Revelation Chapter 17:1-8/Commentary

Revelation Chapter 17:1-8 Revelation 17:1-9 “And one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, "Come here, I shall show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 2with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality. " 3And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns. 4And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality, 5and upon her forehead a name was written, a mystery, "BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." 6And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus.

And when I saw her, I wondered greatly. 7And the angel said to me, "Why do you wonder? I shall tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. 8"The beast that you saw was and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth will wonder, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come” Introduction In the book of Revelation there are two cities and two women of contrasting natures. There is the woman and the city that represents God’s people (12:1; 20:9; 21:2). Then there is the great harlot (17:1), and she is a great city (17:18).

“These two women, and the cities they personify, stand in direct antithesis to each other in character, position, and destiny” (Hailey p. 341). Various views exist concerning who the harlot symbolizes: 1. Apostate Jerusalem, the head of hostile Judaism. 2. The apostate church that developed in the centuries following the days of the apostles. Some narrow down the application here to the Roman Catholic Church, others enlarge it to include all faithless so-called Christians. 3. Pagan Rome, “which in turn represents the world of lust, all that is seductive, enticing, and appealing to the desires of the flesh and the mind.

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Satan has three approaches by which he seeks to destroy the work and people of Go, political or brute force, symbolized by the beast out of the sea, false religion, whether paganism or perverted revealed religion, symbolized by the beast out of the earth, and the world of lust, all that appeals to the flesh or mind (Ephesians 2:3; 1 John 2:15-17), represented by the harlot” (Hailey p. 342).

Some believe that the harlot in this section is Jerusalem because in the Old Testament when God’s people departed from the faith both the nation and the city itself were portrayed as harlots (Isaiah 1:21; Jeremiah 2:20; 13:22; Ezekiel 16,23), but Jerusalem was not the only city thus described. God gave the same label to such cities as Nineveh (Nahum 3:4), Tyre (Isaiah 23:17), and Babylon (Isaiah 47:5-15).

In chapter 16:19, Babylon the great is pictured as fallen, but in this chapter it appears that we are given many details concerning this city and concerning her fall. “In these two chapters (17-18) we will have the obituary of Babylon. She was destroyed, but without any real detail. In these two chapters she will be described in all her ugliness and cruelty. Her arrogance will be set before us, and her well-earned doom” (McGuiggan p. 249). Thus the harlot must refer to the same city as was mentioned in chapter 16, but it could be that this city now is being viewed from a different angle.

17:1 “Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me”: The seven angels who were responsible for pouring out God’s judgments were mentioned in chapter 16. This wrath was poured out upon “Babylon” (16:19) 17:1 “Come here, I will show you the judgment”: The judicial verdict, the condemnation and punishment. “Of the great harlot who sits on many waters”: In 17:15, the “waters” that this harlot sits upon are further clarified as being “peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues”. Jeremiah spoke of the ancient city of Babylon as occupying a similar position of authority over many peoples (Jeremiah 51:13). “Probably the prophet referred to the Euphrates River, with its canals, trenches, dykes, and marshes surrounding the city, giving it added protection and wealth. The waters on which the harlot of John’s vision sits are symbolic of the nations and such over which she ruled, which stood between her and invading nations and that added greatly to her wealth” (Hailey p. 343).

According to verse 15 she sits upon various other nations. Clearly this woman is symbolic for the city that ruled the world in John’s day. Please note that in verses 17:18 this ruling city is not future, but rather this city was ruling when John wrote this letter.

According to Premillennial thought, this woman either represents the Catholic Church or some great apostate religious entity forming supposedly under the Antichrist at the end of time. Or, she may be a city, either a restoration of the ancient Babylon or a revived Rome, yet again remember that John is not being 2

shown a harlot that would one day arise, but a harlot who was presently sitting (17:1).

17:2 “With whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality”: The harlot in this section is a great city (17:18), which had power and authority over many lesser nations. “This refers to their purchasing the favor of Rome by accepting her suzerainty and with it her vices and idolatries” (Swete). “They purchased her favors by promoting Rome’s objectives and by yielding to her whims and fawning over her with flatteries and exaggerated deference” (Hailey p. 344). Rome did its fair share of exporting idolatry and immorality throughout the ancient world, as did world empires in the Old Testament (Isaiah 23:15-17; Nahum 3:4). Please note that if the city under consideration is Jerusalem it would seem hard to understand how God would consider coming to Jerusalem a sin. Even after the resurrection of Jesus, people still came to Jerusalem to learn about the true God (Acts 8:27). The text does not say that the harlot went out after the kings of the earth, but rather that the kings of the earth came to this harlot.

17:2 “And those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality”: Not only the kings of the earth, but all classes of citizens are drawn to this city. She offers an intoxicating “wine”, which would include the intoxication for power, conquest, wealth, entertainment, self-centered gratification, and false religion. “During John’s day, Rome was the foremost city which debauched others in several ways—politically, socially, commercially, and even religiously” (Harkrider p. 194). Compare with 14:8.

