The great harlot Rev 17, 18

[Joseph77]

nvm

 

[CadyandZoe]

What I mean is this. We are discussing the meaning of Revelation 17, 18. I was simply wondering if Matthew 25 is relevant to the discussion. In that passage Jesus indites Jerusalem for the blood of the prophets, for example. Doesn't this fact support the view that Jerusalem is mystery Babylon?

 

[Joseph77]

What I mean is this. We are discussing the meaning of Revelation 17, 18. I was simply wondering if Matthew 25 is relevant to the discussion. In that passage Jesus indites Jerusalem for the blood of the prophets, for example. Doesn't this fact support the view that Jerusalem is mystery Babylon?

I thought Jesus directly says what mystery Babylon is ? (in the Bible).

The references posted do not render on my screen, (nor on many others cell phones), so could you quote out in text the passages directly ?

 

[CadyandZoe]

My apologies Joseph. I didn't know that.
I also apologize for the bad reference. I meant to say Matthew 23. (boy is this embarrassing.)

Revelation 18:24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.

Matthew 23:35 so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

I'm very sorry for the confusion.

 

[Philip James]

The rest is correct.

Well then you have not 'completely separated yourself doctrinally from the Catholic Church'
This is well, for in as much as you hold to the truth of the Catholic faith, to that extent the Lord can bless you with His Grace.

May His Grace ever increase in you!

Peace be with you!

 

[Joseph77]

My apologies Joseph. I didn't know that.
I also apologize for the bad reference. I meant to say Matthew 23. (boy is this embarrassing.)

Revelation 18:24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.

Matthew 23:35 so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.

I'm very sorry for the confusion.

Thanks, and no worries here - a lot of posters do not post the words actually, but they usually are not worth asking them to post the words.... i.e. there's too many to deal with, and the few that are possibly important I think it is best to focus on these....
So thanks ! Having the actual words posted does help a lot , for clarity and to be sure of what is being discussed.

Shalom ! (peace, joy and health, and wholeness, in Jesus) to you and your household TODAY !

 

[Bobby Jo]

What I mean is this. We are discussing the meaning of Revelation 17, 18. I was simply wondering if Matthew 25 is relevant to the discussion. In that passage Jesus indites Jerusalem for the blood of the prophets, for example. Doesn't this fact support the view that Jerusalem is mystery Babylon?

Hi Cady&Zoe,

First of all, I don't believe you'll find a coherent answer to your question from these posters. And this is not to say there is no answer, -- it just won't be found in your present discussions. In fact, people are so ignorant they often resort to defaming the Catholics, creating imaginary world powers (typical of the EU), and the list goes on. But as I asserted, there is a simple answer founded in Scripture and supported by World History.

Many are called, but few are chosen.
Bobby Jo

 

[CadyandZoe]

@Bobby Jo
I was taught that the RCC was the Harlot and that the Pope was the AntiChrist, very early in my walk with Christ. I have tried to expand my thinking and look into this further. I suppose, in some fashion, the Vatican might be pictured as a woman that sits on many waters, but I wouldn't say that the Vatican always speaks for all Catholics, especially today. Even so, I am constrained to draw my cues from the Bible and so it would seem that Jerusalem is the most likely candidate. Although, I must say, with my limited vision I can't identify the modern city of Jerusalem by the description found in chapter 18.

 

[VictoryinJesus]

Why does God then call Jerusalem that descends from Heaven down to the earth in final the "great city"?

Rev 21:10
10 And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
KJV

Just as with everyone Satan does in this world trying to mimic The Father and The Son, the devil is planning to setup the FAKE "great city" in earthly Jerusalem for the end of days just prior to Christ's return.

‘Why does God then call Jerusalem that descends (born from above)from Heaven down to the earth in final the "great city"?’

Revelation 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

How true and faithful? So much so God calls Jerusalem that descends not of men but of God ‘New Jerusalem’

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Consider the flesh and ‘you must be born of the Spirit’ and ‘harlots and publicans enter in before you’ ...the old passed away...behold, all things are become New.

THIS IS WHY Christ points to Jerusalem for the end as the BABYLON HARLOT,

The old passed away (the end), behold that Great City New Jerusalem.

How can any who were enemies of God, dead in sin ...then by God be ‘a New Creature’?

 

[VictoryinJesus]

Why does God then call Jerusalem that descends from Heaven down to the earth in final the "great city"?

