Is America "Mystery Babylon" Mentioned in Revelation 17:5?

The phrase “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT” appears only once in the Bible. It is in Revelation 17:5:

“MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”

Who or what is this mystery that is written in all capital letters in many English Bibles? Does God’s Word reveal the answer?

The Greek word mysterion denotes “a divine mystery or allegory that is now revealed” (The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 12, p. 556). The passage in Revelation 17 is thus a revealing of the mystery about an end-time entity that is also referred to elsewhere in the book of Revelation as “great Babylon” (16:19) and “Babylon the great” (18:2).

This article will explore the following about MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT:

* What does a harlot, or whore, symbolize in the Bible?
* Why does a woman represent the faithful Church?
* Who exactly is Mystery Babylon?
* Why is Mystery Babylon called the mother of harlots?
* Why is Mystery Babylon also called the mother of abominations of the earth?

The fall of Babylon the great: Jesus’ warning for us
The revelation of Jesus Christ, not of private interpretation.
A mistake that some have made is to read their own interpretation into the Scriptures, particularly when it comes to prophecy. The apostle Peter said, “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation” (2 Peter 1:20).

This scripture makes a very important point; we must let the Bible explain itself and its symbols.

We must also remember the beginning verse of the book of Revelation, which states, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John” (1:1).

This makes it plain that this is not John’s personal writing or opinion, but it is the revelation of Jesus Christ.

What does a harlot, or a whore, symbolize in the Bible?
Christ’s explanation of Babylon the great begins in Revelation 17:1: “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters.”

This “great harlot” is about to receive her judgment from Jesus Christ for her many sins. She is also called “THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS” (verse 5), meaning that other harlots have come from her. The “waters” that the harlot sits on (mentioned in verse 1) are explained in verse 15 to be “peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues.”

Four times in chapter 17 this Babylon is called a harlot (verses 1, 5, 15, 16). Six times she is called a “woman” (verses 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 18).

What is the symbolism of a “harlot” in the Bible?

In the Bible, a harlot or whore is often used symbolically to illustrate religious unfaithfulness to the true God. We see many examples of God using this imagery in the Old Testament:

In Exodus 34:15-16 God warned Israel not to “play the harlot” by worshipping and sacrificing to false gods.
In Judges 2:17 God commented on how the people “played the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them” during the period of the judges.

In 1 Chronicles 5:25 we read that specific tribes in the northern kingdom of Israel were “unfaithful to the God of their fathers, and played the harlot after the gods of the peoples of the land.” This led to their being sent into captivity to Assyria (verse 26).
In Hosea 1:2 God revealed to the prophet Hosea that “the land [of Israel] had committed great harlotry by departing from the LORD.” (See also Hosea 2:4-5.)

Later, in Jeremiah 3:8-9, God said that Judah followed the lead of the northern kingdom of Israel and also “did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. So it came to pass, through her casual harlotry, that she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees.” God considered their worship of carved stone images and trees (see Jeremiah 10:1-5) to be national adultery.

The above scriptures make very clear the Bible’s definition of spiritual harlotry: adopting the false worship practices of pagan religions.

However, in Revelation 17 the harlot is not identified with Israel—but with Babylon. This shows that Revelation 17 is talking about a gentile religious entity. In the Bible, Babylon is a symbol of defiance against God—going all the way back to the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11).

The symbolism of a whore in Revelation thus represents a sinful and fallen religious system—which is unfaithful to God and to His Word. This woman is in contrast to the woman described in Revelation 12, who is described as being faithful to God.

Read more at: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/prophecy/revelation/mystery-babylon/