Babylon the great, Mother of harlots. Revelation 17:3

 I am jumping off my commentary on the Gospel of John to point something out.

One of the so-called “watchmen” that goes by “generation 2434” went on a bit of a rant, saying.

“I, 100%, stand against the teaching that “Mystery Babylon” could be Jerusalem because it goes against God’s word.”

He went on to say,

“There are many scriptures that prove this… but here is the short and firm answer.”

“Mystery Babylon is destroyed and will NEVER be a city again.”

If you search for the phrase “mystery Babylon,” you will NOT find it. The closest thing we have to mystery Babylon is Revelation 17:5. Here is the KJV.

(I have intentionally broken up the passage so that aspects could be emphasized.)

“Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment.”

(Judgment is that which originates from God and, in general, would be deemed “the great tribulation”; once again, this is an inappropriate term.)

“of the great harlot”

(Momentarily, we will see that BABYLON, THE GREAT, and THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS are the same thing, and Jerusalem is included.

Here is a huge assumption: If there is a great harlot, can there be lesser harlots?

Since we know that Babylon is one and Jerusalem is another, there is the possibility of others.)

“who sits on many waters,”

(Waters is representative of the nations.
Telling us that this “great harlot sits on many waters indicates that “she” has influence over multiple locations simultaneously.
If this were a human, this kind of influence could only be accomplished by having others fulfill their wishes; this conversation fuels the idea that this being is demonic.

Remember that Satan took a third of the angels, an uncountable number, to earth in his rebellion. It is the reason that Satan can have such an influence. )

“with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality,”

(Perhaps it is best to think of this harlot as wickedness, evil, transgressions, and general darkness.

The question to ask yourself is, against whom?

The answer is that these acts of evil are generally perpetrated against the masses who can do little to defend themselves.)

“and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality.”

(God is showing John, and subsequently us, the punishment of the harlot and who she has had an impact upon; this is an aspect of God’s wrath. It is important to recognize that by the time we read this, the collapse of their empires and national relationships because of the immoralities associated with the harlot will just about be complete.)

Consider what Revelation 17:3 tells us.

“And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness;”

(When God showed Abram how committed He was to this covenant that He was asking Abram to follow, the entirety of the dream, although it sounded like reality. What the Apostle John passes on to us is no less vivid and real. In Acts chapter 8, we see the disciple, Philip, run and catch up with an Ethiopian eunuch, who is riding in a chariot while attempting to read the scroll of Isaiah. I have so many questions about this scenario. Having, a few moments later, baptized the Eunuch in some standing water, Philip is translated; perhaps we can say he was carried away in the Spirit.

Did this happen to John? I cannot say, however, that it sounds like John’s experience was more like Abram’s.)

(Wilderness should be a familiar term as we saw Jesus driven into the wilderness – Matthew 4 - to commune with the Father and to be tested by Satan. The wilderness is typically bleak, foreboding, and lacking water.)

“and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names,”

(If I saw anyone riding on a “beast,” I would assume they believed they were in control of that animal. I had an opportunity to ride a horse when I went to Oklahoma. That horse, for the majority of the time, did what it wanted to do. Finally, as the horse was standing in about a foot of muddy water, a man led some young riders out by me and told them clearly to let their horses know who was in control and told them how to do that. Unfortunately, I don’t remember how to do that, but I applied my momentary education to the situation, got the horse out of the muddy lake, and got the horse to run on a sprint. By the way, this is when the ride smoothed out, but the thought occurred to me that this horse could run in front of an oncoming vehicle.)  

(It is the woman’s head that is full of blasphemous names, and she is riding the scarlet beast, and the beast is speaking blasphemies.

Let’s focus on the blasphemous names for a moment.

Blasphemy is the Greek word blasphēmia and carries meanings of slander, defamation, vilification, and verbal abuse against someone. The WSD conveys that it is the wounding of someone’s reputation by evil reports. We are not given the names, but if you can understand what they are intended to do, you can comprehend the focus of those words – they are meant to demean God and those who represent Him.)

“having seven heads and ten horns.”

(If you search for “seven heads,” you will only find the phrase in the Revelation.)

- Revelation 13:1 TLV  Then I saw a beast rising out of the sea that had ten horns and seven heads. On his horns were ten royal crowns, and upon his heads were slanderous names.

