The bible says the United States (modern Babylon) will be nuked into complete and utter destruction, and it describes how people will look from afar at the smoke rising and marvel how such a great nation could come to ruin in such a sudden and horrifying way.
And then one of the seven messengers entrusted with the seven bowls came over to me.[3] Guide: Come, and I will show you the true nature and God’s judgment of the great whore[4] who is sitting on the many waters.[5] She has seduced all the kings[6] of the earth[7] into committing lewd, sexual acts[8]; and most earth dwellers have become intoxicated[9] with the wine of her harlotry.[10] Immediately I was in the Spirit, and the guide picked me up and carried me off. In the middle of a vast desert,[11] I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet-colored beast covered with blasphemous names.[12] The beast had seven heads and ten horns like the beast I had seen earlier rising out of the sea. The woman[13] was dressed in purple and scarlet fabrics; she shimmered with gold and jewels and pearls.
I looked closer and saw that her hand held a golden cup[14] brimming with abominations, bubbling over with the impurities of her sexual exploits. On her forehead was inscribed a name, a mystery[15]: “Babylon the great, the mother of whores and the abominations that defile the earth.” I looked and saw that the woman was drunk because she had gorged herself on the blood of the saints and the blood of those people who refused to deny Jesus even to save their own lives.[16] When I saw her, I was filled with wonder.
Guide: Why are you so amazed? I will reveal to you the mystery of this woman and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. The beast you saw was, and is not,[17] and is about to come up out of the abyss and go away into eternal destruction. And the earth dwellers, whose names have not been inscribed in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will be astonished when they see the beast because it was and is not and is to come. Here is the mind possessing wisdom: The seven heads signify the seven mountains[18] where the woman is seated.[19] They also stand for seven kings. Five have fallen, one is alive, and the last has not yet come to reign.[20] But when he does come, he will be allowed to reign only a short time.[21] Regarding the beast that was and is not, it is actually an eighth ruler[22] that springs from the seven and goes away into eternal destruction.[23] The ten horns you saw stand for ten kings who have not yet ascended to power, but they will be invested with royal authority for a single hour and will reign together with the beast.[24] These come together for one purpose and one purpose alone: to yield their power and authority to the beast. Together they will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will be victorious over them because He is the Lord over all lords and the King over all kings; and those who stand with Him are called, elect, and faithful.
(continuing to speak to me) The waters you saw, where the whore is seated, represent the peoples and multitudes, ethnicities and languages. The beast and the ten horns you saw will despise the whore[25]; they will make her a wasteland and strip her naked.[26] They will gorge themselves on her flesh and incinerate her with fire.[27] For God has placed in their hearts to do what He has purposed, that is, to become one in mind and to surrender their kingdoms over to the beast until the words of God accomplish their end. 18 And the woman you saw—she is the great city that rules over the kings[28] of the earth.[29]
Next I saw another messenger descending from heaven. I knew he possessed great authority because his glory illuminated the earth. Heavenly Messenger (with a powerful voice): Fallen, fallen, is Babylon[30] the great city![31]It has become a habitat for demons, A haunt for every kind of foul spirit, a prison for every sort of unclean and hateful bird. For all the nations have drunk deeply from the wine of the wrath of her immorality, And the kings of the earth have disgraced themselves by engaging in gross sexual acts with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown fat and rich, profiting off the power purchased with her luxury.
Then I heard another voice from heaven urge, “My people, get away from her—fast.[32] Make sure you do not get caught up in her sins. Put some distance between you so that you do not share in her plagues, for her sins are higher than the highest mountain. They reach far into the heavens, and God has not forgotten even one of her missteps.” Deal out to her what she has dealt out to others, and repay her double according to her deeds.[33] In the cup where she mixed her drink, mix her a double. Whatever glory she demanded and whatever luxury she lived, give back to her the same measure in torment and sorrow.
Secretly she says in her heart: “I rule as queen; I am not like a widow;[34]
I will never experience grief.”[35] Because of this arrogance, in a single day, plagues will overwhelm her. Her portion will be death and sorrow and famine, and she will be incinerated with fire, for mighty is the Lord God who exacts judgment on her. And the kings of the earth, who committed lewd, sexual acts and lived lavishly off of her, will weep and wail over their loss when they see the smoke from her burning body rise into the sky. They will stand at a distance, fearing they, too, might fall victim to her torment. They will moan,
Woe to you, our great city! Babylon, the most powerful city in the world. In a single hour, your day of judgment has come. And the merchants and the magnates of the earth weep and mourn over her demise because no one is buying their goods any longer:[36] warehouses remain full of gold, silver, jewels, and pearls; fine fabrics, purple, silk, and scarlet cloth; fragrant woods, items made of ivory, and items finely crafted out of expensive wood; bronze, iron, and marble; cinnamon, spices, incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine, olive oil, rich flour, and wheat; cattle, sheep, horses, chariots, and human cargo (the trafficked souls of humanity).[37]
Everything your heart desired has gone away; All the glitz and glitter are lost to you forever; you’ll never have them again! The sellers of these goods, who made a fine profit from her, will stand at a distance. Like the kings, they will fear her punishment might fall on them too. They will weep and mourn their loss. Woe to you, our great city, dressed in finest linens, in purple and scarlet fabrics, dazzling in gold and jewels and pearls. In a single hour, all this wealth is gone. And all the sea captains, all those who sail the seas, sailors, and those who make a living by the sea, stood at a distance. Strong men were reduced to tears as they gazed on the smoke that rose from her ruins. “Was there ever any city like her?” they asked. They threw dust in the air covering their heads. They wept bitterly and mourned their loss. Woe to you, our great city; all who had ships at sea became rich off your wealth! In a single hour, you have been utterly ruined.[38]
