Tag: Babylon the great

After Pentecost | Friday 18 Oct 2024: Psalm 91:14-16; Isaiah 47:1-9; Revelation 17:1-18 ~ Godless nations will be judged.

After Pentecost | Friday 18 Oct 2024

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

O God, our refuge and strength,
true source of all godliness:
Graciously hear the devout prayers of your Church,
and grant that those things which we ask faithfully,
we may obtain effectually;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

“Come, I will show you the judgment
of that notorious prostitute
who sits on raging waters.”
(Revelation 17:1)

__________

From Psalms: Psalm 91:14-16 // Robbie Seay Band

Because he holds fast to me in love,
I will deliver him; I will protect him,
because he knows my name.

When he calls to me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.

With long life I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.

__________

OT Reading: Isaiah 47:1-9 (GW)

Babylon’s Fall

47:1 Go, sit in the dirt,
virgin princess of Babylon!
Sit on the ground, not on a throne,
princess of the Babylonians!
You will no longer be called soft and delicate.
Take millstones and grind flour.
Remove your veil.
Take off your skirt.
Uncover your legs, and cross the river.
People will see you naked.
People will see your shame.
I will take revenge.
I won’t spare anyone.

Our defender is the Holy One of Israel.
His name is the Lord of Armies.

Go into the dark, and sit in silence,
princess of the Babylonians!
You will no longer be called the queen of kingdoms.
I was angry with my people.
I dishonored those who belong to me.
I put them under your control.
You showed them no mercy.
You placed a heavy burden on old people.
You said, “I will always be a queen.”
You didn’t carefully consider these things
or keep in mind how they would end.

Now then, listen to this, you lover of pleasure.
You live securely and say to yourself,
“I’m the only one, and there’s no one else.
I won’t live as a widow.
I won’t suffer the loss of children.”
In one day both of these will happen to you instantly:
the loss of your children and your husband.
All this will happen to you in spite of
your evil magic and your many spells.

__________

Rivers Of Babylon – Boney M / Young Pilgrim Music

__________

NT Reading: Revelation 17:1-18 (GW) 

Babylon the Great

17:1 One of the seven angels who held the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of that notorious prostitute who sits on raging waters. The kings of the earth had sex with her, and those living on earth became drunk on the wine of her sexual sins.” Then the angel carried me by his power into the wilderness.

I saw a woman sitting on a bright red beast covered with insulting names. It had seven heads and ten horns. The woman wore purple clothes, bright red clothes, gold jewelry, gems, and pearls. In her hand she was holding a gold cup filled with detestable and evil things from her sexual sins. A name was written on her forehead. The name was Mystery: Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes and Detestable Things of the Earth. I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people and of those who testify about Jesus. I was very surprised when I saw her.

The angel asked me, “Why are you surprised? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and the beast with the seven heads and the ten horns that carries her.

“You saw the beast which once was, is no longer, and will come from the bottomless pit and go to its destruction. Those living on earth, whose names were not written in the Book of Life when the world was created, will be surprised when they see the beast because it was, is no longer, and will come again.

“In this situation a wise mind is needed. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is sitting. They are also seven kings. Five of them have fallen, one is ruling now, and the other has not yet come. When he comes, he must remain for a little while. The beast that was and is no longer is the eighth king. It belongs with the seven kings and goes to its destruction.

“The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet started to rule. They will receive authority to rule as kings with the beast for one hour. They have one purpose—to give their power and authority to the beast. They will go to war against the lamb. The lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. Those who are called, chosen, and faithful are with him.”

The angel also said to me, “The waters you saw, on which the prostitute is sitting, are people, crowds, nations, and languages. The ten horns and the beast you saw will hate the prostitute. They will leave her abandoned and naked. They will eat her flesh and burn her up in a fire. God has made them do what he wants them to do. So they will give their kingdom to the beast until God’s words are carried out. The woman you saw is the important city which dominates the kings of the earth.”

__________

Hallelujah (Babylon Has Fallen) – David & Nicole Binion (Live)

__________

Prayer: ACNA | BCP2019

O God, you made us in your own image, and you have redeemed us through your Son Jesus Christ: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love; and work through our struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sovereign Lord: We pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

+ Do what only you can do to make your faithful people the blessing promised to every family on earth.

+ Protect them from the assaults of the evil one, coming  from every direction and in every form.

+ Grant your heavenly wisdom to Israel’s leadership; give them the courage to do what’s right in your sight.

