Babylon is Fallen | Daily Devotion
Read Revelation 18
John specifically says, “After all of this I saw another angel come down from heaven with great authority.”
After all of this.
It’s not done.
We have to try and put ourselves in the apostle John’s shoes, as the messenger of this revelation of Jesus Christ, and of the wrath of God poured out on sinful mankind.
Do we really know the length of time it took for the apostle John to receive the full revelation? It’s one severity after another, and though he is not experiencing it personally – the knowledge and eye witness of it is heavy, and he is human. If you know the weight of a work that can put you into the fetal position, you will have understanding of the apostle John’s experience.
God called the apostle John to this work and more than once we read John declare his humanity - as he fell down at the feet of Jesus as though he were dead, in fear and awe; as he was overly emotional when he did not see the answer to the problem of who can open the scroll when it was the Lamb, Jesus Christ standing right before him Who was the solution; and the many times he was amazed and in awe at what he was seeing; the amount of symbolism he used to try and describe what he was seeing; and when he began to worship at the feet of an angel, more than once, who then told him to stop, stating he was a servant of God just like he was.
The apostle John was a human being called to a great work for the benefit of mankind.
This tells us – God chooses to use broken vessels, humans, to house the treasure of the gospel, to deliver His message to mankind, to deliver the revelation of Jesus Christ. God knows our frailty and gives us the strength for what He has called us to. He doesn’t condemn us in our human frailty, He upholds with His power, inspiring us with His love. He doesn’t say it will be easy, it definitely will be refining and purifying, but it will nourish our own soul. We will experience healing in the process and what God calls us to will meet the needs He intends for it to meet.
Thus, after all that the apostle John just saw, he sees another mighty angel that held great authority, and the dark earth grew bright with his splendor.
The angel shouts, “Babylon is fallen – that great city is fallen! She has become a home for demons. She is a hideout for every foul spirit, a hideout for every foul vulture and every foul and dreadful animal. For all the nations have fallen because of the wine of her passionate immorality. The kings of the world have committed adultery with her. Because of her desires for extravagant luxury, the merchants of the world have grown rich.”
As Babylon is the world system – we know the world system has crashed. The way the world functions is no more. The economy, the market, capitalism, democracy, socialism, communism etc. is no more. The world system, ruled by Satan whom Jesus called the Prince of this world, has been the place where Satan’s demons have lived and ruled. They are behind every corrupt method. They are behind every corrupt, deceitful obtainment of capital gain.
These vulturous foul demonic spirits are behind the world system, as the apostle John describes in Revelation 18:13 - the world system that bought human bodies, enslaving children of God.
If we think of some of the illicit economies in the world today, one is human trafficking. Human trafficking holds an approximate 150-billion-dollar profit yearly, enslaving the vulnerable to exploit their bodies, sexually and for free labor, for profit. It’s an illicit economy established and grown by way of inhumane treatment. It is a direct defiant assault on God’s commands to love our neighbors as ourselves.
We can take heart – this illicit economy will crash. These people behind human trafficking will be the ones suffering through all of these judgments, experiencing the wrath of God for their horrific evils committed against mankind.
We have to remember – God did not create us to experience horrific atrocities, He created us to love Him and to love others and to be loved by Him and others. We experience evils in the world because of sin in the world.
Again, as we remember that spirit is behind movement – and we look at the evil in the world today – Satan’s demons are behind that evil movement. They are hiding out in the world. This is a spiritual battle, witnessed physically. Everyone needs the eyes to see and the ears to hear, for those gifts from the Lord give us spiritual discernment to identify the need before us. We can see the unseen in the open when we have the mind and eyes of Jesus Christ. We are Christ’s vessels, shining the light today to rescue the unseen abuse in Jesus’ name.
Therefore, whatever evil comes to mind in the world today – that will be destroyed.
Then the apostle John says, he heard another voice from heaven. This voice is God the Father, as he says, “Come away from her, my people. Do not take part in her sins, or you will be punished with her. For her sins are piled as high as heaven, and God remembers her evil deeds. She brewed a cup of terror for others, so brew twice as much for her. She glorified herself and lived in luxury, so match it now with torment and sorrow. She boasted in her heart, ‘I am queen on my throne. I am no helpless widow.’ Therefore, these plagues will overtake her in a single day – death and mourning and famine. She will be completely consumed by fire, for the Lord God who judges her is mighty.”
Plain and simple – God is declaring here, "If you create hell on earth for My people, you will experience hell eternally unless you repent."
God calls out to people to separate themselves from the world system. To turn away from all that is corrupt. He gives another chance for people to repent. That’s love. That’s knowledge witnessed in action. Knowing the eternal torment becoming ever present, thus calling out again to repent and turn toward the Lord for He is gracious to forgive.
In the Old Testament, the prophets called out to God’s people to flee Babylon. For instance, Jeremiah said speaking for the Lord in Jeremiah 51:45, 47-50 NLT, “Come out, my people, flee from Babylon. Save yourselves! Run from the LORD’s fierce anger … For the time is surely coming when I will punish this great city and all her idols. Her whole land will be disgraced and her dead will lie in the streets. Then the heavens and earth will rejoice, for out of the north will come destroying armies against Babylon,’ says the LORD. ‘Just as Babylon killed the people of Israel and others throughout the world, so must her people be killed. Get out, all you who have escaped the sword! Do not stand and watch – flee while you can!”
Do not stand and watch. Flee while you can. Leave the world system. Right here, God addresses fixation that grabs a hold of a heart idolatrously. Fixation leads to longing, very much like Lot’s wife who looked back to the world system with longing and turned into a pillar of salt.
Learn a lesson. Turn away and take steps toward the Lord. Turn and live.
The kings of the world, and the merchants who made their money and the captains of the merchants’ ships will mourn for the world system for their life focus was luxury and material goods. They will weep and say, “In a single moment it is all gone.”
We need to remember God’s repeated statements throughout Scripture regarding evil doers, the wicked – their destruction is imminent. Their destruction will happen suddenly. This remains true today. In a single moment evil doers can drop dead, removed from this world. This is a promise. In a single moment that evil activity, that illicit economy, that abuse can be removed by the hand of God.
So, we ask for it.
Then an angel says, “Rejoice over her fate, O heaven and people of God and apostles and prophets! For at last God has judged her for your sakes” – Revelation 18:20 NLT.
For at last God has judged. I love this statement! God knows the difficulty for victims and martyrs in waiting for Him to judge evil. It’s something many wrestle with. We need to purpose in our heart and mind that He always judges evil in His perfect time and will uphold His people with His strength. The angel continues saying, God did this “for your sakes.” For what you experienced was not of God, it was not His will – everything evil and cruel that cost you, God will judge the evil doer according to the action committed. His judgments always match the crime committed. If what you experienced was at the hands of someone breaking the 10 commandments, then rest assured God will judge them accordingly.
Therefore, for these severe judgments – the absolute defiance to God is witnessed in the absolute cruelty of His people, and thus God judged accordingly. The severity of the judgment matches the severity of their evil ways that hurt people and defied the living God.
Therefore, in Revelation 18, we see God destroy Babylon. There is a specific time when God will judge the wicked and avenge the blood of the apostles and prophets who were killed—Revelation 18:20. God promised He would—Revelation 6:10-11, and He keeps His promises. God’s righteousness and justice always prevails.
Christ alone strengthens us in our faith, bringing our faith to completion. It's obedience to Him and His ways.
Will you pray with me?
Abba, thank You for being trustworthy. We can walk confidently in Your promises knowing at the perfect time You will bring them to fruition. In Jesus’ name, Amen.