What does Revelation 17:16 mean?

This verse explains what happens to the prostitute of John's vision (Revelation 17:1), a religious side of the ungodly world system referred to as "Babylon."

The horns represent kings. The ten kings and the beast, most likely the head of the Revived Roman Empire, will hate religious Babylon and will destroy her. The corrupt ecumenical system, therefore, will come to a sudden end. Perhaps religious Babylon will receive too much loyalty and too much wealth to the liking of the beast and the ten kings. They want all the loyalty and resources for themselves. We know from chapter 13 that the beast demands worship of himself (Revelation 13:11–12), so he likely views religious Babylon as competition that he must destroy.

The beast and his ten royal cohorts leave the prostitute, religious Babylon, desolate and naked. When they finish her off, they will confiscate all her wealth. The destruction of religious Babylon probably occurs in the middle of the tribulation when the beast comes into power, assumes the role of God, and demands everyone to worship him. This suggests that the unspiritual, ungodly religious character of the world at the beginning of the tribulation will be gutted and destroyed by the coming of the Antichrist and his allies.