Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

In recent episodes we’ve looked at 16 chapters of the Book of Revelation. In a tangled and violent history, the world suffered through seven seals, seven trumpet blasts, and seven bowls of wrath.  

A trinity of seven disasters, three cycles of seven, what could be more fitting at the end of time? But the story doesn’t end there. Revelation 17 opens with still another beast appearing on the world stage.  

This new beast shows up in a desert. Riding this beast is a woman called “The Great Prostitute”, who arrives drunk with the blood of Christian martyrs. On her forehead is written, “Babylon the Great, Mother of Prostitutes and Abominations” (Rev 17:5). This woman won’t feature in many Mothers’ Day sermons!

The angel says to John, “Let me explain the mystery of the woman and the beast.” 

He tells John the woman is “the great city that rules over the kings of the earth” (v. 17). She is named for Babylon, the ancient city of Babel, where men built a tower to reach heaven, where God confused their languages and terminated their construction project, dispersing them throughout the world. The kingdom of Babylon reappears in the Old Testament, when it conquered Israel, destroyed God’s temple, and took God’s people into exile. 

Today, modern Babylons repeat the evils of old, building rockets to conquer space, cruise missiles to conquer enemies, and taking captives to consumerism, militarism, religion, and sex. 

But back to John’s vision. The beast that Babylon rides “once was, now is not, and will be again” (v. 8). The beast will come from the Abyss to rule the earth.

Where does Jesus fit in all this? He was alive on earth for 33 years, then he was executed, and he came back to life. The Book of Revelation promises he will descend on the clouds to rule earth. 

The beast in John’s vision is anti-Jesus, an anti-Christ who appears on earth, then appears to die, then appears again as if resurrected from the Abyss, coming again to conquer the world, not to save it. 

The angel tells John the seven heads on this beast represent seven hills the woman sits on. They also represent seven kings–five past, one present, and one future (v. 10). The beast itself is king number 8.  

But eight kings aren’t enough for this story. The beast’s 10 horns represent ten more kings who hate the prostitute, Babylon, who rides them. They help the beast wage war against her, and against the lamb and his followers.

Confusing? Mystery and intrigue and ambiguity are everywhere in this story. Why does the beast war against Babylon? Can’t they be friends in a common hatred of Christ? Stay tuned for the next episode!

Let’s pray. 

O father, John’s vision paints history as a confusing parade of beasts and kings and kingdoms and an evil queen.

Thank you that John also paints a picture of heaven where the lamb reigns in peace. A lamb with power over the kingdoms of this world, and over the beasts who rule them, and over Babylon who rides the beast, and over the rulers who war with each other and you.

Look on us from heaven. We are your servants who live in the kingdom of beasts, but we serve the kingdom of heaven. Protect us and give us wisdom to walk through these confusing times. 

O Lord, do your work quickly, we pray. Prepare the world for judgment and salvation.  

Amen. 

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

YouTube channel: Pray with Me – YouTube

Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

In the Book of Revelation, chapter 14, the son of man came on the clouds, and an angel harvested the earth with God’s judgment, creating a river of blood. 

In Revelation 15, John looks away from the bloody earth, to a scene in heaven, where seven angels have prepared seven plagues. More bad news for earth. But there’s also a trace of good news. These are the last seven plagues. Then God’s wrath will be complete. Perhaps peace will come?

Meanwhile, standing in heaven, are Christians who were victorious over the beast and its image and the number 666. I think the victory they won was to be tortured and executed for refusing to worship the beast. This earned them a warm welcome in heaven. 

These victors play harps and sing a song of praise:
  Great and marvelous are your deeds, 
      Lord God Almighty.
  Just and true are your ways.
      All nations will worship you (Rev 15:3-4). 

After this worship set, seven angels come out of the temple in heaven. The temple fills with smoke and glory, like Moses’ tabernacle in the Old Testament. Then the angels take their seven bowls overflowing with God’s wrath, and pour them onto the earth.

  Bowl 1 causes festering sores on those with the mark of the beast. 
   Bowl 2 turns the sea to blood, killing every sea creature.
   Bowl 3 turns rivers and springs into blood. 

   Bowl 4 makes the sun scorch the earth with fire. The result of this? No one repents. Instead they curse God as a troublemaker. 
   Bowl 5 plunges the beast’s kingdom into darkness. More people curse God. 
   Bowl 6 dries up the Euphrates River, creating a highway for all nations to march to the battle of Armageddon. 

   Bowl 7 unleashes a mighty earthquake, sinks islands, flattens mountains, and pounds earth with  hundred-pound hailstones. 

