English
And one of the seven angels holding the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, ‘Come, I will show you the judgment of the great whore, who sits on many waters, with whom the earth’s kings have committed sexual immorality. And the ones who dwell on the earth were made drunk from the wine of her sexual immorality.’
And in the spirit he carried me to the wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on the scarlet wild animal—the one full of defamatory names and has seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and gilded with gold and precious stones and pearls. She was holding a golden cup in her hand, full of abominations and her sexual immorality’s impurities. And a name was written on her forehead, a mystery: ‘The Great Babylon, the Mother of Whores and the Earth’s Abominations.’
Interpretation
The depiction of ‘Babylon’ as a ‘whore’ (or prostitute, though used with the force of a slur) in this chapter is borrows heavily from Ezekiel 16 and 23, which has led many interpreters to identify ‘Babylon’ as a cipher for Jerusalem, maintaining continuity with ‘the great city’ being identified as the place of Jesus’ crucifixion in chapter 11. However, further details in chapter 17 make it clear the author intends for the reader to see ‘Babylon’ as the capital city of the empire, Rome itself. The rationale behind the choice of ‘Babylon’ as a cipher for Rome was that the rulers of each city were responsible for the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple, the historical Babylon having done so at the command of Nebuchadnezzar in 587 BCE, and Rome at the command of Nero in 70 CE. (Though Nero himself died in 68 CE, he ordered the war against the Iudaea Province rebellion in 66 CE. By the time the temple was destroyed, the general Vespasian had become emperor.) By the end of the first century, Babylon being used as a codename or allegory for Rome was common in apocalyptic streams of thought. The slur of calling Rome a ‘whore’ was that idol-worship was frequently described metaphorically as sexual immorality or adultery (i.e. Israel’s violation of a marriage-like covenant with their god Yhwh), so that someone who actively encouraged or enforced idolatry was compared to a prostitute. Although this metaphor was most often used for Israel, Judah, or Jerusalem in the biblical prophets, a few rare occasions do aim the insult at gentile powers.
Parallels
Isaiah
23.17 At the end of seventy years, Yhwh will visit Tyre, and she will return to her trade, and will prostitute herself with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth.
Nahum
3.4 Because of the countless debaucheries of the prostitute, gracefully alluring, mistress of sorcery, who enslaves nations through her debaucheries, and peoples through her sorcery
Sibylline Oracles
3.75–77 Then indeed the world will be governed under the hands of a woman, and be obedient in everything. Then when a widow reigns over the whole world
8.194–195 May I not be alive when the abominable woman reigns, but rather then, when heavenly grace comes to rule
Daniel
7.16 I approached one of the attendants to ask him the truth concerning all this. So he said that he would disclose to me the interpretation of the matter.
8.15–16 Then someone appeared standing before me, having the appearance of a man, and I heard a human voice by the Ulai, calling, ‘Gabriel, help this man understand the vision.’
9.21–22 the man Gabriel, whom I had seen before in a vision, came to me in swift flight at the time of the evening sacrifice. He came and said to me, ‘Daniel, I have now come out to give you wisdom and understanding.’
10.5, 11, 14 I looked up and saw a man […] He said to me […] ‘I have come to help you understand what is to happen to your people at the end of days.’
1 Peter
5.13 Your sister church in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings, and so does my son Mark.
4 Ezra
3.1–2 In the thirtieth year after the destruction of the city, I was in Babylon—I, Salathiel, who am also called Ezra. I was troubled as I lay on my bed, and my thoughts welled up in my heart, because I saw the desolation of Zion and the wealth of those who lived in Babylon.
4.1–3 Then the angel that had been sent to me, whose name was Uriel, answered and said to me, ‘Your understanding has utterly failed regarding this world, and do you think you can comprehend the way of the Most High?’ Then I said, ‘Yes, my lord.’ And he replied to me, ‘I have been sent to show you’
11.1, 3, 11 I saw rising from the sea an eagle that had twelve feathered wings and three heads. […] I saw that out of its wings there grew opposing wings. […] I counted its rival wings, and there were eight of them.
2 Baruch
11.1 Now this I, Baruch, say to you, O Babylon
39.1–2 And he answered and said to me, ‘Baruch, this is the explanation of the vision which you have seen.’
55.3; 56.1 And while I was pondering over these and similar things, behold, Ramael, the angel who is set over true visions, was sent to me and said to me […] ‘since you have asked the Most High to reveal to you the explanation of the vision which you have seen, I have been sent’
6 Ezra
15.46–47 And you, Asia, who share in the splendor of Babylon and the glory of her person—woe to you, miserable wretch! For you have made yourself like her; you have decked out your daughters for prostitution to please and glory in your lovers, who have always lusted after you.
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