(I am constantly reminding you that our Biblical study is concentrated on Israel and the Mideast; with that in mind, these ten horns and seven heads are defined in Daniel 7 as ten kings. In Daniel 7, he desired an explanation.) The passage that follows is one of those responses.

- Daniel 7:23-24 BSB says ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on the earth, different from all the other kingdoms, and it will devour the whole earth, trample it down, and crush it.  24  And the ten horns are ten kings who will rise from this kingdom. After them, another king, different from the earlier ones, will rise and subdue three kings.

(Question: Of the nations in the Middle East, how many are NOT Muslim? Not many.)

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,

The description conveys that the participants are motivated by wealth and comfort. Soon, they will be subject to God’s wrath, and their money won’t do anything for them.

And on her forehead, a name was written, a mystery,”

Before we go any further, I want to explore this word mystery. I am NOT an expert in English grammar; I pay dearly to have my work edited by “Grammarly’s” document editor. With that said, I noticed that the word mystery ends with a comma. This indicates that there is a pause worthy of contemplating, in this case, the context of the paragraph. While the implications involved with Babylon are significant, we are not given this information for us to be confused because the name Babylon is a mystery.

The word mystery, as used in Revelation 17:5, is the Greek word mustḗrion, and it carries the implications of a person initiated into sacred mysteries. The word mustḗrion is a derivative of the Greek word muéō (G3453) and means to initiate, learn a secret, or some esoteric knowledge. It also denotes something hidden or not fully manifest.

If you are familiar with the Free Masons or the Illuminati, you are already acquainted with the terminology used to describe being initiated into the sacred mysteries.

The prophet, Daniel, revealed this piece of information, somewhat deflating the mystery.

“But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.” Daniel 12:4 NASB

(God has seen fit to open the eyes of those who have an interest in end-times prophecy.)

And this is what was written upon her forehead.

“BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”
Revelation 17:5 NASB

You do not have to be a rocket scientist to understand that the description seen on the harlot’s forehead is the mystery. It is also an analogy to the centralized system progressively taking over the world.

In an attempt to understand what this mystery is, let’s look at what Revelation 17:18 says.

“And the woman that you saw is the great city exercising kingship over the kings of the earth.” Revelation 17:18 TLV

God calls Babylon the great city, but the problem is that Babylon is no longer there. To add to the confusion, Jerusalem is also called that great city. There are multiple references to the destruction of Babylon in the Old Testament and Revelation. Jeremiah 51:8 is one of our examples.

With all that history, God still has the initiative to use the term suddenly.

“Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken; Wail over her! Bring balm for her pain; Perhaps she may be healed.” Jeremiah 51:8 NASB

We find the beginnings of Babylon when we find Nimrod and the tower of Babel. It is from this that Nebuchadnezzar brought about his Babylonian kingdom.

An excerpt from www.worldhistory.org.

“Babylon was founded at some point prior to the reign of Sargon of Akkad (the Great, 2334-2279 BCE) and seems to have been a minor port city on the Euphrates River until the rise of Hammurabi (r. 1792-1750 BCE), who made it the capital of his Babylonian Empire. After Hammurabi’s death, his empire quickly fell apart. The city was sacked by the Hittites in 1595 BCE and then taken by the Kassites who renamed it Karanduniash. The earliest mention of the city comes from an inscription from the time of Sargon of Akkad. It was briefly ruled by the Chaldeans (9th century BCE), whose name became synonymous with Babylonians to later Greek writers (notably Herodotus) and biblical scribes, and then was controlled by the Neo-Assyrian Empire (912-612 BCE) before being taken by Nabopolassar (r. 626-605 BCE), who established the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Babylon fell to the Persians under Cyrus II (the Great, r. c. 550-530 BCE) and was a capital of the Achaemenid Empire (550-330 BCE) until it fell to Alexander the Great in 331 BCE. It continued as a trade center under the later Seleucid Empire (312-63 BCE), Parthian Empire (247 BCE to 224 CE), and Sassanian Empire (224-651 CE) but never attained the heights it had known under Hammurabi or the Neo-Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II (r. 605/604-562 BCE). The city declined after the Muslim Arab conquest in the 7th century CE and was finally abandoned.” (https://www.worldhistory.org/babylon/#:~:text=Babylon%20was%20founded,was%20finally%20abandoned.)

Jeremiah 51:37 also speaks to the cessation of Babylon, a place where no one will ever live again, much like the coming prophecy against Damascus.