And still the beast encourages everyone to curse God.
And still the nations march toward Armageddon. 

Let’s pray. 

O father, our world is like John’s vision. The wars that plagued the 20th century did not bring peace or wisdom. Instead, we have a war-mongering dictator in Moscow and a belligerent communist in Beijing, and a society with more guns than people in America. 

Yet we receive Revelation’s vision. 
– A vision that confirms that the evils on earth are real and life-threatening.
– A vision that looks beyond earthly dysfunction, to heaven where you rule.
– A vision that places a lamb on your throne, and he will soon take charge of the earth.

Grant us wisdom and patience to recognize the work of the beasts on earth, and to serve and die in the hidden kingdom of Christ. 

Amen. 

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

YouTube channel: Pray with Me – YouTube

Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

In the Book of Revelation, chapter 13, a dragon and two beasts start a new religion, requiring everyone to worship the beast’s image and get tattooed with its name or number. Don’t want a tattoo? Too bad. Objectors will be executed.

In chapter 14, John looks away from this beastly vision, to Mount Zion, where the lamb stands with 144,000 people tattooed with God’s name, not that of the beast. 

Then we see three flying angels. The first says, “Worship God, because he’s ready to judge everyone.” 

The next angel says, “Babylon the Great, which infected the whole world with madness, has fallen.” 

The third angel declares, “God is angry with anyone who worships the beast or is tattooed with his mark. He’ll throw them into a pit of burning sulfur.” 

John says, “This calls for patient endurance by God’s people on earth” and a voice from heaven says, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”  

What’s this? The beasts have been busy executing Christians. And now we’re told even more Christians will die? And those who die are blessed? Is this good news or bad news? 

When the Old Testament prophet Daniel got news like this, his face turned pale and he was deeply troubled. In his vision, four beasts rose out of the sea. The fourth beast blasphemed God and oppressed God’s people for three-and-a-half years. Then the son of man came in the clouds of heaven to destroy the beast and set up God’s kingdom on earth (Dan 7:1-28).

John’s vision also has the son of man coming on the clouds to deal with a world where sin has ripened into a harvest. An angel does the harvesting, throwing the produce into the winepress of God’s judgment. There the grapes are trampled and blood flows, rising as high as a horse bridle for 300 kilometers. 

A mighty harvest that! God’s judgment creates a river of blood. 

Let’s pray. 

O father, give us patient endurance to live through the evils of our time. 

John prophesied that Babylon the Great would fill the world with madness. In our time,  many nations pose as Babylon and drive the world to insanity. Trade wars and pornography, weapons production and cyber warfare, gambling and guns and bombs and drones. Pollution beyond control. 

O Lord, we have crowned beasts as kings of the earth, and we display their names and number wherever we go. Drivers license, social insurance, health care numbers, money stamped with political images, bank accounts that report to government and tax authorities.

Is patient endurance the best you can recommend for us, Lord? Don’t you want us to try to change the politics of the world? To avert the rise of worse and greater beasts? Should we try to domesticate the politicians and encourage them to enact Christian legislation? 

O God, we live in troubled times, immersed in divisive politics and watched by intrusive technology. May we wait patiently and wisely while you prepare to ride the clouds of heaven and vanquish evildoers.

Amen. 

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

YouTube channel: Pray with Me – YouTube

Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

In the Book of Revelation, chapter 12, Michael and his angels threw the dragon and his demons to earth. Chapter 13 continues the story. 

The dragon stands on a seashore, while a beast emerges from the sea. The beast has 10 horns, 7 heads, feet like a bear, and a mouth like a lion. One head looks like it was fatally wounded, but had healed. 

This impresses the whole world, and everyone worships the magical beast and the dragon who gave him authority. The beast spends the next six years blaspheming God, railing against the residents of heaven, and unleashing war against Christians. 

John quotes Jeremiah to describe these six awful years: 
    If anyone is destined for captivity,
      into captivity they will go.
    If anyone is destined to be killed by the sword, 
       then the sword will kill them (Rev 13:10 quoting Jer 15:2). 

Not a comforting thought for those Christians. What happened to the salvation and power and kingdom of God that were promised in Revelation 12? With classic understatement John comments, “This calls for patient endurance by God’s people” (Rev 13:11).  

The vision continues. Another beast shows up: Beast #2. It comes out of the earth and starts a new religion by creating an image of Beast #1. The image comes alive and speaks. If you refuse to worship the image, you are scheduled for execution. 

