CHAPTER TWO
2:1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write;
The message to the Ephesian church not only applied to the church of John's day, but to everyone since then who has walked with his God by faith. In addition, as is often the case in prophecy and as is the case with all seven messages to the churches, it also has an important prophetic message imbedded in it that must be spiritually discerned to be understood.
…These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
Again, as with Revelation 1:13, this brings to mind Matthew 18:20:
"For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."
2:2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil:
I stated earlier that an acquaintance with the seven ages of time is needful to understand prophecy. Here we see a need for that understanding. (Click here to go the STUDY CHART OF THE AGES.) In addition to the meaning for the church at Ephesus, this portion of the message can also be viewed as speaking prophetically to Adam and Eve in the Age of Innocence—the first of the seven ages. We cannot know how long Adam and Eve lived and worked maintaining the Garden before the temptation and the fall. However, if scientist are anywhere near correct with their dating of the dinosaurs, then the first couple may have lived millions of years before Eve's sin—after all, time, death, and decay did not begin until after the fall. So, they had a lot of time to work; and God has not forgotten their labors. The main key here, though, is ...how thou canst not bear them which are evil. Remember the warning to Adam and Eve? Leave the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil alone, for the day that you eat of the fruit of the forbidden tree ye shall surely die. This was the test for their age. As with the tests for all of the ages, failure would bring forth a curse. Part of that curse was the bringing of evil to the heart of mankind. Of course, the central message of the Bible is that the curse brought about by the first couple’s disobedience was put on Christ at the cross and removed from the charge of mankind for all who would believe. And we can deduce that God instructed Adam to install the blood sacrifices that pointed forward to the cross (Gen. 4:1-8 cf. Heb. 11:4)—having killed the first animal Himself and making a covering for them (Gen. 3:21). So, Adam probably had some understanding of God’s grace in this matter. But let’s consider how Adam and Eve must have hated the evil they brought into the world. Immediately, they realized that they were naked before God in their sin and that they were fallen from their blessed state of innocence. Also since the knowledge of good and evil had become a part of them, they must have had some understanding that their fellowship with God had been severed. If they also sensed the eventual corruption they had brought to their own bodies and the surety of the grave that awaited them, we can’t know. (Remember, they went into this with 100% of their reasoning powers, not the some 5% that we have today!) In His statement, I know… how thou canst not bear them which are evil, it could also be that the Lord was speaking prophetically of the hatred for sin that the first couple would feel as sin would begin tearing up their family, the human family--beginning with the death of their yet-to-be-born son, Able, who would be murdered by his brother Cain. And there would be no relief in sight, for as we know, when their family began growing, so did the effects of sin. Part of Adam and Eve's judgment must have been their longevity, for Adam lived to be 930 before the death he brought into the world took his body—930 years to watch those he loved degenerate physically and spiritually. So, if it could ever be said of anyone that they could not bear them which were evil, it had to have been the two who brought the evil into the world.
...and thou hast tried them which
say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
2:3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not
fainted.
Our Lord’s word to the Church of Ephesus, and to all believers that would eventually read it, is a masterpiece of encouragement, commendation, and reprimand. He began verse two by saying He knew their works, labor, and patience; however, He didn’t bother to say what He knew. But then He does say that He is pleased that they cannot bear them that are evil and that they are aware of the tares in their midst. Then in verse three, He recognizes their endurance and patience and He again speaks of their labor saying:
and for my name's sake hast laboured…. This is the second time that He has mentioned their labor in this short message, and from its wording, we know for sure that the labor for his name’s sake was accepted and approved. He follows this approval with a final commendation: and hast not fainted.This is not the only time that the Lord has expressed His concern for us believers that we should not faint in our walk of faith. In Luke 18:1 we read: "And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint." He followed this sage comment with the parable of the unjust judge and the persistent widow who final got her petition from the unjust judge simply because she was pestering him to death. Jesus summed up His parable saying that if the unjust judge granted her petition just to get rid of her, "…
shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? The writer of Hebrews was also concerned about the endurance of those being tried in his day, and his exhortation holds for every saint since during their periods of trials: "…consider him [Jesus] that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds (Hebrews 12:3).In Hebrews, we also see a similar concern for those being chastised of the Lord. "And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him" (Hebrews 12:5).
We would do well to remember that we all have feet of clay and we all have to walk in the dust of this world [Jn. 13:2-16])—but we should also remember that Jesus washed the feet of those who followed Him.
What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.
Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet?
