REVELATION'S BEASTS
Rev. 17
THE DRAGON AND BABYLON

by Ulrike



Introduction
Mystery Babylon
Mother of Harlots vs the Mother of the Children of Promise
Scarlet Beast
The sixth and Seventh Heads
The Eighth Head
The Ten Horns
The Lamb will overcome them

Revelation

17.1
And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will show unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

17.2
With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.

17.3
So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

17.4
And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:

17.5
And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

17.6
And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

17.7
And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.

17.8
The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

17.9
And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

17.10
And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.

17.11
And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.

17.12
And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.

17.13
These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.

17.14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

17.15
And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

17.16
And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.

17.17
For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.

17.18
And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

18.1
And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory.

18.2
And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.

18.3
For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

18.4
And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

18.5
For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

18.6
Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.

18.7
How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.

18.8
Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.

The seventeenth chapter of Revelation

God's covenant of salvation was given to save mankind from the power of evil and destruction, not to destroy people! The wages of SIN is death, but the gift of God is eternal LIFE to everyone who enters into God's covenant of life! God's covenant, full of love and grace, has been revealed to people, and yet, not wanting to be bound by the stipulations of that covenant, not wanting Christ to be LORD of their lives, people and nations have turned away, and paved the way for their own destruction.

After showing John the plagues which come upon a world that mocked the covenant of God, one of the angels who holds a plague filled vial, comes to John to give him a reason for the terrors of those plagues which had just been portrayed.

"Come," said the angel, "I will show you the judgment of the great whore that sits upon many waters."

John is now taken in vision into the wilderness where, undisturbed, he can look out over the "waters" of many people and see the harlot's activities. When the scarlet woman is in power, God's people are in the wilderness. In Revelation 12 the seven headed dragon made war and sought to destroy the "pure woman" who fled into the wilderness for 1260 years. Now we have John viewing the activities of the harlot woman from the wilderness.

John looks out over the waters of many peoples and nations and sees a woman all decked out as a harlot, riding a scarlet, seven headed beast. In previous chapters we studied that a pure woman represents the church of Christ; while a whore, or harlot woman, represents the church which has taken on the NAME OF CHRIST, but has turned from her lawful husband, and commits adultery with the earthly powers and kings. Purity of life is what God wants; royal apparel, wealth and power are what the world seeks.

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know you not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. James 4:4

This apostate church is sitting upon many waters, wielding a wide influence, causing multitudes to worship in her false system, for, the angel tells John, "The waters which you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues."

On the forehead of the woman is a name written, Mystery, Babylon the Great, The Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth." Let's just list the characteristics of this "Babylon".

  • Sits on many waters--which are peoples and multitudes and nations (17:1,15)
  • Fornicates with the kings of the earth. (17:2, 18:3,9)
  • Makes inhabitants of the earth drunk with the wine of her fornication. (17:2, 18:3)
  • Sitting on a blasphemous scarlet, seven-headed beast, with ten horns. (17:3)
  • She is dressed in purple and scarlet, decked with gold and jewels. (17:4, 18:16)
  • She has a cup full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication--which she offers to all nations. (17:4, 18:3)
  • She has a name on her forehead, MYSTERY BABYLON, MOTHER OF HARLOTS, and ABOMINATIONS of earth. (Rev. 17:5)
  • She is drunk with the blood of saints and martyrs.(17:6)
  • She is fallen. (18:2)
  • She is full of devils, and foul spirits and unclean birds (18:2)
  • She has glorified herself. (18:7,19)
  • She says she sits as queen and shall see no sorrow.(18:7)
  • She is very rich. (18:17)
  • She deceives with sorceries all nations. (18:23)
  • In her was found the blood of prophets of saints and of all that were slain upon the earth.

How can a woman claiming to be the church of Christ, be guilty of all the above?

The Mother of Harlots vs. the Mother of the Children of Promise

It goes back to the "name upon the forehead". The name on the forehead tells us which KINGDOM, she represents. Her name is of that "great city" Babylon.

God's true people have a name written on their foreheads as well. They too, receive the name of a GREAT CITY.

(Rev.3:11-12) "Behold I come quickly" hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take your crown. He that overcomes will I write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem , which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
Babylon, that great city is called the MOTHER of Harlots. Rev. 17:5

Jerusalem, that great heavenly city, is called the MOTHER of the children of promise.Gal. 4:26,28

These are the two kingdoms. Who is the king of each of these "great cities"? Let's compare some verses in Isaiah with the ones in Revelation to find out:

Who is the King of Mystery Babylon?

Isaiah 14
(14:4)Take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How has the oppressor ceased! The golden city ceased?
Who is this king of the "golden city" of Babylon?
(14:12-14) How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, you who enslaved the nations! You said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north.

