Here we find the letters to the seven churches and thus to the complete (symbolism of the number 7) church. This is the second half of the vision of Christ.

Instead of continuing to mark new paragraphs with "I heard" or "I saw," now a new section begins with: "To the angel of the church in ... write..." This emphasizes that this vision that is seen and heard is to be written down. Next John points to the parts of the vision of Christ. Ephesus: "The words of Him who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands" (Rev 2:1). Smyrna: "The words of the First and the Last, who died and came to life" (Rev 2:8). Pergamum: The words of Him who has the sharp two-edged sword" (Rev 2:12). Thyatira: "The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze" (Rev 2:18). Sardis: "The words of Him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars" (Rev 3:1). Philadelphia: "The words of the Holy One, the True One, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens" (Rev 3:7). Laodicea: "The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation" (Rev 3:14).

The allusions to the vision of Christ opening each are relevant to the circumstances of each particular church. First, Jesus walks among the golden lampstands (Rev 2:1) and can "come to you and remove your lampstand from its place" (Rev 2:5). Second, Jesus is "the First and the Last, who died and came to life" (Rev 2:8) and the people need to "be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Rev 2:10). Third, Jesus' words are "the sharp two-edged sword" (Rev 2:12) and if they do not repent "I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth" (Rev 2:16). Fourth, Jesus "has eyes like a flame of fire" (Rev 2:18) and "I am He who searches mind and heart" (Rev 2:23). And etc.

After mentioning something about the vision of Christ, usually then Christ gives the strengths of that church, but either way the paragraph begins "I know [often: "your works"]." Ephesus: "I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary" (Rev 2:2-3). Smyrna: "I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation" (Rev 2:9-10). Pergamum: ""I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells" (Rev 2:13). Thyatira: "I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first" (Rev 2:19). Sardis: "I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive" (Rev 3:1). Philadelphia: "I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name... (Rev 3:8-11). Laodicea: "I know your works" (Rev 3:15).

Virtues that are praised include "patient endurance" (Ephesus: Rev 2:2; Thyatira: Rev 2:19, Philadelphia: Rev 3:10), not denying Jesus and holding fast to His name (Pergamum: Rev 2:13, Philadelphia: Rev 3:8), love and faith and service (Thyatira: Rev 2:19), keeping the word of Christ (Philadelphia 3:8, 10), as well as not growing weary (Ephesus: Rev 2:3) and testing false apostles and kicking them out (Ephesus: Rev 2:2) and even hating the works of the Nicolaitan heretics (Rev 2:6).

Many also include vices like abandoning your first love (Ephesus: Rev 2:4, "But I have this against you..."), being a stumbling block so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality and holding the teaching of the Nicolaitans (Pergamum: Rev 2:14, "But I have a few things against you..."), tolerating a false prophetess who seduces them to practice sexual immorality and eat foods sacrificed to idols (Thyatira: Rev 2:20, "But I have this against you..."), Sardis does not have complete works (Rev 3:9), and Laodicea does not see their need for God (Rev 3:17). Some of the churches are weak where others are strong and vice versa. For example, Smyrna is enduring poverty ("but you are rich," Rev 2:9), but Laodicea says they are rich not realizing that they are poor (Rev 3:17). Pergamum and Thyatira are not dealing with heresy but Ephesus is (contrast especially apparent on the Nicolaitans (Rev 2:6, 2:15). Two of the letters also mention the "synagogue of Satan" -- those who claim to be Jews but are not followers of Christ and are persecuting the church (Rev 2:9 and 3:9).

Some have a promise or threat: "If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent" (Ephesus, Rev 2:5). "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Smyrna, Rev 2:10). "If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth" (Pergamum, Rev 2:16). The great tribulation is the threat for those who hold to false teaching in Thyatira (Rev 2:22). Sardis, "If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you" (Rev 3:3). Philadelphia, "Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown" (Rev 3:10-11). Laodicea: "If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me" (Rev 3:20). Of course, a threat implies a promise and a promise implies a threat.

Then each one concludes in a similar way. Ephesus: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God" (Rev 2:7). Smyrna: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death" (Rev 2:11). Pergamum: "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it (Rev 2:17). Tyatira: "To the one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev 2:26-29). Sardis: "The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev 3:5-6). Philadelphia: "The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev 3:12-13). And Laodicea: "The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches" (Rev 3:21-22). Each one emphasizes us as kings.

