“And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies” (Revelation 18:1-3).

This chapter portrays the rejection and destruction of the great Mother of Harlots, the system generally known as the Papal hierarchy. The destruction of the beast and the false prophet, both of which are comprehended in the Babylon symbol in its largest sense, is described in chapter 19, and occurs as we shall see after the Church is glorified.

The statement, “after these things,” we understand to mean after St. John saw the vision recorded in chapter 17, and after he had the explanation by the symbolic angel. The vision of this chapter, portraying the judgment upon Babylon, is introduced to St. John by “another” angel, whom he saw come down from heaven, having great authority. The effect of the advent of this angel was to illuminate the earth with a halo of light, which evidently proceeded from his person. All of this of course is symbolical.

The angel’s descent from heaven, together with his proclamation of the fall of Babylon the Great, etc., is seemingly, like other uses of this symbolism in the Revelation, the representation of a great movement or religious awakening among men. The effulgence proceeding from his person, illuminating the earth, seems to describe the light of Truth being proclaimed in organized society, and having the effect of exposing the apostate character of the “Mother of Harlots.” This is implied in the loud cry of the angel, “Fallen! Fallen! is Babylon the Great! and is become a habitation of demons, and a haunt of every unclean and hated bird.” These words teach, not her destruction, but her fall in the sense of her utter rejection as a system. The symbolism is evidently taken from the description of ancient Babylon, after its fall (Isaiah 13:21,22, 14:23). As ancient Babylon after her overthrow became the abode of wild beasts, and her abandoned houses were filled with doleful creatures, as owls, satyrs, etc., so this symbolical Babylon after her fall becomes the habitation of those things that these in general symbolize or represent.

“How true it is, that the most execrable of society seek and wear the garb of Christian profession and ceremonialism, in some of the various quarters (sects) of Babylon. Every impure principle and doctrine, somehow and somewhere, finds representation in her. And she is a ‘cage’ which holds securely not only the Lord’s meek and gentle doves, but also many unclean and hateful birds. Of all the defaulters, and deceivers of men and of women, how many are professedly members of Christ’s Church! And how many even use their profession as a cloak under which to forward evil schemes! It is well known that a majority of even the most brutal criminals executed die in the Roman Catholic communion. Babylon has contained both the best and the worst, both the cream and the dregs, of the population of the civilized world. The cream is the small class of truly consecrated ones, sadly mixed up with the great mass of mere professors and the filthy, criminal dregs” (C. T. Russell).

After St. John heard the proclamation announcing the fall of this great harlot mother system, Babylon, the symbolic angel announces another reason of her fall, her rejection. This is stated to be “because of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, all the nations have fallen.” The same thought contained in these words is rendered in chapter 17:2, “and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.” This seems clearly to teach that her rejection was, and her final destruction is to be in consequence of her propagation of an idolatrous perversion, indeed a counterfeit of true Christian doctrine, causing the nations and peoples of the earth in general to lose all taste for and appreciation of true Christianity.

It would seem that there is also a more specific meaning attached to this utterance, for we know that it is not true that all the inhabitants of the so-called Christian world have accepted all of Rome’s doctrines. It is quite true, however, that there has been a very general acceptance of a certain egregious error upon which all of Rome’s false doctrines are founded — that of inherent immortality — that death is not death, but a change to another state of existence. The error, like the leaven of the parable which the woman hid in three measures of meal, has been very generally accepted as truth, and because of this, humanity in general, both in the Church and out of the Church, are not able to reason correctly on the various doctrines of Christ, namely the state or condition of the dead, the resurrection, the future life, the judgment day, heaven, hell, the person of Christ, his ransom sacrifice, his present intercession for believers, and his future mediation for all mankind. The origin of this error is contained in the lie of Satan addressed to Eve, “Thou shalt not surely die.” The elimination of this falsehood of Satan would have the effect of destroying the systems of Roman Catholicism, Spiritism, Theosophy, Buddhism, Hinduism, and nearly every sect of Protestantism; and not only so, but every religion of Heathendom.

