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38th Street Church of Christ 3904 38th Street NW Canton, Ohio 44718 330-492-5523 Fax: 330-493-7119 |
“Revelation: God's Vision of Victory” |
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I. Introduction.
A. At conclusion of previous lesson, it was mentioned that,
looking at the vision presented in “Revelation,” we must
keep in mind that the scenes are not sequential. What
follows from one scene to the next may not, necessarily,
come chronologically after its predecessor. In fact, there
is a good deal of repetition of events, in order to highlight
them and to give them a greater impact.1. As you move into Chapter 17, and the chapters
which follow it, you find the same scenes of
judgment by God against “Babylon”, which, in
the symbolic language of the book, represents Rome
and its empire.2. “Babylon” is described, its doom is announced, the
defeat of the false prophet and the beast is
guaranteed. Satan assuredly will be bound – God’s
triumph over evil will be complete.B. Here, the scenes of God’s judgments are drawn in greater
detail. The previous images of doom, defeat, and
destruction are given a new clarity. Although John does
not specifically number the descriptions of authority given
here, it is possible to see seven examples of God’s
sovereign rule, (between Chapters 17 and 20).1. The character of “Babylon” is described.
2. The doom of “Babylon” is announced.
3. The marriage supper of the Lamb is pictured.
4. The defeat of the beast and false prophet is assured.
5. The binding of Satan is guaranteed.
6. The eternal reign of the martyrs is promised.
7. The final judgments are introduced.
C. As you start upon your course through these chapters it is
both good, and necessary, to get some general idea of what
is being dealt with here. They begin with two main figures:
the woman on the beast, and the beast itself.1. The woman is described beginning at 17:3
(17:3-6; READ).a. Here is Rome and its empire. But, there
arises at once, a complication to this view.
Verse 1 of Chapter 17 says the woman
“. . . sits on many waters.” Does that
describe the city of Rome? What John
sees and hears draws from Old Testament
prophecy, which proclaimed judgment
against the actual, ancient city of Babylon.
See Jeremiah 51:13: “O you who dwell by
many waters, abundant in treasures, your
end has come, the measure of your
covetousness.”b. In the case of the historical Babylon this
was quite literally true. The river Euphrates
ran through the midst of the city (as the
Tiber does Rome), and Babylon was the
center of a vast system of irrigation canals
which went out from it in every direction.
It did, indeed, sit upon “many waters.”c. John uses this, symbolically, and explains
it in regard to Rome in 17:15 (READ).
Rome ruled over many nations, and people
of different languages. The “waters” are
these territories, nations, and peoples.
(For analogous uses of “water”, see
Isaiah 8:7-8 and Jeremiah 47:2).d. The woman is clothed in the wealth and
luxury of Rome (verse 4), like a seductive
temptress, and holds a “. . . golden cup full
of abominations . . .” (see Jeremiah 51:7).
The immorality of Rome spread with its
growth in power.e. She wears a “name” on her forehead
(verse 5) [there was a Roman custom that
prostitutes in public brothels wore upon
their foreheads a frontlet giving their
name], and is “drunk with the blood of
God’s people, who were killed for their
faith and failure to succumb to her allure
(verse 6).2. The beast upon which the woman sits is not really
representative of just one thing. It can be seen as
Rome’s empire “. . . which was full of names of
blasphemy” (verse 3). The empire allowed for the
worship of numerous “gods”, all of them insults to
the One, True God and infringements on His
supreme and unique power and authority. It can
also be seen as a reference to the many tithes given
to the emperor (e.g. “Augustus”, which means “to
be reverenced”; “divus”, divine; “dominus”, Lord)
The “. . . seven heads and ten horns” are explained
in verses 10-14 (READ).a. Verse 9 gives one explanation: “. . . The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits.” This is, quite obviously, Rome, which sits upon seven hills.
b. The second application is the one that has caused more discussion, especially
verses 10-11. These are the emperors of
Rome, through Domition (the 8th emperor)
[Augustus; Tiberius; Gaius, or Caligula;
Claudius; Nero; Vespasian; Titus;
Domition].c. The “ten kings” (verse 12) are the “client
kings” of Rome. They have authority, but it is more limited than that of the “heads.” These rulers were permitted to govern by Rome and, under its power, had succumbed to it and surrendered much of their own sovereignty.d. The client kings actually add to the constant turmoil and insecurity that are a part of Roman history (verse 16), and, are used by God for His purpose of destroying the “beast.” (verse 17).
e. The woman, the kings, and the client kings
“make war with the Lamb”, and are defeated.D. Satan fights Michael, and is defeated. The dragon and the
beast assemble the kings of the world for the great battle at
har-Megiddo, and are defeated. The woman and the kings
make war on the Lamb, and are defeated. God will triumph
over evil, always.II. The Doom Of “Babylon” (18:1-24).
