in Revelation, such as the beast with the number ‘666’ and other specific details of the book, making it clear that Revelation was written by the time Irenaeus quoted the book (c. 180 A.D.), at the latest.
This date is important because approximately 150 years after Irenaeus quotes the “Apocalypse of John” the prophecies regarding Babylon began to come to pass.
Thus, Irenaeus’ quotes provide sufficient evidence that Revelation was written well before any of the prophecies contained within had come to pass.
As you’ll see by the prophetic evidence in later sections, Revelation and its message are 100% reliable, God sent every word, and it is still unfolding before our very eyes.
Babylon’s Identity & The Evidence
Babylon was able to deceive the world because of the amount of time that she had to do it. Over the course of more than 1,000 years, Babylon
Passing down the deception was easy because most believers don’t study church history. Most people never research if what they believe is true. Many people believe certain things simply because that’s what momma believed, or daddy believed, or maybe it was what grandmomma believed – whatever the case, they passed those beliefs to their children; and those children, along with millions of others, never question what they are taught, they simply belie
If you or I ask “believers” why they believe what they do, they’ll quote this scripture or that scripture. But, largely, they believe simply because that’s what they’ve been taught and not because they have a clear understanding of the foundation of their faith or any proof that what they believe is true. Many people blindly believe what they’ve been told and they never take the time to critically research for themselves if what they’ve been taught is actually true. (Raising my hand, me, I am “they”.)
Because of this, it’s easy to keep people deceived and to multiply and to pass on that deception to future generations – which is what Babylon has done.
The book of Revelation was a vision given to John the Revelator while he was stranded on the island of Patmos and seeing visions of a crazy bad future for humanity while furiously scribbling the details into his scroll.
The book ‘Revelation‘, originally called Apocalypse of John, is a single work in the form of a scroll (now called, book) written by John the Revelator.
Revelation is different from all the other books of the New Testament in that it is the only New Testament book that states that it is sent directly from God and endorsed by God.
Revelation 1:1-2
This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John, 2 who testifies to everything he saw. This is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.
1.) Revelation is the revelation of Jesus Christ
2.) God gave the revelation to Jesus, to show His servants what will soon come to pass.
3.) Jesus made it known by sending His angel to His servant John.
4.) John Testifies to everything He saw:
Revelation is ‘the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.’ (Remember this part because the book of Revelation refers to the testimony of Jesus in Chapter 12.)
‘Come out of her, My People.’
The above scripture is taken from Revelation 18, and it is the only instruction straight from God’s lips to all of His New Covenant people in the entire New Testament. This instruction is so important that it is literally the only instruction from God in the entire New Testament and it comes with a warning that whoever doesn’t follow it will be destroyed.
‘COME OUT OF HER, MY PEOPLE’
God said to come out of Babylon. It’s the ONLY command in all the NT straight from God’s mouth to everyone so this should be our number one priority.
Who is ‘her’?
‘Her’, is the great harlot, Babylon.
Babylon is the “her” that God’s people are called to come out of. She is an idolatrous, apostate, harlot who has fallen from the true faith of God’s people to become a demon-led abomination to God.
Identifying Babylon is vitally important. It wouldn’t be fair for the Most-High to command His people to ‘Come out of her’ but then fail to reveal her identity. So, God described her as she would be in the very last days by providing a multitude of details. These details make it easy to identify who she is so that there can be no mistake and so there can be no excuse for those who refuse to come out of her.
BABYLON IS THE FALLEN (APOSTATE) CHURCH FORETOLD IN 1 TIMOTHY
1 Timothy 4 records a prophecy that the body of Christ would be split when some people fell away from the true faith of God’s people to follow a religious doctrine birthed by demons.
1 Timothy 4 – Prophecy of Apostasy
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.
Many people in Christendom refer to this passage in 1 Timothy 4 as the prophecy of the Great Apostasy – and they are still waiting for it to happen. But when we take a look back over the history of the church, it reveals that there already was a gigantic split within the body of Christ and each detail of this prophecy was fulfilled by that split in a big way.
THE NICENE CONTROVERSY IS THE BIRTH OF BABYLON & THE FULFILLMENT OF APOSTASY
First, some of the church was prophesied to depart from the faith of God’s people to a ‘doctrine of demons.’
Second, those who departed to the false ‘doctrine of demons’ were foretold to be led astray by a man who advocated for “abstaining from foods’ and ‘forbidding marriage.’
Both of these things happened during the most famous controversy in church history.