The symbolic angel further states that the merchants of the earth had become enriched by trafficking in her delicacies (Revelation 18:3). The merchants referred to, symbolize the nobles and dignitaries of the Church, who hold the patronage of her benefices. They, and others also, have grown rich by trafficking in these things. All that art and music can furnish to make her worship attractive has been introduced into her idolatrous ritual. Those who furnish these things have in the past been enriched, or at least have gained a livelihood thereby.

That Ye Receive Not of Her Plagues

“And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities” (Revelation 18:4,5).

It is most evident that this call out of Babylon, like the announcement of its fall, comes from heaven. In other words, it is the Lord Himself who calls. The “voice,” as in other instances where the symbol is employed, represents the human agencies used. As the visions of the Revelation describe two great fallen, rejected systems, the Papal and the Protestant, from which His people are to separate themselves, the call includes a command to come out of both. It is seen quite clearly by many of the Lord’s saints at the present time that both the mother and the daughter systems have fallen from God’s favor, and have been rejected by Him. It was seen just as clearly by many of the Lord’s saints in the Reformation and subsequently, as history shows, that the great mother system was even then a fallen, rejected one.

It would seem apparent, therefore, that the fulfillment of this vision under consideration, as applied to the great Romish system, the more wicked of the two, began in the great Reformation Movement four centuries ago. The illumination of the earth by the first angel and the voice from heaven seem to denote that at that time, sufficient light, truth, was given to expose the false doctrines and corrupting influence of the great “Mother of Harlots,” and to cause a cry for the Lord’s people to separate themselves from it. This would denote that at the time when the exposure of Papal corruption would begin, some of God’s true saints would be more or less entangled in this corrupt system. In fact, this was true all through the history of the Romish Church, up to the period of the Reformation; some of the most devoted and godly of men were connected with this great apostate Church. History furnishes us the names of many prominent saints of God who up to this time had thought it their duty to remain in her fold, hoping by so doing to accomplish her reformation.

A statement by Mr. Russell bearing upon this point seems indeed confirmatory of the above as to the time when this vision of Babylon’s fallen condition was to begin to have its fulfillment, particularly as it relates to the Romish system:

“The Reformation was, in a sense, the beginning of a new era, a dawning of light where all had been darkness, the separation of the true from the false, and a new start in the way of Truth. No doubt all the powers of Satan were exerted to close the door then opened; but ‘He that is true’ had said, ‘which no man can shut.’ Compared with the mighty hosts of their enemies, the little band of Reformers had but ‘a little strength’; but they knew that they had the Truth, and they fully trusted the Giver. Thus the Master could say, ‘Thou hast kept my Word, and hast not denied my name.’

“During the Philadelphian period, especially during the first and the last phases of it, the faithful have either been obliged to come out of the nominal temple or have been cast out for their straight testimony. The reward promised them is that they will be, not simply an unimportant part, but a vital one — a pillar in the true and eternal Temple — a part which cannot be removed while the structure exists. During their trial state their names were cast out as evil. They were branded as infidels and heretics.”

Concerning the necessity of Divine interference in behalf of the cause of Truth during those times, it has been truthfully said:

“A system which travesties the truth, hardens the conscience, enslaves the mind, corrupts the heart, which buries the Bible, prostitutes the ministry, profanes the sacraments, persecutes the saints, betrays and butchers the flock of Christ, and outrages all that is sacred and all that is Divine — deserves and demands to be exposed, detested, judged, destroyed, and swept out of an injured world.

