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Introduction to the 18^th Chapter:

a. Another angel comes from heaven to tell of the fall of mystical Babylon.
b.A voice from heaven calls out the people of God to keep them from harm.
c.The wicked mourn over fallen Babylon as she is destroyed.
d.The church is called upon to rejoice over the destruction of this city.

1: And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
It is God that has determined to destroy this harlot called Babylon. Her sins have come up before him to bring her into judgment. Another angel comes down from heaven and he has great power. The light that is coming from him is enough to light up the earth. If this isn’t Christ as some suppose that he is, then he must be Michael the Arc Angel who was to stand for Daniel’s people at the end of time (Daniel 12: 1).

The city called Babylon or Mystery, Babylon is destroyed at the time of the rapture of the Church when nations are gathered together at the time of Armageddon around Jerusalem. This is found in Revelation 14: 8, 16: 19, and 17: 16.

2: And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
The angel in Revelation 14: 8 said a similar thing;

8: And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city---.

In this text it tells us that Babylon the harlot has become a cage for devils and foul spirits, a place where evil ungodly people practice their evil deeds. The reason it is a cage is because they will not escape the judgment of God. They are trapped by their own wickedness and held prisoners in their own corruption, like birds in a cage.

3: For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
In Revelation 14: 18 is says something very similar to this concerning the wine of the wrath of her fornication.

8: And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.

All nations are not intended, as this is synecdoche meaning that all the nations that were influenced by her will suffer the wrath of God right along with her because they have committed fornication with her. Her fornication is the worship of Idols and the distortion of God’s Holy Word. Blasphemous practices preventing others from being born again by the Spirit God.

The merchants of the earth have become rich because of her need for wealth and power.

This is spiritual merchandise, by which multitudes have wickedly lived in wealth, by the sins and follies of mankind, seems to be the meaning of this.

4: And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
The revealing of this scripture brings me joy because for many years I did not understand it. By going back to chapter 16 at the time of the 7^th vial of wrath we are able to understand what the real meaning of this is.

17: And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.

18: And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.

19: And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.

It is done in verse 17 is saying that it is over. In Revelation 10 we are told at the beginning of the sounding of the 7^th trumpet that time would be no more. This means that space of time that God has given to mankind to repent and turn to Christ is over. This happens at this time. An earthquake, verse 18, follows the Rapture as graves are torn open the righteous are caught up to meet Christ in the air. Verse 19 tells us that at this time Babylon comes into remembrance before God to her his wrath.

The voice that John hears from heaven saying, Come out of her, my people, is actually Christ calling the true believers in Christ out of Rome up to be with him in the air. This is the time of the Rapture of the Church. We are not appointed unto wrath, but to obtain salvation. He calls the church out moments before he destroys the city. He will not only destroy part of this city with an earthquake at the time of the Rapture of the church but, the ten kings of the beast will set her on fire. Perhaps this burning will be caused by missiles that are fired at her from the people of the Antichrist.

5: For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
This is a time for God to remember. God is slow to anger and because he is slow to pour out his wrath some people believes that he has forgotten. But God will remember and will repay those who oppress and harm his people. This harlot has blinded many in the past to bring about the destruction of many and God will remember her sins.

6: Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
God is going to punish her double. Why would he do this? There are several reasons for this. According to Matthew 23: 14-15, God will punish those who lead others, through deception, to destruction with a greater punishment than those who are just sinners

7: How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
She glorifies herself rather than God. The Pope is suppose to be Christ on earth you must confess your sins to her priests rather than to Christ. She robs God of his glory by sending others to her priest and Mary rather than to Christ himself. She robs his glory by making people believe that he does not listen to them when they call on him, but that they should go to Mary because she is his mother and will be able to help you.

She is rich because many rich men pay to have loved ones who have died forgiven of their sins. She teaches others to give their wealth to her so that they can have peace with God. She has convinced herself that she is right in her thinking and that Christ is her husband and will not allow anything to happen to her.

8: Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
God is not impressed with what she believes. She was given the opportunity to follow the truth but chose to follow the path of men rather than the path of God.

9: And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
The leaders of the earth that have believed her doctrine and have lived in lustfully in their sins because of her lies will weep for her when they see her burning. There could be many ways to see her burning, possibly satellite TV.

