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.
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 5:E-119
Now up to this time I have not brought out that point in history that I promised to cover, that is, the intermingling of the religion of Nimrod and the Christian religion. You will recall that Attalus fled from Babylon to Pergamos and set up his kingdom outside the reaches of the Roman Empire. It flourished over the years, nurtured by the god of this world. A succession of priest kings followed Attalus until the reign of Attalus III when for reasons known only in the sovereignty of God he willed the kingdom to Rome...
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 10:E-33
The false church groups will come together in a world council of churches. This world council of churches is the IMAGE ERECTED TO THE BEAST. Revelation 13:11-18, "And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from hea...
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 6:E-8
And in this Thyatirean Church age she is a DOMINATING FEMALE. She is Mystery Babylon. She is the great whore. She is Jezebel the false prophetess. WHY? Because the true female is submissive to God. Christ is her head. She has no word but His, no thoughts but His, no leadership but His. But what about this church? She has cast out the Word, destroyed the Bibles and worthy essays of the godly. She has slain those who would preach the truth. She has taken over kings, princes and nations-- controls armies and insists t...
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 6:E-7
Let us go back to the beginning. In the original physical creation as we know it today, God made everything in pairs, male and female. There were two chickens--rooster and hen. There were two cattle, the cow and the bull. And right down the line. But when it came to man, there was only one. They were not a pair. Adam had been made in the image of God. He was a son of God. As a son of God he could not be tempted and fall. That would be impossible. So God took a byproduct of man to cause the fall. Woman never stepped...
An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages
CAB 5:E-80
Babel is the original name for Babylon. It means confusion. It was literally started by Cush, the son of Ham, but was brought to a kingdom of power and grandeur under his son, Nimrod, the mighty hunter. Nimrod, according to the Genesis eleven account and also according to profane history, set out to accomplish three things. He wanted to build a strong nation, which he did. He wanted to propagate his own religion, which he did. He wanted to make a name for himself, which he also accomplished. His accomplishments wer...