Book of Revelation, #303, Part 8, Replay

Transcript from show #303 Part 8 Replay

(Please note that the transcripts are written pretty well as they were delivered on air).

Radio Show...

This program continues on various series of different topics on theology such as end times, prophecies, daily living, etc. as the subject matter comes up.

The e-book on end times and Revelation, answering the questions “where are we in the events of the end times?” and “Are we now in the tribulation?” is available on this web site, which you can find throughout the pages.

Opening Narrative

Again we continue from the last program on the current series of the level 1 study of the Book of Revelation, based on the e-book Timing Revelation available on my web site.

So far we covered up to chapter 16 verse 11 and will pick up from here today, right after this opening music, prayer and worship time...

And just a friendly reminder here on when it comes to the book of Revelation, no one can read it, understand it and interpret it completely from beginning to end at this time. We learn more and more about the details and how every verse and chapter fit together as we move year by year toward the very end. We can only try and do our best, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to put the work together.

God knew all this... nevertheless, in spite of our short comings, as we all put efforts to come up with added and corrected pieces and details, we are directed by the Word of God to read this book. It is so important, we are told that we will get a blessing for our obedience to that.

"Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand."
So always read this book with an open mind and patience.

(Opening Music interlude on the live radio show)

Let us pray...
The Lord's Prayer...
Praise God Doxology...
Worship Music...)

Narrative #1

Alright, so again we continue from the last program on the current series of the level 1 study of the Book of Revelation, based on the e-book Timing Revelation available on my web site.

Last week we finished our review of the book of revelation with chapter 16 at verse 11 which is about the vials of wrath... not a pleasant story to hear but true prophecies from the Word of God of where things are headed in these last days...

so we pick up from there today, and again, if you missed last week's program you can hear it on the web site TimingRevelation.com/ radio shows where the programs stay on for 5 weeks..

Let's read verses 12 to 21, in chapter 16...

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 watches, and keeps 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.

So here we have, the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the river Euphrates, and scripture says thus making the way of the kings of the east.

This verse picks up from the preview that we saw in chapter 9.

and then verses 13-16.The content of v.12 leads into verses where we are given a preview of Armageddon, where the kings of the east and all the world will be summoned to the great war foretold in so many scriptures of the Bible..

Now, verse 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.”

So here we read about the seventh and last vial being poured out into the air. This is interesting because this indicates Satan's domain. Ephesians 2:2: “...the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience...”

It is here that the words “It is done” will be uttered from heaven as declaration that all
God's plagues have been exhausted.

So, verses 18-21, the devastation of that last plague will be manifested upon many cities of nations, including the great Babylon which as we will see represents the ungodly system of the world.

The word wrath comes in two different words in the Greek language. One is “orge” and the other is “thymos”. Orge is for anger as a natural disposition. Thymos means a boiling anger. This is the word used in v.19 . As the fierceness of those who continue to reject Him increases, God's anger is no longer “orge” but turns into “thymos”.

And islands and mountains become more devastated from earthquakes and hundred pounds hail stones, all resulting from the effect of the greatest of the final plagues.

Again may we all be reminded that all what we read in this book is not to scare us but to prepare us and/or to warn us. Prepare those who already know the Lord and warn those who don't know the Lord as their Saviour... again, now is the time, today is the time to turn to Him and receive the gift of grace and mercy before it is too late.

(Music Interlude)

Narrative 2

Chatper 17
The doom of Babylon predicted

Let's read verses 1 to 8

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 show you the judgment of the great whore that sits 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.

7.And the angel said unto me, Why did you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the
woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.

8.The beast that you saw 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.

So in verses 1-2, John is here invited by one of the seven angels to witness the judgment of the great whore.

Some commentaries identify this harlot as the revived Roman Empire and others as papal Rome depending on whether she represents a corrupt political system or religious. Actually it is both. It is a world wide entity of both political and religious system totally anti-Christian and anti-Christ sitting upon many people and nations. And we as believers are not to compromise with it.

