(Rev. 17:1, 2) How was the judgment executed?

EXECUTING THE JUDGMENT

53. Then what judgment takes place, and whose will is it that this judgment is executed?

⁵³ John gives us a picture of it with these words: “And the ten horns that you saw, and the wild beast, these will hate the harlot and will make her devastated and naked, and will eat up her fleshy parts and will completely burn her with fire. For God put it into their hearts to carry out his thought, even to carry out their one thought by giving their kingdom to the wild beast, until the words of God will have been accomplished.”—Rev. 17:16, 17.

54. What do the ten horns of the scarlet-colored beast represent, and why ten?

⁵⁴ Those ten horns were pictured as being on the seven heads of the scarlet-colored wild beast. What do they represent? The heavenly angel told John, saying: “And the ten horns that you saw mean ten kings, who have not yet received a kingdom, but they do receive authority as kings one hour with the wild beast. These have one thought, and so they give their power and authority to the wild beast.” (Rev. 17:12, 13) Thus the horns symbolize governmental rulers. (Compare Daniel 8:2-8, 20, 21.) As the number ten in Scripture is a symbol of completeness, “ten kings” would stand for all the governmental rulers, particularly those who are part of the symbolic scarlet wild beast, the international organization for world peace and security.

55. What did not Babylon or the ten horns do at the close of World War I?

⁵⁵ At the close of World War I Babylon the Great did not tell those symbolic “ten horns” to yield over their national and imperial sovereignties to God’s Messianic kingdom that had been born in the heavens to take over the rulership of all the earth. Neither did those “ten horns” want to make such a surrender. During World War I they persecuted Jehovah’s Christian witnesses and disdainly refused to accept the message of God’s established kingdom.

56. How do the ten horns now carry out God’s thought?

⁵⁶ God purposed the destruction of these symbolic “ten horns,” even as he had long previously foretold this. It was his thought to maneuver them now to their destruction, to destroy them in a combination, all at one time. Accordingly, by his unseen maneuvering, “God put it into their hearts to carry out his thought.” How would they carry out God’s thought for them to get into combined opposition to Him? By their coming to a oneness of thought or idea and chartering an international organization for world peace and security and then joining it as one family of nations, joining particularly the United Nations of today. So, instead of giving their kingdom to God in surrender of their earthly sovereignty to his Messianic government, they proceeded, as Revelation 17:17 says, “to carry out their one thought by giving their kingdom to the wild beast, until the words of God will have been accomplished.”

57. How did the nations give power and authority to the “wild beast”?

⁵⁷ So from 1919 onward, when the Charter of the League of Nations was ratified, they began giving their kingdom to the scarlet-colored “wild beast.” They gave their power and authority to it. By becoming member nations of the international organization for world peace and security, the Eighth World Power, “they do receive authority as kings one hour with the wild beast.” (Rev. 17:12, 13) In a comparative sense, it is only “one hour” to the beast’s destruction. It has only “one hour” of life.

58. How did Babylon feel about this “wild beast,” and what will be the final result to her and to the beast?

⁵⁸ Babylon the Great, who was eager to ride such a “wild beast,” approved of this international action, even though it was against the heavenly kingdom of the Lamb of God that Jehovah’s Christian witnesses were proclaiming. What is and will be the result of this giving of national power and authority to the “wild beast,” the pet of Babylon the Great? Revelation 17:14 answers: “These will battle with the Lamb, but, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, the Lamb will conquer them. Also, those called and chosen and faithful with him will do so.” In that way, or, for that reason, the scarlet “wild beast” that is now present after getting out of the abyss will “go off into destruction.” When that takes place, “the words of God will have been accomplished.”—Rev. 17:8, 17.

59. However, who goes into destruction first and at whose hands?

⁵⁹ Will Babylon the Great, the rider of the scarlet “wild beast,” be destroyed at the same time with the “wild beast” and thus enjoy her ride as a harlot on it till its finish? No! Not according to the already recorded judicial decision of Jehovah God. His sentence already handed down is that the very objects of her love must destroy her, before they themselves are destroyed. She has long had the selfish love of a harlot or fornicatrix for that “wild beast” and its ten horns. She feels that she will be always attractive to them and be able to hold their patronage by satisfying their selfish immoral pleasure. But in this she fools herself and opens herself to a shocking surprise.

