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THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST TO HIS SERVANT JOHN
The Unveiling of the Kingdom on Earth and in Heaven
Lesson 3
The Historical Prologue: The Letters to the Seven Churches
Chapter 2:1-7
The Letter to the Church at Ephesus

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Holy Lord,
Your New Covenant people and their faith communities across the face of the earth struggle to persevere in obedience to Your commandments just as our older Christian brothers and sisters in the age of St. John's seven churches. The secular world works against us today, just as their secular world worked against them. Help us to recognize our communities in the letters to the seven churches. Help us to avoid their failures and to emulate their strengths. We pray in the name of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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In the whole world, Paul taught that all the churches are arranged by sevens, that they are called seven, and that the Catholic Church is one. And first of all, indeed, that he himself also might maintain the type of seven churches, he did not exceed that number. But he wrote to the Romans, to the Corinthians, to the Galatians, to the Ephesians, to the Thessalonians, to the Philippians, to the Colossians; afterward, he wrote to individual persons, so as not to exceed the number of seven churches.
Bishop Victorinus (martyred 304) from the Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed John.

The early Church looked forward to the coming of the new age. They knew that, with the visible end of the Old Covenant system, the Church would be revealed as the new, true Temple; and the work of Christ came to perform would be accomplished. This was an important aspect of redemption, and the first-generation of Christians looked forward to this event in their own lifetime.
David Chilton, Paradise Restored

The letters to the Seven Churches begin the Historical Prologue of St. John's Covenant Treaty Lawsuit. It is also the first of the Sinai Covenant's four seven-fold curse-judgment Sanctions in Leviticus Chapter 26. An essential aspect of the Sinai Covenant Treaty with Israel was the "covenant grant," the command to take possession of the land, conquering it in the name of Israel's great King, Yahweh (see Dt 2:24-25; 31; 3:18-22; 4:1, 14, 37-40). This aspect of the Sinai Covenant Treaty plays a vital role in St. John's Covenant Lawsuit against Judea and his generation of the ruling Sinai Covenant hierarchy. The seven messages to the churches correspond to secular covenant treaties in several aspects. The structure of the letters follows the same general pattern:

• Christ's kingship over the Church
• The individual church's record of faithfulness or disobedience
• Warnings to repent or face punishment
• The promises of blessings in response to faithful obedience

The Seven Churches of The Book of Revelation
Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches ... (Rev 2:7)
(repeated seven times in Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, and 22)

Within each letter, there is also a "covenant grant" for each faith community. It is a commission to conquer, to overcome, and to exercise dominion under Christ's lordship (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26-29; 3:5, 12, 21). But beyond the relationship to the Covenant Lawsuit format of the entire book of Revelation, each of the letters themselves divides into the covenant treaty format. The letters are the New Covenant Treaty with the New Israel, the Universal Church (see CCC 877).

For example, we can examine the typical covenant treaty format in the first letter to the Ephesians:

1. Preamble: Identifying the lordship of the Great King: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands (Rev 2:1).
2. Historical Prologue: Surveying the lord's previous relationship to the vassal, especially emphasizing the blessings bestowed: I know your activities, your hard work, and your perseverance. I know you cannot stand wicked people, and how you put to the test those who were self-styled apostles and found them false. I know too that you have perseverance, and have suffered for my name without growing tired. (Rev 2:2-3).
3. Ethical Stipulations: Expounding the vassal's obligations: Nevertheless, I have this complaint to make; you have less love now than formerly. Think where you were before you fell; repent and behave as you did at first (Rev 2:4-5a).
4. Sanctions: Outlining the blessings for obedience and the curses for disobedience: or else, if you will not repent, I shall come to you and take your lamp-stand from its place (Rev. 2:5b).
5. Succession Arrangements: Dealing with the continuity of the covenant relationship over future generations: those who prove victorious I will feed from the tree of life set in God's paradise (Rev 2:6-7b).