“And God raised up the Reformation to do this work of protest, exposure, condemnation, and deliverance. He who had raised up the Prophets and Apostles in olden times, He who raised up confessors and witnesses in the Middle Ages, raised up reformers in the Sixteenth Century, lion-like men, to undertake this mighty enterprise and accomplish this glorious work. We wish to invite your special attention to the fact that the convictions of the Reformers with reference to the character of the Papal Church, and the duty of separation from it, were largely derived from their study and interpretation of the prophetic Scriptures. To the Reformers, Rome was the ‘Babylon’ of the Apocalypse, and the Papal pontiff the predicted ‘Man of Sin.’ Separation from the Church of Rome and from its pontifical head, was regarded by them as a sacred duty. They urged on all Christian persons within the Church of Rome, the Apocalyptic command, ‘Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.’ To them separation from Rome was not separation from Christ, but from Antichrist. This was the principle upon which they began and prosecuted the work of the Reformation, the principle which directed and supported, and rendered them invincible” (H. G. Guinness).

Reformers Saw Man of Sin in Prophecy

In the fall of 1520 Luther printed a treatise on the Babylonish Captivity of the Church. In this treatise Luther called the Papacy “the kingdom of Babylon.” A little later he boldly denominated the Papacy the “Man of Sin” (2 Thessalonians 2), and exhorted all Christian princes to shake off his usurpations. In another publication he says: “When Daniel saw the terrible wild beast which had ten horns, which, by the consent of all is the Roman Empire, he also beheld another small horn come up in the middle of them. This is the Papal power, which rose up in the middle of the Roman Empire.”

Philip Melancthon, a man of wonderful ability and application, a companion of Luther, composed the celebrated Confession of Augsburg in 1530. As this confession was to be read publicly to the Roman Catholic Emperor, Charles V, in the presence of princes and Roman Catholic dignitaries, Melancthon sought to avoid arousing the anger of the Roman Catholic Church, and for this reason toned it down. Luther chided Melancthon for this, and said: “‘Satan sees clearly that your Apology has passed lightly over the articles of purgatory, the worship of saints, and, above all, of the Pope and of Antichrist.’” Referring to the Second Thessalonian epistle later on, however, Melancthon waxed bold, and said in another treatise, “‘Wherefore I affirm that no heresy hath arisen, nor indeed shall be with which these descriptions of Paul can more truly and certainly accord and agree, than to this Papal kingdom.’”

John Calvin, in the conclusion of a letter to the emperor, Charles V, said: “‘I deny that See to be apostolical wherein nought is seen but a shocking apostasy; I deny him to be the vicar of Christ, who in furiously persecuting the Gospel, demonstrates by his conduct that he is the Antichrist.’”

William Tyndale, who first translated the New Testament from Greek into English, and who suffered martyrdom on account of his faithful testimony for his Master, in his exposition of 1 John 2:18, spoke on this subject: “‘Though the Bishop of Rome and his sects give Christ these names [His rightful names], yet, in that they rob him of the effect, and take the signification of his names unto themselves, and make of him but a hypocrite, as they themselves be, they be the right Antichrists, and deny both Father and Son; for they deny the witness that the Father bore unto His Son, and deprive the Son of all the power and glory that the Father gave him.’”

Indeed, all the other English Reformers, including Latimer, Ridley, Cranmer, Bradford, and Jewell, gave testimony to the fact that the great Romish system was the anti-Christian apostasy foretold by Daniel, St. Paul, and St. John; likewise later on did John Knox of Scotland. Latimer’s words to this effect are: “‘Yea what fellowship hath Christ with Antichrist? therefore it is not lawful to bear the yoke with Papists. Come from among them, and separate yourselves from them, saith the Lord.’”

Ridley gave this testimony: “‘The See of Rome is the seat of Satan, and the bishop of the same, that maintaineth the abominations thereof — is Antichrist himself indeed; and for the same causes this See at this day, is the same that St. John calls in his Revelation, Babylon and spiritual Sodom and Egypt, the mother of fornications and abominations upon earth.’”

True Christ of Prophecy Contrasted

Of all the Reformers, none gave testimony more clearly than Jewell. In a commentary on Thessalonians he proves the Pope of Rome to be the “Man of Sin,” the Antichrist. We quote a few sentences from this exposition:

“Some say that he [Antichrist] should be a Jew of the tribe of Dan; some that he should be born in Babylon … some that Nero was Antichrist; some that he should be born of a friar and a nun; some that he should continue but three years and a half. These tales have been craftily devised to beguile our eyes, that whilst we think upon these guesses, and so occupy ourselves in beholding a shadow, or probable conjecture of Antichrist, he which is Antichrist indeed may unawares deceive us.