+ Comfort all those who mourn the loss of loved ones; deliver the hostages from captivity and restore their souls.

+ Destroy every stronghold and every expression of the evil death cult terrorizing the Middle East.

+ Protect the Israel Defense Forces and every soldier engaged in their mission to root out this evil.

+ Strengthen the Messianic communities; use them to restore your faithful people to their proper place in your kingdom.

+ Unify your faithful people around your promise to Abraham – to bless every family on earth through them.

+ Intervene in the Middle East in ways that only you can; protect the innocent and punish the guilty, that all may live in peace.

We ask in Jesus’ name.

O God, our heavenly Father, you manifested your love by sending your only-begotten Son into the world, that all might live through him: Pour out your Spirit on your Church, that we may fulfill his command to preach the Gospel to all people. Send forth laborers into your harvest; defend them in all dangers and temptations; and hasten the time when the fullness of the Gentiles shall be gathered in, and faithful Israel shall be saved; through your Son  Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Closing: FaithandWorship.com | John Birch

The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.

+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Morning Prayer: 06 Nov – Revelation 17:1-6 ~ Babylon the harlot

Morning Prayer

+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening sentences

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.

I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.

Revelation 17:1-6 (ESV) – to be read aloud

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”

The Woman on the Beast: angel shows St. John's vision of the great Harlot seated on a seven-headed monster, from the Lambeth Apocalypse, c.1260
The Woman on the Beast: angel shows St. John a vision of the great Harlot seated on a seven-headed monster, from the Lambeth Apocalypse, c.1260

And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery:

“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”

And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

When I saw her, I marveled greatly.

Reflection

THE THIRD VISION (17:1-21:8)

The Prostitute and the Scarlet Beast(17:1-18)

The vision (17:1-6)

Babylon (17:1-2)

Here the harlot is Babylon, the symbol of human civilization with all its pomp and circumstance organized in opposition to God (vs. 18)…. Babylon became the personification of wickedness, and John has taken over the Old Testament symbolism and used Babylon to represent the final manifestation of the total history of godless nations. The city had a historical manifestation in first-century Rome, but the full significance of the wicked city is eschatological… seducing all the world to worship that which is not God…. She seduces the nations to share her ungodly character. They have joined in her sins against God. (Ladd, p.221-2)

The blasphemous beast (17:3)

Blasphemy in this context refers to the self-deification of the Antichrist and his demand for the worship of his subjects. His blasphemies… consist of the derogation of deity by his own claim to self-deification. (Ladd, p. 223)

The abomination of desolation (Mt 24:15)

The phrase that describes the Antichrist in our Lord’s Olivet Discourse is literally, the abomination of desolation, i.e., the abomination that brings desolation. The main thought is that with the promise of wealth and luxury, the woman entices men away from the worship of God. (Ladd, p. 224)

Mother of harlots (17:5-6)

Babylon is the “mother of harlots.” She was not satisfied herself alone to entice men away from God; she insisted that her daughters join her in her nefarious and blasphemous designs. Along with her blasphemous harlotry she gave birth to all sorts of abominations, which filled the earth. (Ladd, p..224)

As the capital of the beast, she will be the city most noted for the persecution and martyrdom of the saints. Nothing as far-reaching as this had yet befallen the Christian church…. John looks for a day when the chief city of the beast will be infamous for her persecution of the saints primarily on religious grounds…. John is thinking of eschatological Babylon. (Ladd, p.225)

__________

__________

Canticle

Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________

Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.

This will not be a Bible Study per se: we will not attempt to unravel the “mysteries” of Revelation… that is far beyond our abilities and is not our interest here. However, so as not to get too far afield, we will rely on three study resources: primary – A Commentary on the Revelation of John (George Elton Ladd); supplemental Revelation (Leon Morris) and  The Book of Revelation (Robert H. Mounce).

The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.

Morning Prayer: 05 Nov – Revelation 17:1-6 ~ the great prostitute

Morning Prayer

+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening sentences

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.

I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.

Revelation 17:1-6 (ESV) – to be read aloud

Whore of Babylon Russian , ca. 1800 Russian engraving
Whore of Babylon
Russian , ca. 1800
Russian engraving

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”

And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery:

“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”

And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

When I saw her, I marveled greatly.

