TODAY’S BABYLON
Ch. 6
THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
It is with much reluctance that I enter into the following discussion,
but I feel forced to do so because of the great prevalence of misguided
opinions. There are many, many Christians who have been taught and are convinced
that the Babylon of Revelation is the Roman Catholic Church. Moving on from this
conclusion, they then begin to fabricate some very fantastic eschatology. Some
have the Pope as the antichrist. Others have the Roman Church secretly running
the world. Still others have the Ecumenical movement, with the Catholic Church
in the lead, rising up to dominate the world. These and numerous other such
conclusions are a result of misunderstanding a few simple Bible verses.
One
of the most prominent of these is found in verse 9 of chapter 17 of Revelation
where we read that the harlot sits on “seven mountains.” Many Bible teachers
have looked at this verse and thought, “Aha, seven hills! This must be a
reference to Rome,” since ancient secular literature refers to her as a city on
seven hills. I have even heard it said that John used this phrase as a kind of
code to refer to Rome. Some say that since he was a prisoner of the Romans, he
did not dare write the true name but had to use a kind of cipher. As you go
along in your Christian journey, you too will no doubt hear all kinds of such
explanations. The truth is John wrote just exactly what the angel showed
him.
Let us here remember that in John’s day there were no longer seven
prophetic mountains. As we have seen, five of them had already fallen. This left
only two. Therefore, this cannot be and is not a secret reference to Rome.
Consequently, the Roman Catholic Church is not in view. Also, we cannot take our
inspiration from secular literature such as the story of Romulus and Remus or
the Iliad and the Odyssey, but only the word of God. Nowhere in the Bible is
Rome referred to as “the city on seven hills” or any similar
thing.
Unfortunately, the King James Version of the Bible (and NKJV) is
responsible for a large part of this confusion. This version introduces an extra
word in the text which is in no Greek manuscript that I can find, including the
Textus Receptus from which the KJV was taken. It is this extra word which
produces much error. This is the word “there.” In the NKJV chapter 17:9,10 we
read: “The seven heads are seven mountains...There are also seven kings.”
Putting the word “there” in this verse disassociates the mountains and the kings
grammatically. Now instead of being equal, they are additional. So then when you
read: “Five have fallen,” this could refer only to the kings, leaving the seven
mountains intact.
But in fact, in the original Greek texts, the word “there”
does not appear. All of them read instead: “The seven heads are seven
mountains...and are seven kings.” The heads, mountains and kings are all equal.
So then when we read that “five have fallen” this not only refers to the kings
but to the mountains and heads as well. This then is not a secret reference to
Rome and therefore does not point us to the Roman Catholic Church.
When we
think about this with a clear head, other problems with the Catholic Church as
the prostitute become evident. No doubt, those who first invented this doctrine
lived in a different time and place than we do. All of us tend to interpret
scripture in the light of our current geopolitical situation. Such a suggestion
was first made centuries ago when the Roman Church was affluent and powerful. At
that time she seemed exceedingly rich and dominated much of the political scene
in Europe. However, times have changed.
Rome is not known as a seaport. She
is located on the Tiber River, some distance from the sea. The seaport near her
which would service her maritime needs cannot be considered to be one of the
principal ports of the world. Further, it could not be said today or even
imagined that the Catholic Church is making every shipowner rich. It is simply
not true that all the merchants of the world are getting wealthy selling their
stuff to the Vatican. Also we have already studied the difficulty of one single
city being the source of so much commerce and wealth.
Further, the influence
of the Vatican over the governments of the world is waning more and more every
day. For example, in Brazil, which is considered to be the largest Catholic
country in the world, the percentage of Catholics is decreasing dramatically.
Although the Catholic church does still have some sway in many parts of the
world, she could not be thought of as “reigning” over them. While the Roman
Church did persecute and martyr many believers in past years, this is not
something which is prevalent in our time. Trying to fit the Catholic Church of
today into the Revelation prophecy is like trying to jam a square peg into a
round hole. It just doesn’t fit.
