We can begin our exploration of the central portion of Revelation chapter seventeen with a closer look at verse eight: “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition” (NIV). This enigmatic reference may make better sense if we view it from the perspective of John, the author of Revelation.
The beast mentioned here “was” in the sense that it existed prior to the scene John witnessed. It “now is not” (NIV) because it was held within the bottomless pit (or Abyss) during the period when the book of Revelation was originally authored. Finally, it “shall ascend out of the bottomless pit” (KJV) in the future when these events take place.
We get some further insight in verse nine: “…The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits.” Some Biblical scholars view this passage as a reference to the city of Rome, a city that is historically recognized as “the city on seven hills.” Verse ten then continues by saying, “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.”
From a Scriptural perspective, there have been six global powers that have arisen on the Biblical timeline: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. Each of those first four empires played a significant role in Old Testament history. The fifth, Greece, provided the language that was used to author the books of the New Testament. Those five kingdoms may represent the “five kings that have fallen” mentioned in Revelation 17:10.
These kingdoms were “fallen” in the sense that they were superseded by the sixth world power: Rome. The Roman Empire dominated the known world of John’s day, but has long since faded into history. That leaves us with the seventh “king” whose kingdom has yet to come to fruition. This seventh kingdom “must remain only for a little while” (NIV) which likely means that it will be quickly replaced by the eighth king seen in verse eleven: “The beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition” (NIV).
This eighth kingdom belongs to the seven previous kingdoms in the sense that it shares the same godless characteristics. This reference to “perdition” conveys the idea of waste, ruin, or the loss of well-being. (1) One source associates this word with “the destruction which consists of eternal misery in hell.” (2) This eighth kingdom thus shares another characteristic with the seven previous kingdoms; they each share the same eternal destination.
(1) See G684 apoleia Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries and Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words © 1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers, https://biblehub.com/greek/684.htm
(2) G684 apoleia Thayer’s Greek Definitions https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g684/kjv/tr/0-1/