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explanation of these verses was given in great detail in our study
of Revelation 13, and so we would encourage you to read that study
again. In summary, the passage tells us that the old Roman Empire
will come back to life in the form of ten nations. This will be
an alliance of ten nations which will bring peace to the Middle
East (Dan. 9:27). The
Antichrist will eliminate three of the nations or their leaders
and take control. Scripture does not tell us how this is accomplished.
He will not be their leader at first, but he will by the middle
of the tribulation (after 3.5 years). At that point he becomes
the eighth king and leads the seventh nation to rule over the land
of Palestine. Go To Destruction. Revelation 17:8 says that the Antichrist will go to destruction, and that is also the message of the next verse.
The Antichrist and the other seven nations will attempt to defeat God, apparently in retaliation for the horrible plagues. One of the presidents of the United States of America in the last twenty years has said that an enemy external to this planet would unite the world (Reuters, “Reagan Images Star Wars,” International Herald Tribune, Paris, Dec. 5th, 1985). He was correct when he made the statement. The world government will attempt to defeat God and bring their type of peace. But Jesus will win! He will win because . . . The next phrase is really wonderful. It is very awesome. Here it is. He will win because “He is Lord of lords and King of kings.” But He does not wage war alone. He comes with the saints of both the Old and New Testaments. Every believer will see this battle and see the victory. This will be better than television, movies, or being at a stadium. Christians will be there! Harlot Destroyed. The explanations of the next two symbols have already been discussed.
But the hatred of the kings for the woman is new. These world leaders will hate her and eventually destroy her after they have used her to gain control of the world. But they will not realize that they are fulfilling God’s will - His purposes. Once the Mother of All False Religions is destroyed, the Antichrist will be in absolute control, and the False Prophet will be encouraging the world to worship the Antichrist. The Antichrist will think he is King of kings and Lord of lords. But what he thinks will not be the truth. The Mother of All False Religion had to be destroyed in order for the Antichrist to be the only one the world would worship. Babylon A City? Next we are told that the woman is a great city, and she has great power over the leaders of the world. Her influence will be world wide.
Did you notice that the meaning of the symbols came after John saw the vision? John saw the vision and the explanations were provided. This simple statement makes it very clear that the woman represents a city. She is a religious system that also has economic influence around the world. Babylon is an ancient city. When we come to Revelation 18, we will learn more about this woman. Conclusion. Currently, in our world there is a great desire for peace in the Middle East. The world is searching for a solution, and some day they will find it. Both Daniel and Revelation say they will. When the solution is found by a group of ten nations, there will be peace in the Middle East - the center of the world’s oil. They will control the Middle East and eventually their hatred for both Jews and Christians will become obvious and the peace in this region will prove to be only temporary. |
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