After learning about the great whore and the future destruction that awaits her, John saw an Angel descend from Heaven having great power and lightening the earth with His Glory. The Angel is the Son of Man Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 10:1), who veiled Himself behind the earthly angel, or last days prophet, William Branham. The Glory of God was made known to the whole earth as the prophet travelled around the world and preached the message God had given Him, declaring Christ and demonstrating the Messianic sign of discernment. For many, he was just some little man from Kentucky, but behind his earthly voice was the heavenly Voice of God, calling a Bride out of the clutches of Mystery Babylon.
Jesus cried aloud through the ministry of the prophet, to not only call an elected people out of Babylon (Revelation 18:4), but to tell the elect that the system He is calling them out from has fallen and therefore has no future for it. This reminds us of when Moses was delivering Israel out of Egypt. It was God who went down into Egypt (Exodus 3:8) veiled in His prophet Moses (Exodus 3:10), to call the elected ones out of a system that was falling apart and eventually destroyed under the plagues.
Christ’s strong Voice crying mightily through the prophet is the Shout that is spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 4:16. The Shout is the message of redemption and grace (Zechariah 4:7), for it is calling a people out of religious Babylon (the church systems) in order that they might enter into the Promised Land of the Holy Ghost. The Voice of the Angel declares that Babylon is fallen twice (“is fallen, is fallen…”). This is because ancient Babylon fell and modern Mystery Babylon will also fall. Furthermore, we shall see here in this chapter that there are two Babylon’s spoken of; the first speaks of religious Babylon (Rome) which destroys the world religiously, and the second is commercial Babylon (America… Hollywood) which destroys the world morally. Although both have brought so much destruction to the world, yet both in turn shall be destroyed at the end time.
When the Angel spoke of the fall of modern Babylon, He was looking past the splendor of its buildings, the lure of its music and entertainments, and the strength of its commerce, and by discernment saw that it had become a habitation of devils; Babylonian paganism wrapped-up in Christian terminology. No matter how much the world would try and coat sin with an outward appearance of beauty, yet at the very heart of it is a bunch of devils enslaving the souls of all that embrace it.
Mystery Babylon’s influential sway and political clout over the kings of the earth is truly unmatched. She is a system that is consulted by world leaders who have committed fornication with her by receiving her doctrinal teachings and enacting her political goals (Revelation 18:3). As modern parties are filled with drunkenness and fornication, so the leaders of the world have been made drunk on the wine of her fornication; in other words, they are unaware to the fact that they are but pawns in a global chess game, and are being used by her to their own destruction. Not only has she caused a case of global drunken intoxication, but the big industries (the merchants of the earth) have amassed immense fortunes for themselves through the uniting of the whole world in religion, politics and commerce.
The use of the word “fornication” is of great importance, for it reveals to us that the whorish Babylonian woman is not married, since fornication is sex between unmarried persons. If the woman was married and engaging in sexual affairs with other men, then the Bible would have called it adultery. So the great church system in question is not at all married to Christ, no matter how much she would claim to be so. Christ would in no ways join himself to such a polluted system, for He will only espouse Himself to a chaste virgin (2 Corinthians 11:2).
Christ’s strong Voice calling the people out of Babylon (Revelation 18:3-4) through the ministry of the prophet on the earth had a reverberation effect in Heaven (Revelation 18:4). The prophet was so in tune with God, that when he spoke on the earth, the Voice of God echoed back from Heaven, giving support and sanction to all that the prophet preached. Christ is calling the people out of Babylon because He Himself had already been kicked out of the church (Revelation 3:2). This is one of the saddest Bible scenes whereby Christ is on the outside of the church. It is why the modern church has become a habitation of devils, because when Christ was removed from it, the vacuum was quickly filled by Satan and all his devils.
Jesus is calling His people to come out of “her,” the false church, the female, the unscriptural leadership, in order that they might be united with “Him,” the male, the true Headship.” But for all who refuse to leave the church systems and submit to the true authority of Christ the Word, then they shall receive upon themselves the plagues contained in the seven vials.
The sins of modern Babylon have accumulated over the centuries and reached unto Heaven (Revelation 18:5), coming into the remembrance of God in order that she might be fittingly punished. And when God punishes her, He will double her punishment (Revelation 18:6). All that she has done against the saints of God throughout the ages will be avenged speedily and strongly. She who is a usurping queen (Revelation 18:7), but is not married to the King of Heaven (Christ the Word) has fooled its church members into thinking that they are all going in the Rapture and will see no sorrow in the Tribulation. How wrong this thinking is! The modern church and its members will not escape the wrath of God for having refused to give heed to the message of God’s prophet in these last days.
John then goes on to describe the punishment which shall befall the whorish false church in the last days. This we have already learned about in our study of Revelation chapter 17, but John goes into more detail as to the effects the punishment has upon the commerce of the world. The former headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, the Vatican City State (the new headquarters will be in Jerusalem at this time according to Daniel 11:45), will be bombed, burned and obliterated by atomic fire, even as she burned so many of the saints at the stake throughout the church ages.
So shocking will be the news of the Vatican’s destruction that the economies and commerce of the world will come to a sudden grinding halt. All shall see (Revelation 18:9) the footage of the mushroom cloud ascending upward from Italy’s capital city (Rome), and all will keep their distance for fear of the nuclear radiation rapidly spreading throughout the Italian countryside (Revelation 18:10). A typical fire can take hours or days to burn a city block to the ground, but in less than one hour, the Vatican City State will have been burned to the ground by the intense ferocity of nuclear fire.