Revelation
(18:16-19)Alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones...what city is like unto this great city!...Alas that great city..in one hour is she made desolate.
The woman bearing the name Babylon is sitting on the seven headed scarlet beast (Rev. 17:3)--the same red dragon that in Rev. 12, is identified as "that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world. (12:9)
Lucifer is Satan, and he is the king of Babylon!

Who is the KING OF JERUSALEM?

Hebrews 12.22 But ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.
And 1 Timothy 6:15 tells us: our Lord Jesus Christ:
"is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
Revelations 17.14 says:
The Lamb is Lord of lords, and King of kings.
Rev. 19.16 Tells us "THE WORD" rides forth from heaven "and on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

Christ Jesus, Is the King of Jerusalem

Who IS this woman called Babylon?

She is THE Church, who gathers ALL religions together in her ecumenical fold and reigns over them as "primacy". She is THE church that "commits fornication with the kings of the earth", who unites with government powers rather than with the Holy Spirit, to gather all peoples under her primacy. This is a church that has much in common with the pagan religions of the world, with their mysteries and "spiritualistic" ideas, and unites them. She makes the nations drunk with wine which is her false doctrines and mysteries. She calls the nations to celebrate and lay aside any strong convictions about the understanding of doctrines, while she prepares to tighten the net and impose her dogmas upon the world. This is the CHRUCH which started out as Christ's bride, but taking her hand out of the hand of the LORD, she broke her covenant with HIM, and looked to another master who would give her worldly power and control. Her unfaithfulness to God's covenant fits Isaiah's description:
Isaiah 24.5 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant."

She has thought to change God's laws, and the Sabbath of the EVERLASTING COVENANT and has made merchandise of men's souls.

Yet she is not alone, she is the MOTHER of HARLOTS, (women who have joined themselves with her in her harlotry and are committing fornication with the (horns) kings.)
Indeed, Revelation 13 tells us it is the Protestant America that makes an image or likeness of the old oppressive papal regime and is the POWER that forces the world to worship the papal system.

This includes all the churches who corrupt themselves by idolatrous devotion to the service of the papacy, who have drunk of the "wine of the wrath of her fornication". Thus is represented the papal power, which with all deceivableness of unrighteousness, by outside attraction and gorgeous display, deceives all nations;promising them, as did Satan our first parents, all good to those who receive its mark, and all harm to those who oppose its fallacies.

This WOMAN is the papal church and her daughters are the PROTESTANT churches.

The seven-headed scarlet beast

Revelation chapters 13-14 show us that the last great conflict to face the world, is over WORSHIP. The people worship the DRAGAN (13:4) They worship the systems empowered by the dragon: they worship the beast (13:4) and his image (13:15)

This beast ascends out of the bottomless pit.
Who is the king of the bottomless pit?

His name is Apollon. APOLLON a famous Greek god, indeed a god of all the gods in their culture, which writers such as Swinburne, who loved to contrast Hellenism with Christianity, would use to draw a sharp antithesis between him and Christ.

Rev. 9.11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

Apollyon, (Greek). Abaddon (Hebrew) — literally means destruction, ruin or perdition —

There is only one person who can be described as the angel and king of the abyss and that is Satan Himself. His name Satan means Adversary. He is the one opposed to God and the one who tries to destroy everything from God. He is a murderer and only desires to destroy. Jesus made this clear to the Jews who would not accept the Son of God.
John 8:44 "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."

The revelator makes a clear connection with THE GREEK when speaking of the name-- this term does not come from the Hebrew, but from the GREEK. Apollyon is no doubt the correct reading. But the name Apollon was often linked in ancient Greek writings with the verb apollymi or apollyo, "destroy." "Apollyon" has often been taken here to be a play on the name Apollo which is the Roman spelling of the Greek god "Apollon". Apollon's identification as the sun-god is universal among later writers...
Apollon is also pictured as a very "beautiful" yet manly god, a master of music! Apollon, is acclaimed by ancient and modern worshippers as the god whose light is the very light of civilization.

The comparisons between this "Apollon" and "Lucifer" are striking! (See Is. 14:12 and Ez. 28:13,17) Pictures of Apollon usually have him holding a lyre, and leaning on a pillar with a snake engraved upon it.

So here in Revelation we see a beast arise from the bottomless pit over which Apollyon is king. -- Apollyon "son of the morning". And we see the harlot woman, who is supposed to be the bride of Christ, yet has the WRONG KINGDOM written upon her forehead-- seated on this beast from the bottomless pit.

Revelation 17 shows the true picture of the deadly spiritualistic power that is seeking to have the whole world "worshipping him". It is by placing, what appears to be, a genuine "christian" system on his back, that the dragon is gathering the nations to worship him. This "woman" is not Communism, nor is she Hinduism, or Islam, she is "the fornicating" bride of CHRIST. The woman on his back is the HARLOT, the one who has left her true husband (though still carrying HIS name), and has joined herself with the "kings of the earth" and the prince of darkness. Yes, she will gather all the religions to herself--just like she did in the early days when Paganism was absorbed into the church.

