In Christopher Nolan’s science-fiction film, Inception, the main character, Dominick Cobb, makes his living infiltrating people’s dreams and stealing their ideas. The idea of being able to live one’s life inside of a dream is a fascinating concept and Nolan tells an intriguing story with the film. But there’s a great risk that Cobb faces in his life of infiltrating people’s dreams. He can confuse reality with what is simply a dream. And he doesn’t want that. He doesn’t want to live his entire life inside of a dream – no matter how interesting or amazing it is – and miss out on living in reality. Therefore, he carries with him at all times a token that is called a “totum.” It’s nothing more than a spinning top. But its function in the film is to alert Cobb as to when he is in a dream and when he is in the real world. If the top continues spinning and won’t fall, then that tells him he is in a dream, but if the top falls, it shows him that all around him is truly real. The totum then becomes in the film something outside of Cobb’s mind, which he acknowledges can lead him astray, that tells him what is real and what isn’t, when he cannot accurately judge himself.
I think that Revelation 18 functions very much in that way for us. The function of this chapter in the book, I believe, is to highlight the coming judgment of Babylon (which pictures the seductiveness of worldliness in Rome and in the ages before and after Rome until the Lord returns) in such a way that the emptiness and fleeting nature of worldliness is exposed so that we might flee from worldliness in our day and not be deceived by it and run toward it.
The text itself is something like a funeral dirge or lament. It’s full of poetic snippets that speak of Babylon’s coming judgment, which is so certain that it’s spoken of as if it’s already occurred. After all, the Roman empire and the worldliness thereof would have been alive and well at the time when this book was written, but it’s destruction was indeed coming. In the same way, worldliness throughout every empire or world power seems great and alluring, and eventually that world power is brought down. This is why we don’t trust in fleeting things but in the one who can save us for eternity.
Therefore, this morning, I want us to see from this text what truths it teaches and what should be our response. The first thing that I want us to note from this text is that:
As I’ve mentioned, this text speaks of the coming judgment of Babylon (which represents the seductive worldliness of culture, whether riches, fame, sexual immorality, etc.) in terms of such certainty that it speaks as if it’s already happened. We see this other places in Scripture as well. One place, for example, is in Romans 8:29-30, where Paul speaks of us having been foreknown, predestined, called, justified, and glorified. Now, four of those have already taken place for all of us who are believers. However, none of us has been justified. So how can Paul speak of it as if it’s already taken place? Well, his point is that our future glorification is just as certain as the fact that we who trust in Christ have been glorified. That’s why he launches into arguing that there is no one to condemn us, no one to bring a charge against us, and nothing that can separate us from God’s love.
Well, we find that same certainty here. This is why the text tells us that this glorious angel calls out in certain terms, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!” (v. 1a). But notice the description of Babylon there. It is called Babylon the great. And the reason why is because the worldliness of the culture held out everything you could want in the first century. If you wanted riches, it could be achieved. If you wanted sexual immorality, it could be sought after and found. If you wanted fame, then it could be grasped. The worldliness of the sinful culture promised everything you could want.
And all the people of the world were seeking after the blessings of worldliness, wanting to profit from Babylon. This is why we read in verse 3, “All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”
Rome at this time seemed to hold out everything you’d want. Imagine, for example, the guy who lives in the United States and has found riches, lives the life of luxury, pursues sexual immorality and finds it with beautiful women, and has everything one who looks to this world alone you could want. That is what Babylon represents. This is why in the world’s eyes she is called “Babylon the great” in verse 1 or in verses 18-19 and 21, “the great city.”
Yet look at what happens after judgment. After announcing that Babylon has fallen, we read, “She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast” (v. 2). If you could picture the ruins of a once great city where now birds and lizards and other animals run around, that is the picture here. But that’s not all. Why does he mention the image of wild animals, like we would imagine in a city that has been diminished to ruins, and demons and unclean spirits?