3.We first heard about this beast in chapter 13.

And in verses 4-7.The colours and other elements speak of wealth and luxury which she utilizes to the end of her immorality with the kings of the earth. It is said that Mystery Babylon refers to iniquity in its final form.

John was so astonished and perplexed that the angel offered him to explain the meaning of the mystery.

v.8.In these verses we see the description of the antichrist and the confederation of the
seven kings which most interpreters of the Bible attributes to the revived Roman Empire, and which is in line with the visions in the book of Daniel.

But it could also be a type of world United Nations, and the connected religion could be
an amalgamation of religions within all of that as well.

So, when the true church is raptured to heaven there will be a vacuum – or a long-awaited opportunity -- for a world-wide religious system to take its place.

(Station ID)

Continuing with Verses 9 to 13,

9.And here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on
which the woman sits.

10.And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he comes, 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 goes into perdition.

12.And the ten horns which you saw 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.

So, vs 9 to 11, we read that the seven heads are mountains on which the woman sits. Many believe this refers to Rome. However the Bible does not confirm this as such, but this is possible given the many symbolisms.

About the seven kings in v. 10, these could be seven empires that John saw from his
perspective at the time, where five had already come and gone, one was current at his time, one was yet to come in the future and the eighth coming out of the seventh.

In any case this new government will have ten kingdoms which will surpass all previous ones in strength. But this final world power will be given only for a short time as symbolized by the “one hour”.

Vs 12-13. And finally the ten horns are ten other kings who have no kingdom but receive power for a short time. What exactly the meaning of this is, the Bible is not clear.

These may have to do with one or the other of the ten toes of the left and right legs (East and West -- as in East Europe and West Europe) of the statue in the book of Daniel.

Verses 14 to 18
The war with the Lamb

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 you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples,
and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

16.And the ten horns which you saw 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 has put in their hearts to fulfill 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 you saw is that great city, which reign over the kings of the earth.

So, verses 14-15.These ungodly armies have for their goal one thing and that is to war against the Lamb. But the Lord of lords and King of kings will overcome them completely along with His redeemed from heaven.

This is the vision that John saw which will take place in chapter 19.

16-18.In some way the ten horns armies will turn against this harlot or religious system with hatred and vengeance and destroy her totally.

This sudden move will be directed by no other than God Himself in execution of His
judgment upon her.

Now the antichrist will require worship as well as political and social rule during that time.

(Music Interlude)

Narrative 3

Let's now move on to chapter 18 and we'll read verses 1 to 3

The Fall of Babylon

1.And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.

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.

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.

So in these verses here we see the fate of Babylon announced. In chapters 14 and 16, the announcements were for warnings, and anticipatory. But here the prophesied fall is
actualized. Babylon becomes a prison for all Satan's evil minions.

It reminds me of the time when Jesus sent the demons out of the possessed man in the
country of the Gadarenes we read about in the gospel of Matthew, Mark and Luke. They
went from the possessed man into the herd of swine.

And verses 4 to 8:

4.And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that you
be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not of her plagues.

5.For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

6.Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her
works: in the cup which she has filled fill to her double.

7.How much she has glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow
give her: for she said in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no
sorrow.

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 judges her.

So, The voice is not the same as the previous but can only be that of the King of kings and Lord of lords Himself since it is addressed to “my people”.

A final call to come out in the last pressing moments before final judgment is sent, just as it was so with Lot in the Old Testament, before destruction came upon his city.

In spite of all that has befallen upon the great whore of corrupt political, commerce and
religious systems, there are still some who refuse to repent of their involvement with her.

Unlike as God in the past told His people to leave vengeance to Him, it seems that now
He invites them to participate in the doomed city's just reward, so much her horrendous
sins and iniquities have reached the heavens.

