In the Bible there are two lines that run parallel to each other: the line of Babylon and the line of Jerusalem. In Genesis 11 we have Babel. The Greek word Babylon is the equivalent of the Hebrew word Babel. Babylon begins in Genesis 11 and runs throughout the whole Bible until it reaches its consummation in Revelation 17 and 18. In Revelation 18 Babylon is destroyed. In the Old Testament we have Jerusalem, and in the New Testament we have the New Jerusalem. Babylon and Jerusalem are opposed to each other. If you have Babylon, you do not have Jerusalem, and if you have Jerusalem, you do not have Babylon. Eventually, Babylon will be destroyed, and the New Jerusalem will be completely built up.
The Bible says a great deal about Babylon. Speaking of Babylon, Revelation 18:4 says, “Come out of her, My people, that you may not participate in her sins, and that you may not receive of her plagues.” This strong call is related to us, for today God is calling us out of Babylon. This is a serious matter. In order to understand God’s call to come out of Babylon, we must know what Babylon is.
Many Christians are in Babylon and do not even realize it. They simply do not know that Babylon is here and that they are in it. Hence, I am burdened that we might be clear about Babylon. In the Bible Babylon has a double significance. The first significance of Babylon is that it is related to division which causes confusion. In the first mention of Babylon (Gen. 11), we see that Babel caused division and that out of this division came confusion. God created mankind as a corporate people to fulfill His purpose. Originally the people were one for God’s purpose, and there was neither division nor confusion. Then Babel appeared, and it divided the people of God. Hence, there were divisions, and these divisions caused confusion. Since the time of Babel, the people created by God for the fulfillment of His purpose have been divided and are in a state of confusion.
The church is also a corporate people called and redeemed by God for His purpose. On the day of Pentecost the church was one. However, the church has been divided again and again, and these divisions have caused confusion. This is the situation of Christianity today. Christianity is full of divisions that result in confusion. Recently I was told that in the city of Dallas, Texas, there are more than two thousand different so-called churches. What division and confusion! This is Babylon. Some of those in the divisions have tried to argue with us, saying, “Why do you say that we are Babylon? We are not Babylon; neither are we in Babylon.” Whether they realize it or not, they are in Babylon. Unconsciously, they are in Babylon.
Let us use the illustration of eating garlic. Suppose all the people in a certain room are eating garlic. The more garlic they eat, the less sensitive they are to the odor of garlic. However, if someone who has not been eating garlic and who is accustomed to fresh air comes into the room, he will immediately detect the odor of garlic. However, if he would tell those in the garlic room that they are reeking with the odor of garlic, they would deny it, because they all have been drugged by the garlic they have eaten and are no longer sensitive to its odor. In like manner, since the fourth century, Christianity has been drugged with Babylonianism. From that time onward, Christianity has been addicted to the Babylonian drugs. Who can deny that today’s situation is full of divisions? But there were no divisions on the day of Pentecost. Instead, there was only Christ, the Spirit, and life. There was no Baptist church, Episcopalian church, or Lutheran church. There was no Christmas, Santa Claus, or Christmas stockings. On the day of Pentecost, the atmosphere was pure, and the air was fresh. But from the time of Constantine the Great, who brought “garlic” into Christianity, paganism began to creep in.
Although I was born in Christianity, as a child I occasionally visited the Buddhist idol temples in China. In one of these temples I saw a picture of a woman with a small child. Later, I saw the same picture in a Catholic cathedral. The Catholics say that this woman is the holy mother and that the child is Jesus. But the Buddhists say that this lady is a divine woman who comes with a child for a barren woman. According to Buddhist tradition, a woman who is unable to bear children should stand before that picture, burn incense, and pray to the woman in the picture. Supposedly, the woman in the picture will later come with a child for the barren woman. When I saw the same picture in a Catholic cathedral that I had seen in a Buddhist temple, I was troubled. Years later, I read the book entitled The Two Babylons. The writer of this book traced the origin of this picture to Nimrod. Originally, the child in the picture was Nimrod, and the woman was both Nimrod’s mother and his wife. How terrible! After Nimrod originated this picture, it was spread to China, India, Japan, and Egypt. This Babylonian picture was taken in by the Roman Catholic Church, which claims that it is a picture of the holy mother and the holy child Jesus. What a devilish, satanic, demonic mixture! Christianity has become Babylonian; today it is full of divisions and confusion.