Revelation 17, we pick up where we left off a few weeks ago, and there's a mention here, and we'll jump right in. I'm going to read the entirety. of the chapter, and there's a lot to cover. In chapter 17 and chapter 18, they go together. And so if I don't finish all that's there today for chapter 17, we'll pick it up, Lord willing, next week and continue on because of this pause that takes place concerning the Revelation, as John's recording it, he steps away from what's happened, to rewind a minute, and give an account concerning this event. person known as the Great Whore of Babylon, here in chapter 17. The Bible begins in Revelation 17, verse 1, And there came one of the seven angels, which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither, I will show thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. So he carried me away in the spirit of the wilderness, and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet-colored beast full of the names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet color and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls and having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication. And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration, The angel said unto me, wherefore dost thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carrieth her which hath the seven heads and ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was and is not and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit and go into perdition. And they that dwell in the earth shall wonder whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is." Excuse me, verse 9. And here's the mind which hath wisdom, the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sitteth. And there are seven kings, five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come. And when he cometh, he must continue a short space. And the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth and is of the seventh, and goeth into perdition. The ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet, but receive powers, kings, one hour with the beast. These have one mind and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with the lamb, and the lamb shall overcome them, for he is Lord of Lord and King of kings. They that are with him are called and chosen and faithful. And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues, and the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast. These shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate, and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree. Father in heaven, Lord, we turn to you now in this preaching hour. God, I pray that you'd strengthen my voice, give me an unction, give me an unction, give me an unction, give me an unction, give me an unction, give me an unction, give me an unction. Lord, may you help us to understand the words of God. Give us wisdom concerning our purpose in these last days and may we depart from evil and draw nigh unto a holy God so that we can be found faithful in the day that you should call us home. We lift up your precious son's name. In Jesus Christ's name we do pray. Amen. In order for us to understand the placement of chapter 17 and chapter 18, in order for us to understand where this takes place in the order of the last days, we need to look over to chapter 19. And in the first two verses, we'll find these words, and after these things, I heard a people in heaven saying, Alleluia, salvation and glory and honor and power unto the Lord our God, for true and righteous are his judgments, for he hath judged the great whore which did corrupt the earth with her fornication and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. What is taking place in chapter 17 and chapter 18 is the, really chapter 17, is right at the beginning of the rapture. It is the things that are taking place as the rapture takes place. You'll see that in chapter 18. When we get there next week, the rapture takes place. The judgment begins. God sends forth judgment to this great whore the Bible speaks of, and she's going to face a great deal of wrath. Matter of fact, you'll look in chapter 18, and in verse number 4, and you'll find the rapture taking place where the Bible says that I heard another voice from heaven saying, come out of her my people that you be not partakers of her sins. And so this is the beginning of the seven-year tribulation period. The rapture takes place. God begins to judge this great whore. So we want to find out what this scripture is telling us. What's the purpose of letting us know who is this great whore that we call the great whore of Babylon? Verse five says, and upon her forehead was a name written, mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and the abominations of the earth. Who is this great whore? In chapter 17 of Revelation, we find the great whore's seat, her sin, and her separation. God takes a moment through the hand under the influence of the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit of God, moving the hand of John as he's And I'm entirely convinced that he has no comprehension, really, of what it is. He is just putting down this incredible thing, this vision that's been put in front of him so that he could record for us to be prepared in the last days. But this great whore is placed in such a position to let us know and to understand that at the last moments of our time on this earth as the church, as saved people, God is going to deal with the wickedness at hand. There is a seven-year tribulation period that the Bible makes clear to us is for