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Babylon, now the visible city of Rome, is the great prostitute and the mother of prostitutes. She rides upon the wild beast, the emperor of Rome at that time, Nero. Prostitution is tightly linked with idolatry, unfaithfulness towards God. Worshiping the man-made form that you physically see and desire. The wine is that which flows within the person in this worship of money, riches, whatever as you worship your "God" your "Elohim", your "one thing" fashioned by mankind on earth. The golden cup contains her wine, the attractions, and delusions, which is the way this mystical Babylon, Sodom (Rome) has obtained and kept her influence, and seduced others to join in worship. A real Jezebel. A horrible city. It's error and unfaithfulness. Grossness and rubbish. She filled herself with the blood of the saints and martyrs of Jesus. She intoxicated herself with it, and it was so pleasant to her, that she never was satisfied. She sits upon many waters. The waters are the laypersons (not the true ministers), the multitudes (throngs), nations and languages which she rules over. But the kings, the rulers of the earth will burn her totally, as they follow the wild beast and the false prophet. The false prophet builds an image of Nero and gives the image power to speak (sounds a bit like a Twitter feed, with an icon, or a Zoom webpage, as perhaps seen by John in the first century AD) capable of seeing what each person is doing, whether they are worshiping Nero or not, and bearing his mark, his number, his name in their body. The whole world over.
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