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Conclusion. In light of the foregoing themes, which defined Babylon the Great,

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one must bear in mind that Rome dominated those under its sway, often with heavy hand.

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Trade was not free. Taxes were steep. Relationships were mired in the muck of subservience,

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backed by the sword. All of this was therefore obligatory, per terms and conditions established

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and instituted by Rome. Of those forced to bow to her will, the Goths and the Saxons figured

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prominently. None, regardless of nationality, would have cared, much less shed a tear,

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at her collapse and funeral. While, as has been shown, Rome is indeed the woman and the headquarters

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of the Great Whore, who has strong roots, therefore a connection and a spirit reminiscent of ancient

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Babylon, so that she too is called Babylon the Great, in the mind and plans of God, on the one

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hand, she does not to any degree fit the profile set forth here in chapter 18.

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As for the prospect that actual Babylon in Iraq might be rebuilt and brought to some future level

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of prominence to match that specified in this book, that is highly, highly unlikely if for no

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other reason than the hand and plans of the Almighty God who initiated and who supervised

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her downfall under the bows, the blows and the swords of the Medes and the Persians,

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see the sidebar, Babylon the Great, in discussion for verse 3.

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Whatever Iraq's potential, she lacks the essentials, shall we say, including the freedoms,

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among many other things perhaps, that allow for this type of globally recognizable aspect,

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reach and or this kind of a relatively peaceful coexistence with other nations, being dominated

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and controlled by Sunni Muslim, thus, prone to violence in its approach to international relations

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with other. Even if Iran takes over, as it most likely will at some point, most probably

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just before, or quite possibly following the fall of this Babylon the Great, so lofty a goal is at

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best hopelessly unattainable, Iran is controlled by Shiite Muslims, and, equally prone to violence

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and bloodshed to enforce its relations with others, on religious grounds. God will make certain of

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that. Thus, with so much on the table that accurately makes this and every other Bible

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prophecy an absolute reality, today, time and circumstance all come together, and the

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circumstance all come together, working hand in hand to preclude any such prospect, that Babylon

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will be rebuilt, see side bar above, Shiite Islamic rule, page 36. So then, Rome, Vatican City and

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Babylon, Iraq having been weeded out, who is this Babylon the Great? Who can she be if not the

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United States of America? Given that there are, for sure, metaphorically, at least two end times

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Babylon's alluded to in the Revelation, in four places, 14-8, 16-19, 17, 3-6, 18, 18, 1-20,

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might there not also be a third one known only to the mind of Almighty God, one that did not and

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could never have existed prior to our day? One that, given the circumstances, we need not look

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for, beyond this date? Rehash. By way of rehash, a number of things about this particular Babylon,

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18, 1-19, stand out and are therefore worthy of repetition.. This city and her people are

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an entirely end times entity. That is, she does not exist until the last days, or, our time.

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Given that this is an end times institution, having no discernible, physical or historical

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ties to the distant past, it is highly unlikely as but that this, city, is to be interpreted

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metaphorically as a modern nation. There is no one city anywhere, past or present,

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which could ever meet the qualifications listed here. A nation, only one, can, no other kingdom,

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nation or, city-state in the history of mankind has ever fit the mold propounded by John the

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Revelator here in this eighteenth chapter. The ancients knew of nothing like her.. In terms of

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profile, nothing in the text surrounding this Babylon suggests any definite association with

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the great whore, a function or persona of the woman having multiple, split personalities,

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where she is distinctly religious on the one hand, Babylon the Great written on her forehead,

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and yet uniquely political on the other, that great city, per chapters 17 and 16-19. Thus,

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Babylon here, chapter 18, is not a primarily religious institution as is the Vatican nor

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does modern-day Rome have the standing on the world stage, in the eyes of the world, that she does.

