(Revelation) the Doom of the Commercial Babylon — Willie Mullan

964, please. 964, there's a land that is fairer than day, and by faith we can see it afar, for the Father waits over the way to prepare us a dwelling place there. 964, please. Preaching at Churchill, I was preaching at Long, I was preaching at Shankle, I was preaching at Great Victoria Street, and I was preaching away up the east coast of Scotland, and I had a real holiday preaching the word.

And that's how I just like to have it. But it's nice to see you all again. Some of you have got the thumbs somewhere, I don't know where it was, but it certainly wasn't where I was. But it's nice to see you, and it's a thrill for me to be with you again.

Revelation 18 and the Doom of Commercial Babylon

We're at the book of Revelation, chapter 18 this evening. The book of the Revelation, chapter 18, and we're looking carefully at the first eight verses. You can see from the notes supplied to you that I've called this part of the chapter, in fact I have called this whole chapter, the doom of commercial bubbling, the doom of commercial bubble.

I think we have to recap a little bit. You remember when I was with you before the holidays, that I said to you that this word, bubbling, it's in the Old and New Testaments 260 times, no more, no less.

And that makes a mighty subject for any preacher to handle. And I assure you that I have taken the time, this church gives me the time, to sit down and examine every reference very carefully, 260 or so.

The Historical Babylon and Its Permanent Desolation

And I assure you this evening that a great many of these references refer to literal bubbling. Of course we all know this evening that there was a kingdom of bubbling. I think the great majority of you know something about the great city of bubbling in the kingdom of bubbling.

And of course history has recorded about the hanging gardens of bubbling. And there was a literal kingdom. In fact it was the first Gentile world empire kingdom. Bubbling was the world empire. And there came a time when Del Sartre, the king of the Babylonians, was slain.

And the Medes and Persians came in that evening and took the kingdom. And I think it's good for all these so-called prophetic scholars to realize that the literal kingdom of bubbling is blotted out and will never be established again.

I was having some sort of argument just the other day with some character who assured me it was all going to start in Europe again. Let's go back to Isaiah chapter 13, please. The prophecy of Isaiah chapter 13.

I've just received time this evening, verse 19. Isaiah 13, 19. And Babylon, the glory of the kingdoms, the beauty of the Caldi's excellency, shall be of them God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited.

And I think you can underline that with a red pen sometimes. It shall never be inhabited. Neither shall it be brought in from generation to generation. Neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there. Neither shall the shepherds make their hold there.

But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there. And I think that if you went away to where the kingdom of bubbling once stood, that you would find it so this evening, that for some unknown reason to themselves, even the Arabs won't pitch their tents there.

And you'll find that that particular place is brought by wild beasts this evening. Now the literal Babylon has been dealt with and brought about and shall never, and that is good enough for me, shall never be inherited again.

Nimrod, Babel, and the Rise of Mystical Babylon

But I think we must remember this, that while Babylon, the kingdom, was established by Nimrod, and you remember this, and we don't want to go back to Genesis tonight, we'll waste too much time, you remember that he founded this kingdom and he called it Bebel.

And the way it's spelt in the Hebrew is B-A-B hyphen C-L. And of course, if you get any word in the Hebrew like that with the E-L at the end, you know that the E-L belongs to God. It belongs. You know that Beth-El is the house of God.

You know that Daniel means that God is our judge, and Jewel, Jehovah, is God. And of course, it goes on right through to Emmanuel, which is God with us. But when you think the word Bebel, it simply meant the gateway to God, which teaches us that Nimrod, although he founded a literal kingdom, yet he was also founding a spurious religion.

He was under the curse of God, and he was going to make a way of his own back to God. It was a spurious religion, it was a Babylonian religion. And you must differentiate between the literal and the mystical.

And of course, there were a lot of things that happened in that mystical religion that Nimrod founded. You remember that he married a woman called Hammeramus, and you remember that her first child was called Thomas.

And of course, she was the woman who put out to this whole kingdom that she was the queen of heaven, and that this child was specially sent from God. And she established what is known tonight as the mother and child worship, and it is Babylonish.

