Revelation 17:14-18 comments: ten kings turn on Babylon

14 ¶  These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. 15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. 16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. 17  For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 18  And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

2Thessalonians 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming

These ten kings and the beast make war with Christ and His people who are called, chosen, and faithful. The verses are numerous but to be singled out by Christ for service, to be chosen by virtue of your willingness to answer that calling, and to stay true to the faith that He is God walking as God in the flesh on earth, and that salvation comes only through Him, is the essence of salvation and eternal life. They are predestinated by virtue of their belief and obedience to be like Him; called by the Holy Ghost, justified by faith, and glorified at the resurrection. One example is Romans 8:28-30.

These are those who have overcome, who believed on Christ until the end, even their own deaths, which you can see if you have been reading from the beginning.

They that are with him is another evidence that His people have been removed to Heaven to come back with Christ. This conquest of the ten kings and the beast comes after Mystery Babylon is destroyed by them.

Here is a classic metaphor for waters being a type of peoples. We can now go back and perhaps see the word sea as a mass of humanity and pay particular attention to earth as a metaphor in the following verses.

Revelation 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

Revelation 13:11  And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

Mystery Babylon rules over the earth as its administrative and religious center and the beast and his ten kings turn on it to destroy it. The next chapter deals with why God has ordained its destruction. Mystery Babylon is supported by the beast until he decides to turn on it to consolidate his power to make himself supreme. Totalitarian power does not like to share what it has gained.

Revelation 17:10-13 comments, part two: five more kings like the beast

10  And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11  And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12  And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13  These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

The third king who was of Satan’s mindset was the Pharaoh of Moses’ time. The Pharaoh of Egypt, who was a king, was not only the supreme judge and ruler of Egypt but he was the supreme religious leader of the kingdom and the mediator between man and the gods. Indeed, he was considered a god himself. The Pharaoh who contested Moses’ demands for freedom for the Hebrews defied God as judgments poured down on his kingdom as any casual reading of the book of Exodus will reveal, as does the beast of Revelation. Pharaoh and his army is destroyed quickly by God’s supernatural hand and the song of Moses which he sang after the Red Sea crossing is mentioned in Revelation 15:3 as we have seen. He is proud and defiant to God’s will and does not bend to terrible judgment on his people and kingdom.

The fourth king who followed in the path of Satan as an example of the beast to come was Sennacherib, the Assyrian. From 2Kings 18:13 through 2Kings 19:37 we see that through the Assyrian general, Rabshakeh, he mocked God and God’s people while at the same time claiming that it was God’s very will that was being done. It is helpful to read this brief passage in 2Kings. His army was destroyed in a moment of time, overnight, 185,000 Assyrians dead. Christ will destroy His enemies quickly, as well.

2Thessalonians 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Revelation 19:19  And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. 20  And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. 21  And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

The fifth type of the beast from whom the beast of Revelation comes following in Satan’s path is Nebuchadnezzar, aka Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon. Much is written in the Bible about him coming up against Jerusalem, destroying the temple of God, and of his eventually going mad and being restored to health. You can read about him from 2Kings through Daniel and see that he demanded worship through an image in Daniel. This is noteworthy and shows his place as a type of the beast of Revelation.

The sixth king, the one that is, the one who ruled when John was writing, is thought to be Domitian, persecutor of Christians according to later accounts, follower of the Imperial Cult of emperor worship. He was said to be called by sycophants, Lord and God. Under Domitian, John was exiled to Patmos, tradition says, after a failed attempt to boil him to death in oil. Domitian was the youngest son of Emperor Vespasian who fought the Jews, whose older son and future emperor Titus also was responsible for the destruction of the temple of Jesus’ day and the deaths of thousands upon thousands of Jews.

Now, we have a mystery for us. There is a seventh king who rules only a short time who is like the beast, who is of the line of proud boasting pagans that followed Satan’s way, but we don’t have his name. Who he is, is a matter of speculation. Perhaps he is yet to come or perhaps he is one of our more modern examples of types of the beast, like Hitler or Stalin, although their reigns were not comparatively brief.

But, the eighth king is the beast of Revelation. He is of the seven and shall have ten subordinate kings under him who will rule for a short time, giving all authority and power to the beast. They are all in agreement with him. Ten is traditionally considered to be the number representing the Gentiles and is an interesting discussion topic.

