The highest purpose of humankind is to know the Living God, the Lord Most High. Our most preeminent objective is not to become a success in Babylon. It is not for us to learn how to play the games of Babylon so that we can win or stand approved in Babylon. On the contrary, our success while stuck in Babylon until either our death or the return of the Lord, is to connect with our Creator, develop a personal relationship with Him, and seek His will. In doing so, we understand that everything we are, everything we have, and everything we will ever become, is solely due to His favor and goodness in our lives. If we actually flowed in the spiritual rhythm of creation we would have harmony.
We live under the mystery of Babylon. Man was not created into this secret system. The adam, the man, and his offspring, was created for relationship. The satan created this system after the flood. Before the flood, he coerced the sons of God into a mutiny and the flood gave humankind a new start. Babylon was the system that the enemy devised to keep us apart from our Creator. What was the “hook” of Babylon that we noted a few weeks ago? It was to shame any one who would attribute good things to the favor of Yahweh. It became socially unacceptable to praise Yahweh for his goodness and instead the society changed to praising one’s self and one’s own hard work for prosperity. Today in Babylon, we see that there are new Babylon codes of social behavior, and we must live up to the standard of Babylon.
We have a tendency to think that the seven years of tribulation are all about men. But that is not the case. The last seven years of the age when tribulations take place on the earth are really about the dethroning of the satan as the ruler of this age. We talk about Babylon as if men created this world system, but men only partook in this system not knowing any differently. The satan created a world system where work was a primary focus of all people which caused men to believe in and trust in themselves, taking their focus away from the Creator. The last seven years of the rule of the satan changes the world system from Babylon to the beast, or from a free market to a one world government and commerce. How did this all start?
We should remind ourselves of who the ruler of the age is. He is someone who believed he could do a better job than the Creator. He believed he knew more or knew better than his own Creator. Therefore he wanted to be judge over the sons of God in the sides of the North on the mount of the Congregation. Let’s read a few excerpts from some past blogs. This is in the context of Isaiah 14.
Lucifer said to himself ‘I will actively mount above where the celestial bodies revolve, and above the stars of God. I will raise my throne and sit down as a judge on the mountains at the regularly scheduled assembly in the side of the hidden place.’ We have a clue to observe, as in Job we find the sons of God presenting themselves to Yahweh/Jehovah. Wherever this takes place, on the mountains where the regularly scheduled assembly or gathering of the sons of God come to report to Yahweh/Jehovah, that is where satan wanted to exalt his judgment seat.
The satan wanted to be the judge over the sons of God. From Job we see him attending the regularly scheduled meetings putting in his opinions about humans. From Revelation 12 we know he accuses humans before the throne day and night. This tells us that the satan is focused on good and bad and looking for a way to accuse us.
On the earth the satan has spiritual offspring, humans who follow him and do his will. We also find out he was not a worshipper or worship leader, he was a hoarder of gold. He poisoned the ethnos, the nations, and now we are all drunk. The satan filed the earth with wars, not cities. Also from Isaiah 14:
Just like a blood soaked garment is unclean forever, so are Nimrod and satan. Satan destroyed Yahweh’s land, Yahweh’s creation. Satan destroyed Yahweh’s people, all the ethnos, all the people of the earth. What Nimrod did was start the mystery religion, but satan was behind its inception and its spread. Nimrod was the first one to start a social campaign to make people feel badly if they believed that Yahweh helped them. Or in other words, Nimrod made it shameful to believe on and rely on Yahweh. In no way should either Nimrod or satan abide into the ages, eon, the cycle of time, being noted as evil seed.
Verse 21 gives us another alteration in the text. The idea that the earth should be filled with cities, is not quite right.
“Make ready your offspring for slaughter for the sins of their father” holds the offspring responsible for their father. The humans who are of the evil seed, the spiritual seed of the satan, will not inherit the earth, they may rule the earth now, but they will not inherit the earth and not fill up the earth with wars. We don’t know why someone thought cities, where people live, are bad in and of themselves. The correct word is wars, meaning battles, disputes, or warfare.
There is no discussion of “timbrels and pipes” in verse 13, but instead storehouses and treasuries filled with gold. This does not tell us that satan was a worship leader or even a worshipper. Instead it says he is stocking up on gold. That suggests greed. This is a clever distortion. Who is hoarding gold? The king of Tyre, and satan. Satan seems to be the one who enjoys precious stones and metals. Somehow we got the notion that satan was a singer, but that is not even suggested here. Oddly, the one thing regular people are told to do when religious leaders try to dominate and scare us regarding the markets and monetary systems is to stock up on gold. But satan hoards gold, and so we are told to hoard gold too? If we did hoard gold, someone would just steal it from us anyway.