And of course, all the folks in that Babylonish kingdom were compelled in those days to wear a chain around their neck with a key on it. Of course, Rome has changed that a little bit. And you will find that you go back into the ancient lore that there are a lot of things that come down to us today from that Babylonish religion.

Babylonian Idolatry in the Temple

You see, when Nimrod built this temple out on the plains of Shinar, and you remember in the top of the temple, in the roof, there were things like onto things in the heavens. And this is how he began to worship.

He was making, so he thought, a way back to God, a religion of his own. And there were so many things in it. But you know, God came and scattered them. And some of these mystical Babylonish abominations have come down to all the nations of the world.

Why they came down into the Jewish temple, even. Let's go back to Ezekiel for a moment, just to establish this. And we're at Ezekiel chapter 8. Ezekiel's a very wonderful prophetic book, and you must take very good time with it.

But Ezekiel 8 will do us this evening. Verse 13. He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do. Verse 14. Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord's house.

And I want you to mark the phrase, the Lord's house. It was the temple in Jerusalem. And he brought him to the gate of the Lord's house, which was toward the north. It was the north gate. And behold, there sat woman weeping for termites.

Don't you ever forget that. For that son of Nimrod, that's the son that Semiramis said came straight from heaven. And you see, this began this idolatrous thing. They made plaster casts. And here's this plaster cast in the Lord's house.

Well, you'd wonder how it got there, but it was there. And they haven't finished with these plaster casts yet either. You'll find them here, and there, and yonder. You see, while the literal Babylon was dealt with and done away with, you'll find that some of these abominations that belong to this mystical Babylon, it has come down and got into some of the religions of the world.

And I think it would be quite right to say this evening that the Roman Catholic Church has embraced more of them than anybody else. You know, when we were looking at Revelation chapter 17, let's go back there again, Revelation 17, we had true evening fear, looking carefully at this woman who is called the Greeper.

And we noticed in verse 3 of 17 that the woman was sitting upon these toilet-coloured beasts. You know, that's a tremendous picture you need to get in your mind. The woman's name was given us in verse 5, upon her forehead was the name written, Mystery, Babylon, the Greep, the mother of all of us, and the abominations of the earth.

And we took time to find out who this was, because chapter 17 has taken us down into a day beyond us. You see, we believe that the Lord Jesus will come one of these evenings for his church, and we believe that when the saints rise to meet the Lord in the air, then this man of sin is going to be revealed on this planet.

Yes, he's the beast of Revelation 13, and here he is. But on this occasion, the woman is riding the beast. You see, he will represent the state at that moment, but the Roman church will rule the state.

The Roman church has always wanted to rule the state. And that will take us to a place where the church will be ruling the state. Somebody came to argue with me about blaming all this on the Roman church, and I just go on to verse 6, and that's where I hang my hat.

Verse 6 of chapter 17 says,. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And I asked any logical person, go down to the church ages, down through from now to Pentecost, and tell me what system, or what church, or what people have been drunken with the blood of the martyrs.

And the only one is the Roman church. I think you know we all must forget the Inquisition, don't we? When the Roman church burned countless thousands of the best men and women that ever walked in shoe leather, and they're trying to make us forget this.

But I assure you God hasn't forgotten. And it's in this book, you know, and God will deal with us all. There is no question. And so we've been through all this, and we have gathered and gleaned all this up.

But I want to show you something more this evening. You know this book doesn't only talk about literal Babylon, and it has been done away with, and it doesn't only talk about this mystical Babylon. And there is no doubt at all that the Roman Catholic Church has embraced all these Babylonist idolatrous practices.

But then there's another thing in this book. There's what is called commercial Babylon. And I think you know that we're not too well informed about this, and we're going to take the night to do it properly.

You see, our chapter begins tonight and after these things, after these things. Now this must be kept quite clear in your mind. This is after the church has gone, after the man of sin has been revealed, after the scarlet woman has taken command of the beast.

And you must remember that this was part of the plan of the man of sin. He allowed her to do this for his own ends, of course. You remember, as we came to the end of chapter 17, it says, verse 16, and the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast.

