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The TRUTH?
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What Does The Future Hold ?
Exciting and EASY Study on REVELATION
VERSE 1: (Chapter 17)
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JUDGMENT of the GREAT WHORE
"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."
When we were studying Chapter 4:1 of Revelation, we learned how an angel said to John "Come up hither". We studied about the door opening in Heaven and John seeing the "lightnings and thunderings". In our verse here, verse 1, another angel talks to John. This angel is even more frightening. This angel is one of the angels that poured out a vial of God's judgment upon the earth. John witnessed it! "And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials"
This angel also talks to John and says almost the same words as the first angel John met. This angel says: "Come hither". The first angel, that talked with John, told him that he was going to show John some really awesome things. That first angel showed John a glimpse into Heaven. John saw the four beasts that say "Holy, Holy, Holy". John saw the 24 elders with crowns on their heads, and he saw the throne of God. This angel in this verse is going to show John something completely the opposite.

The angel in this verse, verse 1, tells John that he "will shew unto thee (John) the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters." I don't know about you, but I don't think I want to see God's judgment. The angel continues explaining to John in our next verse, verse 2, why God's judgment is happening.
VERSE 2: (Chapter 17)
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KINGS Commit FORNICATION
INHABITANTS DRUNK
"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."
This angel continues to tell John that the "kings of the earth have committed fornication" with the "great whore that sitteth upon many waters" mention in verse 1. As we move through this chapter, the Lord reveals to us who this "great whore" is and what all she has done.
We are told in this verse that the "kings of the earth have committed fornication". The meaning of fornication to most of us means illicit sexual actions between people, usually not married. However, there is another standard of fornication in God's eyes. It is called 'spiritual fornication'. This is where people worship idols instead of worshipping God. In Revelation, Chapter 2, we touched on idol worship. We saw where God included the sin of idol worship in the Ten Commandments: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above ... Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them ... for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God" (Exodus 20:3-6). It is also well recorded in history that fornication, sexual acts, is rampant during idol worship. When we studied Revelation, Chapter 2, we also learned that murders often took place during idol worship.
We are told in our verse here that "the kings of the earth" will be committing "fornication". This does NOT mean the leaders of these nations are going to have one big sexual party, even though that probably will be going on also. This verse is talking about a "spiritual fornication" against God. The leaders, "the kings" are going to 'benefit' from the "great whore'. As we will see in this chapter, the "great whore" is a nation. This nation is going to be ran by the Antichrist. The other nations will be committing 'spiritual fornication' with the Antichrist.
The Antichrist will be using "the great whore" "to make the inhabitants of the earth ... drunk with the wine of her fornication". All the nations will be dependent upon "the great whore". The leaders of nations will become wealthy off of the merchandise and policies of "the great whore". All the "inhabitants of the earth" will be greatly affected by this nation.

VERSE 3: (Chapter 17)
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The ANGEL CARRIES JOHN
The 'WOMAN' Sitting On The "BEAST"
"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."
First, we see here that John is carried in the spirit by the angel ... "he carried me". In Revelation 4:2, when the first angel spoke with John, he told John to "Come up hither". He did not carry John. The angel in this verse carries John. The first angel was guiding John to Heaven. The Lord guides people to Heaven. The Lord tugs on every person's heart to come to Him and be saved. Jesus says in Matthew 11:28: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heaven laden, and I will give you rest." Every person is to make this decision on their own. God calls to each person and it is up to each person to make their own choice. The first angel called to John. John obeyed and followed. John could have chosen not to follow the angel. It is up to every individual to chose whether to accept Christ or not.
This angel is carrying John because John is going to witness a very bad thing. Remember, if we are God's child, He will carry us through our difficult times. He will not let us go through bad things alone. He will carry us. Remember Psalm 23:4: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me".
Next we are told in our verse that the angel carried John "into the wilderness". Some dictionaries describe "wilderness" as inhospitable. We know that the "wilderness" here is not an area that is uninhabited because there is a "woman" and a "beast", at the very least, there. However, the description of inhospitable seems to fit very well here. These people are not going to be welcoming, cozy, or sweet. This "woman" will be very beautiful but not nice at all.
All through the Bible, cities are referred to in the female tense. The "woman" referred to in our verse, being in the female tense, refers to a city. Being described as a "woman" illustrates that this city is fully mature. It is a city that has history. It is aged. As we study on, we will uncover more clues to the identity and location of this "woman" ... city.
John says he: "saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast". This city is going to be used as the 'headquarters of the "beast". The "beast" will be dressed in "scarlet" attire.

