And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
In the vision the woman is a symbol of a church, with a virtuous woman standing for a pure church and a vile woman standing for an apostate church. Babylon means confusion and names false or apostate religion in its various forms. As an unfaithful wife, Babylon pictures a church turning away from Christ and giving its affection to the world.
The great city that reigns over the kings of the earth is Rome, which for many centuries held despotic sway over the monarchs of Christendom. That rule over kings was exercised by political and religious power, and its rule and magnificence are pictured by the woman's royal display. The vision also portrays the corrupt and apostate condition of the religious world in the last days, with the great city ruling over the kings of the earth as that apostate religious system.
The verse belongs to the prophecies of Revelation 12 to 18 that are being fulfilled. This marks the present as the time for all to hear the last message of warning. That warning is the very last call to the churches in Revelation 18, now to be given before the events of Revelation 19 and 20. Those coming events are the taking of the beast and the false prophet, the binding of the dragon for a thousand years, the resurrection of the wicked and final destruction of Satan and all the wicked, and the final triumph and reign of Christ in this earth.
Together with Revelation 12:17, Revelation 13, and Revelation 14:10-13, the chapter is God's warning to His people of the perils before them in the last days. It reveals what will be in the last days in a people working counter to God who have been deceived. Because of Babylon's coming destruction, the verse calls for marked separation from sin and sinners. There is to be no compromise between God and the world and no turning back for earthly treasures.
In the vision the woman is a symbol of a church, with a virtuous woman standing for a pure church and a vile woman standing for an apostate church. Babylon means confusion and names false or apostate religion in its various forms. As an unfaithful wife, Babylon pictures a church turning away from Christ and giving its affection to the world.
The great city that reigns over the kings of the earth is Rome, which for many centuries held despotic sway over the monarchs of Christendom. That rule over kings was exercised by political and religious power, and its rule and magnificence are pictured by the woman's royal display. The vision also portrays the corrupt and apostate condition of the religious world in the last days, with the great city ruling over the kings of the earth as that apostate religious system.
The verse belongs to the prophecies of Revelation 12 to 18 that are being fulfilled. This marks the present as the time for all to hear the last message of warning. That warning is the very last call to the churches in Revelation 18, now to be given before the events of Revelation 19 and 20. Those coming events are the taking of the beast and the false prophet, the binding of the dragon for a thousand years, the resurrection of the wicked and final destruction of Satan and all the wicked, and the final triumph and reign of Christ in this earth.
Together with Revelation 12:17, Revelation 13, and Revelation 14:10-13, the chapter is God's warning to His people of the perils before them in the last days. It reveals what will be in the last days in a people working counter to God who have been deceived. Because of Babylon's coming destruction, the verse calls for marked separation from sin and sinners. There is to be no compromise between God and the world and no turning back for earthly treasures.