Is the Babylon of Revelation 14 the same as the Babylon of Revelation 18?

Many see the Babylon as mentioned in Revelation 14, 17, 18 & 19 as the same. The second link in that sentence actually contains a great DVD which has many scholars interviews on the subject such as

• Susanna Elm, D.Phil., UC Berkeley
• David Trim, Ph.D., Newbold College
• Obery Hendricks, Jr., Ph.D., New York Theological Seminary
• Radio & TV evangelist Doug Batchelor and others

These are scholars from various different denominations. Some of the reasons I see for connecting Babylon together throughout Revelation is...

• It would be nearly impossible to identify Babylon in Revelation 14 in just a few verses alone.
• Revelation 17 gives a great description of Babylon's religious background, Revelation 18 describes that this entity must also have commercial interests.
• Revelation 18-19 reveal the judgment that will fall on this entity for it's sins, and it makes a gracious call for those in this entity to come out of her (Revelation 18:4).
• The Bible does the same with the 144,000, they are mentioned briefly in Revelation 7, but Revelation 14 gives more detail. This is done many times throughout the Bible, for example in the opening chapter of Genesis it gives us an overview of creation, then in goes back and gives more detail etc.

Here are some brief Biblical identifying characteristics of Babylon in the book of Revelation....

• She is a persecuting power who has killed Christians for she is " drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus" (Revelation 17:6)
• She is referred to as a woman (Revelation 17:4), and a woman in Bible prophecy represents a church for it is written

"I have likened the daughter of Zion To a lovely and delicate woman." (Jeremiah 6:2)

and Christ the bridegroom is coming for His bride the church (Ephesians 5, John 3:29-30)

• She is referred to as a "great harlot" (Revelation 17:1) the meaning is given in Hosea 1:2 which says

  “Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry And children of harlotry, For the land has committed great harlotry By departing from the LORD.”

• She continues until the end of time on this earth for she receives her punishment during the seven last plagues (Revelation 18-19)

So we are looking for a church, that professes to be Christian, but has fallen away, that has persecuted and killed Christians. This church is still around today. Also we are given another clue which says

"And the woman whom you saw is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth" (Revelation 17:18)

During the time the book of Revelation was written, Rome was that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth. Thus we are looking for a Christian church in Rome, that continues till the end of time, that has fallen away from God, and has persecuted and martyred Christians. This can only be the Roman Catholic Church. Also the church of Rome is heavily involved in commercial enterprises fulfilling Revelation 18. In case someone thinks I am bashing Roman Catholics not so for it is written

"Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues." (Revelation 18:4)

Thus many of God's people are still in the Roman Catholic Church, but they must come out before the final crisis lest they share in her sins. It's also noted that Babylon has daughters (other churches) for she is referred to as a mother (Revelation 17:5). Thus she is the mother church but there are other churches that follow her that would also make up Babylon.

In the OT, Babylon was a nation that God judged for its idolatry and pride. The king of Babylon had proudly claimed to be like the Most High (Isa. 14:12-14). The reference of Lucifer was to the king of Babylon.

There are several definitions provided in Revelation that tell us which city Babylon was.

Rev. 11:8 defines the "great city" as where our Lord was crucified, and also call that same city by the names of two wicked people who were judged by God... Sodom and Egypt.

Our Lord was crucified in Jerusalem. All references throughout Revelation to "that great city" are the very same Jerusalem.

Therefore, in Rev. 14:8 "that great city" has already been identified as Jerusalem, but is given another appellation of another sinful people... that of Babylon. So, Jerusalem was referred to as "that great city", "Sodom", "Egypt", and "Babylon"; all of which signified a sinful people who did not walk with God.

The woman of Rev. 17:4-6 was riding the beast - that means she was controlling its direction - and had a name in her forehead:

"And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon The Great, The Mother Of Harlots And Abominations Of The Earth.

6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration." (KJV)

This same "Babylon" is the same city that had already been given that name in Chap. 14, and is here further described as a harlot. A harlot is a who*e who is paid for her services. This was a reference to the who*e Babylon of Ezek. c.23.

Ezek. 23:17-22,

" And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their who*edom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them.

18 So she discovered her who*edoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.

19 Yet she multiplied her who*edoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.

20 For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.

21 Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.

22 Therefore, O Aholibah, thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side;" (KJV)

Ezekiel identified Aholibah as Jerusalem in vs. 4 of chap. 23.

It was Jerusalem that had played the harlot, the fornicator, the adulteress with the pagan nations around her, and forsook her marriage with God.

Rome was never married to God, and never had a covenant with God to break.

The beast of the earth, the men who preyed upon the young, newly born church of Christ were the Sanhedrin, scribes and Pharisees who hunted down the Christians. They used the Roman governors (she was riding the sea beast with seven heads and ten horns) to carry out capital / death sentences against the Christians. Their base of operations was from Jerusalem, and therefore was filled with every unclean thing, every evil and was guilty of the blood of the servants of God.

I have some posts at my blog with much more scriptural evidence. See The Whore of Babylon, and The Beast of Revelation at ShreddingTheVeil. David Chilton's book Days of Vengeance is helpful. Kurt Simmons' web page has many articles and books available on this who*e of Babylon. See here.