A DOZEN BIBLICAL EVIDENCES WHY the HARLOT BABYLON of REVELATION WAS OLD COVENANT JERUSALEM

Prophecy Questions Blog ^ | June 27, 2021 | Charles S. Meek

[grumpa]

1. Babylon is described as the “GREAT CITY” (Revelation 16:19; 17:18; 18:10, 16, 18, 21). The “GREAT CITY” is identified as the “CITY WHERE THE LORD WAS CRUCIFIED” (Revelation 11:8). That unambiguously means Jerusalem.

2. It was Babylon was who would be punished for shedding the blood of the prophets and saints and “all who have been slain on earth” (Revelation 16:6; 17:6, 24; 19:2). This is a direct reference to Jesus’ words in Matthew 23:35-36 in which Jesus condemned the JEWS OF HIS DAY for “all righteous blood shed on earth,” promising judgment upon them/Jerusalem―in THEIR GENERATION―for their sins and failure to accept Him as savior (Matthew 23:38).

3. Over 30 times in Revelation its fulfillment is described as imminent (“time is near,” “must shortly take place,” “soon,” “about to happen”). These imminence statements appear throughout the book, including like book ends at the beginning and end (Revelation 1:1-3; 22:6-20). That precludes a far distant future fulfillment of its prophecies.

4. Babylon’s judgment was to happen in “one hour” (Revelation 18:10). That eliminates a fulfillment thousands of years later.

5. Babylon is described as a harlot (Revelation 17:1, 5, 15; 19:2). Whenever Israel was unfaithful in the Old Testament, she is described as a harlot (Deuteronomy 31:16-18; Isaiah 1:21; Jeremiah 2:20; 3:6-9; Ezekiel 6:8-9; 16:15, 22, 25, 26, 28; Hosea 1:2; 6:10; 9:1).

6. The Great City is also called “Sodom and Egypt” (Revelation 11:8). The only city referred to symbolically in the Bible as Sodom is old covenant Jerusalem (Deuteronomy 32:28-33; Isaiah 1:9-10; Jeremiah 23:14, and Ezekiel 16:46-57).

7. The harlot Babylon “was arrayed in purple and scarlet” (Revelation 17:4). These colors were those of the ritual dress of the high priest and the colors that adorned the temple (Exodus 27:16; 28:5, 6, 8, 15, 33; 35:6, 23, 25, 35; 36:8, 35; 38:18; 39:1, 2; 2 Chronicles 3:14).

8. Babylon would be destroyed (Revelation 18:2, 8, 10, 11, 17, 19-23). The only city Jesus said would be destroyed was Jerusalem, saying that it would be “left to you desolate” (Matthew 23:38), and in reference to the temple “not one stone left on another” (Matthew 24:2).

9. Babylon’s destruction is in the context of the “Marriage of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:7). This is a direct reference to Jesus’ Parable of the Wedding Feast (Matthew 22:1-14) where Jesus warned the Jews of the burning of THEIR CITY (Matthew 21:45) for not accepting his invitation to the wedding, that is, not accepting his offer of salvation through Himself.

10. Paul, in 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16, stated that it was the Jews who killed Jesus and persecuted Christians, and thus was the target of God’s wrath. We also note that in Revelation 18:20, 24 the apostles and prophets rejoiced at the impending judgment of Babylon for her persecution of them. The Jews themselves said “his blood be on us” (Matthew 27:25).

11. Revelation was written before AD 70, during the sixth Roman king, who was Nero―who died in AD 68 (Revelation 17:10). See my article linked below “Twenty Evidences Why Revelation Was Written before AD 70.”

12. Babylon is said to be resting on “seven mountains/hills” (Revelation 17:9). While Rome is considered a “city of seven hills,” so is Jerusalem. Jerusalem’s designation as the city of seven hills would have been more familiar to Jews of the first century. Here’s a map of the seven hills of Jerusalem:

https://www.biblestudy.org/maps/map-of-jerusalem-and-its-seven-hills.html#:~:text=Jerusalem%27s%20seven%20hills%20are%20Mount%20Scopus%2C%20Mount%20Olivet,hill%20on%20which%20the%20Antonia%20Fortress%20was%20built

CONCLUSION: Those Christians who say that Revelation’s Babylon is Rome, America, the Catholic church, or some generic evil are reading things into the text―based on their presuppositions or hearsay.

https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AIGrWqrhuChKa7c&cid=D3BD424B0B25B83F&id=D3BD424B0B25B83F%2128276&parId=D3BD424B0B25B83F%21113&o=OneUp

[sauropod]

Bkmk

[spacejunkie2001]

you know you can be right and wrong at the same time....Prophecies often point to near AND far term events. It’s not just one or the other but both

[grumpa]

//Prophecies often point to near AND far events//

DUAL FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY

It can be argued that certain Old Testament promises had a greater fulfillment. Theologians call this “sensus plenior.” Specifically, the restoration of Judah from exile in Babylon can also be seen as a future restoration in Christ. But there is nothing in the New Testament that points to a greater fulfillment beyond Christ. If you think you can find such a passage, bring it forth.