two purposes. One, it is to make jealous Israel, to draw them back to him and to reveal in their blinded hearts, because their refusal of Jesus Christ the first time, it will reveal to them that Jesus Christ was, in fact, Messiah. And it's also to judge wickedness in this earth. Eternity is to judge sin and the rejection of Jesus Christ. But in that tribulation period, he's going to deal with evil and judgment of the wickedness that is prevailing throughout the land. And in all of that, we step into 17 and 18 to find out that there is one on the scene in the last days whom is so filled with evil and wickedness, is so vile that God has a very special judgment for her Now, you need to understand just how wicked and vile she is to be facing this double judgment, if you will. The Bible, matter of fact, as we just read there in, well, you'll see more of it as it plays out into chapter 18. He's going to give to her double what she's given to others. There's a judgment coming upon her that is more than she wants to be a part of. The Babylon, we see the words there in verse number five, Babylon the great. Babylon in the Bible, this woman of Babylon, is a picture of idolatry. Babylon represents a melting pot of people, ideas, and religion. But Babylon in Scripture is always a place of bondage. You need to understand who this woman is, this great whore of Babylon, as God has given her this description and title. She is one who is, of many people, represented in an idea of great idolatry, debauchery, and always in a place of bondage. Though she seems to sit, as we're going to see in just a moment, on top of the world, she is in greater bondage than any around her. So let's march through this quickly as we try to understand who is the great whore of this mystery, the great Babylon whore in the last days. Number one, I want you to see When we look at this great whore of Babylon, we have to look at her cup. Verse 2 through verse 6, the Bible says, Whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. So he carried me away in the spirit of the wilderness, and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet-colored beast full of the names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet color and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of the abominations and filthiness of her fornication. The Bible says in verse number six, And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I wandered with great admiration. concerning this cup, we find out that this woman who holds this cup has a cup that is desired. The Bible says there in verse number two, kings of the earth had been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. The cup that she carried was one that was desired of the entire world. What was it about this great whore of Babylon that she possessed something so much so that they would come, the kings of the earth, the most powerful men in their regions would come to sip of the wine of the abominations and the filthiness that was in her cup. We find out that this mystery woman is one that had a presentation that what she had was to be desired of all men. Interestingly enough, we'll, in just a few moments, be able to, we'll go back to Genesis and we'll find out that this same thing happened right in the beginning in Genesis chapter number three. But this woman has a cup, and it is a cup of great desire, one that causes the kings of the earth to come and to sip and have been made drunk from its content. Secondly, we find concerning her cup, It is a cup not only to be desired, but it is a cup that is destructive. Look at verse number four again. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet color and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication. The contents of the cup, We're filled up with abominations. And we'll take a deeper look at that in just a moment. But we realize that it's filthiness. There's fornication mentioned here. There is a idea of complete debauchery. And all the world wanted what she had. Dear friends, this morning I'm reminded of the condition of this country and the condition of our nation and even the rest of the world as evil is prevailing and waxing worse and worse. We find that the cup that she had is desired. We find it's destructive. Anything that's full of abomination and filthiness is going to lead to corruption, and soon it'll lead you to be a corpse. But we find next concerning her cup, it's a cup of desolation. And by the way, we see the resemblance of all sin in this picture. It is to be desired. It is certainly destructive. And if somebody were to stay in their sin, unrepentant toward God, they will soon find themselves much like this great whore of Babylon and found in verse number 16, and they will find themselves in desolation. Verse 16, in the 10 horns, which thou sawest upon the beast, thee shall hate the whore and shall make her desolate and naked and shall eat her flesh and burn her with fire. What she had in her cup led to the place of absolute desolation. Everything was empty. Everything that she had turns out to be, like Solomon said, vanity of vanities. Might I say, dear friend, as a warning to the church this morning, and to America, and to each individual, and to every home, though the world may look like it's got lots of glitz and glamour, if you go the way of the world, you'll soon find yourself empty and desolate, because what we need is more holiness, and what we need is the Word of God, and what we need in this last day is Jesus Christ to be our King and our Lord, sitting upon the throne of our hearts. This woman, this great whore of Babylon, as it's described, has a cup. And that cup, that golden cup, oh, it appears beautiful, but the contents are filled with poison. Be weary where you drink. Secondly, I want to show you this morning, as we consider who this great whore of Babylon is, we notice her cup, but secondly, we notice her captain. We find in verse 7 through verse number 11, her captain. And the angel said unto me, wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was and is not and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit and go into perdition. They that dwell in the earth shall wonder whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world when they behold the beast. that was, and is not, and yet is. And here is the mind which hath wisdom, the seven heads, or seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. And there are seven kings, five are fallen, one is, and the other is not yet come. And when he cometh, he must continue a short space. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth. and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition." We find out there is a captain to this woman. She is sitting upon this beast, and the beast is the one who's directing her. He is truly her captain. And much like all those who go astray, there is a captain that is leading them astray. Whether it's a politician, whether it's a music star or some celebrity, there's always something who's a captain of those who leave out of the house of God and head the wrong direction. We find concerning her captain, first of all, in verse number three, he carries her. Look at verse number three, the Bible says, so he carried me away in the spirit in the wilderness. That's John being carried by the angel. Here's what I want you to see. And I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet colored beast. This woman was not walking about on her own power. At first glance, it would appear that the great whore has it all and that she is very successful, but upon further inspection, we find that she obtained this appearance by deferring the burden, much like the possessions that you and I might gain through credit. She's gained all that she has from this beast. It almost seems romantic. Her Romeo carries her like a new bride carried over the threshold. He offers to make her life so enjoyable and to give her everything she ever wanted. But may I say, beware, her captain is the one carrying her. The great whore is carried about not by her own power, but by the beast. She lives in luxury because she allows someone else to do her work. We find out all about her luxuries there in verse number four, but she did not obtain these through hard work and determination, but rather because she sold her soul. Her captain provided all these things for her, for her worship. In this chapter, chapter 17, we find three times the mention of the place where this great whore sits. Three different times the Bible tells us of three different places where the great whore sits. In verse number one, you find out that the great whore sits upon many waters. In verse number three, the Bible says that she sits upon a beast. And in verse number nine, the Bible tells us that she sits on seven mountains. Her seat is in three places at once. As I studied and meditated upon this, God brought me to a place to unveil really all that's taking place here. And that was back in Matthew chapter 4. Instantly, I saw what happened here because Jesus went through the same thing as he was tempted of the devil in the wilderness. And when you get to Matthew 4 and verse number 8, the Bible says, and again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them. And saith unto them, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. As we read this passage, we find out that she sits high over all, it said there in Matthew 4, over the earth, over all their glory, and it's all on the premise of worshiping the devil. This great whore of Babylon has taken her seat at the feet of her captain, the beast. And she is going to be exalted. But we find out before the end of the chapter only but for a moment, because in verse number 16, as we've already seen, she will find her desolation. And can I warn you this morning, church, that that's how the devil always works. He'll paint you a great picture. He'll promise you many prosperities. All sin leads to the place where this person, this nation is demonstrated. The great whore of Babylon represents all those who go the way of worshiping the devil. She sits on the mountain, verse 9, the seven mountains upon which the woman sit. It's a representation of all the kingdoms of the earth. It's a representation. Who is this great whore we're beginning to dissect? And as we begin to look at it, we realize that this seven mountains is a representative of really two different things, I believe, and we'll look only at one of them today. That is the fact that it represents the entire world, seven continents. The seven mountains, the Bible says, in which the woman sit, they are representative, the seven heads are the seven mountains. It represents the kingdoms of the past. And all the world has been ruled by great countries, we'll call them, the word slips my mind, but those great kingdoms, those dominion people that pushed out the Roman Empire, for instance, the Persians, the Medes, the Babylonians, that represented taking over the entire world and bringing them all under subjection of their rule. They did so all on the back of the beast. The Bible tells us the definition in verse number 15 concerning those who sit upon