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Revelation 17 Explained in 4 Points

In this video you’ll learn what the seven-headed Beast of Revelation 17 represents in prophecy, then we’ll list what the seven heads of the beast picture, and finally we’ll show you what the ten horns on the seventh head point to.

And we’ll do this straight from the pages of the Bible.

The Great Harlot in the Bible (False Christianity) | Revelation 17:1–6

1. The harlot who rides the Beast symbolizes a powerful false Church.

To understand the Beast, it is important to identify the woman who rides it.

The Bible sometimes uses a chaste woman to symbolize the true church.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her... This is a greatmystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:25, 32).

• 2 Corinthians 11:1–2 and Revelation 19:7–8 also use this symbolism.
• Revelation 17 also uses a woman to symbolize a church, but it is an immoral woman, thus representing an immoral church.
• Revelation 17:1 and Revelation 17:15 explain how she “sits on many waters,” symbolizing her influence over peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages.
• Revelation 17:2 describes how she commits fornication and becomes drunk with kings and many inhabitants on earth, symbolizing her sinful behavior and relationships with many peoples and leaders.
• Revelation 17:4 says she is rich and outwardly adorned in purple and scarlet, precious stones and pearls. But inwardly, meaning her character, she is full of abominations and filthiness.
• Revelation 17:5 describes what she has explicitly labeled on her forehead.

MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH (Revelation 17:5).

This important verse explains how the false church has roots in ancient Babylon and its pagan religion, and that it would be a mother church, out of which other false churches would be born. Consider how the EasternOrthodox and Protestant churches came out of the Catholic Church—all of which have maintained many pagan and unbiblical beliefs and practices of its mother church.

• Revelation 17:6 explains how she is a violent and persecuting church, demonstrated by her persecution and murder of true Christians over the centuries.
• Revelation 17:18 explains how the false church is described as a great city that reigns over the kings of the earth.

These descriptions, along with other Scriptures, show that the harlot symbolizes a great false church located in a great city. Specifically, the harlot represents the church at Rome. It is also symbolized by the beast in Revelation 13:11–17. Rome, the “Eternal City” which sits on seven hills, is the site of the Vatican and referred to in the Bible as modern-day Babylon (Revelation 17:9, 18; Revelation 18:1–2).

Now that we’ve identified the harlot that rides the Beast, let’s turn to the key aspects of the Beast itself.

By the way, if you’d like us to make a video about the harlot of Revelation, let us know in the comments.

This Beast Symbolizes the Roman Empire in the Bible | Daniel 2

2. The Beast of Revelation 17 represents the Roman Empire, led by the church at Rome.

Why does the Bible single out this empire out of so many throughout history?

It is one of the largest and most influential empires in human history. The Roman Empire significantly impacted major parts of Western civilization in areas such as:

• Alphabet
• Calendar
• Law
• Government
• Architecture
• Language
• Philosophy
• Religion

It was from the Roman Empire that the largest and most powerful church in the world emerged, teaching a counterfeit version of the Christianity Jesus originally established.

This church in Rome has now grown to over 1 billion members and out of it have come a host of denominations, making up another billion or so sincere adherents to some version of this counterfeit Christianity established atRome, none of which follow the Christianity of the Bible. This Church greatly influenced the Roman Empire,perfectly fitting John’s vision of a harlot riding the Beast.

The Roman Empire split into well-defined East and West, represented by the image with two legs of iron inNebuchadnezzar’s famous dream in Daniel 2 (Daniel 2:33). You can see our video that explains Nebuchadnezzar’s dream here.

The Roman Empire fascinatingly fits other biblical prophecies such as the beast with iron teeth in Daniel 7, the beast from the sea in Revelation 13, and the “king of the north” in Daniel 11. Clearly, based on the Beast in Revelation 17 and these other prominent prophecies, the Roman Empire is the preeminent empire in history on which the Bible focuses.

7 Heads of the Beast Symbolize Roman Empire Reviving | Revelation 17:9–11

3. The seven heads of the Beast of Revelation 17 represent seven revivals of the original Roman Empire.

The original Roman Empire existed from about 31 BC to 476 AD. Rome’s “death” in 476 AD and subsequent“resurrections” were prophesied by the Revelation 13 Beast’s mortal wound being healed in Revelation 13:3.

I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed(Revelation 13:3).

The seven heads of the Beast of Revelation 17 carry the story forward

The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time (Revelation17:9–10).

These seven heads represent seven major revivals of that empire, which we can see line up with history. As we list these revivals, notice the remarkable association with the popes of the Church at Rome, some of whom crowned the emperor of the Empire. This relationship is symbolized by the harlot riding (or controlling) theBeast.

• The first head was fulfilled by the imperial restoration of the western part of the Empire under Justinian in 554 AD. It was at this time that he issued a decree which gave more power to the pope’s role in the empire. He appointed Pope Vigilius, Pope Pelagius I, and Pope John III in the 500s AD.
• The second head was the Carolingian Empire. Pope Leo crowned Charlemagne as emperor in 800 AD.
• The third head represents the “Holy” Roman Empire under Otto the Great, crowned in 962 AD by Pope John XII.
• The fourth head represented the Hapsburg Dynasty with Charles V crowned in 1530 by Pope Clement VII.
• The fifth head represents Napoleon’s Empire (1804–1814), who was crowned emperor in 1804 in the presence and with the blessing of Pope Pius VII.
• The sixth head was Italy and Germany, ending in the Hitler-Mussolini Axis (1870–1945). In 1929, Italy and the Vatican agreed to the Lateran Treaty, signed by Benito Mussolini for Italy and Pietro Gasparri for the papacy. This treaty made Mussolini’s government the first Italian government in modern history to be officially recognized by the Pope. Four years later in 1933, the Vatican signed a treaty with Nazi Germany that guaranteed the Catholic Church’s right to operate in Germany.
• The seventh head is where the prophecy becomes extremely relevant and sobering for us today, because the previous six heads have come and gone, but the seventh head hasn’t come yet. The Beast’s seventh head prophesies the final revival of the Roman Empire in the final years before Christ’s Second Coming. Now, this head has ten horns.

10 Horns Symbolize 10 Leaders in the End-Times | Revelation 17:12–21

4. The Beast’s 10 horns represent 10 end-time leaders or nations that form the core of the Roman Empire’s final revival.

The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings (Revelation 17:12–14).

These ten horns correspond to the replaced by the kingdom of God.

Watch Europe for a Catholic-Political Superpower Alliance

The Beast of Revelation 17 is one of the most relevant prophecies in the Bible.

In light of this prophecy, Christians should be watching for a political superpower with ties to the Catholic Church to arise in Europe.

If you would like to study this topic in more detail, please order or read online our free Bible study guide: The Beast of Revelation: Myth, Metaphor or Soon-Coming Reality .

And don’t just believe us, but look up these verses in the Bible to prove it for yourself.

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We make these videos to help you understand your world through the pages of the Bible. Thanks for watching!