Revelation
18:1-19:6
“The Man Comes Around”
And I heard, as it were, the noise of
thunder:
One of the four beasts saying: "Come and
see." And I saw.
And behold, a white horse. [Rev 6:1-2]
There's a man going 'round taking names.
And he decides who to free and who to blame.
Everybody won't be treated all the same.
There'll be a golden ladder reaching down.
When the man comes around.
The hairs on your arm will stand up.
At the terror in each sip and in each sup.
For you partake of that last offered cup,
Or disappear into the potter's ground.
Hear the trumpets, hear the pipers.
One hundred million angels singing.
Multitudes are marching to the big kettle
drum.
Voices calling, voices crying.
Some are born and some are dying.
It's Alpha and Omega's Kingdom come.
And the whirlwind [Ezekiel 1:4] is in the
thorn tree.
The virgins are all trimming their wicks.
[Matthew 25:7]
The whirlwind is in the thorn tree.
It's hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
[Acts 26:14]
Till Armageddon, no Shalam, no Shalom.
Then the father hen will call his chickens home.
The wise men will bow down before the throne.
And at his feet they'll cast their golden
crowns.
When the man comes around.
Whoever is unjust, let him be unjust still.
Whoever is righteous, let him be righteous
still.
Whoever is filthy, let him be filthy still.
Listen to the words long written down,
When the man comes around.
When the man comes around.
Hear the trumpets, hear the pipers.
One hundred million angels singing.
Multitudes are marching to the big kettle
drum.
Voices calling, voices crying.
Some are born and some are dying.
It's Alpha and Omega's Kingdom come.
And the whirlwind is in the thorn tree.
The virgins are all trimming their wicks.
The whirlwind is in the thorn tree.
It's hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
In measured hundredweight and penny pound.
[John 19:39, John 12:3]
[John 19:39, John 12:3]
When the man comes around.
Many of you
no doubt recognize the voice. Perhaps,
some of you have heard the song before.
The singer and writer of the song is Johnny Cash. It was one of the last songs that he wrote
before his death in 2003. The words
there give us a sense of the imminence of the circumstances which are coming
about throughout the book of Revelation.
It also has rich imagery and poetry bordering on the mysterious as does
the book of Revelation.
I won’t make
a deep analysis of the song, but a couple of things maybe. The whirlwind represents God. The thorn tree is the cross. The whirlwind in the thorn tree is Jesus’
sacrificing Himself on the cross. He is
taking names by writing them in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Hard to kick against the pricks is a
reference to what Jesus said to Paul when He appeared to him. Most translations we read use “goads” to
describe a sharp tool for keeping a yoked animal headed in the right direction
when pulling a load like a plow. It is
an old proverb for useless resistance.
The animal only ends up hurting itself when kicking against the
goad. The virgins trimming their wicks
refers to a parable of Jesus where the bridegroom is just about to appear. In other words, the time is short. Jesus is nearly returned. Don’t fight against him. Receive Him and the gift of salvation.
I include it
here as an introduction to this morning’s message. We stand on the edge of the arrival of the
Man, Jesus Christ. I mean that with
respect to our study of the book of Revelation.
The white horse will ride in the second half of chapter 19. I also mean it in terms of our place in the
history of all things. The events we are
reading about in Revelation cannot be far off.
They are coming and coming soon.
Before we
dig in to today’s passage, let’s take a moment and pray and ask God to give us
wisdom and insight.
Father God,
how we need Your insight and direction.
We cannot understand the deep things about You apart from Your Spirit
working in us and illuminating us.
Please open up our hearts and minds to Your truth. Speak to us now. I pray for each one here to take away truth
to apply in their own lives. Please keep
us lock step on the path that you have set out for us. May we not be deceived by the things of the
world. May we walk in the light. Send Your grace. Amen.
I want to
step back to the end of chapter 16, and let’s review the events which will form
the background of what we will read about today.
It is at
this point that the kings of the earth have been gathered at Armageddon “for
the battle on the great day of God Almighty.” (Revelation 16:14) At this point, the seventh angel pours out
the seventh bowl of God’s wrath. There
is a voice from the temple of God in heaven which roars out saying, “It is
done.” (Revelation 16:17) The earth is hit with lightning and thunder
and a great earthquake unlike any that has every occurred. The cities of the nations collapse. The great city splits into three parts. Every island flees away (whatever that might
mean) and the mountains cannot be found.