the waters, and the Bible says, and he said, the waters which thou sawest, that's where the Horde sitteth, verse 15, are the peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues. In Matthew 4, he says, I'll give you all the kingdoms. He said, I'll give you all their glory. This woman that's mentioned in chapter 17, and we get a really clear description in chapter 18. of who she is, what she is, and what takes place to her in her desolation, mentioned in verse 16. But we find out that she has an influence over the entire world. She touches all seven continents. She has such a power that she is over all kinds of peoples and nations and tongues. And then we're reminded that she's called Babylon the Great. Again, in the beginning, I told you what Babylon represents in the Bible. A picture of idolatry, the great whore of Babylon is a place that is filled with idolatry. It represents Babylon in scriptures was a place, it was a melting pot. Romans imitated that later on, but it was a place where they gathered everybody together. If you remember the story in Daniel concerning Nebuchadnezzar coming in, he was the king of Babylon and he came in to destroy Jerusalem and he besieged them. And again, the place of bondage is what Babylon represents. And they went in and they took out all the choice young men. and it became a melting pot, and they took all those things together. Nebuchadnezzar, before it's all said and done, he'll go out and eat as an ox for seven years and have feathers like an eagle, but he comes back and he acknowledges God. In several places in the book of Daniel, we're given a description that he declares that the God in heaven is the one true God, and he's the one true God, and he's the one true God, and he's the one true God. Yet he holds to worshiping all these other things, holding on to idolatry, melting all religions together, but keeping everybody under the bondage of the beast. Nebuchadnezzar literally became a beast. And as we get to Revelation 17 and we begin to unwrap this, and some of it will not make sense until we finish chapter 18, but we begin to really see just how well the Bible begins to intertwine and overlay into how everything is tied together for one purpose, and it's all boiled down to show us that Jesus Christ is Lord. We find out her captain carries her and he has made her many promises and many have traded godliness, goodliness, excuse me, goodliness and good uses of their talents to enjoy the goods of this world just like this great whore of Babylon, but it's all just temporary. We know this because what's found in chapter 18. She traded out all that she had. The Bible tells us even here in chapter number 17, that she was, in verse number four, I mean, she was arrayed in purple and scarlet. She was decked in gold and precious. She was living a large life. But she's gonna trade all that for great desolation. And interestingly enough, we should take recognition of the fact that not only does Satan destroy her, But God destroys her. Satan destroys her in the immediate. God destroys us as He pours out His judgment on the great whore of Babylon. It's an eternal judgment for her. And might I say this morning, church, Christian, be weary of sin. No little sin shall go unchecked and be not repented of because sin will destroy you here on this earth. but it may cause somebody else, you're saved, you're going to heaven, but it may cause somebody in your life to push away and enter into eternal damnation all because you would not let go of that sin. We find her captain carries her. I'm afraid many are being carried away by adultery, idolatry, excuse me, and the love of this world. And they have no idea what is ahead because they are drunk. Drunk off fornication with this world, the child of God is to be sober, walking circumspectly according to the Word of God and not playing in the world's sin and distractions. I wonder this morning, as we consider this great whore and her captain and how he carries her, I wonder this morning, who carries you? We find, secondly, concerning her captain, not only does he carry her, but he corrupts her. Verse number three and four, the Bible says, So he carried me away in the spirit of the wilderness, and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet-colored beast, full of the names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet color, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand, full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication. I go back to Isaiah chapter one and I find in verse 18, but now let us reason together. Say to the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. We find this woman sits in verse number three, upon the scarlet colored beast. But then just the next verse away, we find her arrayed in scarlet. You see, my dear friend, the picture for you and I to learn from this great horror I mentioned here in chapter 17 of Revelation is that this beast is consumed by the color of sin, and anyone who rides along the beast soon will have the stain of sin upon their garments. You can't dance with the devil and not expect to get his scent on your life. We find her captain. Her captain corrupts her. Her captain is carrying her, but then he corrupts her, and then we find lastly that he consumes her. Boy, there's a picture for you and I to grab a hold of this morning, and may I send out a warning to those who may be among us that do not know heaven is their home when they die. Listen carefully, because the warning is loud and clear, that there's a judgment comes upon you in this life, but there's an eternal