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[0:00] Well, open your Bibles, please, to Revelation chapter 17, and I trust that you do have your Bible with you. I remember attending a service in Houston, Texas several years ago, and this was a very large church.

[0:16] There were probably 3,000 people there, and the pastor said, I trust you all have your Bibles this morning, and I really don't care if you don't have anything else.

[0:27] In fact, I don't care if you come here wearing a barrel, just so long as you have your Bible. Well, sure enough, at that evening service, somebody showed up wearing a barrel.

[0:45] And I don't know what he had on underneath that barrel, but I do know he had one heck of a time sitting down. So we are, without apology, we are a Bible church.

[1:00] And when we settled on a name that was selected by the congregation, as we met back at Roosevelt Junior High School in 1971, we said that there were two things that we wanted to emphasize.

[1:13] One was the grace of God, and the other was the word of God. So we came up with the idea of Grace Bible Church, and we got both of those concepts in.

[1:29] And, of course, there are probably hundreds and hundreds of other congregations across this great land that are called Grace Bible Church. And some of them may be and probably are very, very close to where we are doctrinally.

[1:44] And some are probably miles and miles away from where we are, even though they have the same name. So I always warn people when they leave here and sometimes are traveling through states, they say, I always look for a Grace Bible Church.

[1:59] And I say, well, that's fine, but you need to be aware that there are some like us and there are some very much unlike us. And that has to be taken into consideration. We are continuing our exposition of the book of the Revelation.

[2:15] Human history is going somewhere. There is a culmination coming. Many refer to this as the end of the world. And to be sure, it is the end of the world as we know it, as we know this world, because it is going to be undergoing a universal conflagration.

[2:40] And the scriptures refer to this as the second coming of Christ. What precedes that is what we are currently studying that is referred to as the tribulation period.

[2:52] And we have arrived at chapter 17, which deals with the rise and fall of religious Babylon. This demise of religious Babylon will conclude the first half or three and one half years of the seven year total period of tribulation.

[3:14] The first mention of this time of tribulation that provides a sequence of events is found in Daniel chapter 9, which we considered at the outset of this study.

[3:29] And that was 36 sessions ago. We also labeled this whole series as actually part of the greater series that we engaged a couple of years ago.

[3:44] And we're still on that same theme. And we have labeled it the Jewish final solution to the world's problems.

[3:54] And we took that name, many of you will recall, from the term that was given in World War II by none other than Adolf Eichmann, who was one of the chief exterminators of the Jewish people with Hitler's gas ovens in World War II, when six million innocent Jews were put to death in different places in Europe, particularly Germany and Poland.

[4:27] And Adolf Hitler made the Jewish people the scapegoat of Europe and the scapegoat of the whole world. Well, we have studied something about Jewish persecution from the first century to the present.

[4:43] And we have seen it intensify, but it is going to be even more intense during this time that is referred to as the time of Jacob's trouble.

[4:55] And that, of course, is in reference to the Jewish people. So Adolf Eichmann coined a term that was the buzzword in Germany at the time.

[5:08] And it was called the final solution to the Jewish problem. And that final solution, of course, was annihilate them, kill them, kill them all.

[5:23] And Adolf Hitler succeeded in destroying one-third of the entire world's population of Jewish people, six million plus.

[5:39] However, during this time of Jacob's trouble, two-thirds of the world's population of Jews will be destroyed.

[5:53] Not one-third, two-thirds. This is going to be a time of unparalleled carnage, the likes of which the world has never seen, we cannot imagine.

[6:07] So, we have labeled this the Jewish final solution to the world's problems. And, of course, what that primarily consists of is, interestingly enough, something that the Jews themselves do not even realize.

[6:27] Now, wait a moment. How could we possibly label this the Jewish final solution to the world's problem when the Jews aren't even in on it?

[6:37] And they don't even know about it. And the answer is, it has to do with the arrival on the scene of Yeshua HaMashiach, Jesus the Messiah.

[6:51] He is the Jew of Jews. And he is the Jewish final solution to the world's problems.

[7:02] And the world's problem, of course, is sin. And when the Messiah comes, he will, as we have already noted, deal summarily with those who oppose God.

[7:14] And that will be in Revelation 19. We've already seen something of it in Revelation 15 and 16. And the blood that will flow to the horse's bridles. And, yes, I take that quite literally.

