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Those
who fled from Babylon started new religions. Many of them had rejected the true
God. They were building the tower! So it is not surprising that
these new religions also had some common teachings, even though
they were unbiblical. Today we find that many religions use remnants of that old religion. They use holy
water, priests in long robes, various sacraments, the avoidance
of certain foods, a string of beads used during prayer, priestly
absolution, infant baptism, and prayers. In the mystery religions
of Rome and Greece, the high priest wore a crown with the title
Pontifex Maximus. It is the same title that appeared on the crowns
of the Roman Caesars, and the pope of the Roman Catholic Church.
Some
of the ancient Phoenician, Egyptian, Babylonian, Roman and Greek religions believed
in a goddess mother who held her infant child in her arms. In Phoenicia the goddess
and infant were Astoreth and Tammuz, in Egypt they were Isis and Horus. In Rome
they were Venus and Cupid, and in Greece they were Aphrodite and Eros. We do
not know how much of this was imported from the religion in Babel, but many of
the rituals practiced around the world are common, and Babylon was the origin
of these false religions. Babylon was almost a success story for Satan.
The
Harlot. In
Revelation 15 seven holy angels were given seven bowls “full of the wrath
of God.” Each bowl was filled with a horrible plague. It was a time of
judgment. In Revelation 16 each of
those bowls was poured out on the earth. The
people of the world suffered miserably, but they refused to submit to God. When
we come to Revelation 17, we find that one of those angels had come to the Apostle
John and offered to show to him, “the great harlot who sits on many waters.”
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Then
one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and
spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you
the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters,
with 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.” (NASB) Rev. 17:1-2 |
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