Greetings fellow eschatologists! It’s time to start a new series on Revelation chapter 17. This will be the first post about the vision of the woman called the “Whore of Babylon.” She’s dressed is purple and scarlet colored clothing and is wearing jewels. She’s riding atop a scarlet colored beast that has seven heads and ten horns. As you know, the seven heads and ten horns are symbols of the future end time antichrist kingdom. There is so much interesting symbolism in this vision. I think you’ll find it fascinating. So without any further delay, let’s get into this!

Chapter 17: The Whore of Babylon

First in an Eight-Part Series
by Karen Thompson

The Vision of the Whore of Babylon Riding a Scarlet-Colored Beast

Chapters 17 and 18 contain one of the most mysterious and perplexing scenarios in the entire book of Revelation. This scenario is about the mysterious whore of Babylon riding upon a scarlet-colored beast. There have been many interpretations as to the identity of the whore, but the one thing that is certain about the whore’s identity is that she symbolizes a city: “And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth” (v. 18). John called the great city the “whore of Babylon.” But the actual city of Babylon hasn’t been in existence for millennia. So what city does the whore of Babylon symbolize, and why is it being called Babylon, and why is it being referred to as a whore? In order to understand what is being portrayed in this scenario, we must identify the city that the whore symbolizes.

There are actually two main entities being portrayed in this scenario: the whore and the scarlet colored beast. Let’s first identify the city the whore symbolizes. After we’ve done that, we can then go back to the beginning and identify the scarlet colored beast and then interpret the meaning of the entire scenario. Let’s start by reading John’s opening description of the whore and the beast.

The Identity of the Whore of Babylon

Rev. 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 shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: 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. 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. 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: 5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 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.

Chapter 17 starts out with an angel saying to John, “I will show you the judgment of the great whore.” This chapter tells us about the great whore and why she is about to receive judgment. When we discover why she is being judged, the whore’s identity reveals itself. Verse two gives us a clue as to why she is being judged. The harlot is a city that has committed fornication with the kings of the earth resulting in the inhabitants of the earth being made drunk!

The big question for all eschatologists is this: which city in the world does the whore of Babylon represent? There have been several cities that different groups purport to be the whore of Babylon, but these views are based less on Scripture and more on supposition and speculation.

Actually, it’s not difficult to figure out the identity of the whore of Babylon. Chapters 17 and 18 give us many clues that point specifically toward the only city in the world that could possibly be the harlot. In fact, just two of the many clues nail down for us with certainty the identity of the whore of Babylon. Let’s look quickly at the two most obvious clues.

Number one: Revelation 17:16 tells us the ten horns hate the harlot and will destroy her, burning her with fire. The ten horns are Middle Eastern rulers. Can you think of one city in all the world that ten Middle Eastern rulers all hate? You don’t have to be a Bible scholar to know the answer to that question.

Number two: This is the most important and most revealing clue of all. The city can be identified by the people she has had murdered. Firstly, Revelation 17:6 tells us the whore is drunk with the blood of the saints and martyrs. And, secondly, Revelation 18:20, 24 says, “Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her. … And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.”

These verses tell us this city is responsible for killing God’s prophets and apostles. Think about it. Which city in all the world is responsible for killing the prophets and apostles of God? Is Damascus in Syria responsible for killing the prophets of God? How about Baghdad in Iraq? What about Cairo in Egypt? There are some that suggest New York City is the whore of Babylon. But no, none of these cities is responsible for killing God’s prophets or the apostles. Jesus Himself told us which city was responsible for killing the prophets: “Oh Jerusalem, thou that killeth the prophets” (Matt. 23:37).

Yes, that’s right. The whore of Babylon is Jerusalem!

For those that love Jerusalem and the Jewish people, this revelation can be disheartening. But there is no reason to be dismayed. God’s plans for Jerusalem still stand. But fulfilling those plans includes a judgment for her sins and departure of the old before the new comes. When the old Jerusalem receives judgment for her sins of apostasy, a new Jerusalem will replace the old. And don’t forget, Jerusalem has been destroyed before and has always fully recovered. As we study the rest of the clues in these two chapters, you’ll see that the whore of Babylon is indubitably the city of Jerusalem.

The City Symbolized as a Woman, a Whore

You might be thinking, I thought the sun-clothed woman symbolized Jerusalem. How can the sun-clothed woman and this harlot riding the beast both be Jerusalem? The two different scenarios represent two very different situations in which the woman finds herself. The first scenario of the woman clothed with the sun, the moon under her feet, and having a crown of 12 stars on her head represents the woman of promise. This is who she is in God spiritually, how He sees her. And this scenario also represents Jerusalem before she is invaded by Antichrist.