judgment that you cannot escape, and it will be everlasting too late to repent of and turn back to God. Now is the day of salvation. Now is the time to turn to a God who loves you and send his son to die on a cross for your sins. In verse number 3 and 5, we find that her captain consumes her. In verse number 3, towards the end of the verse, the Bible says that he is full of the names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. The word blasphemy means to make injury to God. An example would be to speak evil of or to speak things contrary to his biblical nature. This beast is a blasphemous creature. And we find out when you get to verse number five, the Bible says that she is a mystery, Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots and the abominations of the earth. She now is taking on the title of what was in her cup. What she was drinking became who she is, much like someone might say that someone who consumes alcohol enough becomes an alcoholic. She's danced with the devil, that one, the beast who is full of the names of blasphemy, and it's not long till she herself is full of blasphemies. She becomes consumed with her fellowship. Much like alcohol consumes a person, they became known as an alcoholic, she becomes known as the mother of abominations because it is what she drank from her cup. And a mother of harlots, because the beast was full of the names of blasphemy, and now she is full as well. She becomes blasphemous in her promotions of abominations. And oh, dear friend, could I warn you this morning, And really, quite frankly, they are filled with the abominations of this world, and they promote the abominations of this world. And I'm afraid they're in danger because they're dancing with the devil. They're riding upon the beast, and there's no image of Christ in them. But they sure are looking an awful lot like the devil himself. The Bible tells us, and I'll give you just a few, there's so many, concerning the abominations. You're very familiar, perhaps, with Proverbs 6, verse 16, where the Bible says, these six things that the Lord hates, yea, seven are an abomination. He says, a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood. Again, those things which are contrary to the biblical description and nature of who our God is. wicked imaginations. I'm afraid that because of all the picture images that we have available to us through our cell phones, that the minds of even Christ's own, that he's bought with his blood, children of God, they're constantly filling themselves, and in their minds is that very thing that's an abomination. They devise wicked imaginations. feet that be swift in running to mischief. Just yesterday in the news was a report, or perhaps it was Friday, there was a report concerning one that had been shot during Black Friday. Christians even have adopted this, but certainly the world, they've gone in their mind and they've imagined evil instead of caring and loving for somebody, they're overcome with the things of this world. Because if you stay around sin long enough, it will consume you. If you get close to the world, it will soon overtake you. That's why our elders were wise when they said, one bad apple spills a whole bunch. A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren. We don't like to mention those things, but oh, such a danger. How about in Leviticus? God says, thou shall not lie with mankind as with womankind. It is an abomination. To accept that lifestyle is to accept that abomination. You cannot like that. You could get angry at me for that. I'm not telling you not to love somebody and give them the gospel if they're in any one of these abominations. But thus saith the Lord, and therefore it is an abomination. In Proverbs 17, verse 15, he that justifieth the wicked and he that condemneth the just, even they both are an abomination of the Lord. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 22, the woman shall not wear that which pertaineth unto a man, neither shall a man put on a woman's garments, for all that do so are an abomination unto the Lord thy God. How about in Proverbs 15, verse 8? The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is his delight. He that turneth away, Proverbs 29, his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be an abomination. In other words, if you know what God says to do, and you turn away from it, and then you pray for God's blessing upon you, though you walk in sin, dear friend, it's an abominable thing. Here's this woman who's been given the name, the mother of abominations of the earth. This great whore in Revelation 17 is of such significance that you and I had better open both our ears, turn them to heaven, and ask God to help us to understand who she is, because right in the last days, in the last moments, God is going to pour out a heavy swift amount of judgment upon this great whore. It'd be good for you and I to know who she is. because we don't want to be near her. I don't know about you, but I don't want to hang around somebody I know that the FBI is about to go take down. I don't want to hang around somebody I know that's about to be in a whole heap of trouble. I want to be far away from it. I'm not going to have any part of that. I want to separate from it. God doesn't put things in the scripture that they might be hid for all time. He hides things from us and reveals to us in time so that we may know, so that we may better understand, so that we may be found faithful. And God reveals to us here in Revelation 17, there is a great whore in the last days and judgment is