Another logical difficulty we encounter
with the “Rome as Babylon” scenario is that Babylon is destroyed “in one hour”
(Rev 18:17,19). Although this may may not signify one literal “hour” it
certainly indicates a short period of time. So how could someone destroy the
Catholic Church in one hour? Would they plant time bombs in every cathedral
timed to go off at the same time? This is patently ridiculous. Would they simply
blow up the Vatican? Eliminating the Vatican would not end Catholicism. Probably
it would have the opposite effect. Most persecuted religions end up only
increasing instead of disappearing. There is no logical way anyone could destroy
the Catholic Church with fire in “one hour.” When we think about this calmly and
unemotionally, the Roman Catholic Church does not really match, in most of the
clear details, what we see in the scriptures.
One source of this Rome as
Babylon teaching is a book written by Alexander Hislop entitled “The Two
Babylons,” which was first published in 1916. In it Mr. Hislop points out many
parallels between the Catholic Church’s rituals, vestments, practices and
symbols, etc. with those of ancient Babylon. Reading this work is a dry and
dusty task. He does succeed, however, in demonstrating that the Roman church has
many Babylonian trappings. But, this does nothing to prove that she is the
Babylon of Revelation. The fact that the Roman Church and even many of our
modern “evangelical” churches are full of worldly symbols, teachings, methods
and practices is obvious. But much more than this is needed (for example some
concrete scriptures) to conclude that this is Babylon the Great
Prostitute.
THE SPIRIT OF THIS WORLD
It may be that many churches in our day appear to be part of Babylon. This
means that they have the flavor and character of the world. For example, many
use increasingly worldly means and methods to attract and hold members.
Frequently, today’s churches employ an earthly style of authority structure.
Often their various “officers” are chosen because of their social position or
economic standing in the community. It is common for the content of their
meetings and activities to be much more worldly than spiritual. Many churches
today have an emphasis on wealth, luxury and prosperity. Sometimes their members
seem to be more interested in the pursuits and activities of the world than the
kingdom of God. Therefore, these churches appear Babylonian.
What we should
understand from this is: just as in the Old Testament, so today too, many of
God’s people have been carried away captive into Babylon. They have been seduced
by the spirit of this age. They are in bondage to the luxuries and the ways of
the world. They are living in “Babylon.” Yet this does not mean that they are
Babylon, only that they are in Babylon, spiritually speaking. It reveals that
they have been influenced and contaminated by her. Ancient Babylon had some of
God’s people living in her. There they were seduced by her idols and practices.
Yet they were never thought of as being Babylon.
It has often been taught
that chapter 17 of Revelation speaks of a “religious Babylon” by which people
mean the Roman Catholic Church, perhaps along with other institutional type
churches. Then they teach that chapter 18 is a description of “economic
Babylon,” which is the one which I have described earlier in this writing.
However, when we analyze chapter 17, we cannot find one piece of evidence
which clearly supports their assertions. Nothing religious is found here. No
religious items are mentioned. No idols, no priests, no offerings, no temples,
no sacred vestments, no rituals, no sacrifices, nothing clearly indicating
something religious is found. In short, “religious Babylon” is noticeably absent
from chapter 17. The original Greek text was not divided up into chapters. There
is no compelling reason to separate it and this vision into two parts.
Truthfully, there is only one Babylon, not two Babylons, described in these two
chapters.
All this is in direct contrast to the Old Testament prophecies
concerning Babylon. There we do find religious items such as idols, priests,
etc. So you see that the final Babylon revealed in Revelation is actually
notable for its lack of religion. Instead of being a religious entity, it seems
to be very secular. What should be really impressive to us is the absence of any
clear mention of anything religious. This writer is forced to conclude that
there is no “religious Babylon” to be found in the book of Revelation.
BABYLON WAS NEVER GOD’S CITY
Many believers imagine that Babylon is the worldly church of our day. They
base their opinions on the fact that she is called a “prostitute.” Therefore,
they reason that she must once have belonged to God, but then prostituted
herself, much like Hosea’s wife (Hos 1:2). However, when we take an unemotional,
calm look at the scriptures, no such indication is found.
God’s “woman” is
revealed in Revelation chapter 12. She is a holy, shining, glorious being. She
is persecuted by the dragon, not riding on the beast. She is protected by God
rather than judged by Him. Her “son” is caught up to heaven to rule the nations
(vs 5). Her other offspring “keep the commandments of God and have the testimony
of Jesus Christ” (vs 17). She may not be perfect, since she needs to be “fed”
(vs 6) perhaps indicating a need for more spiritual nourishment. But she is
certainly not described as a prostitute or called Babylon.