The second scenario of the drunken woman portrayed as a harlot, dressed in purple and scarlet, decked out in jewels, riding a scarlet-colored beast represents Jerusalem in the natural with her entire history of apostasy and sins against God. And this scenario also represents Jerusalem after she was invaded by the little horn, a.k.a. Antichrist, and is under his domination. Antichrist is symbolized as the scarlet colored beast.

The very first clue we have in identifying the harlot is the same clue that told us the identity of the sun-clothed woman. The clue is that the city is portrayed as a woman, more specifically, a whore. In the prophetic books, Jerusalem is spoken about as if she were a woman, an unfaithful wife, a harlot.

To symbolize the city’s unfaithfulness to God, the apostle John referred to the city as a whore that commits fornication with the kings of the earth. John referring to Jerusalem as an adulterous harlot is not unique. In Jeremiah chapter four, the prophet urged God’s people to repent and to come back to God. He spoke of Jerusalem in the same way we see John speaking about the whore of Babylon: “And you [plundered one], when you are made desolate, what will you do? Though you clothe yourself with scarlet, though you deck yourself with ornaments of gold, though you paint your eyelids and make them look farther apart, in vain you beautify yourself. Your lovers (allies) despise you; they seek your life” (Jer. 4:30 Amp.).

Like John, Jeremiah spoke about Jerusalem like one would speak about a woman, an unfaithful woman. Jeremiah talked about her red clothing and jewelry, about how she painted her face for her lovers. He said her lovers didn’t love her; in fact, her lovers wanted to destroy her.

The prophet Ezekiel also spoke of Jerusalem as a harlot, a wife unfaithful to her husband. In fact, the entire 16^th chapter of Ezekiel is an allegory of Jerusalem. In this allegory, he spoke about Jerusalem the same way both John and Jeremiah spoke about her.

Ezekiel chapter 16 begins with Jerusalem being portrayed as an infant that God nurtured with tender loving care. God spoke to Ezekiel about Jerusalem and said, “Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, and say, Thus saith the Lord God unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite” (2–3). Jerusalem was located in the land of Canaan, the land that God gave to the children of Israel. This goes all the way back to when Jerusalem was named Jebus and was inhabited by the Jebusites. King David captured the city of Jebus and renamed it Jerusalem. (1 Chron. 11)

Then the chapter goes on to speak of Jerusalem’s development into womanhood, ready and of age to be married (vv. 7–8). That’s when God entered into covenant with her. Ezekiel spoke about Jerusalem the same way John spoke about Jerusalem. Just like John, Ezekiel spoke about the harlot being adorned with beautiful broidered clothing, badger’s skin, fine linen, and silk (vv. 9–14). Just like John, Ezekiel talked about the expensive jewelry the harlot wore: bracelets and necklaces made of jewels and silver and gold. And like John, Ezekiel spoke about Jerusalem as a harlot with her many lovers with whom she committed adultery against God.

Ezekiel 16:15–63 speaks of the bride’s sins of adultery against her husband. The bride, of course, is Jerusalem. Jerusalem is often referred to in scripture as God’s wife. For instance, Ezekiel referred to Jerusalem as a wife that commits adultery (16:32). Jeremiah referred to her as a wife that a husband “puts away” which means divorced (3:1) and as a wife that has treacherously left her husband (3:20). Isaiah, prophesying about Israel’s restoration, speaks of Jerusalem as God’s bride (49:13–21); Isaiah also talked about God giving her a “bill of divorce” for her many sins (50:1).

Jerusalem became unfaithful to God by adopting the cultures and worshiping the false gods of her neighboring nations. That’s what John meant in verse two when he said the whore committed fornication with the kings of the earth. In the prophetic books, Jerusalem is repeatedly referred to as an adulterous woman, a whore, whorish, and a harlot. Isaiah 1:21 says, “How is the faithful city become an harlot?” She is accused of committing adultery, whoredoms, and fornication. She is said to have a whore’s forehead, meaning she’s not ashamed of her sins (Jer. 3:3). In fact, in just a few passages from Isaiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Jeremiah, and Micah, Jerusalem is referred to as whorish 1 time, a whore 4 times, and a harlot 20 times. Her behavior is described as fornication 4 times, abominations 12 times, having lovers 12 times, and committing whoredoms 35 times. That is why we see Jerusalem symbolized as the whore with many lovers in Revelation chapter 17.

In the next post, we’re going to look at the lovers with whom Jerusalem was committing her whoredoms.

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