Zechariah 2:1-5 I lifted up mine eyes again, and looked, and behold a man with a measuring line in his hand. [2] Then said I, Whither goest thou? And he said unto me, To measure Jerusalem, to see what is the breadth thereof, and what is the length thereof. [3] And, behold, the angel that talked with me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him, [4] And said unto him, Run, speak to this young man, saying, Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein: [5] For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.

 

[Bobby Jo]

@Bobby Jo
I was taught that the RCC was the Harlot and that the Pope was the AntiChrist, ...

Exactly. And stupid people say stupid things, but the reality is quite different. Rational, objective thought seldom occurs in religions, -- but GOD is ENTIRELY rational, objective, and definitive. Many religious people hear what the preachers says and stop there. They never do their own studies and research to find out for themselves what Scripture actually commands. -- It's too hard, I'll pay someone to think for me.

So when the persecution begins (we're already some 26 months into the 42 month tribulation), MANY will not have the strength to endure:

Rev. 13:10 Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.
Rev. 14:12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.​

... and many will participate in the Great Falling Away.

But those who seek GOD will find HIM:

Jer. 33:3 Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things which you have not known.​

... maybe with a little help, where Teachers are a ministry to the church.
Bobby Jo

 

[Davy]

One of the identifying remarks the Babylon Harlot of Revelation declares relates directly to Jerusalem in God's Word:

Rev 18:7
7 How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, "I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow."
KJV

Symbolic widowhood is one of the Old Testament analogies God applies to Jerusalem when she was in a state of rebellion against Him:


Lam 1:1
1:1 How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people how is she become as a widow she that was was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary
KJV

This was a lamentation about Jerusalem after God sent Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, upon her and destroyed the city and Solomon's temple, and took the house of Judah captive to Babylon for 70 years. The kingline of Judah in Jerusalem was ended then and thus Jerusalem became a "widow" in the earthly royal sense.


In the Revelation 18:7 verse though, which is for the end of this world, she says she is not a widow, and sits a queen. That is equal to saying she is married, but to whom at the end of this world?

The metaphors God gave about His symbolic marriage to Jerusalem and how Jerusalem also went and played the harlot is part of this symbolic analogy...

Ezek 16:2-35
2 Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations,
3 And say, "Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite.
4 And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all.
5 None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born."

Jerusalem was originally a pagan city, dwelt in by the Jebusites. It was originally called the city of Jebus (Judges 19; 1 Chronicles 11).


Ezek 16:6 "And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, 'Live'; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood,' Live.'
7 I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare.
8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread My skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest Mine.
9 Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil.
10 I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk.
11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.
12 And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.
13 Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.
14 And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through My comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD."

Psalms 132 tells us GOD chose Jerusalem for to dwell forever. Revelation 21:2 reveals the heavenly new Jerusalem coming down to earth as a bride adorned for her husband, and Revelation 21:9-10 then reveals this bride new Jerusalem as the Lamb's wife. This relates to this Ezekiel 16 analogy of GOD having spiritually married earthly Jerusalem in the past.


Ezek 16:15 "But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was.
16 And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colours, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so.
17 Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of My gold and of My silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them,
18 And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set Mine oil and Mine incense before them.
19 My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour: and thus it was, saith the Lord GOD.
20 Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto Me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter,
21 That thou hast slain My children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them?
22 And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood.
23 And it came to pass after all thy wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord GOD
24 That thou hast also built unto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee an high place in every street.
25 Thou hast built thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied thy whoredoms.
26 Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbours, great of flesh; and hast increased thy whoredoms, to provoke Me to anger.
27 Behold, therefore I have stretched out My hand over thee, and have diminished thine ordinary food, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way.
28 Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast unsatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied.
29 Thou hast moreover multiplied thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied herewith.
30 How weak is thine heart, saith the Lord GOD, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman;
31 In that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thine high place in every street; and hast not been as an harlot, in that thou scornest hire;
32 But as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband!
33 They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom.
34 And the contrary is in thee from other women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredoms: and in that thou givest a reward, and no reward is given unto thee, therefore thou art contrary.
35 Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the LORD:"
KJV

You wouldn't get many points as a pastor in today's Churches if you read that Ezekiel 16 passage. Most of today's Churches preach lovey-dovey messages the people want to hear, so they wouldn't know how to handle our Heavenly Father saying this about the city of Jerusalem, and how Jerusalem throughout its history has played the spiritual harlot with the Baal worshiping pagans surrounding it! Most Jews probably don't like these things God said being known either, especially the part where God shows how Judah at one time sacrificed their children in the fire by their following pagan idolatry in Jerusalem's past (Jeremiah 19:1-5).