I think the answer is that there are two things that are exposed when the glory of worldliness, pictured as this glorious city, faces judgment: 1) the emptiness and fleeting nature of all that worldliness promises and 2) the demonic activity that upheld it. That is to say, on the one hand, we need to realize that worldliness is empty. As Jesus said, what does it profit someone to gain the whole world and lose one’s soul? Why chase after things that are fleeting. What does it profit a man to have everything this world offers for even a long life of 100 years and then die and face hell for eternity? Worldliness is empty. And it’s demonic.
In our day, we have trouble relating to what some believers probably faced in the first century. We don’t have government officials telling us that we’ll be killed unless we denounce Jesus Christ. We’re not forced to gather at temples and pay homage to false gods in order to practice a trade. But we can relate to Satan’s attack that is pictured in Babylon the prostitute, can’t we? We know the pull of worldliness. We can look at the riches, fame, and seeming pleasure of immorality and feel the pull of it, can’t we?
So, Jesus wants to strip all the glory away for a second and expose reality to us. That seductive lure is the very work of Satan’s demons. This is Satan’s strategy. He can be like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour as emperors threaten to throw Christians into an arena with a wild beast and he can be that same devouring lion by holding out to us the seeming pleasure of chasing after riches, fame, and immorality. They’re both Satan’s attacks. But in the end, it is all fleeting. In the end, the glory of all worldliness has to offer will be shown to be empty – like the ruins of a once great city, now inhabited by birds, lizards, and wild animals.
This then leads to an exhortation in the text:
After the picture of Babylon being judged in verses 1-3, we hear an exhortation in verse 4 as another voice from heaven declares, “Come out of her, my people.” That is, this is carrying on the metaphor of getting out of the city. Get out of Babylon. But obviously this wasn’t meaning that one should leave the Roman Empire. For one, that would have been almost impossible geographically. Where would you go – to some territory where there were barbarians? For two, that’s forgetting that the city Babylon represents less the city than the worldliness of the city. This is why John elaborates on what he means when he adds, “Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues; for her sins are heaped as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities” (vv. 4-5).
You see, the idea is not to take part in the sins of Babylon. Don’t pursue what the prostitute holds out, for it is rebellion against God. And judgment is coming to her. The idea is, if you take part in her sins, then you’ll also take part in her judgment. Verses 7-8 lay out her certain judgment, saying, “As she glorified herself and lived in luxury, so give her a like measure of torment and mourning, since in her heart she says, ‘I sit as a queen, I am no widow, and mourning I shall never see.’ For this reason her plagues will come in a single day, death and mourning and famine and she will be burned up with fire; for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her” (vv. 7-8).
You see, Babylon and all she represents sends a message that says, I am untouchable. The person who seems to be getting all the treasures out of this life can think that they are beyond judgment. This is why, for example, Jesus says it’s hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. It’s because he’s blinded to his need and can’t get past his feeling of invincibility. But if we chase after what the world holds out instead of pursuing Christ and persevering in faithful obedience to him, we will face judgment. We must flee that which is fleeting.
Now, let me end by showing you a word of warning and a word of encouragement to obey this exhortation to flee worldliness and pursue Christ. First, the warning:
Now, let me tell you what I mean by that and then show it to you in the text. What I mean is that you may be in a position right now where you see clearly what is sin and what isn’t. But you feel the lure of sin. You feel the lure of what the world is holding out to you in a variety of ways, again, sexual immorality, fame, riches, etc. But what you need to understand is that even if you decide you just want to dip your toe in the water, if you will, it’s dangerous. And the reason it’s dangerous is because a little flirting with sin can cause you to begin to be deceived, for your heart to grow hard, and for your mind and your eyes to begin to be blinded to what is real. You dive into sin a little bit and before long you’ve lost your bearings. You now are defending something that you once clearly knew was wrong. Repentance is impossible because you’ve lost sight of the need for repentance at all. That is the risk of pursuing sin. Now, let me show this why I say this from the text.
