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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0;"/><title>Revelation 3 Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/commentaries/expositors/revelation/3.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/5001com.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 4800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 4800px)" href="/4801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1550px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1550px)" href="/1551.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1250px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1250px)" href="/1251.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1050px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1050px)" href="/1051.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 900px), only screen and (max-device-width: 900px)" href="/901.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 800px)" href="/801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 575px), only screen and (max-device-width: 575px)" href="/501.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-height: 450px), only screen and (max-device-height: 450px)" href="/h451.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /><script type="application/javascript" src="https://scripts.webcontentassessor.com/scripts/8a2459b64f9cac8122fc7f2eac4409c8555fac9383016db59c4c26e3d5b8b157"></script><script src='https://qd.admetricspro.com/js/biblehub/biblehub-layout-loader-revcatch.js'></script><script id='HyDgbd_1s' src='https://prebidads.revcatch.com/ads.js' type='text/javascript' async></script><script>(function(w,d,b,s,i){var cts=d.createElement(s);cts.async=true;cts.id='catchscript'; cts.dataset.appid=i;cts.src='https://app.protectsubrev.com/catch_rp.js?cb='+Math.random(); document.head.appendChild(cts); }) (window,document,'head','script','rc-anksrH');</script></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/revelation/3.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="//biblehu.com/bmcom/revelation/3-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="//biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="/commentaries/">Commentary</a> > <a href="../">Ellicott</a> > <a href="../revelation/">Revelation</a></div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../revelation/2.htm" title="Revelation 2">◄</a> Revelation 3 <a href="../revelation/4.htm" title="Revelation 4">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</div><div class="chap"> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-1.htm">Revelation 3:1</a></div><div class="verse">And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.</div>III.</span><p>(1) <span class= "bld">Sardis.</span>—The modern <span class= "ital">Sart</span>—now a mere village of paltry huts—once the capital of the old Lydian monarchy, and associated with the names of Crœsus, Cyrus, and Alexander. It was the great <span class= "ital">entrepôt</span> of dyed woollen fabrics, the sheep of “many-flocked” Phrygia supplying the raw material. The art of dyeing is said to have been invented here; and many-coloured carpets or mats found in the houses of the wealthy were manufactured here. The metal known as electrum, a kind of bronze, was the produce of Sardis; and in early times gold-dust was found in the sand of the Pactolus, the little stream which passed through the Agora of Sardis, and washed the walls of the Temple of Cybele. It is said that gold and silver coins were first, minted at Sardis, and that resident merchants first became a class there. An earthquake laid it waste in the reign of Tiberius; a pestilence followed, but the city seems to have recovered its prosperity before the date of this epistle. The worship of Cybele was the prevailing one; its rites, like those of Dionysos and Aphrodite, encouraged impurity.<p>The writer is described in words similar to those in <a href="/revelation/1-4.htm" title="John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be to you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;">Revelation 1:4</a>, as the one who hath the seven spirits of God, and the seven stars; but there is a difference. There Christ was seen holding the stars in His right hand; here it is said He <span class= "ital">hath</span> the seven Spirits and also the seven stars. In this language it is difficult to overlook the unhesitating way in which Christ is spoken of as owning or possessing that Holy Spirit who alone can make angels of His Church to shine as stars. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ (<a href="/romans/8-9.htm" title="But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.">Romans 8:9</a>; <a href="/romans/8-11.htm" title="But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwells in you.">Romans 8:11</a>). His promise is, “I will send the Comforter unto you” (<a href="/john/15-26.htm" title="But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, he shall testify of me:">John 15:26</a>), as possessing all power in heaven and earth. “He is able,” to use the language of Professor Plumptre, “to bring together the gifts of life, and the ministry for which those gifts are needed. If those who minister are without gifts; it is because they have not asked for them.” This the angel of the Sardian Church had not done; his faith and the faith of the Church around him had sunk into a superficial, though perhaps ostentatious, state. Here, then, lies the appropriateness of the description given of Christ, as the source of life and light to His Church.<p><span class= "bld">A name that thou livest.</span>—It is only needful to mention, and to dismiss the fanciful conjecture, that the name of the angel was Zosimos, or some parallel name, signifying life-bearing or living. It is the reputation for piety possessed by the Church of Sardis which is referred to. Living with the credit of superior piety, it was easy to grow satisfied with the reputation, and to forget to keep open the channels through which grace and life could flow, and to fail to realise that the adoption of habits of life higher than those around them, or those who lived before them, was no guarantee of real spiritual life; for “the real virtues of one age become the spurious ones of the next . . . The belief of the Pharisees, the religious practice of the Pharisees, was an improvement upon the life of the sensual and idolatrous Jews whom the prophets denounced. But those who used both the doctrinal and moral improvements as the fulcrum of a selfish power and earthly rank, were the same men after all as their fathers, only accommodated to a new age” (Mozley). Self-satisfaction, which springs up when a certain reputation has been acquired, is the very road to self-deception. The remedy is progress—forgetting the things behind, lest looking with complacency upon the past, moral and spiritual stagnation should set in, and spiritual death should follow.