What is Babylon? The Beast?

Babylonian Religion #2

Fred R. Coulter—12/29/1990

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What a difference a year makes, or the more things change, the more they remain the same!

After I cover a few things in the news, I want to get into What is Babylon?, because there are so many conflicting opinions on it.

Dead Sea Scrolls and the Jews:

• Have you ever wondered, 'What has happened to the Dead Sea Scrolls?

• Since the Jews are in charge of translating them and getting them out, why don't we have any more than just the book of Isaiah, which they found, and a few other little documents that they found, when they know them and they have translated them?

I've talked to Dr. Dorothy and mentioned this to him on the phone and he said that there's a big argument going on as to why these things have not gotten out. I think we have a little clue right here in this article. I think it will prove very interesting.

from New York Times: Dead Sea Scrolls Editor's Exit Tied To Anti-Jewish Remarks, by John Noble Wilford, Dec. 12, 1990 (www.nytimes.com/1990/12/12/world/dead-sea-scrolls-editor-s-exit-tied-to-anti-jewish-remarks.html)

Dr John Strugnell, editor of the Dead Sea Scrolls was quoted as saying that Judaism…

Remember Judaism is not the religion of Moses. Keep that in mind!

…was originally racist and that all Jews should convert to Christianity.

Quite a little article.

A Harvard divinity professor's verbal attacks on Jews, Judaism and Israel led to his dismissal as chief editor of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the celebrated documents illuminating the evolution of Judaism and the origin of Christianity, scholars and others close to the controversy said yesterday.

In the interview published last month in Tel Aviv and scheduled for publication next week in an archeology magazine, the professor, Dr. John Strugnell of Harvard University's Divinity School, was quoted as describing Judaism as "originally racist"…

This, brethren, is a key why the Kingdom was not set up when Jesus first came, because the Jews hated every other people in the world—period! Hands down, totally racist! Remember the big feudally when Peter went to Cornelius? Even Christians now, even having God's Spirit, that he was berated that he should even go into a Gentile's house and eat with those who were unclean. His revelation that God gave him was that he should call no man common or unclean.

One of the reasons why the Jews rejected Jesus was because He didn't rescue them from the Roman Empire and set up the Kingdom there with the hatred with the Jews had toward other people. That's one of the very reasons. Not only was the Kingdom of God not going to come then, but God was not going to set up His Kingdom based upon Judaism hatred. It won't happen! Nor is He going to base any salvation on anyone's hatred toward other people, be it Jews, Nazis, Russian, whatever. It won't be! This is very interesting:

…and "not a higher religion," suggesting that all Jews should convert to Christianity…

However, when you as a Jew—if you're a Jew—look at Catholicism, which is supposed to be Christianity and you are told that you have to convert to that, you would be in a rage, too!

…and saying that the state of Israel "is founded on a lie, or at least on a premise that cannot be sustained."

Which both are true. The modern state of Israel cannot be sustained in the way it is. It's a basket case in every way:

• economically
• theologically
• humanly speaking
• with the hatred of Jews toward the Palestinians and the Palestinians toward the Jews

There is no solution but an enforced dictatorship over both. That's where the beast comes in. It will only be a temporary solution. I'll show you why in just a little bit.

A journalist for Haaretz, a Tel Aviv newspaper, said Dr. Strugnell, when asked what annoyed him about Judaism, replied, "The fact that it has survived when it should have disappeared."

One of the reasons that it has survived is because God said that He's going to 'scatter the Jews everywhere in the world, they would become a hissing and astonishment, a wonderment, wherever they went.' That's been true.

Other biblical scholars, stunned and embarrassed by the remarks, said that it would be unthinkable for a person with such views to be in charge of deciphering, interpreting and publishing the Dead Sea Scrolls…

You can know for sure that none of these racist statements that the Jews have are ever going to be published for the world to know. That's why a lot of this has not been published. He's stating the reason, here. Notice the job the do on him:

Dr. Strugnell, 60 years old, who has been chief editor since 1987, could not be reached for comment. A spokesman for Harvard, Peter Costa, said that he was in a hospital, which was not identified, for treatment of an illness, which was not disclosed.

I haven't read much in that book By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky and Claire Hoy, but if you can get your hands on that book and read it, you'll understand what is happening here. This is an official total cover-up. That's what it is. That's why he's sick. That's why he's gone. That's why he's relieved and that's why you don't know where he is or what sickness he has.

A number Dr. Srugnell's colleagues said he had had a drinking problem and others spoke of his "mental condition." But those who took the unusual step of removing him from the editorship would say only that he had been in poor health for some time and that his condition had deteriorated in the last month. In announcing the decision on Monday, they gave only his health and recent hospitalization as the reason for the action.

But they acknowledged in interviews that his anti-Jewish statements had forced the issue….

But you see, you cannot be a citizen of Israel today and be a Christian. Did you know that? You cannot be a Jew of blood and be a Christian and live in so-called Israel today! There were Jews who came out of Russia who were Jews, supposedly, by blood and came to Jerusalem. They were Christians and they were told to go some place else. You see, they don't tell very many people that.