The Covenant Treaty Format isn't the only pattern evident in Chapters 2 and 3 of the letters to the Seven Churches. There is another overall pattern. It is not one espoused by the modern literalists that propose the seven churches symbolically represent the seven ages of Church history. There is, however, a very definitely seven-part pattern in the letters that relate to God's plan for salvation history:

1. The greeting: repeated seven times ~ To the angel of the church that is in (Rev 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14).
2. A title identifying glorified Christ: it usually comes from the description of Christ or using one of His titles in Chapter 1: i.e., to Ephesus: Here is the message of the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand (2:1) or using on of Christ's titles: Here is the message of the First and the Last (to Smyrna in (2:8).
3. A section headed "I know": introducing praise for what is commendable in the church's record except in the case of Laodicea; i.e., for Ephesus = I know you cannot stand wicked people (Rev 2:3).
4. A criticism of the church: pointing out the community's failings except in the case of Smyrna and Philadelphia; i.e., Ephesus: Nevertheless, I have this complaint to make: you have less love for me now (Rev 2:4).
5. A warning: judgment is imminent unless the people repent and turn back to faithful obedience; i.e., Ephesus: repent and behave as you did at first, or else, if you will not repent, I shall come to you and take your lamp-stand from its place (Rev 2:5).
6. An exhortation: beginning with the statement, Let anyone who can hear, listen (Rev 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22).
7. A promise: that is an encouragement to persevere in faith. It usually begins, i.e., those who prove victorious (Rev 2:7b, 11b, 17), or To anyone who proves victorious (Rev 2:26; 3:5, 12, 21).

In the four last letters, there is a reversal of items six and seven. Many patterns will continue appearing in the book; some are obvious, but others are not. Another is evident in the sevenfold arrangement of the churches. Churches one (Ephesus) and seven (Laodicea) are in grave danger, churches two (Smyrna) and six (Philadelphia) are in excellent condition, and churches three (Pergamum), four (Thyatira) and five (Sardis), are neither good nor bad.

Finally, still speaking of patterns, the messages to the seven churches also contain a brief outline of the entire prophecy of the Book of Revelation. In the previous lesson from Revelation Chapter one, we discussed how the structure of the four sections of seven judgments following the Preamble in Chapter one relate to the four sevenfold curse-judgments of the Sinai Covenant in Leviticus 26:18, 21, 24, and 28. We can identify the four sets of judgments in Revelation as follows:

1. Judgment on the false Apostles in Revelation Chapters 1-3: Heretical teachers teaching false doctrines are exposed, condemned, and excommunicated by St. John and those who are faithful to the true apostolic tradition.
2. Judgment on false Israel in Revelation Chapters 4-7: Apostate Israel, which is persecuting the saints, is condemned and punished; the believing faithful remnant is protected from judgment, inherits the blessings of the Covenant, and fills the earth with fruit.
3. Judgment on the Evil King and False Prophet in Revelation Chapters 8-14: The Beast and the False Prophet wage war against the Church and the True King and His army of faithful witnesses defeat them.
4. Judgment on the Royal Harlot in Revelation Chapters 15-22: Babylon, the False Bride/Harlot, is condemned and burned, and the True Bride celebrates the Marriage Supper of the Lamb with Christ, the Bridegroom.

It is the same general pattern found in the first four letters themselves:

1. Ephesus: Judgment on the False Apostles (Rev 2:1-7). The conflicts of all seven churches are evident in the struggles of this church against the heresy of the Nicolaitans: those who were self-styled apostles and found them to be false (Rev 2:2b).
2. Smyrna: Judgment on False Israel (Rev 2:8-11). The Smyrnaeans are suffering from the opposition of the slander of the people who falsely claim to be Jews but are really members of the synagogue of Satan (Rev 2:9b).
3. Pergamum: Judgment on the Evil King and False Prophet (Rev 2:12-17). Pergamum was experiencing persecution and temptation from the first-century counterparts of the Old Testament King Balak of Moab and his false prophet Balaam, who threatened the newly created nation of Israel just before they took possession of the Promised Land. But filled with the Holy Spirit, God's true prophet, Phinehas, prevailed and saved Israel (Num chapters 22-25). The newly created Kingdom of Jesus Christ that is the New Covenant Church of the new Israel faced the same threats as the Christians at Pergamum.
4. Thyatira: Judgment on the Royal Harlot (Rev 2:18-29). At Thyatira, the leader of the heretics, who entices God's servants into idolatry and fornication, is called "Jezebel." It is the same name as the idolatrous and immoral queen of ancient Israel in the books of 1^st and 2^nd Kings.

After the fourth letter to the seven churches, the cycle begins over again. However, this cycle refers back to the Preamble and the vision of the Son of Man in Revelation Chapter 1. The order is chiastic, that is, in reverse order. Notice the letter order and the repeat; the bold type is to to help identify the repetitions.