THAT... is where God used the 'harlot' and 'whore' ideas applied to the city of Jerusalem in Revelation. That is why Revelation is pointing directly to Jerusalem as the Babylon Harlot whore for the end of this world. For the end, when the Antichrist shows up, as a king, Jerusalem as the harlot will be saying that, "I sit a queen, and am no widow" of Rev.18:7. The Antichrist coming to play God, is going to claim earthly Jerusalem for the end, and marry her, as a FAKE marriage. It is because the coming Antichrist WANTS to be GOD, and to be worshiped as GOD (2 Thessalonians 2:4).

From the time past when the king of Babylon conquered Jerusalem in Jeremiah's days, ending the kings of Judah there, and later with the Romans under Titus destroying the city and second temple, Jerusalem has sat as a symbolic 'widow'. Today she is still in widowhood. In Isaiah 47:9 God pronounced this "widowhood" would come upon Jerusalem because of the multitude of its sorceries. But when Jesus returns, the Isaiah 54 prophecy shows her widowhood will no longer be remembered.

Thus the Revelation Babylon Harlot is... about Jerusalem at the end of this world, under the coming Antichrist.

 

[Davy]

‘Why does God then call Jerusalem that descends (born from above)from Heaven down to the earth in final the "great city"?’

Revelation 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

How true and faithful? So much so God calls Jerusalem that descends not of men but of God ‘New Jerusalem’

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Consider the flesh and ‘you must be born of the Spirit’ and ‘harlots and publicans enter in before you’ ...the old passed away...behold, all things are become New.


The old passed away (the end), behold that Great City New Jerusalem.

How can any who were enemies of God, dead in sin ...then by God be ‘a New Creature’?

Now that kind of thinking is what I call RELIGIOSITY.

It doesn't really follow the Scripture Message meaning, but takes the Scriptures and makes up a set of new messages that are outside the Scripture. It is a good way to let man deceive you.

Ezekiel 16 shows God married earthly Jerusalem at one time, during the old covenant times. Then Jerusalem played the harlot against Him, her people also, which that Chapter also reveals. Jerusalem became a spiritual widow, sending the king of Babylon upon her to destroy her, end Judah's kings there, and take her people captive to Babylon for 70 years.

Then after the 70 years, God brought back to Jerusalem a remnant of the house of Judah, and re-established Jerusalem again, but still with no king of Judah. In 70 A.D., God brought the Romans upon Jerusalem and destroyed it again, and scattered Judah again. Jerusalem then went into symbolic 'widowhood' again, as it still is today.

The 'new' Jerusalem is in the heavenly dimension, but it will literally descend down to this earth after this present world is over. Until then, the earthly Jerusalem sits as a widow, Christ not having returned yet as it is written that He will literally return. For the end of this world first though, the Antichrist will come to fool as many as that will, into believing he is GOD having returned, and the fake Jerusalem as the Babylon Harlot city will claim she 'sits a queen, and is no widow' (Rev.18:7). But on the day of Christ's future return, that earthly place will be destroyed with the brightness of Christ's coming (Zechariah 14).

 

[Davy]

Zechariah 2:1-5 I lifted up mine eyes again, and looked, and behold a man with a measuring line in his hand. [2] Then said I, Whither goest thou? And he said unto me, To measure Jerusalem, to see what is the breadth thereof, and what is the length thereof. [3] And, behold, the angel that talked with me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him, [4] And said unto him, Run, speak to this young man, saying, Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein: [5] For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.

Yep, that's true, but not until Jesus returns literally and physically to end the coming Antichrist's false reign there. The new Jerusalem will not be established there in place of earthly Jerusalem during Christ's future Millennial reign of Rev.20. But some earth changes will start (like the return of God's River of Gen.2 and the tree of life).

 

[Davy]

I had a whole other thread on the Revelation 17 Babylon harlot, but the administrators just deleted it. The #172 post above is a new post I did today. ALL... my other posts on the subject are GONE, DELETED!