Not that long ago, I watched an archaeologist as he visited the site of Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylon. The foundations that mark the perimeter of Babylon still exist, but no one, to this day, lives within those boundaries.

“Babylon will become a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals, An object of horror and hissing, without inhabitants.”
Jeremiah 51:37 NASB

Consider this: Babylon, acting on behalf of God, in time, took the majority of Israel captive. It is possible that the prophets Jeremiah, Habakkuk, Ezekiel, and Obadiah were taken captive alongside Daniel.

One of the ways we can look at the original Babylon is to see it as a protective force.

Did everyone obtain untouchable protection?

No, and we see an example of this when we read about King Zedekiah, the King of Judah (the Southern kingdom. Read Jeremiah 39:1-9), but others, such as Daniel and the other three young men that were taken captive, enjoyed God’s protection.

If you read about Daniel, you learn that he was thrown into the lion’s den for maintaining his routine of worship. King Darius, who had been tricked, fought to save Daniel, but his own edict was against him. Daniel came out of this sure death unharmed. Read all this in Daniel, chapter six.

Since we can understand that Babylon is gone, this discussion about Babylon, which is deemed a mystery, has to be more spiritual in nature and in the future. Needless to say, that future is now.

And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.”
Revelation 11:8 NASB

When God talks about the two witnesses who stand in the streets of Jerusalem, He refers to Jerusalem as that great city, merely clouding the issue.

So, when I or anyone else talks about false teachers and how they can lead you astray, someone speaking authoritatively can drag you into confusion by insisting that Babylon must be rebuilt. Clearly, that is not the case. To combat that happening, you must become a student of the Word of God; that means you read and write with the express purpose of gaining insight into how God thinks and feels.

The deception will be great. Matthew 24:3-5.

 

Doesn't this title have a familiar ring to it? 

What was Jesus' first response when the disciples ask Him these questions?

“As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you. "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many.” (Matthew 24:3-5 NASB)

As you noticed above, the NASB used the term "mislead." 

Do you realize that any magician, "worth his salt," is a master at misdirection? The words are similar, but if you look up the simple word mislead, you will find the Greek word planaō. 

The first thing Strong's concordance says in the definition of planaō is “to (properly cause to) roam.” 

Roam, in my mind, lends itself to the results of someone misleading you. 

To roam is to stray or wander, among a few other words. Alternative words that explain planaō are "seduce or deceive."

Imagine this scenario if we used the word seduced to convey what the false prophet will do.

We associate seduction as typically being between a man and a woman who are NOT married to each other. If you were the spouse of one of these people, your reaction to what they are doing may not be so cordial or mild.

Why say all that?

Because we read things like the NASB translation of Matthew's account and we glance over a simple word like mislead and completely miss the depth of passion that God was trying to convey.

• He (the false prophet) will also be the enforcer of Sharia;.

  This coincides with the tribulation becoming even more deadly, especially for the Jews in Israel.

  "But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs.” (Matthew 24:8 NASB)

Considering what we have seen, how could tribulations become greater unless it is in the number of killings and the associated violence?

Islam and the caliphate that will arise will aggressively begin killing anyone who is not a Muslim.

Allow me to refresh your memory about who we are talking about.

• and it spoke like a dragon

Revelation 12:9 “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”

Simply stated, the dragon is Satan; therefore, the human empowered by the dragon speaks like Satan – the deceiver. Let that sink in.

The false prophet presents himself as peaceful, almost like Jesus, but he speaks like Satan. It is NOT the tone of voice, it is the words that make him like Satan, and Satan is a deceiver. So the false prophet will, at some point, speak with the express purpose of deception.

Rabbi Baruch Kahane

Perhaps the knowledge that the Jewish religious council had selected a man to be the high priest in the “new” temple when it is built, and they have already trained him. His name is Rabbi Baruch Kahane, but if you do a search for the high priest in Israel, you will find that the Rabbi stepped back from the position as he did not feel the timing was appropriate.

And, in case you hadn't noticed, Satan does not present himself like the grotesque images we see in movies; he is subtle and seductive. Eve found that out - that is, until Satan goes into fury mode.

Revelation 13:6 ESV "It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven."

Satan can and does become furious. The idea of making war on "her" offspring will be developed as we go.

Revelation 12:17 ESV "Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea."

• It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence. 

