The Judgment of the Great Harlot

Who is this great harlot and what is her judgment? One of the seven angels of the seven bowl judgments explains this mystery to John. (Read about the seven bowl judgments HERE.)

“Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, ‘Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who sits on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of sexual immorality, and those who live on the earth became drunk with the wine of her sexual immorality.’ ”

Revelation 17:1-2 NASB

Next, the angel takes John into a wilderness where he sees a harlot sitting on a scarlet beast. Let’s examine each one visually.

The Beast

• The beast is scarlet red.
• He is full of blasphemous names.
• He has seven heads and ten horns.

The Harlot

• The harlot’s clothing is purple, representing royalty, and scarlet, representing, in this case, sin.
• She wears pearls, precious stones, and gold, symbolizing vast wealth.
• A gold cup in her hand overflows with abominations and uncleanliness of sexual immorality.
• A mysterious name on her forehead reads, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” 
• She is drunk with the blood of the saints and witnesses of Jesus, pointing to her as their murderer.
• She sits on many waters, which represents her worldwide influence.
• The kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her.
• People all over the world are drunk with the wine of her sexual immorality.

When I saw her, I wondered greatly. And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.

Revelation 17:6b-7 NASB

The Mystery Revealed

The Beast

As previously mentioned, the beast is the Anti-christ who comes out of the bottomless pit. He desires to deceive the world into worshiping him as God. When the scripture describes him as the one who was, and is not, and will come (v.8), this refers to his assassination and resurrection from the dead on the third day. Only those who aren’t saved will fall for this deceptive miracle and will worship the beast as Messiah.

The Seven Heads

The seven heads are seven mountains upon which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while.

Revelation 17:9-10 NKJV

If we read closely, Scripture says clearly who the seven heads are: seven kings. Bible teachers have commonly taught that these heads are the seven hills of Rome, but this verse explains that the woman is sitting on top of seven mountains, which are seven kings. Hence, this suggests that the harlot has firm control of these kings. Verse 11 further explains that the beast is one of the seven and also an eighth king. The beast which was, and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.

Who are these seven kings?

God gave Nebuchadnezzar an overview of the history of the world’s empires in one picture. The five fallen kings refer to the Book of Daniel where King Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of a statue. (God begins the dream with Nebuchadnezzar’s empire, but Egypt and Assyria existed before Babylon.) The kingdoms were Egypt, Assyria, Babylon (the head of gold), the Medo-Persian Empire (its breast and arms of silver), and Greece (belly and thighs of bronze). The Roman Empire existed when John wrote Revelation (legs of iron), describing the one that is. And the one not yet come is the revived Roman Empire (feet and toes made of part iron and clay) that will be resurrected in our days. (Read about the prophetic dream in Daniel HERE.)

The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

Revelation 17:12-13 NASB

This revived Roman Empire, composed of ten kings, will exist for a short time. These kings have one purpose—to hand their power and authority over to the beast. Then the beast will take control of that world political system and rule supreme as Anti-christ, but he goes to destruction (v.11). 

Who is this great harlot and what is her judgment?

The harlot is the great city that reigns over the kings of the earth: Babylon.

Her judgment is destruction: desolate, naked, her flesh eaten and burned up with fire.

And he said to me, ‘The waters which you saw where the prostitute sits are peoples and multitudes, and nations and languages. And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the prostitute and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire. For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled. The woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth.‘

Revelation 17:15-18 NASB

Victory for the Lamb

These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.

Revelation 17:14 NASB

In Daniel 2:34-35, Nebuchadnezzar’s dream ended with a stone that crushed the feet of iron and clay, causing the entire statue to crumble and blow away in the wind. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the entire earth.

The Divine Kingdom

‘And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. Just as you saw that a stone was broken off from the mountain without hands, and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is certain and its interpretation is trustworthy.‘

Daniel 2:44-45 NASB

Thank you, Lord, that You will wage war against these evil ones and be victorious. Your kingdom is coming and will be established as the final and eternal empire where we who are saved will dwell with You forever. We praise and worship You as King of kings and Lord of Lords. Come quickly, Lord Jesus. We pray in Your holy Name, Amen.

The Judgment of the Great Harlot by Karen Jurgens Copyright © 2024 All rights reserved.