Jesus answered and said unto him,
Hopefully, we are all as concerned about our walk of faith as is the Lord. If so, then we should take heed to what He is trying to tell us in these passages. If we want to be strong and not faint in our walk, then we need to pray. ("But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost" [Jude 1:20].) And if we want to keep the dust washed off of our feet, then we need to keep our basin full of the water of the Word ("That he might sanctify and cleanse it [the Church] with the washing of water by the word" [Ephesians 5:26].) I know that we have been told over and over that to do well in our Christian walk, we need to pray and to read the Bible—so often, in fact, that we have grown indifferent. Nevertheless, the old cliches are still valid: "The Bible will keep you from sin, but sin will keep you from the Bible"; "The family that prays together stays together"; etc. If upon inspection of our lives, we find that we have been ignoring our daily bread ("Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" [Mat 4:4].) and that we have been missing our quiet times with the Lord—and reaping the confusion that comes from that neglect—isn’t it time for a change? Isn’t it time to put these things in the number-one place in our lives?
2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.Who can read, "Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love" without being smitten in their heart and asking the Lord to "have mercy on me a sinner?
2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen,
Although this applies to all of us, can any of us really relate to this as did Adam and Eve?
…and repent,
How many times they must have repented?
…and do the first works;
In other words, simply believe God and not the devil.
…or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Church, don’t you know that the fallen Adam and Eve could understand all to well such a warning. And would that we might hear this today! As for the church of Ephesus, history tells us that not only was their candlestick removed, but so was their city—its ruins being unearthed in the 1800’s. I know that perfect love casts out fear, but how many of us are walking in perfect love towards God and our fellow man. Surely, if ever there was a time for some Godly fear and repentance and a time for living like we really believe God, now must be that time!
2:6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.
Nicolaitanes--The Bible tells us little about the Nicolaitanes, and tradition little more. (I've heard it preached that a deacon named Nicolas of Antioch set forth a doctrine wherein the laity in the church were to simply reverence their leaders, bring their money, and let the clergy do the rest. I don’t know what authority they're quoting. But I will agree that such a doctrine is now prevalent in most of the churches and that it has to be one of the most effective ploys ever waged against the Church’s fulfilling its great commission.)
2:7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;
All Scripture must be read in the Spirit to be understood, and this is especially true of prophecy. Nevertheless, there will come the day about which it was written and when it does, understanding of that Word will permeate the Body of Christ.
…To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.
Again, we're into prophetic language. The curse that came from eating the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil in the garden was that of being denied access to the Tree of Life. This curse was overcome at the cross for all who believe in Christ Jesus. We can see from these words of our Lord that the Tree of Life is in now in the midst of the paradise of God (heaven?) and that none of God's children will be denied its fruit. For now, though, this tree is protected by a flaming sword (the Word of God—see Gen. 3:24); i.e., none can eat of this tree without coming through the Word of God. But we should remember that Christ is the Word incarnate (John 1:1-14), and that He reveals Himself through the foolishness of preaching! (I Cor. 1:21). This is why it is so important that we obey the Lord's great commission and take His Word to the world. He that hears the Word and believes shall be saved and get to partake of the blessed fruit of the Tree of Life, we are told, while he that hears and does not believe shall have chosen eternal damnation and shall be denied the fruit of life (Mark 16:15-16)!
2:8 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write;
The
second church to which John was to send a copy of his revelations was located in Smyrna,
a port town on the W. coast of Asia Minor. It is thought that Izmir of Turkey stands where
Smyrna was located. In John's day Smyrna was under Roman rule, and in Smyrna there was a
temple dedicated to the Roman ruler Tiberius who claimed to be deity, which was not
uncommon among the rulers of the day. His temple was only one of several temples where
people worshipped all kinds of idols.
…These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;
Again, we see important titles that belong to Christ. These are titles that He earned by His redeeming work of Calvary; and as such they belong to the ages that need a Savior which begin with the second age, the Age of Conscience. In I Cor. 15:20-22, we read: "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." This second age was the first age wherein death ruled in man and wherein Satan could glory in what he had done; but his glory was short lived (heaven's time). At the cross Christ not only undid what the devil had done, but He used the devil's apparent victory to set man where He had originally intended him to be. That is, because of what Christ did for us, we are now over the angels, positionally (the devils included [Heb. 2.5-8]), and at His level (I Jn. 3:2) as His brethren and as joint-heirs with Him (Ro. 8:17).
2:9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.