The first beast is a man. We were told that he emerges from the sea, so we know that he is NOT a Jew. This man does NOT sustain a bullet wound to the head, die, and rise again. Daniel 7:8 tells us that this man will have a mouth uttering great boasts. The word "boasts," italicized, indicates that it was added for clarity. In this, it seems inappropriate because the Aramaic word translated as “uttering great boasts” is rabrab and also means domineering.

This is a timing issue, and it is difficult to be precise.

What does it mean to be precise when you are God, the creator of time?

We know that there will be a seven-year period of destruction upon the earth, and the clock seems to start with the removal of the church from the earth (the rapture). There seems to be an immediate entrance of a “world” leader. Islam calls him the Mahdi, the 12^th or hidden Imam, the leader of the global Islamic caliphate. We call him the Antichrist or the first beast.

This entrance of the second beast - the one that has horns like a lamb – seems to be at the midpoint of the seven-year period.

Why say that?

Because there is a rapid escalation of events at the mid-point and our false prophet, who has operated quietly in the temple, suddenly gives himself over to this Mahdi, performs the signs, and steps up as the enforcer of this disgusting and bloody sharia law.

Everyone seems to know that the Antichrist will sign a peace treaty. We keep saying it will be with Israel, but scripture says, is that it will be with many. That may not include Israel. When I first wrote this, I guess that none of us would have thought that Russia and China would be in Syria fighting against Isis. Russia believes that defending Bashar Assad is key to defeating Isis, while President Obama is set on removing the Syrian President from power. (There are many good theories on what this is all about, and most have to do with the Federal Reserve Bank.) So, while the Antichrist may be juggling aspects of his worldwide deception, this second beast steps up and handles the enforcement aspect for him.

• and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed.

This Jew turned Muslim - temple priest turned desecrator, and a deceiver on a grand scale, makes all the earth worship the first beast.

I need you to consider the description of the beast once again.

“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it, the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast.” (Revelation 13:1-3 ESV)

Multi-headed, with ten horns and seven heads, it looks like a leopard, a lion, and a bear. However bizarre this thing seems to be it is given a mouth; in other words – a spokesman - the Antichrist.

In the world of clues, this is huge,

“One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed,”

First, there is no such animal; second, Daniel plainly defined the Babylonian empire as the first of these heads. Historically we know that the Medo-Persian empire was the second, and the Grecian empire was the third. Since we now know, we are looking at empires and not a human as the head, what one empire fits this description better than any other? The answer is the Ottoman empire, and the world thought they were finally killed off in 1924.

Guess what? 

They came back to life in 1979 with the Iranian revolution.

The woman drunk with the blood of saints. Revelation 17:6-7.

 In my previous post, I only covered two verses. I suspect the reason I did that is that the majority of us are experiencing the World Economic Forum’s goals of global dominance and a concerted effort to reduce the world’s population. While, on the other hand, we are trying desperately to figure out who is pulling the puppet strings intended to make us dance.

Here is a portion of Revelation 17:5 to help prove my point.

Revelation 17:5b. ISV ...BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND DETESTABLE THINGS OF THE EARTH.

Some might say, what they are doing is NOT detestable, and it is common among my community of friends. We all have a community of what we call friends, just as Jeffrey Epstein did. However, they were all so blinded that they could not or refused to see that what they are doing to children was no better than what Israel did with that Molech idol that they coerced Aaron to make in the wilderness. 

The Old Testament does not convey the depth of perversion involved in what Israel did there with that idol. But, as you can see from this ISV translation that we are told, it was just an idol to be used in a festival. Well, that sounds like a good time is to be had.

He took them (their gold adornments) from them and, using a tool, fashioned them into a molten calf. The people said, “This, Israel, is your god who brought you out of the land of Egypt.” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of it, and then he proclaimed, “Tomorrow is to be a festival to the LORD.” (Exodus 32:4-5 ISV)

But Stephen understood what it was and what they did there that day, and he retold the details to the Jewish council that would soon kill him because of false charges that caused him to be standing here.

Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him (both God and Moses) but pushed him aside and turned back to Egypt in their hearts, saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go in front of us, for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt -- we do not know what has happened to him!’ At that time, they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands. But God turned away from them and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, house of Israel? But you took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship, but I will deport you beyond Babylon.’ (Acts 7:39-43 NET.)

That sacrifice was their children, which they roasted as they danced.

Albert Barnes, in his commentary, explains for us what Moloch was. “Moloch - This word comes from the Hebrew word signifying “king.” This was a god of the Ammonites, to whom human sacrifices were offered. Moses in several places forbids the Israelites, under penalty of death, to dedicate their children to Moloch, by making them pass through the fire”. 