Several scholars in the field described the consequence of the interview in identical language as "the straw that broke the camel's back."
"The interview certainly contributed," said Dr. Frank Moore Cross…

In an editorial to accompany a report of the interview in the January issue of Biblical Archeology Review, Hershel Shanks, the editor, wrote: "The stories, the rumors, the gossip we had heard, but refused to print, have turned out to be true…."

These cover writings between 200B.C. and 50A.D.. I would love to find out what they have to say in time 50A.D..

• Does it verify that Christ, indeed, was there? I would have to say it's got to be there someplace!
• Does it verify that it split the whole Jewish community because of what Jesus said? I would have to say it's got to be there someplace!

That's part of what's going on.

You probably have this on the news or read it in the paper. Here's the next article. which you can tell that he was not very popular when he said this:

from Jerusalem—AP—Rabbi calls Holocaust Punishment for Jews' sins ((https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19901228&id=R4AzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KjIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=4748,6563636&hl=en)

A leading rabbi has outraged Holocaust survivors and secular Israelis by claiming that the Nazi genocide was God's punishment for sins such a violating the Jewish Sabbath and eating pork.

That's not the only reason. It was because of their racism toward other people. They would go in their synagogues and curse other people. It would do you some good to read some of the things that are in the Talmud if you can get your hands on some of that so you can understand the racism that was going on there; not just Sabbath-breaking and pork eating. I'm shocked that so many Jews would eat pork.

Hundreds of Israelis called a radio talk show Thursday to let off steam about remarks of Rabbi Eliezer Schach, 97…

He's been around a while. So there are still some Jews that have conscience. There are still some who study the Bible. There are still some who—in their way of believing God—believe in God even though they rejected Christ. That's the main reason that they have. What has happened to the Jews since the destruction of the temple and then the Bar Kokhba Revolution between 128A.D. and 135A.D. has been God's judgment on the Jews since then; it's awful. It's terrible. When we understand what God really did, then we will understand why it has been so heinous.

They're not the only ones. All people have rejected God and Christ. Let's not heap upon the Jews and say, 'Naughty, naughty' just to the Jews. What about everybody else? I think there are a lot of people today who are going along preaching a lot of false doctrines and they know better on that. They're in worse shape than any of the Jews who have rejected Christ.

…an ultra-Orthodox rabbinical sage who, by a quirk of an electoral system, also happens to be the kingmaker of Israeli governments….

Earlier this year, Schach in effect made Yitzhak Shamir prime minister by ordering his political supporters to join Shamir's coalition.

They claimed that…

I'll have to put claimed there.

About 6-million Jews perished in the Holocaust and tens of thousands of survivors live in Israel….

"Not for a long time has a single remark caused such an emotional reaction, said Razi Berkai the host of the Israeli radio talk show. He said that calls ran about 3-2 against the rabbi.

I'm amazed that it wasn't 100-1; but 3-2 shows that he's got a reasonably strong minority.

At one level, Schach was simply repeating a theme common in the Bible; of divine retribution against Jewish people for straying from the path of their religious law.

But on another level, many took his remarks to mean that the Jews somehow were to blame for the Nazi's behavior.

"The Almighty keeps a balance sheet of the world, and when sins become too many, He brings destruction….

I think he's got it exactly right, and being 97 means that at the turn of the century he was seven years old. So, he's seen a lot of things happen. He's gone through all the things with the establishing of communism. He's gone through all the things of Zionism. He's gone all through the things of WWI, the events between that and WWII, and then WWII and all the events from that time down to this. He's speaking with a lot of wisdom.

"…The last time that He brought destruction it was the Holocaust…. Because of the sins, the Almighty may bring another Holocaust upon us, and it may already be tomorrow," he warns.

All he's trying to do is say, 'You Jews over here, you can't be treating people like you are and be living like you are, breaking the Sabbath, eating pork and all the other things that are going on—eating pork, even though it's something that shouldn't be done, is a minor thing compared to what they're doing—and not have God's retribution upon you.' That's what he's saying.

These sins, according to Schach, include violating the sanctity of the Sabbath and eating pork…

Menahem Russak, a survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp…said Schach "shamed and humiliated" millions of Holocaust victims…

—and exonerated the Nazi murderers. No, he didn't! You see how people react. They're reacting emotionally to what they hear rather than listening to what has been said.

"Rabbi Schach today is one of the most powerful men in Israeli politics and each one of his words creates a lot of noise," Freedman said in an interview.

Five percent of Israel's Jewish residents are ultra-Orthodox, another 5 percent are sympathizers, and 20 percent are observant but not fundamentalists. Another 70 percent define themselves as secular, according to Friedman.

Isn't that amazing? When you think of Israel today, you think of all these religious people, ten percent are maybe religious, not so.