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There is nothing here in this profile of Babylon the Great to link her to the great whore of chapter

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17. She will go down, indirectly per the will of God, at a time when global economies are still

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relatively strong, in so far as, close association with her is beneficial and profitable, which means

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that her devastation will not be connected to that of the apocalyptic period, she will be betrayed by

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the political factions of her partners in trade, hers will be the first major devastating blow to

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the global economy, the second and third will come with World War III and with the ensuing, acts of

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God, respectively. Her utterly disastrous demise and ruin will spell the beginning of the end for

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all others, ushering in the Russian-led invasion of Palestine and the next global stab at a Holocaust

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that backfires, leading to the rise of the Jews, followed by the apocalypse itself, which contributes

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even more strongly to the notion that the fall of this Babylon will have to occur before, not during

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the tribulation period. Contrast this to the two apocalyptic Babylon's, one of which will be destroyed

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by an, act of God, during the Bull judgments, the city of Rome, per Revelation chapter 16 verse 9.

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The other, the great whore and mother of harlots, Vatican city, per Revelation chapter 17 verses 16

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to 17, destroyed completely by the beast and the ten nations, per the will of God, goaded into that

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action by his hand, before the Bull judgments, ending a relatively protracted period of economic

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upheaval created, instigated and left for them by God, as if to taunt them, they will exist

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harmoniously, and they, the beast and these nations, will preside jointly for only a short time,

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within the confines of probably not more than a few months to one year. Her destruction will have

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catastrophic financial consequences all over the world, on all her allies and partners in trade,

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this would suggest that while the effects in the seal judgments might have many man-made causes,

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the root cause may ultimately be traceable and attributable primarily to the void left by this

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Babylon, that is, the Russo-Arab invasion, and the wars under the seals all commence by virtue of

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long-standing hostilities, as well as a mad-dash power grab to secure control of the Middle East,

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by wresting control of the Holy Land from the Jew as they seek to exterminate him.

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A compelling line of reasoning, when one considers that even in these relatively good hard times,

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the nations, jointly or individually, can only barely keep their heads above water,

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by contrast, both Rome and Vatican City, the woman, with such as will be of her, revived,

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beast or empire, and the great whore, will be left standing until the virtual bitter end before

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being destroyed, and yet their presences, individually or corporately, will have no

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significant impact on the global economy throughout the apocalypse, the global economies will long

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have been in shambles, with no relief, and, no potential for relief, by either of them,

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when each is finally destroyed. Politically, it is without doubt safe to say, the Pope and his

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Vatican will play a major role in events that ultimately lead to the coming of the beast.

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With the world economy irreversibly upturned since the seal and trumpet judgments,

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no one from World War III, Revelation chapter 6, to the end at the Battle of Armageddon,

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not even the rich, will be able to afford her products and services, etc. All of the judgments

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will be tailored in part to create a globe-spanning economic and political quagmire, there will be

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little time, occasion, or demand for the pleasures and frivolous pursuits she makes possible by her

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presence, once the apocalyptic narrative shifts into full swing. Furthermore, by the time of

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Revelation chapter 16 verse 19, the destruction of Italy and Rome, the woman divorced from her

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religious aspect, i.e., the great whore, there will be no nation, or, city, that can live up to

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and fit the particulars that pertain to her, the great whore, the religious aspect of the woman on

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the beast with ten heads, being the Vatican, seat of the Roman Catholic Church will have been

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destroyed earlier in the reign of the beast, by a coalition led by the beast and his ten-nation

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confederacy. Babylon the Great will have been a major player in the international trafficking

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of drugs, or narcotics, see side bar above, Uncle Sam's Poppy Farms, page 32. Since no economy will

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ever fully recover from the seal and trumpet judgments, neither Rome nor the Vatican city

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will ever be able to undo what God has done, for the benefit of surviving men and women up to this

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point, and hence, with a view to saving souls, that seems to be the point of this mess that God

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plans to and will have implemented. What this means then, is that the beast will inherit,

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and he will preside over a global empire in shambles, in every way imaginable, but particularly

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politically and economically. Like his predecessors, and, like a Humpty Dumpty whom God handed an

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inheritance consisting of a broken egg, he'll never be able to pull it back together. He will

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not be given time to build or rebuild much of anything of any real significance, much less

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rebuild Babylon of Iraq so as to bring it to that level of fruition and prominence depicted here

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in Rev. 18. With only 3.5 years left to the end of the world, he simply will not have the time.