Revelation 17:10-13 comments: the first two of the five fallen kings; Cain and Nimrod

10  And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11  And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12  And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13  These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

In the ancient world, during the first half of human history as described in Genesis, there were domestic gods of the household, as Laban complained that his were stolen by Jacob in Genesis 31, and there were public gods of a city available only to those lawful residents of the city and their priest was, among other things, a king. He gave the public sacrifices and devotion as the father of the family gave the private. He may have had additional titles but he was above all, the chief of worship.(20)

(20) Numa Denis Fustel De Coulanges, The Ancient City, Willard Small, transl. (1874, repr., New York: Doubleday & Co., 1955), 174.

Of the seven kings before the beast, the first five are;

Cain was the beginning of false worship as Satan initiated false religion by questioning what God said and placing doubt in Adam and Eve’s minds. Cain was a murderer of the true worshipper of God who offered up sacrifices pleasing to God, his brother Abel. See Genesis 4. He was of that wicked one, as John said in 1John 3:12. The only logical interpretation of that from the text in Genesis is that he followed Satan in his practices and belief. Some imply some type of sexual thing between Eve and Satan but it is not warranted by the text. One path of his religion resulted in the Hindu Prasada or vegetable offering to the gods where nothing can be offered that suffered pain. This, even though God tells us that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin. (Hebrews 9:22)

Cain founded a city. The ancient city was first and foremost a religious institution, if we let the Bible interpret itself, a type of pagan church, was never formed by degrees as people entered in, but was founded at once, in a day, with families of like mind, who formed the basis of one religious worship, ruled by their king. So, Cain would logically have been the first king, so to speak, of false religious worship based on Satan’s putting the question in the mind of Cain’s parents of what God said.(21) Cain is the first type of the beast, who is also of that wicked one.

(21) Ibid., 134.

The second fallen king is Nimrod, founder of Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh in the plain of Shinar from where the ancient empire of Sumeria rose up. At Babel mankind united together in a purpose.

Genesis 11:4  And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

Nimrod was a mighty one in the earth and a mighty hunter before the Lord. (Genesis 10:8,9) One legend I read was that Nimrod was instrumental in keeping predatory animals, which were growing in numbers unchecked after the landing of the Ark of Noah, down to protect the people. But, it is hard to say what legends are made up and then read back into the Bible just as our modern-day view of the purpose of a king is then read back into the Bible. In any event Nimrod stood before God as a mighty hunter who founded cities. It makes perfect sense for man to gather together in cities for mutual protection in a world that was not only drying out from the Flood but where great beasts were a danger. Remember from reading Job there were still dinosaurs, dragons, roaming about in his day. A recent direct carbon-dating of so-called triceratops bones revealed that dinosaurs, what we used to call dragons, are not so old. This was confirmed by the presence of soft tissue and blood in these types of bones that were once thought to be 70 million years old, which is, of course, preposterous.(22)

Whatever the case, this king, Nimrod, grandson of the shameful Ham who disgraced his father which was a terrible thing in that world, brought all of existing mankind together, what amounted to dozens of families, to begin a project opposed to acknowledging God and to lifting themselves up as great and to keep mankind from having dominion over the earth by spreading out. There is a matter of control here as mankind stands united against God’s purpose. Think of how the early Christians huddled in Jerusalem and God had to use persecution to drive them out to do what He had ordained them to do. (see Acts 1:8; 4:31; 8:1 with the command to Noah in Genesis 9:1) Nimrod is a second type of the beast, the second king, who was of that wicked one. So, the first two kings of the five fallen ones institute create false religion and draw mankind together against God’s purpose, following after the wicked one who called into doubt what God had said. There are three more fallen kings to consider.

(22) John Michael Fischer “Carbon-14-dated Dinosaur Bones are less than 40,000 years old,” http://newgeology.us/presentation48.html (accessed 4.12.2016).

Helen Fields, “Dinosaur Shocker,” Smithsonian Magazine, http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/dinosaur-shocker-115306469/?no-ist (accessed 4.12.2016).

Revelation 17:7-9 comments: the beast that was, and is not, and yet is

7 ¶  And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. 8  The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. 9  And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

The beast that ascends from the bottomless pit carries the woman. The woman, Mystery Babylon, rides on the beast so he supports her. They that dwell on the earth who are not God’s people shall wonder as they behold the beast. A wonder is a sign in Deuteronomy 13:1,2; 28:46; & Isaiah 20:3 and it is an amazing thing, something to consider, in Revelation 12.  The beast that was, and is not, and yet is, is an ancient evil that appears in a modern form. He represents a system that has its roots as far back as Satan in Eden in the guise of a serpent or dragon questioning God’s word, as old as Sodom and Gomorrah in their wickedness, and as violent and forceful as Assyria.  He was something, is not the same as that something, and yet He is. We see things in today’s world, wrapped in technology and ease of living, pretty paper and ribbon so to speak, but they are something no different in essence from what was long ago.

