Revelation 17 - Introduction

Revelation 17. The Vision of the Harlot and the Beast. In Revelation 14:18 and Revelation 16:19 brief statements have been made concerning the overthrow of Babylon, the name which is used in Revelation to denote the Roman Empire. In ch. 17 the whole drama of the destruction is unfolded in the form of a vision. A scarlet woman appears riding on a beast with seven heads and ten horns (cf. Revelation 13:1 *). The woman is described as drunk with the blood of the saints and the martyrs. The beast and the woman war against the Lamb of God and are overthrown. The explanation of the vision is apparent from the statements made by the seer himself. The woman represents Rome, the city of the seven hills. The beast is the Empire personified in the Emperor Nero. The seven heads are seven kings, and the ten horns ten provincial rulers or satraps. Nothing could exceed the lurid picture of the Roman Empire drawn in the chapter, but the Neronian persecution justifies and more than justifies all that is written here.