Revelation 17:7
And the angel said unto me, wherefore did thou marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.
This verse can be broken down into 3 characters: the angel, the woman and the beast. The verse reflects a mystery which surrounds the woman, followed by another mystery which surrounds the beast of ten horns. The mystery of the woman is fairly simple, the woman is a commercially corrupt trader, a great city which rules over the kings of the earth in the latter days. The mystery of the beast with the seven heads and ten horns is a bit more complex.
The angel: the angel is one of the seven angel with one of the seven vials. His mission was to carry John into the wilderness and show him the judgement of the great (English: prostitute / harlot: - Greek: πόρνης ..... commercially corrupt one) who sits on many waters, fornicating with the kings of the earth: 17:1.
The mystery: the angel arrives while John is in the midst of the tribulation period. The angel explains why Babylon had been singled out for judgement: R 16:19b. The angel is present throughout this entire ordeal, speaking with John, explaining the events that appear before him. John's record of events is a combination of what he sees and, what is explained by angel. After John is taken into the wilderness, he sees a gruesome sight, a woman dressed in scarlet and purple, adorned with the riches of the world, accompanied by a great scarlet beast with ten horns and seven heads. The angel begins to tell John the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, with the seven heads and ten horns.
In this verse, the angel has already given John a clue; the beast carries the woman; he bears her weight. We discover in verse 9 that the woman is carried upon the seven heads of the beast, like a glittery crown. She neither directs nor steers the path of the beast, she is carried, propped up like a queen. From her royal seating arrangement, the woman reigns over the kings of the earth in the last days.
The mystery of the woman: In verses 1-6 we were given spiritual insight about the woman. In the very first verse, John described the woman as commercially corrupt, sitting on many waters which is interpreted by the angel, as peoples, multitudes, nations and tongues. Her reach is vast, international, spreading over a global market. She fornicates with the kings of the earth who are willing co-conspirators, aligning themselves to her, making the inhabitants of the earth drunk, with her vile intoxications: R 17:2; 18:3.
John was taken by the spirit into the wilderness. It is here where he sees the woman and the beast with seven heads and ten horns. We already know from Daniel 7 and Revelation 13:1-4 that the beast represents a kingdom. This gives us the location where the woman and her companion, the beast kingdom, are found - in the wilderness, the desert.
The woman carries a golden cup full of vile things: her abominations and fornications aka: spiritual immorality. She is decked in gold, and pearls and precious stones, and arrayed in royal colors of ancient Mesopotamian prestige; scarlet and purple. Purple represents carnal wealth and royalty, once worn by Kings, and those in the kings court who held religious power: the sorcerers, wise men and seers. The scarlet that she wears represents sin, bloodshed and violence; connecting her to the scarlet beast, who is further connected to the red dragon - who also has seven heads and ten horns R 12:3.
So now, we see an economic prostitute projecting a facade of religious royalty - worship tied to economic harlotry - which is further detailed in the following chapter. This religious and economic harlotry is controlled by the false prophet R13:15b,16,17, which tells us the woman is an international hub of commerce, tied to the buying and selling initiated by the false prophet, the religious system of the beast kingdom.
She wears a name upon her forehead: Mystery, Babylon the Great, The Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth. The woman has the same name of the great city who faces judgment in Revelation 14:8 and, Revelation 18:2,10. The name upon her forehead signifies allegiance to the beast that carries her: R 13:16, which has the same name as the woman: Babylon the Great. **At this point in the scripture, everyone crosses out Babylon the Great, and replaces Babylon with Rome, removing the prophetic significance of Babylon in the last days, exchanging one city for another.**
The woman becomes drunk with the blood of martyrs of Christ Jesus, and the blood of the saints, delirious with world power during the great tribulation period. The next chapter explains that one of her many transports are slaves and, the souls of men. Chapter 18 tells us the woman is a merchant port, transporting captives as part of her commodities.
The angel shows John the ten kings who plot to destroy her. These are the ten kings who rule over the beast kingdom. They hate the woman and conspire to make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh, and burn her with fire - stripping her of her wealth and consuming her power: R 17:12,13,16,17. The plot to destroy her is carried into the narrative of chapter 18, with the appearance of a second angel with great power and authority. This second angel descends from heaven to announce the judgement against the great city; Babylon is fallen, is fallen. This will be the second fall of Babylon.
