Read Revelation 17:12-15 along with Revelation 16:14-16. What do you learn from the texts about the “ten kings”? Different interpretations have been offered regarding the identities of the ten kings. However, Revelation does not tell us who they are. All we can derive from the text is that they are a short-lived political confederacy appearing right before the … Continue reading –>
Read Revelation 17:9-11 along with Revelation 13:18. The requirement for understanding the seven heads is a mind of wisdom. What kind of wisdom is in view here? How does one obtain this divinely imparted wisdom (James 1:5)? The angel explains that the seven heads are seven mountains. Some translators think that these mountains allude to the seven hills upon … Continue reading –>
Revelation 17:3 describes the scarlet beast in terms similar to the sea beast of Revelation chapter 13, which made war with, and overcame, God’s people (Rev. 13:5-7). It was this earlier period of persecution that caused the pure woman to flee into the wilderness during the prophetic period of 1,260 days/years, from A.D. 538-1798 (Rev. 12:13-14). … Continue reading –>
Judgment! – Hymn 416, “The Judgment Has Set” brings our lesson into music. Once again we can see that “We Are Living, We Are Dwelling”, Hymn 617. Sadly, in Christchurch (New Zealand), we saw the unfolding of a horrible event this past Friday (15th March 2019). Can you sing Hymn 5, “All My Hope on God is … Continue reading –>
Judgment on Babylon. As we open this week’s discussion, consider the horrific picture that introduces the lesson: Horns, sharp animal horns and teeth, and a woman with a smirk on her face holding up a bowl of wine to drink. What do your class members think of all of these symbols for the final unifying … Continue reading –>
Key Thought: Revelation Chapter 17 describes the end-time apostate religious system as a harlot riding a beast. With her daughters, Babylon seduces the world against God. March 23, 2019 1. Have a volunteer read Revelation 17:1,2. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is. What is … Continue reading –>
Read Revelation 17:3. One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues offers to show John the judgment of the harlot who sat on many waters. When John sees her, she is riding the scarlet beast. In what ways do the symbols of water and beast suitably describe the … Continue reading –>
Read Revelation 17:1. Jeremiah 51:13 shows that the “many waters” upon which Babylon sits are the river Euphrates. According to Revelation 17:15, what do many waters symbolize? A woman in the Bible is a symbol for God’s people. In Revelation, God’s true church is portrayed as a pure woman (Rev. 12:1, Rev. 22:17). A harlot thus represents a false apostate church. … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Revelation 17; Jer. 51:13; Exod. 28:36-38; Rev. 13:1-8; Rev. 13:18; Rev. 16:2-12. Memory Text: “And I heard another voice from heaven saying, ‘Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities’” (Revelation 18:4-5, NKJV). The … Continue reading –>
Further Thought: “None but those who have fortified the mind with the truths of the Bible will stand through the last great conflict. To every soul will come the searching test: Shall I obey God rather than men? … The apostle Paul declared, looking down to the last days: ‘The time will come when they will … Continue reading –>
