Some time ago a brother directed our attention to a passage of Jeremiah which prophesied the destruction of Babylon, and suggested that it paralleled the 7 plagues, which are a seven-staged destruction of mystic Babylon during the Gospel Age Harvest. The prophecy is in the 50th chapter of Jeremiah. That chapter opens: “The word that the Lord spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.” After reciting the cause for Babylon’s doom, and exhorting his people to “remove out of the midst of Babylon …” (vs 8), Jeremiah breaks down the destruction of Babylon into 7 divisions. The first 5 of these are designated by the expression ‘A sword is upon …’

There is “A sword upon the Chaldeans … the inhabitants of Babylon, … A sword upon the chief stays [margin] … A sword upon her mighty men … A sword upon their horses and … chariots and … mingled people … A sword upon her treasures…” (vs. 35-37) Then follows “A drought upon her waters…” and finally utter desolation, “As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah …” (vs. 38-40)

Let us put this to the test, by comparing these 7 divisions of Babylon’s fall with the 7 plagues which bring down Mystic Babylon, recorded in Revelation 16. Working backwards, the 7th and 6th divisions compare readily. 5) The treasures aptly depict the heart of Great Babylon – the seat of the Papal beast itself. 4) Horses represent doctrines, and the sun pictures the basic doctrines of gospel truth. 3) The mighty men of Babylon are the teachers and leaders, the “rivers and fountains” who spew forth Babylon’s bloody teachings. 2) The chief stays [marginal rendering] perhaps refer to the political stays of the sea class. 1) The inhabitants of Babylon, nominal Christians, are the earth class of Revelation.

In each case, we find that the divisions in Jeremiah 50 closely parallel the divisions in Revelation 16. The same things are affected in each. We therefore conclude that in Jeremiah 50 we have a prophetic account of the 7 last plagues.

HOW DOES THIS HELP?

By having two passages to compare, it should be easier to determine what is to happen in the reality, in this harvest period, to fulfill the 7 plagues. Of course, one’s conclusions in this area would be affected by (and affect) the view one holds on the timing of the 7 last plagues. Our view (reasons not detailed here) is that the plagues commence with the fall of Babylon in 1878 and are sequential and cumulative to the destruction of Great Babylon in a future Armageddon. From this viewpoint the following suggestions seem reasonable.

1. The Truth message plagues the inhabitants of Christendom, nominal Christians who haven’t an ear to hear.
2. WWI disrupts the chief political stays of Babylon, and the sea class.
3. The teachings of Christendom are seen to be deathly, not life giving, as world events (like WWI) shatter hopes for a peaceful conversion of the world.
4. Modernism sweeps over the churches, corrupting doctrine to the core. But basic Gospel truths are a scorching rebuff to the modernist persuasion.
5. Papal crises within the church, foment and discontent within the clergy.
6. Evaporation of popular support from Christendom, leading to a coalition to fortify their waning strength.
7. Christendom’s Overthrow in Armageddon.

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