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.
The mark of the beast
56-0715 §7
Now in the 13th chapter, and beginning with the... Let's see, we began about the 11th verse of the 13th chapter of the Revelation. And I beheld a beast coming up out of the earth; he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exercised all the power of the first beast before him, and it caused the earth and them that dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he does great wonders, so as make fire come down from heaven on earth in the sight of man, And deceived the...
What shall I do with Jesus called Christ?
63-1124M §67
Notice, the manifested Word ... From the denomination ... It manifests the Word difference from the denomination. What is this? What is this system? It's a satellite to Rome. Did the Bible say it would be that? Yes, sir! Revelation 17, they saw Rome raise up itself in an ecclesiastical system of a woman. A woman ... the church is always represented by a woman, 'cause the bride of Christ is a woman. Eve was the one fell. She's the one to be redeemed. And the church is what ... it's a woman that's redeemed.
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 1:E-31
I Timothy 3:16 says, "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into Glory". This is what the Bible says. It doesn't say a thing about a first or second or third person here. It says God was manifest in flesh. One God. That ONE GOD was manifested in flesh. That ought to settle it. God came in a human form. That didn't make Him ANOTHER GOD. HE WAS GOD, THE SAME GO...
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 9:E-25
Now this messenger of Malachi 4 and Revelation 10:7 is going to do two things. One: According to Malachi 4 he will turn the hearts of the children to the fathers. Two: He will reveal the mysteries of the seven thunders in Revelation 10 which are the revelations contained in the seven seals. It will be these Divinely revealed 'mystery-truths' that literally turn the hearts of the children to the Pentecostal fathers. Exactly so.
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 9:E-81
"Buy of Me, gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich." Now these people had plenty of gold, but it was the wrong kind. It was that gold that bought men's lives and destroyed them. It was the gold that warped and twisted human character, for its love was the root of all evil. Revelation 18:1-14, "And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power, and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen...