[Note: Hidden Babylon and God’s Last Warning is now available at online bookstores.]
What makes this book about Babylon the Great different from all the other ones I’ve seen is that all the other interpretations say the message of Revelation 17–18 is for “those people”—whomever that book says Babylon the Great is. The real message though, is that it’s not about those people, it’s about you and me and us! It is a real warning, the last warning, from God in His Word. And we, his people, are the target audience.
Most of us have read books on Babylon the Great and are led to believe it’s Muslims (so come out of Islam!), or Catholics (they are the whores of Babylon!), or its some clandestine organization working its evil in the shadows (watch out for the Illuminati!). These views miss the whole point of God’s warning!
Revelation 17–18 is treated by most of these books as the be-all and end-all of Babylon the Great, attempting to wrestle a meaning out of just those two chapters. The problem is, those two chapters are only the final summary and conclusion to what the whole Bible is saying what Babylon the Great really is! One cannot understand what those two chapters are saying until you read the other parts of the Bible talking about it.
The real tragedy is that an important warning from God is given to us and is lost because people follow all these other books!
Also, an irony is that the truth is ultimately lost because the message is twisted and tainted by the very thing we are to be watching for!
How do I arrive at these conclusions? It’s in Hidden Babylon. Let me explain. It’s in three parts.
The Message, Part 1: The Identity of Babylon the Great
The book begins in Section 1 by discovering a clue in the structure of the text of Revelation that Babylon the Great is the exact opposite of the Bride. This view is proposed, and all of the Bible is examined to see if this view is supported. As it turns out, it is!
There are many layers to this mystery that must be peeled back to get at the truth, and the name of the Harlot in Revelation 17:5 is reviewed piece-by-piece in Section 2.
The name itself is misunderstood. No, she is not “Mystery Babylon,” she is mysterious, that is, hidden until God reveals her to each of us. Her proper name is Babylon the Great. The problem with that is, her name is wrong, being given that name by the Greeks. Our English Bibles call her “Babylon” because not only is the New Testament in Greek, but our English is heavily influenced by Greek and Latin. The original Hebrew, though, doesn’t call her Babylon at all.
Then there is her being a mother. What does that mean? It takes one of Paul’s epistles to completely clear it up. And no, being a mother is not the biggest of the harlots or the originator of whomever the harlots supposedly are. It’s very different. And once you see it, you’ll realize that it cannot be anything else! This is in Chapter 3, titled “Who’s Your Mama?”
And what about the harlots? Who are they? The Bible tells us. It’s anyone who does not make Jesus Christ the foundation of their lives and who has no idol in their heart raised higher than Jesus Christ. It is not just Catholics or just Muslims or just Romans or just New Yorkers. If an old Greek temple was devoted to, say, Diana, then what is any other idol doing in that temple higher than any statue of Diana? Likewise, if you are a temple of the Holy Spirit, then no idol should be higher in your heart than Jesus Christ.
And what about the abominations? What are those? We’ve heard these words many times and perhaps have some fuzzy idea. The Bible is quite clear as to what abominations are. They are all sins, and all idolatry. Interestingly, they are not the idols themselves, except for the false gods. In other words, Chemosh is an abomination. And as a further example, money itself is not an abomination, but the love of it is.
Finally we will see here and there how the words in Revelation have been changed to suit the popular and false notion of Babylon the Great. For example the first use of the word “city” in most translations of Revelation 18:18, is not in the original language but was added. Also one of the definite articles in Revelation 17:5, in most translations, is deleted. These two little changes, among others, greatly change the message. I would fear the warning in Revelation 22:18–19.
The Message, Part 2: Personal and Cultural Idolatry
Part 2 is in Section 3, Chapters 10 to 13.
The Bible tells us in many places that sin comes from idolatry. Idolatry, in turn, comes from the desires and comforts of our hearts. Our first desire and greatest comfort must be in Jesus Christ, and not in any idols. That is what divides the Bride from the Harlot.
Idolatry in this world is ubiquitous. It is responsible for all the crime, man-caused suffering, and wars in this world. It’s also responsible for simply the way our world is, such as for much of the art and literature. The three major societies of this world (the great city is divided into three per Revelation 16), are all run with a unique cultural idolatry that most of us do not even realize is there, because to most people that is just the way society is.
Hidden Babylon explores the topic of idolatry so that we can see not only is much of the history of the world due to man’s idolatries. These societies have different idolatries made manifest by the way they responded to the Gospel.
In addition, we are all born into Babylon the Great, and we escape it at some point when we realize Jesus Christ must be first in our lives!
The book also explores how the trumpets and bowls fold into the plagues to beset the Harlot. Hidden Babylon even explains why Antichrist will hate the Harlot, and how he will bring her to ruin.
By understanding personal and cultural idolatries, we can see that what started in 1949 with the CCP in China, will take place by the Antichrist in his part of the earth, and hints as to what will happen to the Americas—which is grinding poverty. God is removing the cultural idolatries of each society so millions will finally come to Him. This happened in China.
The Message, Part 3: Come Out of Her!
The last part of the message is in the last chapter, Chapter 14.
We explore what this exhortation means. We go over it, word for word. It is a call to test ourselves, and if we fail the test, how we can escape Babylon the Great. Scripture testifies to this.
Some teachers have said the Harlot’s idolatry involves Ishtar or Semiramis. However, it is all the idolatrous desire of the human heart. Ishtar and Semiramis are just among the first examples. Catholics say Protestants worship this or that doctrine. Protestants say Catholics worship the host in the Eucharist. Both say Pentecostals worship the idea that God must be miraculously manifest all the time. It’s easy for one to see what others worship as idolatry. It’s not so easy to see your own. This is why Jesus said we miss the log in our eye to get a speck in our brother’s eye.
Religions bring comfort to some, but all too often its adherents create an imaginary god in their heads. Be careful that the God you worship is real and showing you and teaching you and guiding you.
This warning is too important to miss. It can affect your eternal destiny.
Conclusion
Don’t be thinking the plagues and warnings given to Babylon the Great don’t apply to you personally. They apply to each one of us. It forced me, too, to examine myself.
Many readers of Daniel Revisited have asked me how they can prepare for the hard times to come. Hidden Babylon provides the answer to perfect preparation. It is to make Jesus Christ the foundation and center of your life. Period! If you have done that, He will help you prepare in any other way, and will shelter you in the times to come.
[Note: If you like the book, please remember to leave a review at the site where purchased. Thank you!]
Categories: Babylon the Great, Idolatry, teaching, World in the End Times
THE FOUR SIGNPOSTS 
Can’t wait to read. God is revealing truth to His people. Abiding in God’s Word, fellowshipping with other believers and allowing the Holy Spirit to teach you, you can read between the lines and see the character of God and His redemptive plan in Jesus Christ from Genesis to Revelation 22. We are headed back to paradise, the King’s Inner Most Garden!
Already on Chapter 7 in the Kindle edition. Finding the input very interesting and even went back to Revelations 17 again. I do like your comparison as Babel is a group of people but can’t dismiss how metropolitans in the world in general have become increasingly ungodly and rival Jerusalem. I am convinced that current Jerusalem in of itself has been seduced by Babylon but unlike the error with amillennials Jerusalem is NOT THE Babylon. That’s a huge problem that your book corrects. The timing of the release is impeccable too. I noticed that Michael Vlach has released a new book on premillennialism and the creation model as well Dr. Brock Hollett’s book as well.
Hi Gary,
As you’ve likely surmised from the book, everyone, everywhere, is part of Babylon the Great unless they are grounded in Christ. Every city, every town, every metro area, is part of her.
Glad you like the book.