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-2.htm">Revelation 3:2</a></div><div class="verse">Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.</div>(2) <span class= "bld">Be watchful.</span>—Rather, <span class= "ital">become wakeful.</span> It will not do simply to rouse and sleepily grasp at their spiritual weapons, or even to stand for once at arms; you must become of wakeful habit. Strengthen the remaining things which were (when I roused you) about to die; for I have not found thy (or, <span class= "ital">any of thy</span>) works perfect—completed or fulfilled, fully done in weight and tale and measure—before <span class= "ital">my</span> God.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-3.htm">Revelation 3:3</a></div><div class="verse">Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.</div>(3) <span class= "bld">Remember therefore how</span> (or, <span class= "ital">after what sort</span>) <span class= "bld">thou hast received and heard</span> (or, <span class= "ital">didst hear</span>—the tense changes).—Remembering that the words are addressed primarily to the angel himself, the change of tense may have been designed to point him back to some particular period of his life, such as the time when he was set apart to his ministerial work. The further expectation is to hold fast, or keep—<span class= "ital">i.e., </span>as an abiding habit. It has been noticed that this counsel is identical with that given to Timothy to “keep the good thing which had been committed to his charge” (<a href="/2_timothy/1-14.htm" title="That good thing which was committed to you keep by the Holy Ghost which dwells in us.">2Timothy 1:14</a>; comp. also <a href="/2_timothy/2-2.htm" title="And the things that you have heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit you to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.">2Timothy 2:2</a>). “Repent” is the closing word; combined with the exhortation to hold fast, it reminds us that formal tenacity of truth and a fruitless inactive regret are alike useless. There must be the sorrow for the past, and a sorrow which shows itself in action—a repentance whereby sin is forsaken. (Comp. <a href="/revelation/2-5.htm" title="Remember therefore from where you are fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come to you quickly, and will remove your candlestick out of his place, except you repent.">Revelation 2:5</a>; <a href="/revelation/2-21.htm" title="And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not.">Revelation 2:21</a>.)<p><span class= "bld">If therefore thou shalt not watch.</span>—Better, <span class= "ital">If thou shalt not watch</span> (or, <span class= "ital">have been awake</span>)<span class= "ital">, I will come</span> (omit “on thee”) <span class= "ital">as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.</span> The warning is an echo from the Gospels (<a href="/context/matthew/24-42.htm" title="Watch therefore: for you know not what hour your Lord does come.">Matthew 24:42-43</a>; <a href="/context/luke/12-39.htm" title="And this know, that if the manager of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.">Luke 12:39-40</a>). The coming of Christ to judge His Church would be in an hour unlooked for. What kind of hour He would so come was’ unknown; the sound of His approaching footsteps unheard. Shod with wool, according to the ancient proverb, stealthily as a thief, the Judge would be at the door. Yet they could not plead that they had been in darkness (<a href="/1_thessalonians/5-4.htm" title="But you, brothers, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.">1Thessalonians 5:4</a>).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-4.htm">Revelation 3:4</a></div><div class="verse">Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.</div>(4) The best MSS. commence this verse with “But,” or “Nevertheless.” The case of the Sardian Church was bad, yet the loving eyes of the faithful witness would not ignore the good. There were a few who had not defiled their garments. These had not succumbed to the oppressive moral atmosphere around them. The words cannot, of course, be understood of absolute purity. Their praise is that, in the deathlike, self-complacent lethargy around, they had kept earnest in the pursuit of holiness, and had not forgotten Him who could cleanse and revive. (Comp. <a href="/revelation/7-14.htm" title="And I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.">Revelation 7:14</a>.)<p><span class= "bld">They shall walk with me in</span> <span class= "bld">white.</span>—This “white” is not the white of the undefiled robe; it is the lustrous white of glory, as in the promise in the following verse. (Comp. also <a href="/revelation/2-17.htm" title="He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit said to the churches; To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knows saving he that receives it.">Revelation 2:17</a>.)<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-5.htm">Revelation 3:5</a></div><div class="verse">He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.</div>(5) <span class= "bld">He that overcometh.</span>—The promise is repeated to all who overcome; all, not who have never fallen, or failed, but who conquer, shall be clothed in glistening white raiment. On this glistering appearance comp. Dante’s words, “robed in hue of living flame,” and the description so frequent in the <span class= "ital">Pilgrim’s Progress</span>—“the shining ones.” Trench, who reminds us that this glistening white is found in the symbolism of heathen antiquity, says: “The glorified body, defecated of all its dregs and impurities, whatever remained of those having been <span class= "ital">precipitated</span> in death, and now transformed and transfigured into the likeness of Christ’s body (<a href="/philippians/3-21.htm" title="Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like to his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things to himself.">Philippians 3:21</a>), this, with its robe, atmosphere, and effluence of lights, is itself, I believe, the white raiment which Christ here promises to His redeemed.” Professor Lightfoot thinks (see his <span class= "ital">Epistle to Col.