“He will come in the name of Christ, yet will he do all things against Christ, and under pretense and color of serving Christ; he shall devour the sheep and people of Christ; he shall deface whatsoever Christ hath taught; he shall quench that fire which Christ hath kindled; those plants which Christ hath planted he shall root up; he shall undermine that house which Christ hath built; he shall be contrary to Christ, his faith contrary to the faith of Christ, and his life contrary to the life of Christ.

“Christ was humble and lowly. The Prophet, in his own person, speaks of Him, Psalms 22: ‘I am a worm, and not a man; a shame of men, and the contempt of the people.’ And the Apostle saith, Philippians 2: ‘He humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.’ Behold his parents, his birth, his cradle; behold his life, his disciples, his doctrine, and his death; all were witnesses unto his humility. He saith of himself, ‘The Son of Man hath not where to rest his head’; and to his disciples he saith, ‘The kings of the Gentiles reign over them, and they that bear rule over them are called gracious lords; but ye shall not be so.’ And again, ‘Learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly of heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls.’

“Now, on the other part, take view of Antichrist. Behold his birth, his place, his chair, his estate, his doctrine, his disciples; and all his life you shall see nothing but pomp and glory. He is proud in life, proud in doctrine, proud in word, and proud in deeds; he is like Lucifer, and sets himself above his brethren, and over nations and kingdoms.

“He makes every knee to bow down to him and worship him; he makes kings to bring him water, to carry his train, to hold his cup, to bear his dish, to lead his bridle, and to hold his stirrup; he claims power over heaven and earth; he saith he is lord over all the world, the lord of lords, and king of kings; that his authority reaches up into heaven and down into hell; that he can command the angels of God; that he condemns whom he will condemn; that he makes saints at his pleasure; that whatsoever he blesses is blessed, and that whatsoever he curses is cursed.

“He sells merits, the forgiveness of sins, the sacrifice for the quick and the dead; he makes merchandise of the souls of men; he lays filthy hands upon the Lord’s anointed; he removes kings and deposes the states and princes of the world. This is Antichrist; this is his power. Thus shall he work and make himself. So shall he sit in the temple of God. The people shall wonder at him, and shall have him in reverence; they shall say, Who is like unto the beast? Who is so wise, so mighty, so godly, so virtuous, so holy, so like unto God? So intolerable and monstrous shall be his pride.”

Cranmer, who when sorely tried by his persecutors recanted, but later repented, when brought to the scaffold to be burnt, said: “Forasmuch as my hand offended, writing contrary to my heart, my hand shall first be punished therefor; for may I come to the fire, it shall first be burned; and as for the Pope, I refuse him as Christ’s enemy, and Antichrist, with all his false doctrines.”

When the fire was kindled and began to burn near him, he stretched out his arm and put his right hand into the fire, holding it there immovable, his eyes being lifted to heaven and often repeating the words: “This hand hath offended; O this unworthy right hand!” And finally, as the flame enclosed around him, he said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” and died.

John Bradford when led to the stake, took a fagot in his hand, kissing it; and then standing by the stake, with both hands uplifted to heaven, he cried, “O England, England! repent thee of thy sins; repent thee of thy sins; beware of idolatry; beware of false Antichrists; take heed they do not deceive thee.”

All of these saints of God sought to expose the errors and abominations and usurpations of Romanism, and called upon their fellow-Christians to come out of this false system. These men were the successors of those mentioned as the faithful ones of “Thyatira,” and the “few names even in Sardis” who had not defiled their garments (Revelation 2 and 3).