Is this a common treatment of folks like me who are honest Christians that desire to cover God's Word as written?

 

[Josho]

@Davy did you see post #144? There are many cities built on 7 hills.

 

[VictoryinJesus]

Now that kind of thinking is what I call RELIGIOSITY.

It doesn't really follow the Scripture Message meaning, but takes the Scriptures and makes up a set of new messages that are outside the Scripture. It is a good way to let man deceive you.

Ezekiel 16 shows God married earthly Jerusalem at one time, during the old covenant times. Then Jerusalem played the harlot against Him, her people also, which that Chapter also reveals. Jerusalem became a spiritual widow, sending the king of Babylon upon her to destroy her, end Judah's kings there, and take her people captive to Babylon for 70 years.

Then after the 70 years, God brought back to Jerusalem a remnant of the house of Judah, and re-established Jerusalem again, but still with no king of Judah. In 70 A.D., God brought the Romans upon Jerusalem and destroyed it again, and scattered Judah again. Jerusalem then went into symbolic 'widowhood' again, as it still is today.

The 'new' Jerusalem is in the heavenly dimension, but it will literally descend down to this earth after this present world is over. Until then, the earthly Jerusalem sits as a widow, Christ not having returned yet as it is written that He will literally return. For the end of this world first though, the Antichrist will come to fool as many as that will, into believing he is GOD having returned, and the fake Jerusalem as the Babylon Harlot city will claim she 'sits a queen, and is no widow' (Rev.18:7). But on the day of Christ's future return, that earthly place will be destroyed with the brightness of Christ's coming (Zechariah 14).

Was only replying to where you pointed out God calls New Jerusalem descending from above, the great city. Pointing out again ‘New’. You said ‘Now that kind of thinking is what I call RELIGIOSITY’
maybe so. Maybe it is wrong but I consider the old man and the New
Man. How can God consider me a child and give such generous spiritual promises, when I’ve spent nearly half of my life as anti-everything-Christ? So religiosity quite possibly. but there is also a lot of hope (imo) in New Jerusalem and how God told them He would cause her whoredoms to cease and cause sin to be removed from in her midst. For me the ‘New’ in New Jerusalem shows how completely He meant “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.”

 

[Davy]

@Davy did you see post #144? There are many cities built on 7 hills.

I've seen that before, but the "seven heads" of Revelation 17:9 don't represent hills. We are told they are "seven mountains", and looking at that in relation to the beast kingdom of Rev.13:1-8, it is revealed it's about areas upon the earth covering nations, not just a single city idea.

These verses in Rev.17 go along with the description there about the "great city" (i.e., the symbolic "woman" harlot there). They reveal the SCOPE of the "seven heads" which are "seven mountains" per Rev.17:9. This scope is understood by staying in the flow of the Rev.17 chapter...

Rev 17:1
17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, 'Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:'
KJV

The later Revelation 17:15 verse will define those "many waters" the whore sits upon.


Rev 17:3
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
KJV

This "beast" is in relation to those "seven heads and ten horns" which in turn is in relation to the 1st beast kingdom mentioned in Revelation 13:1-2. The Rev.13:2 verse is pointing to Daniel 7 about the idea of beast kingdoms, the fourth one to be diverse from all others before it, and having ten kings with a little horn king coming up among them. Daniel 2 reveals this final beast kingdom is to include all... the previous four pieces of the beast statue image, with its structure controlled by the feet of ten toes made up of part iron and part clay. That is to be the final beast system when Jesus will come to smite it upon its feet, and then all the statue pieces come tumbling down 'together'. It's pointing to the idea of a one-world system.


Rev 17:7
7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
KJV

Once again, that "beast" is about the 1st beast mentioned in Revelation 13, which represents a kingdom beast. One of its seven heads suffers a deadly wound that is later shown to be healed in relation to the 2nd beast (little horn) showing up at Revelation 13:11 forward.


Rev 17:15
15 And he saith unto me, 'The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.'
KJV

Basically, there it is. Those "waters" the woman sits upon in relation to the "ten horns" and "seven heads" represents "peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues". That isn't just about a city like Rome, nor even just Jerusalem. It is about a one-world beast kingdom, which is the future goal of the coming Antichrist just prior to the end of this world.