Reflection

THE THIRD VISION (17:1-21:8)

The Prostitute and the Scarlet Beast (17:1-18)

The vision in summary (17:1-6)

John now views the punishment to be meted out to the notorious prostitute with whom the kings of the earth have committed adultery and whose adulteries have intoxicated the inhabitants of the earth (vv 1-2). Taken into the desert by the Spirit, John sees a prostitute astride a scarlet, seven-headed beast (vv 3-6). In her hand is a golden cup filled with the filth of her adulteries, and on her forehead she bears the title “Mother of Prostitutes.” Her ultimate sin is that she has gorged herself on the blood fo God’s people. She is the one responsible for the suffering and bloodshed brought upon the struggling church. (Mounce, p.307)
__________

The Day of His Grace Is Past by Barney E Warren, 1911

image

O soul, be afraid, thou shalt reckon with God,
And pass ’neath the scourge of His wrathful rod;
Thy heart torn with anguish shall hear at the last,
“The day of His grace is past.”

Refrain:
The day of His grace is past,
The day of His grace is past;
How sad when He’ll say, “Depart ye for aye,”
When the day of His grace is past.

O soul, be afraid, in thy sins thou shalt die
If Christ thou reject while He’s passing by;
Thy doom shall be sealed at the trumpet’s loud blast,
When the day of His grace is past.

O soul, be afraid, for the judgment shall come,
And thou shalt be turned from that blissful home;
Wilt thou be contented with that which thou hast
When the day of His grace is past?

O soul, be afraid, in His presence thou art,
Dismayed thou shalt stand when Christ says depart,
With demons in torment fore’er to be cast,
When the day of His grace is past.
__________

Canticle

Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________

Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.

This will not be a Bible Study per se: we will not attempt to unravel the “mysteries” of Revelation… that is far beyond our abilities and is not our interest here. However, so as not to get too far afield, we will rely on three study resources: primary – A Commentary on the Revelation of John (George Elton Ladd); supplemental Revelation (Leon Morris) and  The Book of Revelation (Robert H. Mounce).

The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.

Morning Prayer: 04 Nov – Revelation 16:17-21 ~ plague 7 / utter destruction

Morning Prayer

+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening sentences

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.

I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.

Revelation 16:17-21 (ESV) – to be read aloud

The destruction of Babylon The Nuremberg Chronicle, written in Latin by Hartmann Schedel and one of the best documented early printed books appearing in 1493.
The destruction of Babylon
The Nuremberg Chronicle, written in Latin by Hartmann Schedel and one of the best documented early printed books appearing in 1493.

The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.

Reflection

THE SECOND VISION (4:1-16:21)

The Seven Last Plagues (15:1-16:21)

Plagues poured out (16:1-21)

Plague 7 (16:17-21)

The climax [of God’s wrath] comes with the seventh bowl. This speaks of utter destruction. It does not say that all people will be killed; they must still face Almighty God for judgement. But this bowl does mean the complete fragmentation of earthly life. (Morris, p. 194)

The seventh bowl brings the judgement of God upon Babylon, the seat of the beast’s power. The detailed statement of the judgement and fall of Babylon follows in the next two chapters (17-18). (Ladd, p. 217)

It is done (16:17-19)

The seven plagues (15:1) have run their course and the human race stands on the threshold of eternity. The loud voice is the voice of God. (Mounce, p. 303)

While the present vision sees the utter ruin of the city by an earthquake [and the nations which have given their support to the beast], all that this destruction means is described in different terms in the two chapters that follow. (Ladd, p. 218)

The cup of God’s wrath (16:19)

“God remembered great Babylon.” These are poignant words. During the short period of the reign of the Antichrist it will seem as though God has forgotten his people. Evil will seem to be the victor; no deliverance is in sight. But God does not forget. God remembers, and he will remember to give the mighty enemy of his people her just due. (Ladd, p. 218)

No longer does the kindness and patience of God (intended to lead people to repentance, Rom 2:4) restrain his righteous indignation against all who have by their own free will decided irrevocably for evil. If God were not to punish unrighteousness, the concept of a moral universe would have to be discarded. (Mounce, p. 304)
__________


__________

Canticle

Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________

Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.

This will not be a Bible Study per se: we will not attempt to unravel the “mysteries” of Revelation… that is far beyond our abilities and is not our interest here. However, so as not to get too far afield, we will rely on three study resources: primary – A Commentary on the Revelation of John (George Elton Ladd); supplemental Revelation (Leon Morris) and  The Book of Revelation (Robert H. Mounce).

The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.