God’s character and moral law have never changed, and His law has been written upon the heart of every living being; it has been this way since He put humanity on this earth. 

First, it is essential to note that Satan understood that humans would know good and evil.

The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die! “For God knows that in the day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5 NASB)

Let’s take for granted that you don’t believe me, then look at this interaction between God and Cain. This interaction brings us to my second point. Cain, having sacrificed improperly, brings God into the picture (in the form of Jesus), and God has a conversation with Cain.

“Abel, on his part, also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? “If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.” (Genesis 4:4-7 NASB)

God could not have this conversation unless He, in some manner, had previously instructed  Cain on what is right and how to do it. God’s nature is not to pull a sneak attack on you and then laugh as He throws you mercilessly into hell. Therefore, we can lean on one of two things. 

1. Because we see nothing that tells us that God instructed Cain, his instructions had to come from Adam. I am telling you this because I have heard these foolish arguments.

2. Since Adam gave up the dominion of the earth to Satan by his actions, God had to come down and slaughter enough animals to offer a sacrifice for both Adam and Eve, but explained why; and then made clothing out of the skins. Information about the necessity of a sacrifice, and perhaps the clothing, was passed from Adam to Cain and Abel. And we know this by inference – Abel sacrificed a lamb, the firstborn, and God accepted that sacrifice.

So, even though this next piece of information comes from Leviticus, it seems to have come after the Moloch incident. Of course, some will take this idea to the next level and say, see, these people should not be held responsible for roasting their children to a false and abhorrent god. Sorry, that argument is not going to work, and I have already told you why.

‘You shall not give any of your offspring to offer them to Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God; I am the LORD. (Leviticus 18:21 NASB)

Just in case you think I was kidding about this Moloch stuff, check this out. 

“You shall also say to the sons of Israel: ‘Any man from the sons of Israel or from the aliens sojourning in Israel who gives any of his offspring to Molech, shall surely be put to death; the people of the land shall stone him with stones. ‘I will also set My face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given some of his offspring to Molech, so as to defile My sanctuary and to profane My holy name. ‘If the people of the land, however, should ever disregard that man when he gives any of his offspring to Molech, so as not to put him to death, then I Myself will set My face against that man and against his family, and I will cut off from among their people both him and all those who play the harlot after him, by playing the harlot after Molech.” (Leviticus 20:2-5 NASB)

If you have been bold enough to speak out against the vaccine tyranny on YouTube, then your page, or at least your speech, has probably been blocked, demonetized, and made to disappear from the internet. I say this because some have made compelling documentaries about how the rich kill the children they take off the street because they believe that they gain some dark spiritual power. Do not think for a second that they will go unpunished.

So much for an introduction. Let’s move on to Revelation 17:6. 

Revelation 17:6 NASB “And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered greatly.”

Drunk is the Greek word methuō and obviously means drunken, but it is also (as Thayer’s dictionary conveys) metaphorically indicative of one who has shed blood or murdered profusely.

If you were to ask me, when does all this blood get shed? I would have to say, look at the third world nations, especially those with a considerable Islamic influence, because there is hardly a week that goes by where anywhere from ten to 100 churchgoers are shot, burned, or bombed. 

Is it just the third-world nations? 

Hardly because the news out of Europe frequently has some fool screaming Allahu Akbar while stabbing or shooting ten or so people. The fact that the passage tells us that the “woman” is drunk with the blood of saints tells me a significant motive of the global elite is to kill off those who associate themselves with Christianity. I can tell you that our governing bodies are turning against the Church daily here in America. 

Our California governor was sued, and a judgment was rendered by the state supreme court. The decision against him prevents him from making proclamations against the church. 

So how does our illustrious governor responds to a court order? 

He hands off his dirty work to local city councils, such as San Jose’s or the state health department. But, you might ask, how is the state health department playing into this role? Since the California governor cannot declare our church assemblies illegal, he has the health department limit the number of people who meet indoors to 1000, which again attempts to disrupt the church. Here is what is interesting about this. Since the initial Covid shut down, many churches have closed their doors and not reopened. 

In the last few weeks, before writing this post, I have come to find out that California Governor Gavin Newsome, the nephew of Nancy Pelosi, was a recent graduate of the Klaus Schwab school of global governance. When you consider that Klaus Schwab is the dark lord leader of this international governing body that we see in the end times, it only makes sense that this school is an educational ground for future oppressors.

