Revelation 17:1-18
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 deckeda 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, 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.
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.
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.
THE GREAT HARLOT.
The sixteenth chapter presents the series of historical events that lead to the overthrow of spiritual Babylon. Our interpretation of these has been for the most part determined by the facts of history which have already transpired. The sixth vial brings to the present date. Concerning what follows the seventh vial. speak with diffidence, as it is yet future, but of this we can be certain, that it foreshadows the final overthrow of the anti-Christian powers. In Chapter s XVII., XVIII. and XIX., the downfall of these powers, the overthrow of Rome, the triumph of the Word of God, and the victory of Armageddon, are described with greater detail. The limits to which. am confined will only permit me to outline these Chapter s. Chap. 17:1-6 describes spiritual Rome under the figure of. great harlot. The true Church is described throughout Revelation as. pure woman, the Bride of Christ; the false church as. harlot. That this harlot refers to the same wicked power already described as Babylon is evident from the words on her forehead.
This woman sat on. scarlet beast and was clothed in purple and scarlet. Scarlet is the color worn by cardinals and Pope. Purple indicates not only luxury but royal power. The woman was drunk with the blood of the saints, which is true of Rome.
The beast has, throughout indicated the secular power that upheld the church. This was first, old imperial Rome. The beast had seven heads.. have shown that there are seven hills on which Rome sat, and. have indicated (p. 250) that this refers to seven forms of government that Rome had during her existence. There were ten horns. The horn is. symbol of power, and often is used for. kingdom in prophetic language. See Daniel 7:24. This, then, implies ten powers which sprang out of Rome and supported the false church. These are given by Sir Isaac Newton, as follows:
1. Kingdom of the Vandals in Spain and Africa;
2. Kingdom of the Visigoths;
3. Kingdom of the Suevi in Spain;
4. Kingdom of the Alans in France;
5. Kingdom of the Burgundians;
6. Kingdom of the Franks;
7. Kingdom of the Britons;
8. Kingdom of the Huns;
9. Kingdom of the Lombards;
10. Kingdom of Ravenna.
The Roman empire was broken up into these kingdoms, and they were all supporters of the Papacy. These ten kings or kingdoms did not exist in the time of John, but should afterwards receive authority and do the will of the beast (verses 12-15). At. later period still, the ten horns (verse 16) shall hate and desolate the harlot. We have seen this fulfilled in the fact that the kingdoms that have been developed from these have in the last three centuries either become Protestant, or have broken with Roman rule. The historical facts given under the seven vials show how they have waged war on Rome.