Revelation 18:1-8
Where It Hurts
Notice in \\#1\\, that this message is being proclaimed by a
different angel, one with great power and glory. It would seem that
the angels with the most power and glory are the most important, and
it would seem that the most important angels would bring the most
important message. May I suggest that this message is important—
perhaps even to this generation.
The anti-Christ’s system achieved its zenith around the half-way mark
of the tribulation, but no sooner does he attain that mark and God
begins to dismantle the system as indicated by the angel’s message
in \\#Rev 14:8\\. God does that in several ways:
1. God continues to pour out His judgments. In chapter 16, God
pours out the seven vials of judgment. While I think these
will poured out over the entire last 42 months, they—combined
with all of the other judgments—will have an effect against
the anti-Christ and his system.
2. Then in chapter 17, God turns the political arm of his system
against the religious arm, eventually destroying it.
a. The beast’s system has four arms.
(1) There is the political represented by the kings and
horns.
(2) There is the religious represented by the great
whore.
(3) There is the economical which is all under the 666
numbering system of Revelation 13.
(4) There is the military which will be gathered to the
Battle of Armageddon.
b. The last chapter described how God will destroy the
religious arm although we are not sure WHEN that will
happen.
c. The military arm will be destroyed at the Battles of
Armageddon and Jerusalem.
d. So the question is, "What is God destroying in this
chapter?"
Before I answer that, let me caution you. Don’t let God’s dismantling
of the anti-Christ’s system fool you into thinking the tribulation
won’t be so bad. Even though God is taking the beast’s system apart,
the anti-Christ is still persecuting, killing, and doing evil. Those
who are the focus of his wrath will not care what very much what God
is doing to the head because they will be under his foot.
I. What is being judged in this chapter?
A. I think the chapter makes it pretty clear that at least some
part if not all of the beast’s economical arms is what is
being destroyed.
1. The term Babylon is used 6 times in the book of
Revelation.
2. It could speak of a location or some elements of the anti-
Christ’s system, but I believe it used of both in this
chapter.
B. In Chapter 18…
1. It is used 3 times \\#Rev 18:2, 10, 21\\.
2. Throughout this chapter, it seems that God is judging the
anti-Christ’s economical system.
a. \\#Rev 18:11-16\\
b. \\#Rev 18:19\\
II. \\#Rev 18:2\\ When will this judgment be?
A. We are not told WHEN this judgment takes place but the wording
of the prophecy is strange.
"…Babylon is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of
devils…
1. The Greek verb tense, as I understand it, simply means the
action occurs at some point in past time.
2. This is NOT the verb tense in which we would expect a
prophecy to be written.
a. It should be written in the future tense.
b. When God wrote of the Great Whore being judged, the
FUTURE TENSE was being used.
Rev 17:16 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.
c. The past tense is what you would expect if an action
was already completed or at least sufficiently
underway.
d. So this prophecy is written to indicate the falling
of Babylon COULD already have happened and now it is
simply filled with demons and devils.
B. Consider also that this judgment has already been pronounced,
using the same past tense verb, as early as Revelation 14.
Rev 14:8 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.
1. In this prophecy, nothing zeros in on any one ARM of
the anti-Christ’s system.
2. By my estimation, the events of Revelation 14 are taking
place in the early part of the last 3 1/2 years of the
tribulation.
3. However, the angel of God is speaking of it in the same
past tense terms as the angel is Revelation 18.
4. We would suppose some time has pasted between the two
chapters—yet the same tense is used, perhaps indicating
that nothing NEW has occurred since Revelation 14.
5. The same things that were going on is going on; that is,
Babylon fell sometime in the past and now it is inhabited
with demons and devils.
C. Here is what I am wondering?
1. When did the anti-Christ’s economical arm actually fall?
2. If it was some time in the past, when did it reach it’s
peak?
D. I have always wondered how the anti-Christ is going to build
a great one-world economy in the midst of the judgments that
God will be heaping upon the world during the tribulation.