Let's look at a couple of Scriptures covering some of this. Jer. 3 tells us a little bit about what God said, and why God did the things that He did. God has an awful lot to say about this nation and what's going to happen to this nation, too. We're going the way of the world. We're going the way of Satan and it's going to come upon us. God is no respecter of persons.

Jeremiah 3:2: "'Lift up your eyes to the high places, and see, where have you not been lain with?…. [all of her whoredoms, religiously and politically speaking] …By the highways you have sat for them, like the Arabian in the wilderness; and you have defiled the land with your fornications and with your wickedness. Therefore, the showers have been withheld, and there has been no latter rain; and you have had a harlot's forehead, you refused to be ashamed'" (vs 2-3).

Some of these things will tie into what we're going to talk about concerning Babylon because I've got a lot of information on Babylon. So much so, that I went back and I read great portions of the book The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop. If you haven't read this completely in its total, all the way through, you're going to miss a lot of great research that he has done.

His conclusions, I would have to say, were 100% accurate for the time in which he lived. There's just one other step that we'll have to add to it, which I'll see if we can get to.

Verse 6: "The LORD said to me in the days of Josiah the king, 'Have you seen that which backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and has played the harlot there. And I said after she had done all these things, "She will return to Me!" But she did not return…. [God had to send Israel off into captivity] …And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. And I saw, when for all the causes for which backsliding Israel committed adultery, I sent her away and gave a bill of divorce to her, yet, her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but she went and played the harlot also. And it came to pass through the folly of her whoredom, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and stocks. And yet, for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but with deception,' says the LORD. And the LORD said to me, 'The backsliding Israel has justified herself more than treacherous Judah'" (vs 6-11).

That's why you find an unusual thing concerning Jerusalem and Judah. You don't find this with Israel, the ten tribes, but you find this with Jerusalem.

Isaiah 40:1: "'Comfort ye, comfort ye, My people,' says your God. 'Speak comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned…'" (vs 1-2).

That is yet for a future time. That has not yet happened. Maybe with this rabbi speaking out somewhat, since he is such a powerful rabbi, that will begin to really come to their minds that they can begin to repent. God has got to grant them repentance! God has got to give them repentance! Let's hope that they do.

"'…for she has received of the LORD'S hand double for all her sins'" (v 2). That's not said of, of Israel, but it's said of the Jews, 'double.' You just have to conclude, 'Those poor Jews have really gone through it time after time, after time. It's happened right here in the Bay Area with Molotov cocktails at the synagogue doors and hate mail. Part of the problem is the way that they have dealt with other people. That's why Paul said, 'We have concluded that all are under sin, Gentile and Jew.'

• you can't say all Jews are rotten crooks and dirty thieves
• you can't say that all are apostate and hate Jesus

That just isn't so! No more that you can say:

• that all white people are hypocrites
• that all blacks are responsible for crime
• that all Japanese are sneaks and want to cheat Americans out of everything

You can't make those blanket statements! Those are just not true. You may find it in an individual case. You may find it in a situation where this may be true for this individual or that individual. I would have to say, and I could publicly say, that I think Milken has almost one-handedly taken down the American banking system. I think I can say that the internationalist Jewish conspiracy of the 'synagogue of Satan' is in full swing and is likely going to succeed, but that doesn't condemn all Jews. We have to get a balance in all of this.

Babylon and the Beast:

I want to talk a little bit about the beast and a little bit about Babylon.

• Who have you heard who the beast is, in your lifetime?
• How many people can you remember that have been named the beast?

I made a little list of what some of you have mentioned to me. In our lifetime, we have heard these people named as the beast:

• Hitler
• Mussolini
• Stalin
• Gorbachev
• Reagan
• Bush

I guess Carter got off the hook

• Kurt Waldheim
• Saddam Hussein
• Richard Strauss
• Adenauer the Iron Chancellor
• Saddam Hussein

Who is Babylon? We're told Iraq is Babylon. How many different things have we heard concerning: who is Babylon? In addition to the beast, we've heard that the pope is the beast. Maybe temporarily, he may have been like the beast, but who has been Babylon?

• the Roman Catholic Church
• the Roman Empire
• the Roman Emperor
• Europe
• the United States of America
• the United Nations
• the Jews
• Iraq

You're confronted with a question: Which one is right? It presents a problem—doesn't it?

How about Armageddon? You hear a lot of people say, 'We've got Armageddon over there and if war starts, it's going to destroy everybody.' We have people say it's the beast.

I've got the Spotlight Magazine and I didn't bring it for that, but anyway, it's very interesting. It says that Saddam Hussein is already got trenches there filled with napalm. They have pumped in crude oil and that if American troops start coming across this they're going to explode that, and they're going to have a tremendous fire and a fiery holocaust.

That may be true, but I think that if there's a way over there, I think that the generals are going to be smart enough to just bomb the senses out of them for about three weeks before they send one troop any place. When you do, go around behind them and cut them off from Baghdad and end it. That's how I would do it if I were the general.