As we have seen earlier on, the reference to Babylon as a “city” is that which merges the whole of the nature of the system and the place from which it is operating.

For example, some people suppose that New York is the Babylon of the book of Revelation —thus the judgment spoken of in this chapter would illustrate what the prophesied calamities would look like if we saw New York burning.

Verses 9 and 10
Mourning and wailing from kings and merchants

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,

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 your judgment come.

So, Here, I turn again to the Liberty Bible Commentary for comments that are so
visually revealing in the verses of this chapter:

9-10.“...First, the kings of the earth, who have the most to lose in any economic or
commercial collapse, shall bewail... and lament inconsolably over the torment and
demise of the wicked system, which has interlocking interests throughout the civilized
world. They cry out woe upon the great and strong city, whose judgment has overtaken
her... “

Verses 11-19

11.And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buys their merchandise any more:

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,

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.

14.And the fruits that your soul lusted after are departed from you, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from you, and you shall find them no more at all.

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,

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!

17.For in one hour so great riches is come to nothing. And every shipmaster, and all the
company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,

18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!

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.

So, here in vs 11 to 15, we read that it moves on to the merchants “who are directly involved in day-by-day transactions with her, mourn over the economic collapse of that vast system with its many commercial ramifications. The cargoes include some twenty-eight distinct items...”

and verse 16 directs our thoughts to the religious aspect of the city because of its
elements of clothing in the fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, gold and precious stones
and pearls associated with religious lavishness.

And, 17 to 19. All that commerce, including ships and shipmasters and sailors and sea traders watched the irretrievable destruction of world riches that emanated from this mega system that came to nothing in such swift timing.

And there are some groups of people who believe that Babylon is America, but when you read this passage of scripture here, it is very clear that it is a system that is around the world, and some of the items listed here are not from America, they are from eastern areas of the world and other places. So that's an interesting aspect to think about.

Verses 20 to 24, still in chapter 18
Earth mourns... but heaven rejoices

20.Rejoice over her, you heaven, and you holy apostles and prophets; for God has
avenged you on her.

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.

22.And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in you; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in you; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in you;

23.And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in you; and the voice of the
bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in you: for you merchants were the great men of the earth; for by your sorceries were all nations deceived.

24.And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were
slain upon the earth.

So, while earth mourns, all dwellers of heaven -- apostles and prophets of the New and Old Covenants, saints and believers are summoned to rejoice.

We see here the ruin of Babylon as final, complete and irreversible. Everything
associated with this city will be no more.

The word “sorceries” in v.23 is actually “pharmakeia “ in the Greek, which means
“drugs”. And of course we have drugs everywhere around the world right now. We sure live in a drug addicted time today like never before.

The reference to a stone like a great millstone being cast into the sea is reminiscent of
Jeremiah chapter 51 where the Lord prophesied against Babylon:

“And it shall be, when you have made an end of reading this book, that you shall bind a
stone to it, and cast it into the midst of Euphrates:

“And you shall say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.”
(Jeremiah 51:63-64)

Closing Narrative…

And again, I have run out of time...

Before I dismiss the service today, I want to read to you the Blessing that was read to the people of God in Numbers 6:24-26 which is the benediction from God to you today:

“The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace."

I hope and pray that you will come back next Sunday at SpiritFM.ca, 7 am and 7 pm pacific time. And if you want to hear the service again at any time, you can go to my website at TimingRevelation.com, and click on the Radio Shows navigational tab along the left side. The replays are available there for five weeks, then they are transcribed into articles as new radio shows are put up.

I encourage you to go to your Bible and read further on the scriptures that were given throughout the program today. And if you like these programs and you've been blessed, call or write the station and let them know... if you said the prayer and have accepted the Lord or you've been healed or touched in some way by the Holy Spirit, write to me on the contact form of this web site...

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Until next week, Maranatha, the Lord is coming, very soon. Goodbye and Blessing.

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/DMH

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Blessings,