Babylon The Great

But that’s shallow as hell. If we look with clear eyes, like you're suggesting, the real dragons today are not random women in miniskirts — they are:

• Tyranny (authoritarian regimes, corporate dictatorships)
• Warmongers (governments and corporations profiting from endless wars)
• Prostitution (not the survival sex trade, but societal prostitution: selling out ethics for profit and power)
• Politics (the constant trading of truth for power
• Sickness (manufactured or neglected plagues — physical, mental, social)
• Starvation (manufactured scarcity in a world of plenty)
• And something sinister — the spiritual rot of humanity’s soul through apathy, greed, and blind allegiance.

In this entire frame, the Whore of Babylon is not a person — she's the spirit of corrupted systems, feeding on human suffering while wearing the gloss of glamour and success. The gendered demonization in religious texts is not just unfair, it's systemic. The figure of Babylon the Great, Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth wasn’t some random metaphor — it was a carefully chosen scapegoat, and yep, it was turned into a woman on purpose.

Babylon the Great: The Divine Fall Guy with Boobs -
Why did the biblical authors — particularly whoever wrote Revelation — pin the sins of the world on a woman? Because demonizing the feminine has always been the easiest tool in the patriarchal playbook. Let’s start with facts:

• The Mother of Harlots is blamed for corruption, idolatry, abominations, bloodshed, and drinking the blood of saints like it’s her happy hour.

• She’s clothed in scarlet and purple (royalty and sin), decked with gold and jewels (greed), and riding the beast with seven heads and ten horns (global power).

• She’s not just bad — she’s THE SOURCE of all global corruption. The ultimate scapegoat.

And yet... Who runs empires? Who starts wars? Who builds oppressive systems? Who colonizes, conquers, enslaves, and destroys in the name of profit, power, or some god? Not a legion of harlots. Men. Historically, endlessly, men.

The biblical authors couldn’t very well say "Rome is the whorish, power-hungry monster," not outright — they’d be executed. So, they used poetic metaphor. But they didn’t just pick any metaphor — they picked a woman. Why? Because the female figure, already demonized since Eve, was ripe for projection.

The Whore of Babylon isn’t evil because she does evil. She’s evil because she symbolizes desire, control, temptation, luxury — all things the church wanted people to fear. And who better to represent those “dangerous” traits than a powerful, seductive woman? It's a misogynist fever dream disguised as prophecy. So, what’s the real danger here? It’s the age-old tactic: Blame the woman for the sins of the world while men pull the strings, push the wars, and rewrite history as scripture.

• “Scripture or Scapegoat?” – breaking down the symbolic language.

• “The Mother of Harlots vs. the Fathers of War” – comparing who gets blamed vs. who acts.

• “What Babylon Really Represents” – my take on tyranny, systems, and modern sin.

• “From Revelation to Reality” – how this metaphor still poisons society’s view of women today.

The "Whore of Babylon" is one of the most infamous figures in religious symbolism, mainly stemming from the Book of Revelation (Revelation 17). Babylon wasn't just a city; it was the symbol of humanity’s ultimate betrayal: decadence, corruption, tyranny, and self-worship at their peak. Yes, the city also translates as a symbol, but it's the harlot upon the dragon that's the real concern. Ok, I'll indulge the metaphors for the sake of argument. . .

Originally, the Whore represented Rome — the oppressive empire crushing early Christians, choking them under luxurious structures, false religion, and insatiable bloodlust. John of Patmos wasn’t just writing wild visions; he was throwing shade. He was calling out the “powers that be” without getting himself executed — using coded language to convey self-righteous, prophetic outrage. Smart, for the times, yes but cowardly as well.

Fast forward to now, and what do we have? The "Whore of Babylon" has been twisted into an easy, tired trope: the seductive woman trope. It's been reduced to slut-shaming, gender-targeting, and purity politics — blaming women for society's moral decay instead of examining systems of evil. Classic misdirection. If you go deeper — if you rip off the sanitized Christian bookstore sticker and look with real eyes — the Whore is not about a woman at all. She's civilization gone rotten. She is what happens when humanity worships money, violence, and power more than life itself. Did you think it was an entity like the many illustrations that ALWAYS show a woman on a dragon? I guess I can see where you'd get that idea. Being that that's what's always shown... But, no. lol

Metaphorically, the dragons could represent:

• Tyranny: Governments that treat citizens like livestock.
• Warmongers: The perpetual war machines who profit off of blood.
• Greed: The over consumption of all from food to riches.
• Prostitution: Sex work and the selling of anything sacred for profit.
• Politics: The theater of betrayal and lies.
• Sickness: Plagues and diseases and spiritual rot.
• Starvation: Manufactured scarcity while kings feast.

And that "something else sinister"? I would call it spiritual bankruptcy — humanity so addicted to self-interest that it kills its own future.

So how is the Whore of Babylon interpreted now? In fundamentalist Christian circles, she's still seen as a literal future "bad woman" or an evil world system (often conflated with Catholicism, or the UN, or whatever they’re scared of that week). In pop culture, she’s turned into sexy villains — think Madonna at the VMAs or any femme fatale in a red dress. In serious theological circles, she's the metaphor for corrupt empires, decadent economies, and hollow religion.