This "beast" will be clothed in "scarlet" colors. The color "scarlet" comes from a bright dye obtained from two sources. Back in ancient days it came from the little grains obtained from a holm-oak tree combined with crushed female coccus insects. According to an article by John Waage, titled 'Ancient Textile Dyed with Biblical Scarlet Found in Judean 'Cave of Skulls', sheds light on an expensive scarlet dye. He stated that it was used for priestly fabrics like that used in the Jewish Tabernacle by the Levites.
Scarlet was one of the colors of the high-priest's ephod. The priest's girdle and breastplate also had the color of scarlet on them. King Saul, in 2 Samuel 1:24, clothed his daughters in scarlet. This "beast", in our verse, will be clothed in scarlet. The color of scarlet represents royalty. The "beast" will be priestly and will dress in royal robes, scarlet in color. The "beast" will be charge of worldwide religion. He will be the 'head' of religion.
The next part of our verse here says that the "beast" will be "full of names of blasphemy." The "beast" will have the many characteristics of every evil name possible. He will be "full of names of blasphemy". Any word that is opposite of God will be the characteristic of the "beast". He will be the Deceiver, the Prosecutor, the father of Lies, the Evil one, and the list goes on. Yet, he will be the 'leader' of the world religion.
Most of Chapter 13 of Revelation is about the "beast". It tells us that he is a "man" (13:18). Revelation 13:1 reads almost the same as the words we are studying in 17:3. Revelation 13:1 says: "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy." You can easily review Chapter 13 to refresh your memory about the "beast". It also told us the number of the "beast", 666, and that he will be a fierce ruler. This "man", the "beast", will rise up "out of the sea" of people. He will obtain "ten heads" which represent the ten leaders of "seven" nations of the world.
Later in this chapter, God reveals more information about this city and the "seven heads and ten horns". But first He reveals information to us about the "the great whore that sitteth upon many waters" (verse 1), and why she is called the "Mother of Harlots" (verse 5).
VERSE 4: (Chapter 17)
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The WOMAN'S ATTIRE
"And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:"
We read that the "Beast" was clothed in "scarlet". The "woman" will be "arrayed in purple and scarlet". The "Beast" has authority over the "woman"; however, there is much power in this "woman". Notice in verse 3 that she sits "upon a scarlet coloured beast". This "woman" has to go wherever the "Beast" takes her. The "Beast" has the ultimate authority, however, the "woman" chooses to "sit upon" the "Beast".
This "woman" is clothed in scarlet and purple. The scarlet shows that she is in agreement with the "Beast". Purple is also a royal color. Purple dye was obtained from shellfish, like snails. Just like the scarlet dye comes from the female coccus insects being crushed; likewise, the purple dye comes from shellfish that are also crushed. Both types of these insects have to die physically in order to obtain these colors.

Jesus's shed His blood for us. Those who have accepted Christ into their hearts are covered with the Lord's blood. The Lord says in Isaiah 1:18: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." The "Beast" and the "woman" will be covered by the blood of insects and shellfish and not by the Lord's blood.
Next in this verse we read that the "woman" was also "decked with gold and precious stones and pearls". This simply means that there is great wealth here and the wealth is from many sources. We also read that she has a "golden cup in her hand". In Revelation 18:6 we see that she "hath filled". Our verse tells us what she fills it with: "abominations and filthiness of her fornication".
Proverbs 6:16-19 names some things that are abominations to God: "These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto Him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren." These things, plus much more, are what are in the "golden cup".
PRIDE

LIES
EVIL THOUGHTS
COVETEOUSNESS
IDOL WORSHIP
LUST
ANGER
DISCORD
FALSE
WITNESS
MURDER
GREED
MISCHIEF
HATE
STEALING
VERSE 5: (Chapter 17)
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WORDS Upon Her FOREHEAD
"And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH."
We are told here that this "woman" will have a name written on "her forehead". This is for all to see. She will not be able to hide it. She may try to cover it up, but God is going to reveal her to us.
God has given this "woman" a name that she earned. She is named the "MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT". A 'mystery' in scripture is just something that was hidden in early times. Things that were not quite fully understood. For example, the birth of Christ was not fully understood by all the people. Many thought Christ would be born as a king in a palace within one of their kingdoms. Another 'mystery', that people of different generations did not understand, is the Rapture ... the time, just before the Great Tribulation, when Christians will be taken up in the clouds to be forever in Heaven. So when the Lord uses "MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT", He is revealing to us the 'hidden truth' that previous generations may not have fully understood.
God also calls this "woman" "THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS". This is because she is the head of all the "HARLOTS". She 'gave birth' to populate the world with her "fornications" and "abominations".
The next verse sheds more light on who the "woman" that sits "upon a scarlet coloured beast" is.
VERSE 6: (Chapter 17)
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The WOMAN Drunken With BLOOD
"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."
John is continuing to give his testimony of what he is witnessing. John see "the woman" and sees that she is "drunken". However, this "woman" is not drunken like we would think of it today. She did not consume alcholic beverages to make her stagger all over. No. This is worse. She is "drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus". In other words, she is responsible for causing a lot of deaths, even to the point that she has them executed. She will cause some deaths to occur through her 'merchandise' and 'policies'. People, who will not comply, will likely be martyred. And this "woman" will be held responsible to God Almighty.