Mankind’s rebellion against God, fueled by Satan’s rage and pride, and both of our desires to be God, takes form that looks modern and new in a world that looks different but is the same old serpent that lay coiled around men’s hearts, figuratively speaking, six thousand years ago. You can see it in the Vatican in Rome, in Canterbury, in Nashville, in Mecca, and any fundamentalist church or mosque just as you can see it in Washington DC, London, Riyadh, and Teheran. The tendrils of smoke of the sacrifices to Satan, the god of this world in 2Corinthians 4:4, made by world leaders and clerics swirl around the capitals of the world’s political and religious powers.

This scarlet, red, crimson colored beast from verse 3 is the fulfillment of thousands of years of the history of evil. The conquerors like Alexander, Julius Caesar, and Genghis Khan were types of him. The founders of false religious empires and systems like Constantine, Mohammed, and Henry VIIIth of England were types of him. They led millions to their deaths, sometimes in a wrong belief that to obey them to the death was to obey the God of heaven. World War One is a classic example of kings, most of them from the same family, sending millions to an untimely death in a false veneration and worship, going off to die for ‘king and country,’ for a ‘glorious cause,’ and all thinking that God Himself was on their own side. Of course, the prime ministers who actually started the wars knew better and the wicked financiers who funded the wars knew better but the beast reared his ugly head nonetheless and was clearly visible although unseen by most.

And here the seven heads we’ve seen referred to several times are seven mountains on which the woman sits.

Revelation, chapter 17:1-6, comments: Mystery Babylon introduced

1 ¶  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: 2  With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. 3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5  And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 6  And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

From the time of the Emperor Vespasian, in the era of the fall of Jerusalem to and destruction of the temple by his son and general and future emperor Titus, there are coins still existing that show the goddess Roma as a woman seated on seven hills. Rome, as an entity, spiritual or temporal, spiritual or political, has existed from the eighth century BC onward and exists now as the Roman Catholic Church.

The Pope represents the ancient Emperor, the Cardinals the Senate, on down to the Priests representing the lowest level magistrates of Rome. The ancient pagan title of chief of priests the pontifex maximus is the Pope’s title now as Supreme Pontiff.

Jerusalem has also said to be a city set on seven hills.(19)

The rulers of the earth have committed spiritual fornication with this mystery and the people of the earth have been made drunk with it. The imagery is stark. The woman rides the beast, is decked with scarlet and purple, and adorned with gold and precious stones. She is wealthy and regal. Mystery means that what she is really is hidden and unknown although only thinly so.

1Corinthians 2:7  But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

The essence of the Babylonian impulse in is idolatrous ecumenism, hypocritical double-standards, and a union of church and state. From Babylon’s earliest manifestation in the Bible we have the desire to unite the people of the earth in assailing heaven in opposition to God.

Genesis 11:4  And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

Babel, or Babylon, same word, means, according to Strong’s dictionary, “confusion by mixing.” Babylonian type religion is the source of all religious corruption, bringing the defiled together with the pure, bringing error together with truth, all for a purpose not in God’s directive will.

Worldwide conferences of religion where every religious impulse is glorified as an aspiration on the part of man to the divine even if they are completely against the standards laid down by the God of the Bible are an example of this. The ecumenical Babylonian says, “it’s all good,” and, “it doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you believe in something.” God defines religion very carefully in the Bible, giving us the proper expression of our faith.

James 1:27  Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

He shows us the proof of our indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God.

Galatians 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 24  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

…and He shows us that there is only one truth and that is Christ.

John 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

The embracing of any spiritual desire of man, no matter where it leads him, is an example of this neo-pagan ecumenism, this Babylonian impulse in unregenerate man. They will say, “we are all God’s children,” when in reality…

John 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

As Peter acknowledged….

Acts 4:12  Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Jesus remarks about this woman mixing in leaven, or corruption, in three measures of meal until the whole was corrupted in a warning. Could this refer to the three main branches of Christianity; Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestantism, mixing in pagan and secular with worship?