And in case there's a newcomer to the class tonight, don't let yourself be worried about the ten horns. Just drop the chapter and you'll find who they are. Verse 12, and the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings.

There is no argument about that now. Because our own Mr Heath, you know, shifty shoulders I call him, he is pressing, and pressing continually, not only to put Britain into the common market, but to establish her there.

And I think that any honest man can see it's all he thinks about these days. It's quite easy to see he's not the big brother of the common world party just now. He doesn't want to be. He hasn't any time for that now.

He's just pushing this, this common market. And let me say to you that this European economic community that he talks about so much, it is nothing else than these ten kings, these ten horns. Because if we went to Daniel it would be the ten horns.

And he's pushing. Take some time as you would think he thinks about nothing else. I think that they need to remember that the men from the commonwealth came and gave their lives and fought their battles.

Because the Canadians formed the beaches of Normandy and so did the Australians and the New Zealanders. Sometimes I think he forgets that Ulster held the gate here when the Jerries might have come to this island.

Sometimes I think they forget that we lost thousands and thousands of men. I know that I have the heart of sympathy for every soldier laddie that's gone. And I hear them talking about a number of them.

And let me throw back across the lot that we lost thousands and thousands of men to keep London where it is. And my father was lost and my brothers were lost. And a good many people here can say the same.

They must not forget that we fought their battles. But he's just got one incentive just now. It's the common market. It's his big stake. I suppose he thinks there'll be a plate put up for it sometime.

Prosperity, Sin, and the Folly of Wealth

I believe he believes this, that Britain will become very prosperous because of the common market. And I believe he's right. And of course many of his friends would fly back at me and say, well, if he's right and he's gone to make the country prosperous, what are you talking about?

Let me inform you here, as you're here, that prosperity is not everything. It's the man in the Gospels. And he says, I'll put on my bonds, I'll go greater, and there will I bestow my fruits and I will say to myself, so I have much goods made up for many years, I'll tell you what God called them.

God says don't you. And that's just what I think about him. I think he's a fool. I think that prosperity for Britain is always in his head. I can tell you with much prosperity will come much sin. And he'll be a fool.

You know we have Mr Wilson on the other hand. Pipey, I call him. And I want you to realise that it's just within the last two weeks, you know, he's come out onto the open and I think that in his next manifesto termination he's going to say that we, we will nationalise the banks.

You know sometimes I'd be amazed at these wee characters with their coat on. The way they can talk, you know, all the banks, you know, nobody's got to say anything, you know, if he gets in. Just nationalise all the banks.

And he's going to nationalise fifty of the biggest firms in the land and maybe we'll go on to do a hundred. Yes, I want you to get this into your mind. Because we're going to think about commercial bubble on this evening.

Commerce, Indulgences, and Religious Corruption

I think that you would know this, and I'm sure you do, that the two greatest religious communities in this world who have gone into commerce more than anybody else is the Roman Catholic Church and the Jews.

All the big syndicates of all the big firms. It may be the Jews or the Roman Catholic Church they're known for. But you know the Roman Catholic Church, when she took on this mystical robe of Babylon, it was then that she entered into commerce.

You know the thing that brought the Reformation to really get going was old priests standing on the street selling indulgences for sin. Why they were selling them the way you sell raffle tickets at a funfair.

Just selling them five bob for indulgences. You can go and let's pay five bob. And Luther got fed up with it. And to be honest, let's say there's a great many Roman Catholics that fed up with it. I think you've got to be honest in these things.

You know in Luther's biography there is one place that he said this, and he said this out loud. He said Rome would sell anything. Rome would sell a father and a son and a Holy Ghost. And so she would.

You know we come a bit nearer home. It's only a few years ago in Latin America. As you know when you go to Latin America you'll see Rome in all her true glory. Of course they'd parade these plaster casts through the streets, stuck up in lorries, and the whole town bows down.

Oh yes, you can see her there in all her glory. And it's only a few years ago in Latin America to all the duped Roman Catholics that they began to sell pieces of the cross, they say. Little bits of wood, supposed to be from the actual cross.