[7:26] And it will be in the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And you've had diagrams of that in past sessions that we have showed you exactly where that's going to be. It is also referred to as the Kidron Valley.

[7:38] It is an extensive defile in the earth that is part of the great African rift. And there the battle will take place when Christ returns.

[7:51] And he will return, as we shall see when we get into chapter 19, with a huge multitude of his saints. And we expect to be among them. But we will not engage in the battle.

[8:03] The battle will be the Lord's. And he will be the only one engaged in conflict. And his sole weapon will be the sword that goes out of his mouth.

[8:15] And that will be his spoken word. That will absolutely decimate the enemy. But that is yet to come. So, this time is also referred to as the time of the Gentiles coming to an end.

[8:31] But we are living in the times of the Gentiles. The Bible makes classification of two groups of people. One, Jews.

[8:42] The other, Gentiles. If you're not a Gentile, then you are a Jew. And if you are a Jew, you are not a Gentile. Those are the two classifications.

[8:53] And ever since the nation of Israel has been deposed, scattered abroad, and cast out of their land, the world has been under the domination of Gentiles.

[9:10] That is, non-Jewish people. And let's face it, the vast majority of the world's population is made up of Gentiles. We've made the point in the past that the Jewish people do not comprise even 1% of the world's population.

[9:30] They comprise two-tenths of 1% of the world's population. Yet, that's a significant number when you consider the world's population being somewhere in the area of 6 billion people.

[9:45] So, the times of the Gentiles will come to an end when Christ returns. And Romans 11 talks about blindness in part happening to Israel until the times of the Gentiles be come in.

[10:03] That is, the age and time and supremacy and domination of the Gentiles will be over. And that will be Revelation 19, when Christ returns and deals then with his enemies.

[10:18] This is sometimes referred to as the Tribulation, sometimes the Great Tribulation, sometimes the time of Jacob's trouble, sometimes other terms that we've indicated in the past.

[10:31] So, Israel's subjugation to Gentile powers will end with the arrival of the Messiah at the end of the Tribulation. When Daniel was given his vision of the 70 weeks, he was then living in the first of the kingdoms that would dominate, and all of the others were future to the time Daniel received the vision.

[10:55] Now, we're not going to go back to Daniel 9, but I just want to remind you that's where we began. And rightly so, is Daniel frequently referred to as the book of the Revelation of the Old Testament.

[11:07] Because you cannot separate Daniel from the Revelation. And we have made much of the point in past sessions how that the book of Genesis, of all things, Genesis, the first book in the Bible, is intricately connected with the Revelation, the last book in the Bible.

[11:27] This answers to the nature and the character of the Word of God, whereby everything in it is connected with everything that is in it. The Bible is an interrelated whole.

[11:39] And we are to use the Bible to interpret the Bible. And it is the comparison of passages with passages that give light on the subject that we are dealing with at the time.

[11:49] So, when Daniel, during his lifetime, saw this great vision, and I'm not going to go into it, but it was the dream that Nebuchadnezzar had, the great image with the golden head, and then the chest of silver, and then the brass, and then the iron, and so on.

[12:06] And when Daniel received that vision, he was living, at the time, in the realm of the Babylonian exile from Israel.

[12:19] And the Babylonian king was Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel said, You, O king, you are the head of gold that you saw in that image.

[12:29] And then, as you move on down through the image, the materials and the metals are of lesser and lesser value. And it goes from gold to silver to bronze or brass to iron, and then iron mixed with clay.

[12:46] And you get clear down to the feet, and there are ten toes, and the toes are all iron and clay mixed together, which, of course, comprises a very brittle kind of unsteady composition.

[13:00] And that is precisely what these ten kingdoms that we will be looking at shortly will consist of. And they are yet future. And Daniel saw those, and they are the ten toes.

[13:11] And those ten toes will comprise the ten nations that we will be talking about a little later. You remember the beast that surfaces with the seven heads and the ten horns?

[13:22] Well, the ten horns represent the ten toes. And it is only the seventh horn, which is the seventh empire that will reign at the time, it is only that seventh horn that has the, I'm sorry, the seventh head that has ten toes on it.

[13:45] So keep that in mind in your perspective, if you will, and we will be looking at it. And the gold was Nebuchadnezzar. The silver was the Medes and the Persians. And that's during the time of Artaxerxes and Queen Esther.

