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Rev. 18:1,2: After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory. And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! And she has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird."
         This powerful and shining angel that comes down from heaven is the will of God which descends into the soul as soon as self-will is banished. The will of God in God is God. (Editor's reference "The Mystery of His Will" by Ray and Doris Prinzing. End of reference).
         This "will" descends in the soul in proportion as the self-will is banished. It flows into the higher part of the soul first; just as self-will is chased from the higher to the inferior part of the soul. God's will takes the superior place, and always follows after this darker will, forcing it to move down.
         What happens when it is fallen thus in the inferior part? It becomes the hold of every foul thing. Paul had felt this state when he said in Romans 7 that he felt in his members a law that resisted the law of his spirit. He had a will which wanted, and did, the right; and that was the will of God. He had another will that wanted, and did, evil; and that was this malignant will. The unclean birds are imagination and fantasies, and seem to dwell in them-- so great are the thoughts and ridiculous imaginations at work.
         We must notice that what happens in the individuals will happen in the Church. At the very end of self-will's reign, the children of the Church will be in a general corruption.

Rev. 18:3: "For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth
have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her
sensuality."
         All men are born with a sense of carnality, with a rebellious will. It is a poison that has penetrated the substance of the soul, and that can be cured only by its antidote which is self-denial and the transformation of the will to that of God. (Editor's note: Scripture states, "God has all men penned together in the prison of disobedience, that he may have mercy upon them all." Romans 11:32 - J. B. Phillips translation. End of note).
         All men, being born free (and therefore kings), have committed fornication with her because there is no one that has not been seduced by this self-will which caused everyone to withdraw from the will of God. This woman draws into corruption man's sovereign freedom. Liberty, so beautiful and so noble-- given only to do the will of God --has been corrupted so much by self-will that it seems, now, man uses this freedom only to oppose the will of God.
       "The merchants of the earth" are the natural man unceasingly negotiating with the heart of man. They wax rich with their spoil, signifying that self-interest survives only through self-will and becomes rich with all that makes the soul poor (though it believes it makes it rich). The true wealth of pure love consists in having no will except God's.

Rev. 18:4: And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, "Come out of her, my people, that you may not participate in her sins and that you may not receive of her plagues; ..."
         If "Babylon" is the picture of self-will, it is also the picture of the corrupted nature. We are invited to come out of this Babylon, and that means to come out of ourselves. By this loss of self-will, the soul at last comes out of herself. We all are invited to this, we who want to be part of "the people of God" and of the inner and yielded souls; for the very mark of the people of God is to be inward and yielded.

Rev. 18:5,6: "...for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her."
         God gets tired of the wickedness of this wretched and corrupted self-will; for her sins and her malice were not satisfied to stay in her low nature, but this malignant will reached unto heaven, signifying the superior part, or nature.
         This is why God, so as to banish her from the soul entirely, begins to reward her as she deserves to be. And because she has been bold enough to attack God in the fulfillment of His will, God remembered all the iniquities of self-will. He gives power to the ministers of His justice to reward her as she deserves. She corrupted the entire human nature; but she must suffer all the penalty and drink in the same cup and in the same way what she has filled to men.
         All the sins that she brought the soul into are used to punish and destroy her.
         You wanted to rise to heaven: you will be thrust into depths of mud.
         The punishment comes because of the insolence and rise of this self-will and because the soul fell into the deepest abyss of mud. If it were a pool of water, there would be some hope, but in a deep abyss of mud there is no hope of coming out. I am not surprised, oh prophet and king, that this deep abyss where you are plunged was the cause of your moaning.