Jesus never said or even hinted at anything like “Now these things will be fulfilled in is generation, and then AGAIN to some far distant future generation.”

[erkelly]

So if all prophecy is already fulfilled then why Daniel 12:4?

[grumpa]

//Daniel 12:4//

WHEN WAS DANIEL 12 FULFILLED?

The answer is extraordinarily clear in Scripture. The text spells it out:

“When the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things will be finished.” (Daniel 12:7)

“And from the time that the burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up.” (Daniel 12:11)

This happened in history. The power of the holy people was shattered and the burnt offering ceased forever when the temple was destroyed in AD 70. That marked the end of biblical Judaism as foretold throughout the Old Testament beginning with Deuteronomy 28-32.

At that time the court sat in judgment (Daniel 7:10) and God took vengeance on Old Covenant Israel for her sins as warned by Jesus (Matthew 23:29-24:2; Luke 21:20-24) and as warned by John the Baptist (Matthew 3:7-12). God would take the blessings of the kingdom from the Jews and give them to another group, obviously the church (Matthew 21:18-19; 43-45; 22:7).

In AD 70 God used the Roman army as the instrument of his wrath, just as He used the Assyrian army against the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BC, and just as He used the Babylonian army to judge Judah and Jerusalem in 586 BC.

Jesus affirmed the abomination of desolation of Daniel (Daniel 12:11 and Matthew 24:15) was about the destruction of the temple (Matthew 24:2)―and it would happen in his generation (Matthew 10:23; 16:27-28; 24:34).

The “time of the end” (Daniel 12:4, 6, 9, 13) is not about the end of history. Daniel’s prophecy is about the end of the Old Covenant dispensation in AD 70. At that time, the temple sacrifices for sin ceased, the priesthood was abolished forever, over a million Jews were killed, and any genealogical records in the temple were destroyed. Jesus became the focus of our faith, no longer the temple (John 2:19-21; Revelation 21:22).

For more detail about the Book of Daniel, see my article here:

https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AG7JvFPbD7KDoKE&cid=D3BD424B0B25B83F&id=D3BD424B0B25B83F%2116753&parId=D3BD424B0B25B83F%21113&o=OneUp

[Secret Agent Man]

Every strong empire throughout history, including the usa, has elements of babylon in it.

They get worse as the nation becomes more corrupt and moves away from God. Remember at he end Nebuchadnezzer gets his sanity back and praises the true God, and has the true God worshipped throughout Babylon. His heirs howevr do not, and go corrupt and move away from the true God, and well, you know...they are toppled and wiped out by other powers.

[BipolarBob]

Nothing new here. Some verses. Some opinions. Nothing substantial to change anyones mind. Carry on.

[grumpa]

//Every strong empire has elements of Babylon in it.//

My response: True enough. But that has nothing to do with biblical prophecy.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

DUAL FULFILLMENT OF PROPHECY

You could also call that a stopped clock. 🤡

[Secret Agent Man]

It does in the sense its a warning to all nations thatget trong, that it can happen to them just as easily.

[Philsworld]

1 Peter 5:13 The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.

Peter was writing from ROME. Babylon is ROME (Catholic system, popery, etc...)

[grumpa]

//Peter was writing from Rome so Babylon is Rome.//

My response: That’s an assumption. Jerusalem was Peter’s home base. There is good evidence that Peter was referring to Jerusalem, as explained in this article:

https://donkpreston.com/babylon-in-1-peter-513-rome-or-babylon/

[dwilkins]

You are describing an Idealist approach to interpreting prophecy that can’t result in eschatology per se. If there is no way to know whether the most recent fulfillment is the final fulfillment then there is no reliable prediction of “the end” (that’s the difference between eschatology and simple prophecy).

On the other hand, if Peter was telling the truth when he said that the prophets long ago were talking about them in their generation (the 1st Century) then the burden of proof is on the futurists to prove that there is a multiple fulfillment in Peter’s future.

[amorphous]

Rev 18:

The Finality of Babylon’s Doom

21 Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said:

“With such violence
the great city of Babylon will be thrown down,
never to be found again.
22 The music of harpists and musicians, pipers and
trumpeters,
will never be heard in you again.
No worker of any trade
will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone
will never be heard in you again.
23 The light of a lamp
will never shine in you again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in you again.
Your merchants were the world’s important people.
By your magic spell all the nations were led astray.
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,
of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”

---

With all due respect, what part of "never again" do you not understand?