Finally, huge hailstones fall from the sky. Again, it is a point where people can repent,
but instead, they curse God for the plague rather than beg for mercy.
At the
beginning of chapter 17, one of the seven angels who poured out a bowl of God’s
wrath comes to John and says that he will show the punishment of the great
prostitute.
Some of the
“accomplishments” of the great prostitute … kings committed adultery with her …
the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries. She is revealed to be riding a scarlet beast
whose description matches that of the beast which the Dragon (that is Satan)
called up out of the sea. If you see
someone riding something, who’s generally in charge? If there is a man on a horse, who’s in
control, typically, the man or the horse?
It is the man, the rider. So,
that this woman, this prostitute has some control over the beast because he is
being ridden on by her.
She is
dressed in luxurious garments and is decked in fabulous jewels. She carries a golden cup filled with
abominations and the filth of her adulteries.
She herself is drunk with the blood of the saints. She sits on many waters which are peoples and
multitudes and nations and languages.
John is
astonished to see her. This is not
something he had previously imagined.
It’s like finding a main character to a story revealed in the last
chapter. All along, this character is
moving and influencing things, but we never see them or hear their name. It’s a sort of an “I didn’t see that coming”
moment.
Her very
name is “Mystery.” She is also called
“Babylon the Great.”
In the
second half of Revelation 17, in the midst of the explanation of the woman, we
get another more in depth explanation of the beast. The beast’s heads are described at once as
seven hills but again as seven kings, some fallen, another present and another
yet to come. Then, the beast himself is
said to be a king apart from the seven.
His ten horns, well those are also ten more kings without a
kingdom. I think in part, God gives us
that description at that point to help us in understanding the woman. The beast you see is made of many parts, and
yet taken together there is one beast.
Since the
woman is described as the great city (Revelation 17:18), many want to know
specifically who is the woman. Is she a
literal Babylon yet to be rebuilt? Is she
Rome as Rome is known from antiquity to be the city built on seven hills? Is she the entire political and economic
system of the world?
I searched
the description “great city” in the Bible.
There are quite a few uses of this phrase. Nineveh is the first city called the great
city all the way back in Genesis 10, the chapter before the Tower of
Babel. Of course, we know Jonah was sent
to Nineveh. It was destroyed. Jerusalem is mentioned as the great city even
as late as Revelation 11 where it is compared to Sodom and Egypt. And, it still stands. Babylon, of course, is given as the great
city. It also was destroyed. (Jeremiah 51:7) Then, there are other
Canaanite cities mentioned as great.
None of these remain.
In the
second chapter of the book of I John, he writes about many antichrists just as
we saw the description of beast talked about many kings. In the last chapter of I John, he writes
about the spirit of antichrist which has come into the world. I think all these parallels open up the possibility
and even reality that this prostitute “Babylon the Great” is many cities leading
up to a final great city at the end of all things and is the physical
representation of a spirit that influences the workings of world leaders
political, religious, and economic through all time. Wait a few minutes, and see who mourns the
destruction of this woman. Those most
impacted and grieved must be those who enjoyed the most favors or benefits.
What is the
adultery of kings? Adultery is when a
husband or wife turns away from their covenant spouse and has a sexual
relationship with someone else. Who does
a king [or who should a king] have a covenant relationship with?
Let me ask
the question in a different way? Who has
the wisdom necessary to rule a nation of millions of people? In fact, there is no man or woman capable of
ruling a nation rightly in and of themselves.
They desperately need help.
Romans 1 (v. 20) says that we all, all the people of the earth kings
included, have “seen” God’s qualities, His divine nature and eternal power.
In
Deuteronomy 17 (v. 14-20), any future king of Israel is instructed to write for
himself a copy of the law of God. Then,
he is to keep it with him and read it every day so that he will “revere the
LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees
and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the
law to the right or to the left.”
(Deuteronomy 17:19-20)
When a king
comes to power (and probably long before), whether an Israelite king or not, he
should seek God. This relationship needs
to be strong like a marriage relationship.