</span> p. 22) that there may be a reference to the purple dyes for which Sardis, as well as Thyatira, was celebrated.<p><span class= "bld">I will not blot out . . .</span>—The negative is emphatic, “I will in no wise blot out.” This figure of speech—a book and the blotting out—was ancient. (See <a href="/deuteronomy/32-32.htm" title="For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter:">Deuteronomy 32:32</a>; <a href="/psalms/69-21.htm" title="They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.">Psalm 69:21</a>; <a href="/daniel/12-1.htm" title="And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which stands for the children of your people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time your people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.">Daniel 12:1</a>; comp. also <a href="/luke/10-20.htm" title="Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject to you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.">Luke 10:20</a>; <a href="/philippians/4-3.htm" title="And I entreat you also, true yoke fellow, help those women which labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellow laborers, whose names are in the book of life.">Philippians 4:3</a>.) The name shall not be erased from the roll or register of the citizens of heaven. “A process of erasure is ever going on, besides the process of entering. When the soul has finally taken its choice for evil, when Christ is utterly denied on earth and trodden under foot, when the defilement of sin has become inveterate and indelible, then the pen is drawn through the guilty name, then the inverted style smears the wax over the unworthy characters; and when the owner of that name applies afterwards for admittance, the answer is, ‘I know thee not; depart hence, thou willing worker and lover of iniquity’” (Dr. Vaughan).<p><span class= "bld">But I will confess his name.</span>—Another echo of Christ’s words on earth (<a href="/context/matthew/10-32.htm" title="Whoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.">Matthew 10:32-33</a>; <a href="/context/luke/12-8.htm" title="Also I say to you, Whoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God:">Luke 12:8-9</a>).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-7.htm">Revelation 3:7</a></div><div class="verse">And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;</div>(7) <span class= "bld">Philadelphia.</span>—The town of Philadelphia derived its name from Attalus Philadelphus, the king of Pergamos, who died B.C. 138. It was situated on the slopes of Mount Tmolus, in the midst of a district the soil of which was favourable to the cultivation of the vine. On the coins of the town are to be found the head of Bacchus. The town was built on high ground—upwards of 900 feet above the sea-level. The whole region, however, was volcanic, and few cities suffered more from earthquakes; the frequent recurrence of these considerably reduced the population. But its favourable situation and fertile soil preserved it from entire desertion. And of all the seven churches, it had the longest life as a Christian city. “Philadelphia alone has been saved . . .; among the Greek colonies and churches of Asia, Philadelphia is still erect, a column in a scene of ruins.” Such is the language of Gibbon, referring to its later history. As a light in the world at the present day, we must look to no Eastern Philadelphia; the hand of William Penn kindled a light in its great namesake of the West.<p><span class= "bld">These things saith he that is holy. . . .</span>—Better, <span class= "ital">These things saith the Holy, the True, He that</span> <span class= "ital">hath the key of David, that openeth, and no man shall shut, and He shutteth, and no one shall open.</span><p><span class= "bld">Holy.</span>—The main idea of the word here used is that of consecration. It is used of what is set apart to God; it does not assert the possession of personal holiness, but it implies it as a duty. It becomes, therefore, pre-eminently appropriate to Him who was not only consecrate, but holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. Prof. Plumptre thinks there may be a reference here to the confession made by St. Peter (<a href="/john/6-69.htm" title="And we believe and are sure that you are that Christ, the Son of the living God.">John 6:69</a>), where the right reading is, “Thou art the Christ, the <span class= "ital">holy One</span> of God.”<p><span class= "bld">True.</span>—A favourite word with St. John, and expressing more than the opposite of “false.” It implies that which is perfect in contrast with the imperfect; the reality in contrast with the shadow; the antitype in contrast with the type; the ideal which is the only real in contrast with the real which is only ideal;—<p>“The flower upon the spiritual side,<p>Substantial, archetypal, all aglow<p>With blossoming causes”<p>in contrast with the flower that fadeth here. Christ, then, in calling Himself the True, declares that “all titles and names given to Him are realised in Him; the idea and the fact in Him are, what they can never be in any other, absolutely commensurate” (Trench). In some MSS. the order of these words, “the Holy,” “the True,” is inverted.<p><span class= "bld">The key of David.</span>—Some early commentators saw in this key the key of knowledge which the scribes had taken away (<a href="/luke/11-52.htm" title="Woe to you, lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge: you entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in you hindered.">Luke 11:52</a>), and understood this expression here as implying that Christ alone could unloose the seals of Scripture, and reveal its hidden truth to men. In support of this they referred to <a href="/context/revelation/5-7.htm" title="And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat on the throne.">Revelation 5:7-9</a>. The fault of the interpretation is that it is too limited; it is only a corner of the full meaning. He who is “the True” alone can unlock the hidden treasures of truth. But the use of the word “David,” and the obvious derivation of the latter part of this verse from <a href="/isaiah/22-22.htm" title="And the key of the house of David will I lay on his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.">Isaiah 22:22</a>, points to a wider meaning. Jesus Christ is the true Steward of the house of David. (Comp. <a href="/hebrews/3-2.htm" title="Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house.">Hebrews 3:2</a>; <a href="/context/hebrews/3-5.htm" title="And Moses truly was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;">Hebrews 3:5-6</a>.) The faulty, self-seeking