This is interesting as satan was not created as an anointed cherub, but with or in consecutive order following the cherub. Instead of being a cherub he was created with the cherub. That is very different than what we all have been led to believe. It seems likely that satan would like to puff himself up, as in the story of Hesperus, he wants to be something that he is not. Just as the constellation of Scorpio was probably not the dominant constellation, as the sun on the ecliptic path only runs through Scorpio six days. Ophiuchus is the dominant constellation, as the sun on the ecliptic runs through Ophiuchus seventeen days. Doesn’t satan only have a six thousand year lease on the earth? So it seems possible in this distortion of his character that he wanted people to believe he was greater in power than he actually was. He is not an anointed cherub, but instead was created with or after the cherub. In other words, just to be clear, the cherub was created first, then satan was created. Satan was housed, or quartered in the temple. He was put on the sacred mountain and was birthed in the middle of the flaming stones. Well that is quite a story, obviously not a story of a human, but of a spiritual being. Here is a more literal idea.
From the day you (satan) were created and built, with or after the cherub, being anointed, you were alongside of God in the quarters of the tabernacle or the tabernacle dwelling. I even put you among the holy or sacred mountain or hill of God. You were born or came into existence among the middle of the flaming stones.
From the abundance of your trade or trafficking, you filled your secret chambers with illegality and sinned. You were wounded from off the mountain of God, led away by the overshadowing cherub, out from the middle of the fiery stones.
What we have seen is that satan hoards gold. He has spiritual children who do the same. He was not a cherub or the overshadowing cherub. He was created among the fiery stones, but was also hurled out of the place he was birthed. It was the overshadowing cherub that tossed him out of the stones of fire. Satan lived in the temple. He wanted to set his throne on the lofty mountains, but he was pierced and tossed to earth as dead. Satan was made beautiful. He lost his higher knowledge. He has thoughts in his heart. He had bad business practices and secret chambers. Because of his narcissism he has followers and spiritual children that will be disappointed in his eventual demise. Yet for now they fill the earth with wars. Satan and his evil seed destroy the land and people. They make the inhabitable world a desert and demolish cities. They provoke the earth.
The satan wanted to be a judge. He has offspring. He fills the earth with wars. He hoards gold. He was created after the Cherub. He lived in the temple. He was put on the holy mountain. He trafficked in gold and precious stones, putting them in a storehouse. So with this picture in mind we start to see why he trafficked in gold. He wanted a place decorated like the Most High God. If we remember our study as to what heaven looks like in Revelation 4 and 5, we can see the satan’s jealousy, covetousness, and an ambition to have what the Living God has.
The word trafficking or merchandising is a feminine form of tradesman or merchant. It is emporia or emporium, a large retail store like a super Wal-mart. Babylon is an Emporium.
1711 LSJ Gloss:ἐμπορία commerce, trade, traffic
Dodson:ἐμπορία trading, trade, trafficking, business.
Thayer:
1) trade, merchandise
ἐμπορία
emporia em-por-ee'-ah Feminine from G1713; traffic KJV Usage: merchandise.
1713 LSJ Gloss:ἔμπορος one who goes on shipboard as a passenger
Dodson:ἔμπορος a merchant, trader a merchant, trader; one on a journey.
Thayer:
1) one on a journey, whether by sea or by land, esp. for trade
2) a merchant as opposed to a retailer or petty tradesman
ἔμπορος
This is why Babylon is called a woman. The act of merchandising, trading, trafficking, and business is a feminine word while the one who is a merchant, a trader, a trafficker, or a business person is a masculine word. This explains why we see the system of Babylon as a woman. There may be religions that promote women under the system of Babylon, but it is the practice of merchandizing that is feminine. An emporium has everything one needs, and can help people in many ways like a mother. This is part of the mystery. If we only look at feminine goddesses’ as the head of Babylon we only see part of the picture. That is a “spin” intended to keep Babylon a mystery. However, our churches have patterned themselves after the system of the Babylon Emporium. The church is not empowering everyone towards a personal relationship with Yahweh, it is taking preeminence over the lay people, directing them under their denominations’ beliefs.