There are people saying that Saddam Hussein has a modern army. Nonsense! With all that Russian equipment you say he's got a modern army? He's got a one-million-man army. When they start getting hit with some of the things that we have as precise weapons, they're going to wonder which end is up. All they did was just trade back and forth shots for eight years with Iran. Remember that? The only reason they won was because we didn't want Iran to win. Iran at that time was run by the Ayatollah Khamenei, who by the way, was also called the beast.

For those who are religious, what happens is that whenever things get tough, they scream, 'the Tribulation, the beast.' Nine times out of ten, they're wrong. Just to give you an example:

Armageddon has been here in: WWI, WWII, the various Jewish wars that we've had in '67, '72. There's going to be war between the United States and Russia. I don't think that Russia could field an army that would go out and do anything right now. I just don't think they could do it. We've had Iraq and the crisis in the Gulf. How are we going to make sense out of any of this?

I've got a book here that says: The Persian Gulf Crisis and The Final Fall of Babylon by N.W. Hutchings. I've got another one here that says: Is America Mystery Babylon the Great? by Randy Shupe; it's a hard book to read. He is perhaps somewhat correct. Here is the way it is written: It's all typed by typewriter in script type and it's got all these different pictures in it. This fellow says that the Roman Catholic Church is the religion Babylon. Here's his final conclusion. You have three Romes:

• holy Rome, which is the Roman Catholic Church—the Papal Rome, false prophet
• commerce Rome, which is the United States of Europe—the ten horns—that's the old Rome
• political Rome, the United States of America; the new Rome

• Who is the beast?
• How are we going to be able to identify Babylon?

You can go through and you can read it, and you can make a reasonably good case for every one of these.

• How are we going to solve the problem?
• Can we solve the problem?

Let's see what we can do to try and solve the problem, here, just a little bit. Let's first of all try and answer the question of Rev. 17. I've heard 'the woman' is:

• the Catholic Church
• America as symbolized by the Statue of Liberty
• the International Zionists

How can it be all of those? Believe it or not, I'm not going to really give you the answer today. I'll give us some guidelines so we can watch and see.

Revelation 17:1: "And one of the seven angels who had the seven vials came and spoke with me, saying to me, 'Come here; I will show you the judgment of the great whore… [it's got to be a gigantic situation when we understand all that it says] …who sits upon many waters.""

Verse 15 says: "…The waters that you saw, where the whore sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages."

The thing that got me started on this was a TV program that had some really tremendous views of the St. Peter's Basilica. I'm sitting there watching this splendorous event go on and all the chanting and things that are taking place. I noticed these serpentine columns, these four columns. They just went 150 feet in the air and then it's capped off with a big cross and a golden dome. Around the top of the four huge, serpentine pillars they have what looks like feathers. I really think that that is a substitute for a hooded cobra.

I was thinking that is amazing! I've seen it before but it just struck me because I was concentrating on the picture and not on the words. When I watched the Papal Mass before and it was translated in English, I was listening to the words so I could pick up on it. That thing is so absolutely incredibly pagan that I could not believe it! It was something, but it was awesome. As far as just to look at, it's beautiful with the colors, but it's repulsive because of all of the idols.

It showed all of these people from all the different nations. I tell you there is not one church on the face of the earth that is in every country like the Roman Catholic religion. You tie together the Eastern Orthodox, which goes into Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Russia and so forth. Tie all of those together and there is not one religion the world that has as much power and control over people as the Roman Catholic Church. It is a little bit low on it's authority because they're not giving in to abortion, women priests and married priests. If they solve that problem they will come back in droves. I mean, literally in droves.

Verse 18: "And the woman whom you saw is the great city that has royal power over the kings of the earth." They have, there in Rome—they can't have them in the Vatican because the Vatican is a separate little nation, by the way, the only thing left of the Papal States—representatives from every nation on earth, the only city in the world like that.

So, the 'woman' has got to be found at Rome. It can't be any other place—when you read this, this is true—but the original woman is a mystery. It is a mystery because:

• it is religious
• it is economic
• it is government

All of those combined are the woman and the beast. So, the woman has to do with religion.

Revelation 17:2: "With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication."

(go to the next track)

Verse 3: "Then he carried me away in the spirit to a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast that had seven heads and ten horns, full of names of blasphemy. And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and was adorned with gold and pearls and precious stones; and she had a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominations and the filthiness of her fornication; and across her forehead a name was written: MYSTERY… [Means that it isn't going to be understood just by looking at it.] …BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH (vs 3-5).

• if you see part of Babylon in America, you're correct, but that doesn't mean that it's Babylon
• if you see part of Babylon in Europe, you're correct
• if you see part of Babylon in Iraq, you're correct

I think in the Soviet Union the woman is mounting the beast again because they now have 'religion.' So, there's a grain of truth in all that is said in all of these things. Why is that? Because all nations have been made to drink! They're all part of it.

How can Israel be America and Britain, if that is the case? Israel went whoring! They drank of the cup! Which means that instead of being the Bride of Christ, or the Bride of God as they should have been, they became whores! Which means that they were one of the harlots! Let's see that; Ezek. 23 tells us very clearly that that's exactly what happened.

