The Fall of Babylon – Part 1
Revelation 18:1-24 (1-8)
April 9, 2017
As you know we are in the middle of
A parenthetical section here in the Revelation.
As we watched the 7 bowls of wrath being poured out we read:
Revelation 16:17-19 “Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.” And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.”
It was announced to us that the city of Babylon was destroyed
And that the immorality that she spread throughout the earth
Was remembered before God.
That is what this two chapter section focuses on.
• Chapter 17 showed us the judgment of the false religious system; also referred to as the great harlot.
• Chapter 18 shows us the fall of the commercial or economic system of the world.
And we are already aware of what this system will be like.
At the half-way point of the tribulation we know that the Antichrist
Will march into the temple and declare himself to be god.
This abomination of desolation will also mark the end of all false religion as the Antichrist will exalt himself above every god.
We saw that destruction last week.
Coupled with the destruction of all false religion
Will also be the arrival of the economic system of the Antichrist.
Revelation 13:16-17 “And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.”
It’s not just about worship, it’s also about commerce.
What we are witnessing here is the destruction of
That world system which will all be united under
The worship of Antichrist out of his capitol city of Babylon.
This chapter reaffirms for us a truth that we should have grasped by now.
NAMELY THAT THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT WILL NOT LAST.
John said:
1 John 2:15-17 “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves 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 boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”
• John told us that this world will go down in flames.
• It will not last.
• It is contrary to the desires of the Father
• It is offensive to Him in every way, and He will destroy it.
Peter said:
2 Peter 3:10 “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”
Judgment is coming.
This morning we see that judgment in even greater detail.
And to sort of make understanding what we are seeing easier,
I just want to sum this chapter up into 4 realities about this coming judgment.
#1 THE CERTAINTY OF JUDGMENT
Revelation 18:1-3
“After these things” is the way that visions seems to be separated in the book of Revelation, so we know we are now on to a new vision.
And John sees “another angel coming down from heaven”
This one is special because he has “great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory.”
It is obvious that this angel stood in close proximity to God.
He was commissioned by God and he radiates the glory of God.
The idea here is that he is coming directly from God with urgent news.
And the headline is clear:
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!”
This is not the first time we have come across this announcement.
We’ve seen it once even here in the book of the Revelation.
Revelation 14:8 “And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality.”
But the first time we see it is back in the book of Isaiah.
TURN TO: ISAIAH 21:1-10
I need to set this passage up for you, so that you grasp what is happening.
This passage falls in the section of Isaiah where he is
Revealing God’s oracles against the various nations around Israel.
None of these nations ever heard these oracles,
They were purely for the benefit of Israel.
And that is certainly what this particular oracle is for.
What you need to understand is that
• At this time Assyria was the world power and they were wreaking havoc on everyone.
• ASSYRIA REPRESENTED GOD’S JUDGMENT
• Israel was terrified of them, and kept looking for ways in which they would be able to resist them.
• And there are several false hopes of Israel at this time.
• They hoped Ethiopia would conquer Assyria
• They hoped Egypt would conquer Assyria
And here we find that they hoped Babylon would do it.
At this time Babylon was somewhat of a nobody,
And their leader was a man named Merodach Baladan.
As he engaged in the battle, Israel watched closely
Hoping that he would be able to put an end to the Assyrian threat.
Isaiah comments on the outcome.
(1-2) reveal the decision of Merodach Baladan to approach this Assyrian who continues to deal treacherously.
However, no sooner does the battle start,
Then does Isaiah begin to sense disaster.
Read (3-4)
And then the battle rages and Israel sets up the watchman
To give lookout to see how the battle goes.
Read (5-7)
And then, word of the battle comes.
(Read 8-9)
Babylon was a hope for the people against the coming judgment,
AND THAT PROVED TO BE A FALSE HOPE.
AND I START OUT WITH THAT STORY,
Because Isaiah 21:9, is the verse that this angel comes proclaiming here.
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!”
And we understand a little more about what is meant.
This was the city in which the world placed their hope.
In this city we had Antichrist, and his false prophet,
We had that talking statue and the center of all commerce and trade.
