Revelation chapter 2 - 1st four Churches

Revelation Chapter 2:1 commentaries

2:1
Unto the angel of the church of (literally, in) Ephesus.--
On the word "angel," see Note on Revelation 1:20, and Excursus A.

Adopting the view that the angel represents the chief pastor or bishop of the Church, it would be interesting to know who was its presiding minister at this time; but this must be deternined by another question, viz., the date of the Apocalypse.
Accepting the earlier date--i.e., the reign of Nero, or (with Gebhardt) of Galba--the angel is no other than Timothy.
Some striking coincidences favour this view. Labour, work, endurance, are what St. Paul acknowledges in Timothy, and which he exhorts him to cultivate more and more (2Timothy 2:6; 2Timothy 2:15; 2Timothy 4:5). Again, against false teachers he warns him (1Timothy 1:7).
Further, there is "a latent tone of anxiety" in the Epistles to Timothy.
The nature with which he had to do was emotional even to tears, ascetic, devout; but there was in it a tendency to lack of energy and sustained enthusiasm.
"He urges him to stand up, to rekindle the grace of God, just as here there is a hint of a first love left." (See Prof. Plumptre, Ep. to Seven Churches.)

2:1
the call to each individual to give ear. Verses 1-7. - The epistle to the Church at Ephesus. Verse 1. - Unto the angel (see on Revelation 1:20).
"The angel" seems to be the spirit of the Church personified as its responsible guardian.
The Church of Ephesus. "In Ephesus" is certainly the right reading; in all seven cases it is the angel of the Church in the place that is addressed.

In St. Paul's:Epistles we have "in Rome," "in Corinth," "in Colossae," "in Ephesus," "of Galatia," "of the Thessalonians." Among all the cities of the Roman province of Asia, Ephesus ranked as "first of all and greatest."
It was called "the metropolis of Asia." Romans visiting Asia commonly landed first at Ephesus. Its position as a centre of commerce was magnificent.

Three rivers, the Maeander, the Cayster, and the Hermes, drain Western Asia Minor, and Ephesus stood on high ground near the mouth of the central river, the Cayster, which is connected by passes with the valleys of the other two.
Strabo, writing of Ephesus about the time when St. John was born, says, "Owing to its favourable situation, the city is in all other respects increasing daily, for it is the greatest place of trade of all the cities of Asia west of the Taurus."

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Commentaries:

Verse 2. -
Owing to the inaccurate use of a corrupt text, the Authorized Version is here very faulty. The Revised Version is to be preferred throughout. I know thy works.
This introductory "I know" appears in all seven letters. He whose eyes are "as a flame of fire" (Revelation 1:14) has perfect knowledge of his servants, and this knowledge is the basis of the praise and blame.
"Works," a favourite word with St. John, and very frequent in both Gospel and Apocalypse, is used in a wide sense, including the whole of conduct (comp. John 3:19, 20; John 5:36; John 7:3, 7; John 8:39, 41, etc.; 1 John 3:8, 12 2John 11 3 John 1:10).

Thy toil and patience. Explanatory of "thy works;" the Ephesians know how to toil and how to suffer patiently. They have "learned to labour and to wait."
St. Ignatius says that he must be trained "in patience and long suffering" by the Ephesians ('Ephes.,' 3.).

verse (2)
I know thy works.--
This phrase is probably common to all the epistles. See, however, Note on Revelation 2:9. It expresses the way in which all actions are naked and open before the eyes--those flame-like eyes (Revelation 1:14)--of Him with whom we have to do (Psalm 11:4-5; Psalm 139:11-12; Hebrews 4:13).
The veneer of a formal faith might impose on the world, but it would not escape His scrutiny (Acts 1:24).
He knows, too, and lovingly accepts, the unmarked and unrequited acts of true love (Matthew 10:42; Matthew 26:13), and appreciates, amid all its failures, genuine loyalty to Him (John 21:17).

And thy labour (or, toil), and thy patience.--The same things which St. Paul had pressed on Timothy (2Timothy 2:25-26). The first word signifies labour carried on unto weariness. The "patience" is more than passive endurance; it is, as Archbishop Trench says, a beautiful word, expressing the brave and persistent endurance of the Christian.

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Revelation 16:2
And the first departed and poured out his bowl into the land,
and an evil/kakon<2556> and grievous sore came upon the men having the mark of the beast and those worshiping its image

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Commentaries:

2:2
And that thou canst not bear evil men. Again St. Ignatius supplies a commentary: "Now, Onesimus of his own accord highly praiseth your orderly conduct in God, for that ye all live according to truth, and that no heresy hath a home among you; nay, ye do not so much as listen to any one, if he speak of aught else save concerning Jesus Christ in truth" ('Ephes.,' 6.).