[13:59] And you'll recall how she saved her people from disaster and so on. And then following that, we have the Greek empire, Alexander the Great. Now, these were all future to Daniel. The only one that Daniel was acquainted with was the one he was living under.

[14:14] And that was the Babylonian kingdom. And that was very real because he was a prisoner of the Babylonians. And yet to come would then be Rome and the two stages of Rome, the united and the divided.

[14:30] And Rome, the Roman Empire, will be divided. And the West will be capitalized by Rome. And the East will be capitalized by Constantinople.

[14:42] So that is the East and West division of that. And then the Ten Toes will be the Ten Division stage that we will look at. And then lastly, it will be the Messianic.

[14:52] And remember, remember as Daniel is describing this image that consists of all of these different kingdoms and the order in which they were coming, all of which were future to Daniel except the one he was living in.

[15:05] And then Daniel says, and all at once, out of a mountain comes a huge stone flying through space.

[15:20] And it hits the Ten Toes and crushes it. Everything comes tumbling down. Jesus Christ, the Messiah, is that stone cut out of the mountain.

[15:35] And he is the one who is destroying all of that which precedes. That's the Messianic. What reason do we have to believe that what is prophesied will come to pass?

[15:51] The reason we believe it is because all have already been fulfilled precisely as predicted in literal fashion, except for the last two.

[16:03] And those are what we are considering now. One is the Ten Division stage that comprises the Ten Toes in that image. And the tribulation and the arrival of the Messiah are the only ones yet unfulfilled.

[16:18] So, be reminded now, this is a little bit of review, the three principal reasons for this time of tribulation that God is going to bring upon the earth. And numerous times and in several passages we've looked at and explored, where God says through the prophets, I, I will bring all nations to Armageddon.

[16:44] And there I will gather them. And they will come against my people. And they will subsequently be destroyed. So, the first of the three principal reasons for this time of tribulation that is coming upon the earth, according to Isaiah 13, 9, and we'll not take time to turn to it, but you may make note of it if you wish, it is to make an end of evil and evil ones.

[17:11] Isaiah 13, 9. The second reason is to bring a worldwide revival, because it will result in that, largely through the efforts of the 144,000, who surface in Revelation chapter 7 and again in chapter 14, they are going to have an extensive ministry all throughout this tribulation period.

[17:33] These are 144,000 with the seal of God on them, and they are indestructible. Now, you say, now, wait a minute. How can they be indestructible if these are Jews, 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes?

[17:51] What do you mean indestructible? And there is where I must insert another note. Here. Hear me well. I wish to reemphasize the departure of nearly all that we regard as normal and ordinary once this 70th week of Daniel, known as the tribulation period, gets underway.

[18:18] There will be nothing normal about this. It is very hard for us today to read of these things, such as demons, hundreds of thousands of demons, angelic involvement, humans that are indestructible, the two witnesses of chapter 11, unable to be put to death until finally they are by the Antichrist himself who receives accolades from the world and is elevated to a higher position.

[18:55] We cannot conceive of these things. We say, how can this be? And immediately, many interpreters come to these passages and say, well, none of that's literal.

[19:07] It's all just figurative. It's all just symbolic. But it's not real. It isn't actually going to happen. Yes, it is. It's going to be as real as it can possibly be.

[19:22] But it is going to be different. It is going to be totally removed from the sphere of what we call the normal, the ordinary, the usual. It isn't going to be that at all. It's going to be a time characterized by the supernatural.

[19:39] It is so hard for us to read of these things and accept them at face value is because they are so far removed from our experiences. We feel that we are the authorities to determine what is normal, what is acceptable, what is doable.

[19:59] And the rest, we just relegate to fancifulness, or mythological or figurative or whatever. But I am firmly committed to the literality of these texts.

[20:12] And if they do not mean what they say, there is no possibility of interpreting them at all. And yet, this very book is called The Revelation.

[20:26] What does that mean? It means a revealing. It means a disclosure. It means an unveiling. Well, if you cannot understand it, how is it that?

[20:39] That's the whole point. It is content that is given with the intent of being understood because you take it at face value.

[20:50] I know. It completely departs from everything we call ordinary. But you must be aware that the church age, when this thing takes place, the church age is gone.

