Revelation

The Way It Happened

Revelation 11:8, Who is Babylon? Part IV of IV

Their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.

//We’re discussing the identification of Babylon in the book of Revelation, and why it should be recognized not as Rome but as Jerusalem. Yesterday, I pointed out how Babylon is called “the great city.” A few more verses should settle the argument once and for all that Babylon, the “great city,” equates to Jerusalem.

Today’s verse speaks of the death of two witnesses in the city of Jerusalem. They are killed and left in the streets of the “great city,” where also their Lord was crucified. How could any identification be more clear than this? So let’s nail this down tight, by discussing every verse in Revelation that refers to “the great city.”

[1] Today’s verse explicitly identifies the great city as Jerusalem.
[2] Yesterday’s verse, 16:19, tells of the destruction of the great city. I propose that this happened in 70 CE, during the Jerusalem war.
[3] Verses 14:8 and 18:10 label the great city as Babylon.
[4] Verse 17:18 says BABYLON THE GREAT, MOTHER OF HARLOTS is that great city. This leads to a tirade against the harlot, and closely parallels Ezekiel chapter 16 about Jerusalem.
[5] The only other reference in Revelation to “the great city,” verse 21:10, refers to her replacement: The New Jerusalem.

 

Revelation depicts a great city gone wrong, who flirts with the Beast (Rome), and who is destroyed for her iniquities. Unquestionably, this city is Jerusalem itself. John of Patmos witnessed that destruction, and wrote about it in his famous apocalypse. This is the single most important insight to understanding Revelation.

You can read more about Revelation’s historical connections in my book: http://www.thewayithappened.com

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