And Roman Catholics all through Latin America bought these. And then when some fellow who could fashion it began to fashion it, it was found out that they had sold more wood than would build ten British old-time battleships.

Yeah, that's bought, isn't it? That's good commerce. Now Rome doesn't look at these indulgences anymore. They were caught on with that. And Rome doesn't look at selling wood anymore like that. They're out of the stick trade now.

Dalton Ironside said that a few years ago in America they were in complete control of the press. And for years they run the cinemas. And of course almost all over the world they run the theatre world, yes.

Political Power, Wealth, and the Antichrist

This is commerce. And this is commercial bubble. And I know this evening that Mr. Heath, with his ideology, and Mr. Wilson with his ideas, and the Roman Catholic merchants who are really the big syndicates, and the Jewish merchants, if these four get their way and they're getting it, they're paving the way for the Antichrist.

And he laughs, and then he's proven awful. And Heath, and Wilson, and Jews who are mad for money, and Rome are laying the foundations for the Antichrist and his damnable religion in the day to come. Of course the Lord has an end for the Roman Catholic Church.

Well, we were reading, we're in seventeen yet. Says verse sixteen. And the ten horns which we have now learned are ten kings or ten toads which thou shalt upon the beast. These shall hit the whore. That's the woman, that's the Roman church.

And she'll make her bed so it's not naked, and she'll eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree and give their kingdom unto the beast. God has an end for her.

Divine Judgment on Violence and Innocent Blood

My dear friends, God is not forgetting all the blood that has been shed. And I can say this to the terrorists tonight. They may do desperate things in this land of ours, but I hope they don't think that God will forget, for he will not.

You cannot shed innocent blood and get off of it. And I'm not just that stupid, I know there are terrorists on the Protestant side too. I just wonder who shot me through the other night in a wee kid. And don't let Protestant terrorists think they'll escape, for they'll not.

That's a bit of it. You don't think that God's respecting green or white or orange or purple. I hope you don't. But this book's instructing us that God will allow this system to be blotted from the earth.

Of course, this is the moment that the beast was waiting on. He has gathered all the treasure now, and all the treasure of the Jews, and robed them in heat and helped them. And now his kingdom is red.

The Angel's Announcement of Babylon's Fall

But there's a spanner always thrown in the works. Our chapter begins from that. After these things, after the Roman church has been dealt with, after these things, here's what it says, another angel came down from heaven.

And I've put note the moment here after these things. And then I have put note the might here. I notice that some of the Greek common people, they're arguing about this angel. One of the greatest prophets must be the Lord, for he has lighted the earth with his glory.

Well now, I wouldn't like our Lord called another angel. I think if it says another angel, that's exactly what it means. I don't mind them being called the angel of the covenant if you put a capital F angel and a capital C of covenant.

But when it says in ordinary language, another angel, that's exactly what I believe it is. But there's no doubt that he's a mighty angel. And the whole earth is lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen.

My what a moment that will be. And then I think you want to get the hold of this little bit, because this is a manifestation that will be given to the whole earth. I think that's why the earth is lightened, because this manifestation will be given.

Once Babylon is fallen, then we shall see that he was the habitation of devils, and the hold of every false spirit. And the cage of every unclean and hateful bird. You know, I was told the other day, I think it's correct to say, that last week in Belfast, the two little children in towns, their faces were slashed with razors.

One little baby, I think, was only six months, and somebody drew a razor across his face. Now, I don't think that's just an ordinary human. I'm sure that demonology is here now, and people engulfed by demons are at work.

I can see religious hatred get into the place where you shoot a policeman or a soldier, or shoot me for that matter. But I can't see anybody in their logical senses, even with hatred, drawing a razor across a kid's face.

This must be demons. And I wonder, when this church is blotted out, will it be a manifestation given to all in summary of how much demon work was covered up in this? Because I believe there will be. I think when you take a man out to an old loft, and you nail him to the floor with a nail through every finger, and then you cut his tongue out one day, and cut his eyes out the next one, and cut his ears off the next one.

