Israel, in her relationship with God, is often depicted as a harlot due to her unfaithfulness. Like a beautiful woman full of promise, as described in Ezekiel 16, she eagerly entered into a marriage covenant with Him, vowing obedience. Yet, under the tests of life, she quickly broke her vows, behaving worse than a common street harlot by chasing after idols and desires that God prohibited. Her fickle lusts led her into relationships with ways of life other than His, abandoning Him in what He labels as adultery. This unfaithfulness is further illustrated in Psalm 78:56-57, where Israel is compared to a deceitful bow that fails under pressure, not shooting arrows where aimed. She tested and provoked the Most High God, turning back and acting unfaithfully like her fathers. Her drive for new experiences and discontent led her to reject His commands, viewing them as denying her pleasure, and instead seeking satisfaction her way, often at the expense of godly conduct. God calls Israel's sins fornication, using sexual terms to reveal her spiritual unfaithfulness to the public. Her harlotry is primarily idolatry, but includes all other sins, such as unfaithfulness in business, in managing His creation, in forgetting the source of her blessings, and in personal relationships. This gross disloyalty and breaking of the marriage covenant highlight her rejection of Him and His way right from the beginning, making her a vehicle for spreading false ways among the heathen. Israel's powerful bent to be like everyone else and throw off what makes her peculiar and holy further underscores her deviancy. Despite being favored with gifts greater than any other nation due to the intimate relationship with Him, her responsibility and subsequent judgment are the sternest. Her fearful and fickle discontent prevented her from seeking Him to understand His purpose, instead pursuing experiences different from those He provided to prepare her for His Kingdom.

God describes His relationship with a specific woman, Jerusalem, which stands for all Israel, using the language of marriage, a covenant relationship to One to whom she was to be faithful. He reveals the things He did for her as her figurative Husband, expecting her to adhere to the terms of the covenant, which consisted of His laws covering every important aspect of life. However, Israel's conduct was marked by faithlessness, as Jesus Himself noted, calling His generation faithless and perverse. God's exclusive relationship with Israel intensifies her unfaithfulness, as He entered into no similar covenant with any other nation in history, favoring her with gifts greater than any other, including the revelation of Himself and knowledge of His purpose. Despite this intimacy, Israel's departure from God was profound, leading Him to divorce the great harlot Israel, though He continued a fractious relationship with her to fulfill His promises and purposes. Israel is depicted as the preeminent harlot of the Bible, having risen to worldly greatness through the misuse of God's gifts. Representing all Israel, Jerusalem is acknowledged as great in political, economic, and military power, with influence so vast that only she can hold the Beast in check and make it do her bidding until God's appointed time for her humbling. Primarily represented by the Joseph tribes, Israel has brushed the world aside in recent history, though her power is tainted by whoredoms, religious confusion, and deviance from her responsibility to God. Revelation portrays the great harlot sitting on many waters, the Beast, and seven mountains, symbolizing her authority and wide-ranging influence over many nations. The waters where she sits are defined as peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues, indicating the Beast's diverse composition, while the Woman is depicted as one powerful and influential unit, distinct and united in contrast to the fragmented Beast.

Israel has fully earned the title of the Great Harlot Babylon, as revealed in Revelation 17 and 18, through her faithless relationship with God. Despite entering into a symbolic marriage with Him, a unique covenant not shared with any other nation, Israel has rebelled against her responsibilities and played the harlot with the world. She has embraced worldly ways to such an extent that she has outdone the Gentiles in their manner of life, becoming appropriately named Babylon the Great. God depicts all of Israel in close relationship with the Beast, influencing it, with the two Joseph tribes, America and Britain, as the strongest components of this Harlot, particularly America due to its significant end-time influence. Israel's harlotry stems from an evil heart of unbelief, leading to irrational, erratic, and unreliable spiritual and moral behavior. She could not be trusted to remain firm in her commitment to be faithful to God's commandments and way of life. Though she transgressed every commandment in multiple ways, her most frequent spiritual sin is gross idolatry, serving herself and following the whims of the moment for fleeting pleasures. Rejecting her divine Husband as Ruler, Israel desired a king like other nations, conducting her affairs in the Babylonian manner and becoming just another kingdom of this world. Despite her great material advantages, Israel is spiritually great in immorality, confusion, deviance from responsibility, and polluted influence. Her wealth and power among nations, illustrated by elegant clothing, jewelry, and precious metals, enable her to guide and coerce many nations, sitting in a position of authority over the Beast, a fearsome entity of diverse peoples. Only Israel possesses this combination of strength to control such a force, depicted as one unified people in contrast to the Beast's loose confederation. Historically and in the present, represented primarily by the Joseph tribes, Israel has brushed the world aside politically and economically, fitting the characteristics of the Great Harlot in Revelation 17 and 18.

