The Bible tells us of a couple of Christian Age long entities that Scripture calls the Mystery of Lawlessness, and Mystery Babylon the Great. These are powerful, hidden, occult groups. We might view these groups as like rival mafia groups, which, when it is convenient, cooperate with each other.
These groups are powerful, but in different ways, dangerous, and ruthless. They completely outclass the average Christian, or the average citizen. Thus the need for prayer.
Christ does overrule our world, and you and me, from His throne in heaven!
God does frequently overrule the men and objectives of these groups from time to time. They will never have the full victory they desire, until God allows it
An audio lesson.
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My first book, Prophecy Principles gives general information on the nature of the world’s “mystery religions.”
My second book deals in more detail the Mystery of Lawlessness and Mystery Babylon the Great.
The Mystery of Lawlessness, and Mystery Babylon the Great is studied in some detail in Revealing the Christian Age. These are really competing secret religions, which oppose and try to use each other. Available from your bookseller.
It starts here in the hearts of men.
“20 Being asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The Kingdom of God doesn’t come with observation; 21 neither will they say, ‘Look, here!’ or, ‘Look, there!’ for behold, the Kingdom of God is within you.” Lk 17:20-21
Many kingdoms and powers exercise great authority without the source of the power being visible, or noticed, at least by most. The occult powers are especially aware of many powers exercising their influence and control without being seen. Two great mystery religions of the Christian Age exercise considerable influence and control all through the Christian Age. Some call these the “Deep State.” They are the Mystery of Lawlessness of 2Thessalonians 2, and Mystery Babylon the Great of the book of Revelation.These are important world swaying powers. The Mystery of Lawlessness is basically a Satanic group. I call Mystery Babylon the Great a “a religio-commerical entity” in Revealing the Christian Age.
So also the Kingdom of God Exercises Power to Transform ALL.
“He spoke another parable to them. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, until it was all leavened.” Mtt 13:33
So once again we have a verse of this Kingdom in time influencing this entire world to the point that (which is yet in the future for you and me) the leaven of this Kingdom is an influence all over this world “until it was all leavened.” There is to come a world-wide influence of Christianity which has not been seen so far.
The present time is the selection of the chosen, the elect, to live and rule in a world which is yet to come.
The author of Hebrews speaks of these things, and says,
“For he didn’t subject the world to come, whereof we speak, to angels.” Heb 2:5
You see this present universe will pass away. In Hebrews 1 it picture God as rolling up this present universe like an old coat and putting it away, Heb 1:10-12. Peter tells us of,
A New Universe Will be Without Sin and Death
“But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which dwells righteousness.” 2Pe 3:13
Isaiah also speaks of this perfect place.
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” Isa 65:17
What will it be like?
“23 They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth for calamity; for they are the seed of the blessed of Yahweh, and their offspring with them. 24 It shall happen that, before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. 25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox; and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, says Yahweh.” Isa 65:23-25
A real world, without decay or things running down. A world which some call “heaven.”
Scriptures are from the World English Bible (WEB), a copyright free revision of the original ASV American Standard Version 1901
Not
always the most obvious, but of central importance.
An important man of lawlessness is
to come.
The
KJV calls him a “man of sin,” but remember that “Sin is
lawlessness,”1Jn 3:4, WEB. Paul says that this man has to
come before Jesus comes again, and calls this man “the son
of destruction” WEB. This
man is characterized by “perdition,”
destructive behavior, and he brings
destruction on many people.
He suppresses all religion except
the worship of Satan and himself.
Both Revealing the Christian Age and Prophecy Principles have more information on the “beast”/ the man of lawlessness and of an occult competition to see who will finally be the “real” beast.
“he
who opposes and exalts himself against all that is called God or that
is worshiped; so that he sits as God in the temple of God, setting
himself up as God. ” 2Thes 2:4 WEB
This man does not just put himself up as some sort of “god.” He puts himself up as the one and only “god.” He does not just put down Christianity, but will put down ALL religion of any sort, except himself. The only other description that matches this is called a “beast” in Revelation 11 through 20. It says men “worshiped the beast,” Rev 13:4, and that he is “given authority” over all of the earth, and to make war with the church and to overcome it, Rev 13:7.
Before
we go any further, I must remind you that Rome and the caesars NEVER
overcame the church. Instead, the church overcame Rome and the
caesars, exactly as prophesied in Daniel 2.