Rev. 18:7,8: "To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, 'I sit as a queen and I am not a widow, and will never see mourning.' For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong."
         All the torments that God causes souls to suffer in the spiritual life are only in proportion to their pride.
         The anger and despair we see are a pure effect of pride; so that all griefs have a mixture of it. God, to save the soul from sin, sent to its heart the fire of His love. And what did the malignant will do? It became allied with self-love. They fed, and became fat, on these divine tastes and used the kings in their prostitution.
         What did this wretched Babylon say? I sit a queen on the throne, since I feed on spiritual possessions, and I will be obeyed as queen. I will be taken for the will of God. I am no widow. That is why God strikes her, with plagues, afflictions and famine. Although it is said it  comes on one day because of the promptitude and surprise this pounces on her, it does not end in a day. How happy she would be if it were so! This unfortunate Babylon is on a beast that has seven heads and in everyone of these heads. When one of these heads seems wounded to death, it is found to live with more strength than before. She is burned and consumed by fire, so that nothing is left of her, not any trace or evidence. To that end has the Lord God Almighty condemned this wretched will.

Rev.18:9: "And the kings of the earth, who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning, ..."
         The kings of the earth represent the superior part of the soul and freedom, but that conspired, in weakness, with self-will. They bewail and lament with all their might. The burning is in the lower part, but the smoke rises to the superior part to stifle apparently the mind and surround it in this awful burning.
         Oh God, this will also happen on the earth when this wretched will, which leads all men, shall be destroyed at last. But before its entire consummation, what griefs and pains!

Rev. 18:10: "...standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.' "
         The more fire, death and ravage attack the inferior part where the self-will has been rejected, the more the superior part of the soul remains aloof, stands afar off. The soul is not hunted; self-will is. But with fear it goes further away, saying: Alas! Alas! What a desolation! What a destruction!

Rev. 18:11-13: "And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes any more; cargoes of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and every kind of citron wood and every article of ivory and every article made from very costly wood and bronze and iron and marble, and cinnamon and spice and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and cargoes of horses and chariots and slaves and human lives."
       The merchants of the earth are the outward and inward senses. They all mourn exceedingly, for their business or interchange is interrupted and all their pleasures lost. Two kinds of trades are spoken of, the outward senses dealing with earthly things only, and the inner senses having a more delicate work. When the ruin and destruction of the self comes, the inward and outward senses seem to think they will never have any pleasure again. But a finer taste will be given them by which they will be able to enjoy riches that are purely spiritual. This comes after the total destruction of this wretched Babylon.

Rev. 18:14,15: "And the fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and men will no longer find them. The merchants of these  things, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning, ..."
         To understand this passage, we must remember what  has been said: Self, after having been chased into the lower part of the soul as her refuge, spreads out in this inferior part. At the start, she causes the senses to be pleased and  she is received as a hostess. Then these merchants witness her griefs, and stand afar off departing from her. Self-will remains deadened and the soul lives in the will of God.

Rev. 18:16,17: "...saying, ' Woe, woe, the great city, she who was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls; for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!' And every shipmaster and every passenger and sailor, and as many as make their living by the sea, stood at a distance."
         What a wonderful description of the self-will. See her in triumph and see her in the state to which she is reduced when she is destroyed! Nothing is as big as the will of man, leading and governing everything. Everything bends under her, and obeys her. She is "clothed" and decorated with an the finest things there are; "the purple and scarlet" belonging to love are her main ornaments. With this queen of an virtues, everything is given her, as long as she is in the order of the will of God. She is then in untold delights. But as soon as this will, which is so fine, looks upon herself as such, she gets a sense of carnality concerning her blessing and at the same time becomes haughty and rebellious. She misuses these riches and draws to her man's freedom and they, together, become polluted. Self-will wishes to rob God of everything. Instead of the love to which she was united and by which she was surrounded with goodness, loaded with riches, she unites with self-love which, with self-interest, gets into strange usurpations. Then she prostitutes herself to self-love and to self-interest. God bears with her for a while with much patience, but at last His anger is stirred against her, and then it is that her magnificence is changed into disgrace. All those who noticed this change depart from this wretch. (These are an the faculties of the soul and senses).