At this point let us soberly reflect upon our country. What sort of culture is our country exporting? Is American culture influencing the world for good and righteousness or are we exporting greed, false religion, immorality, loose living, and self-indulgence? God does hold nations accountable for the ethical impact they have on other nations.

17:3 “And he carried me away in the Spirit”: “In this vision, under the power of the Holy Spirit, he was transported into the wilderness” (Hailey p. 344). Compare with 1:10; 4:1; 21:10; Ezekiel 8:3. “Into the wilderness”: “Because the woman arrayed with the sun was last seen in the wilderness (12:6,14), and now the immoral woman is seen in the wilderness, some find evidence in this that the harlot represents the apostate element of the church that succumbed to the spirit of the beast and the false prophet. They contend that the church that went into the wilderness a pure virgin came out a harlot, or at least that the faithless play the harlot” (Hailey p. 345). Yet this does not seem to follow what Hailey further notes. The wilderness may be a place of refuge (Psalm 78:52), or it may be a place of desolation, drought, and the rubble of the ruin of centuries (Zephaniah 2:13; Isaiah 21:1,9). “In order to view the spectacle of the harlot’s judgment, John is transported to the wilderness. The wilderness represents the perpetual condition of Christian detachment from the affairs of civilization. It is from the

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‘desert’ that the Christian is able to view civilization clearly, as it really is” (Gregg p. 401).

17:3 “I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast”: This appears to be the same beast as is mentioned in 13:1. “Scarlet was the symbol of luxury and splendor, providing a mark of distinction, Likewise, it was a color of royalty” (Hailey p. 346).

It is also used in reference to sin (Isaiah 1:18). This color “may easily be recognized as the symbol of Imperial dignity” (Gregg p. 400). “Full of blasphemous names”: “They permeated the whole empire until it festered under the rotting influence and blasphemy of emperor worship” (Hailey p. 346).

Compare with 13:1. “Having seven heads and ten horns”: Like the dragon (12:3).

Ogden believes that this woman represents the city of Jerusalem that was supported by the Roman Empire. He argues that the Jews did not submit fully to the Romans, did not fight in the Roman army, and maintained a certain liberty as a people not granted to any others. “Indeed, the Jewish nation was carried by the Roman Empire” (pp. 328-329). Yet this view does not seem to fit the imagery, for if that is the case then why is nothing said about the beast devouring the woman? It seems more consistent with the text to observe that the woman represents the Imperial city of Rome itself, and the beast represents the entire empire. The fact that she is seated on the beast would indicate that she is controlling the beast rather than simply being supported by the beast.

17:4 “The woman was clothed with purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls”: Here is worldly royalty, luxury and splendor. “The harlot makes herself as attractive as possible, bedecking herself in all the dazzling splendor of earth’s riches, all that attracts attention, allures, impresses with a sense of seductive grandeur. She strives to cover her true harlot’s character with the outward splendor and glory of a queen” (Hailey p.

346). “One would suppose he’d have gone right on with it to show her defeated, but he doesn’t. He first shows her power, ‘beauty’, and success. Why is this?

Because this is part of her judgment that she falls from such a height!”

(McGuiggan p. 251). “To this day the world is attracted by such things as wealth, social status, and political power. The harlot likewise appealed to all people who regarded material things as of primary importance” (Harkrider p. 195).

17:4 “Having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality” Compare with Jeremiah 51:7 where something similar was said concerning Babylon in the Old Testament. “Here’s what she offered the nations. ‘Join in my success’, she seems to be saying. ‘Drink with me the cup of my success and let me show you the way to riches’. The nations saw her success and wanted to be successful also” (McGuiggan p. 256). “The world may serve its drink in a golden

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cup, but what it offers is abominable….it contains all that appeals to the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life, but it results in base and filthy consequences” (Hailey p. 346).

17:5 “And on her forehead a name was written”: This announces who she really is. “Mystery”: “Whatever mystery may have enshrouded this woman is now openly exposed. A mystery conceals the true meaning of a thing from those who look only at the literal sense, but it is a medium of revelation to all who can and do properly interpret” (Hailey p. 347). The name on her forehead “is intended to show that she is not ashamed of her doctrines (or practices), but publicly professes and glories in them before the nations…she has refused to be ashamed” (Gregg p. 402). At this point Chilton argues that the term “mystery” means that even at this moment this city still forms an integral part of the divine plan of salvation, thus it refers to Jerusalem. But I cannot see what role Jerusalem still had to play in the divine plan of salvation. She would be totally destroyed, which was the subject of prophecy (Matthew 24:1ff), but the Roman Empire was also the subject of prophecy as well (Daniel 2,7). “The mother of harlots”: She is the world’s greatest harlot. She is the “mother” city because she is a source of evil and abominations that corrupted the earth. Again, I find it hard to select Jerusalem to be the mother of harlots in the ancient world. Rome was by far more influential in terms of idolatry, abominations, and corruption are concerned. “Babylon the Great”: “She is heiress and namesake of the ancient city which was the epitome of rebellion against God (Genesis 11:19; Jeremiah 50-51)” (Chilton p. 431). Linking this city with Babylon in the Old Testament would seem to infer that this city is likewise the most powerful city in the world as was Babylon in her day.