Mothers take care of all their babies’ needs, and likewise the Babylon Emporium takes care of all earthly children's needs. The satan did not make words masculine and feminine, yet he is happy to confuse the system of Babylon this way. Babylon is the mother of prostitution. She is a mother, one who nurtures everyone into her system of lies. The satan gave the world a mother organization to cultivate humans in her methodology.
Now we want to look at another section of scripture regarding the morning and evening star. The satan is the evening star and Jesus is the bright and morning star. Both are represented by the planet Venus. It is important to remember that without social media, television, and newspapers, the way to communicate a truth was via stories. Also from Isaiah:
Hesperus is Vesper in Latin, again meaning “evening star”. Vesper in Latin denotes “evening song and devotions”. In Greek Mythology Hesperus was the evening star, while his brother Phosphorus was the morning star, which also means “light bringer”. The Latin word Lucifer was used as a name for the morning star, but Lucifer wasn’t a bad word or a bad name at this time. Clearly we have an interesting idea here. The 300 BC Jewish Scribes used Hesperus, evening star, here; while the Masoretic Jews 600+ AD used Phosphorus. This may not seem like a big deal but let’s consider that Latin was already a language that was used from the first century BC. The Masorete’s used the idea of Phosphorus as the morning star, or Lucifer in their translation. The 300 BC Jewish Scribes used Hesperus, the evening star. Now we can gain a bit of understanding regarding what Isaiah was communicating.
You might have wondered why Jesus is known as the “day star” or the “bright and morning star” and why that is the same name as Lucifer, the one who is known as satan. Lucifer was not really a proper name, but a description until more recent years, as in Dante’s Inferno. The word lucifer means “light bearer”, and some modern translators took the liberty to translate this in Isaiah as “Lucifer Son of the Morning”, but as we see it should have been “Evening Star, rising in the morning”. That description points to Venus. The Evening Star is not the same as the Morning Star, however the Evening Star and the Morning Star are both Venus which does rise in the morning in the east. Yet its story, of Hesperus and Phosphorus, Hesperus is the fallen and Phosphorus is the one rising.
It is hardly coincidental that someone attempted to make Jesus like satan, but this is even more amazing. 2 Peter 1 clears up any question as to who the fallen one is and who the bright morning star is. Jesus is Phosphorus.
The story of the satan was that he was a falling star, being chased by the bigger planets every evening. He thought he was a big shot, but really he was puny. Yet the story of Jesus is that he rises in the morning and generally is the only visible planet in the morning. It is obvious that the satan confused this understanding to make himself look like he is the rising star when in fact he is the falling one
After the harpazo, we see the people that are left on the earth worshipping demons. This is interesting because everything that we would point out as “bad behavior” these people will do. They are easily influenced into bad behavior and they are not people who regularly repent. The saints are not on the earth either so there is no correction or condemnation of this behavior. Specifically, murder, drugs, sexual sins, and theft. Putting those four things together we see a grim picture at the time of the sixth trumpet.
These 2.5 billion people do not repent from phonos, pharmakeia, porneia, and klemma. If we remember from Genesis 9, men are not to kill men and the blood of murdered humans must be avenged. Pharmakeia in it’s simplest form is witchcraft because it is manipulation, whether using drugs to manipulate the body, using words to manipulate people, or using force to manipulation a situation, it is all about manipulation. Sexual perversities such as rape and incest will be taking place at this time as well as stealing from others. Zechariah 14 tells us that women will be ravished or tainted, meaning raped. But don’t be fooled, men, women, and children will all be raped because that is the culture of those left on the earth. We have not even gotten to the time of the mark of the beast, nor the mid-point of the tribulation, and the world is so evil with no one repenting, but instead these people become more and more evil.
Suppose people take hallucinogenics and worship these demons and idols with sexual rituals practiced on adults and children, then preform adult and child sacrifices. What if they kidnap others (steal people) for their ritual practices? The devil already inspires human trafficking today, it is not so out of the realm of possibilities that these four sinful practices all revolve around this type of religion, which is already being practiced on the earth. At this time the devil has not been cast out of the heavens, and the beast and the false prophet have not made their appearance yet. The earth is ripe and ready for the unholy trinity to show up as they will falsely promise that the chaos will stop once the witnesses are killed and a new world order is established.
We now can see a clearer picture of the influence of the satan. We all drank the wine of the Babylon Emporium and didn’t know what was lurking in the shadows. The satan wanted to judge the other sons of God, he hoarded gold to decorate his kingdom, all the while using the backs of humans as an end to his means. The satan did not want to bow before the adam, he wanted to prove he was a superior being above the adam. After the flood he created a mothering world system that leads people away from the Creator. The satan has offspring that promote his system, (many mothers) spinning webs in many different directions, inciting wars among humans. He will disregard this multi-teared delusion in favor of a one world government for three and one half years. He will continue as the puppet master until he is chained for one thousand years.