stewards, the Shebnas of Jerusalem and Philadelphia, vainly claimed a right of exclusion from synagogue or church, where Jesus, the God-fixed nail in the sure place, upon which the bundle of earth’s sorrows and sins might securely be suspended (<a href="/context/isaiah/22-23.htm" title="And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house.">Isaiah 22:23-25</a>), the Eliakim of a greater Zion, had the key of the sacred and royal house. In this, the chamber of truth was one treasure, as the chamber of holiness, the chamber of rest, the chamber of spiritual privileges, were others. In other words, though in a sense the keys of spiritual advantages are in the hands of His servants, “He still retains the highest administration of them in His own hands.” The power of the keys entrusted to Apostles gave them no right to alter the “essentials of the gospel, or the fundamental principles of morality.” The absolution given by them can only be conditional, unless the giver of it possesses the infallible discerning of spirits. The reader of Dante will remember how the cases of Guido di Montefeltro (<span class= "ital">Inf.</span> xxvii.) and of his son Buonconte (<span class= "ital">Purg.</span> v.) illustrate the belief which sustained so many illustrious spirits (John Huss, Savanarola, Dante), and in times of unjust oppression, tyrannical ecclesiasticism, and which this passage sanctions, that<p>“Nought but repentance ever can absolve;<p>And that though sins be horrible; yet so wide arms<p>Hath goodness infinite, that it receives<p>All who turn to it.”<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-8.htm">Revelation 3:8</a></div><div class="verse">I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.</div>(8) <span class= "bld">I know thy works: behold, I have set</span> (better, <span class= "ital">given</span>) <span class= "bld">before thee an open door</span> (better, <span class= "ital">a door opened</span>)<span class= "ital">.</span>—A reference to the passages (<a href="/acts/14-27.htm" title="And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.">Acts 14:27</a>; <a href="/context/1_corinthians/16-8.htm" title="But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost.">1Corinthians 16:8-9</a>; <a href="/context/2_corinthians/2-12.htm" title="Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel, and a door was opened to me of the Lord,">2Corinthians 2:12-13</a>; <a href="/colossians/4-3.htm" title=" With praying also for us, that God would open to us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:">Colossians 4:3</a>) in which a similar expression is used reminds us that the open door was not simply a way of escape from difficulties, but an opening for preaching the gospel, an opportunity of doing good, as well as an abundant entrance into the kingdom.<p><span class= "bld">For thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.</span>—The tenses used point back to some epoch in the history of this Church when some heavy trial or persecution arose, which tested the sincerity, fidelity, or Christian love of the faithful. “The reward then of a little strength is a door opened” (Dr. Vaughan).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-9.htm">Revelation 3:9</a></div><div class="verse">Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.</div>(9) <span class= "bld">Behold, I will make.</span>—Better, <span class= "ital">Behold, I give some.</span> There is no word to express this in the original, but as a word must be supplied to complete the sense, it is better to adopt “some” than the “them” of the Authorised version, as it is not a promise that all of the synagogue of Satan should come.<p><span class= "bld">Of the synagogue of Satan.</span>—We have here a re-appearance of the same troubles which afflicted the Church of Smyrna: the fixed and contemptuous exclusiveness of the Judaising party was their trial. But there was a time coming (perhaps the hour of temptation spoken of in the next verse) when these faithful ones, now abused and excommunicated by the fanatical synagogue, would be courted, acknowledged—nay, their aid invoked.<p><span class= "bld">I will make them to come and worship before my feet, and to know that I have loved thee.</span>—Some see in this a hint that the power of a large-hearted party to protect the Judaisers would be derived from the influence of the Gentiles, whose presence in the Church had been a stumbling-block to the Jewish party. This may have been, and doubtless was, often the case. But the promise seems to have a higher fulfilment. The course of events would show that the so-called latitudinarian was the nearest to Christ; time would transform the suspected into the respected. The Amorites would come, and the disinherited Jephthahs would be brought to be head of Gilead. In days of such trouble their strongest opponents would become their warmest supporters. An illustration of this will occur to the mind of the reader in the marvellous support which has been given to the growth of Christianity by Jews with the tongue, with the pen, with the harp and organ. Let the names of Neander, Rossini, and Mendelssohn stand for hundreds more.<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-10.htm">Revelation 3:10</a></div><div class="verse">Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.</div>(10) <span class= "bld">Because thou hast kept</span> (better, <span class= "ital">didst keep</span>) <span class= "bld">the word of my patience.</span>—The one who keeps God’s word is kept. Such is “the <span class= "ital">benigna talio</span> of the kingdom of God,” as Archbishop Trench calls it. The promise does not mean the being kept away from, but the being kept out from the tribulation. The head should be kept above the waters; they should not be ashamed, because they had kept the word of patience. It is through <span class= "ital">patience, </span>as well as comfort of the Scripture that we have the hope which maketh not ashamed. (Comp. <a href="/romans/15-5.htm" title="Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like minded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:">Romans 15:5</a>, and <a href="/context/revelation/3-3.htm" title="Remember therefore how you have received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore you shall not watch, I will come on you as a thief, and you shall not know what hour I will come on you.">Revelation 3:3-5</a>.)<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-11.htm">Revelation 3:11</a></div><div class="verse">Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.</div>(11) <span class= "bld">Behold, I come.