coming down upon her and you and I better know who she is. Might I add also, we better be careful to not identify with her. We find her captain. He carries her, he corrupts her, he consumes her. You hang around these abominable things. You hang around these, I've given the warning so many times. I don't even dwell this morning on the fact that she's called a mother of harlots. Because in its entirely, and I suppose it's worth mentioning, this great whore of Babylon is given this description because of the religious undertones that are found throughout her demeanor, character, who she is. Everything about her identifies, she worshiped the beast, that's how she's put into her position to begin with. And you and I must understand that we better be very careful not to entertain these false preachers, and these wolves, and these people on televisions, and writing books, and they are blasphemous, and they're heretics, and they're preaching things that are contrary to the Word of God. Dear friend, she is the mother of harlots, and she promotes the idea, and there are many who follow after her. And God gives the warning, as I've already read to you, in chapter 18, in verse number four, he says, come up out of her, my people, that you be not partakers of her judgment. There is judgment coming upon her, and God tells us and indicates that there are his people in the midst of her. We find she has a captain, and he is destroying her. Thirdly, and lastly this morning, we find, concerning this great whore, her conclusion. Verse 12. Down through verse 18, the Bible tells us of the 10 horns, which shall show us our 10 kings. They've received no kingdom as yet, but received power as kings for one hour with the beast. And these have one mind and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with the lamb and the lamb shall overcome them, for he is the Lord of lords and king of kings. And they that are with him are called the chosen and faithful. And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, shall make her desolate, naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her afire. For God hath put in their hearts We find her conclusion given to us from verse 12 through verse number 18, "'Cause much like this great whore, who's headed to desolation, you and I will find the conclusion of our life upon this earth if we continue in the path and the direction of sin.'" You will find yourself destroyed if you hang around the beast and his likes long enough. The Bible tells us concerning this beast, this conclusion for her is because of the beast and what he's done with her. I'm trying to decide how much time I've got here. I'm gonna shoot for it anyway. Here we go. I wanna show you a couple things in verse number 10. And there are seven kings, five are fallen. One is, talking about nations, now this is talking about empires. Kings represent the empires. Those who ruled in empires, not necessarily the entirety of the empire, but those who ruled in those empires. For instance, Nebuchadnezzar. The Bible says, and there is seven kings, five are fallen. One is, speaking of Rome, Roman Empire, and the other is not yet to come. And when he cometh, he must continue a short space. The one who comes on the scene right before the rapture, the one that's gonna be destroyed, that one comes on for a space, a very short space. And now watch what verse number 11, it tells us where this beast comes from that is carrying, that is captaining this great whore, verse number 11. And the beast that was and is not, even he is the eighth. and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. Now the seven heads, we back up to verse number nine, the Bible says the seven heads are seven mountains. It represents, I spoke to you concerning the seven continents, it represents also the kingdoms that were, that one is not yet, but six were, one is not yet, and one's to come. The Bible says in verse number 11 there, the beast, now don't get confused, just stay with me, this will all clear up in the next chapter. But in verse number 11 it tells us that the beast is of the seven and then becomes the eighth. Satan is the beast, just to clarify that. Satan is the beast and as he has, through these empires in the past, And the sixth one was present there when John's writing. It's the Roman Empire. And through these certain leaders of these empires, he has been learning and he's been deceiving and he's been trying to promote his agenda to destroy the world and have all the world bow down to him to take God's possession, mankind, his creation from him. He has come along and the Bible says that he is of the seventh, but he's the eighth. The eighth is the new world order. The beast sets himself up, gathers all people to him and declares himself to be God. He's going to commit the abomination of desolation. Remember, we're at the beginning of the tribulation period. We're at the beginning of the rapture at this very moment. But the beast is going to become that eighth empire. The seventh comes from a short, comes for a short span just before that rapture takes place. Then as the rapture takes place in one hour, the Bible says, we'll see in the next chapter, she is destroyed. And the Bible tells us here in chapter 17 that the 10 kings are the one who destroy her. In verse number 16, they come and destroy her. Those 10 horns are 10 kings and they're on the heads of the beast. These 10 kings come out of the seventh empire. These 10 kings, like the beast himself, come out, they're given kingdoms, they don't have a kingdom yet, but they're gonna be given kingdoms, and