This mystery religion is the religion of work, self sufficiency, self promotion, consumerism, and the creating of one’s own life apart from the Creator. This mystery also spins various religions, world governments, politics, and commerce in many different directions. The satan is the judge of humans, enticing people to do things that are wrong, then accusing people when they do wrong, and inflicting punishment for wrong deeds. It is a mystery. The one orchestrating this mess has made himself to be the bearer of light when in fact he is the bearer of darkness. This is why there isn’t one explanation or one pattern to point a finger at. There are many diverse roads in the mystery of Babylon, all promoted by the satan’s spiritual offspring and endured by the saints of the Most High. In this mystery it is not "either or” it is “both and”. It is complex, intricate, and never turns up a resolution for our age on it’s own. The only remedy for our age is teaching people who they are, and their purpose of knowing the Creator.
Now as we come back to Revelation 17 and read about Babylon, we can see a bigger picture emerging.
Revelation 17:1 (KJV)
1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
Remember that the merchandise, supplies, and goods, are the word emporia which is feminine. The person who buys and sells is called an emporos, which is a masculine word. The woman, the mother of the nursery of the Babylon Emporium was wrapped in purple and scarlet which indicates power and wealth. She is bespangled with golden ornaments and valuable stones and pearls. She has a golden cup in her hand that is full of idolatry and the filthiness of her prostitution. The system of merchandizing is opulent. There is wealth in this system. Babylon became our mother, nursing us in her ways from our birth.
Revelation 17:15 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
On her forehead her character or reputation is written (like initiation into a secret club of religious rites) Mystery Babylon the Great, Birther of (pornē) Prostitutes and Idolatry on Earth. The Babylon Emporium is a nursery that births prostitutes. She also births idolatry. She grooms all babies to become prostitutes and idolators for the satan. The Emporium turns people away from the Creator and its social system trains people in the way they should think. Notice that the adornment of Babylon is not items of necessity. The Emporium is intoxicated with the blood of the saints and martyrs because they teach the truth.
Revelation 17:16 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.
9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
Who comes out of the bottomless pit? Apollyon/Abaddon/Gog. The destroyer is loosed out of the pit and people will wonder over him. He will take down Babylon who has been riding the wild beast and now control her. He gains her kings for his kingdom.
How many roads did Rome build? These roads spread out this system of prostituting one’s self, but it also made a pathway for the saints and martyrs to spread the good news. When the saints and martyrs spread the good news they were killed, and the system of the Babylon Emporium became drunk with their blood. She enjoys killing the servants of Yahweh.
John throws in a little “fast forward” here telling us about the wild beast that will make war with the lamb which is at the end of the tribulation.
Revelation 17:14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
The angel continues:
Revelation 17:15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.
16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
The whore of Babylon who promotes self sufficiency apart from the Living God, who entices people to sell their own souls for lusts, will be incinerated. The ten horns of the wild beast will hate the prostitute and they will lay her to waste, strip her of her merchandise and opulence, eat her body and then burn her to the ground with fire. Why?
Revelation 17:117 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
God put it into their hearts to fulfill his intention and to fulfill one judgment, and to give Babylon’s dominion to the wild beast until the completion of the words of Theos.
Revelation 17:118 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
At the mid point of the tribulation there will be a great city set on commerce, trade, trafficking, and merchandise, an Emporium. We will gain a few clues as to where this city may be in chapter 18.
Revelation 18:1 (KJV)
1 And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.
2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
The angel lights up the whole earth. The system of the Babylon Emporium is fallen, the Emporium which is our nursery is destroyed. We always hear of market crashes, but with every crash a new group of traders and investors emerges. This is not a market crash, but an actual blow to the entire system. We will see what happens in a few verses.
Everyone on earth had become drunk with Babylon and her merchants became rich. Everyone drank, everyone. We all have participated. At this time in the mid-point of the tribulation as Babylon is being conquered, the Jews are being told to come out of her and not to partake in her sins and not receive her calamities.
Revelation 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
As we just read in Revelation 17:17, the wild beast is inspired to fulfill God’s intentions and bring judgment to Babylon. As the angel continues to speak, we see the pride of Babylon.
Revelation 18:6 Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.