The woman found in
Revelation 17 and 18 is a completely different story. Here we find no scriptural
indication that she ever belonged to God. In fact, when she appears, she is
riding on a scarlet beast. She is the devil’s woman from the beginning. He is
her source. Her dependence is on him. Further, she is not called an “adulteress”
which is in Greek MOICHOS (Js 4:4) indicating that she once had a marriage
commitment, but a prostitute, PORNE (Rev 17:1.) There is no necessity for a
prostitute to have ever been married. No verses demonstrate that she was ever
even betrothed to the Lord.
The Babylon of the Old Testament was also never
God’s city. She was not the place nor the people whom He had chosen for Himself.
God never uses the name Babylon to describe His people or His land. So when God
selects the word “Babylon” in Revelation to describe the prostitute, He clearly
is not trying to indicate His own people or His church. Although some of God’s
people are living in Babylon, she herself is not and never has been His. When we
look at this logically rather than emotionally, this “Babylon” of Revelation
cannot be a reference to God’s people. Therefore, the assumption that Babylon is
the church or some part of her which has become sinful does not seem to have any
biblical basis.
A WRONG SPIRIT
Another serious problem with the “Roman Catholic church along with most
denominations” as Babylon teaching is that it seems to generate a wrong spirit.
In almost all of the groups I have encountered which hold this opinion, there is
a strong “we are better than they are” attitude. They look down their noses at
people who are “in the religious system.” They feel superior to all those other
Christians who are so corrupted. Much of their unity and a large part of their
“spirituality” comes from their idea that they have “come out” and are a kind of
spiritual elite.
This attitude does not reflect the heart of God. If we are
in touch with the heart of the Father, seeing any dear fellow believers involved
in an impotent, worldly religion should generate a different sort of reaction.
We would weep for them. We would pray for them. And we would try to lovingly
minister to them God’s truth.
It is without question that the great
prostitute would succeed in seducing the church in her country and also in the
nations over which she holds sway. It is only logical that she would corrupt
them and make them just as fallen as herself. If then the church of today has
become worldly in many respects, this is because she too has been drinking of
the wine of the fornication of Babylon.
It is sad, but true, that the
churches of our day are becoming increasingly worldly. The temples seem to be
ever more opulent and the work increasingly success oriented. The emphasis on
sin and repentance is being replaced by an easy, comfortable way where God is
our servant and our obligation is merely to attend somewhat regularly and give
generously. However, all this does not qualify these institutions to be the
Babylon but only a part of her. They have become Babylonian in their character
and nature. They have been carried away captive into Babylon.
Since writing
the first draft of the book, I have received much feedback from believers who
insist that Babylon is today’s church. Many of the arguments which I hear are
emotional. Frequently they are tinged with an antipathy or even hatred for some
church or denomination. Perhaps these brothers have been wounded by some
religious group or other and therefore have difficulty detaching themselves from
their experience and looking clearly at the word of God. Virtually all of the
proofs offered by these dear believers to demonstrate that Babylon is the
Catholic Church along with the denominations are quite vague or must be
understood symbolically.
The danger I see here is that while many are
focusing on these quite tenuous revelations, the plain facts of these two
chapters are being ignored. Perhaps the emotion which some feel against the
“religious system” blinds them to any other possibilities. While they are trying
to prove the case for a religious Babylon they seem to ignore many clear verses
which need little, if any, interpretation.
These verses are those which
point to a “commercial Babylon.” They point to a physical place which we can
probably identify today. It is a wealthy, proud, self-confident “city” which is
importing everything the merchants of the world have to offer. It is a physical
place which we urgently need to be able to accurately identify. It is this
secular, commercial, opulent location that will soon be destroyed by fire.
Therefore, it is this entity which we need to identify.
Perhaps you have not
been convinced by my arguments against a religious Babylon, and still believe
that she is “the religious system.” So be it. I do not need to convince you. But
please consider the following carefully. It is clearly a “commercial Babylon”
which will be destroyed by fire. Therefore, putting the religious ideas aside
for the moment, every believer desperately needs to understand where this
commercial entity is and then prepare to flee before her judgments come.