Very good~the only exception, and it's minor, is that I would say:
This is how spiritual Jerusalem fell who is the religious sector of Mystery, Babylon the Great of Revelation 17.
Like we have discussed on other forum. Babylon the Great is not the world, nor the "religious sector" of the world. Rather she is the New Testament congregation on Earth that God judges. Not Muslims, Not Hindus, etc.
Who does the interpretations belong to? God. So, how does He give us those interpretations? It is through His Holy word, the "only" inerrant word that we can depend upon that is absolute truth. So then, when we search the Scriptures for who God calls a great city and a harlot, it is
His congregation symbolized by the Great Holy City Jerusalem.
This represents the children of God. And
when they turn away from Him, God labels it as a Harlot. God is not talking about "religious sector" of the world that has nothing to do with congregation of God. They are NOT His people. But don't take my word for it, because interpretations don't belong to me. They are not of me, but of God
Hosea 4:10-12
- "For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase: because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.
- Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart.
- My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and they have gone a whoring from under their God."
His people not the world. The Lord's divinely inspired prophets used this same language of the great city of Jerusalem becoming a harlot in rebuking "unfaithful" Israel in regard to their rebellion against Him. The very same picture puzzle represents their turning to worship other gods. The Revelation of 18 speaks about the Harlot is was revealed when the book of Revelation was opened and John was given it to eat and prophesy to God's servants.
Likewise, in Isaiah, he speaks
of the sins of the people of Jerusalem, not world regilions and writes:
Isaiah 1:21
- "How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers."
A city that was once faithful and supposed to represented God's Kingdom, that once had "judgment," but has now become spiritually a harlot. This is what Revelation speaks about when giving us a symbolic picture of the unfaithful church. How hath the once great city fallen and become a habitation of wickedness? That is the imagery of Babylon.
In the book of Jeremiah, we can see the same portrait of this city of God as a harlot.
Jeremiah 3:6-9
- "The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.
- And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.
- And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also."
These aren't interpretations belonging to man, but direct from the Holy Scriptures. There's only one "Correct" way to interpret Scripture, and that is "
by Scripture." In other words, let God define His own terms. It's not who do we think the harlot is, it is who God demonstrates through Scripture who the fornicating harlot is. Because "interpretations belong to God" (
Genesis 40:8), it cannot come from us or world history, national geography, etc. God is the only one who can give us the interpretation that will put us at peace (
Genesis 41:16). And clearly (without ambiguity) God prominently gives us illustrations of His congregation, when it turns unfaithful, is specifically called a harlot. Those who look to secular books, church traditions, the world, or church leaders for their interpretations, will never find the God-authored answers.