The Flood Of Falsity Is The Path To Apostasy & The Nicene Controversy
After Jesus’ death, the apostles planted small churches throughout the Roman Empire. Each apostle ministered to their brood and, especially in the case of Paul – who spent a lot of time ministering from prison, sometimes circumstances dictated that the apostles ministered by letter. As a result, Paul’s letters provide evidence of the seeds of the apostasy also known as the birth of Babylon.
While Paul was still ministering, and as the church grew and spread into the pagan world, differing gospels began to emerge that conflicted with what the apostles taught. The false gospels (as Paul called them) sprang up during Paul’s ministry, evidence of which shows up repeatedly in his epistles to the churches. Those false gospels frustrated Paul because he knew they were circulating and people believed them.
In his epistles, Paul railed against the false brethren who spread the false version of Jesus and the false gospels.
18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, 19 for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. (1 Corinthians)
“..we have heard that some persons have gone out from us and troubled you with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions..” (Acts)
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.
9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. (Galatians)
6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— (Galatians)
“For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.” (2 Corinthians)
So, when Paul discovered that heretics were trying to lead his flock astray he repeatedly set them all straight with a reminder of the truth.
The One and Only True Gospel
Now, brothers and sisters,
I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance:
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve.
6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
9 For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11 Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.
Babylon, False Religion of the Roman Empire
God commanded His people to come out of Babylon and He made it possible for her to be identified through the numerous details provided for us in chapters 17 and 18 of Revelation.
The book of Revelation was written at the end of the first century, c. 90 AD. The details that John recorded in these chapters were not details of a familiar entity because Babylon (as she is described by John) would not exist for hundreds of years. On the contrary, the descriptions that were provided to him by the angel were a prophecy of the future.
At the time that John saw the vision and wrote the Apocalypse of John (now known as Revelation), nothing on Earth bore even a tiny resemblance to Babylon’s description nor would it for hundreds of more years. It would take hundreds of years for each detail of the prophecies within chapters 17 and 18 to become a reality – but, today, thousands of years later, every detail used to describe Babylon almost 2,000 years ago makes it easy to identify her.
Babylon Began As The Catholic Church
Babylon committed harlotry by following false demonic doctrines and fornicating (committing idolatry) with Kings
The Details Used to Describe The Great Harlot Babylon as she would be at the End Times
Following these details is an explanation of each and how it is fulfilled with present-day Babylon.
1Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters.
Detail # 1: Babylon is a great harlot.
2 The kings of the earth were immoral with her,
Detail # 2: She Committed Immorality with Kings
and those who dwell on the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her immorality.”
Detail # 3: People are intoxicated with the wine of her immorality. Hosea 4
3 And the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, where I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.
Detail # 4 – She is represented by the body of a woman.
4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet
Detail # 5: She is dressed in scarlet and purple.
and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls
Detail # 6: She is adorned with Gold and Precious Stones and Pearls
She held in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality
Detail # 7: In her hand is a gold cup (7a) filled with abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. (7b)
5 And on her forehead a mysterious name was written:
BABYLON THE GREAT,
THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
Detail #8: She has a mysterious name – Babylon the Great
Detail # 9: She is a “Mother”
Detail # 10: And she has given birth to other prostitutes and abominations.
6 I could see that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and witnesses for Jesus. And I was utterly amazed at the sight of her.
Detail # 11: She has killed God’s people.
7 “Why are you so amazed?” said the angel. “I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.
9 This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits
Detail # 12: Babylon sits on seven mountains
15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute was seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.
Detail # 13: The waters are multitudes of peoples, in multitudes of nations and tongues.
18 And the woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”
Detail # 14: Babylon is a Great City that Rules over the kings of the Earth
1 After this I saw another angel descending from heaven with great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his glory. 2And he cried out in a mighty voice:
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
Detail # 15: Babylon is fallen.
She has become a lair for demons
and a haunt for every unclean spirit,
Detail # 16: She is filled with demons.
3 All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality.
Detail # 17: People from every nation have literally drunk the wine of her immorality.
The kings of the earth were immoral with her,
Detail # 18: The Kings of the Earth were immoral with her.
and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from the extravagance of her luxury.”
Detail # 19: She has made merchants rich.
THE LAST COMMANDMENT
4Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
so that you will not share in her sins
or contract any of her plagues.
5For her sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her iniquities.
6Give back to her as she has done to others;
pay her back double for what she has done;
mix her a double portion in her own cup.
7 As much as she has glorified herself and lived in luxury,
give her the same measure of torment and grief.
