Good Morning Siblings!

Today’s Readings are Revelation 17-19

Read today’s Bible readings at BibleGateway by clicking here.

Patti Rat’s Revelation Rabbit Trails

Revelation 17 depicts a beast that sounds a lot like the beast in Daniel 7.

There are so many conspiracy theories connected to this chapter. There is so much symbolism that I enjoy studying, but sharing that would only be sharing speculation and I don’t want to do that. Don’t get caught up in translating the symbolism. Just know it.

I don’t have time to go into the ten horns etc. There are many many theories on this but what caught my attention was the woman is dressed in purple and scarlet. Purple is what jumped out to me. Judges 8:26, Mark 15:17 but most of all John 19:2. Purple. It’s a color for nobility and now it’s mixed with scarlet. We have here a woman wearing noble colors. At his crucifixtion, we are told that they put a robe on Yeshua which was one or both of these colors. Matthew 27:28 tells us that robe was scarlet and Mark 15:17 tells us it was purple. I’m not sure we will see purple and scarlet clothes on a woman but the symbolism of nobility and fire is what strikes me. It feels priestly.

She led people astray and even John was mesmerized by her and he was in the presence of holy beings! This scares me more than most of Revelations. John is on the presence of heavenly beings and marveled at this site. I looked up the word used here in the Greek to make sure my perception was right and scarily it was right. Thaumazo- to wonder, wonder at, marvel to be wondered at, to be had in admiration. I’m the worlds worst at chasing the shiny things in life. If John can be caught up in this moment you better bet we can!

Rev 17:13 They have one mind. They are all thinking the same. I wonder if they also have intolerance for other people’s difference of opinion. If they have one mind, then they are not thinking for themselves and must certainly aren’t critical thinking. They are being led. They are following.

Rev 17:15 We have more water mass than land mass on this planet. He saw this prostitute sorting by waters. The waters were people, crowds, NATIONS and tongues. Masses are merely being led astray by the mesmerizing powers that be that represent nobility and fire. The purple and scarlet. I guarantee you they will know this Bible well! Don’t fall for it.

Her own leaders and her own beast hate her and will devour her. This is where God just lets them destroy themselves.

Rev 17:17 So God gave them authority to think for the people. These people are not thinking for themselves at all. They are being led down this path of destruction willingly. They can’t see the truth. They are too far gone. Something that stands out here is if you are in an environment where everyone has the same opinion and beliefs… maybe you should stop and question yours. I’m not saying they are wrong, just make sure you aren’t being spoon fed and following. People are great speakers and teachers and very convincing – question everything. It’s ok to not agree with everyone. Stop, listen, and pray for discernment.

How many times have we watched people get led astray by charismatic religious leaders or heard someone say “my preacher said..” Honestly I don’t want to hear what your preacher said, I want to hear what you have read, researched, and believe and I might not agree with you but it will cause me to seek deeper. You better believe these people that will lead you astray will be deeply rooted in this word. They have to know it in order to counterfeit it. Question everything. Read your bible. Test everything. The Bible is a litmus test. If you know your bible you can test every teaching to see if it’s of God. As Christy always says, You won’t recognize a counterfeit if you don’t know the original.

Revelation 18 – Right off the bat he references Isaiahs vision in is Rev 18:1-9. I’m finding lots of visions from Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel repeated in Revelations. He knew them and now he sees them. We need to know them too.

Revelation 18:3-8: Wow. Greed and their own drunkenness of power blinded them to the grief and mourning they caused. This sounds like a mob mentality. The little man does the dirty work and the elite reap the benefits and remain oblivious to the sufferings. However, being oblivious or ignorant doesn’t spare them from the wrath. It won’t spare us either. We have been given all the tools to know better. We must be diligent about staying in the Word. As Christy says, book open, eyes on Him.

Revelation 18:4 is a haunting verse for Believers today. I’ve heard this spoken time and again as a means of warning us to remember that while we have to be in the world right now, we are not to be of the world.

Revelation 18:13 As I’m reading all the merchandise I’m imagining what it would look, smell, and feel like in Johns time. Especially the cinnamon and incense but the end of this particular passage causes me to hit the mental brakes …. lives and humans? My translation says bodies and lives of men. Whoa! Others say slaves and human life. The Greek words are soma (the body of men and animals), and anthropos (the body of men and women), and psyche (the breath of life the soul). When you sell a slave you sell them for physical labor. They are tested and measured for their physical abilities. Yes, this still happens today on many levels. Figuratively speaking the Bible also warns us not to become slaves to the lender Proverbs 22:7. Physical slavery is still real though, but then we see anthropos and psyche! The breath and soul of men and women. It takes so much more to take someone’s breath and soul and this slavery, too, is alive and well today!! In this short passage, I’m picturing human trafficking, demonic possession just to name a few. The fact that a human breath and soul is pictured here with cinnamon and incense is just shocking to me.

Rev 18:15-19 they are still grieving their riches but not their salvation or lives. Matthew 6:19 comes to mind.

Today, there are fires and floods and all kinds of disasters happening all around us. I’m not saying this is Revelations stuff but it is sobering to see how quickly we can lose all our earthly things in the blink of an eye. However, imagine how joyful it would feel to see God avenging your captors. Fire is tragic but it’s also purifying and cleansing. On farms we often burn the last of the crops to aid the soil and make room for new growth. In this case there is no new growth happening. He’s burning and saying no more. No one will be able to repair it. No one will be pulling together as a community to lift each other up. It’s done! Their time is over.

Rev 19:2 is reminiscent of Psalm 19:9 and he is also quoting Deut 32:43 here.

Rev 19:9 The same word for supper was also used in John 21:20.

So Peter turned around and saw the disciple Jesus loved following them, the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and asked, “Lord, who is the one that’s going to betray you? John 21:20

The word is deipnon. Same word used for the Messiah’s feast. The feast Yeshua was having before his crucifixion is the same feast we are invited to here. I could speak on this one for days.

Rev 19:10 This just seems to wrap it all up in this one statement:

“For the witness of Yeshua is the spirit of the prophesy” That’s what it’s all about. The witness of Yeshua is the spirit of the prophecy. That is one to roll around in your mind a bit. There is a lot of meat on those bones.

Rev 19:13 Robe- Greek word is himation which means upper garment. I think this is a talit. A sacred prayer shawl. I mean they were all Jewish. Even Yeshua wore one.

Rev 19:17 Deipnon. Same supper word.

Rev 19:20 Those who were led astray get taken with the beast. I personally don’t think these were bad people they were just ignorant and uninformed, and at some point I think that must have been a willful decision on their part. They did not question or test this “prophet” they blindly followed. This verse is very sad to me.

Test everything, hold tight to what is good.~ 1 Thess 5:21

We are saved by Grace alone: Obedience is not the root of our salvation, it is the fruit!

May YHWH bless the reading of His Word!

Print This Post Print This Post

Christy Jordan
Latest posts by Christy Jordan (see all)