This is demons at work, surely. Who covers this up? Oh, there will be a day when it will be seen that it was indeed the habitation of devils, and behold, the cave, the word should be, of every foul spirit, and the cage of every unclean and hateful bird.

I was talking to somebody the other day, he's a great character, he's got a funny way of interpreting things, but I enjoy listening to him. He said, you see, you're in chapter 18, week coming, I said, that's right.

He says, you know, when the church of Rome is blotted out, there'll come a great fight for this world. People will see that she was the habitation of devils, and the cave of every foul spirit, and the cage of every unclean and hateful bird.

He said, he was thinking about that phrase, hateful birds. I was thinking about Mary, Queen of Scots, hateful birds. Funny way of putting it, isn't it? He's got a funny idea, but it really amuses me. But this is the manifestation.

The Merchants of the Earth and Babylon's Influence

Now, watch this. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and let's mark this, all nations. She has intoxicated all nations, and make no mistake. And the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and make no mistake about that either.

But we've looked at the nations contaminated with her before, and the kings who were intoxicated with her. But here's a new phrase, and the merchants of the earth are rich through the abundance of her delicacies.

And we're now switching into commercial Babylon, because I can tell you that out of literal Babylon came this mystical Babylon. And out of this has come this commercial Babylon, called here in the book of Reformation, written by John a long time ago, called the merchants of the earth.

The Call to Come Out of Babylon

Now, not only do you see the moment here, and the might here, and the manifestation here, and the merchants here, I think we want to take a moment with the message here, verse four. And I heard another voice from heaven saying, come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

You know, it's wonderful that the way back in that day that she had to come, way down in that moment, that this old message will be sounding forth, come out of her, my people. You know, this is most interesting, that when God was talking to Abraham, you remember away in Genesis, we're away at the other end of the book now, that God wanted Abraham to be a separated person, out from your country, and from your children.

And, you know, when God talked to Israel, God said that Israel should dwell alone, and not be counted or numbered among the nations. God has always desired his people to be a separated people. And remember it was said of the church, that when the church began to blaze forth the glorious gospel, and men trembled under the preaching, it spoke of the rest, and it's talking about the people all around it, of the rest, that no man join themselves unto her.

Try to tell me now that you can have a congregation, half fed and half not fed, and you know, not a bit of you. My God wants them to be a separated people, and of the rest, none dare join themselves unto them.

Don't be coming off with that. But not only has God wanted Abraham to be separated, and Israel, and the church, God wants you to be separated. Let me go down to 2nd Timothy, chapter 2, if you please, just for a moment, just till you see this.

2nd Timothy, and after 2nd chapter. 2nd Timothy, chapter 2. See verse 4. No man that woreth, that's talking about spiritual warfare, of course, no man that woreth entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who hath chosen him to be his own.

You know, the Lord doesn't want us to get entangled with the affairs of this life. And you know, if you look up the word affairs sometime in the Greek, you'll find that it means the businesses of this life.

And that set me thinking when I thought, you know, we've all got to work. In fact, we're supposed to be servants in business, serving the Lord. But I think this has got to be seen, that if the business runs you, you're entangled.

If you run the business, there are businessmen here tonight, bless God, they can shut the door, let it be shut, and they can come and sit in the house of God and hear the word of God. But business is not running them.

There are some businessmen not here tonight because they're stuck in making another time, and the thing is running them, and they're entangled. You know, it's unwise to let the business run you. Do you see verse 16?

Look down the chapter, do you see 16? This is for young people. But some, here's a good word for you, full fame and famed ugliness, it is some of you not to go into it. My dear young people, God wants you separated from that sort of thing.

Do you see verse 21? Look at verse 21. If a man therefore purged himself from these, he should be a better one to one who's sanctified and meek for the master's use. You see, everything that's unwise, and everything that's untrue, and everything that's unworthy, you're to keep away from.

See verse 22, free, also youthful lusts, everything that's unclean. See verse 23, God's foolish and unlearned questions are void. You get away from it. That's unprofitable. When you come into chapter 3, do you see verse 5?

