Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 45

February 14;      Revelation 17:2;       255/260(III);        ‘The Great Harlot’

Revelation 17:2 with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication."

The great harlot in verse one is Babylon.  Ancient Babylon is the birthplace of religion.  It was in Babylon that they wanted to build a tower ‘to heavcn.’   This was man’s way of reaching God.  Religion in all of its various forms has been doing the same thing ever since. Nimrod, the tower architect, was a great warrior and his pride caused him to think he could cause God to accept him based on everything he did.  This is the great deception.  Man’s nature without the Lord is pride.  Pride wants to earn heaven by its efforts.  Nimrod’s wife Semiramis, was the high priestess of idolatry, astrology, mythology, pagan sacrifice and lust disguised as a form of worship.  Nimrod and Semiramis had a son, Tammuz, whom they claimed to have been a miracle conception.  Satan has nothing new.  He has knowledge of the Bible, though he does not have revelation knowledge of the Word.  He does everything he can to copy the truths of God’s Word.  He knows the spirit of man has a need to seek the Lord. So he distorts the truth in order to deceive.  His primary way to do this is to play with man’s pride and lust.  The immorality of the pagan religions in the Old Testament drew the Jews.  The goodness and blessing of God the Father was to be used by the Jews to evangelize the heathens.  Often this was not the case.  Kings and everyone else ‘fornicated’ with idolatry and false religion.  They were drawn away by literal immorality as well with temple prostitutes.  Religion appeals to pride and self.  Temporary fulfillment eternal death.