A king desperately needs God to rule in righteousness. (Psalm 2, Proverbs 8:15, 16:12)
Adultery of
kings then would begin with the rejection of the source of true wisdom,
rejection of God.
What then do
they take in place of God? Riches,
wealth, and luxuries in excess. (All
things that Deuteronomy 17 warns against.)
In order to get the people, the
citizens, to go along with this, the kings allow the people to be intoxicated
with gifts and what amount to bribes.
But, of course, this isn’t happening now, is it? Not here?
What could
this look like? Could economic
prosperity be the means of ensnaring the whole world? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that
things in and of themselves are bad.
However, the Bible says clearly that amassing excess goods is not right,
in particular, when we use an excess to separate ourselves from God saying that
we can protect and provide for ourselves, taking it easy without Him. (Luke 12:16-21)
Right now, the
possibility of global conflict seems to be held in check by the world’s desire
to keep the “good times” rolling. We
have peace not because we are peaceful.
We have peace because peace is good for business. An interruption to a general peace would mean
that global trade would be disrupted.
Yes, there are regional conflicts.
There are and will continue to be wars and rumors of wars. Christians are being persecuted in places all
over the world. In part, this is allowed
for the same reason that this general peace is happening. If every evil situation were immediately and
vehemently opposed, there would be a risk to trade. The machine would have to be stopped or
slowed in order to focus on these problem areas. There is a cost to enforce justice. Are the world’s leaders ready to pay that
price? I would say only to the point
that it keeps the citizens of the world working the global economic engine.
You can
think too about how nations deal with the economic crises of different
governments. It is a perpetual con game
where they only want to invest enough to shore up the situation. No one wants to get down to brass tacks and
fix what’s broken, deal with deficit situations, reduce debt, and make wise choices
for future generations.
The beast
hates the woman. (Revelation 17:16) You get the feeling that there is
jealousy. The beast may be thinking of
the kings of the earth, “Stop serving and worshiping her. Worship me!”
Not only that, the beast wants open war against the Lamb, not this drugging
people. The beast is looking forward to
the final battle which is coming in the second half of chapter 19. Kings cannot fight battles when engaged in
illicit affairs. How can you lead men
when your mind is in the bedroom or dining room or just on the couch in the
den? Think of Delilah lulling Samson to
sleep only to shave off his hair, sapping his strength and making him a
weakling. (Proverbs 7:6-27)
Ultimately,
the prostitute is destroyed not by God directly, but instead by the beast and
the peoples of the earth. “They will
bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her
with fire.” (Revelation 17:16) I don’t know about you, but I was puzzled by
this. If the people of the earth are
intoxicated and lulled into a situation of artificial peace and prosperity,
what then would ever bring them to destroy the system and the city that they
love. How could they do such a thing? It seems like madness that they would turn on
this prostitute who has them captive.
But then,
there are already examples today which show us what this could look like. Have you ever seen people looting a
city? They are looting their own town. There is a kind of self-hatred that occurs
with looting. It is like a madness that
revolts against some external thing but then attacks itself, declaring your
neighbor’s business or home the enemy.
And this is
how it will be. The people of the earth
will destroy Babylon the Great. The
“great city that rules over the kings of the earth” will be undone by the hands
of her own citizens. They will reject
the prosperity that they once had in order to allow the beast to rule over
them.
Let’s read
the tale and the aftermath beginning with Revelation 18 …
After this I saw another angel coming down
from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his
splendor. With a mighty voice he shouted:
“Fallen!
Fallen is Babylon the Great!
She
has become a home for demons
and
a haunt for every evil spirit,
a
haunt for every unclean and detestable bird.
For
all the nations have drunk
the
maddening wine of her adulteries.
The
kings of the earth committed adultery with her,
and
the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.”
Revelation 18:1-3
“When the kings of the earth who committed
adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will
weep and mourn over her. Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and
cry:
“‘Woe!
Woe, O great city,
O
Babylon, city of power!
In
one hour your doom has come!’”
Revelation 18:9-10
“The merchants of the earth will weep and
mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes any more—cargoes of gold,
silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth;
every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly
wood, bronze, iron and marble; cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh
and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep;
horses and carriages; and bodies and souls of men.”