There'll come a time when this whole world will have a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof, from such turn away. You get out from that. It's unreal. You don't stick in it because your power was in it.

You get out. And you know this message has come right down from Abraham, and through Israel, and in the church, and to every individual follower of Christ. And even in that day, when the church is gone and God is a few witnesses down here, you say, don't touch it, even though you may die of starvation.

For in that day, unless you go in with a cloud, you'll neither eat, you'll neither buy nor sell. But God says, come out of her, my people. This is the message that God sends right through the scriptures.

Babylon's Sins Reaching Heaven

He wants his people to be separated people. But not only look at the message here, let's go back to Revelation 18. This is something I want you to note. Verse 5, For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

You know, there's a mighty truth here. Let's go back to Genesis chapter 15, and I'll start you on this truth. Genesis 16, book of Genesis, chapter 15, verse 13, God is speaking to Abram, and he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed, that is Israel, shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall surge them, and they shall afflict them four hundred years.

And that was right to the very letter. And also that nation whom they shall serve will I judge. And afterwards shall they come out with great substance, and that was correct, and thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace, and thou shalt be buried in a good old age.

But in the fourth generation shall come hither again, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full. You know, this is a tremendous truth, that people can do iniquitous things, that people can be wicked, and cruel, and sinful, and yet God will wait.

Yes, God will wait until their iniquities are come to the full. You know, there was a time when God spoke to his own people, and he sent messengers morning after morning, and the prophets came day after day, and then it says, God spoke until there was no remedy.

It has come to the full now. And you know, it's the same with the local church. If the local church will not respond to God, he will work around it, he will speak to it, he will convict it. And then at last, he removes his candle stick.

That's what he said to the church of Ephesus, unless you repent, I'll come and remove your candle stick. And not only does God do this with nations, not only does God do this with the local church, not only did he do it with Israel, but I'll tell you this, he will do it with you, because you know, you'll not fool God forever.

You know, there comes the moment when there is a sin unto death, and nobody needs to pray for that. If you go too far, that's what it's saying, and you sin a sin that's unto death, God will take you home.

He'll remove you. And God has waited right down through all these centuries, and he has waited until this abominable system, until its end, has reached unto heaven. It's gone no further now. That's just the time that we're talking about in this book of the Revelation.

Divine Retribution and the Danger of Judgmentalism

These are mighty things to note. You note the moment here, don't you, after these things? You note the might here, another angel. You note the manifestation here, the uncleanness and the cage of hateful births.

And you note the actions here, you note the message here, you note the mountain here. Now, here's something we must grasp here, just now, verse 6. God says, Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works, in the cup which she hath filled to her double.

How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously. So much torment and sorrow giveth her. For she saith in her heart, I said to the queen, and done no good and shall see no sorrow. You know, there is something, I think, that every Christian needs to learn here.

Just look at the first phrase of verse 6. Reward her even as she rewarded you. Now, let's go back to our Lord preaching the Sermon on the Mount. We're at Matthew's Gospel, and we're at chapter 7. And I think you know that while the kingdom truth has an interpretation for the kingdom, yet there's an application always for us.

The Lord says in verse 1, Judge not that ye be not judged. You know, we're so quick to judge, and you know you shouldn't do it. You should find out the truth. One evening I telephoned round, and one of the publicans in the town said, Mr. Mull, my wife's dying.

Will you come quick? Run in through the bar and up the stairs. Of course, you know, a lot of the old baptists saw me going into the bar, would be drunk, but hardly staggering home. They put a bit on to it all the time.

They would judge you, you know. They wouldn't be big enough to come and say, I saw you go in through the pub. Was there anything wrong? I could have told you. Well, they would judge you. So, the Lord says, don't be judging mortals.

Don't be doing that. You're not allowed to judge mortals. And then he went straight on with this. He says, and with what judgment you judge, ye shall be judged. And with what measure you meet, it shall be measured to you again.

She'll be rewarded as she rewarded, and she'll be burnt. It's a good wee thing to learn, you know. Don't you go round thumping folk, because one day you're going to get thumped. Sometimes when the office bearers sit here, they all know me, you know.