The Chiastic Pattern in the First Vision and the Letters to the Seven Churches:

1. A-1. (1:14-15a): his eyes were like a burning flame, his feet like burnished bronze
   2. B-1. (1:16): out of his mouth came a sharp sword, double-edged
      3. C-1. (1:17-18): It is I, the First and the Last [means the same as the Alpha and the Omega]. I am the Living One. I was dead and look, I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and of Hades.
         4. D-1. (1:20): The secret of the seven stars you have seen in my right hand, and of the seven golden lamp-stands, is this
         5. D-2. Ephesus: (2:1): the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who lives among the seven golden lampstands
      4. C-2. Smyrna (2:8) Here is the message of the First and the Last, who was dead, and has come to life again.
   3. B-2. Pergamum (2:12): Here is the message of the one who has the sharp sword, double-edged
2. A-2. Thyatira (2:18): Here is the message of the Son of God, who has eyes like a burning flame, and feet are like burnished bronze

Then the symmetrical structure breaks for some reason. It would have been expected to pattern the Laodicean preamble after B or perhaps even A. Whatever the reasons, the pattern changes. Compare with chapter one:

1. 1. 1. 1. D-3Sardis (3:1): Here is the message of the one who holds the seven spirits of God, and the seven stars
      2. C-3Philadelphia (3:7): Here is the message of the holy and true one, who has the key of David, so that when he opens no one will close, and when he closes, no one will open.
   2. ? Laodicea (3:14): Here is the message of the Amen, the trustworthy, the true witness, the Principle of God's creation

The pattern breaks with Laodicea; it is the only church with no virtues to recommend it, and there may be a connection to Revelation 1:5 (bold type and underlining added for emphasis): and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the First-born from the dead, the highest of earthly kings. He who loves us and has washed away our sins with his blood (Rev 1:5). The Hebrew word "amen" is an acrostic for the Hebrew phrase, "God is a trustworthy King" (The Jewish Book of Why, vol. I, page 152). Christ, who is God, is indeed the highest of earthly kings. The message to the Laodiceans is from "the Amen" (Rev 3:14), God the trustworthy king.

Other points of similarity reinforce the repetition of the patterns. There is a parallel between Smyrna and Philadelphia. Both churches struggle with the "synagogue of Satan," and there may be a link between the "seven lampstands" of Ephesus and the "seven Spirits of God" of Sardis. In Chapter 4, following the letters, in the vision of the throne in the heavenly Sanctuary, John says: and in front of the throne, there were seven flaming lamps burning, the seven Spirits of God (Rev 4:5).

The ancients loved patterns and repetitions. In Scripture, they serve as what we would indicate in bold type or underlining for added emphasis. The examples in this lesson are only a few of the patterns in this amazing book of divine revelation. As you continue to study the Book of Revelation, watch for more patterns and repetitions as well as being mindful of Old Testament references.

THE LETTER TO EPHESUS
To those who prove victorious, I will feed them from the Tree of Life, which is set in God's Paradise. Revelation 2:7b

Ephesus, a prosperous Roman city at the mouth of the river Cayster in Western Asia, was the second most important city in the Roman Empire after Rome, according to the geographer Strabo (64 BC-AD 24; Strabo: Geography, volume 1-7, 14.1.24; Cambridge: Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press). Ephesus was the center of Roman government in Asia, a center for trade and learning, and it was the location of St. John the Apostle's home church. The Greeks gave the city the name "mouth of Asia" because the world of the West seemed to pour through Ephesus on the way Eastward. The main street of Ephesus ran from the busy harbor to the Roman Theater and along the way a visitor would pass the gymnasium, the public baths, and the public library, as well as brothels and the temples to various pagan gods. Ephesus' temple to Artemis (Diana to the Romans), the goddess of fertility and "wild nature," was one of the "Seven Wonders" of the ancient world. St. Luke offered some valuable information about the city in the Acts of Apostles that may have some bearing on the Seven Letters as a whole. He wrote that Ephesus was a hotbed of Jewish occultism and magical arts (Acts 19:13-15, 17-19).

When St. Paul first arrived in Ephesus on his second missionary journey (c. 54 AD), he found several followers of Jesus living there (Acts 19:1-7). He soon discovered that they had only received the baptism of St. John the Baptist, a baptism of repentance. St. Paul baptized them in the name of the Lord Jesus, and the moment Paul had laid hands on them the Holy Spirit came down on them, and they began to speak with tongues and to prophesy (Acts 19:6-7). On his third missionary journey, Paul stayed in Ephesus for two years (c. 56-58) and developed a deep affection for the community. Paul remained in Ephesus two and a half years and ordained St. Timothy as the leader of the faith community with the mission to confront false teachers (1 Tim 1:3). St. John probably arrived in Ephesus to lead the thriving Christian community during a period of persecution sometime after Timothy's martyrdom.