2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried;
As with the messages to the other six churches, the initial word here was for a Church under persecution; but for this church, the persecution had progressed to tribulation. In fact, the same element in Israel that was responsible for our Lord’s crucifixion was still playing havoc with His Church. For this reason, it's understandable that this Word would be especially meaningful for any generation that must go through persecution/tribulation for His name's sake from the time of Christ's ascent to the time of His return. (This holds especially true for the martyrs of the first generation of the Church as well as those of the last generation of the age that will go through the great tribulation that is to try the whole world.)
…and ye shall have tribulation ten days:
ye shall have tribulation ten days." In the numbering system of the Bible, the number 10 indicates God/man's full responsibility to the lost. (See booklet eight, chapter 30 of the Clock of the Ages) In our age this responsibility is met by those who are faithful to the Lord with their lives and the word of their testimony. However, the number ten as used here might also stand for the total responsibility of God/man to the lost of the remaining six ages of mankind from the second age forward. After all, God has always had (and always will have) a faithful few of every generation of every age to help Him seek the lost; and it has always been the faithful who have suffered persecution on His behalf.Scriptural numerology comes to play with the statement, "…
…be thou faithful unto death,
This statement also smacks prophetically of the second age/the Age of Conscience. The key player in both the Age of Innocence and the Age of Conscience was Adam who did not die the natural death until Noah’s father was 56 years old. In the Age of Innocence, God’s command to Adam was not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. In the Age of Conscience, His command was to be faithful unto the death. (The death that Adam’s disobedience had brought into the world.) This brings up the question, to what was he to be faithful? Obviously, he was to be faithful to God, but how was he to be faithful? We don’t know everything that God told Adam, but from the Scriptures we can deduce that Adam and all of his offspring were to be faithful to the law written in their hearts and the conscience given in place of the spirit there in the garden. (This was the basis of the covenant of the Age of Conscience.)
…and I will give thee a crown of life.
The Believer’s crown of life is not to be confused with his salvation/relationship to God in Christ Jesus. It is always used in the Scriptures to refer to the rewards awaiting those who have been faithful to God. The Scriptures are clear that the rewards awaiting the Believers in the next life will vary according to their faithfulness; and those who have been faithful to the death will have greater rewards than those who loved their life unto the death. In fact, it might be a fair assessment to say that if one does not receive some sort of persecution somewhere in their walk of faith, they should check the level of their commitment and their faithfulness to the Lord Jesus.
2:11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;
Again, this is a closed book until the Spirit of Christ opens our minds and hearts.
…He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.
The final word to the second church is a "glory hallelujah"—an exclamatory punctuation to the prophetic content of the Bible. Because of what our big brother has done, we’ve won! Consequently, the death that Adam brought on the human race the day that he ate of the tree—the death of the spirit (the second death that passed on to his seed from the Age of Conscience forward)—cannot hurt those who are in Christ Jesus!
2:12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write;
The third church was located in Pergamos,
the capital of Mysia, which had become a part of the Roman Empire. It was a wealthy town,
being the capital of the newly formed providence of Asia under Roman rule. As such, its
culture reflected the times—including the presence of many temples to the gods and
goddesses of the day, even having a temple where the Caesar of Rome could be worshipped.
…These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
--Sadly, the Word of God is not Bread, and Water, and Life to most, but a Sword--a flaming Sword at the entrance to the Garden of Eden to keep unconverted man from the tree of life; and a twoedged sword to come against and to eventually destroy the enemies of Christ. And by the way, as strange as it may seem, Israel and the New Testament Church have been the ones chosen to handle this Sword. And to add to this enigma, the Church is to wield this Sword in love. "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you" (Mat 5:44).sharp sword with two edges
The two edges of the sword have some applications that are worth considering.
One interpretation has to do with the two ways that the Word of God has been given to man: i.e., oral tradition and written. The oral was from Adam to Moses. As far as we know, there was nothing written until Moses. However, when God and Moses where alone on Mt. Sinai in the cloud of glory [Exodus 19:20], God undoubtedly gave Moses understanding of the important things that transpired during the time that the Word was being passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. Actually, oral tradition, as the process of orally handing down the Word of God is called, is not as haphazard as it might first sound. If we'll recall, during the early periods of time, longevity was in effect. In fact, only three generations were responsible for bringing God's word from the fall to the flood: Adam (930 yrs.), Lamech (Noah's father) was 56 when Adam died, and then Noah. From the flood to Abraham was similar. Noah lived to be 950 (600 years before the flood and 350 years after). He died only two years before Abram (Abraham) was born. From Moses day forward God appointed men to write and to carefully preserve His Word to mankind. (They were called the Scribes and the rewriting and preservation of the Scriptures were their only tasks.) Hence, one interpretation of the two edges could possibly be that it will have been in effect during both the period of "oral tradition" and the times when it was "written" which covers the whole of man’s existence on the earth.
