Rev 17:2 With whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
The word fornication is written twice in this verse and is the subject of this sentence. It is the kings and inhabitants of the earth that are involved in fornication with this harlot, which represents the fallen churches worldwide. So what does the word fornication mean from a Biblical perspective?
What does fornication mean in the Bible?
In the Hebrew the word fornication is “taznuth”. In the Greek, the word fornication is “porneia,” and this is the Greek word were we get pornography from. Collins English Mini Dictionary sates that fornication means having sexual intercourse without being married. This applies to two persons having physical contract with one another. In addition fornication applies to a person who fornicates spiritually by worshipping another god who is not the creator God of the Bible.
We shall now do a short word study on the word “fornication.”
Ezek 16:15. (God to Jerusalem). But you trusted in your own beauty, played the harlot because of your fame, and poured out your fornication on everyone passing by who would have it. (Fornication in this text is referring to spiritual worship with other gods, but not with the God who is her spiritual husband).
Ezek 16:29. Moreover, you multiplied your acts of fornication as for as the land of the trader, Chaldea; and even then you were not satisfied.
2 Chron 21;11. (God to Libnah from Edom). Moreover, he made high places in the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication and led Judah astray.
Is 23:17. And it shall be, at the end of the 70 years, that the Lord will deal with Tyre. She will return to her hire, and commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth.
Ezek 16:26. You also committed fornication with the Egyptians, your own fleshly neighbors, and increased your acts of harlotry to provoke me to anger.
Math 5:32. But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual fornication, causes her to commit adultery – – -.
Math 15:19. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, and blasphemies. Verse 20. These things defile a man.
Math 19:9. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual fornication and marries another commits adultery.
Joh 8:41. (Jesus to the Pharisees verse 13). You do the deeds of your father. Then they said to him (Jesus). “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, God. (Fornication in this text is referring to a woman having sexual intercourse with a man who is not her husband).
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Celebrities who live together and fornicate according to the Bible
Acts 15:20. (The Jerusalem council about Christian Gentiles and Jews). We write to them to abstain from things polluted with idols, from sexual fornication, from things strangled and from blood.
Rom 1:29. (Gods wrath on the unrighteous). Verse 28. God gave them over to a debased mind – – -. Verse.29. being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness.
1 Cor 5:1. It is actually reported that there is sexual fornication among you, and such sexual fornication as is not even named among the Gentiles: that a man has his father’s wife!
1 Cor 6:13. Now the body is not for sexual immorality/fornication “porneia” but for the Lord – – -Verse 18. Flee sexual fornication. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual fornication sins against his own body. (Sexual intercourse with someone who is not you wife or husband).
1 Cor 7:2. Nevertheless, because of sexual fornication, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband.
2 Cor 12:21. I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication and lewdness, which they have practiced.
Gal 5:19. Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness.
Ephes 5:3. But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not be named among you, as if fitting for saints.
Colos 3:5. Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth, fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire and covetousness which is adultery.
1 Thess 4:3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from fornication.
Rev 2:20. (To the church Thyatira).Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce my servants to commit fornication and eat things sacrificed to idols. (Fornication is related to idol worship. Thyatira marks the period of church history during the Middle Ages when the papacy ruled the church. Jezebel was a great worshipper of Baal and foreign gods). Verse 21. And I gave her time to repent of her fornication (worshipping other gods), but she did not repent.
Rev 2:14. (To the church in Pergamos). But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and commit sexual fornication. Num 25:1.2-8 (Fornication her is related to literal act of intercourse with Moabite women and the worship of idols).
Rev 9:21. (Sixth trumpet). They did not repent of their murders or their sorceries, or their sexual fornication, or their thefts.
Rev 14:8. And another angel followed saying, “Babylon is fallen, fallen, that great city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. (Religious fornication e.g. worship of foreign gods and doctrines).
Rev 17:2. (Judgement of the harlot). With whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication. (Fornication is related to false teachings of the Bible and a false gods).
Rev 17:4. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones, and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and filthiness of her fornications. (Fornications are related to false teachings from the Bible and false gods).
Rev 18:3. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury. (Fornication is related to false Bible teachings and foreign gods).
Rev 19:2. For true and righteous are his judgments, because he has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and has avenged on her the blood of his servants shed by her. (Fornication is related to false Bible teachings and persecution of true believers in God).
1 Cor 5:9. I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexual fornicators. Verse 10. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexual fornicators of this world, or with covetousness of this world, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. Verse 11. But now, I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is a sexual fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner – not even to eat with such a person.
1 Cor 6:9. Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, no sodomites – – -, Verse 10, will inherit the kingdom of God.
Heb 12:16 lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.