Israel is depicted as the most prominent harlot in the Bible, embodying a profound betrayal of the sacred trust established through the Old Covenant with God. This covenant, foundational to Israel's relationship with Him, was marked by a solemn vow of obedience, which Israel repeatedly broke through spiritual prostitution. This harlotry stems from an evil heart of unbelief, as described in Hebrews 3:12, leading to a departure from the living God due to a fundamental disbelief in His words despite His revelations to her. Israel's deliberate choice to prostitute herself is not a result of coercion but a willful pursuit of personal gain, akin to a prostitute who debases herself for material security. Biblically, this prostitution is symbolized through illicit sexual activity, reflecting a broader lack of discrimination and an attitude that ignores the harsh realities of sin. This spirit of harlotry, as noted in Hosea 4:12 and 5:4, drives Israel to stray from God, seeking counsel from idols and engaging in disloyal conduct against Him, revealing an inclination to be unfaithful to the covenantal commitment. The motivations behind Israel's harlotry mirror those of a prostitute like Delilah, rooted in lust, deceit, and treachery for immediate gain. This behavior is driven by unbelief, distrust, and self-indulgence, expressed primarily through greed—a desire for wealth and comfort that leads Israel to compromise rather than suffer loss. Ezekiel 23:5, 11-12, 16-17 illustrates how Israel aggressively sought sin, adopting the ways of heathen nations and rejecting God's providence for inferior, corrupting practices, thus debasing herself and God. God expected more from Israel than any other nation, having chosen her as His people with unparalleled access to His knowledge and way of life, as stated in Amos 3:2. Yet, Israel frivolously prostituted herself by following pagan examples for perceived personal gain. This harlotry extends to various forms, including political alliances, economic systems, and social justice practices that align with heathen ways rather than trusting in God's provision, as seen in passages like Isaiah 1:21-26 and Nahum 3:1-4. The Bible defines spiritual prostitution succinctly in Hosea 1:2 as departing from the Lord, being unfaithful by transgressing His way of life for personal gain. Israel's failure to remain loyal to her Husband, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, contrasts sharply with the monogamous relationship intended under the Old Covenant, highlighting her pursuit of empty promises from other gods instead of gratitude, love, and obedience to Him.

God, through Ezekiel, addresses Israel with a message for the end time, using ancient events as a foundation for prophecies to guide the end-time church. Modern Israel's conduct mirrors that of ancient Israel, revealing a pattern of spiritual adultery. God harshly judges Israel, likening her to Sodom, Egypt, and Babylon, due to her failure to seek Him alone and her persistent curiosity for foreign ways. In her carnality, Israel displays a fickle discontentment, rejecting God's providence and seeking variety over the truth of His Word. This rebellious nature led her to disregard God's commands, as seen in Deuteronomy 12:29-32, where He warns against inquiring into the worship of other nations and adopting their abominations. Despite such clear instructions, Israel's stubbornness drove her to pursue fulfillment in forbidden practices, ultimately becoming a great whore in her unfaithfulness to God.

The Kingdom of Israel, formed under Jeroboam after the division of Solomon's kingdom, fell into deep sin through his religious innovations, which became a lasting transgression for the northern tribes. Subsequent kings of Israel perpetuated Jeroboam's apostasy, never turning back to the ways of the Lord, and thus the Lord grew very angry with Israel and removed them from His sight. Through prophets like Hosea, God warned Judah not to follow Israel's path of idolatry, using harlotry as an analogy for their unfaithfulness, pleading that Judah should not offend as Israel had by playing the harlot. Yet, Israel set the pace into idolatry, and Judah followed with equal zeal, stumbling together in their iniquity. God judged that backsliding Israel appeared more righteous than treacherous Judah, for Judah witnessed Israel's fall and mass deportation but refused to repent.

In the exploration of end-time prophecies, the identity and role of Israel emerge as significant, often depicted symbolically in Revelation. In Revelation 12, Israel is portrayed as a Woman clothed with the sun and moon, wearing a crown of stars, a symbolism tied to Joseph's dream in Genesis 37. This Woman, representing the nation of Israel, is shown about to give birth to the Messiah, Jesus Christ, who is born to rule all nations. Despite giving birth to the Messiah, Israel as the Woman is not indicated to be converted during the events described. Throughout the chapter, it is Israel, not the church, that faces persecution from the dragon, identified as satan, and is given protection by God to flee to a prepared place. Further, in Revelation 17, the imagery shifts to another Woman, identified as Mystery, Babylon the Great, who rides the Beast, symbolizing a position of control over a powerful entity. This Woman is not consistently tied to a church but rather to a city and nation, as seen in Old Testament examples where women symbolize cities like Jerusalem and Babylon, representing nations of questionable character. Israel, in historical contexts such as Ezekiel 16 and Lamentations 1, is portrayed as a harlot, a wife who turned to unfaithfulness, bearing children in her waywardness. This symbolism of harlotry extends collectively to the inhabitants of such cities, male and female, reflecting their shared characteristics of infidelity and moral corruption. Thus, the depiction of Israel as a harlot in prophetic imagery underscores a narrative of spiritual unfaithfulness, contrasting with its historical role as the nation chosen by God. This theme of harlotry, applied to cities and nations, continues in Revelation 17 and 18, where the Woman riding the Beast represents a powerful, external influence within the Babylonish system, involved in politics, commerce, and control, distinct from the internal workings of the Beast itself.