In her heart she says, ‘I sit as queen;
I am not a widow and will never see grief.’
8Therefore her plagues will come in one day—
and she will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
FURTHER PROPHECY OF THINGS STILL YET TO HAPPEN
(AFTER THE TEN KINGS GIVE THEIR POWER TO THE BEAST)
9Then the kings of the earth who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her will weep and wail at the sight of the smoke rising from the fire that consumes her. 10 In fear of her torment, they will stand at a distance and cry out:
11And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, because there is no one left to buy their cargo— 12 cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls; of fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet; of all kinds of citron wood and every article of ivory, precious wood, bronze, iron, and marble; 13 of cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, and frankincense; of wine, olive oil, fine flour, and wheat; of cattle, sheep, horses, and chariots; of slaves and souls of men. 14 And they will say:
“The fruit of your soul’s desire
all your luxury and splendor have vanished,
15 The merchants who sold these things and grew their wealth from her will stand at a distance, in fear of her torment. They will weep and mourn, 16 saying:
clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet,
adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls!
such fabulous wealth has been destroyed!”
Every shipmaster, passenger, and sailor, and all who make their living from the sea, will stand at a distance 18 and cry out at the sight of the smoke rising from the fire that consumes her. “What city was ever like this great city?” they will exclaim.
19Then they will throw dust on their heads as they weep and mourn and cry out:
where all who had ships on the sea
20 Rejoice over her, O heaven,
O saints and apostles and prophets,
because God has pronounced for you
21Then a mighty angel picked up a stone the size of a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying:
the great city of Babylon will be cast down,
22And the sound of harpists and musicians,
Detail # 20: Musicians play inside of her.
of flute players and trumpeters,
will never ring out in you again.
Nor will any craftsmen of any trade
Detail # 21: She employs crafstmen and builders.
Detail # 22: Flour is ground within her.
will never shine in you again,
and the voices of a bride and bridegroom
Detail #23: Weddings are held inside of her.
will never call out in you again.
For your merchants were the great ones of the earth,
Detail # 24: Merchants LOVE her,
because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.”
Detail # 25: She deceived all the nations.
24 And there was found in her the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who had been slain on the earth.
BABYLON REVEALED
Instead of explaining the details in numerical order, we’ve separated the details, 1 – 25, into two groups:
Group One contains simple details which are easy to explain and identify.
Group Two contains the details that are a large part of church history. These details are very important and significant but need an explanation for those who are not familiar with the common Bible metaphors employed in the description of Babylon.
Detail # 1: Babylon is a great harlot.
Detail # 2: She Committed Immorality with Kings,
Detail # 3: People are intoxicated with the wine of her immorality. Hosea 4
Detail # 4 – She is represented by the body of a woman.
Detail # 5: She is dressed in scarlet and purple.
Detail # 6: She is adorned with Gold and Precious Stones and Pearls.
Detail # 7: In her hand is a gold cup (7a) filled with abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. (7b)
Detail #8: She has Mysterious Name, Babylon the Great.
Detail # 9: She is a “Mother” of others who are prostitutes like her.
Detail # 10: And she has given birth to other prostitutes and abominations.
Detail # 11: She has killed God’s people.
Detail # 12: Babylon sits on a scarlet beast with seven heads meaning seven mountains.
Detail # 13: The waters are multitudes of peoples, multitudes of nations and tongues.
Detail # 14: Babylon is a Great City that Rules over the kings of the Earth.
Detail # 15: Babylon is fallen.
Detail # 16: She is full of demons.
Detail # 17: People from every nation have literally drunk the wine of her immorality.
Detail # 18: The Kings of the Earth were immoral with her.
Detail # 19: She has made merchants rich.
Detail # 20: Musicians play inside of her.
Detail # 21: She employs crafstmen and builders.
Detail # 22: Flour is ground within her.
Detail #23: Lamps/Weddings are held inside of her.
Detail # 24: Merchants LOVE her,
Detail # 25: She deceived all the nations.
Common Bible Metaphors
Group One: The Simple Details
Detail #8: She has a mysterious name – Babylon the Great
Many people in Christendom refer to this passage in 1 Timothy 4 as the prophecy of the Great Apostasy and it is characterized by:
- Some who fell away fell away from another part of the church.
- Those who fell away are following a doctrine of demons.
- The group that follows the men ‘who forbid marriage and who advocate abstaining from foods‘ are the side of the church that is following the doctrines of demons.
The Church of Rome fits all three.