</span>—Omit “Behold.” Better, <span class= "ital">I am coming quickly; hold fast; continue your race as those who are striving for a garland</span> (<a href="/1_corinthians/9-24.htm" title="Know you not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize? So run, that you may obtain.">1Corinthians 9:24</a>).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-12.htm">Revelation 3:12</a></div><div class="verse">Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, <i>which is</i> new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and <i>I will write upon him</i> my new name.</div>(12) <span class= "bld">Will I make a pillar.</span>—A pillar, and an unshaken one. There may be reference to the frequent earthquakes which had shaken down buildings in their city. Those who overcome will prove real supports to the great Christian temple. (Comp. <a href="/galatians/2-9.htm" title="And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go to the heathen, and they to the circumcision.">Galatians 2:9</a>.)<p><span class= "bld">Write upon him.</span>—Or, <span class= "ital">grave upon it.</span> On the sides of the four marble pillars which survive as ruins of Philadelphia inscriptions are to be found. The writing would be the name of God, the name of the heavenly Jerusalem and (omit the repetition, “I will write upon him”) the new, unknown name of Christ Himself. The allusion is to the golden frontlet inscribed with the name of Jehovah. (Comp. <a href="/revelation/22-4.htm" title="And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.">Revelation 22:4</a>.) He will reflect the likeness of God; and not only so, he will bear the tokens—now seen in all clearness—of his heavenly citizenship (<a href="/philippians/3-20.htm" title="For our conversation is in heaven; from where also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ:">Philippians 3:20</a>; <a href="/context/hebrews/12-22.htm" title="But you are come to mount Sion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,">Hebrews 12:22-23</a>). And a further promise implies that in the day of the last triumph, as there will be new revealings of Christ’s power, there will be unfolded to the faithful and victorious new and higher possibilities of purity. Thus does Scripture refuse to recognise any finality which is not a beginning as well as an end—a landing-stage in the great law of continuity. (See <a href="/revelation/2-17.htm" title="He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit said to the churches; To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knows saving he that receives it.">Revelation 2:17</a>; <a href="/revelation/19-12.htm" title="His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.">Revelation 19:12</a>.)<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-14.htm">Revelation 3:14</a></div><div class="verse">And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;</div>(14) <span class= "bld">Laodicea.—</span>Situated half way between Philadelphia and Colossae, and not far from Hierapolis. It received its name from Laodice, wife of Antiochus the second king of Syria, by whom it was rebuilt and beautified. It had borne in earlier times the names of Diospolis and afterwards Rhoas. It shared with Thyatira and Sardis in the dye trade; the woods grown in the neighbourhood were famous for their quality and the rich blackness of their colour. Prosperity in trade had so enriched the population that when their city suffered in the great earthquake (A.D. 60) they were able to carry on the work of rebuilding without applying, as many of the neighbouring towns were compelled to do, to the Imperial Treasury for aid. The language of St. Paul (<a href="/context/colossians/1-5.htm" title=" For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof you heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;">Colossians 1:5-8</a>) suggests that the churches of Colossae and the neighbourhood first received Christianity from the preaching of Epaphras, though it seems strange that so important a city, lying hard upon the great Roman road from Ephesus to the east, should have been passed over by St. Paul in his journeyings throughout Phrygia (see <a href="/acts/16-6.htm" title="Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,">Acts 16:6</a>; <a href="/acts/18-23.htm" title="And after he had spent some time there, he departed, and went over all the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples.">Acts 18:23</a>); yet, on the other hand, Phrygia was a vague term, and the language of <a href="/colossians/2-1.htm" title=" For I would that you knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;">Colossians 2:1</a> is most generally understood to imply that the Apostle had never personally visited either Colossae or Laodicea. (See Note on <a href="/colossians/2-1.htm" title=" For I would that you knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;">Colossians 2:1</a>.) But it was a Church in which St. Paul took the deepest possible interest; the believers there were constantly in his mind. He knew their special temptations to the worship of inferior mediators, and to spiritual paralysis springing from wordly prosperity and intellectual pride. He had great heart-conflict for those of Laodicea (<a href="/colossians/3-1.htm" title=" If you then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sits on the right hand of God.">Colossians 3:1</a>), and in proof of his earnest solicitude he addressed a letter to them (<a href="/colossians/4-16.htm" title=" And when this letter is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that you likewise read the letter from Laodicea.">Colossians 4:16</a>), in all probability the epistle we call the Epistle to the Ephesians. Prom the Epistle to the Colossians we may gather that when St. Paul wrote the Christians at Laodicea assembled for worship in the house of Nymphas (<a href="/colossians/4-15.htm" title=" Salute the brothers which are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the church which is in his house.">Colossians 4:15</a>) probably under the presidency of Archippus (<a href="/revelation/3-17.htm" title="Because you say, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and know not that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:">Revelation 3:17</a>).<p><span class= "bld">Unto the angel of the church </span>(or, <span class= "ital">congregation) </span><span class= "bld">of the Laodiceans.</span>—Better, <span class= "ital">in Laodicea.