It is quite obvious that Rome
sits on seven mountains. Everybody in the ancient world who knew something of
Rome would know that it sits on seven mountains. It is more difficult to interpret
the kings of verse 10. John said, “…and
they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet
come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while.” What does John mean? Did
he expect us to identify the kings? Of course not. For most times John had
spoken in symbols and figures. As we have indicated earlier, Revelation should
be approached more with imagination than logic. So here is likely to be John’s
intention. The seven kings stand for the seeming completion of the monstrous
kingdom. And then there will be the appearance of a new king to take the kingdom
forward into a brand new era, but instead will lead them to destruction. In other
words, the monstrous Kingdom may appear impregnable, but forces within its own
ranks will destroy it.
The ten kings are likely to be the ruling elites within the
monstrous system but were empowered with authority from the beast to be rulers for
a short while. What we see in these ten kings were their allegiance to the
beast. And they all have one purpose, that is, to give all their allegiance and
authority to the antichrist. And they make war with the Lamb and are defeated. We
know why they were defeated. It’s because they were dealing with the Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.
From verse 15 onwards, John proceeded to deal with the outcome of
the harlot. The waters that she sits upon are described as peoples and
multitudes and nations and tongues. The beast and the kings together will turn against
the harlot eventually. This tells us of the self-destructive power of evil. The
harlot whom Revelation 17:4 describes as attired in purple and scarlet and
adorned with jewelry is now totally stripped bare. The eating of her flesh portrays
the brutality with which she was dealt with by her assailants. She is finally burned
with fire.
The angel explained that God
is the one who has set the hearts of the ten kings to do His will, to bring
about the annihilation of the prostitute. They also whole heartedly aligned
themselves and yield their sovereignty to the beast. And they join him in his
assault upon the harlot and in his final war against the Lamb. Know it or not, the
powers of evil are made to serve the purposes of God, although as His unwilling
servant. The coalition between the beast and his allies will continue until God’s
words, concerning the overthrow of antichrist, are fulfilled.
For John, “The great city that rules over the
kings of the earth” was none other than the city of Rome, the wicked seducer.
Her malicious influence has infiltrated the whole of the Mediterranean world. And
she is referred to earlier as “Babylon the Great”, to show us that it’s not the
city of Rome per se but the harlotry and abomination that is much like the spirit
of the ancient Babylon.
Thankfully we are on the Lord’s side or rather He
is one our side. There are many things about tomorrow that we may not
understand. But let’s just hold on to the hand of Christ, the one who holds
tomorrow. He is our sure victory! He will lead us on for His glory! Hallelujah!
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