Revelation Chapter 17

VERSE 9 “Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits.”

HERE IS THE MIND WHICH HAS WISDOM: The angel now invites the saints to reason.

He DOES NOT explain to us the meaning of the following verses. He merely LISTS SYMBOLIC EQUIVALENTS. This was very much the thrust of Brother Russell’s work in regard to Revelation. He constantly reasoned with us on the symbols but stated clearly that “someone else” would have to write the “seventh volume” (the explanation of Revelation.) He thus indicated to us that we have the tools. We must apply them.

THE SEVEN HEADS: The successive forms of umbrella government over the beast historically.

ARE SEVEN MOUNTAINS: All seven forms were empires (kingdoms) this is the first of TWO EQUIVALENTS.

Heads = Mountains. (Later, Mountains = Kings or Heads = Kings is added to the equation.)

These 3 words are very important. They are the FIRST lesson in correct interpretation. If we have tried to NAME the heads and we have come up with a conclusion in which not all are kingdoms or empires, this phrase is telling us we are wrong.

Thus, if we have guessed that Papacy is a head, we are wrong because Papacy is not a Mountain. Rome, of course, is known as the city on seven hills. All seven of these empires are remnants of Rome.

ON WHICH THE WOMAN SITS: This is no passing phrase of minor import. It is placed here to further the understanding of the previous phrase. Not only must we identify each head as an empire (mountain), but whichever empires we choose, the Roman Catholic Church must have “ridden” (sat upon) them. The harlot DID sit upon (control the direction of to some extent) all of these heads. She will NOT do so on the coming “eighth” arrangement. It, therefore, cannot be called a head upon which she sits. So, a CHANGE IN SYMBOL IS REQUIRED; and the VERY NEXT phrase makes that change. It gives us our second EQUIVALENT to the heads:

VERSE 10 “There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time.”

AND THEY ARE SEVEN KINGS: The switch is accomplished. The heads are now called kings so that an EIGHTH can arise without being thought of as a new head. Kings here, of course, are not individuals, but kingdoms — although in most cases a strong individual (Justinian, Charlemagne, Otto the Great, etc.,) can be equated with the founding of these empires.

FIVE HAVE FALLEN: (All of these reckonings are from the standpoint of the days of the seventh angel. A correct interpretation of this chapter is impossible without realizing and accepting his part in this narrative.) The fifth of these heads, mountains, or kings was the Napoleonic Empire. It was now gone.

ONE IS: The Victor Emanuel Dynasty was functioning at the time of the seventh angel — the sixth head, mountain, or king.

THE OTHER HAS NOT YET COME: — the Nazi-Fascist Empire.

AND WHEN HE COMES: — after the angel’s “change” (After Pastor Russell died and passed beyond the Vail in 1916)

HE (the seventh head or king, the Nazi-Fascist Empire) MUST REMAIN A LITTLE WHILE: — late 1920’s to 1945.

VERSE 11 “The beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition.”

AND THE BEAST WHICH WAS AND IS NOT: — that peculiar aberration in the beast’s history: the uprising of the body of the beast to form the French Republic and thus destroy 1/10th of the city.

IS HIMSELF ALSO AN EIGHTH: — NOT an eighth head, but an eighth KING. This (partial) beast WILL RULE (therefore as a king), but not as a head — not with the harlot riding it as she is said to have done on all the former heads.

There ARE NOT eight heads on the beast — ONLY SEVEN!

AND IS OF THE SEVEN: — is to be found in the history of the seven “legitimate” heads, but IS NOT ONE of the seven heads. The wording would then be “and is one of the seven” if this were true. However, this is not the case.

The angel is trying very hard to make clear that this eighth “thing” is not a reappearance of one of the old heads. Had that been the thought, he would merely have said, “one of the seven will come back to rule again.” The AWKWARD wording (that is to us) is the angel’s specific attempt to lead us away from that wrong conclusion.

AND HE GOES TO DESTRUCTION: This eighth king (the reigning body of the beast — another French Revolution-type government) does not have a good prognosis! His rule will be a disaster. He will be destroyed. There will NEVER AGAIN (after this) be an uprising of the people. Hallelujah!!!!! (N.A.N.O.R. Pages 136-138)

We continue with Verse 12 in our next post.