1. So far, we have read of 19 definite judgments occurring
during the tribulation. (The last seal and the last
trumpet lead into the next series of seven judgments so
I don’t count them.)
2. If the seven thunders are judgments, then 26.
3. Most of these would afflict the world economy. For
example:
a. A great war, followed by famine, so that 1/4 of the
world’s population was killed either by sword,
hunger, or beasts of the earth. \\#Rev 6:1-8\\
b. 1/3 of the earth’s trees and grass being burnt up
\\#Rev 8:7\\.
c. 1/3 of the earth’s seas dying \\#Rev 8:8\\.
d. 1/3 of the earth’s ships being destroyed \\#Rev 8:9\\.
e. 1/3 of the earth’s fresh water becoming foul
\\#Rev 8:10\\.
f. 1/3 of the men being killed by the 200 million
demonic horsemen \\#Rev 9:18\\.
g. Or the expansion of earlier plagues so that all the
sea water and all the fresh water are contaminated
\\#Rev 15:3-4\\.
h. The sun scorching men upon the earth with fire and
heat \\#Rev 15:8-9\\.
i. And that is not considering all of the plagues or any
of the five earthquakes mentioned.
4. I don’t see the world economy getting stronger during
those kinds of judgments.
E. It is becoming my belief, that the anti-Christ’s world
economy IS ALREADY COMING TOGETHER and
MAY REACH ITS PINNACLE BEFORE THE
TRIBULATION EVEN BEGINS.
1. I am starting to think that we may be living at the peak
of the anti-Christ’s economical system!
2. The Bible says, "Babylon IS FALLEN" not that IT
WILL FALL.
3. It seems to me that the entire tribulation itself is
God’s judgment on the world’s economic system.
4. The famine, the plagues from heaven, the commercial
devastation caused by the seas and fountains being
polluted, the death, the earthquakes, the supernatural
attacks by demonic entities—all of these would seem to
preclude a strong one-world economic build-up.
5. Rather, they are God’s judgments consistently chipping
away at it.
6. All of that might be indicating that WE are living at
the peak of the anti-Christ’s economical system.
a. Money certainly talks today. It talks dirty.
(1) Politicians selling their office for money.
(2) Slave trading alive and well.
(3) Drugs sold and accepted as a way of life.
(4) Pharmaceutical companies who have an acceptable
mortality factor figured into their bottom line.
(5) Christians who will sacrifice worship for an
extra dollar.
b. It certainly seems that this could be the devil’s
heyday economically.
7. Some might conclude from \\#Rev 13:16-18\\ that the anti-
Christ control of the economy was some how profitable to
him; yet considering the destruction that has occurred,
it seems more likely that his actions were a necessity!
a. With the wars, destruction of food and water sources,
earthquakes, and other disasters, the world ruler
will need a way to get food and water to whatever
humans remain a live in a timely, efficient fashion.
b. If everyone is registered, officials would know where
the people are, how many people are there, and—
in those times—that would help to get food and water
where they were needed.
c. Technology and world unification would make logical
sense to make the economy more nimble, faster, and
more efficient.
8. But for the most part, God chips away at Babylon’s economy
throughout the entire seven years.
III. Who is Babylon?
A. Although God chips away at the beast’s economical system
throughout the tribulation, God gives it some type of death
blow during the last half of the tribulation.
1. \\#Rev 18:3-6\\ indicate that God’s judgment comes to a
climax.
2. \\#Rev 18:8, 10, 17, 19\\ - All speak of this judgment as coming
suddenly, as in one hour or one day.
B. This chapter indicates that the destruction of a PLACE
CALLED BABYLON will be the death blow.
1. \\#2\\ The angel is saying BABYLON has FALLEN and
calls it a HABITATION, indicating it is a place.
2. \\#4\\ God’s people are told to come out of Babylon
also indicating Babylon is a place.
(a) Those in the anti-Christ’s system, CANNOT come out.