In AD 107, the church at Ephesus was still significant. On his way to martyrdom in Rome, Bishop Ignatius of Antioch wrote to the Christians at Ephesus who had given him their support. He began his letter with, Ignatius, who is also called Theophorus, to the Church which is at Ephesus, in Asia, deservedly most happy, being blessed in the greatness and fullness of God the Father, and predestinated before the beginning of time, that it should be always for an enduring and unchangeable glory (Ignatius, Letter to the Ephesians). Muslims destroyed the Church of Saint John in Ephesus and massacred the Christians in 1304 during their invasion of the region.

The Virgin Mary may have traveled to Ephesus and lived there under the protection of St. John. The oldest testimony that Mary lived in Ephesus is from an account by Epiphanius of Salamis in the 4^th century AD. Based on the visions of Blessed Sister Anne Catherine Emmerich, a German Roman Catholic Augustinian Canoness, mystic, Marian visionary, ecstatic, and stigmatist (1774-1824), a 1^st-century AD house discovered in the ruins of Ephesus is believed by many to be Mary's house. The Church of Mary near the harbor of Ephesus was the location of the Third Ecumenical Council in AD 431, which condemned the Nestorius Heresy and proclaimed the Virgin Mary not only the mother of Jesus but the Mother of God.

The house of the Virgin Mary in Ephesus:

Revelation 2:1-7 ~ The Letter to the Ephesians: Those who Suffer Yet Persever
1 "Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus and say, Here is the message of the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who lives among the seven golden lamp-stands: 2 I know your activities, your hard work, and your perseverance. I know you cannot stand wicked people, and how you put to the test those who were self-styled apostles and found them false. 3 I know too that you have perseverance and have suffered for my name without growing tired. 4 Nevertheless, I have this complaint to make: you have less love now than formerly. 5 Think where you were before you fell; repent, and behave as you did at first, or else, if you will not repent, I shall come to you and take your lampstand from its place. 6 It is in your favor, nevertheless, that you loathe as I do the way the Nicolaitans are behaving. 7 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches: those who prove victorious I will feed from the tree of life set in God's paradise.'"

The Preamble: 1 "Write to the angel of the church in Ephesus and say, Here is the message of the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who lives among the seven golden lamp-stands (Rev 2:1).
Question: How many times are the words "Here is the message" repeated in Chapters 1 and 2 in the letters to the seven churches?
Answer: Seven times.

Question: Who is the messenger who sent the letters? Which verses in Chapter 1 identifies the One who conveys His message to John and is the sender of the letters?
Answer: The message is from the "one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who lives among the seven golden lamp-stands," identified by name as Jesus five times in 1:1, 2, 5, 9 (twice).

In the letter to Ephesus, Revelation 2:1 corresponds to the preamble of the covenant treaty format. The seven stars correspond to the "angels" of the seven churches (Rev 1:20). Angels and stars are often linked in the Bible (see Judg 5:20; Job 38:7; Is 14:13; Jude 13; Rev 8:10-12; 9:1; 12:4). When Jesus speaks to the seven churches in Chapters 2 and 3, He is addressing the "angel" of each church. Jesus holds the "angels" of the churches responsible for the life and conduct of their respective churches. But are these heavenly beings or the leadership of the seven different faith communities? In Greek, the word angelos means "messenger." The New Testament books refer to the disciples of St. John, Jesus, and the Israelite spies sent to reconnoiter Canaan as angelos/messengers (Lk 7:24, 9:52, Jam 2:25). Jesus called St. John the Baptist God's angelos/messenger, quoting Malachi 3:1 (Mt 11:10; Lk 7:27).

Some scholars interpret the Greek word angelos in Chapters 2-3 to mean heavenly messengers. The Scriptural footnote in the New Jerusalem reads: "In Jewish thought not only the material world was ruled by angels, but even individuals and communities. Hence each church is considered to be ruled by an angel responsible for it, to whom the letter is addressed" (NJB, page 2031, note "c"). However, the problem with this interpretation is that St. John must write letters to the angelos containing warnings that they must deliver to the entire body of the various congregations. Heavenly beings do not need messages sent by a prophet to communicate with God or His people. There is a relationship in Scripture between God's heavenly and human messengers: the prophets who are God's representatives to the covenant people. Therefore, other scholars interpret the messenger/angels to be pastors who are the prophets of the seven churches. The chief mark of an Old Testament Biblical prophet was his divine selection by God, and there are accounts in Scripture of prophets standing in the presence of God and angels during the sessions of Yahweh's Divine Council (Is 6:1-8; Ez 1-3, 10).

