May 25, 2008

Revelation 19.1-5

After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in Heaven, crying, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for His judgments are true and just; He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the Earth with her fornication, and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants."

Once more they cried, "Hallelujah! The smoke from her burning goes up for ever and ever."

And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshipped God who is seated on the Throne, saying "Amen, Hallelujah!"

And from the Throne came a voice crying, "Praise our God, all you His servants, you who fear Him, small and great!"

May 14, 2008

Lamentation

This is the nation possessed by Coyote!

This is the nation that's gnawed off three legs
and is still in the trap and
wonders what trap you're talking about.

This is the nation that
took the loot to the drive-in
and spent it right away and
thinks that's an alibi.

This is the nation that insists
it didn't do it
and you can't prove a thing.

Alas, Babylon!
It's been fun!

May 08, 2008

And Now The Part We've All Been Waiting For

Revelation 18:

After this I saw another angel coming down from Heaven, having great authority; and the Earth was made bright with his splendor. And he called out in a mighty voice:

Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
It has become a dwelling place of demons,
a haunt of every foul spirit,
a haunt of every foul and hateful bird;
for all nations have drunk the wine of her impure passion
and the kings of the Earth have committed fornication with her,
and the merchants of the Earth have grown rich with the wealth of her wantonness.

Then I heard another voice from Heaven, saying:

Come out of her, my people,
lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
for her sins are heaped up high as Heaven
and God has remembered her iniquities.
Render to her as she herself has rendered,
and repay her double for her deeds;
mix a double draught for her in the cup she mixed.
As she glorified herself and played the wanton,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning.
Since in her heart she says, 'A Queen I sit!
I am no widow; mourning I shall never see!'
so shall her plagues come in a single day--
pestilence and mourning and famine--
and she shall be burned with fire,
for mighty is the Lord God
who judges her.

And the kings of the Earth, who committed fornication and were wanton with her, will weep and wail over her when they see the smoke of her burning. They will stand far off, in fear of her torment, and say:

Alas! Alas! thou great city,
thou mighty city, Babylon!
In one hour has thy judgement come.

And the merchants of the Earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo any more, cargo of gold, silver, jewels and pearls, fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet, all kinds of scented wood, all articles of ivory, all articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses, and chariots, and slaves--that is, human souls!

The fruit for which thy soul longed
has gone from thee, and all thy dainties and thy splendor
are lost to thee, never to be found again!

The merchants of these wares, who gained wealth from her, will stand far off, in fear of her torment, weeping and mourning aloud:

Alas, alas, for the great city
that was clothed in fine linen,
in purple and scarlet,
bedecked with gold, with jewels and with pearls!
In one hour all this wealth has been laid waste!

And all shipmasters and seafaring men, sailors and all whose trade is on the sea, stood far off and cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning: "What city was like the great city!?"

And they threw dust on their heads as they wept and mourned, crying out:

Alas, alas for the great city
where all who had ships at sea
grew rich by her wealth!
In one hour she has been laid waste!
Rejoice over her, o Heaven,
o saints and apostles and prophets
for God has given judgment for you
against her!

Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and threw it down into the sea, saying:

So shall Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence
and shall be found no more;
and the sound of harpers and minstrels,
of flute players and trumpeters
shall be heard in thee no more;
and a craftsman of any craft
be found in thee no more;
and the voice of bridegroom and bride
shall be heard in thee no more;
for thy merchants were the great men of the Earth;
and all nations were deceived by thy sorcery.

And in her was found
the blood of prophets and saints
and of all who have been slain on Earth.

May 06, 2008

Revelation 17.15->

And he said to me, "The waters that you saw, where the harlot is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues. And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the harlot; they will make her desolate and devour her flesh and burn her to ashes, for God has put it into their hearts to carry out His purpose by making common cause and giving over their royal power to the beast, until all the words of God shall be fulfilled. And tthe woman that you see is the great city which has dominion over the kings of the Earth."