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It might be said of the language employed by God in his description and analysis of Babylon the

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Great, that it is both toxic and vitriolic, venomous even, as this is a people whom he has

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known from their beginning, a people who have never met with his favor, although it was expected

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that they should have had, or, might have had some form of relationship with him. Of this we may rest

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fully assured, as was true of Pharaoh and later of the, real, Babylonians, as was, or will be true

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of Gog and Magog, the Russians, and of the other Babylon, that metaphorical composite of Rome and

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Vatican City. So, in similar fashion, it is true here that this is a people for whom the Almighty

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can think no good thought. He harbors no emotion for them greater than a deep-seated loathing of

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their very being. The message in his tone, and the sudden, catastrophic toppling of this great city

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is, I am sick of looking at you. The sooner I can clear the deck of you, the merrier. Thus, for them

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having been weighed in the balances and found to be perpetually wanting the handwriting is on the

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walls. Nonetheless, for all this, no doubt the question persists still in the minds of some,

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who precisely are these people? Interestingly, there is no expectation, not even a whimper of

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a demand for increased evangelistic activity on the part of the saints known to be among the

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Babylonians, not one expression of concern that some among the unsaved might be brought to a

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saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus, by her effort, contrast this to the work of the 144,000 and their

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angelic assist, each of whom will preach and issue stern warnings all over the planet to a world of

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unbelievers, who live for a short while under the exclusive dominion of the Spirit of Antichrist,

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at their appointed time during the apocalyptic period. There is no interest on high in seeing

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them bring the nation back to any supposed Christian roots or heritage, though it appears

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she will be recognized for having been highly religious, practicing her facade under a

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Christian banner, in the name of God Almighty. The only concern is that, the true saints should

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be wary and diligent to distinguish themselves according to the word of God, so that she knows,

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and she is fully aware of their commitment, as opposed to her philosophy, her ideology,

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or her religious bent, for fear they too will be caught up in her judgment and punishment.

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That judgment will fall upon her, and upon her every adherent, unabated and without mercy,

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including inattentive saints who having ventured so close as to copy her ways that they will fail

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to heed God's warning. So again, in closing, in light of every particular laid out thus far then,

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who among the cities, nations in these end times days best fills the bill ascribed to Babylon the

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Great, then does the United States of America? The answer of course is no one. America is not

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mentioned anywhere in the Bible, by name. But she is most definitely alluded to, based upon the

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quality of her international social, political, and economic ties and, on her spiritual climate,

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as she is known and valued in the eyes of God blessed beyond measure, yet the object of his

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sore disdain. The reason? Unto whom much is given, much is expected. Like Nimrod, being a rebel at

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heart, she has known God from the beginning, but, like the churches of Ephesus, Sardis, and Laodicea,

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she has served him only on her terms. The image of him, conveyed around the world by her churches,

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has been and is both defamatory and blasphemous. Given the glare of her opulence, in light of her

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standing in international circles, the world cannot hear God's voice over hers expressed in

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sectarian, denominational doctrines, systematic theological studies, and so-called Christian

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worldviews whitewashed historical studies. Thus, the ROI he seeks has always been and will

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remain until she is gone sub par. For a fuller, more thorough consideration of this and related

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issues including how so great, so powerful and so dispersed a people can be completely destroyed

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in only one hour, please consider carefully America in Bible Prophecy. Babylon the Great

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and America in Bible Prophecy. The Achilles Heel. Each by this author. Each discussion follows and

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so is included in this work. One might add.