Another interpretation applies to just the written era of the Word. It suggests that the two edges of sword represent the time of the law and the time of grace. According to this symbolism, Heb. 4:12 could be read thusly: For the word of God is quick [alive], and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul [Age of the Law] and spirit [Age of Grace], and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. "Powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit"—this could be speaking to both the Age of the Law wherein men worshipped God in their souls, and through outward acts such as sacrifices, and the Age of Grace wherein the body of the believer is the temple of the Holy Spirit and men worship God in spirit and truth in the inner/closet part of man. Whatever the interpretation, be it either, or neither, or both; we need to remember that the Sword of the Spirit is not against the believer, but against the enemies of Christ and of His Church.
2:13 I know thy works, and where thou dwellest,
Here, Jesus is encouraging the believers by reminding them that He hasn't forgot their labors of love and their faith in the face of adversity. (We need to remember that during the first 100 years or so of the Church's existence, it suffered not only verbal persecution, but it was often subjected to pain, prison, and martyrdom because of its faith.)
…even where Satan's seat is:
The term "Satan’s seat" has to do with his allocated power. The term "the prince of the power of the air" (Eph. 2:2) suggests that his domain is limited to this earth which, as far as we know, is the only place that God has created where life is dependent upon air. (For more terms assigned to Satan, Go to Easton's Bible Dictionary and look under "D" for devil and demon, and under "S" for Satan. But the actual seat of his power is in the hearts of men and women. He has been given permission to operate in the "playgrounds" of disobedience, doubt, sluggardism, perversion…(I Tim.1:9-10). This is why he is also known as "…the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" (Eph. 2:2).
Satan mainly exerts his power in two fronts: religion and wealth—both of which wield power in the world system.
RELIGION: Up to AD 70, it would seem that Satan's "seat" in organized religion was in Jerusalem; more explicitly, it was in the hearts of those Jews who had rejected their Messiah and had Him crucified. The hatred he stirred against the Christ and His followers continued on long after Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70. But after the Hebrews lost their clout in the world, Satan began planting his tares in the newly organized New Testament church (Matthew 13:25-40).
WEALTH: As impressive as Satan’s power over man is through organized religion, his control via wealth, political power, and fame (recognition among men) is even greater. It was with these enticements that he had sucked Israel into his system and accomplished what he did during the Visitation and the fledgling days of the New Church. And it was with these things that he built his main "seat" (place of authority as the prince of the powers of the air): i.e., the mysterious, prophetic Babylon the Great that rules over the world’s system. This is where the prophetic portion of the message to the third church—which refers back to the third age—comes to play. Noah was the main character in the third age which is known as the Age of Human Government. If you’ll recall, this age began after the universal flood and its covenant contained a continuation of the previous covenants plus the installation of the present "man over man" form of government.
(Click here to go the STUDY CHART OF THE AGES and THEIR COVENANTS.) In this new covenant the people were instructed to scatter and replenish the earth. Satan immediately began pulling then together and his first real success against man on this side of the flood was at Babylon. All of his enticing powers lay at its foundation; and as a slap at God, he got the men there to build a tall tower into the heavens. He may have told them that if they would, God could come down and talk with them as he did with Adam in the cool of the evening. Who knows? At any rate, this was nothing but a repeat of Cain's attempt to make God receive him on his own merits (Genesis 4:1-7). In response to their disobedience, God sent the confusion of tongues and scattered the families of the earth (Genesis 11:9). (The different races may have come about at this time as well.) It was at this time that Satan firmly established his "seat" and it has been a blight on man ever since. However, as we'll soon see in our study, just as the returning Christ will undo the curses brought on by Satan in the other ages, He will also undo the curses accompanying the tower of Babel. He will also dismantle and destroy Satan's mysterious Babylon the Great and set up His rule of peace in its stead when He returns at the end of our age. …and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.Again, this is a word of encouragement from our Lord and Savior; and it applies to anyone at anytime who is being oppressed or persecuted for His name's sake.
