What does it mean that Babylon the Great has fallen (Revelation 18:2)?

Having thus seen Babylon in her active will, in her connection with the will of others, and her end in wealth and fatness, the announcement of her fall as a corporate system is declared.

And here I find much more of the purely worldly part of the system; and this is its character, though the other be not denied. And here she is seen as fallen - Babylon the great, not spoken of here as the mother of harlots, the whore, or the woman, but simply as Babylon the great, as a city or dwelling-place. She had not ceased to exist, however, at all; but she was fallen, and become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every unclean spirit, and the hold of every unclean and hateful bird. This was her present condition and judgment - her condition morally - and as discerned by the church, who, through the Spirit, knew all things on the testimony of God. The fall of Babylon seems to be her losing the place of active, governing or leading power, ruling as such the beast and many waters, involving her moral degradation, not destruction.

The other angel (v. 1) is not the Lord. Babylon (v. 2) "is fallen," or morally sunk into the lowest degradation. The actual fall is narrated in chapter 19:2. The consummation is openly diabolical, because Satan is cast out of heaven.

Another angel descends out of heaven, having great authority: and the earth is lighted with his glory. Earth is indeed now to be lighted, and with a glory which is not of earth. Babylon is denounced as fallen, — not destroyed, as is plain by what follows, but given up to a condition which is a spiritual desolation, worse than the physical one of Babylon of old under which she has long lain, and from which the terms seem derived. She has become the dwelling-place of demons — "knowing ones;" Satan's underlings, with the knowledge of many centuries of acquaintance with fallen men, and serpent-craft to use their knowledge; a "hold of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird." The parable of the mustard-seed comes necessarily to mind; and without confining the words here to that, it is amazing to see how deliberately filthy and impure Rome's system is. She binds her clergy to celibacy, forces them to pollute their minds with the study of every kind of wickedness, and then by her confessional system teaches them to pour this out into the minds of those to whom she at once gives them access and power over them in the name of religion itself!

Another angel descends out of heaven, having great authority; and the earth is lighted with his glory. Earth is indeed now to be lighted, and with a glory which is not of earth. Babylon is denounced as fallen, not destroyed, as is plain by what follows, but given up to a condition which is a spiritual desolation worse than the physical one of Babylon of old, under which she has long lain, and from which the terms seem derived. She has become the dwelling-place of demons — "knowing ones;" Satan's underlings, with the knowledge of many centuries of acquaintance with fallen men, and serpent-craft to use their knowledge; a "hold of every unclean spirit, and a hold of every unclean and hateful bird." The parable of the mustard-seed comes necessarily to mind; and without confining the words here to that, it is amazing to see how deliberately filthy and impure Rome's system is. She binds her clergy to celibacy, forces them to pollute their minds with the study of every kind of wickedness, and then, by her confessional system, teaches them to pour this out into the minds of those to whom she at once gives them access and power over — and all this in the name of religion!

In Revelation 17 we have seen that the destruction of Great Babylon is by the hand of the Beast and his ten horns. Now, in Revelation 18, the judgment is seen to be from the Lord God (vv. 5, 8, 20) — as Lord being in absolute authority, as God being supreme in majestic glory. An angel from heaven having great authority announces Babylon's fall (v. 1). The earth was lightened by his glory. Such light is God's exposure of the sordid works of the great harlot which have prospered under cover of spiritual darkness. What has been said and done in the dark is to be proclaimed in the light (Luke 12:2-3). Mightily he cries, for the whole earth to hear, that Babylon is fallen and has become the habitation of demons (v. 2). Demon activity has been rampant within her bosom before this announcement is made, but she has cunningly concealed it by fair outward appearances and by professing the name of Christ. How glaring and humiliating the exposure will be when it comes! Every foul spirit and every unclean and hateful bird are additional expressions descriptive of demons.

A mighty angel comes down from heaven, the earth lightened with his glory, announcing that Babylon is fallen, is fallen. He tells us in one brief pregnant sentence that that which professed the name of Christ had become so corrupt as to be the very dwelling—place of demons, the hold of every foul spirit and the cage of every unclean and hateful bird.

ANOTHER ANGEL OF special power and glory now appears, coming down from heaven and announcing Babylon's fall. In Revelation 14:8, John saw an angel who made this announcement, but here it is given with greater impressiveness and with more detail. The evil system which is thus represented had long been fallen morally, now it is fallen under Divine judgment. Yet it is acknowledged as "great" even by this angel, who himself had "great power." Men are naturally inclined to worship what is great, especially if it is something produced by themselves, though this had really been Satan's masterpiece.

