Daily Discovery 3rd October 2020 Devotional – It’s Payback Time
TOPIC: IT’S PAYBACK TIME!
Opening Prayer: Thank You, God, that You will bring justice.
Read Revelation 18:1–24
Lament Over Fallen Babylon
18 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted:
“‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’[a] She has become a dwelling for demons
and a haunt for every impure spirit,
a haunt for every unclean bird,
a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal.
3 For all the nations have drunk
the maddening wine of her adulteries.
The kings of the earth committed adultery with her,
and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.”
Warning to Escape Babylon’s Judgment
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
“‘Come out of her, my people,’[b] so that you will not share in her sins,
so that you will not receive any of her plagues;
5 for her sins are piled up to heaven,
and God has remembered her crimes.
Daily Discovery 3rd October 2020 Devotional
6 Give back to her as she has given;
pay her back double for what she has done.
Pour her a double portion from her own cup.
7 Give her as much torment and grief
as the glory and luxury she gave herself.
In her heart she boasts,
‘I sit enthroned as queen.
I am not a widow;[c] I will never mourn.’
8 Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her:
death, mourning and famine.
She will be consumed by fire,
for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.
Threefold Woe Over Babylon’s Fall
9 “When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry:
“‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,
you mighty city of Babylon!
In one hour your doom has come!’
11 “The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes anymore— 12 cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; 13 cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and human beings sold as slaves.
14 “They will say, ‘The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your luxury and splendor have vanished, never to be recovered.’ 15 The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn 16 and cry out:
“‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,
dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet,
and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!
17 In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!’
“Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. 18 When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever a city like this great city?’ 19 They will throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning cry out:
“‘Woe! Woe to you, great city,
where all who had ships on the sea
became rich through her wealth!
In one hour she has been brought to ruin!’
20 “Rejoice over her, you heavens!
Rejoice, you people of God!
Rejoice, apostles and prophets!
For God has judged her
with the judgment she imposed on you.”
The Finality of Babylon’s Doom
21 Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said:
“With such violence
the great city of Babylon will be thrown down,
never to be found again.
22 The music of harpists and musicians, pipers and trumpeters,
will never be heard in you again.
No worker of any trade
will ever be found in you again.
The sound of a millstone
will never be heard in you again.
23 The light of a lamp
will never shine in you again.
The voice of bridegroom and bride
will never be heard in you again.
Your merchants were the world’s important people.
By your magic spell all the nations were led astray.
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people,
of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”
Footnotes
a Revelation 18:2 Isaiah 21:9
b Revelation 18:4 Jer. 51:45
c Revelation 18:7 See Isaiah 47:7,8.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect: Daily Discovery 3rd October 2020 Devotional
Take a look at 2 Thessalonians 1:3–12.
We all love to see the bad guys get their comeuppance. Praise God, there will be a final reckoning.
Part of the Bible’s teaching about justice is that it restores order. In order to do that, evil must be judged and destroyed – if there’s an element of punishment in God’s justice, it’s here. Sin is not normal, except statistically. It is the great aberration, the making bad of what God made good. We grow comfortable with it. God never has and never will.
The recompense prompts worship. The angels don’t exult sadistically in the torment of others; they worship because delivering final justice is one of God’s ways of inaugurating his new creation. He is creating a world rightly ordered under his perfect will, expressing his character, not his enemy’s. We’re reminded that the persecutions inflicted on the church are taken personally by God as an attack on him, an assault on the bride he loves.
And just in case we still have problems with the scene described here, those under God’s wrath here are those who have furiously refused to repent in chapter 16.
Apply
What issues do you see in the world around you in which you hope to see justice brought to the weak or marginalized?
Closing Prayer
Thank you, Lord, that all wrongs will one day be made right. Thank you, merciful Father, that Jesus carried all my sins on the cross.
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR
Isaiah 65, 66; Hebrews 13
Scripture Union Daily Discovery 3rd October 2020 Devotional – It’s Payback Time