[21:05] It's over and done with. The age of grace is past. The time of walking by faith is over. and there is a reversion to the supernatural that was commonplace during the Old Testament with the miracles of God performing out of Egypt through Moses.

[21:29] Many physical miracles from water to manna from heaven to you name it. and then when you get to the ministry of the prophets you've got Elijah and miracles there and who needs to say of the miracles that Christ performed during his three year ministry here on earth.

[21:51] And is anyone prepared to say well those weren't real they were just figureless nonsense. Of course they were real. The healings were real causing the sight to be given to the blind was real.

[22:03] all of those things were real. And that's going to be the motif during this tribulation period because the world is going to reverse to a previous time.

[22:17] This will be a kingdom kind of motif once again as it was when Christ was here. And the age of grace will be over with and the church will be out of here. So these spectacular items are not figurative.

[22:31] They are literal. I realize they do not comport with our acceptance and understanding of what is normal. But the tribulation period is going to constitute what we may rightly call a new norm.

[22:46] And the supernatural is going to be the norm. There will be a proliferation of the supernatural, a proliferation of angelic, both of fallen and unfallen beings, will figure dramatically into the mix.

[23:01] and that will all be part of what is coming. So when you read the revelation, you must resist the temptation that I think is there on the part of many to say, well, we just spiritualize those things.

[23:14] You don't take them at face value. They're not literal, etc. Do you realize, do you realize, and any of you who have been getting the series we've been doing in Christianity Clarified and the hermeneutics that we're studying, the art and science of interpreting the Bible, we've made the point there, and it needs to be made again, that when you depart from the scriptures, meaning what they say, and saying what they mean, when you depart from that, and you're no longer interpreting literally, you are of necessity at the mercy of the imagination of the one who is interpreting it.

[24:03] And I'm telling you, they are all over the map because there's just no limit to what men read into these things. And yet, I keep coming back to this.

[24:14] This book is meant to be understood. In fact, the Revelation is the only book in the Bible that promises a special blessing to those who read and heed the things in this book, the Revelation.

[24:32] That's the only book that comes with that promise. And you may be sure that we are intended to understand it because it is not an obfuscation.

[24:43] It is a declaration. It is a revealment, not a concealment. Granted, there are numerous symbols in this book, but the symbols are consistent with what they mean.

[25:00] Consistent with the Old Testament symbol and the New Testament symbol. They mean one and the same thing. And John is given these by way of symbol so as to express in a brief kind of way what is coming upon the earth.

[25:18] Like these seven bowls that are going to be poured out by the seven angels. And these bowls represent and contain the wrath of God. The ire, the anger of God in these bowls.

[25:30] And it's just as if the bowl is full of whatever you would comprise with God's wrath. And the angel tips the bowl and dumps it on the earth. Well, what does that mean?

[25:44] Well, that's not the way it's going to be. That's a symbol. And the angel is giving this expression, this visible expression to John so that he can record it.

[25:55] And what the text is saying and what the symbol is saying is just as this bowl is being emptied and turned upside down of its liquid so that it pours out on whatever is beneath it, that's the way God's wrath is going to be dumped on this earth.

[26:14] And each of those is depicting the same thing. But rather than try to portray, what that is going to be like, how could that be communicated to John when this is going to be a worldwide event of the wrath of God being poured out on the whole globe?

[26:34] No, no. So the symbol is used as a bowl and it's called the seven bowls of the wrath of God. And when the last bowl is emptied, it will be as described here in the revelation, then the judgment of God is over.

[26:55] That is the end. So, bringing worldwide revival, the second reason for the tribulation, that will come about through the efforts of the 144,000.

[27:13] and as I told you earlier, these are indestructible individuals. They are supernaturally, providentially protected. No doubt, many will try to do away with them, but they will simply be unable to do so.

[27:30] And we find the same thing with the two witnesses. I have no idea who they are. They surfaced in chapter 11. We studied that. These two witnesses, the only thing we can be reasonably sure of is that they are two Jews.

[27:47] And they are going to be responsible for withholding rainfall from the earth for three and one half years.

[28:00] Do you have any idea what devastation a three and a half year drought for the whole globe is going to cause?

[28:13] how that is going to dramatically impact everything. And these two witnesses in Revelation 11 are going to be targeted as those responsible for it.

