Chapter 2 (pdf)
DownloadRevelation 2:1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands. 2 “‘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.
From biblehub.com, Strongs - I know your toil, your pains and patient waiting for, you cannot tolerate the depraved, and you have tested and exposed as liars, those who falsely claim to be apostles.
We can find the beginning of this church in the letters in the New Testament. The disciples spread the word but constantly came up against the wolves who wished to attack the flock.
Acts 20:28 Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. 29 I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number, men will rise up and distort the truth to draw away disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert and remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
Paul again warns of the false prophets in his letter to Timothy: 1 Timothy 1:18 This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, 19 holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, 20 among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary.
This church is the 1st century church to the end of the Roman Empire, from about 60 AD to 400 AD. Chapter 6 shows the events of the four horsemen and the seal judgements align with this church.
Again from biblehub.com, Strongs - without growing weary, you have persevered and endured many things for the sake of my name
In Revelation 6:10 we see the church growing weary of persecution before the great tribulation of Diocletian.
4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned (forsaken/released/sent away) the love you had at first (your first love). 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
In this church age there was an event that changed the course of Christianity. The Edict of Milan in 313 was issued from Constantine to make Christianity the religion of the Roman Empire. The feasts were changed to pagan holidays, the lunar sabbath was changed to a perpetual Sunday worship, and other Jewish customs were abandoned for the sake of the newly formed Roman religion. Jesus says “you have fallen” and to “repent.” It is important to remember the law and the Holy Days that God set forth. There is meaning and purpose to them so you fully see the nature of God. This verse states that if the warning was not heeded, then the lampstand would be removed. We can see through history that the Roman church did not repent of this path. The council of Nicaea, of Ephesus and the rest that followed shifted the Roman church away from the truth. The resulting darkness that the popes walked in is evidence that the Roman church defied the truth of Jesus. Darkness would come to the earth through the Dark Ages and through the literal darkening of the world in 536 when the volcanoes blew, called the Dark Winter. Study the direction that the 7 Ecumenical Councils took and repent. *blog posts coming soon!*
6 Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 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.’
There is no historical group of people called the Nicolaitans, but we can deduce that the change from a messianic Jewish faith to a semi-pagan Christianity is what Jesus referred to as “the works of the Nicolaitans.” Jesus calls for repentance for that, he asked for the church to turn back to the 1st century church. Those that kept the feasts and sabbaths kept the light of Jesus through the dark ages, and became the Two Witnesses in Chapter 11. The Cathars and Waldensians were known to defy the Roman church. The papacy called them Insabbatai as a derogatory term. The term means "sabbath keepers." These churches were granted the tree of life to be kept alive through the dark ages.
8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life.
Smyrna was where they manufactured myrrh. When the myrrh fruit was crushed, it releases an aroma and was also used to anoint the priests. It was used in embalming as well.
9 “‘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.
The true followers of Jesus were slandered by the Holy Roman Empire through “capitularies,” starting with Charlemagne in 800. The Holy Roman Empire and the Roman church was the synagogue of Satan. This is an excellent article: https://bahaiteachings.org/christianitys-king-charlemagne-hero-or-brutal-ruler/
“Charlemagne decided that it was his sacred duty to convert the pesky Saxons by force. The Saxons held onto their ways through a score of battles and thirty years of war, but in the end, they were overwhelmed and were forcibly converted to Christianity by Charlemagne, under penalty of death.”
10 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. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 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.’
The tribulation came at the hands of the Holy Roman Empire which went from 800 AD to 1806 AD. The popes issued edicts convicting "heretics" of crimes and had them put in prison, or worse, but in stocks, had them drawn and quartered, hung, burned at the stake, had their tongues cut out, and numerous other forms of torture. Not only did the Two Witnesses survive the torment, but the Woman in Chapter 12 gave birth to the Protestant Reformation, throwing down the serpent and it's teachings.
Revelation 21:8 But as for the cowardly (timid), the faithless (unbelieving), the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.
12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword. 13 I know where you live, where the throne of Satan sits. Yet you have held fast to My name and have not denied your faith in Me, even in the day when My faithful witness Antipas was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
The throne of Satan was the Holy Roman Empire as shown in the Smyrna church. Antipas was actually killed in Geneva Switzerland. The great altar of Zeus that was in Pergamum was relocated to Berlin in 1878. The third woe was given to this area, and a woe is a pronouncement of judgement that is accomplished by the sword.
14 But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. 15 So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth.
Balak hired Balaam to come into Moab and pronounce a curse upon the Israelites, incurring God’s wrath upon them in order to ultimately bring about their defeat at the hands of the enemy in Numbers 23. He was a false prophet for hire, much like the popes at the time.
2 Peter 2:15-17 forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; (16) but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet. (17) These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness has been reserved.
17 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.’
The Two Witnesses were hidden in caves and the mountains, they were hunted like animals and the Cathars were completely exterminated by the Roman church. See their viewpoint on their brutality on this article https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4883611/ They received a white stone. See Benson’s definition on the white stone: “The ancients on many occasions, gave their votes in judgment by small stones, black = condemn, white = acquitted, sometimes wrote on small smooth stones,” Even though they lacked the complete word of God, their conduct was that of Jesus. Eating is prophetic for becoming as what the food is. When you eat the bread from heaven, the life of Jesus, then you become as He was. See also when the harlot was devoured in Revelation 17:16.
18“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze. 19 “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. 20 But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols.
The Waldensians were much more tolerant of the papacy, therefore endured less brutality and some actually survived their persecution. They tolerated Jezebel. Their latter works would lead to a revolution away from the papacy and to put bibles in the hands of ordinary believers.
21 I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. 22 Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, 23 and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.
The warnings of the two previous churches came to pass here. Chapter 11 deals with the pestilence, plague and suffering of those who kept to the practices of the Roman church. Interestingly, those who had Jewish customs of Kosher did not suffer severely from the bubonic plague.
St. Anthony's fire (getting a fungus from moldy grain) in the 1100s = 20-40k deaths
The great famine, 1315 - 1322, killing 10-25% of the population
And the black death - bubonic plague, 1346 to 1353, killed from 75 - 200 million
24 But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. 25 Only hold fast what you have until I come.