Now, when John "saw her," he "wondered with great admiration". What John sees is extremely beautiful to his eyes. John saw all the shining "gold, precious stones, and pearls". He saw her clothed in "purple and scarlet". John saw all the riches and beauty and he "wondered with GREAT admiration". John was blown away by what he saw. But God's Word says: "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." So the angel has to rebuke John in the very next verse.
VERSE 7: (Chapter 17)
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The ANGEL'S Rebuke
The ANGEL Reveals
"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."
Remember, this angel is carrying John. This angel sees John's "great admiration" and reaction to this "woman". Also remember, that it is this angel that "poured out his vial" of God's judgment upon the earth. John is not in a very pleasant situation here. The angel looks at John and says: "Wherefore didst thou marvel?" Easier put, the angel asks John, 'Why would you be impressed with all this evil?' John probably felt very badly, especially after the angel patiently explains the "woman" to him ... and to all of us.
The angel says to John "I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns." Now the 'mystery' will be revealed! Just like Jesus use to tell parables to the people when He was on earth, and then He would explain the meaning of the parables; so is this chapter like that. The Lord tells us a mystery 'parable' in verses 1-6 and then explains it to us in verses 8 - 18.
The angel also informs John that he is not just going to reveal "the woman" but he is also going to reveal "the beast", the "seven heads", and the "ten horns". God wants us to know Satan's end "Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices" (2 Corinthians 2:11). God uses Revelation to inform all of us of Satan's plans, of Satan's attempts and of Satan's partial 'victories'. God also uses Revelation to turn people from Satan to Himself. He uses Revelation to warn people about what Satan is going to do. So lets go on and learn about "the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns"...
VERSE 8: (Chapter 17)
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The BEAST REVEALED
"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."
The angel first reveals "the beast". This verse almost sounds like a riddle, but it's really not. The entire verse here is referring to "the beast". First, the angel says to John "The beast that thou sawest was". In other words, "the beast" that John saw has been around for a long time ... it "was". The book of Ezekiel tells us of Satan's beginning. Satan is "the beast".
Ezekiel 28 tells us about Satan:
Satan "was" =
Satan "was" an "anointed cherub" (angel). Ezekiel 28:14: "Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth".
Satan "was" in heaven. Ezekiel 28:14 says that Satan "wast upon the holy mountain of God."
Satan "was" "in the Garden of "Eden". Ezekiel 28:13 says "Thou (Satan) hast been in Eden the garden of God".
Then the angel states that Satan "is not".
Satan "is not" allowed to approach God's throne anymore and accuse us.
Before Christ died on the cross, Satan was permitted to approach God. "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them" (Job 1:6). Because Christ died on the cross, Satan "is not" allowed to "accuse" saved people anymore. Zechariah 3:1-4 tells of how Satan tried to "resist" and accuse Joshua and how the Lord interceded for him and changed Joshua's filthy garments into the righteous garment of Christ.
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We studied this in Revelation 10:12. Satan "is not" allowed to accuse us.
The angel precedes to inform us where Satan is going to come from now. The angel says that Satan, "the beast", "shall ascend out of the bottomless pit".
The "bottomless pit" is place described in 2 Peter 2:4 as "hell" that holds demons in "chains of darkness". Jude 6 also tells us about demons being held in "everlasting chains under darkness".
​"Bottomless" means there is no bottom. This "pit" is "bottomless". Some may ask, 'How can it be bottomless?' Well, a ball is bottomless. No matter which way you hold a ball, there is no exact top nor bottom. The earth is always rotating. The earth rotates on its axis as it rotates around the sun. Hell is like a ball in the center of the earth. It moves as the earth moves. It is the center part of the earth. The center of the earth has just about a zero gravity pull. If you take all the gravity out of an earth-sized ball, you could float around and around in it, never knowing the top nor the bottom. That is the simulation of hell. It is "bottomless". There is no top nor bottom. It will give the sensation of continually falling. Demons and unsaved people are in hell. We will study this in Revelation 20.

