Babylon was an ancient city built on the Euphrates river in what is now southern Iraq. It once was the capital of a great empire which at one point conquered the land of Judah as mentioned in the second book of Kings and in Daniel. But the river changed its course and the city was abandoned long ago. Both the historic city in Mesopotamia and the parable city with its tower, mentioned in Genesis, represent the same thing, a worship that appears holy in externals, while the internals are profane. This representation expands to mean a church whose leaders use this kind of worship to gain dominion over others for their own gain and for the gain and power of the church. The city itself is the doctrinal structure that supports this kind of worship and dominion.

(References: Apocalypse Explained 1029; Arcana Coelestia 1283, 1302, 1304, 1310, 1311)

13. Is he that readeth, signifies that they have perception. This is evident from the signification of "reading" the Word, as being to understand from enlightenment, thus to perceive, since to "read" signifies the like as to "see," because he who reads, sees, and to "see" signifies to perceive from enlightenment, as was shown just above (n. 11).