“You have false teachers among you” -Jesus
(Rev. 2:12-17)
*Commendation: Works, held fast My Name, have not denied My faith.
*Condemnation: You have false teachers of Balaam and the Nicolaitans.
*Counsel: Repent.
*Challenge: “To him who overcomes…” I will give hidden manna and a white stone.
Pergamos (also Pergamum), located in modern Turkey, was the capital city of the Roman province of Asia until the end of the first century. Saturated in the worship of Greek and other idols and unable to cope with the plethora of religious divides, the local Roman rulers demanded the cooperation of all groups, despite their differences. This resulted in heavy emphasis on the city’s great altar of Zeus and Pergamos’ subsequent evolution into a center of emperor worship. And with Pergamos also being Rome’s administrative center for Asia, politics was another religion of prominence.
Politics as Religion
As the “spirit of Rome” became incarnated in the Emperor, there arose widespread construction of temples in his honor. Notably, this effort was not forced upon Roman citizens, for it was often the people who initiated such projects, giving rise to a civil competition between cities toward out-worshiping each other. The Roman government viewed this as a necessary unifying principle and sought to reinforce it via promotion, especially in Pergamos. Thus it became law that every Roman citizen must annually visit their local temple of the Emperor and burn incense to the godhead (or image) of Caesar and recite “Caesar is Lord.” Fulfillment of this duty was rewarded with a certificate proving the performed ritual. This was much more an act of political loyalty than spiritual worship; and Rome did not expect such to be exclusive in that after confessing Caesar as Lord one remained free to venerate any other god(s).
Nevertheless, for Christians it was unthinkable to utter such words stating that anyone other than Jesus Christ was Lord. William Barclay explains that “the Roman government was incapable of understanding this point of view, and Christians were regarded as disloyal and revolutionary citizens, and were, therefore, proscribed and outlawed.”[1]
This brought a severe test for Jesus’ disciples, serving to weed out the nominal followers from the true. Revelation 2:12 introduces the letter to Pergamos with Jesus identifying Himself as “He who has the sharp two-edged sword.” Again, Barclay offers keen historical insight:
Under the Roman government Roman governors were divided into two classes–those who had the ius gladii, the right of the sword, and those who had not. Those who had the right of the sword had the power of life and death; on their word a man could be executed on the spot. Humanly speaking, the proconsul, who had his headquarters at Pergamum, had the ius gladii… and at any moment he might use it against any Christian; but the letter [to Pergamos] bids the Christian not to forget that the last word is still with the Risen Christ.”[2]
It is certain that Jesus’ words are purposefully recalling His earlier admonishment of His not coming to bring peace to the earth, but rather a sword of division and judgment (Matthew 10:34; Luke 12:51). First-century disciples would hold fast to this truth rather than compromise, encouraged by the boldness of Antipas in Pergamos. Though there is scant record of this martyr named Antipas, Jesus treasures his example and immortalized him in both Scripture and name, calling him “My faithful witness” (Rev. 2:13).
Sadly, disciples in later centuries and at present have often allowed political considerations to replace the authority of moral and spiritual judgment, thus heralding the rise of political idolatry.
Darkness Falls
Revelation 2:13 refers to Pergamos as the place “where Satan has his throne” or “where Satan lives.”[3] Ancient Babylon has long possessed the reputation of being the capital city of all things evil. However, when Babylon’s glory began to decline and was eventually deserted, Satan sought another physical location. Pergamos suited due to its being a Roman seat of political power coupled with multitudinous idolatry, particularly its cultic emperor worship and eventually its devilishly heavy-handed intolerance for Christianity.
Keeping in mind that the letters to the local churches comprise a broader prophetic message to all historical Christendom, it is easier to comprehend church history in light of local church circumstances. And being that the Pergamos era of church history begins a trend toward darkness, the unveiling of the fact that Satan has his physical throne in Pergamos is an intentional hint toward satanic strongholds being established within church communities and should thus be taken as a warning to prepare against such, both in the local immediate sense and universally.
It is under this consideration that we may comprehend the prophetic meaning of the word pergamos, which is “to be elevated, or married.” J.B. Smith observes:
The church prophetic lost her pilgrim character by her elevation to a state religion; [and also lost] her position as a called-out body, by her union or marriage to the state political system.[4]
When Constantine became emperor of Rome, he became emperor of the western world. Having come to prominence conquering under a visionary sign of the True Cross, and styling himself as “the protector of the Christian faith,” Constantine issued an edict of toleration for Christianity throughout the empire and gave handsomely to the Christian church. Government gifts to the church included the changing of many laws to benefit Christians, the conversion of pagan temples to Christian churches, and near unlimited monetary provision. After an extended period of poverty and severe persecution, such financial assistance appeared to be a true blessing from God.
Though Constantine was a “godsend” to the church, his interpretation of Christianity was of an ecumenical, i.e. cosmopolitan, slant. Even as many conservative church leaders took note of his liberal intonations, few spoke ill of him as they were desirous to please the new world leader, opting not to risk a reversal of his tolerant edict. Thus, in open expressions of gratitude and at Constantine’s request, the local churches began to adopt customs and rituals that were in reality Christianized pagan practices. Inevitably, one compromise leads to another and what at first appeared to be a true blessing became, over time, a great curse. The next three centuries of this church era witnessed the rise of heathen practices within church liturgy and ceremony, eventually stealing from the church its fire and evangelistic zeal. Truly, evil never compromises, only good does at evil’s discretion.