In verses 9-19 we have all these different people in the world mourning because Babylon has been judged. We read in verse 9-10, “And the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning. They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say, ‘Alas! Alas! You great city, you mighty city, Babylon! For in a single hour your judgment has come.’”
And it’s not just the kings. In verses 11-17a, we read that the merchants of the earth weep as well. In verse 11 we read, “And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore.” And then their cargo is listed, which ranges from scented wood to men who were made slaves. Then in verses 15-17a, we read, “The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud, ‘Alas, alas, for the great city that was clothed in fine linen, in purpose and scarlet, adorned with gold, with jewels, and with pearls! For in a single hour all this wealth has been laid waste.’
Also the sea merchants mourning, so that we read in 17b-19, “And all the shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning, ‘What city was like the great city.’ And they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out, ‘Alas, alas, for the great city where all who had ships at sea grew rich by her wealth! For in a single hour she has been laid waste.”
Now, yes, it seems like the whole earth is mourning for Babylon’s judgment. But why are they mourning? It’s not because they genuinely feel bad for Babylon, is it? It’s because they no longer have a means to pursue their riches and idolatry. They’re mourning because they can no longer live in luxury. They mourn because there is now no one to buy their cargo anymore.
Do you see the warped thinking? They’re mourning because they fear they may no longer be able to get the very things that brought judgment on Babylon. This would be like a man on his way to the prostitute’s house when as he’s only steps away the police show up, run inside, and bust all the prostitutes and those who are there for their services, and this man stops, is horrified by the judgment that is going to befall all the people in that house, and then stops to mourn because he no longer has a prostitute that he can pursue.
You see, he should stop and think, “I need to stop this lifestyle or I could face similar judgment.” But that’s not the logic of sin. It deceives. You can watch someone destroy their life with sexual immorality and then feel the lure of sexual immorality the next second. You can be so deceived by sin that you can watch someone ruin their lives with alcohol and then pursue drunkenness the next day. And on and on.
Sin makes us like these kings and merchants – blinded to reality. Sin deceives, hardens our hearts, and blinds our eyes to reality. Therefore, look at the foolishness of these kings and merchants who miss the real message and let it be a reminder to you to flee sin and not to pursue worldliness.
That’s the warning in this text. We’ve seen worldliness exposed. We’ve heard the exhortation to flee – to come out of the city. We’ve heard a warning. And now hear a word of encouragement and promise:
The judgment of Babylon, the downfall of worldliness, is shown in verses 21-24. We’re told that an angel threw a great millstone in the sea and said in the same way Babylon will be thrown down with violence. The Lord will judge the great city. No more will all the glories of the city be found there. No more musicians, no more artists, no more fancy weddings, no more merchants, no more killing of the Lord’s people because they wouldn’t get on board with the sins of the culture.
And historically, we’ve seen wicked men and institutions thrown down again and again, haven’t we? The very Roman Empire that was responsible for the murder of numerous Christians was eventually attacked and conquered so that there is simply no Roman Empire today. Even a visit to the city of Rome only highlights ruins of the former city. It is another picture in this book of the wrath of God against his enemies.
So what are believers to do in light of this terrible scene? We read in verse 20, “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!”
You see, once reason why God will judge all worldliness and those who have pursued it is because he is committed to delivering his people. If we pursue the sin of this world, we will face judgment. But if we hold fast to Christ in faith, we’ll be able to rejoice in our salvation on that day.
Therefore, I know the lure of Babylon is great. The seduction of sin is mighty. But resist. Flee what is fleeting. Pursue Christ. And even though you may feel like you’re missing the pleasures of this world, soon you’ll see true reality as the Lord comes and strips bare the seeming glory of this world and delivers his people. Therefore, let us look to the one this morning who lived, died, and was raised for us and declare in the midst of a world full of seduction, “Jesus, I my cross have taken.” Amen.