<< Revelation 2: Message to the Churches >>

 1Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks; 2I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: 3And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. 4Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. 6But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.

7He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. 8And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; 9I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. 10Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 11He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

12And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges; 13I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth. 14But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. 15So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes, which thing I hate.

16Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. 17He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh 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 knoweth saving he that receiveth it. 18And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass; 19I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first. 20Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. 21And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. 22Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. 23And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. 24But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. 25But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. 26And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: 27And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. 28And I will give him the morning star. 29He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

To the churches in the Christian world: To those there who primarily regard truths of doctrine and not goods of life, who are meant by the church of Ephesus. To those there who are in goods as to life and in falsities as to doctrine, who are meant by the church of Smyrna. To those there who place the all of the church in good works, and not anything in truths, who are meant by the church in Pergamos. And to those there who are in faith from charity, as also to those who are in faith separated from charity, who are meant by the church in Thyatira. All these are called to the New Church, which is the New Jerusalem.

Spiritual Correspondences

1. "Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write,"
 
To those and concerning those who primarily regard truths of doctrine, and not goods of life.
 
"These things saith He that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand,"
 
The Lord, from whom through the Word, are all truths.
 
"Who walketh in the midst of the seven golden lampstands,"
 
From whom enlightenment is to those who are of His church.
 
2. "I know thy works,"
 
That He sees all the interiors and exteriors of man at once.
 
"And thy labor and thy endurance,"
 
Their study and patience.
 
"And that thou canst not bear the evil,"
 
They cannot bear that evil should be called goods and the reverse.
 
"And hast tried them that say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars,"
 
They scrutinize those things which are called goods and truths in the church, which nevertheless are evils and falsities.
 
3. "And hast borne and hast endurance,"
 
Patience with them.
 
"And for My name's sake hast labored, and hast not fainted,"
 
Their study and endeavor to procure the things which belong to religion and its doctrine.
 
4. "But I have against thee, that thou hast left thy first charity,"
 
This is against them, that they do not hold the goods of life in the first place.
 
5. "Remember therefore from whence thou hast fallen,"
 
Remembrance of their error.
 
"And repent, and do the first works,"
 
They ought to invert the state of their life.
 
"But if not I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy lampstand out of its place, except thou repent,"
 
Otherwise, of a certainty, enlightenment will not be given them to see truths any longer.
 
6. "But this thou hast, that thou hatest the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate,"
 
They know this from their truths, and thence are not willing that works should be meritorious.
 
7. "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches,"
 
He that understands, ought to obey what the Divine truth of the Word teaches those who will be of the New Church, which is the New Jerusalem.
 
"To him that overcometh,"
 
He who fights against evils and falsities, and is reformed.
 
"Will I give to eat of the tree of life,"
 
Appropriation of the good of love and charity from the Lord.
 
"Which is in the midst of the paradise of God,"
 
Interiorly in the truths of wisdom and faith.
 
Verse 8. "And unto the angel of the church of Smyrna write,"
 
To those and concerning those who are in goods as to life, but in falsities as to doctrine alone.
 
"These things saith the First and the Last,"
 
The Lord, that He alone is God.
 
"Who was dead and is alive,"
 
He is neglected in the church, and His Human not acknowledged to be Divine, when yet as to that also He alone is life, and from Him alone is eternal life.
 
9. "I know thy works,"
 
The Lord sees all their interiors and exteriors at once.
 
"And affliction and poverty,"
 
They are in falsities, and thence not in goods.
 
"And the blasphemy of them that say they are Jews, and are not,"
 
The false assertion that they are in the goods of love, when yet they are not.
 
"But are the synagogue of Satan,"
 
Because they are in falsities as to doctrine.
 
10. "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer,"
 
Despair not when infested by evils and assaulted by falsities.
 
"Behold the devil will cast some of you into prison,"
 
Their good of life will be infested by evils from hell.
 
"That ye may be tried,"
 
By falsities fighting against them.
 
"And ye shall have affliction ten days,"
 
It will endure its full time.
 
"Be thou faithful unto death,"
 
Reception of truths until falsities are removed.
 
"And I will give thee a crown of life,"
 
They will then have eternal life, the reward of victory.
 
11. "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches,"
 
Here, as before.
 
"He that overcometh,"
 
He that fights against evils and falsities, and is reformed.
 
"Shall not be hurt of the second death,"
 
Afterwards they will not succumb to evils and falsities from hell.
 
12. "And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write,"
 
To those and concerning those who place the all of the church in good works, and not anything in truths of doctrine.
 
"These things saith He that hath the sharp two-edged sword,"
 
The Lord as to the truths of doctrine from the Word, by which evils and falsities are dispersed.
 
