Who or What Is "mystery Babylon" in Revelation 17?
1) Direct Answer
Mystery Babylon is the great end-time apostate church system—a religious city that rules the nations, joins with political power, and mothers other churches after her kind. It is an unfaithful “woman,” a system of worship that mixes the things of God with the world.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- It is a woman—an unfaithful church: in prophecy a woman types a church (2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:25-27). Here she is a harlot, meaning spiritual fornication—uniting with the world and idols (Revelation 17:1-2; Jeremiah 3:1-9).
- She sits on many waters—global reach: “The waters… are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues” (Revelation 17:1,15).
- She is a mother system: “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS…” (Revelation 17:5). She has daughters—other churches that take her ways.
- She is rich, ceremonial, and intoxicating: “arrayed in purple and scarlet… decked with gold… having a golden cup… full of abominations” (Revelation 17:4). Her “wine” makes the nations drunk (Revelation 18:3).
- She persecutes the true saints: “drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus” (Revelation 17:6).
- She is a ruling city on seven mountains: “The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sitteth” and “that woman… is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth” (Revelation 17:9,18).
- She rides the beast—church controlling state power—until the horns turn and destroy her (Revelation 17:3,16-17).
- God calls His people out: “Come out of her, my people” (Revelation 18:4).
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- A pure woman portrays the Bride of Christ; a harlot portrays a fallen church. So this is not merely a nation; it is a religious system.
- She is centered in a specific great city known for seven mountains and worldwide influence over kings and peoples—so it’s a church-political power, not just a local congregation.
- She is a “mother,” so her daughters are other systems patterned after her—sharing her mixture of tradition with the world.
- The name “Babylon” reaches back to Babel—confusion and man-made religion (Genesis 11). “Mystery Babylon” is that same spirit in its religious form at the end: organized worship mixed with politics, wealth, and idolatry, drawing power from the beast and intoxicating the nations.
- The final word from Heaven is separation: leave the mixture and cleave to the Word, because her judgment comes suddenly (Revelation 18:8-10).
4) Reinforcing Statement
Now notice, the Bible paints it plainly: a mother church-system, ruling from a great city, riding worldly power, rich, ceremonial, persecuting the saints, and spawning daughters after her order. The call of God is simple—come out to the pure Word of Jesus Christ before her plagues fall.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
Is this the sign of the end sir?
62-1230E §104
When that seventh angel sounds out every mystery, it's over. Let him be who he may, whatever it might be, God's Word can't fail. And He said, But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets. All those things---like Rome being the whore, and all the Protestant churches, denominations, denominating after her, has become her harlots, see---all those mysteries that the prophets spoke of will be revea...
Jezebel Religion
61-0319 §23
Did you notice in Revelation 13? All the other beasts had come up out of the sea---waters. Revelation 17:17 said, "The waters which thou sawest is thickness and multitudes of people." All the other beasts had come up out of the water, thickness and multitudes of people. But when the United States come up, it come up out of the earth where there was no people. And remember, when it come up, it looked like a little lamb. Now, a lamb has two horns, and that's civil and ecclesiastical powers. But when they united, reme...
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 7:E-92
Now let us go another step, but before we do let us review our case thus far. First of all we know most assuredly that the purpose of God stands in election. It was purposed in Himself. It was God's purpose to bring forth a people like unto Himself that would be a Word Bride. She was chosen before the foundation of the world IN HIM. She was fore-known and beloved before she was ever brought forth during the ages upon the earth. She was redeemed by His blood and can NEVER come into condemnation. She can never be in...
Church Ages, part 2: The Patmos Vision
60-1204E §37
Oh, how marvelous, the revelation! Now, remember, you cannot get it through theologians. It doesn't come that way. It'll only come as a revelation. Water baptizing using the name of Jesus Christ can only be given as revelation. Jesus and God being the same person can only come as revelation. The whole Bible is built on revelation. The whole church is built upon revelation. Matthew 17 says, "For I say, upon this rock [the spiritual revelation] I'll build my church, and the gates of hell can't prevail against it." We...
The Mark of the Beast
54-0513 §63
Watch Revelations 12. That was a virgin woman. She was a real lady. How beautiful she stood! But here is one called a prostitute, "w-h-o-r-e," means an un... What is that? Let's idolize this ... or, analyze it. Excuse me. Getting too fast; thinking I got fifteen minutes. I'm going to stay another hour then, so just keep still. Look. All right. Look, let's analyze it down. She is a foul woman. What is a whore? I hate to say the word, but it's written here in the Bible. It's a woman that professes to be a good woman,...