Christ is waving a red flag at His Church again, this time alerting it to the error of Balac the king of the idol worshipers all around Israel. Because Balac knew he couldn't whip Israel militarily (for God was on their side), to no avail, he tried to hire Balaam the prophet to get God to curse His people. Nevertheless, Balaam refused to give up the money offered him by Balac, so, with cunning inspired of the devil, Balaam made peace with the Moabites and convinced the Israelites to follow suit. Bottom line, what Satan couldn't do militarily, he did by infiltration, for the Israelites eventually turned away from God to false idols and perverted sexual practices which brought the forewarned curses upon their land. 2:15 So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate. 2:16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches;
Again we see those with the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes (see verse 6 above), only this church had made peace with them. They are given the choice of repenting or of suffering with the idol worshippers when God’s judgment is brought to bear according to the Scriptures.
…To him that overcometh…
Click here for an overview of the overcoming/overcomers in the Bible.
…will I give to eat of the hidden manna,…Click here for an overview of "manna."…will I give…this is yet in the future. The true manna would not be revealed for three more ages, until the Age of Grace (John 6)—although the type of the true manna was to be given in the Age of the Law (Ex. 16).
…and will give him a white stone,…
This is the only mentioning of a white stone in the Bible. The believers (the sons of God) are often referred to as stones (cf. John 1:42 & 1 Peter 2:5) and white stands for holiness. Who is the only man to serve God of whom this could be said? Well, it can't be Abraham; for though he was a lively stone he was one of flesh and fault; and the Bible didn’t hide Peter’s shortcomings. Even the Virgin Mary had to wait in the upper room to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit and to be born again into the family of God (Acts 1:12-13). This "white stone" can only be ascribed to one person, the Son of Man—one of the titles of Jesus the Christ.
Although Abraham is the key figure in the Age of Promise to come, his extraordinary faith with which he overcame was exemplified while he was still living in the Age of Human Government. Because of his faith he was called and instructed in his walk which would begin the next age, the Age of Promise. As to the hidden manna, when Christ came to visit him, giving him his call, his work, and his place in the kingdom, Abraham got to eat of the true Bread that came down from heaven in a unique way. And as to the white stone, what a beautiful way to typify the SEED (singular) of which Paul talked about in Galatians 3:16, "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ" (cf. Gen. 21:12; Gen. 22:15-18)).
So, not only has Christ poured Himself out for us at Calvary so that we might be more than conquerors*, but throughout eternity He will give the white stone (Himself) to them that overcome. And He will do this in a way that will transcend and supercede our "joy unspeakable and full of glory"—our little foretaste of heaven that we’ve known down here. (*Note, a conqueror must be strong enough to keep what he gains or his conquests will have been in vain. For the Christians, Christ not only won our hearts and our salvation at the cross, but He keeps them both by His own might. In this, we are more than conquerors [Romans 8:37].)
…and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
For the nation of Israel, this will take place during the Kingdom Age just as Jesus in a theophany (i.e., one of His visits in the OT in his NT form) promised Abraham concerning his posterity (Genesis 17:5; Genesis 18:17-18). Of the day when the promise would be fulfilled, Isaiah wrote, "And the Gentiles shall see thy glory [Israel's]: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD shall name" (Is. 62:2).…a new name written…
NOTE—In the messages to the first two of the seven churches, each one was punctuated with a final positive reference to the applicable prophetic age. Each reference dealt with God’s eventual removal of the curses that men had brought into the world because of failing to keep their part of the covenant of their respective ages. The imagery in this one follows suit. Man’s rule of man in God’s stead had failed. The confusion and distrust of the different languages (?and races?) combined with the shortened life spans had scattered man and diffused his abilities. However, when Christ (the White Stone/Manna from heaven) sets up His Kingdom that will rule for the thousand years of peace, the effect of these curses will be undone. During the millenium, with restored longevity, (Isa. 65:18-21; Zech. 18:4-5) the things that man will be able to achieve will defy the imagination— especially when we consider that the Creator Himself will be in charge and calling the shots.
2:18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write;
…These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;
The fourth church was located in Thyatira of Asia, a small city that probably housed a military garison because of its location on a well-used road between two populated areas. Its only real claim to fame is that it is in the Bible.
These descriptives identify Christ as deity, as the One who tries the hearts of men, and as the One Who became a man and went through His own unique testings and trials. ("For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings" [Heb. 2:10]).
2:19 I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.
Again, we see a word that is more of an encouragement than it is a commendation, although it could be read as a commendation, and usually is. (The Lord knows how badly we need both.)