13. "I know thy works,"
 
Here, as before (n. 109). "And where thou dwellest," their life in darkness.
 
"And thou holdest fast My name, and hast not denied My faith,"
 
When yet they have religion and worship according to it.
 
"Even in those days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was slain among you where Satan dwelleth,"
 
When all truth was extinguished by falsities in the church.
 
14. "But I have a few things against thee,"
 
The things which follow are against them.
 
"That thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumbling-block before the sons of Israel, to eat idol-sacrifices, and to commit whoredom,"
 
There are some among them who do hypocritical works, by which the worship of God in the church is defiled and adulterated.
 
15. "So thou hast, even thou, them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which I hate,"
 
There are some among them also who make works meritorious.
 
16. "Repent"
 
They should take heed of such works.
 
"Or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight with them with the sword of My mouth,"
 
If not, that the Lord will contend with them from the Word.
 
17. "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches,"
 
Here, as before.
 
"To him that overcometh,"
 
Here, the same as before.
 
"I will give to eat of the hidden manna,"
 
The appropriation then of the good of celestial love, and thus conjunction of the Lord with those who work.
 
"And I will give him a white stone,"
 
Truths favoring and united to good.
 
"And in the stone a new name written,"
 
Thus they will have good of a quality such as they had not before.
 
"Which no one knoweth but he that receiveth it,"
 
It does not appear to anyone, because it is inscribed on their life.
 
18. "And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write,"
 
To those and concerning those who are in faith from charity, and thence in good works; and also to those and concerning those, who are in faith separated from charity, and thence in evil works.
 
"These things saith the Son of God who hath His eyes like unto a flame of fire,"
 
The Lord as to the Divine wisdom of His Divine love.
 
"And His feet like fine brass,"
 
Divine good natural.
 
"I know thy works,"
 
Here, as before.
 
"And charity and ministry,"
 
The spiritual affection which is called charity, and its operation.
 
"And faith, and thy endurance,"
 
Truth and the desire of acquiring and teaching it.
 
"And the last to be more than the first,"
 
The increase thereof from the spiritual affection of truth.
 
20. "But I have a few things against thee,"
 
What follows.
 
"That thou permittest that woman Jezebel,"
 
Among them there are some in the church who separate faith from charity.
 
"Who calleth herself a prophetess,"
 
And who make the doctrine of faith alone the doctrine of the church.
 
"To teach and to seduce My servants to commit whoredom,"
 
From which it comes to pass that the truths of the Word are falsified.
 
"And to eat idol-sacrifices,"
 
The defilement of worship, and profanations.
 
21. "And I gave her time to repent of her whoredom, and she repented not,"
 
They who have confirmed themselves in that doctrine do not recede, although they see things contrary to it in the Word.
 
22. "Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great affliction,"
 
Therefore they will be left in their doctrine with falsifications, and that they will be grievously infested by falsities.
 
"Except they repent,"
 
If they will not desist from separating faith from charity.
 
23. "And I will kill her sons with death,"
 
All the truths of the Word will be turned into falsities.
 
"And all the churches shall know that I am He that searcheth the reins and hearts,"
 
The church may know that the Lord sees the quality of everyone's truth, and the quality of his good.
 
"And I will give unto each one according to his works,"
 
He gives unto everyone according to the charity and its faith which is in the works.
 
24. "But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine,"
 
To those with whom the doctrine of faith is separated from charity, and to those with whom the doctrine of faith is joined with charity.
 
"And who have not known the depths of Satan,"
 
They who do not understand their interiors, which are mere falsities.
 
"I will put upon you none other burden,"
 
Only that they should beware of them.
 
25. "Nevertheless, that which ye have, hold fast till I come,"
 
They should retain the few things which they know concerning charity, and thence concerning faith from the Word, and live according to them until the Lord's coming.
 
26. "And he that overcometh and keepeth My works unto the end,"
 
Those who are in charity and thence actually in faith, and remain in them to the end of their lives.
 
"To him will I give power over the nations,"
 
They shall overcome the evils in themselves which are from hell.
 
27. "And he shall rule them with a rod of iron,"
 
By truths from the literal sense of the Word, and at the same time by rational things from natural light.
 
"As the vessels of a potter shall they be broken in pieces,"
 
As of little or no account.
 
"Even as I have received from My Father,"
 
This from the Lord, who, when He was in the world, procured to Himself all power over the hells, from His Divine which was in Him.
 
28. "And I will give him the morning star,"
 
Intelligence and wisdom then.
 
29. "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches,"
 
Here, as before.
 
Author: Emanuel Swedenborg (Apocalypse Revealed)