Matthew 13:33  Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

Luke 12:1  In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

The Vatican in Rome embraces this corruption when they embrace other religions as being God-acknowledged “aspirations to the divine,” and criticizes people of wealth while it is incredibly wealthy and criticizes building walls to protect a nation when it’s administrative center is also protected in a likewise manner. The Protestant fundamentalist embraces this corruption when he insists you have to long for a time in America’s history that never existed where citizens were faithful, church-going Christians who lived right and pure before God and loved their fellow man and that one political party has a lock on God’s approval simply because it’s candidates say, “God,” every other sentence. The Protestant mainline church embraces this Babylonian mixture when it says that it is okay for someone who rejects God’s standards of morality to be a priest in their denomination.

The uniting point of all of these faith traditions is that the church can make it up as it goes along and God, or the God they have created in their minds, must accept what the people decide, the Laodicean, or people judge, church. To these wicked religionists God’s word was only given by inspiration at one time in history and He was unable to preserve it. God’s word to them is of no more importance to them than their traditions, fears, cultural preferences, bigotry, or worship of self.

Under the power and authority of the beast who is under the power and authority of Satan, they will slaughter believers who come to God with an open heart desiring to be taught by the Holy Spirit, and eventually demand that the believer reject Christ or die. This is the eventual outcome of all human-centered religion; Christian, Muslim, Jew, or other just as the culturally dominant and accepted form of Christianity in nineteenth century America led directly to the unbelief of the twentieth. As the Greek philosopher, Protagoras said, “Man is the measure of all things.” This Babylonian religion ultimately unites church and state in a humanistic combination that throughout history has proved most deadly and filled with the most error. Through the state man magnifies himself above God.

Babylonian religion claims to be of God but elevates man to His position. As Richard T. Ely, mentor and teacher of President Woodrow Wilson said,

Now, it may rationally be maintained that, if there is anything divine on earth, it is the State, the product of the same God-given instincts which led to the establishment of the Church and of the Family. It was once held that kings ruled by right divine, and in any widely accepted belief, though it be afterwards discredited, there is generally found a kernel of truth. In this case it was the divine right of the state.(20)

The false prophet who comes out of the earth in Revelation 13:11 looks like a lamb but speaks like a dragon. Until the beast declares that he himself is God this Mystery Babylon is most useful in bringing the world together under a one-world church and state tyranny, rejecting the Bible statements that Christ is the only way to God.

This Mystery Babylon will be responsible for blood of millions of martyrs shed by the beast who supports her as long as she is useful.

(19) Ernest L. Martin, “The Seven Hills of Jerusalem,” on Associates for Scriptural Knowledge, http://askelm.com/prophecy/p000201.htm. (updated February 1, 2000).

(20) Gary M. Pequet and Clifford M. Thies, “The Shaping of a Future President’s Economic Thought: Richard T. Ely and Woodrow Wilson at “The Hopkins,” The Independent Review: A Journal of Political Economy 15, no. 2 (Fall 2010): 262, 266. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed August 2, 2011).

Revelation, chapters 15 and 16, comments: seven vials of judgment

Chapter 15

1 ¶  And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

Now comes the seven plagues, poured from seven vials, by seven angels. Marvellous is amazing throughout the Bible. The believing Church, Jew and Gentile, has been removed before the vials, the final expression of God’s wrath, are poured out.

2  And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.

These are the martyrs of the Great Tribulation, who refused to take the mark of the beast. These are referred to in chapter 7…

Revelation 7:9  After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; 10  And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. 11  And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, 12  Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

    13 ¶  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

…as represented in the fifth seal.

Revelation 6:9 ¶  And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 11  And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

 3  And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. 4  Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

Review Moses’ song in Exodus 15:1-19. This praise predicts a swift and terrible judgment on God’s enemies. Verse 4 shows that now God’s judgments are to be completely revealed and poured out.

    5 ¶  And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened: 6  And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles. 7  And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever. 8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

There are now seven plagues that must be unleashed on the remnant of mankind.

Chapter 16

1 ¶  And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. 2  And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image. 3  And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. 4  And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. 5  And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. 6  For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. 7  And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.

The two witnesses, who called down disaster on the people of the earth, are removed. Believers in Christ are gone. The Jews are hiding in the wilderness. Countless martyrs are before God in heaven. Now, the end of the Great Tribulation will be fiercer than anything seen in history as those who remain will suffer physically for their murders of God’s people. This is not just external suffering from natural disasters but this is from the inside, the person of the man or woman.

These people will have blood to drink for the blood that they’ve shed. The Egyptians could not drink of the Nile River turned to blood in Exodus 7:21 but what choice will these wicked people have?

