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Verse Commentaries:
Chapter Level Commentary:
FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL
This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired but it is the key to following the original author's intent which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.
1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Third paragraph
4. Etc.
GENERAL BACKGROUND
A. This literary unit (chapters 2-3) is connected to the OT titles for YHWH used of the Messiah (cf. Rev_1:12-20). This is one way the NT author affirmed Jesus' Deity. John's revelation transfers Old Testament titles and actions of YHWH to Jesus, the ascended, glorified Messiah.
B. Its purpose is to show the spiritual needs of these first century churches, and by analogy, all churches (i.e., the number seven). John's ministry in his old age was in Asia Minor, especially in Ephesus. John is obviously well acquainted with these churches and cities. These letters show the ethical aspect of Christianity. They are a call to faithfulness and godliness. The church will also be judged (cf. 2Co_5:10).
C. There were many churches in the Roman province of Asia Minor in John's day. Why did the author only write to seven of them?
1. It is the biblical number to denote perfection (cf. Genesis 1). There are numerous literary structures of sevens in John's prophecy.
2. These churches formed a travel route, starting at Ephesus and ending at Laodicea. It was possibly the Imperial postage route.
3. They are to some extent representative of the types of churches found in every age and culture.
D. What is the significance of this literary unit to us today?
1. Some interpret these churches as prophetic descriptions of Western history from Pentecost to the Second Coming
a. Ephesus = the Apostolic Period, a.d. 33-100 (Pentecost to John)
b. Smyrna = the Period of Persecution, a.d. 100-313 (John to Constantine)
c. Pergamum = the Period of Constantine, a.d. 313-590 (Constantine to Gregory)
d. Thyatira = Papal Rome, A.D. 590-1517 (Gregory to Luther)
e. Sardis = Reformation, A.D. 1517-1792 (Luther - Carey)
f. Philadelphia = Modern Missionary Movement, a.d. 1792-1914 (Carey to rapture)
g. Laodicea = Period of Apostasy, A.D. 1914 - Parousia (WWI - Parousia)
This is a relatively recent interpretative grid which has come to characterize "Dispensational Premillennialism" (which usually sees Matthew 13 as a parallel to the 7 churches). However, there is nothing in the text itself to commend this view. Although some aspects of western history fit this scheme, others do not. It is arrogant to assert that the Bible was written exclusively to address only western culture. Such a scheme would have been meaningless to a first century audience.
2. Some interpret these churches as a representative sample of the types of churches which are found in all ages and cultures.
E. One of the books that has helped me interpret prophecy/apocalyptic is D. Brent Sandy, Plowshares and Pruning Hooks: Rethinking the Language of Biblical Prophecy and Apocalyptic. He makes an interesting theological point about all the promises made to faithful believers in chapters 2-3 (pp. 28-32). He lists the promises as
1. the tree of life
2. the crown of life
3. the white stone
4. authority over the nations
5. the Morning Star
6. dressed in white
7. a pillar in God's temple
8. the name of God
9. the name of Jerusalem
10. sit on God's throne
He says these are not meant to be interpreted literally or individually, but as a corporate fulfillment, as is seen in Rev_21:3. I think this is a proper hermeneutical approach to this genre.
STRUCTURAL UNITY OF THE SEVEN LETTERS
A. Many commentators see a seven element structure present in most letters, although not all seven are present in every church.
1. Jesus' common address "to the angel of the church of write . . ." (cf. Rev_2:1; Rev_2:8; Rev_2:12; Rev_2:18; Rev_3:1; Rev_3:7; Rev_3:14).
2. Description of Jesus taken from Rev_1:12-20, which are Old Testament titles and actions of YHWH, introduce each message.
3. Jesus' knowledge of the churches, both positive and negative, "I know . . ." (cf. Rev_2:2; Rev_2:9; Rev_2:13; Rev_2:19; Rev_3:1; Rev_3:8; Rev_3:15).
