Tyndale Open Study NotesRevelation 2

The seven messages to the seven churches show the condition of Christ's church when Revelation was written, and it is similar today. God still calls Christians to be faithful and honest. Those who listen to Christ's message will receive God's promised rewards. Those who do not will face judgment.

The letter to the church in Ephesus speaks to Christians who follow traditions. They are faithful but have lost their early, strong love for Christ and each other (see Revelation 2:5).

• To the angel … write: This repeated command introducing each of the seven letters shows the message's importance.

• Ephesus became the main city of the Roman province of Asia. It had the temple of Artemis (see Acts 19:23–35) and became the richest banking center in that region. The people of Ephesus were very independent. They refused help from Alexander to rebuild their temple after its destruction in the 300s BC. They argued that one god should not build a temple for another god (see Strabo, Geography 14.1.22). The pride of the Ephesians also led to the uproar against Paul (Acts 19:23–41).

• I know: This repeated refrain (Revelation 2:9, 13, 19; 3:1, 8, 15) shows Christ knows everything about his people, their actions, and their situations.

• The Ephesian Christians had a correct understanding of their beliefs, marked by perseverance and faithfulness. They examined various claims, disciplined evil people, could tell what is true and false, and patiently suffered for their faith in Christ.

You have abandoned your first love: When the church began, their love for Christ and each other was strong. Struggles with false teachers and persecution caused that original love to grow cold. Correct beliefs, action, and even suffering (Revelation 2:2–3) are only an empty form of Christian life if living and active love is missing (1 Corinthians 13).

Christ calls those who keep the faith to return to him and repent of being cold-hearted. The warning, I will come and remove your lampstand, means they would lose their status as a church. God would treat them like he did the people who abandoned their faith within Israel (see Romans 11).

Little is known about the Nicolaitans. Their teachings (Revelation 2:15) suggest they ate food offered to idols and engaged in sexual immorality. The council in Jerusalem prohibited this behavior (see Acts 15:20, 29). The early church father Irenaeus, writing around AD 180, said that the Nicolaitans followed the teaching of Nicolas (Acts 6:3–5). He believed John's writings opposed the Nicolaitan false teachings linked to Cerinthus (see 1 John Book Introduction, “Setting”).

Obeying leads to the reward of eternal life, symbolized by fruit from the tree of life (Revelation 22:2; Genesis 3:22).

The letter to the church in Smyrna describes suffering Christians under intense pressures who need a message of assurance. Smyrna represents a small church that stays faithful to God despite difficult times.

The seaport village of Smyrna was destroyed and rebuilt many times. Like Christ, the city was once dead but is now alive. It is the only one of the seven cities that still exists today as Izmir in modern Turkey.

• Jesus linked material poverty with the blessing of being rich in God's Kingdom (Matthew 5:3, 10–12; Luke 6:20).

• Jews without faith are criticized for siding with Satan against Christianity (Revelation 3:9; see John 8:44; Acts 14:2–5; 17:13; 18:6; 20:3; Galatians 5:11; 1 Thessalonians 2:14–16). At the Jewish council of Jamnia, Jewish leaders decided that Christians were unholy and should be excluded. John was not speaking against Jewish people as a whole. He was a Jew describing the actions of some of his fellow Jews toward both Jewish and non-Jewish Christians.

• John saw the devil as the source of human hostility against Christians.

• The period of their suffering would last ten days, symbolizing a limited time of persecution (see 1 Peter 1:6). If they remained faithful, their reward would be the crown of eternal life.

• even unto death: John’s student Polycarp became a martyr in Smyrna in the mid-100s AD.

Staying faithful until death is seen as a victory. Overcoming the second death means gaining eternal life (see Revelation 20:5–6, 14; 21:8).

The letter to the church in Pergamum describes Christians facing temptations to compromise their morals and loyalty to God. Pergamum was the first capital of the Roman province of Asia. The city had a famous library, and its people developed the use of animal skins for writing.

