THE VISITATION OF JUDGMENT: THE HARLOT DESTROYED

The Visitation of Judgment: The Harlot Destroyed

vs. 16-18

"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 fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth."

Introduction 16a

The Ten Horns Agree to Destroy the Woman

"And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore...."

The Deadly Hatred Toward the Whore vs. 16

"These shall hate the whore."

This means that the beast and his vassal kings only submit to the domination of false religion that they might gain their ends. There is no love between them. Each is using the other as a tool. When the opportunity arrives they will destroy one another.
The great whore is Mystery Babylon, the erstwhile ally of political Babylon. She has incorporated all the anti-Christian and pseudo-Christian religions under her control, and probably all educational and cultural and sociological systems as well, in a vast syncretistic pseudo-religion designed to promote worship of the beast and Satan as the god of this world. Once that is accomplished, however, the political powers will have no further use for her and will appropriate all her vast holdings for themselves, destroying everything they cannot use.

The Desertion From the Whore vs. 16
"And shall make her desolate."

This means that all political and commercial support of the harlot will be withdrawn and she stands absolutely alone. In this condition, it will then become quite obvious the source of her power.

The Display Made of the Whore vs. 16
"And shall make her naked."

All of the outward display which made her so attrac­tive will be taken away, and she will stand before the gazing multitudes utterly naked. There will be nothing to hide behind. There will be nothing to obscure the vision. There will be nothing to distort to twist the naked truth.

The Despoiling of Her Riches vs. 16
"And shall eat her flesh."

The word flesh is plural (fleshes) and refers to the vast stores of wealth accumulated through the years. With ravenous greed the Kings and the beast confiscate her wealth.

The Destruction of the Woman vs. 16
"And burn her with fire."

This means the utter abolition of religion and all that is associated with it. Lev. 21:9, "The daughter of any priest . . . playing the whore . . . shall be burned with fire."

Satan has achieved his purpose. He and his false Christ are being worshipped (Rev. 13:4; 2 Thess. 2:3-4). This is the end he has sought through the ages, and now there is no longer need for a system of religion.

"And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?"

"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God."