When God judges any system or individual their real character is made wholly manifest. This feature is seen here. Babylon had become infested with evils of the most virulent type. Demons had made it their habitation or dwelling place, and not merely a spot that they visited occasionally. Moreover every foul or unclean spirit was there. Demons are spirits but men have spirits that sin has made utterly unclean, and every kind of spirit is included in this statement. Thirdly, there are hateful birds. We may remember that in the parable of the sower the Lord used the birds as figures of agents that Satan uses in the world of men. So Babylon had become a place where demons were perfectly at home, and where every kind of evil spirit and evil man had been held as in a cage or prison. A fearful and crushing indictment indeed!

ANOTHER vision opens out now before the mind of the apostle. In the preceding chapter the judgment of the great harlot was announced, and the instruments of its execution are revealed; whereas now we are permitted to see the disappearance of wicked Babylon, and the effects upon the various classes of the empire who had been in relation with her. But, as has been more than once pointed out in these Apocalyptic visions, the result is anticipatively proclaimed. John thus writes: "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, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird." (vv. 1, 2.) Twice before the judgment of Babylon had been mentioned (Rev. 14:8; Rev. 16:19), and now the providential governmental instrument, the angel, descends to earth for its accomplishment, working, however, as we have learned from the previous chapter, through human agents, the beast and his vassal kings. But it is rather the accomplishment announced by the angel, revealing, at the same time, what Babylon, that which once bore the name of Christ, has become — the dwelling-place of demons, and the prison of unclean spirits, and of every form of Satan's power.* The grounds, or one ground (see Rev. 19:2), of her judgment is stated. Balaam had taught Balak how to seduce the children of Israel to eat things offered to idols, and to commit fornication. (Rev. 2:14.) Jezebel in Thyatira followed in his steps (Rev. 2:20); but Babylon seduced the nations and the kings of the earth with the golden cup of her abominations and her fornication.† (Rev. 17:4,) She, moreover, who had professed to belong to Him, who when here had not where to lay His head, made the merchants of the earth "rich through the abundance of her delicacies." (v. 3.) Not only therefore had she become false to Christ, but she was the practical denial of all that He was and is, and, in fact, utterly apostate, completely ruled as she was by the god of this world.

*The reader may compare Isaiah 21:9; Jer. 50:39; Jer. 51:8, 37, as to the destruction of the historical Babylon.

ANOTHER vision opens out now before the mind of the apostle. In the preceding chapter the judgment of the great harlot was announced, and the instruments of its execution are revealed; whereas now we are permitted to see the disappearance of wicked Babylon, and the effects upon the various classes of the empire who had been in relation with her. But, as has been more than once pointed out in these Apocalyptic visions, the result is anticipatively proclaimed. John thus writes: "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, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird." (vv. 1, 2.) Twice before the judgment of Babylon had been mentioned (Rev. 14:8; Rev. 16:19), and now the providential governmental instrument, the angel, descends to earth for its accomplishment, working, however, as we have learned from the previous chapter, through human agents, the beast and his vassal kings. But it is rather the accomplishment announced by the angel, revealing, at the same time, what Babylon, that which once bore the name of Christ, has become — the dwelling-place of demons, and the prison of unclean spirits, and of every form of Satan's power. The grounds, or one ground (see Rev. 19:2), of her judgment is stated. Balaam had taught Balak how to seduce the children of Israel to eat things offered to idols, and to commit fornication. (Rev. 2:14.) Jezebel in Thyatira followed in his steps (Rev. 2: 20); but Babylon seduced the nations and the kings of the earth with the golden cup of her abominations and her fornication.† (Rev. 17:4.) She, moreover, who had professed to belong to Him, who when here had not where to lay His head, made the merchants of the earth "rich through the abundance of her delicacies." (v. 3.) Not only therefore had she become false to Christ, but she was the practical denial of all that He was and is, and, in fact, utterly apostate, completely ruled as she was by the god of this world. The reader may compare Isaiah 21:9; Jer. 50:39; Jer. 51:8, 37, as to the destruction of the historical Babylon. †The reader may instructively compare Ezekiel 16:15-34.

Babylon seeks a place of supremacy over the world, in contrast to the true Church which is "subject to Christ" (Eph. 5:24), and whose portion now is to suffer with Him and be His witnesses before a world that has rejected Him, while awaiting the time when she shall reign with Him (Rom. 8:17). The great whore "sits upon many waters" (Rev. 17:1), and these are explained to be "peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues" (Rev. 17:15), showing that her domination extends over many nations. She sits upon the "beast full of names of blasphemy" and "reigns over the kings of the earth" (Rev. 17:3; Rev 17:18). What wickedness must be hers to have such power over such a wicked beast! No wonder we read, "Babylon the Great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and cage of every unclean and hateful bird." Instead of being as in the beginning the vessel through which the Holy Spirit works in divine power and grace, the professing Church becomes the habitation of devils and the instrument of Satan to suppress every true voice that is raised for Christ and the truth.