Ezekiel 23:2: "Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother. And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they whored in their youth… [v 4]: And their names were Oholah, the oldest, and Oholibah, her sister. And they were Mine, and they bore sons and daughters. And their names: Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem is Oholibah" (vs 2-4). Then it shows what they did. They went out and committed idolatry, they went out and made leagues and alliances with other nations.

I'm going to mention this in Scripture and we'll pass on from it. Israel, time, time and time again became Babylonian, beginning with Solomon. He brought in all these religions, built all these temples to all these gods and he himself bowed down and worshipped them. If you were living in Solomon's day, you could say that that kingdom, which was supposed to be God's Kingdom Israel, was Babylon and you would be partially correct, because Israel became one of the whores of Babylon. That's what God said not to become.

Here in the United States today at the end-time, we see the same thing. We're becoming like the world, because the world is Babylon, and we're going to be part of Babylon. That's why Rev. 18 says, 'Come out of her, My people.' God is still going to punish America just like He said in Deut. 28 and Lev. 26. It's going to happen exactly as God has said. For people in the world looking at it, they won't be able to tell whether we are Israel or Babylon. It's going to be very difficult for them to do, especially at this stage of the game.

Did you know that when America was first founded, they didn't even keep Christmas? It was outlawed! One of the reasons that they wanted to have Thanksgiving was so that they would not have to have any Christmas.

Just like when Israel started out, it started out good and we can again use the example of Solomon's life. It started out good. God appeared to him twice. God blessed him with everything. When they increased and multiplied, they were given over to all their whoredoms. Yes, Saddam Hussein was part of the problem, but he was not the beast. Why is he not the beast? He may be a beast but not the beast. He may be like Hitler, but he is not the beast.

I think, as I said before, he's going to help lead up to the situation where all the Arabs are going to get together in some kind of overall confederation, which out of that will come the King of the South, as we find in Dan. 11.

• What kind of representation does the Bible show that the beast is?
• Is it a woman?
• Is it a church?
• Is it a government?

Rev. 17—there's the woman and there is the beast. The woman is the 'religious' side. The beast is the political and military side. I hope we all know that.

Is the image in Dan. 2 a man or a woman? It is a man; not a woman! Nebuchadnezzar was the head of gold. This image depicted political systems—empires, rulers—from Nebuchadnezzar down to the return of Christ.

Dan. 7 talks about beasts and we will see what these beasts are; Daniel 7:3: "And four great beasts came up from the sea, different from one another." Each one was a different kind but they all came up from the same sea.

Verse 4: "The first was like a lion and had eagle's wings…." What is the symbol of old, ancient Babylon to this very day? Cherubim with a lion's head and eagle's wings!

Verse 5: "And behold another beast, a second, like a bear…. [v 6]: After this I saw, and lo, another beast, like a leopard, which had four wings of a bird on its back. The beast also had four heads and dominion was given to it."

I'm not going to get into any of the interpretations. Just find out what does the Bible say that the beasts are.

Verse 7: "After this I looked in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, frightening and terrifying, and exceedingly strong. And it had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with its feet. And it was different from all the beasts before it; and it had ten horns. As I was considering the horns, behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, before whom three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots…" (vs 7-8). Let's see what the Bible tells us that this is.

Verse 16: "And I came near to one of those who stood by and asked him the truth concerning all this. So he told me and made me know the interpretation of the things. 'These great beasts, which are four, are four kings that shall arise out of the earth. But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever'" (vs 16-18).

We know that a king in Bible language is synonymous with a kingdom.

Verse 19: "Then I desired to know the truth concerning the fourth beast, which was different from all the others…" The fourth beast encompassed the whole world, different than the first three!

• the first one we know from history is Babylon
• the second one is Persia
• the third one is Macedonia and Greece
• the fourth one is different and is a huge worldwide system

Daniel wanted to know:

"…whose teeth were of iron and his nails of brass; who devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with his feet; and of the ten horns that were on his head, and of the other horn which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth speaking very boastful things, whose appearance was greater than his fellows" (vs 19-20).

I know that in the day of Alexander Hislop in writing this book, he said that that 'little horn' was the papacy. You can make a fairly good case for it. However, at the end-time… Many people don't know this; he relates it here, which I'll just summarize. I won't get into it because Alexander Hislop is very difficult to read. Very difficult! His sentences would average, I would say a minimum of 50 words. Many of them are well over 100 words in length, which have complicated thoughts in them. I'll just summarize it and say it this way:

The Babylonian religious system with Pontifex Maximus the civil ruler. The priest was the one who sanctified the ruler. When we get to Rev. 13, we have the same system. After the fall of Babylon, Persia and Greece, the custodial rights of the Chaldean Babylonian religion resided at Pergamos. Can you think of some place in the Bible that it talks about Pergamos? Revelation 2! What does it say of Pergamos? Where Satan's seat is! The king of Pergamos at that time passed on by will to the Roman Empire the rights of the Babylonian religion and the rights of the Babylonian kingship.