But hardly anyone wants to admit: She is us. We are Babylon when we feed the beast, when we trade souls for stock prices, when we worship celebrity, violence, and greed more than wisdom, love, or truth.

Originally, she wasn’t just some demonized "loose woman" — she was a full-blown political and spiritual allegory. In her earliest context, Babylon was code for Rome, the ruling empire at the time, decadent and oppressive. Christians, oppressed under Roman rule, weren’t just mad at a city; they were condemning a system. The Whore represented corrupt power, moral decay, and oppression. Her sitting on many waters? The domination of many peoples. Her fornications? The corrupt bargains and alliances with kings, rulers, and merchants. Her cup full of abominations? Political and spiritual poison. In short: She was the embodiment of imperial tyranny.

Today's interpretations have gotten weird. Many mainstream evangelical Christians have boiled the Whore down to sexual immorality alone — as if sluttiness, not global oppression, was the world’s ultimate evil. Modern popular culture sometimes half-remembers her, turning her into a symbol of general "evil womanhood" — a femme fatale, a seductress. Think: conspiratorial "New World Order" types, or hyper-religious televangelists calling feminism, liberalism, or even social progress "Babylonian."

Let's talk receipts. In Revelation 17, the Mother of Harlots, Babylon The Great aka The Whore of Babylon is dragged through the divine mud. She’s blamed for every foul thing — idolatry, corruption, spiritual filth, mass bloodshed. She’s sitting on a beast, drunk off the blood of saints, and wearing luxury like sin is her fashion line. She’s the one we’re supposed to fear, loathe, and ultimately cheer for when she’s supposedly destroyed. But hold up — what did she actually do?

She’s described as riding the beast — not commanding it. She’s adorned in wealth — but not the one waging war. She’s symbolic of seduction, not domination. Her “sins” are about allure, excess, influence. Meanwhile, who’s building empires, invading nations, enslaving people, hoarding resources, silencing dissent? Men. Kings. Emperors. Prophets. Priests. Politicians. War generals.

The Bible calls her “Mother of Harlots,” as if birthing harlots is a greater evil than birthing conquest. But there’s no title for the Fathers of War. No shame script for the men who used religion, politics, and brute force to gain and maintain power. They don't get metaphorical beasts or scarlet letters. They get chapters, lineages, and blessings. The same holy book that damns the Whore turns around and praises patriarchs who slaughter entire populations in the name of divine destiny.

So, let’s get brutally honest:

• She’s the whore for indulging in luxury. They’re righteous for pillaging entire cities.

• She’s drunk on the blood of saints. They’re anointed for waging “holy” war.

• She’s punished for influence. They’re glorified for domination.

A woman in power is a threat. A man in power is a leader. A woman who influences is manipulative. A man who manipulates is a genius strategist. A woman who enjoys pleasure is a harlot. A man who exploits people for profit is a businessman. The Whore of Babylon is not the villain, per se. She’s only the distraction. The scapegoat. There is no real reason why the apostles didn't see it fitting to have made it a man instead. 75% of their biblical involvement is depicted as the great passers of extreme tests on their morality.... the Moseses and the Noahs; the whole story of Job? C'mon- they're all revered and linked to positive storylines. What do we have? The Virgin Mary being sanctified and good because -what- she birthed Jesus? That was her biggest accomplishment?! Anywho, they could have just left it as the 'Antichrist rising from the sea' and take it from there, but noooooooo they have to throw another one of us under the bus. They just had to villainize yet another woman. Because, hey, why not? Fuck it.

The real architects of abomination? They wore crowns. Held swords. Signed treaties. Drafted laws. Sitting on thrones and in boardrooms.

And they still do.

A Straightforward Understanding of "Babylon the Great"

Key Characteristics:

1. Rebellion: "Babylon the Great" embodies humanity's collective rebellion against God. It's not a specific city but a representation of any system or society that promotes values contrary to God's teachings.

2. Corruption: Being called the "mother of prostitutes" suggests that this entity has given rise to numerous other corrupt systems throughout history, influencing societies to adopt practices that are detestable to God.

3. Influence: Though not a physical city, "Babylon the Great" exists in a spiritual realm, exerting influence over earthly realms by promoting idolatry, immorality, and opposition to God's will.
   
   

Today, "Babylon the Great" is seen as any societal system or cultural influence that encourages people to turn away from God, placing trust in human institutions or indulging in moral compromises. It's a caution against aligning with values and practices that are contrary to spiritual integrity.

In essence, "Babylon the Great" serves as a metaphor for the pervasive and enduring nature of systems that supposedly leads people away from divine truth. As to the reason why it's depicted as a woman, prostitute, harlot, etc., only lies within the penholders hand. And that would be the apostle John, whom can be attributed to writing Revelations 17. Thanks, buddy!

By: Jonathan Guthmann

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Cite: The Identity of Babylon the Great in the Book of Revelation – BiblicalCulture
OFFICIAL KING JAMES BIBLE ONLINE: AUTHORIZED KING JAMES VERSION (KJV)