</span> By the angel we understand the presiding pastor. There is some ground for identifying him with Archippus. It is too much to dismiss this as a baseless supposition. (See Note in Trench.) It is a well-supported view which understands the passage (<a href="/colossians/4-17.htm" title=" And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfill it.">Colossians 4:17</a>) to mean that Archippus was a minister or office-bearer in the Church at Laodicea.<p><span class= "bld">These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness.—</span>The “Amen,” used only here as a personal name. It is the Hebrew word for verily, and may have some reference to <a href="/isaiah/65-16.htm" title="That he who blesses himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that swears in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from my eyes.">Isaiah 65:16</a>; but more certainly it seems chosen to recall the frequent use of it by our Lord Himself. He who so often prefaced His solemn utterance by “Verily, verily,” now reveals Himself as the source of all certainty and truth. In Him is Yea, and in Him Amen (<a href="/2_corinthians/1-20.htm" title="For all the promises of God in him are yes, and in him Amen, to the glory of God by us.">2Corinthians 1:20</a>). In Him there is no conjecture, or guess-work; for He is (and the Greek equivalents of the Hebrew Amen are used following) the faithful and true witness, who speaks what He <span class= "ital">knows</span>, and testifies what He has <span class= "ital">seen </span>(<a href="/john/3-11.htm" title="Truly, truly, I say to you, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and you receive not our witness.">John 3:11</a>). “Faithful” is to be taken here as meaning trustworthy. The word sometimes means trustful (<a href="/john/20-27.htm" title="Then said he to Thomas, Reach here your finger, and behold my hands; and reach here your hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.">John 20:27</a>; <a href="/acts/14-1.htm" title="And it came to pass in Iconium, that they went both together into the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke, that a great multitude both of the Jews and also of the Greeks believed.">Acts 14:1</a>), at other times, trustworthy (<a href="/2_timothy/2-22.htm" title="Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.">2Timothy 2:22</a>; <a href="/1_thessalonians/5-24.htm" title="Faithful is he that calls you, who also will do it.">1Thessalonians 5:24</a>). In the Arian controversy, the application of the word to Christ was used as an argument against His divinity; it was enough to show in reply that the same word was applied to God, and expressed His faithfulness to His word and promise (<a href="/1_thessalonians/5-21.htm" title="Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.">1Thessalonians 5:21</a>). “True”—He is not only trustworthy as a witness, but He combines in Himself all those qualifications which a witness ought to possess. The same word is used here as in <a href="/revelation/3-7.htm" title="And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things said he that is holy, he that is true, he that has the key of David, he that opens, and no man shuts; and shuts, and no man opens;">Revelation 3:7</a>, where see Note. Trench suggests the three things necessary to constitute a true witness. He must have been an eyewitness of what He relates, possess competence to relate what He has seen, and be willing to do so.<p><span class= "bld">The beginning </span>(better, <span class= "ital">the origination)</span> <span class= "bld">of the creation of God.</span>—This title of our Lord does not occur in the Epistles to the other churches, but very closely resembles the language used by St. Paul in writing to the Colossians (<a href="/context/colossians/1-15.htm" title=" Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:">Colossians 1:15-18</a>). The “beginning,” not meaning that Christ was the first among the created, but that He was the origination, or <span class= "ital">primary source</span> of all creation. By Him were all things made (<a href="/context/john/1-1.htm" title="In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.">John 1:1-3</a> : comp. <a href="/colossians/1-15.htm" title=" Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:">Colossians 1:15</a>; <a href="/colossians/1-18.htm" title=" And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.">Colossians 1:18</a>), not <span class= "ital">with</span> Him, but <span class= "ital">by</span> Him creation began. In short, the word “beginning” (like the word “faithful”) must be understood in an active sense. He has originating power (<a href="/acts/3-14.htm" title="But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted to you;">Acts 3:14</a>) as well as priority of existence. The appropriateness of its use will be seen when we remember that the Laodicean Church was exposed to the temptation of worshipping inferior principalities. (See <a href="/colossians/1-16.htm" title=" For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:">Colossians 1:16</a>; <a href="/colossians/2-15.htm" title=" And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.">Colossians 2:15</a>, where the plural of the word here rendered “beginning,” or <span class= "ital">origin</span>, is used, and is translated “principalities.”)<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-15.htm">Revelation 3:15</a></div><div class="verse">I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.</div>(15, 16) <span class= "bld">Neither cold nor hot.—</span>The “heat” here is the glowing, fervent zeal and devotion which is commended and commanded elsewhere (<a href="/romans/12-11.htm" title="Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;">Romans 12:11</a>). It is not, however, the self-conscious, galvanised earnestness which, in days of senile pietism, passes for zeal. It is an earnestness which does not know itself earnest, being all too absorbed in its work. It is self-forgetful, and so self-sacrificing, rather than ambitious of self-sacrifice. It is, in short, kindled of God, and sustained by<p>converse with the Divine One (<a href="/luke/24-32.htm" title="And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?">Luke 24:32</a>), and restored by intercourse with Him (see <a href="/revelation/3-20.htm" title="Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.">Revelation 3:20</a>; comp. <a href="/context/1_john/4-15.htm" title="Whoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God.">1John 4:15-20</a>). The “cold” describes the state of those who are as yet untouched by the Gospel of Love. An intermediate state between these is the “lukewarm”; such are neither earnest for God nor utterly indifferent to religion. They are, perhaps, best described as those who take an interest in religion, but whose worship of their idol of good taste, or good form, leads them to regard enthusiasm as ill-bred, and disturbing; and who have never put themselves to any inconvenience, braved any reproach, or abandoned any comfort for Christ's sake, but hoped to keep well with the world, while they flattered themselves that they stood well with God; who were in danger of betraying their Master, Judas-like, with a kiss. With the denunciation of “lukewarmness” here we may compare the exhortation to greater ministerial earnestness addressed to Archippus (<a href="/colossians/4-17.htm" title=" And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfill it.">Colossians 4:17</a>).