Pointing to Jesus (Revelation 17)

Summary:

In Revelation 17, John receives a vision of a great prostitute, called Babylon the Great, seated on a scarlet beast with seven heads and ten horns. This chapter symbolically depicts the ongoing spiritual conflict between the true church and the seductive, anti-Christian forces of the world throughout the present age (the “millennium” understood as Christ’s current spiritual reign). 

The woman represents worldly systems—empires, cultures, and false religions—that allure people away from God through wealth, power, and immorality, while persecuting the saints (she is “drunk with the blood of the saints”). 

She sits on “many waters,” symbolizing her influence over nations and peoples. 

The beast embodies recurring anti-Christian powers (governments, ideologies) that rise and fall, with its heads as mountains/kings (complete worldly authority) and horns as allied rulers who briefly empower it. 

Ultimately, God sovereignly turns these evil forces against each other: the beast and kings destroy the woman, fulfilling divine judgment. 

This is not a literal future event but a timeless portrayal of God’s sovereignty over history’s cycles of opposition to His kingdom, emphasizing that evil self-destructs under His decree.

Pointing to Jesus:

Revelation 17 points to Jesus as the sovereign Lamb who triumphs over all evil through His atoning work on the cross.

This chapter contrasts the woman’s bloodthirstiness (shedding saints’ blood) with Christ’s shed blood that redeems His people from sin and the world’s grip (Rev. 5:9). 

The beast’s parody of divine power (“was, and is not, and is about to rise”) mocks Christ’s true resurrection and eternal reign, but verse 14 declares the Lamb’s conquest: “The Lamb will overcome them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.” 

This underscores predestination—the “called and chosen” are elect believers united to Christ, whose victory is assured not by human effort but by God’s irresistible grace. 

The destruction of Babylon foreshadows Christ’s final judgment, where He crushes rebellion, vindicating His people and displaying His glory as the Redeemer who sovereignly orchestrates history for their salvation.

Reflection:

This chapter calls Christians to vigilant separation from worldly enticements, reminding us that friendship with the world is enmity with God (James 4:4). 

In daily life, it means resisting compromise—whether in materialism, cultural idolatry, or moral laxity—while trusting Christ’s present reign amid persecution or temptation. This encourages perseverance: since the battle is spiritual and ongoing, we rest in God’s sovereignty, knowing evil’s defeat is certain through the gospel. 

This fosters humility, as we’re totally dependent on grace, and hope, urging us to worship the Lamb, share His redemptive story, and live faithfully as “called and chosen” witnesses in a hostile world.