7 How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
Babylon esteems herself. The Babylon Emporium waxes wanton and lives in luxury, meaning her luxurious abundance makes her cruel and violent. The Babylon Mother will receive the amount of torture and sorrow equal to her indulgent and prideful behavior. In the inner depths of Babylon she believes she resides as a queen who is not a widow, and she doesn’t believe she will see any grief. In more modern terms the Emporium called Babylon has become cruel due to her opulent indulgence. Therefore the Babylonian Emporium will receive the portion of torment and sorrow equal to her behavior. The Babylonian Emporium believes herself to be indestructible and that she will always abide.
Revelation 18:8 Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
Revelation 18:8 G1223 On account of G3778 this G1722 in G1520 one G2250 day G2240 shall come G3588 G4127 her calamities -- G1473 G2288 death, G2532 and G3997 mourning, G2532 and G3042 hunger. G2532 And G1722 [2by G4442 3fire G2618 1she shall be incinerated], G3754 for G2478 [3 is strong G2962 1 the Lord G3588 G2316 2God], G3588 the one G2919 judging G1473 her.
In one literal day the Babylon Emporium is wounded; death, grief, famine, incinerated with fire. This is the judgment of the mighty Kurios Theos/Yahweh Elohim which is fulfilled by the wild beast.
Revelation 18:9 And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Of course the kings of the earth will mourn when they see the smoke from her fire. They have all been working under the Babylon Emporium. Every kingdom is structured in her system. The kings of the earth prospered greatly from her merchandise.
Revelation 18:10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
11 And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more:
The kings will see Babylon’s torture from a distance. The merchants will cry and lament as well because no one will buy their cargo. What were they selling?
Revelation 18:12 The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
13 And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men.
Years ago we studied Abraham, and noted that he moved about fifteen times. What if Abraham and Sarah watched the home shopping channels and home improvement shows? Could you imagine if he had to lug around all this stuff? “Stuff” is a distraction from Yahweh. Think about packing up jewelry, expensive clothes, cabinets made from citrus wood, vases and bowls of ivory and wood, brass fixtures and marble floors and countertops, and lots of medicines. We become enslaved to stuff, so we must work to buy stuff. Then we take out loans to buy stuff. We are now enslaved to both stuff and people, so off to work we go to afford our stuff.
What if Abraham and Sarah also watched cooking shows and they saw famous chefs’ roasting meat with special herbs which paired nicely with specific wines and fresh home baked bread. Think about how indulgent that would have been.
We know Abraham had flocks which would have been hard enough to move, but what if they also had pets, dogs, cats, birds, fish. If Abraham and Sarah watched any fun shows regarding cars and grand tours, they might have wanted to buy a fancy chariot or two; and if they needed a live-in nanny, footmen, butlers, cooks and the like, that is another burden compiling the enslavement to stuff.
There is a double meaning here, especially in the last phrase G4983 bodies, G2532 and G5590 souls G444 of men. Not only are we talking about employing servants, we are also talking about the emporium which causes us to have to sell our own selves into the system and sell our own souls to the system. We all have drunk from the wine of the Babylon Emporium and we were all raised in the Babylon Mother’s nursery. It is very hard to live apart from Babylon. We might learn from financial peace advisors that we have to minimize the stuff to free ourselves from debt to the Babylon Emporium. We are all in it and we have to learn how to work within it to share the gospel so that we can help others to find communion with the Living God. Meaningless, all is meaningless under the sun, as Solomon wrote. Above the sun is where we need to set our sights, to the kingdom of heaven, not to where the ruler of the age reigns. We are in the world, not of the world.
Revelation 18:14 And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
The fall harvest of the forbidden yearning of her soul has departed. All the brilliant shiny things have perished and the Babylon Emporium won’t be able to find them. The Emporium looked forward to seasonal gains. The merchants are standing far away in fear of the destruction taking place, and they cry.
Revelation 18:15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
16 And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
Revelation 18:17 G3754 For G1520 in one G5610 hour G2049 was made desolate G3588 G5118 so great G4149 a wealth. G2532 And G3956 every G2942 navigator, G2532 and G3956 all G3588 G1909 upon G3588 the G4143 boats G4126 sailing, G2532 and G3492 seamen, G2532 and G3745 as many as G3588 [2the G2281 3sea G2038 1work G575 5from G3113 6far off G2476 4stood],
2942 LSJ Gloss:κυβερνήτης a steersman, helmsman, pilot
Dodson:κυβερνήτης a steersman, pilot a steersman, pilot; met: a guide, governor.