• “drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus.”

For a period of time, I thought that the context of the word saints, as used here, only spoke of those who were killed during the time of wrath. However, if you look up the word saints, you will find that Paul addressed the believers as saints on several occasions. Therefore, we cannot limit this conversation to the time of wrath alone, especially since Christ-followers are killed daily.

In the reference to the blood of the witnesses of Jesus, the definition of a witness is not so rigid. 

Why say that? 

The thief on the cross is one of the most dramatic examples of a witness that fits outside of the religious definition. Before the crucifixion, we know nothing about these two lawbreakers hanging there with Jesus.

Yet, as soon as the conversation begins, you get a strong sense that everyone in this scenario is a Jew.

"One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” But the other answered, and rebuking him, said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? “And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43 NASB)

It is clear that there is an understanding that Jesus is God in this man, that they, the criminals, deserved punishment, but Jesus did not; and he asked that Jesus remember him, to which Jesus said, I will. 

This interaction had none of the standard religious talks, and yet the thief, also nailed to a cross, had a heart toward God; this was evident because he expressed an understanding of who Jesus is, and he knew that Jesus had done nothing wrong. All of these assessments are true. The thief did not cry out for salvation, did not necessarily plead for forgiveness of sins, and may not have been able to have a lamb sacrificed for his benefit. 

Can you see that that there is nothing standard about this process? 

And yet, Jesus told him, this day, you will be with me in paradise. A vast number in the Middle Eastern world have been brutally murdered for not bowing to Allah and giving their allegiance to this god who is no god. 

Is it possible that they, like the thief on the cross, by rejecting a false god, gave their lives to the God who created the heavens and promised them a life of peace with the Father?

John, in Revelation 17:6, says, “When I saw her, I wondered greatly.” Wondered sounds so benign and simplistic, why would anyone feel the need to pursue such a simple word? Because I always read this and thought, this is like looking at a horrific car crash and not looking away. 

The word wondered is the Greek word thaumazō, and it means to regard with admiration or to reverence. 

Suddenly I find myself disgusted, or, at the least, taken back by the fact that John was not repulsed. After all, this is the entity drunk on the blood of saints. The obvious thing that I see here is that riches and power have an extraordinary draw on us.

Revelation 17:7 NASB 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.

What an odd question this angel asked. It is almost as if John is surprised this entity is so attractive. Isn’t that the way Satan seems to work? Revelation 17:7a. BBE, puts it this way, And the angel said to me, Why were you surprised? He makes the worst of things seem attractive, at least for a time. 

The angel begins to answer the question. 

• “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.”

Mystery? The Greek word is mystērion and for me, the meaning is unusual. Mounce’s dictionary says it best. It is “a matter to the knowledge of which initiation is necessary; a secret which would remain such but for revelation.”

Every time I see the word mystery, I get a sense of something we cannot possibly know.

One of my pastors verbally attacked me because, as he claimed, NO ONE can understand the book of Revelation or eschatology. Obviously, he did not, and he asserted, that is why I don’t teach it. 

How does the Revelation open? 

Revelation 1:3 NASB “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.”

Another translation reads, God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church.

Based upon this, should I make the foolish assumption that God does not want me to understand? 

The answer is NO. He desires for us to know, it merely requires an open mind and the time to look at passages in the Old Testament, because there is little in the New Testament that did not come from the old. 

Romans 16:25,26 NASB tells us 

“Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith;.”

Paul, writing to the church at Colossae, says

I became a servant of the church according to the stewardship from God -- given to me for you -- in order to complete the word of God, that is, the mystery that has been kept hidden from ages and generations but has now been revealed to his saints. (Colossians 1:25-26 NET.)

Alright, so it’s no longer a mystery to the believer, as the Word of God – scripture is the thing that allows us to understand things that used to be mysteries.

This “mystery” is what the prophet Daniel dealt with as he was frequently shown images that made no sense. A lack of understanding prompted him to ask for interpretations, which were provided, although I doubt some of the explanations made sense because they were for future times; nonetheless, explanations were freely given. I genuinely believe that we are living in those times now.

Next time we will regroup at Revelation 17:7 and move forward quickly from there. 

In the meantime putting yourself into the arms of Jesus moves you into the category of those who have had the mystery opened up to them, but there is also the knowledge that you are accepted and loved by the Father.