However, there is a mystery here, and it is one that alludes me. "I know thy works…and thy works; and the last to be more than the first." From my experiences in Bible study, I dare say that this is not double talk as it first appears. If this statement is viewed more as an encouragement than it is as a commendation, the two "works" could be seen as referring to the two opposing kinds of work in the church; i.e., the work energized by the love of God and the work from self-righteousness/self-effort. If the statement is viewed more as a commendation, the two "works" could be simply referring to the two kinds of work possible for the Christian: i.e., the work prompted by duty and the work prompted by the leading of the Holy Spirit. Or the two "works" could be as some later versions (interpretations) of the Bible say; i.e., the works done early on and the works done later. But then again, it could be that this wording is for another day, and that the meaning will be very significant to those who receive it. 2:20 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication,The mentioning of Jezebel brings to mind the time of Ahab, a king of Israel during the Age of the Law, who's wife, Jezebel, killed many of the prophets and priests of Israel and installed her prophets of the god Baal in their place. A little research about Baal will show us that back in the Age of Promise when God was beginning a work with Abraham, Satan was also busy in the surrounding communities installing his false gods and idols. Under Satan’s influence each of these communities adopted their own god(s) which were referred to as "baal" (with a little "b"). This was because the original meaning of "baal" was master or owner in the same sense that a husband controlled his household. The heathens of Abraham's day assigned this connotation to the gods they had created in their minds, putting them in control of their crops and their destinies. Eventually "baal" evolved into Baal, the bigger-than-life, universal personality that Jezebel worshiped. Because of the way Jezebel embodied Satan's hatred for God and his rough-shod ways over man, she is used in the Book of Revelations as a type of false religion and idol worship—all of which will be done away at the end time by the One True Living God in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. …and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.
Let’s consider the message again as it applies to the local church to which it was sent. Perhaps they actually had a woman named Jezebel in their midst--or maybe there was a woman who was acting like Jezebel of old—seducing God's children to commit spiritual fornication. At any rate, God's displeasure with their tolerance of her was obvious, and it should serve as a warning to every church of every generation since. In addition, the word to these seven churches apply to every local body since the Church’s inception on the "If the shoe fits, wear it!" basis. Although in today’s churches, we don't have problems with meat offered to idols at various temples, if meat in the Scriptures is doing the work of God (Jn. 4:34), then the busy, religious segment in our churches who are in competitive, self-willed activities and causing discord among the brethren might very well be said to be eating meat offered up to devils. 2:21 And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.
2:22 Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they
repent of their deeds.Every church should take this dire warning to the 4th church to heart, for it is a fearful thing to thus fall into the hands of the Living God (Heb. 10:31). We need to heed this word as individuals as well; and if we see our church heading this way, we need to come out from among their spiritual adultery or get caught up in their judgment. As we can see from this passage, such judgment can be very grievous. 2:23 And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.
A literal fulfillment of this warning was accomplished during the time of the great persecutions of the early Church when all life was cheap and the swords of the Roman soldiers (and those who tried to resist them) stayed bloody. 2:24 But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.
2:25 But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.
Prophetically, this word to the fourth church correlates to the Age of Promise. "…I will put upon you none other burden..." This language to the fourth church brings to mind the fourth Age, the Age of Promise, and its accompanying covenant which was the most gracious covenant of all the ages. Just worship God as per the previous covenants and abide in the land that He had promised, and they would inherit the blessing.
2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.
This language brings to mind Matthew 24:13. Of the descendants of Abraham that will be living at the time of the catastrophic Tribulation Period at the end of our age, Jesus told His disciples:
"But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." And not only will the remnant be saved, but after Christ returns from heaven with His Bride and His army, the remnant of Israel will be key players in the kingdom that He will establish in Jerusalem. Under King Jesus, Israel will again be a world power and rule with Him for a thousand years, but this time with a glory that will make Solomon’s reign pale by comparison.2:28 And I will give him the morning star.
2:29 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
In this message to the fourth church, we also see the fulfillment of a covenant promise given to Abraham, the key player in the fourth age, the Age of Promise. The covenant promise to Abraham is found in Genesis 17:4. "As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations." Also at this time, as Joseph served his brothers who had once wanted him dead, so will
Israel’s Morning Star/King Jesus, rejoice to have his brethren, the sons of Jacob, in His court at His side. NOTICEWe've committed ourselves to this study of the Book of Revelations. There’s more coming, so keep an open eye. If we seem a little slow on our WRAP AROUNDS, it's because we are dividing ourselves between these two chores--in addition to all of our other work. Bear with us and pray for us and we'll all be blessed.
Return to the LAUNCH PAGE for our study of Revelations