The Emperor of Rome became Pontifex Maximus until the days of Gratian the last pagan Roman emperor. What did he do? He did not receive the office of Pontifex Maximus, which is the great potentate almighty ruler! The next emperor conferred that title Pontifex Maximus to the pope. It went from Babylon to Pergamos to Rome by legal 'passing on.' Then from the Roman Empire, the Roman emperor stepped down from Pontifex Maximus and the next Roman emperor gave it to the pope.

Indeed, when Alexander Hislop wrote this—you need to read it—he was correct in saying that the title of the beast resided with the Roman Catholic Church. Therefore, he said that this 'little horn' was the papacy, which is not a wrong interpretation. There can be another one in addition to it.

I hope you see where I'm going to come from in this. The original Babylonian system, which is a mystery, the human political ruler was Pontifex Maximus, which was 'God in the flesh.' We still have the last residual of that, which ended in the Japanese emperor at the end of WWII. They allow him to live if he assured his people that he was not God.

I'm going to shortcut things here and I won't get into proving anything on this. I'll save that for a later more detailed study. In order for the last beast to come on the scene, what must legally happen? And it never dawned on me until I was studying this again. How could Alexander Hislop be so right in his day and, yet, not correct today?' He was right! There was nothing you can say in the day that he wrote this that there was anything wrong with what he said. Totally 100% right, because the pope did have Pontifex Maximus and the religious mysteries together, in his power. That is why the beast cannot come on the scene until he receives, legally, the title of Pontifex Maximus from the pope. It may not be those exact words but close to it.

Why would he give it up? Not only is it destined to be given back to the rightful holder, the one who sits in Nimrod's seat! That's what it is. Pontifex Maximus is the one that sits in Nimrod's seat. Nimrod was not a priest. Nimrod was the ruler.

I think the pope is going to give it up. Whether they will actually declare publicly, that now he's Pontifex Maximus, but what is going to happen is that I don't think that the beast can come on the scene until he has the blessing of the pope as the world leader. The pope cannot be the beast if he's the false prophet.

That's why when it says, that 'the one that is worshipped above everything that is called God or named God and sit in the temple of God saying that he is God' (2-Thess. 2). The pope can't pull that off and because he must relinquish that office back, Satan is going to decree that he relinquish that office back to Satan's chosen leader as the ruler of the world.

When you read The Two Babylons, he puts everything in the Catholic Church, which at that time was correct. When you get down to the end-time, how are you going to have it at the end-time?

What are these four beasts? Verse 20: "And of the ten horns that were on his head, and of the other horn which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth speaking very boastful things, whose appearance was greater than his fellows. I watched, and that same horn made war with the saints and overcame them" (vs 20-21).

• Why does this have to be the beast, the political power and not the papacy?
• What is going to happen to the woman before the war takes place?

We have the beast and false prophet, and they're going to come together at the last, but:

• What does it say that the beast is going to do to the woman?

Let's read about the beast and the ten horns (Rev. 17).

Revelation 17:14: "These will make war with the Lamb, but the Lamb shall overcome them; for He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful." They're going to make war with the Lamb. This little one with the eyes is going to make war with the Lamb. The same battle!

Verse 16: "But the ten horns that you saw on the beast shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her with fire."

They're going to get so sick and fed up with the religions of this world—not only Roman Catholicism, but Buddhism and every other type of religion of this world—because it's all part of the whores or the harlots. When it says, 'He shall make war with the saints, prevail against them until the Ancient of Days comes…' and so forth.

Daniel 7:23[transcriber's correction]: "Thus he said, 'The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be different from all the other kingdoms and shall devour the whole earth, and shall trample it and break it in pieces.'" That's what's going to happen. It's going to be different or a combination of all of them.

We've seen from the Bible that the beast is not the woman. We've seen that in Dan. 2 & 7, and Rev. 13. The woman represents the world's religious systems.

Under the old Babylonian religion, the Emperor was worshipped as God. The last beast that comes on the scene must receive the blessing from the one whose right it is to invest him as 'God.' That right is the right of the papacy to invest him as 'God.' No one's going to worship the pope as 'God.' Never happen! But the one who can solve all of our political problems will be called miraculous and will be worshipped. That's what all this trouble is that's happening in the world today, so that the 'savior' can come—not Jesus but the beast.

It will have the power of the Catholics. That's what I'm saying. It will have the power of the whole world, the Catholics, the Buddhist, everybody. So, he'll have the power behind it.

When I mention ;savior,; I don't mean Jesus Christ the Savior. I mean the false savior, the beast, coming on the scene. Just think that if someone went into Russia and solved all of their problems, think how he would be revered, be worshipped, especially when you consider that years ago being in the Church and wondering how all these things would come about.

Now we have the New Age religion the way we have it, especially when he (the beast) says that he's gone full circle on all the things, now he's been purified and appointed by God to be 'God' and that he is incarnated of God. The Catholics would have to go along with it simply because—not only go along but promote it—it'll be in their interests.