The word for "evil" (κακός), though one of the commonest in the Greek language, is rare in St. John; it occurs only here and in Revelation 16:2 (see note); John 18:23 3John

2:2
And how thou canst not bear them that are evil;
that were so either in their principles or in their practices, or both; men that lived immoral lives, and held erroneous doctrines, these the primitive ministers and churches could not bear;
they had an inward abhorrence and detestation of them in their minds; they could not bear them in communion with them; they admonished them according to the nature of their offence, and cast out such as were obstinate and incorrigible;
they withdrew from such as were disorderly, and rejected heretics after the first and second admonition; their zeal for church discipline is here taken notice of to their commendation,

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Commentaries:

2:2
And thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars;
this doubtless was done in the church at Ephesus, where, after the Apostle Paul's departure, grievous wolves, in sheep's clothing, entered, and men arose from among themselves, speaking perverse things, Acts 20:29; yet it was not peculiar to that church, though it was to the apostolic age; for in no other could men with any face pretend to be the apostles of Christ;
and such there were, who sprung up in the several churches at Jerusalem, Corinth, Galatia, and elsewhere, who called themselves the apostles of Christ, but were false apostles, deceitful workers; they pretended to have their doctrine, call, mission, and commission, immediately from Christ, as the true apostles had,
and a power to work miracles, and talked of inspirations and revelations by the Spirit of God.
Now the apostles, ministers, and churches of those times, tried their pretensions and doctrines by the word of God, and by the fruits which they produced in themselves and others; and through that discerning of spirits which they had, they found them to be liars; that they were not, nor had they what they pretended to be and have, and exposed them as such.

2;2
say they are apostles—probably Judaizers. Ignatius [Epistle to the Ephesians, 6], says subsequently, "Onesimus praises exceedingly your good discipline that no heresy dwells among you"; and [Epistle to the Ephesians, 9], "Ye did not permit those having evil doctrine to sow their seed among you, but closed your ears."

Kindgdom Bible Studies Revelation Series 31

....... This is the day of false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ; and no marvel, for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light; therefore it is no great wonder if his ministers also be transformed as ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works (II Cor. 11:13-15).
Any preacher who can come up with a unique twist of doctrine, an apparent gift of some kind, and a liberal dose of charisma can gain a following and start a little movement around himself, imagining that he is an apostle.

As the elect of God you have a divine obligation to investigate, scrutinize, and seek the Lord about everything that I teach or that anyone else teaches! You have an obligation in the Spirit and by the Spirit to observe my life and the life of every minister of God. I have no right to expect you to blindly follow my words or ministry in any fashion or form.
But I do earnestly pray that you will make sure of all things, search the scriptures, and be led by the Spirit of truth within you! The word of the Lord is sure to all who humbly and sincerely follow on to know the Lord, for He says, “If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself” (Jn. 7:7)..............

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Commentaries:

(6) But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds (better, works) of the Nicolaitanes.-
-The Nicolaitanes were, as has been expressed, the Antinomians of the Asiatic Church. The life and conduct were little thought of, and the faith professed was everything. Some have thought that they were a sect who derived their name, under some colourable pretext, from Nicolas the Proselyte; others hold that the name is purely symbolical, signifying "destroyer of the people," and that it is no more than the Greek form of Balaam. (See Notes on Revelation 2:14-15, below.) The existence of a sect called Nicolaitanes in the second century is attested by Irenaeus, Tertullian, and Clement of Alexandria.........

Verse 6. - They are again commended for their good points. But it is possible to hate what Christ hates without loving what he loves. It is possible to hate false doctrine and lawlessness, and yet be formal and dead one's self. Who the Nicolaitans were we cannot now determine with certainty.

The name Nicolaus may be intended as a Greek equivalent of Balaam, but this is by no means certain. Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria write as if the sect of Nicolaitans existed in their day. A common belief was that their founder was Nicolaus of Antioch, one of the seven deacons.
Irenaeus (1:26), followed by Hippolytus ('Refut.,' 7:24), supports this view; Ignatius ('Trall.,' 9) and the Apostolic Constitutions (6:8), are against it. The Nicolaitans may have claimed him as their founder, or similarity of name may have caused confusion with a different person.

