Revelation 2:12

And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; Trench prefers Pergamus, or Pergamum: on the river Caicus. Capital of Attalus the Second's kingdom, bequeathed by him to the Romans, 133 BC Famous for its library, founded by Eumenes (197 BC - 159 BC), and destroyed by Caliph Omar. Parchment - i:e., Pergemena charta-was here discovered for book purposes. Also, famous for the magnificent temple of Esculapius, the healing god (Tacitus, Annals, 3:, 63). HE WHICH HATH THE SHARP SWORD WITH TWO EDGES - His address having a twofold bearing, a searching power to convict and convert some (; ), and to condemn others ...

12-17 The word of God is a sword, able to slay both sin and sinners. It turns and cuts every way; but the believer need not fear this sword; yet this confidence cannot be supported without steady obedience. As our Lord notices all the advantages and opportunities we have for duty in the places where we dwell, so he notices our temptations and discouragements from the same causes. In a situation of trials, the church of Pergamos had not denied the faith, either by open apostacy, or by giving way so as to avoid the cross. Christ commends their stedfastness, but reproves their sinful failures. A wrong view of gospel doctrine and Christian liberty, was a root of bitterness from which evil practices grew. Repentance is the duty of churches and bodies of men, as well as of particular persons; those who sin together, should repent together. Here is the promise of favour to those that overcome....

_The Epistle to the Church at Pergamos._ Verse Revelation 2:12. _THE ANGEL OF THE CHURCH IN PERGAMOS_] See the description of this place, Revelation 1:11. _WHICH HATH THE SHARP SWORD_] Revelation 1:16, Revelation 1:16. The _sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God_, cuts every way; it convinces of sin, righteousness, and judgment; pierces between the joints and the marrow, divides between the soul and spirit, dissects the whole mind, and exhibits a regular anatomy of the soul. It not only reproves and exposes sin, bu

AND TO THE ANGEL OF THE CHURCH IN PERGAMOS - See the notes on Revelation 1:20. THESE THINGS SAITH HE WHICH HATH THE SHARP SWORD, ... - See the notes on Revelation 1:16. Compare Hebrews 4:12; Ecclesiastes 12:11; Isaiah 49:2. Prof. Stuart suggests that when the Saviour, as represented in the vision, “uttered words, as they proceeded from his mouth, the halitus which accompanied them assumed, in the view of John, the form of an igneous two-edged sword.” It is more pr

EXPOSITION REVELATION 3:1 _The epistles to the seven Churches. _Once more we have to consider rival interpretations. Of these we may safely set aside all those which make the seven letters to be pictures of _successive periods _in the history of the Church. On the other hand, we may safely deny that the letters are _purely typical, _and relate to nothing definite in history. Rather they are _both historical and typical. _They refer primarily to the actual condition of the several Churches in St. John's own day, and then are intended for the instruction, encouragement, and warning of the Church and the Churches throughout all time. The Catholic Church, or any one of its branches, will at any period find itself reflected in one or other of the seven Churches. For two Churches, Smyrna and Philadelphia, there is nothing but

AND TO THE ANGEL OF THE CHURCH IN PERGAMOS WRITE,.... Of the city of Pergamos, Revelation 1:11. In it was a church of Christ, but when it begun, and how long it lasted, is not certain. Antipas, who is mentioned, Revelation 2:13; is thought, by some, to have been the pastor of it. Though, according to the Apostolical Constitutions s, Caius was the first bishop of it; and it appears, that in the "second" century there were several in this place that suffered martyrdom for Christ, as Carpus, Papulus, and a woman whose name was Agathonice t. Attalus, the martyr, who suffered in the same century, was also a native of this place u. In the "fifth" century there was a bishop of Pergamos in the council at Ephesus; and in the "sixth" century, there was one in the "fifth" synod at Constantinople; and in the

ANGEL (_ See Scofield) - (Hebrews 1:4). _...

II. THE THINGS WHICH ARE, THE SEVEN CHURCH MESSAGES, AND THEIR PROPHETIC MEANING CHAPTER 2 _ 1. Ephesus: The post-apostolic period (Revelation 2:1)_ 2. Smyrna: The period of persecution (Revelation 2:8) 3. Pergamos: The corruption period (Revelation 2:12) 4. Thyatira: The Romish corruption (Revelation 2:18) The two Chapter s which follow the introductory chapter contain seven messages to seven local churches which were in existence in the province of Asia in the days when the Apostle John was prisoner in the isle of Patmos. The view held by the late Dr. Bullinge

REVELATION 2:1 TO REVELATION 3:22. THE LETTERS TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES. These letters are addressed to individual churches, but their messages are intended for the Church as a whole. In every letter there occurs the phrase, He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches....

THE CITY OF _PERGAMOS_ STOOD ABOUT TWENTY MILES FROM THE SEA, AND WAS ONCE CAPITAL OF. KINGDOM BY THE SAME NAME. IT STILL EXISTS, IS CALLED BERGAMOS, AND HAS. POPULATION OF ABOUT 14,000, OF WHOM 3,300 ARE NOMINALLY CHRISTIANS. THE SEVEN CHURCHES.--At the time when John wrote there were hundreds of churches in existence. On the Asiatic Continent many had been founded in Judea, Syria, and elsewhere, and in the district of which Ephesus was the commercial metropolis, and which was especially designated as _Asia,_ we know that in the last quarter of the first century there were not only the seven churches named, but Colossae, Hierapolis, and perhaps many more. Why then should the Lord direct his message to the seven churches alone? If the reader will turn over the pages of Revelation he will be surprised by the frequency with which the number _seven_ occurs. There are the Seven Spirits of Go...