 

[Davy]

Was only replying to where you pointed out God calls New Jerusalem descending from above, the great city. Pointing out again ‘New’. You said ‘Now that kind of thinking is what I call RELIGIOSITY’
maybe so. Maybe it is wrong but I consider the old man and the New
Man. How can God consider me a child and give such generous spiritual promises, when I’ve spent nearly half of my life as anti-everything-Christ? So religiosity quite possibly. but there is also a lot of hope (imo) in New Jerusalem and how God told them He would cause her whoredoms to cease and cause sin to be removed from in her midst. For me the ‘New’ in New Jerusalem shows how completely He meant “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.”

I'm sorry if I sounded harsh, but I interpreted a lot of what you said as pointing to the false belief that Christ's Kingdom is already established here on earth today, when it is not. As of right now, His Kingdom is only manifested spiritually, through His believers. But in the future, in final, He is actually going to return, coming in the clouds like how He ascended to Heaven per Acts 1, and He will literally establish His eternal Kingdom right here on earth, His faithful saints reigning with Him over all nations.

Don't get me wrong, if you believe on Jesus Christ as God's promised Saviour, and you stay in that belief, even to the death if needs be, then your Salvation is sure, and you have no need to ever doubt it. Yet know that His Salvation promise actually 'has real substance'. It is not just a spiritual thought or dream. It will be literal, involving a physical earth, with us in the "spiritual body" Apostle Paul taught of in 1 Corinthians 15, but yet still with real substance and literal, and right here living on earth.

Satan through Hollywood movies and TV, books and magazines confuse what God's Word actually teaches about the world to come under Christ Jesus. In Matthew 22:30 Jesus said those of the resurrection will be as the angels of God in heaven. That means having an angelic type body. No angel is ever written of having a flesh body. Apostle Paul said flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15:50). But the earth is still going to exist in the physical. It's just that the angelic type body can live upon this earth just like being in a flesh body today, the difference is our spiritual body won't get sick, won't die, won't feel hot or cold, etc. Obviously we have not seen that kind of change yet today upon the earth. What it ultimately means is God joining both the earthly and heavenly dimensions together here on earth. Many brethren struggle understanding this I know, but we are fast approaching that time when that world to come is getting ready to manifest for all upon the earth with Christ's 2nd coming.

 

[Josho]

I've seen that before, but the "seven heads" of Revelation 17:9 don't represent hills. We are told they are "seven mountains", and looking at that in relation to the beast kingdom of Rev.13:1-8, it is revealed it's about areas upon the earth covering nations, not just a single city idea.

These verses in Rev.17 go along with the description there about the "great city" (i.e., the symbolic "woman" harlot there). They reveal the SCOPE of the "seven heads" which are "seven mountains" per Rev.17:9. This scope is understood by staying in the flow of the Rev.17 chapter...

Rev 17:1
17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, 'Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:'
KJV

The later Revelation 17:15 verse will define those "many waters" the whore sits upon.


Rev 17:3
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
KJV

This "beast" is in relation to those "seven heads and ten horns" which in turn is in relation to the 1st beast kingdom mentioned in Revelation 13:1-2. The Rev.13:2 verse is pointing to Daniel 7 about the idea of beast kingdoms, the fourth one to be diverse from all others before it, and having ten kings with a little horn king coming up among them. Daniel 2 reveals this final beast kingdom is to include all... the previous four pieces of the beast statue image, with its structure controlled by the feet of ten toes made up of part iron and part clay. That is to be the final beast system when Jesus will come to smite it upon its feet, and then all the statue pieces come tumbling down 'together'. It's pointing to the idea of a one-world system.


Rev 17:7
7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
KJV

Once again, that "beast" is about the 1st beast mentioned in Revelation 13, which represents a kingdom beast. One of its seven heads suffers a deadly wound that is later shown to be healed in relation to the 2nd beast (little horn) showing up at Revelation 13:11 forward.


Rev 17:15
15 And he saith unto me, 'The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.'
KJV

Basically, there it is. Those "waters" the woman sits upon in relation to the "ten horns" and "seven heads" represents "peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues". That isn't just about a city like Rome, nor even just Jerusalem. It is about a one-world beast kingdom, which is the future goal of the coming Antichrist just prior to the end of this world.

Well I do have a pre-trib rapture view of the end times, so I do believe true Christians escape all this.

I think anything Revelation though always makes an interesting topic.

So would you say the harlot is the world system in the end of ends?