This man is brought to power by a “mystery of lawlessness” which “already works.” 2Thes 2:7 WEB
Taken at face value, Paul is describing either the teachings of a mystery religion characterized by lawlessness, or a mystery religion itself (an organization) that is characterized by lawlessness. See the previous post on “Mystery Religions: An Overview.” Paul is writing this around say 51 AD, and says this mystery “already works,” 2Thes 2:7. This teaching, this religion, seems to be the “beast” organization of Rev 13:1-2, 17:7, etc. This religion continues to work until it is able to unveil its exclusive god/man to be worshiped by the entire world. This religion has a ruling council of seven men, and seems to have a power base of ten nations. Mystery Babylon and the Mystery of Lawlessness run private intelligence operations that often dwarf those of many nations. They frequently run Deep State operations jointly.
The beast organization, makes
Mystery Babylon a world wide success.
“… I will tell you the mystery of
the woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has
the seven heads and the ten horns.” Rev 17:7.
These are competing mystery
religions that work together for world domination, and the
destruction of Christianity.
The “man of lawlessness” will
destroy Mystery Babylon WITHIN history.
This is described in Revelation 17 and 18 as being a total and final destruction. This occurs after the church is “overcome,” and it leaves the mystery of lawlessness as the undisputed master of the entire world.
Revealing the Christian Age has more information the fall of Mystery Babylon.
The “man” of lawlessness is destroyed by Jesus’ Second Coming.
The
beast is captured and thrown alive into hell, Rev 19:20. Jesus
will kill him “by the brightness of his coming.” 2Thes 2:8. So
these are things which come to a climax just before the end of this
present universe.
KJV
is the King James Version, 1611
WEB
is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision of the
original ASV American Standard Version 1901
Not
always the most obvious, but of central importance.
Many think that Mystery Babylon the Great is civil government, or the Roman Empire. However, as was pointed out in the post “Rome, A Prophecy Failure or Symbolic,” much of what is written in Revelation emphatically did NOT fit Rome all along. Revealing the Christian Age offers solid evidence that Mystery Babylon is NOT Rome. Rome and the caesars are at best a type, symbolic of what is to come.
Mystery Babylon is treated as if she
is a secret entity.
Revealing the Christian Age discusses the many things in Revelation which do not fit ancient Rome.
That
fits
calling her “MYSTERY, BABYLON THE
GREAT,”
Rev 17:5 WEB. That implies
she is a mystery religion, as discussed in the
post on “The Mystery Religions: An Overview.”
Now you can view Rome in public. You can travel there, stay there, live there. But to see Mystery Babylon John is carried “away in the Spirit into a wilderness.” Rev 17:3 WEB. A remote place. She is a hidden entity. She is “the great prostitute,” Rev 17:1 WEB. But Rome had no need to prostitute herself. Rome could beat to pieces any who resisted her.
Mystery Babylon is spoken of as if
she dominates world trade
In fact, most of the imagery about Babylon and her fall, seems to come from the prophecies of the fall of ancient Tyre and Sidon, like Isaiah 23, and Ezek 26, 27 and 28 (they are symbolic of her). These were principal Phoenician trade cities, which dominated trade in the Mediterranean world for several centuries. They were not all of Mediterranean trade, but they did facilitate it, and dominate it.
“ “… the
kings of the earth committed sexual immorality with her, and the
merchants of the earth grew rich from the abundance of her luxury.”
” Rev 18:3 WEB
Mystery Babylon is a promoter of
sexual immorality, and perversion of every sort.
In
Revelation 17 she is drinking from a golden cup filled with the filth
of fornication, Rev 17:4. She is “THE MOTHER … OF THE
ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” Rev 17:5 KJV.
“ “with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality, and those who dwell in the earth were made drunken with the wine of her sexual immorality.” ” Rev 17:2 WEB
Mystery Babylon is the arranger of
death and destruction.
She is not government. Rather she reigns/rules OVER the kings of the earth, Rev 17:18. She is the original Deep State. Mystery Babylon is implicitly the fomenter, the arranger, of wars.
“ “In her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of ALL who have been slain on the earth.” ” Rev 18:24 WEB
Mystery Babylon is COMPLETELY
destroyed very near the end of our age.
The
man of lawlessness comes very near the end of time, and he with ten
kings, destroys Mystery Babylon completely,
all the way to the ground, within
HISTORY, Revelation
chapters 17 and 18.
Christians are commanded to come out
of Mystery Babylon, Rev 18:4.
That of course implies that you can
understand the prophecy, and come out of her.
KJV
is the King James Version, 1611
WEB
is the World English Bible, a copyright free revision of the
original ASV American Standard Version 1901