Indulging in the power that came with financial wealth, the church succumbed to liberal theology due to the increasing influence of paganism, whereas church leaders that succumbed to (spiritual) pride began to create an aura of mystery and ritualism in which to enshroud the church, furthering a patriarchal and elitist agenda that would send the world into a spiritual “dark age.” Man-contrived traditions would ultimately trump biblical doctrine. Even today, and by dogmatic design, the biblically illiterate often mistakenly believe that such traditions are in fact biblical!
The rosary, of pagan origin, was introduced during this era. Likewise, the celibacy of priests and nuns has no scriptural basis and is a reworked form of the ritual of virgin sacrifice in order to “appease a god.” Further unscriptural changes introduced during this era are listed below. Over time such changes regularly usurped the original teachings of Christianity.
The Great Divorce
From AD 312 the church became less Christian and more Roman in its practices. Prior to AD 312 the church was an independent body of local churches working together whenever possible, with Christ and Scripture as the Head, as opposed to being dominated by a central human authority. Satan, however, was able to subtly influence the marriage of the church to state authority, and thus her divorce from Jesus Christ.
As a result, the church declined in spiritual power and blessing. The doctrine of the Nicolaitans finally found itself accepted within church teaching (Rev. 2:15). The Ephesian church/Apostolic era rejected this heretical idealism while the Pergamos church/State era invited the false doctrine. Of course, at any given point in church history there will be evidence of each church era within each church era at the local church level.
Nicolaitanism is the doctrine of a strong ecclesiastical (church) hierarchy ruling over the laity. The word derives from two Greek words: nikao means “to conquer or overthrow”; laos means “people, or laity.” Hence, “laity-conquerors.”
Souls in this category would include Diotrephes “who loves to have preeminence” (3 John 9). Likeminded souls are pride-stained church shepherds who have fallen to serving self.
The fault of the Nicolaitans was that they were seeking to adjust Christianity to the level of the world rather than lift the world to the level of Christianity… they were following a policy of compromise simply and solely to save themselves from trouble they were afraid and unwilling to face.[6]
Note that the deeds of the Nicolaitans have become doctrine in the letter to Pergamos (Rev. 2:6). This is likely the beginning of priestcraft, the operating order that developed into Roman church hierarchy. Such a divide has been the root of spiritual pride, spiritual cynicism, and an overall weakened spiritual condition within the church; it is this very circumstance that fueled the rise of the Roman Catholic Church. Protestantism brought much healing of this after the Reformation, but even today there are clergy/laity divisions that do more harm than good. Whenever clergy lose proper contact with the laity, they cease to be effective tools in the hands of God.
The mention of Balaam (Rev. 2:14) is meant to parallel the circumstance of the Nicolaitans, in that through the intrigue of Balaam, a (false) prophet hired by Balak, king of Moab, Israel was deceived into illicit relations with the daughters of Moab (Numbers 31:15-16; 2 Peter 2:15-16). This is simply evidence of Satan employing identical tactics against the Church that he utilized against Israel in the Old Testament period, his purpose being to cast stumbling blocks (and thus failure) before that which God would bless toward bringing further blessing to the world.
The general lesson to be gleaned from the Pergamos church is that even when believers are faithful to Jesus’ name and hold tight to sound doctrine, we must remain separated from the world, avoiding all compromise. To be in this world but not of it requires constant discipline and worship of Christ to combat the wiles of the devil, whether he attacks as blatantly as a roaring lion or subtly as a deceiving angel of light.
Bread of Heaven
In reference to Christ’s challenge, hidden manna and a white stone are mentioned (Rev. 2:17). Hidden manna is the spiritual sustenance provided in the Word of God that is to be individually sought and gathered, just as the Israelites had to individually seek and gather the heavenly food He sent them in the wilderness (Exodus 16:13-35).
A great mystery was revealed when Jesus proclaimed Himself as the Manna that “gives life to the world” (John 6:33, 51). In essence, then, true believers, i.e. overcomers, are to seek for Christ in His Word in that He is the Word, and only in Him can He be found by those who truly seek (John 1:1-4).
The white stone most certainly alludes to our assurance in the righteousness of God. White may symbolize purity as opposed to the “filthy rags” of the followers of Balaam and the Nicolaitans. Another allusion the white stone may signify is that of the stones in the garment of the high priest, worn as the priest would go before the Lord. Still another possibility rests with the idea of a white stone meaning acquittal; in ancient days, jurors would reveal their vote of “guilty” with a black stone and “not guilty” with a white stone.
Paper Victory
An interesting historical note exists in that Pergamos was home to a library that rivaled that of Alexandria, Egypt. Furthermore, in response to Egypt’s elitist ban on papyrus exports to the Asian city, Pergamos was also home to the invention of parchment, a.k.a vellum. The reason for the ban was due to Ptolemy of Egypt’s distaste for Eumenes, the third-century king of Pergamos, for Eumenes persuaded Alexandria’s librarian, Aristophanes, to relocate to Pergamos. However, Ptolemy imprisoned Aristophanes before his departure and imposed an embargo on papyrus exports to Pergamos, which led to Pergamene scholars inventing the far superior (and historically victorious) vellum.
Notes:
1. William Barclay, The Revelation of John, Vol. 1, (Philadelphia, PA: Westminster Press, 1960), p111.
2. Ibid.
3. The “place of Satan’s throne” in modern Turkey factors into the future Antichrist’s kingdom, as my commentary fully explores.
4. J.B. Smith, A Revelation of Jesus Christ, (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1974), p71.
5. Adapted from Lorraine Boettner, Roman Catholicism, (Philadelphia, PA: Presbyterian & Reformed, 1962), p8.
6. Barclay, The Revelation of John, Vol. 1, p115.