Rev 14:9 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.
(b) This makes it more likely that the Babylon
being discussed here is a location.
3. \\#10, 16, 18, 19, 21\\ Babylon is called a city. My
guess is that it is the capital or headquarters of
the beast’s economical system.
C. It could be that the word Babylon is not just a reference to
the beast’s economical system, but also to the location of
the beast’s financial headquarters.
1. For the last few years, I have considered that Iran’s
rising in world affairs might mean that ancient Babylon
itself could rise the preeminence and become a financial
headquarters.
2. There are several reasons I have thought this possible.
a. I believe that is possible because false religion was
born in Babylon. To me, there is some logic that
some part of the anti-Christ’s system will
headquarter and end there.
b. I also believe it is possible because there are
prophecies about Babylon which have not been
fulfilled.
(1) God promises an utter and permanent destruction
of Babylon.
(2) \\#Is 13:19-20, Jer 50:39, 51:26, 29, 37\\
\\#Jer 51:43, 62\\
(3) This destruction has not happened and there needs
to be a cause which would justify such a
judgment from the Lord.
c. I believe it is possible because evil was sealed and
deposited into Shinar (another name for Babylon) and
it was prophesied that evil would be established
there \\#Zechariah 5:5-11\\.
d. And I believe it is possible because the demons which
afflict mankind during the tribulation come out of
the River Euphrates \\#Rev 9:14\\, giving importance
to that region of the world.
e. And I believe it is possible since Iran (modern-day
Babylon) remains in the forefront of the Middle East
conflict making them a main player in any peace deal
the anti-Christ makes with Israel,
4. So Babylon could still be the place of the anti-Christi’s
financial headquarters.
a. Yet, with the changing times, I think there is another
place that needs to be considered.
b. Consider that if the anti-Christ’s system is already
at its height when the tribulation begins, it would
take awhile for any place to replace America as the
financial headquarters of the world—meaning the
coming of Christ might not occur for some time.
c. Most would say that New York has been the financial
capital of the world since around 1900.
(1) Today, New York hosts the two largest and most
active markets, New York Stock Exchange and the
NASDAQ are headquartered there.
(2) It is estimated that as much as $14 trillion
goes through New York every day.
(3) All of the other markets in the world watch New
York and make their decisions based on what
New York does.
d. If this prophecy was to be fulfilled today, it would
most likely be fulfilled in New York City.
(1) \\#3\\ New York has been the rich city.
(2) All nations have drunk from her cup.
(3) \\#4\\ It is filled with "my people," Jews.
(5) \\#5\\ Her sins are great.
(6) \\#17\\ Ship masters could stand on the ships and
watch New York burn.
e. Considering the direction that America is going, it
becomes even more possible that America could be
the financial headquarters of the anti-Christ’s
system.
(1) We know what America is doing today concerning
sin and rebellion against God.
(2) We know our politicians are trying to pass a bill
to give Iran whatever they want.
(3) On October 23, Israel reported that the US spied
on Israel so that they could destroy Israel’s
bombers in the event Israel chose to attack
Iran.
http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/report-us-spied-on-
israel-prepared-to-destroy-israeli-bombers-to-protect-
iran/2015/10/23/
IV. One thing is for certain. When this Babylon falls, the world
will mourn.
A. They have not mourned over sin.
B. Their is no record of their mourning when 1/4 die.
C. There is no record of their mourning when another 1/3 die.
D. Their is no record of their mourning when the seals are
opened, when the trumpets sound, or when the vials are
poured out.
E. There is no record of their mourning when the 144,000 or the
two witnesses preach.
F. There is no record of their mourning when the 144,000 or the
two witnesses are killed.
G. But when their bank is wiped out, they will mourn.
1. The people do not repent, but they mourn.
2. Few things hurt a cold heart more than an empty wallet.
We need to ask a question today. What would it take to move us? What
will it take to move you?
<Outline
Index> <Close Window>
