Message to the Church in Ephesus "the loveless or hard, unhappy, harsh, cruel church" An ancient Greek city on the western shore of Asia Minor in what is now Turkey; site of the Temple of Artemis; was a major trading center and played an important role in early Christianity.
To the angel (messenger) of the church in Ephesus, write: The one who holds the seven stars in his right hand, the one who walks among the seven gold lamp stands, says:
- I know what you have done—how hard you have worked and how you have endured.
- I also know that you cannot tolerate wicked people. You have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not apostles. You have discovered that they are liars.
- You have endured, suffered trouble because of my name, and have not grown weary.
- But you have this in your favor—you hate what the Nicolaitans are doing. I also hate what they’re doing. (Nicolaittans: They were seemly a class of professing Christians, who sought to introduce into the church a false freedom or licentiousness, thus abusing Paul’s doctrine of grace (Compare 2 Pet. 2:15, 16, 19), and were probably identical with those who held the doctrine of Baalam (q.v.), Rev. 2:14. )
- However, I have this against you: The love you had at first is gone. Remember how far you have fallen.
- Return to me and change the way you think and act, and do what you did at first.
- I will come to you and take your lamp stand from its place if you don’t change.
Let the person who has ears listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. I will give the privilege of eating from the tree of life, which stands in the paradise of God, to everyone who wins the victory.
Message to the Church in Smyrna "the persecuted church" A port city in western Turkey
To the angel (messenger) of the church in Smyrna, write: The first and the last, who was dead and became alive, says:
- I know how you are suffering, how poor you are—but you are rich.
- I also know that those who claim to be Jews (today's Christians/Believers) slander you. They are the synagogue (church) of Satan.
- Don’t be afraid of what you are going to suffer.
- The devil is going to throw some of you into prison so that you may be tested.
- Your suffering will go on for ten days.
- Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Let the person who has ears listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. Everyone who wins the victory will never be hurt by the second death.
Message to the Church in Pergamum "the compromising or meet God halfway church" An ancient Greek city located in the western part of what is now modern Turkey; the technique of preparing sheepskins as parchment was developed here.
To the angel (messenger) of the church in Pergamum, write: The one who holds the sharp two-edged sword says:
- I know where you live. Satan’s throne is there. (just saying that Satan rules the area where they live/reside)
- You hold on to my name and have not denied your belief in me, even in the days of Antipas. He was my faithful witness who was killed in your presence, where Satan lives. (Antipas: referring to the past, present & the future to come, and (1.)Herod Antipas, a son of Herod the Great by his Samaritan wife Malthace. He was tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea during the whole period of our Lord’s life on earth (Luke 23:7). He was a frivolous and vain prince, and was chargeable with many infamous crimes (Mark 8:15; Luke 3:19; 13:31, 32). He beheaded John the Baptist (Matt. 14:1-12) at the instigation of Herodias, the wife of his half-brother Herod-Philip, whom he had married. Pilate sent Christ to him when he was at Jerusalem at the Passover (Luke 23:7). He asked some idle questions of him, and after causing him to be mocked, sent him back again to Pilate. The wife of Chuza, his house-steward, was one of our Lord’s disciples (Luke 8:3). (2.) A “faithful martyr” (Rev. 2:13), of whom nothing more is certainly known.
- But I have a few things against you: You have among you those who follow what Balaam taught Balak. Balak trapped the people of Israel by encouraging them to eat food sacrificed to idols and to sin sexually. (Balaam: was constrained/forced to utter prophecies regarding the future of Israel of wonderful magnificence and beauty of expression (Num.24:5-9, 17) & Balak: empty; spoiler, a son of Zippor, and king of the Moabites (Num. 22:2, 4). From fear of the Israelites, who were encamped near the confines of his territory, he applied to Balaam (q.v.) to curse them; but in vain (Josh. 24:9
- You also have some who follow what the Nicolaitans teach. (Nicolaittans: They were seemly a class of professing Christians, who sought to introduce into the church a false freedom or licentiousness (extravagance, wastefulness, debauchery, immorality, sin, wickedness, dishonesty, impiety), thus abusing Paul’s doctrine of grace (Compare 2 Pet. 2:15, 16, 19), and were probably identical with those who held the doctrine of Baalam (q.v.), Rev. 2:14. )
- So return to me and change the way you think and act, or I will come to you quickly and wage war against them (them meaning these types of Christians/believers) with the sword from my mouth.
Let the person who has ears listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. I will give some of the hidden manna to everyone who wins the victory. I will also give each person a white stone with a new name written on it, a name that is known only to the person who receives it.
Message to the Church in Thyatira "the corrupt church" A city of Asia Minor, on the boarders of Lydia and Mysia. Its modern name is Ak-Hissar, I.E., "White Castle.” Here was one of the seven churches (Rev. 1:11; 2:18-28). Lydia, the seller of purple, or rather of cloth dyed with this colour, was from this city (Acts 16:14). It was and still is famous for its dyeing. Among the ruins, inscriptions have been found relating to the guild of dyers in that city in ancient times.
To the angel (messenger) of the church in Thyatira, write: The Son of God, whose eyes are like flames of fire and whose feet are like glowing bronze, says:
- I know what you do.
