INSIGHTS: The Fall of Babylon ( Revelations Chapter 18)
Many people believe Babylon was a coded substitute for Rome, the city set on seven hills (Revelations 17:0(. Revelations was almost surely written to Gentile believers under going great persecutions from harsh Roman Emperors, Scholars who see Babylon as mentioned here as specific Roman rulers. However, not all interpreters agree. Some suggest that Babylon stands for Jerusalem and others believe we cannot clearly identify Babylon. Rather, that say, it can represent all powerful world systems that kill faithful Believers and seduce people away from Elohim. Regardless, chapter 18 reveals the the great enemy, Babylon, will disappear forever (Revelations 18:21) "hen a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: "With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again."
WHAT IS BABYLON (Revelations 18:2
Government and Religion
The Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar and its few other kings who reigned from 626-539 BCE, when it fell to Cyrus, King of Persia (and Media, which was conquered by Persia), was an absolute monarchy. Although Babylon worshiped the same gods as always (Marduk, Ishtar, and others), its religion became very eclectic as it added gods from other parts of the world to its already diversified pantheon. Various forms of the occult - witchcraft, divination, sorcery, necromancy, and so forth - as well as eastern mysticism were practiced. And Nebuchadnezzar was a ruthless tyrant who demanded that he also be worshiped. Remember the story of Daniel’s three friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who refused to worship Babylon’s gods or bow down to an image of Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 3)? Although they were three of Nebuchadnezzar’s favorite administrators, he was infuriated and had them thrown into the royal incinerator. So, we might say that Babylon’s government was a religious dictatorship in which religion was inextricably intertwined with government. One could be executed for not submitting to the laws of the land, for not practicing the national religion or for not worshiping the king. We will see that in modern, prophesied, “mystery” Babylon, religion is also in bed with the government and finally, just before modern Babylon is destroyed, her citizens will be required to worship the false god of her ruler.
Economy, Culture, and Citizenry
Babylon was the trade and cultural center of the world. It was called the “Golden City.” It had the highest standard of living of any nation on the earth. By the standards of the rest of the world, Babylon’s citizens lived in great wealth and luxury. It was the world center for education, the arts, and religion. It was the location of the famous “Hanging Gardens,” which, from a distance looked like a lush, green, tropical paradise. It was dotted by temples and ziggurats (religious towers) built for the worship of Babylon’s many gods, especially for its main gods, Marduk and Ishtar. Babylon was located on the mighty Euphrates River in southern Mesopotamia, which was not an arid, desert area like it is today. In fact, Babylon was located on the alluvial plain drained by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, watered by an amazing system of canals built by the Babylonians - boasting probably the most fertile soil in the world, covered by rich crops and other vegetation. It was called the “beautiful land.” Babylon was the crossroads of trade for that part of the world. Trade routes passed through Babylon from all points north, east, south and west. Boats sailed up and down the Euphrates, which passed right through the middle of the city of Babylon, from the Persian Gulf in the south into Assyria (modern-day Syria and Turkey) in the north. Because Babylon had been occupied by so many peoples down through the centuries, and because people from so many places passed through Babylon, the citizenry of Babylon was very diverse; it was a real “melting pot.” Just like ancient Babylon, modern, prophesied Babylon is the economic, trade, and cultural center of the modern world and also the “melting pot” of the world. Sound familiar?
Morality
Babylon was an extremely licentious, immoral city-state-empire. As was mentioned above, sex outside of marriage was not only acceptable, but was considered the highest form of religious and spiritual practice. All forms of sexual perversion - homosexuality, bestiality, incest, pedophilia, etc. - were widely practiced. Drunken orgies were common entertainment. Modern Babylon is also very libertarian in its morality.
Defense
Babylon was considered the “invincible city.” Built in a square pattern, approximately 15 miles on each side, with wide boulevards running at right angles to each other, north to south and east to west, she was a very large city, but carefully designed for rapid access to all parts of the city. As was mentioned above, the Euphrates River flowed right through the middle of Babylon. And a system of canals from the river provided plenty of water to the whole city for gardens, drinking water, cleaning, and other purposes. So, if under siege, the city could be sustained with water and food indefinitely. Along the river banks on both sides of the city and surrounding the city were two huge walls, 100 feet high and 50 to 60 feet wide (wide enough on top for a chariot pulled by a team of four horses to make a U-turn), with intermittent watch towers and huge, copper-plated gates. Then, other parts of the city, like the King’s palace, were also partitioned off by similar walls. So, with soldiers constantly manning the watch towers and patrolling the tops of the walls, Babylon was the most impregnable city in history. Unfortunately, the Babylonians got complacent in their “invincibility” and liked to party. So, one night in 539 BCE, when the Babylonians were in drunken revelry, the army of Cyrus, King of Persia, having dammed up the Euphrates River, stealthily entered the city from the river bed, sneaked into the palace, killed the King, and took over the city without a struggle. The next morning, the citizens of Babylon awoke to find themselves conquered! The Bible says that in the same way, modern Babylon, who thinks she is invincible, will be destroyed by a sudden, sneak attack - in just one day (Revelation 18:8). Actually, as we continue, we will see how this prophecy has two fulfillments: the fall of political, economic and military Babylon (like the fall of Hammurapi's Babylonian Empire and Nebuchadnezzar's Babylonian Empire) and the total annihilation of Babylon "by fire" (like the Babylon of Nimrod).
Imperialism
Babylon, under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, was the most economically, politically, and militarily dominant city-state (nation/empire) in the world. She controlled every nation from Egypt to the Persian Gulf in the South to the Black and Caspian Seas in the north. In the same way, modern Babylon will, and to a large extent already does, rule the world.
The whore of Babylon is an evil world system, controlled by the Antichrist, during the last days before Yahshua’s return. The whore of Babylon also has religious connotations – spiritual adultery with the beast being the focus of an ungodly, end-times religious system.
TORAH PASSION MINISTRY
Let His Blessings Flow
Genesis 12:3
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."