The world leaders (Revelation 18:9) and big businessmen of the earth (Revelation 18:11) shall weep and mourn, for the global economy in one sweeping moment will collapse and never rise again. John then goes on to describe in Revelation 18:12-13 how all the industries of the world are affected. The stock market will crash and all digital currency will become worthless (the merchandise of gold and silver). The gems and jewelry industry will collapse (precious stones and pearls). The clothing and fashion industry will collapse (fine linen, purple, silk, and scarlet). All manufacturing will cease (thyine wood, vessels of ivory, vessels of precious wood, of brass, iron, and marble). The beauty industry will collapse (cinnamon, odours, ointments, and frankincense). The food and beverage industry will collapse (wine and oil, fine flour, and wheat). The agriculture industry will collapse (beasts, sheep, and horses). The automotive industry will collapse (chariots). The human trafficking industry will collapse (slaves and souls of men).
The sporting industry also deals in the slaves and souls of men, for sport is a slave market where players are traded, bought and sold for millions of dollars. One of the greatest things in the Roman Empire was the games, and by the games the people were entertained and occupied. The politicians got the people drunk on the games so that they would not concern themselves with the reality of what was going on in the world.
Whilst the merchants of the earth and all those involved in the maritime or shipping industry are weeping and wailing (Revelation 18:16-19), all the saints of God shall be rejoicing (Revelation 18:20), for God has at last avenged their blood on the evil church system (Romans 12:19). Zephaniah 1:7-13, Zephaniah 1:18, and James 5:1-6 paint a solemn picture of what will befall the rich men and the markets of this world. God has appointed every man his wages, and there is a time for every man to receive his wages. Jesus said of Himself in Revelation 22:12 that He cometh quickly and that His reward or wages is with Him. So this is the time of the wages being given out, and the wicked whorish woman is receiving her wages in the form of her destruction.
After reading and learning about the destruction of Mystery Babylon (Revelation 18:21-24), how she will be burned with fire, we then come to the second Babylon which shall be destroyed by water. In the Book of Genesis, God destroyed two wicked cities: Sodom and Gomorrah. The name Sodom means “Burning,” and the name Gomorrah means “Submersion.” The meaning of these city names is significant because here in the Book of Revelation we have two cities prophesied to be destroyed by burning and by submersion in the ocean.
The second Babylon spoken of here in Revelation chapter 18 is America, but more specifically, it is the city of Los Angeles, the home of Hollywood. America’s destruction was foreseen by the prophet in its being covered in craters from a nuclear attack, but before that happens, the nation will be rocked by a tremendous earthquake that breaks off a huge portion of California, causing it to slide into the Pacific Ocean.
California is America’s richest state, and when Los Angeles sinks, California will be crippled and America’s deeply indebted economy will collapse. The Roman Catholic Church is the only organization with enough money to take over America and rule the nation, so the confederation of Protestant churches (the image of the Beast) will be in submission to Rome as it has all the money, and they in turn will have the power to force all to belong to their church system or be put to death (Revelation 13:15).
The Mighty Angel (Revelation 18:21) is Jesus Christ who casts a rock like a millstone into the sea and speaks of the violence with which Hollywood shall be destroyed. A millstone is representative of punishment for offence (Matthew 18:6). Because the people have stumbled and been offended by Christ the Headstone (1 Peter 2:7-8), Christ in turn uses the illustration of a millstone to show what will befall them.
Let us examine Hollywood for a moment, to see why exactly God has chosen to destroy it. Hollywood has long been recognized as the entertainment capital of the world, producing films and television shows that captivate audiences globally. However, its influence extends far beyond mere entertainment since its movies and television shows have had a profound negative impact on families and marriages, on pop culture, and in shaping society and influencing trends in various aspects of our lives, from attitudes, beliefs and fashion choices. Furthermore, its movies and television shows have influenced and shaped public opinion on a wide range of social and cultural issues, pushing agendas such as gay rights and same-sex marriage etcetera.
The California earthquake (“the Big One”) and the destruction it unleashes upon Los Angeles will bring an end to the movie industry of America. Sunken beneath the ocean, Hollywood will never again produce another motion picture filled with all its music and immorality and violence and all manner of other sinfulness. Even the light of a candle will no longer shine in the sunken city (Revelation 18:23), for a flame is extinguished under water! John speaks of the voices and sounds that once resounded from the city, but they shall cease, for the electronics and equipment will be destroyed by the ocean’s saltwater and the people themselves will be drowned. The sunken city shall sit beneath the Pacific waves in silence!
And by the sorceries of Hollywood were all the nations deceived (Revelation 18:23)! The Greek word for sorceries is “pharmakeia,” from which we get the modern word “pharmacy. God will bring an end to big-business pharmaceuticals as well, for they have greatly enriched themselves on false vaccines (as was witnessed during Covid-19) and ineffective medicinal drugs that millions have become dependent upon. But pharmakeia has a broader meaning, for it speaks of witchcraft, the use of administering drugs, of poisoning, and to the magical arts found in connection with the deceptions of idolatry.
How aptly this describes Hollywood which has poisoned the minds of the masses with its movies that promote the occult and glorified the drugs and narcotics trade, portraying its trade and its usage in so many movies. Indeed, one need only visit America today and be horrified by the devastating effects of drugs such as xylazine and fentanyl that have reduced so many into a zombie-like state. Not only the drugs, but the magical arts of the movie and entertainment industries have destroyed the lives of countless millions over the decades. No wonder John said that in her was found the blood of prophets and saints (Revelation 18:24), for she has sent millions of souls to Hell!