- I know your love, faith, service, and endurance.
- I also know that what you are doing now is greater than what you did at first.
- But I have something against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet.
- She teaches and misleads my servants to sin sexually and to eat food sacrificed to idols.
- I gave her time to turn to me and change the way she thinks and acts, but she refuses to turn away from her sexual sins.
- Watch me! I’m going to throw her into a sickbed.
- Those who commit sexual sins with her will also suffer a lot, unless they turn away from what she is doing.
- I will kill her children.
- Then all the churches will know that I am the one who searches hearts and minds.
- I will reward each of you for what you have done. (Jezebel: Chaste, the daughter of Ethbaal, the king of the Zidonians, and the wife of Ahab, the king of Israel (1 Kings 16:31). This was the “first time that a king of Israel had allied himself by marriage with a heathen princess; and the alliance was in this case of a peculiarly disastrous kind. Jezebel has stamped her name on history as the representative of all that is designing, crafty, malicious, revengeful, and cruel. She is the first great instigator of persecution against the saints of God. Guided by no principle, restrained by no fear of either God or man, passionate in her attachment to her heathen worship, she spared no pains to maintain idolatry around her in all its splendour. Four hundred and fifty prophets ministered under her care to Baal, besides four hundred prophets of the groves [R.V., ‘prophets of the Asherah’], which ate at her table (1 Kings 18:19). The idolatry, too, was of the most debased and sensual kind.” Her conduct was in many respects very disastrous to the kingdom both of Israel and Judah (1 Kings 21:1-29). At length she came to an untimely end. As Jehu rode into the gates of Jezreel, she looked out at the window of the palace, and said, “Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?” He looked up and called to her chamberlains, who instantly threw her from the window, so that she was dashed in pieces on the street, and his horses trod her under their feet. She was immediately consumed by the dogs of the street (2 Kings 9:7-37), according to the word of Elijah the Tishbite (1 Kings 21:19). Her name afterwards came to be used as the synonym for a wicked woman (Rev. 2:20). It may be noted that she is said to have been the grand-aunt of Dido, the founder of Carthage.)
- But the rest of you in Thyatira—all who don’t hold on to Jezebel’s teaching, who haven’t learned what are called the deep things of Satan—I won’t burden you with anything else.
- Just hold on to what you have until I come.
I have received authority from my Father. I will give authority over the nations to everyone who wins the victory and continues to do what I want until the end. Those people will rule the nations with iron scepters and shatter them like pottery. I will also give them the morning star. Let the person who has ears listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.
Message to the Church in Sardis "the dead church" An ancient city of western Asia Minor northeast of modern-day Izmir, Turkey. As the capital of Lydia it was the political and cultural center of Asia Minor from 650 to c. 550 B.C. and remained an important city during Roman and Byzantine times. Sardis was destroyed by Tamerlane in 1402. A city on the boundary of the Tribe of Zebulun (Josh 19:10, 12)
Write this letter to the angel (messenger) of the church in Sardis. This is the message from the one who has the sevenfold Spirit[b] of God and the seven stars:
- I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead.
- Wake up!
- Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead.
- I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God.
- Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly.
- Repent and turn to me again.
- If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.
- Yet there are some in the church in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes with evil.
- They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.
- All who are victorious will be clothed in white.
- I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine.
Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.
The Message to the Church in Philadelphia meaning "brotherly Love" "the faithful church" A city of Lydia. (Rev. 1:11; Rev. 3:7-13)
Write this letter to the angel (messenger) of the church in Philadelphia. This is the message from the one who is holy and true, the one who has the key of David.
- What he opens, no one can close; and what he closes, no one can open:
- I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close.
- You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.
- Look, I will force those who belong to Satan’s synagogue (church-followers of Satan)—those liars who say they are Jews (Christians/Believers) but are not—to come and bow down at your feet.
- They will acknowledge that you are the ones I love.
- Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world.
- I am coming soon.
- Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.
- All who are victorious will become pillars in the Temple of my God, and they will never have to leave it.
- And I will write on them the name of my God, and they will be citizens in the city of my God—the new Jerusalem that comes down from heaven from my God. And I will also write on them my new name.
Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.
The Message to the Church in Laodicea meaning "Indifferent or lukewarm church" A Phrygian city. Paul’s concern (Col 2:1); Epaphras’ zeal (Col 4:13); Epistle to the Colossians to be read (Col 4:15-16); Message to, through John (Rev 1:11; Rev 3:14-22)
Write this letter to the angel (messenger) of the church in Laodicea. This is the message from the one who is the Amen—the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s new creation:
- I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold.
- I wish that you were one or the other!
- But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit (say, express, utter, spear) you out of my mouth!
- You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’
- And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.
- So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire (become holy and one with Christ John 17). Then you will be rich.
- Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see (become holy and one with Christ and His Blood by staying away from sin).
- I correct and discipline everyone I love.
- So be diligent and turn from your indifference.
- Look! I stand at the door and knock.
- If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends (will become friends and be known by God as His own, as His child).
- Those who are victorious will sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat with my Father on his throne.
Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.
