Correct.
And
one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying,
"Come here, I shall show you the judgment of
the great harlot who sits on many waters,
2with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and
those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality."
15And he said to me, "The
waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and
nations and tongues. (NAS) Revelation 17:1-2 and 15.
This great city that reigns over the kings of the
earth (the harlot) was sitting on the peoples, multitudes, nations,
and tongues (languages) in the world.
Revelation 17's description of this great city's relationship with the
rulers of the earth and the peoples of the earth is as follows:
The rulers of the earth committed sin with this
great city or power (the harlot)
...2with
whom the kings of the earth committed acts of
immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were
made drunk with the wine of her immorality. Revelation 17:2
(NAS)
A description of the great city of power (the harlot) as
seen in the vision:
And
he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness;
and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full
of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten
horns. 4And the woman was clothed in
purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and
precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a
gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean
things of her immorality, 5and upon her
forehead a name was written, a mystery, "BABYLON THE
GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS
OF THE EARTH." Revelation 17:3-5 (NAS)
In the remainder of the chapter, clues are given
in John's vision as to the identity of this great
city or power which is represented by the image of
the great harlot. To help us to understand
these clues, we include below both the New American Standard Version
and the Easy-to-Read Version:
Clues Given as to the
Identity of
The Great City or Power (the harlot)
Revelation 17:6-18 |
New American Standard Version |
Easy-to-Read Version |
And
I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the
saints, and with the blood of the witnesses
of Jesus ...Revelation 17:6a (NAS) |
6I
saw that the woman was drunk. She was drunk
with the blood of God's holy people.
Revelation 17:6a (ERV) |
The mystery of the harlot on the scarlet
beast is told: |
And when I saw her, I wondered greatly.
7And the angel said to me, "Why
do you wonder? I shall tell you the mystery
of the woman and of the beast that carries
her, which has the seven heads and the ten
horns. (NAS) |
When
I saw the woman, I was fully amazed. 7Then
the angel said to me, "Why are you amazed? I
will tell you the hidden meaning of this
woman and the
animal she rides--the animal
with seven heads and ten horns. Revelation
17:6b-7 (ERV) |
The scarlet beast that the harlot was riding: |
"The beast that you saw was and is not, and is about to
come up out of the abyss and to go to destruction. And those who dwell on
the earth will wonder, whose name has not been written in the book of life
from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast, that he was and
is not and will come." Revelation
17:8 (NAS) |
8The animal
that you saw was once [alive]. But that
animal is not [alive] now. But that animal
will [be alive and] come up out of the
bottomless pit and go away to be destroyed.
The people that live on the earth will be
amazed when they see the animal. They will
be amazed because he was once [alive], is
not [alive] now, but will come again. These
are the people
whose names have
never been
written in the book of life since the
beginning of the world. Revelation 17:8 (ERV) |
The seven heads (rulers) on the scarlet beast: |
"Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are
seven mountains on which the woman sits, 10and they are seven
kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he
comes, he must remain a little while. Revelation 17:9-10 (NAS) |
9"You need a wise mind to
understand this. The seven heads on the
animal are the seven hills where the woman
sits. They are also seven rulers. 10Five
of the rulers have already died. One of the
rulers lives now. And the last ruler is
coming. When he comes, he will stay only a
short time. Revelation 17:9-10 (ERV) |
The scarlet beast is the eighth ruler: |
"And the beast which was and is not, is himself also an
eighth, and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.
Revelation 17:11
(NAS) |
11The animal that was once
[alive] but is not [alive] now is an eighth
ruler. This eighth ruler also belongs to the
first seven rulers. And he will go away to
be destroyed. Revelation 17:11 (ERV) |
The ten horns (rulers) on the scarlet beast: |
"And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings, who have
not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the
beast for one hour. These have one purpose and they give their power and
authority to the beast.
Revelation 17:12-13 (NAS) |
12"The ten horns you saw are ten
rulers. These ten rulers have not yet
received their kingdom. But they will
receive power to rule with the animal for
one hour. 13All ten of these
rulers have the same purpose. And they will
give their power and authority to the
animal. Revelation 17:12-13 (ERV) |
The animal and the ten horns (rulers) will hate
and destroy the harlot (the great city): |
And he said to me, "The waters which you saw where the
harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. 16And
the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and
will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her
up with fire.
Revelation 17:15-16 (NAS) |
15Then the angel said to me, "You
saw the water where the prostitute sits.
These waters are the many peoples, the
different races,
nations, and languages [in
the world]. 16The animal and the
ten horns (ten rulers) you saw will
hate the prostitute. They will take
everything she has and leave her naked. They
will eat her body and burn her with fire.
Revelation 17:15-16 (ERV) |
The ten horns (rulers) will give the scarlet beast
their
power to rule after the harlot is destroyed: |
For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose
by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until
the words of God should be fulfilled. 18"And the woman whom you
saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth." Revelation 17:17-18
(NAS) |
17God made
the ten horns want to do his purpose: They
agreed to give the animal their power to
rule. They will rule until the things God
has said are completed. 18The
woman you saw is the great city that rules
over the kings of the earth." Revelation
17:17-18 (ERV) |
To war against the Lamb:
In the midst of these clues as to the scarlet
beast, the horns and the harlot, you find their
purpose in uniting against the Lamb:
"These
will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will
overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King
of kings, and those who are with Him are the called
and chosen and faithful." Revelation 17:14 (NAS)
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