Did you know that Jesus warned people a lot about Hell while He was on the earth? He still warns people today through His Word. Below are just a few verses from God's Word warning about Hell:
A Lake of Fire Revelation 20:15
A Devouring Fire Isaiah 33:14
A Place of Blackness & Darkness Jude 13
Where People Wail Matthew 13:42
Where People Weep Matthew 8:12
A Place of Torments Luke 16:23
Where People Curse God Revelation 16:11
Where People Beg for Mercy Luke 16:24
Don't Want Loved Ones There Luke 16:28

The angel, in our verse, also tells John that Satan will "go into perdition". Perdition means 'eternal punishment'. Eternal means never ending, forever and ever. This will be fulfilled in Revelation 20:10: "And the devil (Satan) that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
This angel proceeds to tell us that "they that dwell on the earth shall wonder" ... "when they behold the beast." During this time of the Tribulation Period, the world will be shocked when the Antichrist is revealed. When they see him, reality will set in. We studied Revelation 13:3 and read that "the world wondered after the beast". In other words, he will impress them. They will be amazed at his charm and power. Now, in this verse, when they look upon the Antichrist, they will see him powerless. They will see him fall. The earth will be in shock when they see him cast down. The Antichrist will be like that described in Deuteronomy 28:37: "And thou (Satan) shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations". Ezekiel 28:19 says this of Satan: "All they that know thee among the people shall be astonished at thee: thou shalt be a terror, and never shalt thou be any more."
There is another part of this verse that we need to touch upon. It is what the angel says in between "they that dwell on the earth shall wonder" and "when they behold the beast." The angel tells us who exactly will wonder "after the beast". He informs us that those "whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world" will wonder after the beast. Don't let this confuse you. Let's look at this phrase closely.
First of all, according to the Word of God, we know that every single person has their name written in the Book of Life. In Revelation Chapter 3, we studied that a person's name is written down in the Book of Life upon their physical birth. We also saw in John 1:9 that God puts His light in every man's heart: "That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." In Revelation 3:5, Jesus said: "...I will not blot out his name out of the book of life". In order for the Lord to "blot out" a name, it must first have been written down. You can't erase something that isn't there. This clearly shows that everyone's name is written in the Book of Life when they are born. The only way to not have a name written in the Book of Life is to have it blotted out.
So the first point, in regard to this part of the verse, is that these 'beings' "names were not written in the book of life". This would mean that these cannot be human because "every man" is written down in the Book of Life upon birth according to God's Word.
This then brings us to the question of 'who then is the angel talking about that wonders after the beast'? This angel also says here: "from the foundation of the world". The Book of Life did not appear on the scene until mankind had sinned ... after the foundation of the world. The angel's statement that is in between the two coma's is: "whose names were not written down in the book of life from the foundation of the world".
Genesis 1:9-10 documents the creation of earth. It reads: "And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth". Then we must ask the question, "Who was here before the foundation of the world"? Notice, the angel says "of the world". So technically, the "foundation of the world" is back in Genesis 1:1-2: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

The foundation of the world was created before Adam and Eve were created. So "whose names not written down in the book of life from the foundation of the world" ? Who existed before the foundation of the world? Adam and Eve were created after the foundation of the world was created.
We know God existed before the foundation of the world. Isaiah 45:12: God says, "I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I, even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I commanded."
We know that Jesus was present during the creation of the world. John 1:1-3 & 14: "In the beginning was the Word (Jesus), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him and without Him was not anything made. And the Word (Jesus) was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."
We also know that the Holy Spirit was present during the creation of the foundation of the world. Genesis 1:2: "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." We know that our verse is not referring to God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit.
The Lord also had created millions of angels before the foundation of the world. We learned in Revelation 5:11b that John saw lots of angels: "and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands".


There is only one group that was present "from the foundation of the world" that would "wonder" about the "beast". The Bible tells us that this 'group' cannot have their names written in the Book of Life. We studied about this 'group' in Revelation 12:7-9: "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not;; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent (was in the Garden of Eden during the foundation of the world!), called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world; he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."
We learned in Revelation 12:4 that when Satan was cast out of Heaven, he took one third of all the millions of angels go with him. That is an enormous number of angels. We just saw in Revelation 12:9 that Satan "was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." These angels are now known as demons.
Demons roam the entire earth, even today. Remember, they were "cast out into the earth". If demons were not real, the Lord would not have wasted so much time warning us about them. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8).
Satan and his demons started the war in Heaven. Satan and his demons have continually fought against God ever since God cast him out. The Tribulation Period is the final 'show down". It is Satan's last attempt to conquer God and take over the earth. Satan is going to give it everything he has. Satan has his massive demon army. He is getting his Antichrist, Beast, and False Prophet groomed and ready to attack. One of Satan's main strategies is to take as many people away from God and send them into Hell. Satan wants as many humans as he can get. He doesn't want God to have them. Demons do everything they can to interfere with people getting saved.
There was a real war in Heaven and to "there will be a real war on this earth. It is called Armageddon. Satan is going to use every satanic nation that he possesses to battle against God. However, the Bible tells us that Satan is going to loose. This verse, 8, even tells us that Satan's demons are going to"wonder" at their leader, Satan, while "they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is."
To sum it up ... Satan "was" in heaven. He "is not" in heaven anymore. "Yet is" going to fight his final battle against God and "go into perdition" forever and ever.