in one hour they're gonna destroy the one they came out of. And then they're gonna give all their power to the beast, the Bible tells us right there in verse number 12. And the 10 horns which thou sawest are 10 kings, and have received no kingdom yet, but receive powers as kings one hour with the beast. They have one mind, and they shall give their power and strength unto the beast. They shall make war with the lamb. By the end of the tribulation period, the same ones that destroy the great whore are gonna make war with the lamb. You know that as the battle of Armageddon. But we find out that she's concluded. All this is her conclusion. This great whore, the mother of harlots, the mother of abominations, has set herself up. She's lived. She's set upon mountaintops. She's had all people, nations. She's had all this wealth. She's been trading. She's been living deliciously, the Bible says, and she's been drinking out of a golden cup. Boy, she has been living large. But her conclusion, She becomes like the beast. Verse number three, we saw the blasphemy. She, just like her captain, becomes blasphemous. She becomes like her companion. She is akin to all things that are against God. She makes her seat among the enemies of God. And we see the correlation, we see really something that we can look upon and say, are we like this great whore of Babylon in any capacity? Do we sit with the world or do we sit with the Word? She sits with the world. We find she blasphemes, we find in verse 16 she's betrayed. Her conclusion is that she walks away from God and begins to speak things against God. Are you seeing the correlation, dear friend? Much like her, when we live a life in sin and we refuse to repent, here's the application. When we refuse to repent, we won't be alone before we begin to blaspheme. You say, I would never blaspheme God. And yet, if we were to look in the records in heaven, because God's recording everything in the book and all your idle thoughts are recorded, we would find out that you speak many a things in your lifestyle and in your attitude that are contrary to the nature and character of Almighty God, and that is blasphemy. She blasphemes, she becomes like the one she hung out with, but you realize when you spend time with the Word, you will become like the Lord. The Bible says it this way, that he chastens whom he loveth. And as you begin to spend time with God and draw near unto God, there's chastening that comes. And no man likes chastening, but we endure it because we realize that the purpose of it, according to the Word of God, is that he conforms us into the image of God. You and I this morning, by way of application, need to take from Revelation 17 that there is a destruction of sin that we cannot comprehend. And though it's pleasurable for a season, it always leads to being betrayed. It always leads to being a blasphemer against the things of God. But we can be to the contrary and spend time with God and find that God will conform us into the image of God and we'll find the peace that lasts. And though we may not dwell in all the luxuries that she dwells in, in verse number four, I can promise you one thing, child of God, if you'll stick to it, if you'll stay faithful to God, on the other side, there's more riches than you could ever imagine. You'll be far wealthier than you could have ever dreamed of. Just stick to it. Be faithful to God. She blasphemes, her conclusion is she turns to blasphemy. You cannot walk in sin and not find yourself blaspheming against God one day. Draw things that we've already seen. I'm just trying to conclude all this. Draw it to a close. She's betrayed. You walk in sin. Not only will you do things contrary to God that you could not even imagine in the moment you stepped in. I never imagined the first day I took a sip of alcohol that I would ever become an alcoholic, a homeless drunk on the side of the road who hated God and hated every Christian that lived. I would have never imagined. It was not possible. I thought I was just going to die. I thought I was going to die. Getting away from mom and dad and finally I could live life and make choices on my own. But I found myself living a lifestyle that was blaspheming against God. And I found myself betrayed. Her sins are many, verse four and six, verse four through six, and they lead to her betrayal, much like the prodigal son, they used her and bruised her. The Bible tells us in verse number four, all the kings, in verse number two, the habitants of the earth, they were all made drunk with her wine. They were, she was living it up. Everybody wanted to be with her. Everybody wanted to part with her. And can I tell you, dear friend, it's not worth having a friendship for a few moments in this world because all they're after is taking what God has blessed you with. And whether it's finances, whether it's a business, whether it's friendships, whether it's just a moment, a friend, all the world wants is to take what you've been giving and consume it upon their own lust. She's betrayed. It's interesting to me that these horns on the head, these kings that ride the same beast, they're all for the ride. They're the ones that are gonna destroy her. The beast didn't do it, you see. He played his role very well. He turned them against her and allowed them, in his power, by the way, to destroy her. You see, there is no peace with the beast. There is no unity with the world. Romans 8, because the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be, so then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. Friend, what I'm saying