In Revelation 14 we hear a different call to WORSHIP; a call to worship the TRUE GOD who created the heavens and the earth. (Rev. 14:7) A call to COME OUT of Babylon. We must not compromise with her, or we will partake of her plagues.

The two great POWERS at war in this final conflict are THE LAMB (17:14) and the dragon, who works through his "systems" There will be a universal bond of union one great harmony, a confederacy of Satan's forces!

Revelation 12 is the KEY in understanding this! Revelation 12 presents Satan as the "serpent-dragon", the deceiver from the garden of Eden where he first tempted man to distrust God. This is the POWER behind the established systems that persecuted Christ while upon the earth and which continued to persecute all who follow Christ.

Revelation 17 extends this picture of Satan, as he appears as the scarlet beast, for it is he who supports and carries false religion, therefore Babylon rides on him as they go forth to control the world.

Babylon rides along, "is carried" upon a SCARLET beast that came from the bottomless pit--the "habitation" of Satan. (Rev. 9:11) It is Babylon who sits on the "waters", which represent peoples and nations, presiding over them. It is Satan, however who "carries her" (17:7)a power from "beneath".

The question will be, who is Lord of lords and King of Kings? Satan is here symbolized as a "beast" because he, in this final act in the drama on this earth will set himself up as the King of kings, and Lord of lords. (Beasts represent political authority) But the LAMB will conquer them, for He is the true Lord of lords, and King of kings, and those with Him are called and chosen and faithful." (17:14)

So who is the seven headed red beast of Revelation 17. It is none other than the red dragon of Rev. 12. Comprised of the "heads" representing the KINGS WHO HAVE UNITED church and state until we have come to the final conglomeration of all religions in the world in one melting pot of ecumenical dilution, and enforced by law, with a "christian" primacy figure at it‘s head.

The first five are the same on both the dragon and the papal beast of Rev. 13,-- the five which have fallen.
Ancient Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome, have fallen, the papal beast received it's wound. Five have fallen.

One is! During the 6th "dead" head of the first beast of Revelation 13, a "new beast" the dragon's sixth head grows up, apart from these system, but it eventually becomes a head of the dragon and speaks as the dragon. The sixth "head" helps restore the first beast that was wounded, and together with the ten horns they attempt to form the "NEW WORLD ORDER" and create the "image of the beast" (the SEVENTH HEAD) to which all nations must bow or die.

Governments are ordained of God, and God also works through them. However, all the pagan nations had the religion UNDER the government. That is, the people worshiped what the government ordained. This was true of Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. In each of these empires, Satan sought to destroy the truth and those who adhered to it.
After Christ's ascension, satan started on his new plan; to put all governments under one religious control center. Thus setting up a system that would force the whole world into a united worship type THAT WOULD WELCOME HIM as the Christ.

The great deception is that Satan disguises himself in the robes of Christianity and when he gets them all into a mystical unity, he himself will appear as the eighth head. Impersonating Christ!

This will be the great overwhelming delusion to face the world.

The Sixth and Seventh Heads

Let's back up and focus on the 6th and 7th head.

17.9 The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sits.
17.10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.

In verse ten the angel explains that the seven mountains are seven kings or kingdoms. ." So, a head equals a mountain, which equals a kingdom or government. He is talking about seven governments. The sixth head IS. It is present. The seventh head will come and continue for a short time.
Here we see a flashback to Revelation 13.
The head that is the "reigning" power when we see this scarlet beast, is the government symbolized by the beast with the lamb-like horns which rose out of the earth.

Revelation 11 gives us some interesting insights as to this beast from the bottomless pit.
When the (the two witnesses) finish their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit will make war against them. (Rev. 11:7)
The periods mentioned in Revelation 11--"forty and two months," and "a thousand two hundred and threescore days"--are the same 1260 years we see in Daniel 7:25 and Rev. 12:6,14; 13:5, representing the time in which the church of Christ was to suffer oppression from Rome. The 1260 years of papal supremacy began in A.D. 538, and would therefore terminate in 1798 when Napolean entered Rome and made the pope a prisoner, and changed the laws that removed the "PRIMACY" role from the papacy. Though a new pope was soon afterward elected, the papal primacy power was broken. In many of the nations of Europe the powers that ruled in church and state had for centuries been controlled by Satan through the medium of the papacy. But here is brought to view a new manifestation of satanic power. A power that was to arise near the end of the 1260 years.