The people of earth had now abandoned every other false religion,
And every other system of commerce
And placed all of their hopes in this one basket.
And now comes word that it was a foolish decision.
Babylon has fallen.
Trusting in her was a giant mistake, she could not deliver.
Of course the angel also reveals to us WHY God toppled her.
(2b-3) “She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird. For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality.”
If we were to state it simply.
God destroyed her because all she brought was
Corruption and defilement and immorality.
Her citizenship was made up of demons and unclean spirits and “every unclean and hateful bird”
That seems like a strange indictment, what does it mean?
Let me take you back to what Jesus said in His Olivet Discourse.
Matthew 24:21-28 “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. “Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘ There He is,’ do not believe him. “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. “Behold, I have told you in advance. “So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. “For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. “Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
In Luke’s gospel we read:
Luke 17:33-37 “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. “I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. “There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left. [“Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other will be left.”] And answering they said to Him, “Where, Lord?” And He said to them, “Where the body is, there also the vultures will be gathered.”
What was Jesus talking about?
I’ll bet anyone who raises livestock knows what He is talking about.
If you’re out counting your animals and are one short, and you see a bunch of buzzards circling off in the distance, where are you going to look for your missing animal?
Buzzards are a sign of death.
Jesus referred to the death that will occur at His second coming.
Well in a way it is the same picture here.
Why do you suppose that Babylon is always full of “every unclean and hateful bird”?
Because she is full of death.
If you look at the end of the chapter;
Revelation 18:24 “And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.”
THIS IS A VILE PLACE.
It is a place that attracts the most absolute evil
And a place that slaughters those who would stand against it.
• “demons” love it because it is a place of defilement and deception.
• “unclean spirits” love it because there is nothing to convict their depravity.
• “nations” love it because it offers what their sinful heart craves.
• “kings” love it because it offers to them the power they seek.
• “merchants” love it because they are able to get rich.
• “birds” love it because there is always a meal.
This is a horrible and vile city.
But there is ANOTHER PHRASE sort of hidden in here
That I think we should not overlook.
Babylon is called “a dwelling place of demons”,
But she is also called “a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird.”
Did you catch that?
This isn’t just a city, it is a “prison”
These spirits and people and unclean birds are trapped here.
(they don’t know it, because they want to be here, but they are also trapped)
This is a great misconception of the carnal world in which we live.
People suppose that when they gratify their sinful nature
That they are simply being free to do what they want.
WRONG
• They are actually held captive by their sin.
• They are actually imprisoned by it.
• They only think they are free because most of the time they enjoy what they are doing.
But on the day when they see the danger for what it is and wish to escape,
On that day they will find that they are in fact incarcerated.
This city is a prison for sinners.
And what we first find about this place is that its JUDGMENT IS CERTAIN.
Babylon is “fallen”
It is not a matter of “IF” this world will fall, but “WHEN” this world will fall.
Isaiah 24:1-6, 18-20 “Behold, the LORD lays the earth waste, devastates it, distorts its surface and scatters its inhabitants. And the people will be like the priest, the servant like his master, the maid like her mistress, the buyer like the seller, the lender like the borrower, the creditor like the debtor. The earth will be completely laid waste and completely despoiled, for the LORD has spoken this word. The earth mourns and withers, the world fades and withers, the exalted of the people of the earth fade away. The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live in it are held guilty. Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left…Then it will be that he who flees the report of disaster will fall into the pit, And he who climbs out of the pit will be caught in the snare; For the windows above are opened, and the foundations of the earth shake. The earth is broken asunder, The earth is split through, The earth is shaken violently. The earth reels to and fro like a drunkard And it totters like a shack, For its transgression is heavy upon it, And it will fall, never to rise again.”
To read again what Peter said:
2 Peter 3:10 “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”
Look, we are not talking about reading a report from some environmental watch group who tells us if we don’t change our lifestyle we are going to harm the planet.
What we are talking about is
The promise of Holy God from His infallible word.
He has promised He will not let this world continue forever.
He sees the immorality, He sees the depravity, He sees the uncleanness, He sees the defilement, He sees the corruption, He sees the greed.