Rev. 13 shows the same thing, that the beast is the military power! The identifying of Satan, seven heads and ten horns, and I think these ten horns are ten principalities of whom these ten kings will be their human front. Every demon, every satanic thing must have a human person to be their spokesman and manifestation. Why? They have to dwell someplace, because demons cannot manifest themselves in human form! Angels can, but not demons!They have to use a human being to be that front. Wherever you have the seven heads and ten horns, these represent spiritual powers behind human beings. He puts it in their mind to agree. So, we have the seven heads and ten horns.

Revelation 13:2: "And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, and his feet like the feet of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion; and the dragon gave him his power, and his throne and great authority." It comes from Satan, the devil, that fiery red dragon.

That's what got me thinking when I was watching this Papal Mass. Here is this serpent, the serpentine columns. I sat there and I saw them before, and I looked at them and I thought that the whole world is thinking this is wonderful. I could tell this and I read it later in the paper. They even had someone from Iraq who was a Catholic, get up and read a part of the Mass ceremony praying for peace on earth. I could make out when the German got up there. I could make out when the Chinese got up there. They all had a little something to say. I thought to myself that this is Babylon right in front of me. I am looking at it. The religious system!

Here's the political system, v 3: "And I saw one of his heads as if it were slain to death, but his deadly wound was healed…" You've got to have a living martyr, as I mentioned before, for this to really take hold. Can you imagine what it would be like today if Robert F. Kennedy would have survived that assassination? Look what they've done in his death. Think what they would have done in his life.

We talked about the image of the beast and I think that I'm almost convinced that Alexander Hislop is correct that the image to the beast will be the Madonna. Not many people know it and I've read this many times. I've done the same thing as you. I get to reading it and it just drags your mind down because it's so complicated to read and follow all the thoughts that you put it aside and you don't pick it up and read it.

I never knew until I picked this up and reread it that when they take the Eucharist and they say the doctrine of transubstantiation—which is that this wafer becomes the literal blood and body of Jesus—did you know that they also have the doctrine which says, that in that same wafer is the body and blood of Mary? I never knew that and I've had this book 20 years. That's my fault for not reading it. People worship her more, go to her and she'll go through her Son. I never knew it until I read this again that in the doctrine of transubstantiation, in there, is not only the flesh and blood of Jesus, but the flesh and blood of Mary.

from The Spotlight Newspaper, by Bayside Prophecies, A Great War Will Erupt Suddenly. {transcriber's note: this is no longer published}

On Tuesday morning October 2, 1990, at 10:12 a.m. the Virgin Mary, bathed in a bright luminous light, appeared to Veronica Luken in her bedroom.

Going to solve all the problems of the feminists because now you can also not only have the flesh and blood of God, but also the flesh and blood of the goddess, Queen of Heaven. Why is she called 'Our Lady?' Because that's the opposite and equal of Our Lord! I know this has been a little disjointed in its presentation, but I hope it's been helpful anyway.

Our Lady wore a beautiful white dress made of what appeared to be fine silk.

Notice all the things that distract you as you come down here:

The dress was so long Veronica couldn't see Our Lady's feet.

As if that means anything. What difference does that make?

The sleeves reached down to her wrist.

Modesty!

In addition, Our Lady wore a blue sash around here waist. Over all the dress was loose fitting and very billowing. Our Lady's head covering was white. It fell below her shoulders and it matched the material of her dress. Veronica saw only a little bit of Our Lady's hair, which was light brown color.

You better be careful. You might offend some other race here!

Veronica noted Our Lady's extreme modesty in dress and similarity of her attire that was show in the famous and outstanding miraculous photo, Our Lady in the Sky.

They're seeing everywhere: in the sky, in the shower, in the Church.

Our Lady said, 'Dear child. You will write just as you receive it from me. You'll be unable to go to the Holy Grounds this evening, hence you'll disseminate this message to the world as soon as possible. I, your mother and protectress of the world's children, do beg you now to repent of your sins against the teachings of the eternal father, sins of the flesh and intellect. A great war will erupt suddenly such has not been from the beginning of creation. Countries will disappear in moments from the face of the earth. Will you not listen to me before it is too late? You all do not have much time left. I come to you as the protectress of peace. Unless you repent of your abortions, the murder of the unborn, and return to lives of prayer and contemplation of the mysteries of the eternal father given by writings, the Bible the book of life and love, I cannot save you from the complication that lies ahead. Prayer, penance and atonement, my tears fall upon all mankind. Will you solace me my children?

Even Satan wants people to repent to him, to come into his religion, so that they're going to follow him. Everything becomes so absolutely confused. That's why we have Babylon here, Babylon there, Babylon everywhere.

The truth is, it is all Babylon everywhere! It's amazing! I would not 'pooh pooh' the idea one bit that the image may be the picture of the beast. That's possible. It may be the beast himself, but always in history, the image of the beast has been the Madonna, in ancient Babylonian religion and today. Isn't that putting everything on an equal plane? You get all the women's movement, get everybody behind you and that's what Babylon is to include everyone.