17:6 “And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus”: Yes, Jerusalem had persecuted God’s people (Acts 8), but Rome had also persecuted both Christians and various apostles (“witnesses of Jesus”). Both Paul and Peter died because of Roman persecution, “Whether in the arena, under the sword, or on the fiery pile. They had been slain for the entertainment of the depraved and to sate the bloodthirstiness of their enemies. It had been lust for power, honor, prestige, wealth, the pleasure, together with hate, ill-will, self-will and malice—all seated in the flesh that had led to the slaughter of God’s people” (Hailey p. 348). Yet these words could also apply to Jerusalem (compare with Matthew 23:34-36).

Please note that John cannot be talking about a judgment coming thousands of years in the future. The city or empire that would be judged had killed the witnesses of Jesus, that is, various apostles (Acts 1:8).

17:6 “When I saw her, I wondered”: “As John beholds the harlot astride the beast in the midst of the great wilderness, he has occasion to see her in her true light, without obstruction or distraction” (Hailey p. 348). Chilton believes that this 5

is a warning to the readers against being seduced by the harlot, for she is beautiful and impressive. “Wilson believes that John’s amazement at the sight of the woman was occasioned by his expectation to see the announced ‘judgment of the great harlot’, whereas the spectacle actually presented to him was that of the harlot’s glories and triumphs in her sin” (Gregg p. 405).

17:7 “And the angel said to me, ‘Why do you wonder?’ I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns” Here we find that the term “mystery” refers to something that has been hidden from the reader. God has been using figurative language. The beast is not a literal beast and the harlot is not a literal harlot. It is now the task of the angel to interpret these images and symbols for John as well as the reader of what John would write. While it is true that the woman and the beast are distinct images, it is also true that they are intertwined, the woman is carried by the beast, which in turn is being influenced by Satan (13:1). Hailey believes that the woman represents the city of Rome but he is very careful to point out that she represents more than just the city. She also represents lust, and all powers arrayed against God. “Lust rides upon, controls, and governs any ravenous, persecuting, and self-seeking political beast. At the same time the beast supports such a harlot” (Hailey p. 349).

17:8 “The beast that you saw was, and is not”: Hailey notes that the following three verses are perhaps the most difficult passages in the entire book. In this section it appears that “the beast” not only refers to the Roman Empire but to a specific emperor as well, see 17:10-11. “John seems to identify the beast with the emperor, for the empire is personified in its emperor” (Hailey p. 349). Some see this verse as referring to the fact that Nero who had persecuted Christians had died (the beast that was, and is not), and then persecution arises again in the emperor Domitian (and is about to come up). “Between Nero and Domitian, the state did not persecute the saints so that the ‘beast is not’” (McGuiggan p. 259).

Chilton believes something similar. He believes that Satan appears for a time in the person of some great persecutor, or in the form of some huge iniquity, but is after a while cast out. Then he again finds some other organ for his operations (p. 433). Thus it would appear that the beast “was” when Nero persecuted Christians, presently as John is writing the beast “is not”, and when Domitian starts to persecute Christians the beast “is about to come”.

17:8 “And is about to come up out of the abyss”: “The abyss is the realm out of which the smoke and locusts come that had darkened the sun and air (9:1-3) and over which Satan rules (9:11). Also from this source emerged the beast who made war with the witnesses and overcame them (11:7); and out of this satanic realm the woes and persecutions of the saints originated. In the place of one persecutor ‘who was, and is not’, another arises from Satan’s domain to take his place” (Hailey p. 350). “And go to destruction”: Here is encouragement for

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God’s people. No matter who arises to persecute God’s people, the fate of the persecutor is sealed. “Although the Beast is allowed, for a time, to ascend out of the abyss, he is just as certain to return there. His destiny is utter destruction, and he cannot succeed in destroying the Church” (Chilton p. 434).

17:8 “And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world” The earth-dwellers are unbelievers. Notice that in Revelation, as well in the rest of the Scriptures, there are only two groups. Believers and unbelievers, those who names are written in the book of life and those whose names are not.

17:8 “Will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come”: “The earth-dwellers are amazed at the beast’s vitality—how he can enter the abyss of destruction, revive, and come forth in another form to continue his nefarious work. But the saints, whose names are in the book of life, are not amazed, for they understand that the beast is doomed” (Hailey p. 350).

In his commentary Ogden believes that this section refers to when Nero and the Roman army seems to disappear from Palestine. The beast revives when Titus with the Roman army returns to Jerusalem and finally destroys it. My problem with this view is that it has the beast persecuting unbelievers, while in the book of Revelation the beast is consistently fighting against Christ persecuting Christians and not unbelieving Jews (13:6, 7;17:14). When Rome destroyed Jerusalem it was not fighting against God, rather it was doing God’s will (Matthew 23-24). If the book of Revelation is all about the destruction of Jerusalem, then the book is not about persecution against God’s people and overcoming it, but rather it is a book about the removal of the persecutor.

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