4. Jesus addresses the individual churches and their cultural, geographical and spiritual opportunities.
5. Jesus speaks of His sudden, soon coming, either in temporal judgment or the Second Coming, (cf. Rev_1:1; Rev_1:3; Rev_2:5; Rev_2:16; Rev_2:25; Rev_3:3; Rev_3:11).
6. Jesus admonishes spiritual hearing and understanding, (cf. Rev_2:7; Rev_2:11; Rev_2:17; Rev_2:29; Rev_3:6; Rev_3:13; Rev_3:22). Jesus used "He who has an ear, let him hear" in the Gospels (cf. Mat_11:15; Mat_13:9; Mat_13:43; Mar_4:24.)
7. Jesus promises a reward for faithful followers, (cf. Rev_2:7; Rev_2:11; Rev_2:17; Rev_2:25-26; Rev_3:4-5; Rev_3:11-12; Rev_3:21).
These seven steps are not consistent in each letter. The order changes and some elements are left out in certain churches, but overall this structure shows one of several of John's seven-fold literary structures.
THE CITIES TO WHICH THE LETTERS WERE DIRECTED
A. Ephesus
1. It was the largest city of the Roman province of Asia Minor. It was not the capital, though the Roman governor lived there. It was a commercial center because of its excellent natural harbor.
2. It was a free city, which allowed it to have local government and much freedom, including no garrison of Roman soldiers.
3. It was the only city which was allowed to hold the biannual Asian games.
4. It was the site of the Temple to Artemis (Diana in Latin), which was one of the seven wonders of the world of its day. It was 425' x 220' with 127 columns which were 60' tall; 86 of them were overlaid with gold (see Pliny's Hist. Nat. 36:95 ff). The image of Artemis was thought to have been a meteor which resembled a many breasted female figure. This meant that there were many cultic prostitutes present in the city (cf. Acts 19). It was a very immoral, multicultural city.
5. Paul stayed in this city more than three years (cf. Act_18:18 ff; Act_20:13).
6. Tradition asserts that it became John's home after Mary's death in Palestine.
B. Smyrna
1. It was supposedly founded by an Amazon (strong woman leader) named Smyrna. In John's day it was a city of about 200,000.
2. It was located on the Aegean Sea. It had an ideal natural harbor and was, therefore, a commercial center surpassed only by Ephesus in Asia Minor. It was a very wealthy city.
3. It was destroyed by the Lydians about 600 b.c., but was rebuilt by Lysimicus following Alexander the Great's plans whereby the sea breeze blew down every street.
4. It was also a free city because it had helped the retreating Roman soldiers after their defeat by Mithradates.
5. It was a center of worship of the goddess Roma (195 b.c.) and Emperor worship. It had the first temple to Emperor Tiberius (A.D. 26).
6. It was a religious center with the worship of Cybele and the pantheon of Homer. There was even a tradition that Homer was born here. Its many temples were located on the Acropolis called Pagos with a golden road between the Temple of Zeus and Cybele.
7. It had a large active anti-Christian Jewish population.
8. It was the city in which Polycarp (John the Apostle's disciple) was martyred in a.d. 155.
C. Pergamum
1. It was a large wealthy city and the capital of Asia Minor (since 282 b.c.), although not located on a major trade road.
2. It boasted of the largest library in the Roman world outside of Alexandria, Egypt. It had over 200,000 parchment scrolls!
3. Vellum was invented here. It was processed animal skins which were used for writing. This writing medium was developed because Alexandria, Egypt, refused to sell them papyrus reeds. This was because their king, Eumenes II (197-159 b.c.) tried to hire Alexandria's librarian, Aristophanes. When the Ptolemian king, Epiphanes (205-182 b.c.) of Alexandria found out, he arrested the librarian and embargoed papyri from Pergamum. There was a real rivalry between these two learning centers. Anthony later sent Pergamum's library to Alexandria as a present to Cleopatra.