It will be seen, therefore, that in the beginning of the Sixteenth Century it became evident to some of the Lord’s saints, chiefly through an understanding obtained of the visions of the Prophet Daniel and of St. John, and also the Second Thessalonian epistle of the Apostle Paul, describing this great corruption of Christianity, that reform was impossible, and a loud cry went forth for God’s saints to separate themselves from this corrupt and idolatrous Church. This warning cry continued to be heard and heeded to a greater or less extent until the close of the Eighteenth Century, at which time the Papacy, as we have seen in other visions, suffered the greatest humiliation it had ever experienced up to that time. This was at the hands of Napoleon; and since then the Papacy has become more and more humiliated, by being shorn of its landed estates as well as of its power and influence by other rulers. Thus was fulfilled the prediction of the gradual consumption of the Mother system’s power and influence, foretold by the Prophet Daniel and by St. Paul, as well as by St. John.

We are not, of course, to understand that all who engaged in this movement were of the Lord’s “little flock” of consecrated ones, nor that all who came out of the Romish Church during this period were of the “little flock” class. On the contrary, those who were truly the Lord’s constituted the few. In this connection it is well to keep in mind that it was during the period following the Sixteenth Century that the Protestant sects were organized; thus preparing the way for the “image” of Papacy, the Protestant Federation to be formed, and for the rejection of the Protestant image also. This necessitated a call out of the daughter systems of the great harlot. That which now alone remains to be fulfilled of this Revelation vision is the complete destruction of these systems, symbolized by the mother and daughters.

“This chapter [Revelation 18] may be regarded as a still further explanatory episode, designed to show the effect of pouring out the seventh vial (chapter 16:17-21) on the formidable anti-Christian power so often referred to. The description [symbolism] in this chapter is that of a rich merchant-city reduced to desolation, and is but carrying out the general idea under a different form.”

This judgment seems to refer, not to the followers of Papacy, but rather to the great hierarchy itself; that is, the symbol discriminates between the city and its inhabitants. This would signify that in the fulfillment there is a distinction between the hierarchy of the Church and its members. What the walls and dwellings of a material city are to the people whom they protect and shelter, the hierarchy of a Church is to the members who place themselves under its authority.

“The symbol is that of a literal city like Babylon, of palaces and dwellings, of merchants and artisans, of merchandise and luxury, having a sea and land, and sustaining relations to civil rulers. [That to which the symbolic city refers is] an analogous structure of human beings, sustaining a relation of authority and supremacy towards vast multitudes of fellow-beings, resembling that of a city of walls and edifices, towards the population that is sheltered within it. It is an organized body of men, therefore, or an assemblage of organizations that exercise official influence and dominion over a community of communities. It is not a political body, inasmuch as it is distinguished from the kings and great men of the earth. It is therefore ecclesiastical, and is the organized body of the rulers and teachers of the nationalized Church, not the whole body of the Church itself; no more than the walls and edifices of a city are the population that inhabit it. It is that vast hierarchy of rulers and teachers whose authority and sway overshadow the unofficial multitude of the Church, as the walls and dwellings of a city invest and shelter the inhabitants that reside in it.”

The words, “Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works,” etc., are not addressed to the Lord’s true followers, but rather to the agencies that will be used to destroy this great harlot system.

“Her punishment is to be a wholly different event from her fall, and is speedily to follow that catastrophe, and is to be inflicted by the hand of men; it is to be the work of the multitude in place of the rulers, as is shown by the regrets of the kings and nobility at her destruction. These retributions are to overtake her suddenly. Her ‘plagues shall come upon her in a day, death and mourning and famine, and she shall be burned with [symbolic] fire’” (D. N. Lord).

In an introduction to an exposition of the different visions portraying this anti-Christian system, its fulfillment in past history is noted by Mr. Russell:

“We hope to prove, to the satisfaction of every conscientious reader, that this great apostasy or falling away mentioned by Paul has come, and that this Man of Sin has been developed, has sat ‘in the temple of God’ (the real not the typical), has fulfilled all the predictions of the Apostles and Prophets concerning his character, work, etc., has been revealed, and now, since 1799 AD, is being consumed by the spirit of the Lord’s mouth (the truth), and will be utterly destroyed during this day of the Lord’s wrath and revelation with flaming fire of retribution, already beginning. …

“The book of Revelation, too, is in large part a detailed symbolic prophecy concerning this same Antichrist.”