The true prophet was the authoritative spokesman to Yahweh's people, as He told the prophet Jeremiah: you shall be as my own mouth (Jer 15:19). The Holy Spirit took several prophets like Moses, Isaiah, and St. John into the heavenly assembly, as Yahweh told Jeremiah: Thus says the Yahweh Sabaoth (of hosts): Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are prophesying to you. They are leading you into futility; they speak a vision of their own imagination, not from the mouth of Yahweh [...] But who has stood in the Council of Yahweh, that he should see and hear His Word? (Jer 23:16-22). As members of the Divine Council, the prophets had the freedom to address God directly. As images of fully redeemed man, the prophets shared in God's glory and by His authority exercised dominion over the nations (Jer. 1:10; 28:8). They were transformed ethically and physically (Is 6:5-8; Ex 34:29), and so they resembled the heavenly messengers. The Greek the word messenger (angelos) is mal'ak in Hebrew. Both terms describe Biblical prophets in the Old and New Testaments:

• Yahweh, God of their ancestors, continuously sent them word through his messengers because He felt sorry for His people and his dwelling, but they ridiculed the messengers (mal'ak) of God, they despised His words, they laughed at His prophets...(2 Chr 36:15-16).
• Haggai, the messenger (mal'ak) of Yahweh, then passed on Yahweh's message to the people... (Hag 1:13).
• (the prophet Malachi as quoted by Jesus in Matthew 11:9-10 speaking of John the Baptist) Then what did you go out for? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet: he is the one of whom scripture says: Look, I shall send my messenger (angelos) to clear a way before me (Mal. 3:1)
• And when John's messengers (angelos) had gone He [Jesus] began to talk to the people about John... (Lk 7:24).
• Now it happened that as the time drew near for Him to be taken up, He [Jesus] resolutely turned His face towards Jerusalem and sent messengers (angelos) ahead of Him (Lk 9:51-52).

There is Biblical precedent for the prophetic leaders of the seven churches of Revelation to be referred to as "the angels of the churches." Finally, consider this passage from the book of the prophet Malachi: The priest's lips ought to safeguard knowledge; his mouth is where the law should be sought, since he is Yahweh Sabaoth's (Yahweh of Hosts) messenger (Mal 2:7). The word for "messenger" in this passage is mal'ak in the Hebrew text and angelos in the Greek Septuagint translation of the verse. Likely, each angel/messenger who received St. John's letters represented a single Christian pastor or bishop. Other scholars also point out that the stars/angels could be personifications of the government of each church as a whole.

1b Here is the message of the one who holds the seven stars in His right hand
Question: Who is "the one"?
Answer: Jesus Christ.

Notice where the Lord of heaven and earth is holding the seven stars, and what it signifies (see Ps 110:1; Mt 20:23; 22:44; 26:64; Lk 22:69). He holds the seven stars in His right hand that is the hand of power and indicates Jesus' authority over the churches and their leaders. It is the same hand that Christ used to revive St. John, who is also a messenger/angelos, after he fainted in 1:17.

As we continue with the letters, you will notice that some of the messages to the churches contain rebukes to the "angels" of churches. It is doubtful that heavenly messengers would fall into error and need reprimanding (after the rebellion of the angels, God's heavenly host are in the Divine Presence and preserved from sin), but earthly leaders or messengers can and do fail in their missions, and they are accountable to God for the churches they represent.

Historical prologue: 2 I know your activities, your hard work, and your perseverance. I know you cannot stand wicked people, and how you put to the test those who were self-styled apostles and found them false. 3 I know too that you have perseverance and have suffered for my name without growing tired (Rev 2:2-3).
Question: Looking at verses 2-4, what are Christian Ephesians' victories?
Answer:

1. Hard-working
2. Persevering or steadfastness
3. Resisting sin and critically examining the claims of false apostles within the community
4. Enduring hardships without becoming weary in their efforts

The word translated as "hard work/labor" is the Greek word kopos, which means "to labor to the point of weariness" (Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon, page 355).

The reference to "false apostles" does not mean the Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus or those ordained to succeed them in carrying on the Church's mission of spreading the Gospel of salvation. The words "false apostles" are in the same sense as in 2 Corinthians 11:13 and 15: These people are counterfeit apostles, dishonest workers disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. There is nothing astonishing in this; even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. It is nothing extraordinary, then when his servants disguise themselves as the servants of uprightness. They will come to the end appropriate to what they have done.