Rev.18:18,19: "...and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ' What city is like the great city?' And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, ' Woe, woe, the great city, for in one hour she has been laid waste!' "
         Self-will is very fittingly compared to a "great city," because the will encloses all the operations of the soul.
         However this haughty and wicked city is made desolate in an hour. That is, in the time planned by God for its ruin.
         It is certain that the smoke of her burning rises high. Everyone who has known these people, and the soul, are surprised at such destruction. They can not understand how such opposed states come in so little time. Nevertheless the measure of the evils is the measure of the blessings.

Rev. 18:20: "Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her."
         Nothing in the world is as beautiful as, "Rejoice over her, O heaven."
         Oh Church, rejoice over her, because all the troubles of your children for whom you sigh are going to be banished from your midst, since the one who is the source of them is destroyed.
         And you, holy apostles and prophets in the Church, rejoice because the fruit of your work is going to be fulfilled through the ruin of this wretched will.
         When self-will is destroyed, the soul is judged forever and can enjoy her God. Oh souls, rejoice in your deepest misfortunes and the evils you must suffer for the destruction of self-will, for this judgment is enclosed in her condemnation. If it is not condemned and destroyed, you are condemned to sufferings in this life and the next; but if she is condemned and destroyed, there is only salvation, joy and peace for you.

Rev. 18:21:  And a strong angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, "Thus will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down with violence, and will not be found any longer."
         This mighty angel is the will of God which has condemned self-will as his main enemy. Self will is cast in the sea like a stone, so that it is never more found.
         Hell is the abyss into which carnality is plunged, to come out no more. But the bosom of God is the wonderful abyss where the good will is lost and sunk never more to be found, for there it is changed into the will of God.

Rev. 18:22,23: "And the sound of harpists and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters will not be heard in you any longer; and no craftsman of any craft will be found in you any longer; and the sound of a mill will not be heard in you any longer; and the light of a lamp will not shine in you any longer; and the voice of the bridegroom and bride will not be heard in you any longer; for your merchants were the great men of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery."
         Here two kinds of things are spoken of, which feed self-will; first, the conscious delights of the mind, and the delight of this wretched selfish soul with outward self-denials which increase her pride and the delights of her mind.
         There is such a combination between the devil, the corrupted nature, self-will, and self-interest that they work together in accord. But since self-will has a great power after the dragon yielded all his power to self-love, and that self-love yielded his to self-will, the devil, in order to increase self-will, transfigures himself into an angel of light and sends her illustrations which are considered to be very great graces. As often happens, God, to withdraw the soul from the most dangerous effects of this will and of sin, if caresses this soul and has her hear His sweet voice which is the voice of the Bridegroom to the soul. Carnality plunges forever into the pit where it finds greater torments than ever she had pleasures and corruptions on earth.
         This is also what will happen to the Church and the world at large, just as it happens to an individual's soul which God wants to strip. Then men will be holy because they will all walk in the will of God. This state shall continue as long as this wretched carnality, or self-greed, remains chained in the pit. But, oh God, as soon as the chains are broken and that new power to hurt men is given to her, with what fury she will use it for revenge!

Rev. 18:24: "And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth."
         While this wretched carnality is in the soul, we do not know the damages she causes; on the contrary men believe that all the evils and sufferings come on them because they are not faithful enough to worldliness! Nevertheless, the more we try to be faithful to carnality, the more she increases her tyranny. They think she will ease the pains which they do not know come by her, till her judgment appears. As soon as she is condemned and destroyed, it is known that in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, because they discover that it was she who caused all the inner sufferings as well as the outward ones. She was the reason that all lights had been put out and that holiness was, as it were, banished from the soul. But she has so much malice that this can be found out only after her destruction. On the contrary she makes the soul think she is the source of all blessings, when actually it is certain that she alone is the cause of all the evils that happen, not only the individual soul, but to all the earth, generally speaking.
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^{(1) Guyon, Mme. Jeanne, CHRIST OUR REVELATION, Gardiner, Main, Reprinted 1987 Christian Books Publishing House ( Book in now out of print)}

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