1.) Was there another group that Babylon broke away from?
Yes!
As shown below, prior to the Nicene council, the majority of the church rejected the Catholic doctrine of the Trinity and clung to the belief in One God.
2.) Is the Catholic doctrine contrary to apostle’s version?
Yes.
3.) Were the leaders of the Catholic faith men who advocated for the doctrines described in 1 Timothy 4?
Yes.
When we think of a religious group that forbids marriage, what is the first group that comes to mind? Catholic priests?
Does this group also practice abstaining from foods?
Yes, Lent.
The Nicene Controversy: The hijacking of ‘the faith’.
14 But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets. (Acts)
“5 indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is but ***one God, the Father,*** from whom all things were created, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we exist through Him.” (1 Corinthians 8:4-6)
Try as he might to squash them through his letters, as pagan converts grew, the false gospels continued to spread.
Other prophecies of Babylon
The Wheat and the Tares
“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
Some Bibles have removed ‘tares‘ and replaced it with ‘weeds‘ but that’s a sad rendering because the word ‘tare’ is important – a tare looks exactly like wheat. The two pictures below are very similar (one of wheat, one of tares), and they reveal how hard it is to tell tares and wheat apart.
This was the first prophecy of the future apostate church: The wheat represents the real faith of God’s people while the tares represent those that departed from it.
The parable of Tares was a prophecy of the future and it perfectly describes what satan did to oppose God. Jesus used the story of the wheat and the tares to reveal that satan would plant people who looked like (and truly believed they are) followers of God but who are following deceiving spirits. Because they are deceived as 1 Timothy foretold, they don’t know that they are being used to reduce the harvest of true followers of God by spreading a false gospel and a false religion and thus helping evil forces to lead others astray. These same tares are the false brethren who Paul railed against for spreading false gospels and the different version of Jesus.
As foretold the two groups, monotheists along with Babylon, still exist side by side and as foretold, these two groups still remain and will until Jesus returns.
The tares and wheat are also foretold as the two women of Revelation: Israel and Babylon
The War in Heaven
7Then a war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But the dragon was not strong enough, and no longer was any place found in heaven for him and his angels. 9 And the great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
10And I heard a loud voice in heaven saying:
“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of His Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down—
he who accuses them day and night before our God.
11 They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony.
And they did not love their lives
so as to shy away from death.
12Therefore rejoice, O heavens,
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea;
with great fury the devil has come down to you,
knowing he has only a short time.”
13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle to fly from the presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.
15 Then from the mouth of the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent. 16But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow up the river that had poured from the dragon’s mouth. 17And the dragon was enraged at the woman, and went to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea. (Revelation 12)
Revelation 18 describes the great harlot, Babylon – while the chapter above (chapter 12) describes Israel.
In the chapter above, the woman with the sun, the moon under her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head is Israel. The symbols she wore are from Joseph’s dream in Genesis.
After satan was thrown down to the Earth, he pursued God’s people and spewed a flood to overtake her and sweep her away. This flood was the flood of tares (false brethren) that satan sent into the harvest.
It’s pretty easy to identify the false version of Jesus. It disagrees with what Paul said.
As we shared earlier, the first evidence of false gospels and false versions of Jesus began during the first century and were recorded in the epistles written by Paul (and others.)
During the second half of the first century, a prophecy of apostasy is written (1 Timothy 4), which foretold a part of the church departing from the faith to a different and extremely ascetic doctrine (born of demons.)
Approximately a hundred years later, give or take, evidence that the apostasy was in full swing appears in Tertullian’s book, ‘Against Praxaes,’ and the two totally different versions of Jesus’ (which were first mentioned by Paul) divide the church.
The Flood Of False Doctrines Was Spewed From The Mouth Of Satan
The War in Heaven
7Then a war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But the dragon was not strong enough, and no longer was any place found in heaven for him and his angels. 9 And the great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
10And I heard a loud voice in heaven saying:
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of His Christ.
“Now have come the salvation and the power
For the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down—
he who accuses them day and night before our God.
11 They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony.
And they did not love their lives
so as to shy away from death.
12Therefore rejoice, O heavens,
and you who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea;
with great fury the devil has come down to you,
knowing he has only a short time.”
The Woman Persecuted
13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle to fly from the presence of the serpent to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, and times, and half a time.
15 Then from the mouth of the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent. 16But the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth to swallow up the river that had poured from the dragon’s mouth. 17And the dragon was enraged at the woman, and went to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
And the dragon stood on the shore of the sea.