It would seem from the words, “She saith in her heart, I sit a queen and shall see no sorrow,” that the overthrow of the great Papal system will be at a time when she will be loud in her boastful claims to be the one true Church of Christ. The following from a Roman Catholic journal of a few years ago is a sample of its present claims:

“The Papacy will regain its temporal sovereignty, because it is useful and convenient to the Church. It gives the head executive of the Church a fuller liberty and a fuller sway. The Pope can be no king’s subject long. It is not in keeping with the Divine office to be so. It cramps him and narrows his influence for good. Europe has acknowledged this influence, and will be forced to bow to it in greater times of need than this. Social upheavals, and the red hand of anarchy, will yet crown Leo or his successor with the reality of power which the third circle symbolizes, and which was once recognized universally.”

“The Papal dominion (and much of the abject reverence of the people for ecclesiasticism in general), as already shown, was broken down at the beginning of the Time of the End — 1799; and, though the subsequent process of consumption has been slow, and there have been occasional signs of apparent recovery, which never seemed more flattering than at present, the assurance of Papacy’s final destruction is positive, and its death-struggle will be violent. First, however, she must attain more of her old-time prestige, which will be shared with a confederated association of her daughters. Together they will be lifted up, that together they may be violently thrown down.” (C. T. Russell)

The Crisis of the Near Future

“As we call to mind the long train of evils by which Babylon has oppressed and worn out the saints of the Most High (the true Zion), and how it is written that God will avenge His own elect, and that speedily; that, according to their deeds, He will repay recompense to His enemies; that He will render unto Babylon a recompense (Luke 18:7,8, Isaiah 59:18, Jeremiah 51:6), we begin to realize that some fearful calamity awaits her. The horrible decrees of Papacy — the reproach and reward of which Protestantism also is incurring by her present compromising association with her — for the burning, butchering, banishing, imprisoning, and torturing of the saints in every conceivable way, executed with such fiendish cruelty in the days of her power by the arm of the state, whose power she demanded and received, await the full measure of just retribution; for she is to receive ‘double for all her sins.’ …

“That the punishment of Babylon will be great is assured. It is written prophetically that, ‘Great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath.’ ‘And He hath avenged the blood of His servants at her hand.’ ‘Her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. Reward her, even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works. In the cup which she hath filled, fill to her double. How much she hath glorified herself and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her; for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.’ (Revelation 16:19, 19:2, 18:5-7). While the broadest application of this language is, of course, to Papacy, it also involves all who are in any degree in confederation or sympathy with her [and we may add, all who partake of her spirit of boastful claims, etc. Let him that readeth understand!] All such will be sharers in her plagues (Revelation 18:4). Although the kings of the earth have hated the harlot and cast her off (Revelation 17:16), still she says, ‘I sit a queen and am no widow,’ loudly boasts of her right to rule the nations, and claims that her former power will soon be regained” (C. T. Russell).

“ ‘I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.’ ” On this passage Mr. Barnes remarks: “This is indicative of a state where there was nothing feared, notwithstanding all the indications which existed of approaching calamity. All this indicates security and self-confidence. In this state we may expect to find Papal Rome, even when its last judgments are about to come upon it; in this state it has usually been; in this state it is now, notwithstanding all the indications that are abroad in the world that its power is waning [through the plagues that have come to her] and that the period of its fall [destruction] approaches.”

While this vision, as applied to the Romish Church hierarchy, the mother system, is clearly seen at the present time by the Lord’s consecrated who have been served with the present Truth, and indeed has been seen by many for centuries, the symbol undoubtedly describes a much wider, a more extensive enlightenment concerning the false claims, etc., of this degenerate system. Indeed, as prophecy seems to teach that the final overthrow of this false system will be accomplished by the rise of the masses against it, this would require that many of its now ignorant, earnest supporters would become enlightened concerning its false and blasphemous claims. Possibly therefore there may be a more conspicuous movement than has yet taken place, which will have to do with a more extensive uncovering of the true character of this great religious hierarchy, the Mother of Harlots.