And because of that He has promised to destroy this world.
The Certainty of Judgment
#2 THE SUDDENNESS OF JUDGMENT
Revelation 18:4-8
First we read a command to all those in Babylon who are referred to as “my people”.
All of them are clearly commanded to “Come out of her”.
I want you to put that command on the shelf for a moment
And come back to it again in a second.
First I want you to see what is revealed in verses 6-8
(6-7) “Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her. “To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, ‘I SIT as A QUEEN AND I AM NOT A WIDOW, and will never see mourning.’”
Once again (and by now we are used to it) we have the cry of heaven who just can’t seem to wait to see Babylon destroyed.
• We’ve heard martyred saints cry out for it
• We’ve heard holy angels eager to see it
• We’ve heard heavenly saints rejoice at it
When the fall of Babylon is announced
You don’t get one single reservation from heaven, they are all in.
And the phrase is a simple one. “Pay her back even as she has paid”
As Christians we most certainly DO NOT believe in Karma.
That is a superstitious and pagan belief.
However, we do believe that a righteous God
Most certainly defends and vindicates His truth and His people.
Galatians 6:7 “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”
And these in the world who have so persecuted God’s people
Will most certainly be repaid for all that they have done.
Not only that, but you also get the sense that
Heaven is absolutely sickened by her arrogance.
“To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, ‘I SIT as A QUEEN AND I AM NOT A WIDOW, and will never see mourning.”
You can just hear her arrogance.
• I can live how I want…
• I can do what I want…
• And no one can stop me, and it will never end.
And the response to the cry of heaven?
(8) “For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong.”
“in one day her plagues will come”
What does that tell you about those plagues we read about in chapter 16?
They come fast don’t they?
When the Bible says that God’s THUMOS is poured out and He begins to literally flog the world, it is not a slow drawn out process.
Like a boxer with repeated jabs,
God literally pounds this city with blow after blow after blow.
It was time to bring this arrogant city to its knees.
And God is most certainly able to do it.
The key there being that it will come SUDDEN.
Scripture says “in one day her plagues will come”
And this should also ring a bell with you.
Matthew 24:36-44 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. “For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. “Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. “Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one will be left. “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.”
• You don’t know when the thief will break into your house…
• You don’t know when disaster will strike…
• You must be prepared ahead of time.
THE JUDGMENT OF GOD WILL COME WITHOUT WARNING
The warning comes today.
The warning comes when God promises it is coming suddenly.
That is your warning to get ready today.
It hearkens back to that parable of Jesus:
Matthew 7:24-27 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell — and great was its fall.”
One man heeded the warning, one did not.
Storms come suddenly.
But one prepared ahead of time.
And that is just it.
You have all of these people living in Babylon
Who just suppose that they are doing exactly what they want,
Living it up in their immorality and impurity.
What they don’t know is that they are prisoners in that city,
And on a day when they least expect it, that city will be destroyed.
Believe me, it has happened before.
• Read about the flood in the days of Noah.
• Read about the fire and brimstone that fell at Sodom and Gomorrah.
And none could escape and none were prepared.
Do you see the warning?
Now, let’s go back to verses 4&5
“I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.”
First we have to ask, “Who are these people he is speaking to?”
He certainly calls them “my people”
Which has led to many to say they must be believers.
And that could certainly be the case.
• However, they would be considered carnal believers at best because having
been redeemed they still manage to find themselves comfortable in the most
vile city the world has ever known.
Another possibility is that they are the elect who have
Yet to respond in faith, and this is a call to their salvation.
Either way, the command is the same.
Those who are God’s must understand that
The judgment of God rightly falls upon this world,
And intermingling there and growing comfortable there
Will only bring punishment.
If these people stay in Babylon they run two major risks.
1) They might “participate in her sins”
2) They might “receive of her plagues”
If you think you can hang around and be cordial with
All the depravities and iniquities of this world
And think it won’t rub off on you,
YOU’VE GOT ANOTHER THING COMING.
You may in fact have been redeemed, but you still have a flesh,
And that flesh wants sin now as much as it ever did.
