Was Babylon the Great Jerusalem or Rome?

This article summarizes the perspective presented in Into the Winepress: A Concise Companion to the Book of Revelation by Michael R. Abram. The book approaches Revelation through the victory of the Lamb, the fall of Jerusalem, the reign of Christ, and the ongoing mission of the Church.

Few questions in Revelation generate more discussion than the identity of Babylon the Great. Many readers identify Babylon with Rome because Rome ruled the world when Revelation was written. Into the Winepress argues that the woman is Jerusalem, portrayed through a satirical and prophetic lens as a harlot who has allied herself with Roman power.

John's vision draws heavily upon the language of Israel's prophets. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Hosea repeatedly describe Jerusalem as an unfaithful bride who became a prostitute. The charge is not merely political corruption but covenantal adultery. God's own city has abandoned her Husband and given herself to other lovers.

This prophetic tradition reaches its climax in Revelation. The woman is adorned in splendor, yet she is a harlot. She claims glory, yet she is drunk with the blood of the saints. The imagery is intentionally shocking because it portrays Jerusalem as the very thing she believed the pagan nations to be.

The relationship between the woman and the beast is crucial. The woman is not the beast. She rides the beast. This suggests a distinction between Jerusalem and Rome. The beast represents imperial power. The woman represents the covenant city that has chosen to align herself with that power for her own purposes.

The identification of the beast with Rome becomes even clearer when John explains the symbolism of its seven heads. The seven heads are said to be seven mountains and also seven kings. This imagery points naturally to Rome, famous throughout the ancient world as the city built upon seven hills. The kings likewise belong to the beast, not the woman.

This distinction is important. The seven hills do not identify the woman as Rome. They identify the beast as Rome. The woman is seated upon the beast. She rides upon Roman power, benefits from Roman authority, and depends upon Rome for her position. John's vision therefore portrays a relationship between Jerusalem and Rome, not an identity between them.

The reference to the seven kings strengthens this interpretation. John writes, "Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come." On a common early-date reading, the sixth king is Nero. The sequence concerns Roman emperors and further identifies the beast as the Roman Empire. The kings belong to the beast because the beast represents Rome's political power.

John's satire is therefore sharp and devastating. Jerusalem, the city chosen to be faithful to her God, is portrayed as riding upon the Roman beast. She has joined herself to the very power she once despised. Yet the alliance proves fatal. The beast eventually turns upon the woman, fulfilling God's judgment and bringing about her destruction.

The picture is deeply satirical. Jerusalem, called to be faithful to her Messiah, is shown riding upon the very empire that will ultimately destroy her. She seeks security through Rome, benefits from Rome's authority, and participates in the persecution of Christ and His followers. Yet the beast she rides eventually turns against her and devours her.

This reading explains why Babylon bears characteristics associated with both Jerusalem and Rome. The woman is Jerusalem. The beast is Rome. Together they form an unholy alliance against the Lamb and His people.

The fall of Babylon therefore represents the judgment of apostate Jerusalem and the end of the old covenant order centered on the temple. The harlot city falls, and the Bride city appears. The contrast is deliberate. One woman is adorned for destruction. The other is adorned for marriage. One is drunk with blood. The other offers the water of life. One rides the beast. The other descends from God.

Revelation's great city is not merely replaced. It is transformed. The harlot gives way to the Bride. Babylon gives way to the New Jerusalem. The old order passes away, and the dwelling place of God is revealed in His people.