Revelation 18:11-13
“They will say, ‘The fruit you longed for is
gone from you. All your riches and splendor have vanished, never to be
recovered.’ The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from
her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn and
cry out:
“‘Woe!
Woe, O great city,
dressed
in fine linen, purple and scarlet,
and
glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!
In
one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!’”
Revelation 18:14-17
“Every sea captain, and all who travel by
ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far
off. When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever
a city like this great city?’ They will throw dust on their heads, and with
weeping and mourning cry out:
“‘Woe!
Woe, O great city,
where
all who had ships on the sea
became
rich through her wealth!
In
one hour she has been brought to ruin!
Rejoice
over her, O heaven!
Rejoice,
saints and apostles and prophets!
God
has judged her for the way she treated you.’”
Revelation 18:17-20
It is
interesting that the sea captains know the saints exist. They are aware of the things of God, but not
to the point that they have come in recognition of their need or desire to know
God whom the saints, apostles, and prophets serve.
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.
The
music of harpists and musicians,
flute players and trumpeters,
flute players and trumpeters,
will
never be heard in you again.
No
workman of any trade
will
ever be found in you again.
The
sound of a millstone
will
never be heard in you again.
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 great men.
By
your magic spell all the nations were led astray.
In
her was found the blood of prophets and of the saints,
and
of all who have been killed on the earth.”
Revelation 18:21-24
Who most regrets
the destruction of Babylon? Kings …
merchants … and sea captains. It is
interesting that the merchants of Babylon are described as the world’s great
men. It was not until the late 19th century that businesspeople rose to high ranks of power and leadership without
participating in government. That
continues to gain in the 20th and 21st centuries to the
point that media focuses on these “heroes” of development. Take a look at just the height of the world’s tallest
structures as an example of this supremacy of business as highest end. For millenia, the tallest structure was the
Great Pyramid. From 1200 AD until 1884,
the tallest buildings were various cathedrals.
The Washington Monument and Eiffel Tower took the stage until 1930. From that point forward, the tallest buildings
of the world have been skyscrapers, buildings of business, and they have only
gotten taller with time.
Again, I am
not advocating that you all go out and sell everything that you have. I’m not saying that work is bad. However, working relentlessly for the things
of this world is not good as it turns our focus away from God. We see this in many arenas: professional sports, collegiate sports,
higher education.
We see too
that there must be aspects of Babylon the Great which is a literal city. (The sea captains see the smoke over her
burning.) Keep in mind, that the great
earthquake at the end of chapter 16 destroyed all the other cities on the
earth. It divided the great city into
three parts. It seems that this
destruction of the cities (and the inability of the prostitute to prevent it)
may have led to Babylon the Great being the last city and the literal one to be
destroyed.
“In her was
found the blood of prophets and saints” … this may not be evident to everyone
until her demise. During World War II
many did not and even could not believe the atrocities that went on in the
concentration camps. This mystery
Babylon is indeed evil in an insidious and nearly hidden way. She makes herself attractive with her
luxuries only to cover over a darkness that is appalling.
Perhaps you
noticed that I skipped a few verses. Let’s go back and read them now:
Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
“Come
out of her, my people,
so
that you will not share in her sins,
so
that you will not receive any of her plagues;
for
her sins are piled up to heaven,
and
God has remembered her crimes.
Give
back to her as she has given;
pay
her back double for what she has done.
Mix
her a double portion from her own cup.
Give
her as much torture and grief
as
the glory and luxury she gave herself.
In
her heart she boasts,
‘I
sit as queen; I am not a widow,
and
I will never mourn.’
Therefore
in one day her plagues will overtake her:
death,
mourning and famine.
She
will be consumed by fire,
for
mighty is the Lord God who judges her.
Revelation 18:4-8
It is
interesting to delve into the Scriptures.
It is exciting to probe and ask God to reveal future things through His
prophecies recorded ages ago. And yet,
we need to apply truth into our lives.
What out of all this can “hit home” in our day to day lives?
I’d like to
take a closer look at the phrase, “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her
sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues.” This warning from the angel is given at the
point of Babylon’s destruction. We can
heed this warning today. It’s never too
early to run from evil. Why wait?