Christ's sharp, double-edged sword shows that these Christians would face the Lord’s harshest judgment (see Revelation 2:16; see study note on Revelation 1:16). The double-edged sword was a Roman symbol of authority, representing Pergamum as the province's capital. If the church failed, Christ, the true governor of the city, would use his authority against them.

• The throne of Satan might refer to the altar of Zeus on the mountain above the city or to emperor worship at the temple of Augustus. For many years, the Roman governor had his throne there, and the great temple of Athena and other shrines were also in Pergamum. Calling it Satan’s city might also refer to the temple of Asclepius, whose symbol was coiled snakes. The city was dedicated to the Roman gods and emperor worship.

• Antipas is otherwise unknown.

• Some people in Pergamum mixed Christianity with pagan beliefs and took part in immoral activities. John compares them to Balaam, who led Israel into sin (see Numbers 25:1–3; 2 Peter 2:15; Jude 1:11).

• Nicolaitans: see study note on Revelation 2:6.

• Those who stay faithful to Christ will receive manna, which is nourishment from heaven (see Exodus 16:11–36).

• hidden manna: During the exodus, people placed a jar of manna in the ark of the covenant (Exodus 16:33–36). Jewish tradition said that when the Messiah (God's chosen one) comes, the ark will reappear, and people will eat manna at the messianic banquet. Jesus is the bread from heaven and the bread of life (John 6:32–35; compare Exodus 16:4–21).

• A white stone was often given to winners in athletic competitions, and people commonly used a white stone for admission to special banquets or festivities. It suggests acceptance and victory.

• The new name probably refers to the recipient’s transformed nature in Christ (see Genesis 17:5; 32:28; John 1:42).

The letter to the church in Thyatira warns Christians against combining their faith with pagan practices and worldly behaviors.

• Thyatira was an outpost city known for its many trade guilds, including weavers and dyers (Acts 16:14).

• The flaming eyes of the Son of God show deep perception. The solid feet represent Christ's stability, contrasting with the famous Colossus of Rhodes. This enormous statue was once thought to be stable until an earthquake destroyed it in 226 BC.

Christ praises the Thyatirans for their knowledge and understanding of everything.

The mention of Jezebel, who led Israel into idol worship and immoral behavior (1 Kings 16:31–33; 21:5–26), highlights a serious issue. Like the Old Testament queen who led the worship of Baal (see 1 Kings 16:31; 18:4; 19:1–3), this unknown Jezebel claimed to be a prophet but was leading God's people into immorality. This included sexual misconduct and forming idolatrous alliances and actions (Exodus 34:15–16; Psalm 106:39; Isaiah 57:7–8).

Through messengers like John, Christ gave this false prophet a chance to repent for her wrong teachings and actions. However, like many others, she refused (compare Revelation 9:20–21).

• Christ’s judgment on this “Jezebel” and on those who follow her takes place in three stages:

  1. Jezebel will suffer on a sickbed;

  2. her followers will experience great suffering; and

  3. her children will die (compare Acts 5:5, 10; 1 Corinthians 11:30).

  This judgment is similar to the plagues on Egypt, which ended with the deaths of Egypt's firstborn sons (see Exodus 12:29–30).

• God knows people's thoughts and intentions (see Jeremiah 17:10; Acts 1:24; Hebrews 4:12–13). He gives each person the judgment that person deserves (see Revelation 22:12; Jeremiah 17:10; Matthew 16:27).

The phrase deep things of Satan might refer to the Gnostic god Bythos (which means "Depth"). In some Gnostic writings, Bythos is the source of other spiritual beings. His partner Sigē (which means "Silence") completes this divine pair. Gnostic groups often taught that people could reach salvation through secret knowledge.

• Christ promises that those who obey will share authority with him. This is symbolized by the iron rod that will break the opposition like clay pots (quoting Psalm 2:8–9; compare Revelation 12:5; 19:15).

• The morning star is the planet Venus, which signals the coming of a new day. Here, it refers to the promise of resurrection when Christ returns (Revelation 22:16; 2 Peter 1:19).