A. In prophetic literature in the Old Testament, you have what
is called the “Doom Song.” Revelation 18 is such a
“song”, in the New Testament (see Isaiah 13:19-22;
Isaiah 34:11-15; Jeremiah 50:39 and 51:37;
Zephaniah 2:13-15).B. The angel charged with bearing the message of doom,
comes with the very light of the glory of God upon him
(verses 1-2; READ).1. It is really a simple matter for God to judge
immoral Rome. What John envisions is not the
eventual fall of the Roman Empire, but, rather,
the completeness of God’s divine judgment.2. The judgment comes in “one day” (verse 18), even
in “one hour” (verses 10; 17; 19).3. The power of God is so great, His divine judgment
so sure, His Holy Will so irresistible that nothing
can stop it, or alter it. What must have seemed
impossible to those suffering under Rome’s mighty
yoke was nothing to God. The invincibility of
Rome is a myth. And, the world will both marvel
and mourn at its demise, because they had profited
from their association with Rome.C. Christians were told to “come out of her” (verse 4), to
avoid sharing her fate and doom. While it would be
physically impossible to flee from the empire, as vast as it
was, it was possible to escape judgment by not sharing in
its sins. H.B. Swete says this cry signifies “aloofness of
spirit maintained in the very heart of the world’s traffic.”
It represents the essential separateness of Christians from
the “world” and its evil (II Corinthians 6:14-15;
I Timothy 5:22).
D. While those who were a part of Rome’s evil, and did
prosper under its dominion, mourn, heaven, the saints –
all those whose faith had been vindicated and rewarded –
rejoiced at the judgment of God (verse 20).E. The section closes with John leaving no doubt that it is of
Rome he speaks: (verse 24). From the seductive power
of Rome, which seduced and destroyed those who allowed
themselves to be caught in its grip of sin, we arrive at the
certainty of God’s final judgment upon this purveyor of
evil. That judgment is so complete that all of Rome’s
glory is gone, and it is reduced to total, absolute ruin
(verse 21; READ).III. Rejoice! (19:1-21).
A. As in Revelation 4 and 15, heaven breaks out in songs of
praise to God for His righteous judgments (RE-READ
19:1-3). Now, God has answered the plea of the saints
from Revelation 6:10: “. . . ‘how long, O Lord, holy and
true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who
dwell on the earth?’ ”1. The Bride has made herself ready for the marriage
to the Lamb. Verse 7 of Chapter 19 presents a real
contrast to the “harlot” of Revelation 17.2. John uses the common Hebrew concept of God
being “betrothed”, or wed, to His people (e.g.
Hosea 2:19; Isaiah 54:5-7; 61:10).a. Hebrew weddings were a drawn-out
experience involving two separate events.
One was the betrothal, and the other the
actual ceremony of uniting. It is only after
the second that the marriage is
consummated.b. By comparison, in the present, earthly stage
of our relationship, a Christian is betrothed
to Christ, and, therefore, bound to Him.
That betrothal is to be made complete in
heaven.3. A blessing is pronounced on those invited to the
marriage supper (verse 9).B. Here is one of those instances where we must be reminded
that “Revelation” is symbolic in its language. The “supper”
here is not referring to food and drink. We will be blessed,
if bidden by our faithfulness and obedience, with the full
bounty of God.1. John is so overwhelmed by the vision that he falls
down to worship the messenger – and is warned not
to do so (verse 10).2. The last sentence of the angel’s statement is
interesting, coming immediately after the command
to “Worship God!” The “testimony” here refers to
Jesus’ death on the cross – a sacrificial death in
reverence to God. Dying in reverence to God is
what the “spirit of prophecy” is all about. God is
worthy of all worship and sacrifice – even death.3. Those who died as martyrs for God fulfill the
epitome of prophecy. Martyrdom is a statement
about the believer and God; only God is worthy of
worship and the martyr is a faithful witness to this.C. Heaven opens, and the crucified Jesus is seen on a white
horse. He, not Rome, is the One Who rules over God’s
kingdom and judges all nations. He is “King of kings, and
Lord of Lords.”D. Now, there is also depicted another “feast” – but it is not
one of salvation and rejoicing and blessings, but of grim
and terrible horror. The vultures gather to feed on the
corpses of the slain enemies of Christ (see Matthew 24:28);
including the beast and the false prophet. The sovereign
Lamb captures the beast and the false prophet and casts
them into the “. . . lake of fire burning with brimstone.”
(verse 20). But, this is not their final judgment.IV. Conclusion.
A. All the forces hostile to God assemble themselves – but the
warrior – Christ is able to conquer them.B. The great cosmic drama draws nearer to its close, but we
still must have the fate of Satan exposed. The ultimate
victory of God over all evil – and its source – is about to
be shown.