The first fall of Babylon happened the night of the writing on the wall Daniel 5, when the armies of the Mede-Persians conquered Babylon, and Darius the Mede ruled the kingdom: Daniel 5:31; 6:28. This is seen in the statue of Nebuchadnezzar as the legs of iron, a time period of Babylon's decline and desolation. Keep in mind that the statue represents an historical timeline of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar, the prideful king, had a dream which prophesized the future of his kingdom. This dream wasn't about Assyria, Persia, or Europe; the dream centered on Babylon's future role in the latter days.
The angel who took John into the wilderness, discloses that the woman is a great city, pivoting the narrative into the following chapter. John will soon discover that the woman is not only a great city but, she is also a merchant port: And, the woman which you saw is that great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth.
So now, we know that the woman of Revelation 17 & 18 is a metaphor for a great (megalēs) city, which is also a merchant port. The great city will reign (βασιλείαν - have kingship) over the kings of the earth during the time of tribulation. Revelation 17 should be studied with the hindsight that the woman represents a religious merchant system, connected to the beast kingdom, and the buying and selling in the end of days. Babylon the Great is an economically powerful city, who resides in the wilderness, the desert alongside the beast the tribulation - antichrist kingdom. Great in the Greek is: μεγας - megalēs:, splendid, vast, enormous by volume, massive in physical size.
Part 2: The Mystery of the Beast Which Has the Seven Heads and Ten Horns:
This mystery is a bit more complex. It centers around the wounded head 13:3, and a mortally wounded beast kingdom which rises from the abyss, healed and restored. Only a beast kingdom can be mortally wounded or slain, as it is a beast: a living, breathing entity: lion, bear, leopard, beast of ten horns. The mystery is not about the little horn, the mystery centers around the rise of the beast who has the seven heads (world kingdoms) and ten horns (ten kings). The mystery of the beast can also be found in Daniel 7, Rev 13:1-4, Rev 17:3,8-14,16,17.
And the angel said unto me, wherefore did thou marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.
To fully understand the mystery of the woman, one has to untangle the mystery of the beast, which carries her. Together, they rise to conquer the world in the end of days....
The angel draws John’s attention to the rise of the beast kingdom:
We know from Daniels night vision that the beast from the sea represents a kingdom. This is understood from Daniel 7:3,23 where the origination of the beast kingdoms began.
Beast in the Aramaic, is חֵיוְתָא which translates to: animal.
3) And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. 23) The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on earth which will be different from all the other (beast) kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it.
Daniel 7:24 tells us that the ten horns that arise from the beast, represent ten kings and that the little horn or, antichrist will rise up among them, as an eleventh king. Revelation 17:12,13 places the ten kings into the time period of the tribulation to reign and rule over the kingdom. A horn is not a head, the horns rise from the head of the beast, as kings rise from kingdoms: Daniel 7:20a. The heads (kingdoms) and the horns (kings) belong to the beast kingdom; they are part of his genetic makeup. The beast is created in the image of the red dragon, who also has seven heads and ten horns.
Beast in the Greek is θηριον which translates to: animal, genetically non-human, living thing.
And I stood upon the sand of the sea and saw a beast rise up, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast (kingdom) which I saw was like the leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat (throne) and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were (slain) wounded to death and his deadly wound was healed and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshiped the dragon which gave power to the beast, and they worshiped the beast saying who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? Revelation 13:1-4
The beast is given the male pronouns he, his and him, which often leads to confusion in interpretation, transposing a slain or mortally wounded head (kingdom) for a wounded horn (king). It is a head that was mortally wounded, not a horn; a horn is not a head. The wounded head becomes the beast kingdom that rises from the sea in Revelation 13:1-4.
The focus is on the wounded head and the rise of the beast kingdom with the seven heads and ten horns, unraveling its mystery. Rev 17:7b
The angel tells John how this transformation will come to be. A beast kingdom is different from a non-beast kingdom, as a beast can be mortally wounded or slain. The beast is an entity onto itself, made up of various parts and pieces, which work together to fulfil the goal of the red dragon; world domination. The beast has seven heads, (world kingdoms) ten horns (ten kings) and has the genetic makeup of three, previous beast kingdoms that are mortally wounded and deceased: the lion - the mouth or head of the beast, the bear - the feet, the foundation and the leopard - the body with multiple heads. These three mortally wounded beast kingdoms once ruled the middle east, placing kings in Babylon. This tells us that Babylon will be the catalyst that sets everything in motion.
This unity of beast kingdoms form a fourth kingdom; the beast of ten horns in the latter days. This formation of 3 mortally wounded beast kingdoms has the appearance of death, a mortally wounded seventh head. Out of this kingdom, ten horns will rise.