Question: Do faith communities today face these same problems? Do they have these same strengths and weaknesses and face the same struggles as the seven churches in first century AD Asia Minor?
Answer: Keep in mind that the seven churches to whom John sent the letters were actually, historical faith communities. In Acts of Apostles, St. Paul warned the Ephesians that false teachers would come and try to draw them away from the faith (Acts 20:29-32). False teachers caused problems in the Ephesian church soon after Paul founded the community, but the church resisted them as we learn from St. Paul's very positive letter to the Ephesians. In Paul's day, it was a church that did not know the meaning of compromise and was willing to take a strong stand for orthodoxy regardless of the cost. It is noteworthy that of the seven letters St. Paul wrote to the churches he founded, his letter to the Ephesians alone does not mention a single doctrinal issue that needed apostolic correction. However, in John's day and apparently in his absence, the same problems returned.

Ethical Stipulations: 4 Nevertheless, I have this complaint to make: you have less love now than formerly. 5 Think where you were before you fell; repent, and behave as you did at first, or else (Rev 2:4-5a).
Their major failing was their failure to demonstrate the love they once had.

Question: What did Jesus say about demonstrating love? There are many examples; a few include His teachings in Matthew 22:39 (repeated in Mk 12:31 and Lk 10:27), Luke 6:27 and John 13:34.
Answer:

• You must love your neighbor as yourself (Mt 22:39).
• But I say this to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat you badly (Lk 6:27).
• I give you a new commandment: love one another; you must love one another just as I have loved you. It is by your love for one another that everyone will recognize you as my disciples (Jn 13:34-35).

Filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, St. John spoke of our Christian commitment to love in his first letter to the Church: Children, our love must be not just words or mere talk but something active and genuine. This will be the proof that we belong to the truth (1 Jn 3:18-19). In other words, be consistently committed to expressing love in action. In his letter to Ephesus, St. Paul commended the faith community for its love for God and others: That is why I, having once heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus, and you love for all God's holy people, have never failed to thank God for you and to remember you in my prayers (Eph 1:15). It is not clear whether Paul was writing about love for Christ, or one another, or for humanity at large. Paul was probably writing about a general attitude which included all three aspects of love in action.

By the time St. John, Bishop of Ephesus, was a prisoner on Patmos, many of the church founders at Ephesus had either died or suffered martyrdom like Saints Paul, and Timothy or were in exile with him. Many of the second-generation believers left to lead the church in their absence may have become disheartened in their sufferings, dampening their zeal. That the church at Ephesus was active in doing much to benefit the community, but they were acting out of the wrong motives. The motivation for good deeds must come from our love for God that we extended to others and not out of self-interest, or the love for God can grow cold. Our work in the church and the secular community is not just for "social causes" but for God's justice motivated by the love of Jesus that we pour out, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to everyone we meet, especially those most in need of Christ's love.

5 Think where you were before you fell; repent, and behave as you did at first, or else, if you will not repent, I shall come to you and take your lampstand from its place.
The word "fell" in the Greek (literally "fallen out") is in the perfect tense = peptokas, which makes this statement all the more tragic (Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon, page 198; Vincent's Word Studies in the New Testament, page 438).
Christ the King requires three actions from His faithful vassal, the faith community at Ephesus:

1. Think where you were before you fell
2. repent
3. behave as you did at first

Perhaps more than to merely "remember" but to "keep on remembering" or "hold in memory" what they first experienced in faith and love, and for that memory to bring them to repentance so they can recover their "first love" in their works of faith in serving God. The people of this faith community had enjoyed a close walk with God. Now they needed to concentrate on remembering and reliving that walk. The second necessary step is to repent. The aorist tense used for this word in Greek points to a sharp break with evil (Vincent's Word Studies in the New Testament, page 440). Christians must never tolerate sin. There must be a "sharp break" with it. However, Christianity is not at its core negative, and the third step is to behave as they did at first, that is by repeating the works that had issued from the first love.

Sanctions: if you do not repent, I shall come to you and take your lampstand from its place (Rev 2:5b).
Verse 5 ends in a warning.
Question: If the Christians of Ephesus do not repent, what are the sanctions that will come against them?
Answer: The church at Ephesus will cease to effectively spread the light of Christ in the message of the Gospel of salvation.

Just as the seven-branched lampstand (Menorah) gave light for the priests so they could minister in the Temple's Holy Place, the churches, as Christ's lampstands, were to give the "light" of Christ to their surrounding communities with whom they shared the Gospel message of salvation. But Jesus warned them that their "lights" could go out. He says, "I shall come," meaning that Jesus will come Himself in judgment and extinguish any "light"/faith community that does not fulfill its purpose.