God's indictment of Israel and Judah reveals a profound betrayal, portraying Israel as a harlot in a spiritual sense due to their unfaithfulness to Him. He had called Israel out of Egypt, forming them into a nation with a special, intimate relationship, bound by a covenant ratified with blood to worship and obey Him alone. Yet, they forsook Him, diving wholeheartedly into idolatry, breaking the Sabbath repeatedly, and foolishly trusting in other nations rather than relying on His protection and blessings. This rebellion is likened to spiritual adultery, as He considered the covenant with Israel a marriage, with Himself as the husband and the nation as His wife. Their rejection of His benevolence and pursuit of alliances with foreign nations, seeking riches and safety on their own terms, infuriated Him, as they spurned the very promises He offered. In Amos 3 and 4, God's judgment against Israel is intensified because they should have known better, having been educated in His ways and given His laws. Despite this, they flagrantly sinned and rebelled, becoming morally warped, unable to discern right from wrong. The women of Israel, described as urging their husbands to oppress the poor to satisfy selfish desires, signify the depth of societal decay. Their religious practices were corrupted, filled with spectacle rather than sincerity, as they overdid sacrifices and tithes to be seen as pious, yet their actions were laced with sin. Repeated warnings through calamities like famine, drought, and war failed to turn them back to Him, as they remained spiritually obtuse, hardened against His correction. In II Kings 17, the historical overview of Israel's defeat and exile by the Assyrians underscores their primary sin of idolatry, equated with sin itself, as they feared other gods and forsook the One who freed and blessed them. They attempted to hide their rebellion, secretly worshipping at high places, underestimating His omniscience, reducing Him to the level of a dumb idol. Their complete apostasy is evident as they abandoned all His commandments, becoming enslaved to ungodliness, engaging in idolatry, child sacrifice, witchcraft, and selling themselves to do evil, deliberately rebelling against Him in all aspects of life. Ezekiel 16 and 20 further paint a picture of utter perversion and shameful behavior, with Judah following Israel's path, flaunting rebellion in His face. Their failure to keep the Sabbath, a sign setting them apart as His people, led to a rapid drift from Him, resulting in a loss of identity and connection, blending into the world as the lost tribes of Israel. Forsaking the Sabbath was tantamount to forsaking Him, severing the vital relationship that facilitated learning His way. Despite this profound unfaithfulness, He is not finished with Israel, promising a marvelous work to turn them back to Him, though it will come through great tribulation and harsh lessons, ultimately leading to a time when they will hallow His name and fear Him.

Israel alone of all nations has been coupled to God through a binding covenant likened to a marriage, an intimacy limited to those within the covenant. She alone has rightly earned the title of the Great Harlot, for only Israel came to know God through His revelation of Himself to her. In the biblical sense, a harlot is a woman unfaithful to a covenant or to revealed standards, and Israel alone had God's way of life so intimately disclosed to her. No other nation in the history of mankind entered into such a covenant with Him, vowing to obey all He commanded, thus making her uniquely unfaithful to that exclusive union. God provides many proofs of her unfaithfulness and records of how He dealt with it in the prophetic and historical accounts. The biblical facts, combined with external evidence of history, point to end-time Israel as the embodiment of this harlotry. Revelation 17-18 describes the end-time Babylon, the Great Harlot, as a literal city and nation, not merely a religious system, but a powerful entity involved in massive worldwide craftsmanship, manufacturing, entertainment, and commerce. This nation, an economic and political powerhouse exercising global influence, fits the description of modern Israel, led by the Joseph tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. Israel epitomizes the spirit of Babylon at the end time, a nation of tremendous influence using its economic, military, and political powers, as well as its religions and entertainments, to affect change in other nations. Identified as the hammer of the whole earth, modern Babylon, Israel, symbolizes a force that shapes and alters the world, reflecting the harlot's cultural dominance. Modern, end-time Israel, like ancient Babylon, is depicted as deep into the occult and spiritism, engaging in worship of demons and seeking their guidance in national affairs. Mystery Babylon stands revealed as the Israelitish people through parallel conduct, attitudes, and actions. God describes her as a consuming and trading nation of enormous wealth and influence, one who has broken her covenant with Him through fornication, yet remains at the peak of her glorious but idolatrous, immoral power. She temporarily holds in check the rise of the Beast, but she will soon be cut down and burned with fire in preparation for meeting the true God and learning her true destiny.