It is not necessary to suppose that such enlightening influences would proceed altogether or to the greatest extent from the Lord’s consecrated; no more than that the liberation of the nations from Papacy’s yoke in the great Reformation of the Sixteenth Century was accomplished altogether through the efforts of the Lord’s consecrated of those times. The Lord’s people will doubtless continue to proclaim the Glad Tidings of deliverance through the Kingdom even unto the end, or until their work in this particular is stopped, which may be by the great troubles that will come in connection with the overthrow of the present order.

While the call out of the mother system to some slight extent continues, and occasionally one hears the call and obeys it, the call out of the daughter systems is the special one during the harvest period, and continues to grow louder as we approach the time of judgment. It must be ever kept in mind that the call is to come to the Lord Himself, and not into other new religious organizations. All such religious organizations will share to a greater or less extent, in proportion to their guilt, in the judgment punishments in which Babylon is destroyed. Let the following by Mr. Russell be carefully considered:

“Since it is the Lord who calls His people out of Babylon [including its different precincts], we cannot doubt that, whatever may be His agencies for giving the call, all truly His people will hear it; and not only will their obedience be tested by the call, but also their love of Babylon and affinity for her errors will be tested. If they approve her doctrines, methods, etc., so as to be loath to leave her, they will prove themselves unworthy of present Truth, and deserving of her coming plagues. But the words of the call indicate that God’s true people in Babylon are not to be considered as implicated in her sins of worldliness and ignoring of Divine Truth, up to the time they shall learn that Babylon is fallen — cast off. Then if they continue in her, they are esteemed as being of her, in the sense of approving her wrong deeds and doctrines, past and present, and shall be counted as partakers of her sins, and therefore meriting a share of their punishment, the plagues coming upon her (see Revelation 18:4).”

In another of his expositions the same writer observes that:

“Though coming out of Babylon [Rome and her daughters] is one step, and a long one, in the direction of complete overcoming, it is by no means the last one; and we should be careful to guard against a disposition to rest after every advance step of the way.

“ ‘Ne’er think the victory won,
Nor once at ease sit down:
Thine arduous work will not be done
Till thou hast gained thy crown.’ ”

“The step out of Babylon has generally been preceded by other steps of obedience, which in turn have exercised and strengthened the character for subsequent conflicts and victories. And it will be followed by various other tests and opportunities for overcoming, in view of which Paul (Galatians 5:1) wrote, ‘Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with a yoke of bondage.’ Every one who comes to realize the liberty of the sons of God and full freedom from Babylon’s bondage should expect to meet other attempts of the great Adversary to bring him into other bondages, or to stumble him. The Lord permits these severe testings, that the class now sought may be manifested, and prepared for His service in the Kingdom of glory.

“For those who would obey this command to come out of Babylon, there is but one place of refuge; and that is, not in a new sect and bondage, but in ‘The secret place of the Most High’ — the place or condition of entire consecration, typified by the most holy of the tabernacle and temple.”

We would merely add to the above, “He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear!”

Kings and Merchants of Earth Mourn Over Her

“And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come” (verses 9,10).

These kings or governments here mentioned are of course the ones that have succeeded those who in the Dark Ages supported this great Mother of Harlots; and in view of the fact that in the great Reformation, and especially since 1799, until quite recently, they have manifested a hatred toward her, by robbing her of her power and influence, the following deductions bearing on future events seem indeed reasonable:

(1) That another change in the attitude of these governments toward Papacy is yet to come — one that will be favorable toward her. Indeed, we see this already fulfilling to a considerable extent.

(2) That these governments will in considerable measure survive her punishment — in fact, will witness and lament over it.