The seven heads represent seven world kingdoms that belong to the red dragon - each kingdom is represented by a crown - seven heads / seven crowns - one for each kingdom. These kingdoms are given over to the beast once it begins to rise. Rev 13:2b
And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns upon his heads. Rev 12:3
And I saw one of his heads (kingdoms) as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. Rev 13:3 ….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. Rev 17:8b
When John witnessed the rise of the beast from the sea, the mortal head wound was already healed, and the world wondered after the beast who was wounded by the sword and did live. Rev 13:3b, 12b, 14b.
Revelation 17:8 &11 document HOW the beast kingdom comes to be, filling in the blanks.
8) The beast (kingdom) that you saw (carry the woman) was and is not: and shall ascend out of the ἄβυσσος 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.
Verse 8 details the transformation of the seventh head, the seventh kingdom into the eighth world kingdom. The wounded head was, and is not - was slain - and will ascend out of the bottomless pit, the abyss, healed and restored, and rise from the sea in 13:1. Those on earth will be awed and amazed when they see the beast (kingdom) that was, and is not, and yet is, rise again.
9) And here is the mind which hath wisdom. “The seven heads are seven mountains (Greek: ορος, óros- mountains, marked boundaries) on which the woman sits.
Verse 9: details the woman's relationship to the beast, revealing the symbolic significance of the seven heads where the woman sits. The seven heads are seven mountains and also seven kings (verse 10) This tells us the meaning of the seven heads is symbolic, rather than literal. King is from the Greek: βασιλεῖς basileus, meaning a kingdom, realm, or territorial dominion.
A mountain, when used in prophetic text represent a kingdom. For example: Lucifer was thrown from the mount (kingdom) of God: Ezekiel 28:14-16. The stone that struck the image became a great mountain (kingdom) and filled the whole earth: Daniel 2:35b. Babylon was the destroying mountain (kingdom) who destroyed all the earth: Jeremiah 51:24,25.
If you have seven mountains, seven kingdoms, you must have seven kings and vice versa. There are six world kingdoms documented in the Bible and, a seventh that is not yet come:
10) And there are seven kings; five are fallen (1 Egypt, 2 Assyria, 3 Babylon - fallen beast, 4 Greece - fallen beast, 5 Persia - fallen beast), and one is, (6 Rome), and the other is not yet come (7 - beast of ten horns) and when he comes, he must continue a short space.
Verse 10: details the order and succession of world kingdoms. Five have come and gone, one remains and another, a seventh, has not yet come - the beast of ten horns. It is the seventh that continues a short space until it is raised from the abyss as an eighth; the beast kingdom with seven heads and ten horns.
11) And the beast (kingdom) that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven (heads, kingdoms), and goes into perdition.
After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel…. Ezekiel 38:8.
And this, is the mystery of the beast with seven heads and ten horns... it is a kingdom that was, is not - was slain, mortally wounded, and yet is and, will be again. The beast is created from an amalgamation of three previous mortally wounded beasts, the lion, the bear and, the leopard. Together they form a fourth Babylon kingdom in the latter days: the beast of ten horns. This kingdom will rise as a seventh head, a seventh world kingdom and will continue a short space until he is raised from the abyss, the bottomless pit as an eighth world kingdom.
… I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.
Many scoff at the idea of a 'revived' middle east so, Babylon the Great is replaced by Rome, and Nebuchadnezzar's fourth Babylonian kingdom, the feet and toes of iron and shard clay, has been relocated to Europe. But based upon the focus of scripture, the area in relation to Jerusalem and Israel, and, without a pre-ordained conclusion already in place, Babylon remains Babylon, the focus of this specific end time prophecy. Even though many will encourage you to cross out Babylon and write in Rome --> above all else, trust in the authority of the Bible and not the world view.
The vast majority interpret Daniel's fourth beast as Rome, rising 2000 years ago and then, 'reviving' into a fifth beast of ten horns that rises from the sea in Rev 13:1-4 - replacing the fourth kingdom for a fifth. Though there is no scriptural support for a fifth beast or fifth kingdom in Daniel 2 or 7, or any biblical support that Rome 'revives' and rises as the 7th and 8th world kingdoms, this is most common teaching in the church today.
When was Babylon relocated to Rome in scripture? If anyone has any scriptural evidence other than theories and outdated hypotheses, please let me know.
While many Christians watch for a mortally wounded king (horn) to rise from the abyss, others are watching as a slain 'beast' kingdom revives from a mortal wound; the beast that was, was not, yet is and shall be....
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