The doctrine of the Nicolaitans, and that of Balaam (ver. 14), and that of the woman Jezebel (ver. 20), seem to have this much in common - a contention that the freedom of the Christian placed him above the moral Law. Neither idolatry nor sensuality could harm those who had been made free by Christ.
The moral enactments of the Law had been abrogated by the gospel, no less than the ceremonial. The special mention of "the pollutions of idols" and "fornication," in the decrees of the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15:20, 29), seems to show that this pernicious doctrine was already in existence in A.D. .
In 2 Peter 2 and Jude 1:7-13 a similar evil is denounced. It appears in other heretical sects, especially those of Gnostic origin, e.g. Cerinthians, Cainites, Carpocratians. In this way we may explain the statement of Eusebius ('Hist. Eccl.,' 3:29), that the Nieelaitan heresy lasted only for a short time; i.e. its religious libertinism did not die out, but passed over into other sects.
Note that it is "the works of the Nicolaitans," not the men themselves, that Christ hates. He loves the sinner, while he hates the sin. "It would have been well with the Church had this always been remembered" (Alford).

(15) So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes--i.e., thou, as well as those of old, hast such teachers. There is little doubt that this is the connection between the verses, but opinions are divided whether we are on this account to identify the Balaamites with the Nicolaitanes, and to suppose that both names point to the same sect.
The simplest meaning of the passage seems to be that the temptation to which the Israelites were exposed, is used to illustrate the temptations of the Pergamene Church, through the teaching of the Nicolaitanes. Both temptations lead in the same Antinomian direction. Such a tendency was early seen (comp. Romans 6:4; Galatians 5:13; Jude 1:4), and is not extinct now.
"Is there not," writes Dr. Vaughan, "a vague, unavowed, unrealised idea that the Atonement has made sin less fatal, that even sin indulged and persisted in, may yet not work death?"
To such and all who countenance them the warning is, "Repent; but if not, I am coming for thee, and will war with thee (note the change of person and number) with (literally, in--i.e., armed with) the sword of My mouth."

Nicolaism - Wikipedia

Nicolaism (also Nicholaism, Nicolaitism, Nicolationism, or Nicolaitanism) is a Christian heresy first mentioned (twice) in the Book of Revelation of the New Testament, whose adherents were called Nicolaitans, Nicolaitanes, or Nicolaites. According to Revelation 2:6 and 15,[1] they were known in the cities of Ephesus and Pergamum. In this chapter, the church at Ephesus is commended for "[hating] the works of the Nicolaites, which I also hate"; and the church in Pergamos is rebuked: "So thou hast also some [worshiping in their midst] who hold the teaching of the Nicolaites".

Several of the early church fathers mentioned this group, including Irenaeus, Hippolytus,[2] Epiphanius, and Theodoret, stating that deacon Nicolas was the author of the heresy and the sect........

A common view holds that the Nicolaitans held the antinomian heresy of 1 Corinthians 6, although this has not been proved.[5] One scholar who espouses this interpretation, John Henry Blunt, maintains that the comparison between the Nicolaitans and Balaam "proves that the fornication spoken of is not that crime under ordinary circumstances, but fornication connected with religious rites".[4] Blunt points out that the Hebrews had a long history of preaching against or alternatively using cult prostitutes (Genesis 38:21-22; Deuteronomy 23:17-8; 1 Kings 14:24, 15:12, 22:46; 2 Kings 23:7; Ezekiel 16:16; Hosea 4:14)........

Blunt holds that the Nicolaitans believed either that the command against ritual sex was part of the Mosaic law (from which they had been freed by Jesus Christ) and it was licit for them, or that they went too far during Christian "love-feasts".

Blunt sees echoes of this behavior in the admonishments which Paul gives the Corinthians, though he does not name them as such. Blunt also believes that similar echoes can be found in the admonishments of Jude 4-16 (which invokes both "Balaam's error" and "love feasts") and 2 Peter 2:2-21 (which repeats much of Jude's statements, including invoking Balaam)

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Revelation 2:17
The one having an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
The one overcoming/nikwnti<3528>, I will give to him the manna having been hidden.

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Commentaries

Smyrna means “sweet smelling” and comes from the root word for myrrh.

The myrrh plant is found throughout the Middle East and was used in the manufacture of an aromatic ointment. When bruised and crushed, the myrrh gives forth a lovely fragrance.
Myrrh was used to embalm the bodies of the dead. Carefully the linens were prepared, and wound around the bodies of the loved ones, while myrrh was packed between the folds of the cloth. Thus was the body of our Lord embalmed!

After the death of Jesus, the women, who had loved and followed Him on earth, brought one hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes to the tomb. With what grief did they take that precious body and wind about it the linen cloths! With what untold tenderness did they lay it away in the bed of fragrant spices!
Thus myrrh is a type of suffering and death, and some in the church at Smyrna were to pass through bitter persecution, severe trials, and intense testings, as a picture of that which all of God’s called and chosen elect must also pass through. Their sufferings, however, instead of destroying them, would give forth the rich perfume of heaven, the life of the spirit!

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