60. Describe the disastrous end of the harlot.

⁶⁰ God Almighty will break up that selfish unity between the harlot and the ten-horned wild beast. He will turn their selfish love to contemptuous hatred and will present reasons to the beast and ten horns to hate the harlot on top of them and to vent their hatred furiously upon her. They will drive her from a religious paradise into devastation. They will strip off her purple and scarlet garments, her adornments of gold and precious stones and pearls, and knock that golden cup full of disgusting things out of her hand. She will be exposed nude as a religious fraud. No longer will her flesh hold an attraction for petting and immoral union, but the “wild beast” and its ten horns will feed in a beastly way upon her fleshy parts. Her skeleton they will reduce to mere lime by burning it with fire. Thus the world empire of Babylonish religion will be reduced to ashes, to be trampled underfoot by the surviving worshipers of the true God, Jehovah, the faithful followers of his reigning Son Jesus Christ.—Mal. 4:3.

61. Who will see to it that the scarlet “wild beast” goes into destruction?

⁶¹ After that the scarlet “wild beast” and its ten horns will go, no, not back into the abyss, but into total destruction forever. The conquering Lamb, against whom they fight, will see to that.

62. What advice is given to those who do not wish to share Babylon’s fate?

⁶² Knowing now in advance the judgment to be executed shortly upon false religion, what shall we the people do? The Babylonish harlot sits upon “many waters,” many peoples, crowds, nations and tongues. Is she still sitting upon any of us? If she is, then, in order to escape suffering destruction with her at the time of the execution of divine judgment upon her, there is one thing to do, without delay: In the love of the one true religion, get out from under her! She is doomed! By the judgment of Jehovah God, Babylon the Great experienced a fall in 1919, since which year more than a million men, women and children have marched out of her into religious freedom as Christian witnesses of Jehovah. Now in her fallen condition she is approaching her terrible eternal destruction. Hence we say to seekers after God who are still under her religious sway: Forsake Babylon the Great!

63, 64. Who will such not join to escape Babylon’s fate, but with whom will they take sides for everlasting salvation?

⁶³ This does not mean joining with the “wild beast” and its “ten horns” in violently destroying that world empire of Babylonish religion. Such violent action by the “wild beast” and its “ten horns” will not gain salvation for them or salvation for anyone who joins in with them in such violence. Let those disillusioned political powers do that as visible agents of God in the execution of his divine judgment on false religion. But that work is not for us!

⁶⁴ The one true religion is our salvation, for by it we worship the one living and true God who offers us salvation through his Son Jesus the Messiah, the Christ. Remember the words of Jesus in prayer to Jehovah God: “Your word is truth.” (John 17:17) It is this truth that sets us free from Babylon the Great. Let us enter that glorious religious freedom by embracing God’s word in his Holy Bible and then following in the footsteps of the victorious Lamb of God. He will conquer the political paramours of Babylon the Great and usher us into full freedom under the triumphant kingdom of God. Let God’s Messianic kingdom rule forevermore!

‘Never Have Enough of That Literature’

Two witnesses of Jehovah in Texas called at a prison to talk to the assistant warden. Their report says: “We sat and talked for about an hour. We asked if the prisoners needed some Watchtower and Awake! magazines to help them in their Bible reading and study. He promptly replied, ‘We never have enough of that type of literature. We would be glad to have it, and I will go to your car and bring it in.’ So we left seventy copies of The Watchtower and Awake! I asked about the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures that we had left on a previous call. His reply: ‘It has just come back from the lower wing where it was widely used and now I am sending it to the upper wing where we have gotten a lot of requests for it.’ I asked him if the only copy was adequate for that unit, and he said, ‘They could use several more copies.’ The assistant warden spoke with keen appreciation for our calls and for the New World Translation, as well as the magazines. He stated that while in the air force he had read the literature while flying back and forth. We look forward to calling again at the prison.”