The phrase "I shall come to you" is a warning stated three more times in the letters (see Rev 2:16; 3:3, and 3:10-11) and is in the present tense. "I come," does not necessarily refer to a cataclysm at the end of history, but rather to His continual "comings" in history. The warning repeats seven times in Revelation (2:5, 16; 3:11; 11:14; 22:7, 12, 20). Jesus is not threatening the church at Ephesus with His second and final appearance, His "Parousia." Instead, He is saying that He will come against them; for lack of love, the entire congregation is in danger of excommunication. If the leaders of a faith community fail to discipline and disciple the church toward love as well as doctrinal orthodoxy, Jesus Christ Himself will step in and administer judgment; and at that point, it may very well be too late for repentance. Also notice that "unless you repent" signifies that the judgment is not irrevocable. If they repent, they may yet be saved. But if they do not repent, there is no hope.

Succession Arrangements: 6 It is in your favor, nevertheless, that you loathe as I do the way the Nicolaitans are behaving. 7 Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches: those who prove victorious I will feed from the tree of life set in God's paradise'" (Rev 2:6-7).
According to the second-century bishop, St. Irenaeus of Lyons, the Nicolaitans were the followers of Nicolaus of Antioch, a convert from Judaism ordained by the first Christian community in Jerusalem (see Acts 6:1-6): The Nicolaitans are the followers of that Nicolas who was one of the seven first ordained to the diaconate by the Apostles. They lead lives of unrestrained indulgence. The character of these men is very plainly pointed out in the Apocalypse of John, where they are represented as teaching that it is a matter of indifference to practice adultery and to eat things sacrificed to idols. (St. Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 1.36.3; quoted from The Anti-Nicene Fathers p. 352).

These people believed that because they were "saved" they could repeat any sin, confess again and again, and be forgiven without genuine repentance and the intention of avoiding the same sin in the future. In other words, the more you sin, the more you get "graced"! Their beliefs sound similar to the false doctrine of "eternal security" espoused by some Protestants who believe "once saved always saved," and since Jesus died for one's sins, a baptized Christian's transgressions cannot jeopardize his or her eternal salvation. This doctrine is not supported by Scripture. Notice that Jesus says He hates the "deeds," the sinful actions, not the people themselves.

Question: Why is it essential for us to remember this example for judging sin?
Answer: We are to hate the sin but love the poor, misdirected sinner. We must judge sin to avoid it, but God will judge the sinner.

We should accept and offer our love to all people, but at the same time, we must avoid sin and refuse to tolerate evil. God cannot tolerate sin, and He expects us to stand against it, but at the same time, we must light the way to the truth for all sinners by the light of Christ's love shining through our lives.

Most modern commentaries dismiss the notion that the deacon Nicolas mentioned in Acts 6:5 was the founder of the heretical Nicolaitans. Some ancient authors reject the association, but three Church Fathers connected the origin of this heresy to the teachings of Nicolas the deacon:

1. St. Irenaeus (m.202/4), Against Heresies, 35.3; The Ante-Nicene Fathers vol.1, page 532.
2. Hippolytus (170-236) Refuting All Heresies, book 7, ch 24; The Ante-Nicene Fathers vol. 5, page 115
3. St. Jerome (AD386-420), The Dialogue Against the Luciferians, #23; The Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers, vol. 6, page 332.

7a Let anyone who can hear, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches:
This formula phrase, in the present tense, repeats seven times in the letters: 2:7a, 11, 16, 29; 3:6, 13, and 22. It marks the conclusion of each of the letters, stressing the Holy Spirit in relation to Christ and His Church.

7b Those who prove victorious I will feed from the tree of life set in God's paradise. The Spirit is issuing one basic command: overcome! The Greek word is nikao (from the root nike, pronounced nee-kay, which means "victory" (Thayer's Greek: English Lexicon, pages 425-26). Christ is charging His Church with the responsibility of overcoming those who seek to overwhelm her. No matter what problems we face, each Christian faith community is under divine mandate to conquer and completely overwhelm its opposition. All Christians are "overcomers:" Whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world "our faith (1 Jn 5:4). The Christians in Revelation had the power to overcome the devil because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the Word of their testimony (Rev. 12:11). The question is not one of victory or defeat. The question is victory or treason!

Question: In the Succession Arrangements, what privilege does Jesus grant to Christians who overcome by persevering to the end? What does this privilege mean?
Answer: To the Christian "overcomers" Christ grants in the Succession Arrangement the privilege to eat of the Tree of Life, which is in the Paradise of My God = eternal salvation in the heavenly Sanctuary.