[28:30] They're going to predict and to promise and claim to bring three and a half years of drought upon the earth. Probably when they say that everybody dismisses them as a couple of crackpots.

[28:44] But the longer the earth goes without rain the more people are convinced these guys really are responsible for that. Let's get them. Kill them. And they're going to make every effort to destroy them.

[28:57] And these two guys are indestructible. What do you mean indestructible? Can't you kill them with a knife, with bullets, with bombs, with something? No. No.

[29:08] Well that's impossible. Well of course it's impossible according to our standards. But what I'm telling you is the world is going to be in a supernatural mode that's unlike anything we've ever seen.

[29:22] And these are going to be incapable of being killed. And then the Antichrist surfaces and guess what?

[29:34] He does the job. He gets them. Kills them. And there they are. Dead bodies. Two of them lying there. And the whole world is rejoicing. And they're even sending presents to each other.

[29:48] Because after all now things can get back to normal again. These worldwide pests have been eliminated. And the Antichrist will refuse to let them be buried and their decaying corpses are lying there in the sun.

[30:07] while all the world's television cameras are turned on them and everybody is rejoicing all over the world. And there's those dead bodies. See them? And they are there for three days and God brings them back to life and takes them up to heaven right in front of everybody's eyes.

[30:25] Wow. You talk supernatural. This is as super supernatural as you get. This is amazing. But in a sense it should not be any more amazing than the ascension of our Lord in Acts chapter one when he ascended before the disciples.

[30:40] These two are going to come back to life and ascend up to heaven. It can't get more supernatural than this. So, that third event then is going to be in addition to the worldwide revival, the 144,000, it will break the will and the power of the holy people.

[31:03] I'll give you the references, but please, we won't take time to turn there. Break the will and the power of the holy people, and that is related in Daniel chapter 12 verses 5 through 7, Ezekiel chapter 20 verses 34 through 38.

[31:22] There are lots of things that you can assign to the Jewish people as being peculiar to the Jewish people. And one of them is a brand of Jewish humor, and another is a brand of Jewish creativity, and another is a brand of incredible stubbornness.

[31:50] I don't know that there is any generation of people on earth that can match the stubbornness of the Jewish people. And that is not a wise man opinion, because the Almighty himself in a number of places throughout the Old and the New Testament says, All day long I have stretched out my hand to a disobedient and gainsaying people.

[32:14] Surely you are a stiff-necked people. And they demonstrated their stubbornness time and time again. well, during this tribulation period, the will and the stubbornness of the Jewish people will be broken.

[32:32] And they will be a broken people. And they will break down, and they will sob bitterly over their sin and their rejection of the Messiah, and they will hasten to embrace him while they are repenting.

[32:50] it will be a wonderful, wonderful time for Israel. And so, all Israel will be saved. But that is, all Israel will be saved that will be in existence at that time, and only one-third of the world's population of Jews will survive.

[33:07] And they will be called the faithful remnant. They will be providentially protected, I believe, in the rose-red city of Petra. This is the only area on the whole planet that will escape complete darkness that will engulf the entire world.

[33:26] The only place there will be daylight is in the modern kingdom of Transjordan right now in the north and in the south, clear down to the Dead Sea, beyond the Dead Sea, down to Petra and Basra, where Christ will return when he comes for his people.

[33:47] And this is going to be something. So, five key events occur in the first three and a half years, and I didn't even touch on this, and I'm sorry, I must apologize, because I just completely overlooked this, but the ministry of Elijah will take place, and that is promised in Malachi 4, verses 4-6, where the prophet Elijah is going to be on the scene, resurrected.

[34:13] hundred and forty-four thousand will be active during this time, the two witnesses of Revelation 11 that we've spoken of, and the political system of the ten kings, these will be ten different governments, and the religious system of Babylon.

[34:27] It will consist of all of the apostates of the earth, and if you will turn in your Bible to Revelation chapter 17, we will do the best we can to finish this chapter. This has to do with the doom of Babylon.

[34:40] this is the religious organization, and it is worldwide. I can see very clearly religious Babylon being formed and added to on a day-to-day basis, because what religious Babylon is going to be about primarily is every religion, every sect, every cult, everything that is in opposition to the truth of God as revealed in the scripture, will comprise this religious Babylon.

[35:14] And when that time comes, it will be revealed to be what it really is. It is spoken of in chapter 17 as the mother of harlots. This means that Babylon is at the forefront.