Thayer:
1) steersman, helmsman, sailing master
κυβερνήτης
kubernētēs
koo-ber-nay'-tace
From the same as G2941; helmsman, that is, (by implication) captain
KJV Usage: (ship) master.
4143 LSJ Gloss:πλοῖον a floating vessel, a ship, vessel
Dodson:πλοῖον a ship, vessel a ship, vessel, boat.
Thayer:
1) a ship
πλοῖον
ploion ploy'-on From G4126; a sailer, that is, vessel KJV Usage: ship (-ping).
4126 LSJ Gloss:πλέω to sail, go by sea
Dodson:πλέω I sail I sail, travel by sea, voyage.
Thayer:
1) to sail, navigate, travel by ship
πλέω, πλεύω
pleō pleuō pleh'-o, plyoo'-o The first is another form for the second which is used as an alternate in certain tenses; probably a form of G4150 (through the idea of plunging through the water); to pass in a vessel KJV Usage: sail. See also G4130.
3492 LSJ Gloss:ναύτης a mate
Dodson:ναύτης a sailor a sailor, seaman.
Thayer:
1) a sailor, seaman, mariner
ναύτης
nautēs now'-tace From G3491; a boatman, that is, seaman KJV Usage: sailor, shipman.
Notice that all these words have to do with commerce by sea. This tells us that the Emporium is a sea port. A place on a coast that has easy access to other continents.
The city location of old Babylon was not/is not on the sea. It is not a port city. This presents a problem as to the place of the Babylon Emporium. What about Rome? The Roman Empire stretched out over a large region, and as we know Rome built many roads. Rome had two capitals, Rome Italy, and Constantinople/Istanbul Turkey. The headquarters of Babylon at this point in the tribulation period can be pretty much anywhere as long as there is a port city. After the 2 billion Christians are harpazo’d, someone somewhere will become the new headquarters of commerce in the world. It will be a place that has a higher concentration of people who were not harpazo’d. It will be a place where Jews partake in the commerce. It will be a central place of trade. It will be a world market until the beast rises up with just over half the world population backing him. Will the destruction of the ancient city location of Babylon be noticeable at sea? Probably not. If an atomic weapon or a nuclear device was used in that location it would poison the wild beasts territory as well. The wild beast is not reckless, he will not harm his territory. And since we know the kings of the east cross the dried up Euphrates to Megiddo, the region can not be radioactive.
We might want to think about what the Bible does not tell us. We saw kings from the east and kings from the north making their way to Megiddo. We did not see kings from the west. This may in fact be where the mega polis is located at this time, somewhere in a European region, west of Megiddo. Even though the wild beast takes Babylon’s kings, the beast destroys the world center of commerce. This is one way the beast can quickly kill close to 1 billion people and incinerate the Babylon Emporium in one hour.
Revelation 18:18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!
The sailors who see this are upset as their business is destroyed. If we think about the Americas, the Babylon Emporium is probably providing food and goods to both North and South America. When we remember how many people have been harpazo’d from the America’s, we recognize that those who are left will be crippled in production and commerce. They will not have enough people to keep up the farming and distribution of food, petroleum, or medicines.
Revelation 18:19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
What could make a mega polis desolate in one hour? The wild beast, who is fulling the intentions of Yahweh for His judgment purposes, has some type of powerful weaponry. It will be like a large millstone that is thrown into the sea; sudden, powerful, and displacing.
Revelation 18:20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.
24 And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
The port city of the tribulation time Babylon Emporium will be destroyed and the sailors and merchants will mourn. This Emporium will never be seen again. No one will live there and no one will marry there. No one will play music there, no artists will live there, and no gourmet restaurants will be there. After her destruction, people will understand and attribute the blood of all those slain on the earth to the Mother, the Babylon Emporium.
The crazy system of the satan which was carried through by his offspring caused every human to drink of the wine of Babylon. She nursed us in her Emporium and groomed us to prostitute ourselves with “other gods” and lusts. On the earth today, it is estimated that there are approximately 2.3 billion Christians. This is a testimony of people being able to find their way to sobriety. Although we have not necessarily come out of Babylon, we have at least acknowledged our Creator as the Lord God Most High. We have endeavored to cut ourselves free from the entanglements of the mother of harlots. The end years of our age are not only about humans, but also wrapping up the satan’s time as ruler of the age. The curtain is closing on his reign and people have to make the decision whether to follow the satan to hades, or to follow Jesus to heaven.
