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17
Doom of the Enemies of Christ
1 Then one of the seven angels who held the seven bowls came and spoke to me. ‘Come here,’ he said, ‘and I will show you the sentence passed on that infamous prostitute who is seated at the meeting of many waters, 2 and with whom all the kings of the earth have had licentious intercourse; while all who live on the earth have been make drunk by the wine of her licentiousness.’ 3 And he bore me away in a trance to a lonely place, and I saw a woman seated on a scarlet Beast, which was covered with blasphemous names; it had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold ornaments, precious stones, and pearls. In her hand she held a gold cup, full of idolatrous abominations, and the unclean fruits of her licentiousness; 5 while on her forehead was inscribed a name that had a hidden meaning: ‘Babylon the Great, mother of all prostitutes, source of all obscenities on earth.’ 6 And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of Christ’s people and with the blood of the martyrs for Jesus. When I saw her, I was amazed beyond measure; 7 but the angel said to me – ‘Why were you amazed? I will tell you the mystic meaning of the vision of this woman, and of the Beast, with the seven heads and ten horns, that carries her. 8 The Beast that you saw was, but is not, and is about to rise out of the bottomless pit, and is on its way to destruction. Those who are living on earth will be amazed – those whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world – when they see that the Beast was, but is not, and yet will come.’ 9 (Here there is need for the discerning mind.) The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated. 10 They are also seven kings; of whom five have fallen and one remains, while one is not yet come. When he comes, he must stay for a little while. 11 So must the Beast that was, but is not. He counts as an eighth king, although he is one of the seven, and is on his way to destruction. 12 The ten horns that you saw are ten kings, who have not yet received their kingdoms, but for an hour they receive the authority of kings, together with the Beast. 13 These kings are of one mind in surrendering their power and authority to the Beast. 14 They will fight with the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings; so, too, will those with him who have received the call and are chosen and faithful. 15 And the angel said to me – ‘The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are throngs of people and men of all nations and languages. 16 The ten horns that you saw, and the Beast – they will hate the prostitute, and cause her to become deserted and strip her bare; they will eat her flesh and utterly consume her with fire. 17 For God has put it into their minds to carry out his purpose, in carrying out their common purpose and surrendering their kingdoms to the Beast, until God’s decrees will be executed. 18 As for the woman whom you saw, she is the great city that holds sway over all the kings of the earth.’

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