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God's Final Call Babylon's Final Fall

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God's Final Call Babylon's Final Fall Understanding Revelation – Topic 30 God’s final call and Babylon’s final fall Seven songs of destruction An exposition of Revelation Chapters 18 and 19:1-6 Contents Background .....................................................................................................................................3 Introduction .....................................................................................................................................3 A duo of songs ................................................................................................................................4 The first song ............................................................................................................................................................... 4 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................. 4 Babylon’s spiritual condition ................................................................................................................................... 7 Babylon’s pre-eminence ......................................................................................................................................... 7 The latter rain ......................................................................................................................................................... 9 The second song ....................................................................................................................................................... 12 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................... 12 God’s final call ...................................................................................................................................................... 12 Babylon’s punishment .......................................................................................................................................... 15 The central trio of songs .............................................................................................................. 17 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 17 The third song ............................................................................................................................................................ 17 The fourth song .......................................................................................................................................................... 18 The fifth song ............................................................................................................................................................. 18 Destruction in one hour .............................................................................................................................................. 19 Heaven rejoices ......................................................................................................................................................... 19 A final duo of songs ...................................................................................................................... 19 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................ 19 The sixth song ........................................................................................................................................................... 19 Babylon’s destruction emphasised ....................................................................................................................... 20 The seventh song ...................................................................................................................................................... 22 Antiphonal structure .............................................................................................................................................. 22 Timing ................................................................................................................................................................... 22 A peon of praise ................................................................................................................................................... 23 The reason for praise ........................................................................................................................................... 23 The reason for Babylon’s punishment .................................................................................................................. 23 Finality of Babylon’s destruction ........................................................................................................................... 24 Sets of three and their significance ...................................................................................................................... 25 Appendix A - The seven songs summarised .............................................................................. 26 Appendix B - Old Testament imagery found in Revelation Chapter 18 .................................... 27 Bibliography .................................................................................................................................. 30 © COPYRIGHT 2012 This work is subject to international copyright legislation. It may be copied or printed for personal use. It cannot be published in any other format or sold without the permission of the author. God’s final call and Babylon’s final fall 2 Revelation Chapters 18 and 19:1-6 Understanding Revelation Topic 30 V03 Background We have shown in previous topics that the fortunes of the great apostate religious system of Babylon have risen and fallen throughout history. Revelation Chapters 17 and 18 depict Babylon’s final fall as well as God’s final call to those of His people who still remain within her false system of belief. These chapters then are closely linked. And the woman whom you saw is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth. Revelation 17:18 Here we see a woman and a city, each of which symbolises a religious system. This is a double symbolism. (We also saw a double symbolism in Revelation 17:9 with the seven heads representing seven mountains which in turn represented kingdoms or political entities). In Chapter 17 the focus was on the harlot representing Babylon’s corruption, and why she is ripe for destruction. But in Chapter 18 the focus changes to the great city, representing Babylon’s oppressive, dominant power. The use of this symbol in Chapter 18 is fitting because it enables a graphic depiction of the destruction of spiritual Babylon. Introduction It is essential to understand the structure and purpose of Revelation Chapter 18. This chapter aptly portrays the utter and final destruction of Babylon in the form of seven songs, the first six of which are mournful dirges or laments. The seventh is a song of praise. Much space is devoted to describing Babylon’s end. It is emphasized that her destruction comes suddenly and quickly. Therefore her plagues will come in one day - death and mourning and famine. And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judges her. Revelation 18:8 Three times in this chapter it is stated that in one hour her destruction comes. The extensive amount of Scripture applied to the fall and destruction of Babylon indicates just how significant Babylon is in the sight of heaven. Babylon is a greater threat than most of us believe, more deceptive, more dangerous than we can imagine. Babylon is the great enemy of God and humanity. The natural inclination of the human heart is to compromise with Babylon. This has been the experience of many throughout history, because Babylon is the expression of the sinful nature of man. Babylon, after all, is in effect the natural outworking of the sinful human nature. Consequently it has a powerful appeal to human norms. The religion of Babylon temporarily satisfies the human heart’s spiritual longings. However her principles are unacceptable to God, nor do her machinations meet mankind’s ultimate spiritual needs. The seven songs are structured into three groups: a pair, then three and finally two verses respectively. The first and last pairs are heaven-inspired. The central trio of verses is earthly inspired. The first pair relates why Babylon must be destroyed and the source from which that destruction will come. The central trio explains how Babylon will be destroyed and the totality of her destruction. The final duo of songs describes the God’s final call and Babylon’s final fall 3 Revelation Chapters 18 and 19:1-6 Understanding Revelation Topic 30 V03 permanency and the justice of Babylon’s destruction. (For a summary of the seven songs, see Appendix A). A duo of songs The first song Introduction After these things I saw… This expression denotes that here we have a new vision. The word after does not mean after the events of Chapter 17 but rather after the vision therein. Revelation Chapter 18 is then a second vision concerning the fall of Babylon. Once more we see an example of repetition and enlargement - a method prevalent throughout Hebrew
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