<p><span class= "bld">I would </span>. . . .—The wish is not that they might grow cold rather than remain in this lukewarm state, it is more a regret that they are among those who are in a condition which is so liable to self-deception; such a state is “both to God displeasing and to His foes.” And this is expressed in startling language, “I <span class= "ital">am about </span>(such is the force of the words) to spue thee . . . .”<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-17.htm">Revelation 3:17</a></div><div class="verse">Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:</div>(17) I <span class= "bld">am rich.</span>—The verse means, more literally, <span class= "ital">Because thou sayest, I am rich, and have grown rich, and in nothing have need, and knowest not that thou art the wretched</span> (such is the emphasis) <span class= "ital">one, and the pitiable one, and beggarly, and blind, and naked. </span>Thou art “the type, the embodiment of wretchedness.” The words should, I think, be taken as an amplification of the reason for their rejection. Christ was about to reject them for being in that tepid state which, beginning with self-satisfaction, led on to self- deception. They were rich in worldly goods (unlike the Church in Smyrna), but their very wealth led them into a quiet unaggressively kind of religion; they were proud also of their intellectual wealth; self- complacent because in comfortable worldly circumstances, and became puffed up with a vain philosophy, they learned to be satisfied with their spiritual state, and to believe the best of themselves, and then to believe in themselves. Hypocrites they were, who did not know they were hypocrites. They thought themselves good; and this self-deception was their danger. “For,” to use Prof. Mozley’s words, “why should a man repent of his goodness? He may well repent, indeed, of his falsehood; but unhappily the falsehood of it is just the thing he does not see, and which he cannot see by the very law of his character. The Pharisee did not know he <span class= "ital">was</span> a Pharisee. If he had known it, he would not have been a Pharisee. The victim of passion, then, may be converted—the gay, the thoughtless, or the ambitious; he whom human glory has intoxicated; he whom the show of life has ensnared; he whom the pleasures of sense have captivated—they may be converted any one of these; but who is to convert the hypocrite? He does not know he is a hypocrite; he cannot upon the very basis of his character; he must think himself sincere; and the more he is in the shackles of his own character, <span class= "ital">i.e., </span>the greater hypocrite he is, the more sincere he must think himself” <span class= "ital">(University Sermons,</span> p. 34).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-18.htm">Revelation 3:18</a></div><div class="verse">I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and <i>that</i> the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.</div>(18) <span class= "bld">I counsel thee to buy.—</span>There is, perhaps, a touch of irony here. How could the poor and naked buy? But the irony has no sting, for the counsel but recalled the invitation of the prophet to buy “without money and without price” (<a href="/isaiah/55-1.htm" title="Ho, every one that thirsts, come you to the waters, and he that has no money; come you, buy, and eat; yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.">Isaiah 55:1</a>).<p><span class= "bld">Gold</span>—<span class= "ital">i.e.,</span> golden coin, “tried,” or, <span class= "ital">fired out of fire, </span>and so free from alloy or dross. Trench suggests that “gold” here stands for <span class= "ital">faith.</span> Does not, however, the self-deceiving state of this Church rather point to love as the missing grace? The Laodiceans were as those who had many graces in appearance; they were not unlike one who had gifts, tongues, understanding, liberality, but lacked that fervent love without which all was as nothing (<a href="/context/1_corinthians/13-1.htm" title="Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.">1Corinthians 13:1-3</a>); or, to use Trench’s own image, they were lacking in the only grace accepted as currency in the kingdom of God.<p>“O merchantman at heaven’s mart for heavenly ware,<p>Love is the only coin which passes there.”<p>But the possession of this love would bring their zeal out of the tepid into the fervent state. Such love, pure and fervent, could only spring from God, who would shed abroad His love in their hearts (<a href="/romans/5-5.htm" title="And hope makes not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to us.">Romans 5:5</a>).<p><span class= "bld">White raiment.</span>—The putting on of apparel and the stripping of it off were tokens of honour and humiliation. (See <a href="/2_samuel/10-1.htm" title="And it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead.">2Samuel 10:1</a>; Isa. 67:2,3; <a href="/hosea/2-3.htm" title="Lest I strip her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born, and make her as a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and slay her with thirst.">Hosea 2:3</a>; <a href="/hosea/2-9.htm" title="Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness.">Hosea 2:9</a>; <a href="/context/zechariah/3-3.htm" title="Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel.">Zechariah 3:3-5</a>; <a href="/revelation/16-15.htm" title="Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.">Revelation 16:15</a>; <a href="/luke/15-22.htm" title="But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:">Luke 15:22</a>.) The wedding-feast was at hand. The unclad would then be put to shame (<a href="/context/matthew/22-11.htm" title="And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:">Matthew 22:11-13</a>). Let them be prepared against this by putting on Christ (<a href="/context/colossians/3-10.htm" title=" And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:">Colossians 3:10-14</a>) and His righteousness (<a href="/philippians/3-9.htm" title="And be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:">Philippians 3:9</a>), that the shame of their nakedness do not appear—or, much better, <span class= "ital">be not made manifest</span>.