If you run in that, you are in great danger of being defiled by it.
Now I know, I’ve heard many believers over the course of my life…
• “But we are there for a ministry…”
• “But we are there on mission…”
When I taught the college Sunday school class in Stephenville
There was a popular mission trip that emerged.
It was called “Beach Reach”
The idea was that college students would go down to South Padre Island during Spring break and drive church buses around and when people were too drunk to drive, they’d give them rides and seek to share the gospel with them.
And I know a lot of college students who went on this mission trip.
Does it sound dumb to you? That’s because it is dumb.
You’re going to send college students to that beach with all manner of immorality and their goal is to witness to people who are too drunk to drive?
There is far greater risk of believers getting defiled
Than there is of sinners getting enlightened.
Paul even told the Galatians that when you have a brother fall into sin that you shouldn’t just send anyone to help him out, you’d better send the mature who is less likely to be tempted by that iniquity.
Now I guess if our Parks group wants to go and do that, I’d be ok with it,
But you don’t send 20 year old boys and girls down there.
You get the point?
This world will defile you, and you must be on constant guard.
Jude spoke of evangelizing those caught in the world.
Jude 20-23 “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.”
That is how you put it, “have mercy with fear”
You don’t put your hand into a fire to snatch something out
Without fear of getting burned.
That is how dangerous this world is.
IT WILL DEFILE YOU.
And if it defiles you, then you stand in line to “receive of her plagues”
Let me give you an example.
TURN TO: GENESIS 19:15-26
You remember this story…
• God determined to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, but out of mercy decided to
deliver Lot.
• Peter tells us that Lot was a righteous man who felt his righteous soul
tormented by the wicked going on around him.
• We even see in Genesis that Lot stood against that wickedness, albeit, in a
strange sort of way.
But here God is rescuing Lot from this city.
What was the problem?
His wife had already been defiled by it.
She longed for the city and she was judged.
Now, let me show you what Jesus had to say in this regard.
Luke 17:26-32 “And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. “It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. “It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. “On that day, the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back. “Remember Lot’s wife.”
There is a sobering reminder isn’t it?
This world is dangerous, beyond that this world is doomed.
And if you don’t learn that lesson and “Come out of her, my people”
You are setting yourself up for tremendous pain and hardship.
But that brings another very important question.
HOW DO I DO THAT?
Fleeing from the world is not a geographical issue
IT IS A SPIRITUAL ONE.
TURN TO: COLOSSIANS 3
Paul begins by reminding us that we are the redeemed.
• We are Christs
• We are seated with Him in the heavenly places
• And as a result we should set our minds on heavenly things
And then look at what he says.
(READ 5-6)
Do you see what it means then to “Come out of her, my people”?
The separation is a spiritual one, a behavioral one,
Not necessarily a geographical one.
Now that doesn’t mean that geography doesn’t play a part.
• You’d be nuts to go South Padre Island during spring break.
• You’d be nuts to go to New Orleans during Mardi Gras
But in an everyday sense, you can’t quit your job, you can’t get away from your carnal family members at Thanksgiving, etc.
In those cases the separation becomes behavioral.
We separate ourselves from the behaviors
Which we know will bring about the wrath of God.
Things like, “immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed”
Paul goes on.
(READ 8-10)
That is to say, live like Christ, don’t live like the world.
Separate yourself.
And if we had time we could read the whole chapter and listen as Paul says things like.
• “put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience”
• “put on love”
• “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you”
• “whatever you do…do all in the name of the Lord Jesus”
• “Wives submit to your husbands”
• “Husbands love your wives”
• “Children, be obedient to your parents”
• “Fathers, do not exasperate your children”
• “Slaves…obey those who are your masters”
• “Masters, grant to your slaves justices and fairness”
And I know we are out of time, you’re just going to have to come back next week because there is so much more to cover here.
But the idea thus far is clear.
• The judgment of the world is certain
• The judgment of the world is sudden
• And God’s people must be aware of that, and not treat friendship with the world as some minor thing.
It invites the wrath of God.
1 John 2:15-17 “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves 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 boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”