this morning to you is get away from sin. You may not, and I preach it because I realize, at least I hope, that there's certainly not one amongst us that would ever dare dream to blaspheme against God. And yet in our lifestyle and our choices we do. But we will be betrayed by the one who would turn us against our God. We find ourselves really in this chapter having gone full circle to the beginning of man's fall, Genesis 3.15, and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed, and it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. You see, Satan gets the religious-minded people to accept his way and bow to him rather than God. That's why you find the undertones, and really, it'll be exposed entirely and fully in the next chapter. But there's all this religious activity going on. This great whore of Babylon, she's filled with religion, but she's not doing it God's way. Then, in proper fashion of his nature, after he's betrayed her, he turns her over to his dogs. They will destroy her and receive a kingdom for one hour and then surrender their kingdoms to the beast and eventually wage war against Jesus Christ. These ten kings are going to betray her. And I want you to know, dear friend, before you do that sinful act, they may seem like your friend. I speak from experience. I speak from experience now. I'm going to step away. from preaching as a pastor, and I speak from experience. The countless individuals and groups of people that stepped into my life and convinced me, they convinced me. Even after salvation, I'm thinking in particular of a group of people who I was persuaded with they were correct. They convinced me to go their way, and it was blasphemous, but I had no idea. He will use them, his dogs, because they appear as an angel of light. And listen to me, friend, if you stay in that lifestyle, you will be betrayed and you will be destroyed. See, in verse number 16, you find that very last thing and we conclude. See the end of verse number 16, after the Bible says they hate the whore. By the way, let me pause there. Abraham Lincoln, he warned that America would be destroyed from within. These are from within. They come from the seventh. They're going to reign with this one. They're not really gonna reign because Satan doesn't share his power with anybody. He lets you enjoy for a moment. But the Bible says they hate the whore, they make her desolate and naked, so they bring her to shame. And then they eat her flesh, they take all that she has and devour her. But then the Bible says, burn her with fire. You see, her separation is perhaps the saddest state of her judgment. If you're not careful, sin will leave you separated from God. And dear friend, if you've not put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you believe he's Lord and Savior, or maybe you're just questioning it all together, I might tell you, dear friend, that if you're not careful, you're listening to the world, and they're telling you you don't need God, and they're telling you that God doesn't love you, because why would he allow these bad things to come into your life? You've got all these questions. And if you're not careful, dear friend, the end of it is that you will burn eternally in fire. But in this life, Just like the great whore is going to be judged even in a time of tribulation when the whole world comes under an unimaginable amount of judgment, she experiences her own judgment, then additional judgment that the world experiences. Christian, if you're dabbling in sin, if you're playing in sin, if you're walking in the paths of the world, if you're confused, not realizing that what you're doing is so dangerous, I want you to understand you will get burned if you play with fire. Sin will lead you against the Lord. It will betray you, and it will burn you when it's done with you. Miss Jean, if you'd head to the piano. You see, Satan is leading many to their destruction in these days. And all I can do is warn of the impending danger of continuing in sin. You are not safe. You will be hurt. And certainly the burns will be disfiguring. The scars of sin will be evident to all who behold, and you will receive a mark that identifies you with the enemy of God. One of the things that so many people know, even those who don't go to church, concerning the last days, they may not know anything about theology or concerning the book of Revelation or the end times, they may not know anything about it, but they all know this term, the mark of the beast. You see, so many Christians, unfortunately, are marked by the beast because he confused them and caused them to follow after his lies and his deceit. And they'll forever be marked with the sin that they allowed to remain unrepented in their life. Church, this morning, I plead with you. I urge you. No matter how small, no matter how insignificant it might seem to you at the moment, understand the consequences of sin is far greater than you'll ever know. And there will come a day if it remains unrepented, that you'll be identified by that sin, just as an alcoholic, a person who partakes in alcohol so long becomes an alcoholic. You don't want the scars of sin. You want to be identified with Christ. You want people to look at you and say, there's a Christian, there's a man of God, there's a woman of God, there's somebody who walks with God. I can't believe, I couldn't imagine as you stand to your feet that any one of us would ever be okay to be identified with the world or with the beast. Who is this great whore of Babylon? I suppose you'll have to be here next week to find out.