10: Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
They watch this from afar off and do not come near because they are afraid that what is happening to her, may happen to them. This great city has come to a quick end in the time of her judment.

11: And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The merchants of the earth are the buyers and sellers of her goods. There are two ways to look at the destruction of this harlot. Merchants who love the message that the Catholic church has to sell, because it gives them license to sin, and the natural merchants who buy and sell their good in the city of Rome.

These who morn do not morn because of God’s judgment on her but because of the lose that they will have when it comes to things that they have been accustom to getting in materialism and license.

12: The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
Rome is the hub of world trade in the eastern part of the world. You can buy anything from the west or east, things from any continent in the world can be found in Rome. But there is one item that strikes my interest and that is the fine linen.

Revelation 19: 7: Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

8: And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

In the above verses we see that only the bride of Christ can wear fine linen. This tells us that fine linen can be found in the city of the harlot. In other words there are Christians there and that is because she herself used to be the true woman of faith, the church that the Apostle Paul wrote his letter to. She has become a harlot and has forsaken Christ to follow the doctrines of men.

13: And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.
Here we see a continuation of her delicacies but notice at the end of these, two unusual things, slaves and the souls of men.

She has brought men into captivity through deceitful teachings and they are held prisoners and slaves to her doctrines that will lead to their destruction. Why because she holds the souls of these in her hand and as she is destroyed they will be destroyed as well.

14: And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
The evil things that these people desired from this city and her religion are taken away from them in one moment in time to never come back again. They will never be able to find these things again.

15: The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
The merchants who watch the burning of the city of Rome will stand afar off for the fear of being destroyed along with her. They are weeping and wailing but it is not because they are saddened by her destruction but, because of the things that they wanted from her so that they could prophet. It is their loss and they know it.

16: And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
If you will remember fine linen is the righteousness of the Saints. So accordingly that great city that once was a city that belonged to Christ and was dressed in fine linen, who later became dressed with the wealth and riches of this world has been destroyed. Those that loved her sinful practices and who profited through her merchandise lament for her.

17: For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
Rome sits very close to the western shore of Italy down on the boot. This is why sailors and shipmasters that are merchants will be able to see her burning. They will be in the Mediterranean Sea afraid to come close for fear.

18: And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
They had had their hopes in her and now they are left without any place to turn. They could have turned to God but now it is too late.

19: And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
To cast dust on their heads was a sign of humility, but no matter how much humility they may possess or how many tears they weep because they have lost their worldly riches it is too late. She is destroyed quickly.

20: Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
God calls for a rejoicing over her destruction. Notice he said thou heaven, this means those in heaven. This event has followed the rapture of the church and the saints are in heaven eating the marriage supper of the Lamb with Christ. He has avenged his people.

One author wrote a comment on this saying that it is amazing to think that the Catholic Church has encouraged prayer to the saints. Saints like Paul and Peter, the disciples of the Lord. But at this moment Paul and Peter will rejoice because she, the harlot is destroyed.

21: And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
This millstone is symbolic in nature especially designed to bring to our remembrance that it is better to be tied to a millstone and cast into the sea than to offend one of these little ones of mine. Because they have killed the innocent they are in grave danger. Rome, or Babylon will be destroyed with and earthquake, with fire from her enemies and hail weighing 100 lbs. Each will fall on the city as a harsh judgment on her for her sins.

22: And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
There will be no more pleasure or production, no more parties, no more laughter will ever be in this city again because she will be destroyed completely and will never rise again.

23: And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
The light of a candle is speaking of the true church preaching and teaching in her city. The voice of Christ that at this time is being enjoyed by the bride or saints in heaven will never be heard in this city again. Why? Because she preferred the world and it’s riches over Christ and is condemned.

24: And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
God holds her personally accountable for all the killing of the prophets, the saints and others who were killed during the Tribulation and before.

This sounds very similar to the same judgment that God placed on the religious leaders in Israel in Matthew 23:
27: Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.
28: Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
29: Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,
30: And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.
31: Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.
32: Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
33: Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
34: Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
35: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
36: Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

Did you notice the similarities between the religious leaders of Jerusalem in their day compared to the harlot in her day? We can certainly see that God is impartial in his judgment as well as his salvation.

God Bless You
Tommie Spurgeon

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