4. It was the home of Galen the physician and the center of the healing arts of Asclepios. It is even said that Asclepios was "a Pergamum god." The symbol for this god was the snake.
5. It also had a temple to Roma and the Emperor Augustus (A.D. 29) and was the administrative center (neokopros) of the Emperor's cult. Its loyalty to Rome was well known.
6. It was known for its worship and defense of the Greek pantheon. There was a huge Temple to Zeus on the acropolis that overlooked the whole city. It was shaped like a throne (i.e.,Satan's throne).
D. Thyatira
1. It was a smaller trade-oriented city. There are many records of its numerous and flourishing trade guilds, each with its own patron deity. It was located on a major road between Pergamum and Sardis which continued on to Philadelphia and Laodicea. It was famous for its woolen products. Lydia (cf. Act_16:14), a seller of purple cloth, was from this city.
2. It was enlarged by Seleucus Nicateo, who settled his Macedonian soldiers here.
3. It had several temples to local deities
a. Tyrimnos (Apollo) – the sun god
b. Artemis (Diana) – the love goddess
c. Sibyl Sambathe – a local female fortune teller
E. Sardis
1. It was a large, wealthy ancient city. For years it was the opulent capital of the Lydian Empire because of its superb military position, 1500' up on a mountain spur. It is mentioned in Persian records because Cyrus the Great captured the city. It is also mentioned in Oba_1:20. It had greatly declined by John's day.
2. It was noted for its dyed wool products. The process was invented there, so they claimed.
3. It was the center of the worship of Cybele, the mother goddess. The ruins of the temple are still visible on the acropolis. The excesses of this worship were known and deplored throughout the Roman Empire.
F. Philadelphia
1. It was located on a plateau and was protected by water. This made it a highly desirable military position. It was the newest of the seven cities. It was founded by Attalus II (159 - 138 b.c.).
2. It was located on a major trade route to Sardis and it had flourished.
3. It was located in a fine agriculture area, especially for grapes. The god Bacchus, or Dionysus, was one of its chief deities. It was also an active earthquake area and was destroyed in the huge quake of a.d. 17, which also destroyed ten other major cities of the area. However, the after-shocks continued in this area and the population moved to the surrounding countryside.
4. It was also a center for the Emperor's cult (as were Smyrna and Pergamum) which was possibly the source of much of the Churches' persecution in the provinces.
5. It was a major center of Hellenistic culture and aggressively exported its influence. It seems to have been founded for this very purpose on the border of Mysia, Lydia and Phrygia.
G. Laodicea on the Lychus River
1. It was one of three cities in the Lychus River valley (the other cities were Colossae and Hierapolis). Churches were founded in each of these three cities, probably by Paul's convert, Epaphras (cf. Col_1:17; Col_4:12-13).
2. It was founded by the Seleucid ruler, Antiochus II, who named it after his wife, Laodice, in 250 b.c. It was located on a militarily defensible site like Philadelphia.
3. It was located on a major east/west trade route. It was noted as a banking center.
4. It was located in a fertile agricultural and pastoral region, especially suited for raising a special black sheep for which it became famous worldwide. It mass-produced a black outer garment called a "trimeta."
5. It had a very large Jewish population.
6. It, like Pergamum, was a center for the worship of the healing god Asclepios. The city was the site of a medical school which was noted for its ear and eye salve.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought provoking, not definitive.
1. Why does John's prophecy of the end-times begin with a letter to seven (and only seven) churches in Asia Minor?
2. Why does each letter begin with a description of Christ from chapter 1?
3. How do these letters relate to the Church today?
4. How do you interpret these strong warnings addressed to these churches?
5. How does the doctrine of "once saved, always saved" relate to the warnings and call to perseverance in these letters?
6. Why is Rev_3:20 not a salvation promise?
7. How is the next literary unit related to the letters to the seven churches? Will God spare the end-time believers from persecution, but not the believers of the first century?