We started
with the song by Johnny Cash. Well, I’ve
got another one. Not by Johnny Cash, but
about him. Back in 2010, an undated
to-do list that he wrote sold for more than $6000. I don’t know why it went for so much. This song is based on that to-do list.
Johnny Cash’s
To Do List
Don’t smoke.
Don’t drink.
Take some
time to think
of someone
else besides myself.
Give June a
kiss.
Next item on
the list,
don’t be
kissing anybody else.
Don’t get
too stoned.
Leave those
pills alone.
They won’t
make me a better man.
Don’t show
up late
to my
recording date.
Just sing my
song the best I can.
Chorus: Day
by day and line by line
we make our
way
just trying
to be the people we should be.
It’s all the
same
no matter
what your name.
You know
that none of this comes naturally.
Don’t drag
the beat.
Don’t give
in to conceit.
I know pride
is just a crutch.
Say thanks a
lot
for
everything I got.
Remember not
to eat too much.
Chorus
Go see my
mama.
Don’t lay
around all day
in my
pajamas. I know that ain’t the light.
Rehearse the
band.
Practice my
piano.
Teach my
hands to tell the wrong notes from the right.
Chorus
Don’t smoke.
Don’t drink.
Take some
time to think
of someone
else besides myself.
I don’t
intend that we should pattern our lives after Johnny Cash’s to-do list. He obviously wasn’t perfect, and neither are
we. But, it does bear some thinking
about. We need to make choices. We need to make right ones. I Thessalonians 5 says this:
But you, brothers, are not in darkness so
that this day should surprise you like a thief.
You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to
the night or to the darkness. So then,
let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and
self-controlled. For those who sleep,
sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be
self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of
salvation as a helmet. For God did not
appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus
Christ. He died for us so that, whether
we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build
each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
I Thessalonians 5:4-11
Your
thinking and your actions should run contrary to the ways of the world. When the world says, “You deserve a break
today,” you can say, “No, I don’t” or at least, “I don’t need a break the way
you’d want me to have it.” If the way we
live looks, smells, and feels like unbelievers, we’re off track. What would be some of the warning signs? Grumbling and complaining. (Philippians 2:14) Lust of the eyes, cravings of the flesh, and
the boasting about what we have or do.
(I John 2:16)
We’ve got
the Word. We’ve got Jesus’ very
words. We just need to heed what He has
said.
But everyone who hears these words of mine
and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house
on sand. The rain came down, the streams
rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great
crash.
Matthew 7:26-27
The spirit
of Babylon the Great is alive and well in our world. We need to be concerned with what is inside
our hearts, not what we look like on the outside.
Woe to you, teachers of the law and
Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but
inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the
cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
Matthew 23:25-26
Have you
seen the little booklet that is called My House, Christ’s Home. Maybe one day, we can go through it on a
Sunday morning. In the meantime, pick up
a copy off the information table and read through it. It hit me pretty strong when I read it a few
weeks back.
Let’s draw
to a close with the first verses from chapter 19 of Revelation:
After this I heard what sounded like the
roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting:
“Hallelujah!
Salvation
and glory and power belong to our God,
for
true and just are his judgments.
He
has condemned the great prostitute
who
corrupted the earth by her adulteries.
He
has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”
Revelation 19:1-2
And again they shouted:
“Hallelujah!
The
smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.”
The twenty-four elders and the four living
creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they
cried:
“Amen,
Hallelujah!”
Revelation 19:3-4
Then a voice came from the throne, saying:
“Praise
our God,
all
you his servants,
you
who fear him,
both
small and great!”
Then I heard what sounded like a great
multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder,
shouting:
“Hallelujah!
For
our Lord God Almighty reigns.”
Revelation 19:5-6
We started
today with the end of chapter 16 and the seventh bowl of wrath. At that point, a voice came from the throne
saying, “It is done.” Now at the opening
to chapter 19, we see the beginning of the celebration. God’s judgments are true and just. When His judgments are carried out, rejoicing
is the result. The multitude joins in
worship. All the heavens give God the
glory.
The last
battle is ahead, but we know who is the victor.
Let’s rejoice together in anticipation.
Let’s pray.
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