The order of "He who has an ear" and "The one who conquers" switches with the church in the middle. It is also worth noting that the second church and the second-to-last church are the ones that Christ does not say something is wrong. These things suggest that the churches are in a chiastic order. G. K. Beale suggests this is the case because the healthy churches are not only a minority but are surrounded by unhealthy ones. It appears though that John has done other things to make sure we do not read too much into the chiasm, like the only two times it does not say "I know your works" but instead "I know your tribulation" and "I know where you dwell" is for the second and third cities. The three in the middle have connections between them. For example Pergamum and Thyatira both have similar problems with sexual immorality and food sacrificed to idols and Thyatira and Sardis both have members who have not been stained by the sins mentioned.

These letters are full of allusions to later parts of Revelation and the rest of Scripture. Just a few examples of the latter: Rev 2:2 and 1 John 4:1; the tree of life and paradise of God (Rev 2:7) refer to the Garden of Eden in Genesis; Balaam and Balak (Rev 2:14) are from Numbers; manna is an obvious reference, but that it is "hidden manna" is probably an allusion to John 4:32; Jezebel is a reference to the Baal prophetess who seduced Ahab away from YHWH to serve idols in the OT Book of Kings; Rev 2:27 is paraphrasing Psalm 2:9; like many other places the thief in the night is a common teaching (Rev 3:3, 1 Thess 5:2, 2 Peter 3:10, Matt 24:43 / Luke 12:39, also Rev 16:15); and others (both more obvious and thus easy to gloss over like references to King David and those that are more obscure).

I look forward to continue to see more things in these seven letters.

Labels: idolatry, seven, sex, vision, writing

We stressed before, as Poythress would put it, that the book of Revelation is not a puzzle book but a picture book. That is, the book's formal structure is a series of four visions. It is a word picture book (that even includes word sound effects).

If I can simplify something Poythress argues about the way John communicates this revelation without missing the mark, I think he says that the epistle moves from normal messages (7 letters) to more symbolic messages (the seven seals and trumpets), to even deeper symbolic messages (the seven symbols, seven bowls, etc.), to what he calls a "climactic level of integration of symbols" for Rev 21:9-22:5. To put it another way, the communication becomes less direct and more symbolic as the book progresses.

But if you have not already noticed between the last post and this one, the number seven is a prominent pointer to the structure of the book. Poythress observes that there are seven major sevens covering the epistle that form a chiasm: 7 letters, 7 seals, 7 trumpets, 7 symbols (at the center of the chiasm), 7 bowls, 7 words about Babylon, and 7 last things. He says the first and last things are promise and fulfillment respectively. The second and third and the fifth and sixth things concern judgment.

I mention the seven sevens here because it is not the only way the number seven is significant. In Poythress' outlines of the rhetorical structure of the book he shows how it covers the past (Rev 1:9-20), the present (at the writing of the book, Rev 2:1-3:22), and "what is to be" (Rev 4:1-22:5). Under that last heading there are seven cycles and then an eighth act -- the new Jerusalem. I would note that this resembles the creation week plus the eighth day. In the beginning were seven days, the seventh without a concluding formula (Genesis does not say, "and there was evening and there was morning, day seven"), but when it does end then will come day eight (the new heavens and earth). Day eight has begun ahead of time for Jesus Christ. Thus we worship on the first day of the week rather than the seventh (pointing us to day 8).

The seven cycles all include the final judgment. Each cycle begins a little later, the first five ending with the final judgment and the last two beginning before and continuing after it. Each cycle introduces a character/scene, tells us six judgments, gives a promise to the church, and then tells us about the seventh final judgment. The pattern is repeated on a larger level in that the character (the creator and judge) is revealed in Rev 4:1-11, the first six cycles of judgment, then the promise for the saints is Rev 20:1-10, and then the seventh final judgment is the white throne judgment. The main way people err when interpreting Revelation is to miss these patterns and the recapitulations. Later cycles recap things covered in previous cycles. Because the sixth and seventh cycles begin as late as they do these two cycles do not give six judgments but they still follow the pattern: character, judgment, promise, judgment. The seventh judgment in each and the judgment in the last two cycles is the final judgment/second coming. And after the judgment is the new creation.

The number seven is especially appropriate because it conveys the idea of completion and perfection. The book of Revelation amazes me how it can rhetorically point to the eighth day through the use of seven cycles plus one new creation and it can formally point to this end using four visions to the wisdom pattern of three plus one new creation. And we have only scratched the surface.

Thus to return for a moment to the title of the book. It is the book of REVELATION -- no s. It is not a book of many revelations. It is ONE revelation. Because so much of the book tells us about the same period of time in different ways it is fitting that we remember that these are different ways of stating the same revelation. And this should also remind us to stick with the big picture. You can get lost in the details of the book and get complicated trying to associate each thing with something when we need to remember the big picture (it is a word picture book after all)-- Christ is coming again.

Labels: chiasm, final judgment, poythress, revelation, second coming, seven