Israel's national sin is deeply rooted in faithlessness, vividly portrayed through the metaphor of harlotry. The book of Hosea captures this theme, where the Lord instructs Hosea to take a wife of harlotry, reflecting the land's great harlotry by departing from the Lord. This imagery presents Israel as a faithless wife, guilty of extreme betrayal in her spiritual covenant with God, which manifests as idolatry. God is depicted as a faithful Husband and a loving, longsuffering Parent, while Israel consistently fails in her responsibilities within this relationship, an act God labels as adultery and harlotry. The term "zanah," translated as harlotry, signifies not a single act of adultery but a sexually wanton way of life, ultimately pointing to spiritual idolatry. Hosea links harlotry with wine and new wine, illustrating its addictive power that enslaves the heart, destroys discretion, and erases understanding. This faithlessness permeates all aspects of life, making Israel unreliable in commitments to God, mates, country, employers, and contracts. As a people, Israelites struggle to remain faithful, always seeking personal gain and pleasure, a characteristic absorbed from a culture saturated with the spirit of harlotry. This pervasive unfaithfulness results in the loss of vital truths, including the importance of God's Word to family and community life, and Israel's relationship with Him. It extends further, eroding reliable bases for business, moral standards, trust in relationships, and dependability in all facets of life. The absence of steadfast love and the lack of true knowledge and acknowledgment of God further distance Israel from Him, reflecting a relationship that is, at best, very distant.

The concept of Israel as a harlot emerges as a central theme in understanding the national sin of faithlessness. In the book of Hosea, God portrays Israel as a faithless wife, engaging in whoredom by departing from Him. Hosea 1:2 reveals the Lord's command to Hosea to take a wife of whoredoms, symbolizing the land's great harlotry in forsaking the Lord. This metaphor of harlotry represents Israel's idolatry and spiritual infidelity, as she pursues other lovers, believing they provide for her needs, while ignoring that it is God who grants her abundance (Hosea 2:2-8). This faithlessness extends beyond the divine relationship, permeating the nation's culture and social interactions. Israel's harlotry is not merely a personal failing but a pervasive spirit that influences the entire people, becoming a way of life. Hosea 4:1-2 describes a land devoid of truth, mercy, and knowledge of God, where swearing, lying, killing, stealing, and committing adultery prevail. This spirit of harlotry, likened to an addictive force, takes away the heart, enslaving the people to deceit and idolatry, leading them to err and sacrifice in high places (Hosea 4:11-14). The consequences are dire, as this faithlessness destroys discretion and understanding, fostering an environment of distrust and unreliability among the people. Furthermore, in Hosea 7:1-4, God uncovers Israel's iniquity through falsehood and deceit, noting that they do not consider their wickedness, which He remembers. Their leaders and society are complicit, reveling in lies and adultery, driven by a heart enslaved to self-centered desires rather than faithfulness to God or each other. Jeremiah 5:7-9 echoes this lament, as God questions how He can pardon a nation whose children forsake Him, committing adultery and assembling in harlots' houses, provoking His judgment. This national sin of deceit and harlotry manifests in broken covenants, not only with God but within human relationships, contributing to societal decay. Israel's inability to remain faithful, whether to God, mates, or commitments, reflects a cultural spirit of infidelity that undermines reliability and trust, separating the people from the steadfast love and faithfulness that God embodies and desires in them (Deuteronomy 7:9).

By refusing to repent of their apostasy from God's way of life, the Israelites could only expect the coming of God's fearsome punishment. Israel is pictured as a virgin, though not a spiritual virgin, for God frequently calls her an adulteress, harlot, and fornicator. He uses the term virgin to signify that Israel was cut off in the bloom of youth before she could produce what she had the potential to produce. In a literal family, God could have expected a happy marriage and children from her, but surrounded by luxury and prosperity, Israel should have produced God's personality and character, yet she failed miserably. Additionally, God shows Israel committing spiritual adultery by trusting in other nations rather than Him, and the destroyed bed and couch depict His destruction of the nation for her unfaithfulness. Through their spiritual harlotry, they abused grace, the free, unmerited gift of God, including His pardon, and rejected His law. The sanctuaries of Israel, the religious shrines, were among the first to fall as fountainheads of the nation's attitudes, where the people were taught to seek material prosperity through cultic fornication and fertility rituals done blasphemously in the name of the Eternal God. The religions taught the people how to sin and do it religiously, further deepening their spiritual unfaithfulness.