Jerusalem post 70 A.D.:

Whomever mystery Babylon is remains a mystery. But, it is not Jerusalem!

Another reason mystery Babylon isn't or ever was Jerusalem, as if another reason is needed, is Christ will rule the entire world from Jerusalem once He establishes His Kingdom on Earth.

Even so, there are plenty more examples of why Jerusalem wasn't and will never be "mystery Babylon".

And finally, since it's STILL a mystery, this fact alone is a strong indicator the prophecy remains unfilled - for now.

[Dartoid]

Good luck with that. Such a silly argument from not a serious person

[metmom]

Nor did Jesus switch between talking about the future and skipping to talking about the present for one sentence and then back to the future again, without clarifying it.

The *this generation * refers to that one going through the tribulation, not the people he was presently speaking to.

[grumpa]

//still a mystery//

My response: Guess you didn’t read the post. Regarding ruling the world, you are assuming that “ruling” means political rule. The Bible is about covenants. Israel, from a covenantal perspective, was GOD’S CHOSEN PEOPLE—ABOVE ALL OTHERS. They were given this position then blew it in unfaithfulness. Mat 21, 22, 23, 24.

[Secret Agent Man]

That is not what I said at all. I didnt say all that. I wrote clearly exactly and precisely what I wrote.

[grumpa]

//”This generation” refers to some future generation that will go through the tribulation.//

My response about this generation:

This Generation

To what time-period does the phrase “this generation” in the New Testament refer? It is used in the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24:34, Mark 13:30, Luke 21:32) in reference to the fulfillment of end times prophecies. A straight-forward reading of the text indicates that these prophecies would be fulfilled while some hearing Jesus’ words in the first century were still alive.

To confirm that it refers to the first century contemporaries of Jesus we need only to look at the other times the phrase is used in the New Testament. Without doubt, it ALWAYS refers to those living in the first century. No other conclusion is possible without doing violence to the text. Here are all the times the phrase is used outside of the Olivet Discourse. Look up these passages for yourself:

Matthew 11:16-24; 12:38-45; 16:4; 17:17; 23:35-36; Mark 8:12; 8:38-9:1; 9:19, and Luke 7:31; 9:41; 11:29-32, 49-51; 17:25; Acts 2:40.

The certain conclusion is that the “end times” is not about the end of the physical universe, not about the end of the Christian age, and not about anything in our future. It is about the end of the Old Covenant age, which ended with the fall of Jerusalem and destruction of the temple in AD 70 in the generation of Jesus’ contemporaries.

For more on this, see my article entitled “When Was the Olivet Discourse Fulfilled?” here:

https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AIU4-PR6g7QN5uw&cid=D3BD424B0B25B83F&id=D3BD424B0B25B83F%2116783&parId=D3BD424B0B25B83F%21113&o=OneUp

My response about the tribulation:

WHEN IS (WAS) THE GREAT TRIBULATION?

Most Christians, it seems, have an idea about the Great Tribulation that they have picked up somewhere, but have never really carefully studied what the Bible has to say about this. Consider these passages about the tribulation:

“And they will deliver YOU up to tribulation. . . .” (Matthew 24:9)

“I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom. . . .” (Revelation 1:9)

From the above citations we can clearly see that (1) Jesus taught that those to whom He was speaking in the first century would witness the tribulation, and (b) the tribulation had arrived when John was writing Revelation. (Dozens of scholars believe that Revelation was written in the 60’s AD.) Now note this passage:

“When YOU see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. . . for THESE are the days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. . . .” (Luke 21:20-22)

In this passage, a parallel passage to the Olivet Discourse in Matthew 24, Jesus said that He was living in the time that would FULFILL ALL OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECY, and ties fulfillment of prophecy to the coming destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70.

Also note in Luke 21 that THEY could escape the coming tribulation by fleeing to the mountains. This precludes a world-wide catastrophe, as most people think! It was a local event associated with the coming fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple by the Romans from AD 66-70.

In case they didn’t get it at first, Jesus reiterated the time-line:

“Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Matthew 24:34)

Conclusion: We can attempt to futurize these things, but it would not faithful to the words of our Lord. The Great Tribulation, as predicted by Jesus, was restricted by Him to the region and the people of Judea in the first century. It was then that Jesus came in judgment to take vengeance on Old Covenant Israel for her sins and failure to accept Him as Messiah (Matthew 23:29-39). There is NO indication in God’s Word that it will ever happen again. To read a future “great tribulation” into the text does violence to the promises of Jesus.

For more information about the Great Tribulation, see my longer article at my prophecy website:

https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AFKAns5uBtAm5Zo&cid=D3BD424B0B25B83F&id=D3BD424B0B25B83F%2116802&parId=D3BD424B0B25B83F%21113&o=OneUp