Question: What is the first Biblical mention of the 'Tree of Life'?
Answer: The first mention is in Genesis 2:8-9 in the covenant treaty God made with Adam.

The Tree of Life was the sign of God's covenant with Adam and creation. Two trees were in the Garden of Eden: the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of good and evil. Eating of the Tree of Life brought eternal life with God; eating from the Tree of Knowledge brought the realization of what was evil (man already knew the "good" of God and creation). When Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge, they not only disobeyed God's command (Gen 2:15-17), but their action was an act of rebellion against God. Stained with sin, God exiled them from the perfection that was the holy Sanctuary in Eden, and they were barred from eating the fruit of the Tree of Life and from the continued fellowship with God that they had enjoyed before their sin (Gen 3:22-24). The promise God makes to us through Jesus' Resurrection is that eventually evil will be destroyed and believers will return to a restored paradise through the true Tree of Life. The Tree in Eden was only a shadow of the true "Tree of Life" that is the Cross of Jesus Christ.

Christian art since ancient times has used the Cross as a symbol for the Tree of Life, with the suggestion that the cross of Jesus' crucifixion was a living tree, with His wrists nailed to the crosspiece He carried that was attached to the trunk, and His feet nailed to the still living trunk, fulfilling the covenant curse Jesus took upon Himself from Deuteronomy 21:22-23. See Acts 5:30; 10:39; 13:29; Galatians 3:13; and 1 Peter 2:24 where these passages use the Greek word for "tree." The Cross of Jesus was often pictured in ancient churches and tombs with branches and leaves growing out of it.

Question: What is the "Tree of Life" mentioned in the letter to Ephesus?
Answer: Jesus Christ Himself is the Tree of Life, and to partake of Him is to possess the blessings and graces of salvation to live eternally.

The Tree of Life was the symbol of the first covenant and the last covenant God made with humanity. The Cross of the crucified Christ is the "Tree of Life" from which flows eternal life through Baptism and the Eucharist (see Jn 19:34) just as eternal life was the gift of the Tree of Life in the garden Sanctuary of Eden. See the chart of Yahweh's Eight Covenants.

You will recall that we have discussed that there is a pattern that connects the seven letters to previous events in salvation history recorded in the Old Testament.
Question: How many Old Testament references can you find in the letter to the Ephesians? Look for keywords.
Possible answer: For example:

• "before you fell" in Rev 2:5 recalls the Fall of Adam and Eve
• "Tree of Life" in Rev 2:7 recalls the Tree of Life in the garden of Eden
• "Paradise" in Rev 2:7 also recalls the garden Sanctuary in Eden

Question: From what part of the Bible do these references come?
Answer: From the account of Creation in Genesis Chapter two and the Fall of man in Chapter three.

You may also have listed the golden lampstand as a reference. The golden lampstand that stood in the Holy Place of the desert Tabernacle and later in the Jerusalem Temple (Ex 25:31-40; 37:17-24; 40:24) was itself an interpretation of the Tree of Life with a trunk and branches. It signified the presence of God's ruah (Spirit) just as the lamp that continually burns before the Tabernacle in Catholic churches signals the presence of the consecrated Host, a sign of Christ s presence in the Sanctuary.

According to the letter written to the Christians in Ephesus by St. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch (Syria), on his journey to martyrdom in Rome in AD 107, they were successful in defeating the failures and harmful influences mentioned in the Revelation letter. St. Ignatius commended the faith community on resisting false teaching and maintaining their faithful adherence to orthodoxy (true doctrine): I have learned, however, that certain persons from elsewhere, who have evil doctrine, have stayed with you; but you did not allow them to sow it among you, and you stopped your ears so that you would not receive what they sow. You are like the stones for a temple of the Father, prepared for the edifice of God the Father, hoisted to the heights by the crane of Jesus Christ, which is the cross, using for a rope the Holy Spirit. Your faith is what pulls you up, and love is the road which leads you to God. You are, then, wayfarers all, bearing God, bearing a temple, bearing Christ, bearing holy things, and in every respect decked out I the commandments of Jesus Christ (Ignatius, Letter to the Ephesians, 9.1; Jurgens, Faith of the Early Fathers, page 18).

Appendix:
The Acknowledged Trials and the Promises of Victory to the Seven Churches of the Book of Revelation

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Michal Hunt, Copyright © 2000, revised 2019 Agape Bible Study. Permissions All Rights Reserved.

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