[35:30] Babylon is the origin point for all of the aberrant religion, and this goes all the way back to Nimrod in the early chapters of the book of Genesis. This was the headquarters for anti-God theology and belief and practices, and it included every kind of immorality that you could imagine.

[35:54] Now, we see this today, and we see religious Babylon being added to even as we speak. book. And when you read the article that I was sharing with you earlier in the announcement period, you will be able to see this.

[36:11] Because religious Babylon is going to be comprised of apostate Roman Catholicism, and apostate Protestantism, and apostate Judaism, and apostate Hinduism, and apostate Shintoism, and apostate Islam, all of these are going to be under this one grand religious umbrella that will be referred to as religious Babylon.

[36:45] and the watchword and the code word will be inclusivity. Inclusivity.

[36:56] And it will be a gathering of every anti-God, anti-Christ, religion, cult, theology, doctrine, you name it, all throughout the globe.

[37:08] This will be a one-world church. That will be riding and dominating a one-world government.

[37:22] This is the woman, the harlot, in Revelation 17, that is seated on the beast. And later in the chapter, the beast, which represents political Babylon that will be destroyed in the next chapter, sees that religious Babylon has served its purpose, and it turns on it, because the anti-Christ who is heading that is going to dispense with all religion, all religion, and proclaim himself to be the one and true God and demand the worship of the world, and the world will give it.

[38:06] that will be the epitome of the anti-Christ. He will establish himself in the temple of Jerusalem and proclaim himself to be God.

[38:20] That will be the beginning of the second half of the time of tribulation. And that's the time that Jesus is talking about in Matthew 24, when he says, when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, when you see that stand in the holy place, then you know that everything is ready to break loose, and you need to flee for your life.

[38:47] Head for the hills, literally. And they are going to evacuate Jerusalem, they are going to head south, where they will take quarters in Basra and Petra, they will be holed up there for the last three and a half years, the Antichrist will be unable to dispense with them, and they will be providentially protected and nourished with everything they need, much the same way that the children of Israel were protected providentially when they came out of Egypt, and God ministered to all of their needs.

[39:22] So, in turning now to Revelation 17, let us look at this text again. verse 5, on our forehead a name is written, a mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and of the abominations of the earth, and we pointed out to you that he is using the term harlotry and adultery, but it isn't a physical adultery, as a man being unfaithful to his wife is, although that is the analogy that is sometimes used.

[39:52] This is a spiritual adultery whereby they have forsaken the true God and have gone after all of these other gods, and they are innumerable.

[40:03] The Old Testament is just loaded with them. The children of Israel had to do business with them, and sometimes they even succumb to them and engaged in their Baal worship and Dagon and Chemosh and all of the rest of it.

[40:16] So, this is a physical, not a physical thing, it is a spiritual harlotry, and he says in verse 6, I saw the woman, John has given this vision, drunk with the blood of the saints.

[40:27] These are martyrs. And with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus, and when I saw her, I wondered greatly. Now, what he is seeing is this image of this woman all decked out like this, riding this beast.

[40:41] But that's just a symbol. What is this woman? This woman is the whole religious conglomerate of all of these things that are anti-God and anti-Christ.

[40:55] Christ. And that's going to consist of all of the major religions of the world, including Protestantism, which will be part of this corrupt mix.

[41:07] And do you realize, I trust you do realize, that the Church of Jesus Christ that began in the first century was already dealing with corruption before the first century was over?

[41:19] and the Roman Catholic Church has become so corrupt. It is incredible. And the Protestant Church that came from it with the intent of correcting and reforming has itself become corrupt.

[41:39] Look at denominations today. Major elements in Protestantism that have long since sold out to the homosexual movement?

[41:50] Sold out to gay marriage? Sold out to same-sex marriage? Why? Simply because they saw that's the way the trend is moving.

[42:03] And when the trend moves that way, you move that way too, if you want to survive. And who are those that refuse to move that way?

[42:14] Well, they are those pesky bigots, those narrow-minded evangelicals who have the audacity to say that the Bible sets the only standard for belief and behavior.

[42:31] This religious Babylon is increasing by the day today. whole organizations and denominations have already caved in to this stuff.