<p><span class= "bld">Eyesalve.—</span>They were blind; they were proud of their intellectual wealth; they boasted of their enlightenment. (Comp. <a href="/colossians/2-8.htm" title=" Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.">Colossians 2:8</a>.) Self-deceived, they thought, like the Pharisees, that they saw. (Comp. <a href="/context/john/9-40.htm" title="And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said to him, Are we blind also?">John 9:40-41</a>.) Better would it be for them that they should receive the anointing of the Holy One (<a href="/1_john/2-20.htm" title="But you have an unction from the Holy One, and you know all things.">1John 2:20</a>), which would teach them all things, and especially reveal to them their self-ignorance. This anointing might be painful, but “the eyes of their understanding would be enlightened” (such is the remarkably parallel thought in the Epistle to the Ephesians), and they would be enabled to see and appreciate things spiritual. (Comp. <a href="/john/9-7.htm" title="And said to him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.">John 9:7</a>; <a href="/john/9-25.htm" title="He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.">John 9:25</a>; <a href="/context/1_corinthians/2-10.htm" title="But God has revealed them to us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.">1Corinthians 2:10-14</a>; <a href="/ephesians/1-18.htm" title="The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,">Ephesians 1:18</a>; <a href="/ephesians/5-19.htm" title="Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;">Ephesians 5:19</a>.)<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-19.htm">Revelation 3:19</a></div><div class="verse">As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.</div>(19) I <span class= "bld">rebuke and chasten.—</span>The first word is that used in the work of the Holy Spirit (<a href="/john/16-8.htm" title="And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:">John 16:8</a>), and signifies to bring conviction; it is not empty censure. The second word signifies to educate by means of correction. The pronoun is emphatic, “I,” and calls attention to the fidelity of Christ’s love in comparison with the weak partiality seen in human love. (Comp. <a href="/hebrews/12-6.htm" title="For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and whips every son whom he receives.">Hebrews 12:6</a>.)<p><span class= "bld">Be zealous.—</span>Or, be in a constant zealous state; and now, once for all, repent.<p>(2°)<span class= "bld"> Behold, I stand at the door, and knock.</span>—It is difficult not to see an allusion in this image to <a href="/context/songs/5-2.htm" title="I sleep, but my heart wakes: it is the voice of my beloved that knocks, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.">Song of Solomon 5:2-6</a>. Perhaps, also, the memory of the first night spent by St. John with his Master and Friend (<a href="/john/1-39.htm" title="He said to them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelled, and stayed with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.">John 1:39</a>) may have been strong in his mind. Indeed, the life of Christ on earth teems with illustrations which may well have suggested the image (<a href="/luke/10-38.htm" title="Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.">Luke 10:38</a>; <a href="/context/luke/19-5.htm" title="And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said to him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at your house.">Luke 19:5-6</a>; <a href="/context/luke/22-11.htm" title="And you shall say to the manager of the house, The Master said to you, Where is the guest room, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples?">Luke 22:11-13</a>; <a href="/context/luke/24-29.htm" title="But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them.">Luke 24:29-30</a>).<p> <div class="versenum"><a href="/revelation/3-21.htm">Revelation 3:21</a></div><div class="verse">To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.</div>(21) <span class= "bld">To him that overcometh </span>... .—He will share Christ’s throne as Christ shared His Father’s throne. Here are two thrones mentioned. My throne, saith Christ: this is the condition of glorified saints who sit with Christ in His throne. “But My Father’s <span class= "ital">(i.e., </span>God’s) throne is the power of divine majesty.” Herein none may sit but God, and the God-man Jesus Christ. The promise of sharing the throne is the climax of an ascending series of glorious promises, which carry the thought from the Garden of Eden (<a href="/revelation/2-7.htm" title="He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit said to the churches; To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the middle of the paradise of God.">Revelation 2:7</a>) through the wilderness (<a href="/revelation/2-17.htm" title="He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit said to the churches; To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knows saving he that receives it.">Revelation 2:17</a>), the temple (<a href="/revelation/3-12.htm" title="Him that overcomes will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God: and I will write on him my new name.">Revelation 3:12</a>), to the throne. The promise bears marked resemblance to the language of St. Paul to the Ephesians (<a href="/ephesians/2-6.htm" title="And has raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:">Ephesians 2:6</a>). This crowning promise is made to the most unpleasing of the churches. But it is well that thus the despondency which often succeeds the sudden collapse of self-satisfied imaginations should be met by so bright a prospect. Though their religion has been proved an empty thing, there is a hope which may well drive away despair. “The highest place is within the reach of the lowest; the faintest spark of grace may be fanned into the mightiest flame of divine love.”<p> <div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers<br /><br />Text Courtesy of <a href="//biblesupport.com" target="_top">BibleSupport.com</a>. 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