Notice in verse 3 that every living soul in the sea dies. This is more scriptural confirmation that creatures other than humankind can also have souls; self-identity, a will unique to them, and an understanding that they are themselves and not another. See also;

Numbers 31:28  And levy a tribute unto the LORD of the men of war which went out to battle: one soul of five hundred, both of the persons, and of the beeves, and of the asses, and of the sheep:

Job 12:10  In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.

Remember, also, that Solomon poses the pessimistic and very human question of how does one know from our human perspective that the spirit of a beast goes down and the spirit of a man goes up? So, clearly some beasts or animals have a spirit as well, as we do. Notice also that all of the questions that skeptics and atheists pose to you God has already dealt with thousands of years ago if you would just let Him speak to you through His words and BELIEVE WHAT HE SAYS!

Ecclesiastes 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. 19  For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. 20  All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. 21  Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?

    8 ¶  And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. 9  And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory. 10  And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, 11  And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.

Notice the terror of these judgments on the beast’s kingdom.

    12 ¶  And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. 13  And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14  For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15  Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. 16  And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

This preparation for Armageddon seems to draw those events about the 200 million strong army and in 14:20 the winepress and the blood up to the horses bridles together. The false prophet is first mentioned here as a reference.

This battle is going to be the ultimate confrontation in the Great Tribulation.

    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. 20  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21  And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

Verse 18 is the fifth verse mentioning an earthquake but this one is the biggest of all. The entire world is affected by this earthquake. This worldwide disaster, after the Battle of Armageddon, leaves the earth changed in appearance with every city crumbling and islands and mountains disappearing. This is a cataclysm like Hollywood likes to portray. Now, this Babylon will face its final judgment.

Revelation, chapter 14, comments: the winepress of the wrath of God

1 ¶  And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads. 2  And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: 3  And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. 4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. 5  And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.

The focus narrows on the translation, the first resurrection, or the rapture.

These are the servants of Christ mentioned in chapter 7. Mount Sion here is a reference to the heavenly Jerusalem.

Hebrews 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,

These 144,000 Jews were redeemed from the earth and are in Heaven, whether translated/raptured alive or dead. They have a unique position in God’s plan and can sing a new song that no one but they can sing. They are male virgins, not hindered by any attachments to life. As men who have wives or women who have husbands and families have a sort of divided loyalty while, in a relationship ordained by God, family responsibility is not suitable for the purpose of these specific men.

We don’t exactly know what function these exemplary individuals performed but they are Christ’s servants who follow Him faithfully in that time and, based on Matthew 24:14, many believe were evangelizing the world.

    6 ¶  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. 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. 9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

The everlasting gospel is; Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

Everyone is going to hear this. A second angel declares the fall of Babylon, the identity of which we will explore more fully when we come to chapter 17. A third angel warns that anyone who takes the mark of the beast is doomed. From reading verses 9 through 11 notice this cross reference.

Isaiah 66:22  For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain. 23  And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD. 24  And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

It is a warning of their impending fate in the lake of unquenchable fire for the eternal-living soul of Christ-rejecting mankind.

Verse 12 shows that those who are Christ’s did not take the mark.

Look at these previous explanations of what is called for in the believers’ lives in this Great Tribulation.

Revelation 12:11  And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

Revelation 13:10  He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

This is a hard pill to swallow if you have a family and loved ones.

13 ¶  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. 14  And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. 15  And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. 16  And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped. 17  And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. 18  And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. 19  And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20  And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.

Verse 13 indicates that those who would not take the mark of the beast die, are killed.

There are two angels here. One reaps a harvest.

Remember;

John 4:35  Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.

This is a good thing, another take on the rapture or translation of believers.

Then, the next angel casts what he reaps into the winepress of the wrath of God.

 Outside of the city of Jerusalem it is said that the blood will rise to the level of horses’ bridles, about 4-5 feet in a space of 1600 furlongs which is roughly 200 miles. This is usually associated by commentators with Armageddon coming up in 16:16  and linked to the 200 million number of the spiritual creatures in 9:16-19 and the kings of the east in 16:12. If this is true then the clearly supernatural creatures of  chapter 9 mean that for every event on earth there are similar events happening in the invisible world that coincide with the events on earth. The massive demonic army coming out of the abyss coincides with the massive army that comes from the east to meet at Armageddon for a climactic battle that results in a huge bloodbath of unimaginable proportions.