[42:48] They are part of the corruption, and they will be part of religious Babylon. Wow. Like I said, the handout I encourage you to get, you better get it.

[43:06] The woman on the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns, the beast that you saw was and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss.

[43:23] What kind of language is this? What does this mean? The beast that you saw was and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go to destruction, and those who dwell on the earth will wonder whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world when they see the beast that she was and is not and will come.

[43:48] What does that mean? It means that this beast is on the surface, available, capable of being witnessed, and then dies.

[44:04] This is the Antichrist. The Antichrist is put to death. He dies. He's killed. But, in perfect counterfeit fashion to our Lord Jesus Christ, guess what?

[44:21] The Antichrist comes back to life. That's the meaning of he was and is not and will come. He's resurrected. Here is the mind which has wisdom.

[44:33] The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. These seven mountains, and by the way, many have interpreted these seven mountains to refer to Rome.

[44:44] Rome sits on seven mountains. Well, in the first place, there are a lot more than that. And in the second place, you can't call those mountains in Rome, and the word that's used here in the original text is actually mountains, but Rome does not qualify for mountains.

[45:01] Situated on mountains, it's on hills, but not on this. I think that more than anything else, the reformers who either left the Roman Catholic Church or were kicked out of the Roman Catholic Church really wanted to make these to be Rome.

[45:16] So it seemed to be a natural for them, but it does not fit. Rome does not qualify for this. These seven mountains, the seven heads, are seven mountains. And that literally means these are seven positions, or seven nations, or seven bases of power on which the woman sits.

[45:34] That is, she has control over these. And verse 10 tells us, and they are, that is, these seven mountains, are seven kings. That ought to remove the doubt for us right there.

[45:44] Now it doesn't necessarily mean that they are monarchs, that they have a crown on their head, but it means they are seven heads of state. They could be presidents, prime ministers, kings, or whatever, but they are heads of state.

[45:57] And five have fallen, that is, when John sees these in the vision, five of them are already history. They're gone.

[46:10] And the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must remain a little while. and the beast, which was and is not, is himself also an eighth.

[46:25] That is, he was the seventh until he died. But then when he came back, he'd give it another number, now he is the eighth.

[46:36] And he is one of the seven, that is originally, he was one of the original seven, but since he died and came back, he is designated as the eighth. And he goes to destruction. he will meet his end.

[46:48] And the ten horns, which you saw, are ten kings, who have not yet received a kingdom. These are the ten areas that will, these are ten geographical areas that will dominate the entire globe under the superintendency of the Antichrist.

[47:07] There will be ten political jurisdictions all over the world. I do not know what their names are. We are not given the names of the nations. They may have different categories or different designations, but at any rate, they are, they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.

[47:30] Now, I do not know that that is required to be 60 minutes. I think it simply means for a brief period of time. It is not going to last long. These have one purpose, these ten, people, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

[47:52] They will willingly submit their authority and their power to the Antichrist because he is going to make a whole host of right moves, good things are going to be realized, and they are going to put their trust and their confidence in him.

[48:08] they will cede power to him. They have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast. This beast, of course, is the Antichrist. These will wage war against the lamb.

[48:22] This is the person of Christ, and the lamb will overcome them. This, of course, is looking prophetically into the next chapter. Because he is Lord of Lords and King of Kings, and those who are with him are the called and chosen and faithful.

[48:37] And he said to me, the waters which you saw where the harlot sits are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.

[48:50] And when it says it sits upon many waters, it's talking about the expanse of the territory. When we talk about many waters, we're thinking in terms of the Atlantic, the Pacific, and the Caribbean, and the Mediterranean.

[49:06] these are all waters and they all border numerous territories and nations. And it is simply another way of saying that this is going to be a worldwide scope.

[49:20] And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, that is the Antichrist, these will hate the harlot. Who is the harlot? That is religious Babylon.

[49:32] They are going to see religious Babylon as being a competitor for political Babylon, military Babylon. And they will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked.

[49:48] Now this her, keep in mind, this her is the religious system. It is comprised of all of these apostates that I've been talking about. And they are going to wield enormous amount of power until the political beast turns on her and will eat her flesh and burn her up with fire.

[50:09] In other words, completely destroy her. For God has put it in their hearts to execute his purpose by having a common purpose and by giving their kingdom to the beast until the words of God should be fulfilled.

