“And the kings of the earth… and the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her…” (Revelation 18:9-19, NAB)

Sorrow is a powerful emotional trigger that can remind us of our need for God. It reminds us that we are finite, fragile, and sinful beings. It reminds us that we have a God who can sympathize with our weaknesses, love us, and be willing to help us overcome life’s obstacles. In today’s reading, however, the people on earth during the Tribulation Period became saddened over the destruction of the great city of Babylon, but it failed to lead them to recognize their need for God. Verses 9-11 sum it up,

“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, 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.’ And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes any more…”

Pretty much everyone on earth will experience sorrow because of Great Babylon’s destruction. They will “weep and lament” over her devastation. Observe how often John highlights people’s emotions in today’s passage: in verses 9, 10, 11, 15, 18, 19. The words that describe their emotions are: “fear,” “weeping,” “mourning,” and “lamenting.” Upon recognizing that everything they had loved and valued had gone up in flames, leaders and businessmen around the world began weeping and mourning their loss. Yet, despite all this, their sadness did not turn their hearts back to God.

It is interesting to note that the great city of Babylon went up in flames in the first place because the beast and his followers despised it and burned it down. Revelation 17:16 says, “The ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire.” It is unclear as to why they would do such a thing to the city that was giving them so much sinful pleasure, wealth, and provisions. The very thing that the antichrist and his followers loved, enjoyed, and became wealthy with became an object of their hatred, and gutted her and destroyed her with fire. Their love for her turned into hate in an instant. It is almost like putting all your food, money, and valuable things in a barn, blowing it up, and then standing around weeping and crying over it. Can you think of any reason why they would do such a thing?

Spiritually speaking, however, the Bible says that it was God who “put it in their hearts to execute His purpose” (Rev. 17:17), implying that God had somehow made them want to do so. So here is my take on this. Imagine you are a drug cartel leader who made your life and wealth by selling drugs, but one day, because God placed so much guilt in your heart over the bloodshed and lives destroyed, you blow up your business sky high. However, instead of repenting and turning to God, you realize what you had just done, and you weep and mourn for your loss. In other words, God caused the kings and merchants to weep and mourn their way back to Him, but instead they wept and mourned their way back to their old ways. The Bible says, “Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you” (Ja.4:9-10). Again, it says, “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation; but the sorrow of the world produces death” (2 Cor.7:10).

Yes, sometimes God will bring sorrow into our lives so that we may seek Him and humble ourselves before Him. He may take away things that we love so that we may learn to love God more. He may destroy things that we value so that we will recognize how much more valuable our relationship with God is. In these circumstances, our sorrows, weeping, and mourning can either lead us to bow before God or turn our backs on Him in bitterness. How about you? Does sorrow lead you to God or something else?

• What do you think? Why would the antichrist and his followers destroy the very thing that gave them pleasure, wealth, and fine things in life?
• What advice would you give to someone experiencing grief, tears, and sadness after losing something precious?