Here John refers to the city of Babylon whose wicked people rule over all the people of the earth and lead them to worship false gods. He speaks of the wicked people of Babylon as if they were a great prostitute. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])
# who corrupted the earth
Here "the earth" is a metonym for its inhabitants. AT: "who corrupted the people of the earth" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metonymy]])