Conclusion
Fornication means every kind of unlawful sexual intercourse both literally or spiritually. Jerusalem with its neighbors (spiritually). Jerusalem with the nation Chaldea (spiritually). Jerusalem and Judah worshipping gods in high places and mountains (spiritually). Tyre with the kingdoms of the world (spiritually). Jerusalem with the Egyptians (spiritually). Divorce a wife except for fornication (literally). Fornication out of the heart (literally). Jesus born of fornication (literally). Sexual fornication discussed at the Jerusalem council (both literal and spiritual). God´s wrath on fornicators (literally). A man fornicating with his father´s wife (literally). The sin of fornication with someone outside the marriage bond (literally). Due to fornication let couples be married (literally). The sin of fornication (literally). Uncleanness fornication (literally). Fornication is adultery (literally). Abstain from fornication (spiritually). Fornication and idol worship (spiritually). Murders and sexual fornication (literal). Fallen is Babylon who made nations drink her fornication (spiritually). Kings of the earth committed fornication with the harlot (spiritually). Harlot with a golden cup of fornications (spiritually). Wine of her fornications (spiritual false teachings). The fornication of worshipping foreign gods (spiritually). Do not eat with a brother who is a fornicator (literally). Fornicators will not inherit the kingdom of God (literally). Esau was a fornicator (spiritually).
What does, “the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication” mean?
Wine in the Hebrew is “yayin” and in the Greek is “oinos”. The word can mean alcoholic wine or fresh grape juice containing no alcohol. It depends on the context of the chapter one is reading. However, there is a symbolic interpretation and that is, it means “teachings” and this again is dependent in which context you are reading.
Psalm 60:3. You have made us drink the wine of confusion. Verse 1. O God, you have cast us off.
Prov 4:17. For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence. (In its context, verse 14 is referring to; do not enter the path of the wicked (teachings).
Mat 9:16.17. No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment; and the tear is made worse. Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.
Luk 5:36-39. This is the parable of the garments and the wine in new wineskins. Verse 39. And no one having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, “The old is better.” Reading this parable in its context with Luk 5:33.35 it is all about the contrast of Jesus teachings to his disciples and the disciples of John the Baptist and the Pharisees. Jesus comes with the new wine of teachings about the gospel in opposition to the old teachings of tradition from the Pharisees. This explanation also applies to Mat 9:16.17.
Rev 6:6. (Third seal: Black horse). And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius – and do not harm the oil and the wine.” (Symbolic of teachings of the gospel).
Rev 14:8. And another angel followed, saying, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she has made all nations drink of the wrath of her fornication. (Babylon is teaching false teachings on salvation leading to God´s wrath).
Rev 14:9.10. Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God – – -. (Wine is related to God´s wrath and judgments poured out on those who worship the beast).
Rev 16:19. (The seventh plague). And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. (Wine is related to God´s wrath and judgments).
Rev 17:2. Wine of her fornication of the harlot. (False teachings to false gods on salvation).
Rev 18:3. (Babylon). For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication – – -. (Refers to false teachings on salvation).
Rev 18:11.13. (Babylon). And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her, for no one buys their merchandise anymore. Verse 13. Of wine. (False religious teachings).
Rev 19:15. (Christ on a white horse in verse 11). Now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword that with it, he should strike the nations. And he himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and the wrath of the Almighty God. Winepress is related to God´s wrath and judgments upon the beast, false prophet and those who have the mark of the beast verses 19.21.).
Conclusion
The word wine translated symbolically is related to confusion and violence: teachings of the wicked. Old teachings of tradition. New teachings of the gospel. God’s wrath and judgments. False teachings of other gods. God’s punishment. False teachings on salvation. Worship of false gods. False religious teachings that do not agree with the Bible.
What does, “the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication” mean? It means that the harlot, which is the worldwide fallen Christian church, has made the inhabitants of the earth drunk or intoxicated, with her false religious teachings, that do not agree with the Bible. For example:
The priests of the fallen churches worldwide substitute the teachings of Gods sanctuary in the Bible for their own man made teachings, giving the priests power to forgive sins and controlling the presence of God in the Eucharist or bread and wine in the communion. The Bible says only God can forgive sins. Mark 2:7. Furthermore, there is no place in the Bible that states that Gods presence is in the bread and wine in the communion.
When Christ said to his disciples take eat this is my body, he was not saying that the bread was his actual body, otherwise he would be teaching cannibalism. Christ was just teaching that we should observe the communion as a symbol of his death and sacrifice on the cross. In 1 Cor 11:24.25. Christ says, “Take, eat, this is my body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
The communion includes the washing of the feet as an example of Jesus Christ´s humility here on earth. John 13:15. Jesus said, “For I have given you as an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Verse 17. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”
Furthermore, the majority of the churches in the world has nailed the Ten Commandments of God, to the cross. They do not teach that they should be obeyed anymore. However, there is no Biblical evidence for this.
In addition, the Sabbath day which is on a Saturday according the whole of the Bible has been changed to Sunday as a day of worship. Again, there is no Biblical evidence to support this false teaching.