(3) That through fear these governments will stand as it were at a distance, leaving the executors of the Divine wrath to fulfill their commission without obstructing them. This shows that this final plague of God’s wrath will be accomplished by the lawless masses, as is taught in other Scriptures, of whom the governments at the time will stand in fear. The destruction of the last phase of the “beast”¹ and of the “false prophet,” is seen as a later event (Revelation 19:20).

“And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more” (verse 11).

In order to understand this feature of the vision let us keep clearly in mind that the symbolism is that of a great commercial city, and the merchants are those who have engaged in commercial intercourse with this city. The enumeration of the articles of merchandise in the verses that follow seems to have been given for the purpose of filling up the symbolism, as also the statement regarding the cessation of this traffic; thus setting forth the utter desolation that comes to great Babylon. The merchants, as we have already explained, symbolize the nobles and dignitaries of this system, who have held her patronage and benefices. These, and others who have grown rich or have obtained a livelihood in serving the peoples by holding the cup containing her idolatrous rites, ceremonies, etc., will witness the overthrow of this great religious hierarchy without being able to interfere or intercept it. These also are to lament over her.

“Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her” (verse 20).

The term heaven as employed here, would seem to symbolize the true heavenly, righteous, spiritual class — those who are right with God, who are true co-workers together with Him and who recognize the righteousness of His cause; and this spiritual class is made up of such as those mentioned in the text — “ye holy apostles and prophets.” “There is a strong contrast between this language and that which precedes. Kings, merchants, and seamen, who had been countenanced and sustained by her in the indulgence of corrupt passions, or who had been enriched by traffic with her, would have occasion to mourn. But not so they who had been persecuted by her. Not so the Church of the redeemed. Not so heaven itself. The great oppressor of the Church, and the corrupter of the world, was now destroyed; the grand hindrance to the spread of the Gospel was now removed, and all the holy in heaven and on earth would have occasion to rejoice. This is not the language of vengeance, but it is the language of exultation and rejoicing in view of the fact that the cause of truth might now spread without hindrance through the earth.”

(1) The last phase of this Apocalyptic “beast,” as we have seen, is the beast without a head — the Romish system, both civil and ecclesiastical, in a state of anarchy.

In the next verse (21), reminding us of the prophetic action that Jeremiah instructed Seraiah to perform when he came to literal Babylon and read the prophecies of Jeremiah concerning the fall of that city (Jeremiah 51:60-64), St. John saw a mighty angel take up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, “Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.” “Interpretation is hardly needed in all this. The detail of judgment seems intended rather to fix the attention and give us serious consideration of what God judges at last in this unsparing way. Surely it is needed now, when Christian men are being taken with the wiles of one who in a day of conflict and uncertainty can hold out to them a rest which is not Christ’s rest; who in the midst of defection from the faith can be the champion of orthodoxy while shutting up the word of life from men; who can be all things to all men, not to save, but to destroy them; at such a time, how great a need is there for pondering her doom as the word of prophecy declares it, and the joy of heaven over the downfall of the sorceress at last.”

The next verses (22–24), are designed to portray her complete desolation, indeed her destruction. Not only shall her traffic, her merchandise cease, but there shall be no sign of life in her at all; no pleasant sound of music, no mechanic’s craft, no light of lamp, no voice of bridegroom and of bride — all of which is designed to teach that her destruction is to be final and complete. As a millstone when thrown into the depths of the sea sinks forever from the sight of men, so she is to be swept from the earth and leave not a trace of her greatness or mischievous dominion; because she is a sorceress, whose whole agency has been to seduce men from God; and a murderess who has shed the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain in the empire for the Word of God during her sway.

“What a tremendous doom thus awaits these apostate powers! What a demonstration it is to form, that God rejects them! What a refutation of their impious pretenses that they are His ministers, that they are exclusively invested with authority to teach His will, and that they enjoy His sanction in their usurpations, their idolatries, their blasphemies, their persecution of His worshipers! And what an illustrious vindication of the witnesses and martyrs who resisted alike their seductions, and their vengeance, and maintained allegiance to the King of kings!” (D. N. Lord).