Apocalypse Chapter 3: Day of Judgment upon Rome/Babylon?

The Prophet Daniel. From Wikipedia.

Introduction:

In this chapter, I consider John’s reflections on his Roman-dominated time, which were produced while he pondered certain aspects of Daniel’s prophecies (from Chs. 7, 9 and 12). Specifically, I want to focus on Daniel’s prophesies that John would have seen as partially fulfilled–and, more importantly to John, those that were yet to be fulfilled. One can readily infer that John anticipated the eventual destruction of Rome, which he called the “Harlot Babylon;” in this, he was reflecting upon Daniel 7:11, which said this “beast of iron” would be burned with fire, and upon Daniel 9: 26, where the Old Testament prophet predicted: “Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war.”

John’s Revelation – better known to some as The Apocalypse – contains an underlying unity of themes, as described above, centred on calamities that could befall a city such as Rome, which was at the center of civilization in his time. In 12:12, the Third Woe is announced as the devil coming down to earth with “great wrath;” this is further elaborated in Chapter 16 as the release of the “bowls of wrath”: pollutions of nature like Moses’ plagues in ancient times. Such events could give rise to the fall of the Harlot’s city, whether by fire, flood or earthquake, all of which are depicted in Chapters 17-18. In this first stage of the calamitous events imperiling the great world-city, there is still time for things to change, as implied by the voice out of heaven which commands, “Come out of her, my people, so that you do not take part in her sins, and so that you do not share in her plagues” (Rev. 18:4).