Notice some Old Testament themes in this story. In the beginning, God’s spirit hovered over the waters of chaos, and created humans in his image from the dirt of the earth. 

In a feeble parody of creation, the dragon stands by the sea, calling up beasts like itself from sea and earth. The beasts set up an image to be worshiped, reminding us of King Nebuchadnezzar who commissioned an image of himself for people to worship. When Daniel’s friends refused, the king threw them into a fiery furnace. 

In Revelation, the beasts not only demand worship, they mark everyone’s forehead or right hand. Without that mark, no one can buy or sell. 

John comments, again with understatement, “This calls for wisdom” (Rev 13:18). He continues, “Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of humans. That number is 666.”  

A mysterious saying indeed. 666 is the code for the beast that rules and for the humans it rules over? Maybe John is warning that humans who worship something other than God are turning themselves into beasts.  

Let’s pray. 

Our father, save us from whatever it is that 666 represents. Save us from the beasts that require worship, from humanity’s tendency to become like beasts, and from the beastly instincts of our own nature. 

John’s vision tells us that our world will get worse before it gets better. As the old hymn says, “Is this vile world a friend to grace?” 

O Lord, grant us wisdom not to consume ourselves with counting sixes and charting the rise of beasts. Grant us wisdom to understand the true nature of earthly power, whether wielded by Biden or Trump or Putin or Jinping or Trudeau. Teach us to be loyal to you alone, to wait for your salvation. 

Amen. 

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

YouTube channel: Pray with Me – YouTube

Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

John’s vision in the Book of Revelation bounces between heaven where multitudes worship God and earth where unprecedented disasters occur. 

In chapter 12, John’s vision shifts focus to signs appearing in the heavens. A pregnant woman, clothed with the sun, standing on the moon, and wearing a crown with twelve stars prepares to give birth to a son. 

Remember Joseph in the Old Testament? With his coat of many colors? He had a dream that featured a similar cosmic background. When he told his brothers that the sun, moon, and stars bowed down to him, they said he was an arrogant jerk. “No way we’ll EVER bow to you” they said, and they sold him into the Egyptian slave trade. But God made the dream come true–Joseph became the #2 man in Egypt and saved his family, and the known world, from famine.  

Do the sun and moon and stars in Revelation tell a similar story? Will Revelation’s child be a new Joseph, one who goes into slavery and rises to be king? 

As the woman in John’s vision gives birth, a red dragon with seven crowned heads and ten horns waits to devour the baby. But the baby is snatched away and taken to God’s throne in heaven. Our new Joseph escapes the clutches of his enemies and his mother escapes to the wilderness for three-and-a-half years. 

Sounds like the story of Jesus’ birth, where the dragon we know as Herod tried to kill him. And later that old dragon, Satan himself, arranged Christ’s crucifixion. But God restored Christ and set him on the throne of heaven. 

His mother, Mary, however didn’t escape to the wilderness like the mother in John’s vision. Interpreters who insist on a clear identity for the mother in Revelation tie themselves in knots trying to determine if she’s Mary, the Israelites, or maybe the church. 

Since my life is already tied in knots, I like flexible interpretations. The way I see it, the woman in John’s vision starts out as Mary giving birth to Jesus, and then she represents the church, the whole family of Jesus’ brothers and sisters who, with him, are targeted by modern-day Herods and spirit-dragons like Satan. 

Back in the Book of Revelation, meanwhile, war breaks out in heaven. Michael and the good angels fight the dragon and his demonic army, throwing them down to earth. 

That’s good news for heaven, but not so much for earth because earth is stuck with all the unhappy refugees: one angry and wounded dragon and his massive demonic army. 

A voice in heaven says, “God’s salvation is coming. The dragon who accused God’s children has been thrown down. They conquered him by the blood of the lamb andby their testimony” (Rev 12:10-12). 

But the dragon doesn’t believe he’s defeated. He was cheated out of the woman’s first child, so he plots revenge on the rest of the family–those who obey God’s commandments and hold the testimony of Jesus (Rev 12:17). 

Let’s pray. 

Our father, we are participants in the war between good and evil. We feel the dragons that pursue us: 
… a culture of sex and consumerism and violence, 
… leaders who perpetrate war and kill those who oppose them, 
… our own hearts that love darkness more than light.

We hear the promise of John’s vision, that you, O God, are bringing salvation. The dragon is defeated. We can conquer him by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. 

Help us live into this promise of salvation, not to rely not on politics or philosophy to defeat evil, but on your word, spoken through the death of the lamb and the testimony of our faith.  

Amen. 

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

YouTube channel: Pray with Me – YouTube