Did a new power arise in the 1700's? Yes! We know it as the "Age of Reason" or the "Age of Enlightenment" or more accurately THE AGE OF REVOLUTIONS.
A man who is often called the Father of revolution, Thomas Paine wrote a book called "Common Sense" which helped spark the American Revolution. Paine was convinced that the American Revolution was a crusade for a superior political system and that America was ultimately unconquerable. His works played a key role in the "revolutionary spirit". A deist manifesto to the core, Paine declared that nature was the only form of divine revelation, for God had clearly established a uniform, immutable and eternal order throughout creation. Paine rejected Christianity, denied that the Bible was the revealed word of God, condemned many of the Old Testament stories as immoral and claimed that the Gospels were marred by discrepancies. The French Revolution ended in a reign of terror.
Paine's writings were also instrumental in sparking the Russian Revolution that ended in Communism.

One author wrote:
Satan was intimately connected with Paine upon the earth, aiding him in his work, who served him so faithfully and accomplished his purposes so well. Satan dictated much of his writings." Early Writings page 90 (EGW)

Another "hero" of the American Revolution and key agitator in the French Revolution, was Lafayette.
Author Bramley wrote, "During the first French Revolution, a key rebel leader was the Duke of Orleans, who was grand master of French Masonry before his resignation at the height of the Revolution. Marquis de Lafayette, the man who had been initiated into the Masonic fraternity by George Washington, also played an important role in the French revolutionary cause. Drawing on an impressive number of contemporary writings, Webster added, "If, then, it is said that the [French] Revolution was prepared in the lodges of Freemasons - and many French Masons have boasted of the fact - let it always be added that it was Illuminized Freemasonry that made the Revolution.

The Masonic god was invoked in a ceremony and the foundation stone was lowered into the ground in symbolic movements representing the sun in its course. The ceremony ended with a deposit of corn, wine and oil. George Washington used full Masonic ceremonies to lay the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol on September 18, 1793. "Just a harmless liturgy?" Mr. Campbell wrote. "To what deity was Washington, D.C., dedicated? Is it possible that through Masonic rituals, our nation's government has been symbolically offered to the kingdom of darkness?"

It is this lamb-like beast that "gives life" to the 7th head, that is, the image of the beast, which is the so called new World Order. Thus the USA will force all to worship the papal leapard beast from the sea.

This is the implimentation of the New World Order, which will be under the primacy of the papacy. Contrary to assumptions, the New World Order is NOT a merging of nations, but a "controlling" of nations, by economic, military and mystical means. The beast with the lamb like horns--the United States--will enforce this. The United States is already out there policing the world and getting it set up for the end.

The Eighth

The seventh head remains ONLY a short while--IT IS THE HEAD or "Kingdom" OF THE IMAGE OF THE BEAST and the healed beast combined (for they are combined in Rev. 13) in the last big deception to force the world into the wrong worship system.

They will bring in reforms, to bring the nations "back to God". It will seem like they are bringing God back to godless society. Society will be experiencing terrible times, and the cry will be heard that they must return to God and keep SUNDAY holy. BUT it will not be the true worship of the Bible, it will be a counterfeit. It will be forced upon the people with economic sanctions and finally with a death decree. (Rev. 13)

The eighth head is not really a head at all, it was present during all seven of the heads for it is the satan himself, who will appear as Christ.

The woman is seated on the culmination of Satan's false worship system. The dragon has wooed the bride of Christ away from her espoused, (that is, all except the remnant who remained faithful to Christ). Satan will appear and claim to be the christ they have been waiting for, and that he will guide them into building a new "kingdom" of peace.

Almost all the religions are now expecting a Christ to appear on earth Who will usher in a "new era" for mankind. But they all expect an earthly christ, who will "convert" the world.

He will come in dazzling brightness and demand why people have not honoured his messengers who asked the people to honor his day-- for SUNDAY is his day. The whole pagan sun worshiping systems are his design. This will be an overwhelming deception for most. Only those anchored in God's word will know the difference.

The Ten Horns

The ten horns do not have crowns now, they are democratic countries who will also use their power to support the "New World Order" under the command of the USA, and the under the "spiritual primacy" of the papacy. This support will be short lived however, for Christ will "shake the heavens and the earth," one more time, (See Hebrews 12:26) like He did at Mount Sinai. God will once again reveal that HIS LAW is holy and just. Those who tried to force the world to disobey God's law, and replace it with man's law will then see their terrible mistake. They will turn upon the "harlot woman" --the religious leaders and teachers. There is a terrible awakening of those who have lost all in the great battle. They are filled with fury. "We are lost!" they will cry, "and you are the cause of our ruin;" and they turn on the false shepherds.

The Victory of the Lamb!

17.14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

At the coming of Christ the wicked are consumed from the face of the earth--consumed by the sword of His mouth and destroyed by the brightness of His glory. Christ takes His people to the city of God. For they are the citizens of the NEW JERUSALEM, where they will deal forever, with Christ.

They are the called, chosen and FAITHFUL citizens of Christ's kingdom which they will inherit for all eternity.