[50:25] And the woman whom you saw is the great city. This is Babylon, which reigns over the kings of the earth. This great city is Babylon, the system.

[50:38] This is the headquarters of the system. This is the world headquarters for religion and it will be the world headquarters for politics.

[50:49] It will be there in southern Iraq. Saddam Hussein began the rebuilding of Babylon during his reign. Of course, it didn't get very far, but there are numerous things that have been accomplished and I have some pictures that I'll be sharing with you later about what modern Babylon is beginning to look like and it is going to spring forth from this desert and it's going to be a magnificent city.

[51:13] New York City will not hold a candle to this. This will be incredible and it will come up almost overnight and it will immediately attract world attention and world admiration and it will become the new center of the earth, Babylon.

[51:32] And guess what? This is where it all began. Way back, not very long removed after Noah's time, this is where it all began under Nimrod, who was described as the mighty hunter.

[51:50] He was a recruiter. recruiter to align people and call people to oppose person and ministry of the God of heaven.

[52:02] And his rank has increased and it is afoot today. So, our plan then is that we will engage chapter 18 in our next session together or we may have a kind of a general review.

[52:19] I don't know whichever would be most beneficial to you because I would be the first to admit that these things are difficult to keep in mind. And the reason, one of the reasons that they are is because some of the events that are going to transpire will be in force and active during the whole seven year period.

[52:43] And that is, for instance, the 144,000. they don't even surface until chapter seven. But that isn't their beginning. That's just their continuation.

[52:55] They are involved from the beginning. They're going to be very key during this whole seven year period, these 144,000. And we've already dealt a little bit with the idea that what in the world is going to convince 144,000 Jews.

[53:16] And by the way, these are going to be male Jews unmarried. These are going to be virgin men.

[53:34] What could possibly result in the recruiting of 144,000 Jews to preach the gospel of the true God?

[53:50] And they don't believe that now. And we've already tied that in with Ezekiel 38 and 39 and the destruction of the virtual entire Russian army and their allies when they invade Israel in Ezekiel 38 and 39 they are absolutely decimated and it will not be the Jewish army that defeated them.

[54:17] It will be the God of heaven and it will be obvious to the Jewish people that it was the God of heaven who interceded for Israel and deposed their enemies upon the mountains of Israel.

[54:31] And out of that there will be a huge number of Jews converted to the true God of Israel. And among them will be 144,000 young men.

[54:46] Sounds miraculous doesn't it? Well, it is. It is miraculous. And this is just a taste of what is coming.

[54:59] Chapter 18 will deal with the destruction of commercial and political Babylon because this is going to be the new world center headquarters and it is going to go up in smoke.

[55:17] It's going to be something. Wow. Do I really believe this stuff? You bet your boots I do 110%.

[55:30] I have absolutely no doubt about it at all. And I know how fanciful this sounds to some people, how unlikely, how impossible, and no problem with that at all.

[55:41] And I understand exactly where they're coming from. But when these things transpire, well, you're not supposed to be here to see this.

[55:54] And I don't know that anybody who is will ever have heard anything that I have said about it. But just in case there is, just in case there is, wouldn't there be something that somebody would be thinking?

[56:15] This must be what that preacher in Springfield was talking about. Yeah, sure will be. Stand with me if you would, please. Father, we first admit, first to admit that we really just don't know exactly what to make of all this except the fact that you have been pleased to reveal it.

[56:44] So much of this is overhead. We have difficulty understanding parts of it. And yet we know that it was put there with the intent that we understand it because you cannot, you cannot properly respond to any message that you do not understand.

[57:05] And we understand enough of this to know these things are coming upon this earth, as Peter says, what manner of men and women we ought to be. This is a time for us to reassess our values, our agenda, determine what really is important and what really matters.

[57:27] And in the midst of all of these things that are going to transpire, we are compelled to admit that nothing, absolutely nothing matters as much as our relationship to Jesus Christ and secondarily, our relationship to each other.

[57:47] And we pray that you will speak mightily to each of us on behalf of these two truths, even as the time draws near. Thank you for all that you've been pleased to reveal.

[57:58] We are not sufficient for these things, we'll be at first to admit it. But we believe that the record you have given is true, is trustworthy, and your integrity is at stake.

[58:11]  You are a God who cannot lie. We take great comfort in that, in Christ's name. Amen.