Cooper first came to prominence in UFO circles in the late 80s, though probably for the wrong reasons. A lot of that had to do with the baleful influence of the late John Lear, the son of Lear jet inventer Bill Lear, and a man who’d never heard a UFO hoax he didn’t clutch tight to his bosom.
Together, Cooper and Lear uncritically circulated some of the most outlandish disinfo that intel-community pranksters could dream up — as well as some of their own — which certainly helped their careers along during the heady days of the Bob Lazar Age.
To his credit, Coop eventually grew tired of what Dave Emory labeled the “UFO okey-dokey,” but that doesn’t mean he went mainstream or anything. With his popular radio show The Hour of the Time, the indefatigable Cooper pretty much covered — and endorsed — every conspiracy theory you could name.
Now, I get it: the term “Mystery Babylon” is metal af. Unfortunately, it’s based on what is now universally acknowledged as a punctuation error on the part of King James’ translators.
They rendered it thus:
“And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH."
Subsequent translations have fixed that error:
In case you’re wondering about the justification for this revision, note that John the Revelator refers to “that great city Babylon” or some such in verses 14:8, 16:19, 18:2, 18:10 and 18:21. So it’s obvious which is the outlier.
Now, “Mystery Babylon” is a mistranslation, but an understandable one. And one might argue that it could describe the nature of the secret societies Coops was talking about, which is fine as far as it goes.
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION:
The name written on her forehead was a mystery: BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES, AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
NEW CENTURY VERSION:
On her forehead a title was written that was secret. This is what was written: THE GREAT BABYLON, MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES, AND OF THE EVIL THINGS OF THE EARTH
NEW CATHOLIC BIBLE:
On her forehead was written a mysterious name: “Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots and of every abomination on the earth.”
ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION:
And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD VERSION:
“On her forehead was written a secret name: BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND DETESTABLE THINGS OF THE EARTH.”
In case you’re wondering about the justification for this revision, note that John the Revelator refers to “that great city Babylon” or some such in verses 14:8, 16:19, 18:2, 18:10 and 18:21. So it’s obvious which is the outlier.
Now, “Mystery Babylon” is a mistranslation, but an understandable one. And one might argue that it could describe the nature of the secret societies Coops was talking about, which is fine as far as it goes.
It’s just that it’s poor exegesis if you’re trying to lend that interpretation authority from scripture.
On the other hand, the term “Babylonian mystery religion” is a total — and rather recent — fabrication, one concocted with the express aim of inciting sectarian hatred and religious violence...
On the other hand, the term “Babylonian mystery religion” is a total — and rather recent — fabrication, one concocted with the express aim of inciting sectarian hatred and religious violence...
