In a previous post, I indicated my preference for an interpretation that connects Revelation 17-18 to Babylon on the Euphrates. I closed with two questions. The first concerns the "imminence" of the Lord's return. If the events of the tribulation will occur at a time when ancient Babylon has returned to become a thriving religious and economic center (which it is anything but today), wouldn't this suggest that the return of the Lord lies far in the future? I also asked, "Does the urgent appeal for saints to 'come out of her [Babylon]' (Rev. 18:4) have any relevance to saints living today since this Babylon does not yet exist?"
To answer the first question, I would point to Dubai as an illustration. (The luxurious Burj Al Arab hotel is pictured above.) This city has a lot in common with future Babylon, and the pace of its emergence as a mecca of opulence has been brisk. Babylon will apex at the end of the seven year long tribulation. A petro-dollar fueled orgy of construction begun a few years (or decades) before the start of the tribulation could repeat the "miracle" that is Dubai. So while I can say we are not there yet, we may only be not QUITE there yet.
As to the second question, understanding the Babylon Code is critical. Based on Revelation 17-18, we can identify five statements which capture Babylon's creed. These declare how future Babylon thinks:
- “I live for me.”
- “You cannot argue with my success.”
- “Get in my way and you will regret it.”
- “There is no ‘right and wrong,’ only what makes me feel better.”
- “No one can stop me from doing what I want.”
Do these not have a familiar ring to them? Do they not sound like the mantra's of western materialism? So I am inclined to suggest that while the city of Babylon is not yet built, the Code of Modern Babylon is very much in evidence. In which case the urgent appeal for God's people to make a clean break makes perfect sense. We live in a day and age when the spirit of Babylon is alive and well even though the city has not yet made her grand entrance. Saints who prevail when she does will have learned how to defy her philosophy even while living in Pre-Babylonian times.
Prevailing saints disagree with the five tenets of the Babylon Code, and they are capable of expressing that disagreement even when it is unpopular to do so. Learn how to recognize it today, how to make a clean break from it, and you will ready when construction gets underway in earnest.
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