Why this cannot all exist in just one office of the papacy; Revelation 13:4: "And they worshiped the dragon…" That's the main thing behind this. Whenever this is going on it is demon worship. It is Satan worship.

I couldn't help thinking that when the pope was there going through all of his things and here is this great altar. I don't know what's below it, but I was thinking that here they all are worshipping at Satan's feet. Everything is just fine. Marvelous and all cloaked in the mystery of Christian-sounding language and it's nothing but pure unadulterated satanism and paganism.

It's such a shame that people are so gullible and believe that they're so willing to get involved in these things. You just have to feel sorry for them. You see these really sincere people out there. They are desperate, they don't know what they're going to do; especially when I saw the opening of these Orthodox Cathedrals in Moscow and the people walking in there crying and going on. They're desperate! Those poor people in Russia are hopeless! They say, 'We're hopeless!' Just ripe, ready for the solution for the world.

How far down the road it is, I don't know, but they worship the dragon. They'll worship anything. They'll worship anybody, to save themselves out of this situation.

"…And they worshiped the beast, saying, 'Who is like the beast?….'" (v 4). No one has ever been like him. So, it can't be Saddam Hussein. He was like Hitler.

"'…Who has the power to make war against him?' And a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies was given to him; and authority was given to him to continue for forty-two months…. [after his wound was healed, three and a half years after that] …And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. And he was given power to make war against the saints, and to overcome them; and he was given authority over every tribe and language and nation. And all who dwell on the earth will worship him whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (vs 4-8).

This is going to be a great, great, great event. This is of a great magnetite over there. It's one of these things leading to the end, but Saddam Hussein was not the beast. The Arabs who are with him are not the ten horns.

• Where's the woman that is supposed to be riding the beast?
• Where is the false prophet that is supposed to be supporting the beast, as the second beast here has in the rest of Rev. 13?
• They're not there!

I don't want to spend all the rest of the time until the return of Christ fighting off false doctrine. It seems incredible! It's overwhelming! People want to make God do His will so quickly, that they're going to stand up and label this the beast and the Tribulation is here.

I've got to mention one other thing. I told you that it's been unbelievable. Someone wrote and said that since Jesus said that in the world you will have tribulation, that we have had tribulation and the Great Tribulation has been from Jesus down until now. I don't have time to go in and answer that. Jesus said there would be 'great tribulation such as was not since there was ever a human being on earth.'

Keep your eyes on Babylon. If you have the time and if you can stand it, read The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop. You'll find this excellent, but realize that he was correct only until the time that he wrote. I think that in going though and understanding, that that passing of Pontifex Maximus—meaning God in the flesh—passes from the pope to the coming world ruler, then we don't have the beast on the scene until then.

All the rest of them may be beasts of various kinds. I would have to say that Saddam Hussein was certainly a beastly type man. So was Hitler, Mussolini, Tôjô and all the rest down the line.

One other thing. I can't believe this. I have to mention this. Did you know that the Japanese are warlike because they are cousins of Germans? That was written in a booklet called Japan in Bible Prophecy by Peter Salemi because they happened to cross paths in the Caucasus region. Almost every nation has crossed paths in the Caucasus region. Nonsense! The Japanese are warlike because they're Japanese and the Germans are warlike because they're Germans. The Americans are rebellious because we're Americans and that's just the way that it is. I couldn't believe it when I read that.

All Scripture from The Holy Bible In Its Original Order, A Faithful Version

Scriptural References:

• Jeremiah 3:2-3, 6-11
• Isaiah 40:1-2
• Revelation 17:1,15. 18, 2-5
• Ezekiel 23:2-4
• Daniel 7:3-5, 6-8, 16-21
• Revelation 17:14, 16
• Daniel 7:23
• Revelation 13:2-8

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Revelation 18
• Deuteronomy 28
• Leviticus 26
• Daniel 11; 2
• Revelation 2
• 2-Thessalonians 2

Also referenced:
Books:

• By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky and Claire Hoy
• The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop
• The Persian Gulf Crisis and the Final Fall of Babylon by N.W. Hutchings
• Is America Mystery Babylon the Great? by Randy Shupe

Sermon Series: Was Jesus God?

Newspaper Articles:

• Dead Sea Scrolls Editor's Exit Tied to Anti-Jewish Remarks by John Noble Wilford, from New York Times (www.nytimes.com/1990/12/12/world/dead-sea-scrolls-editor-s-exit-tied-to-anti-jewish-remarks.html)
• Rabbi: Holocaust Punished Jew's Sins, from Associated Press (https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19901228&id=R4AzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=KjIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=4748,6563636&hl=en)

Booklet: Japan in Bible Prophecy by Peter Salemi (Distributed by the British-Israel Church of God)

FRC: nfs
Transcribed: 08-03-16
Proofed: bo—8/12/16