Revelation 17–18 describes and celebrates the destruction of Babylon. That great city was once the political, cultural, and religious center of Mesopotamia—and a determined foe of Israel. Because Babylon was located in what is now Iraq, and because Saddam Hussein’s dictatorial regime threatened the stability of the entire Middle East, some Bible prophecy “experts” argued that a rebuilt and revitalized Babylon was a central component of God’s end-time agenda. That is unlikely, both because of the recent demise of Hussein’s regime and because Revelation 17–18, properly interpreted, teaches no such thing, as we will see.
What does Revelation 17–18 teach us? What is Babylon? Why is its destruction so important to God’s plan? Let us turn to Scripture and find out.
The Great Prostitute (Revelation 17.1–6)
John’s description and celebration of the destruction of Babylon begins with a vivid picture of what the city is: a bejeweled prostitute riding a grotesque beast, committing sexual immorality with the world’s rulers, drunk on the blood of the saints (Rev. 17:1-6). Needless to say, this is not a literal picture of Babylon. Instead, it is a symbolic portrait, painted in extreme colors.
Each of the terms John uses to describe Babylon is emotionally loaded with negative connotations: prostitute, beast, sexually immoral, drunk. Even in our latitudinarian age, prostitution and sexual promiscuity are looked down upon. A beast is a fearsome thing, a ferocious thing. And nobody likes a drunk. Although Babylon is decked out in beautiful clothes and expensive jewelry, her wealth is the purchase of cronyism and corruption. Altogether, she is an awful figure.
Now, since John explains the literal meaning of these symbols in the verses that follow—although even these explanations are cryptic—you might be asking why John bothers to use the symbolic imagery in the first place. Why not just cut to the chase and speak plainly? The answer, it seems to me, lies in the unique emotional power of vivid, symbolic language.
Literally speaking, Babylon is a city characterized by wealth, power, alternative religions, and a negative attitude toward Christianity. Such a literal description—while true—is emotionally neutral. Quite frankly, it describes Los Angeles just as well as Babylon. It describes, in other words, the situation we currently live in.
Precisely because it describes the situation we live in, however, we do not notice it. A fish does not know it is swimming in water until it is caught and plopped down flopping for breath on dry land. So too, we typically do not realize the spiritual danger of our situation because it is the very air we breathe.
The brilliance of John’s use of vivid, symbolic descriptions is precisely that it paints our every day situation in such bold hues that we realize how much danger surrounds us. Wealth, power, alternative religions, and a negative attitude become a decked-out hooker riding a hideous animal, fornicating with people in high places and drunk with hatred of believers. J. R. R. Tolkien spoke of the “arresting strangeness” of fairy tales that helped their readers toward “the regaining of a clear view.” The arresting strangeness of John’s description of Babylon certain help us regain a clear view of what an awful thing life outside of God is.
And so, in a sense, John’s figurative language is the plainest speech available. By describing Babylon symbolically, he shows us what it really is, and how we should respond. You see, we may fear Babylon because of her wealth and power or despise her for her wicked behavior, but we should never pity her demise—for she is bloodthirsty. And above all else, we must never love her, for the favors she offers come at too high a price.
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