Revelation - The Church at Pergamos

Pergamos means ‘the city of the serpent’ History The early history of Pergamos is obscure. Mythology says that Zeus was born here. A great alter stood on a foundation of 125ft x 115ft and 50ft high, set in a colonnaded closure (Satan’s throne?). Aesculapius (son of Apollo) was worshipped, he was called saviour and was suppose to have the power to avert death. When Cyrus conquered Babylon he founded a new centre at Pergamos and the king of the city became the high priest of a pagan system similar to that of Babylon. Emperor worship was introduced in 27 BC. Pagan worship can be traced from Pergamos to Rome through Caesars becoming high priests and eventually led to Damasus, the Bishop of Rome in 378 AD, with integration of Babylonianism into the Roman Church. Heathen temples became churches, heathen festivals became Christian festivals and heathen priests became Christian priests.

Verse 12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;” Title of Jesus The sharp sword with two edges refers to the Bible, the Word. Verse 13 “I 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.” Good News There will be a lot of bad things to say about Pergamos, but still God is commending them for their steadfastness. The mention of Satan’s seat refers to the city’s tie with Babylonian religions and it’s integration into the Christian system. Many of our Christian holidays and traditions come from that same system. Antipas is not mentioned anywhere else in Scripture, but it is thought that he was a dentist and because he would not worship Caesar, he was taken and placed inside a copper bull, which was then placed on a fire and thus he died. Verse 14,15 “But 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. So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.” Criticism The doctrine of Balaam. He was hired by the enemies of the people of God to curse the Israelites, he was warned not to go by God. Not satisfied with this answer he made further requests of God to go, eventually he was given permission, but was not allowed to utter anything but blessings. Balak, king of Moab, wasn’t pleased at this and deprived Balaam of his rewards. Balaam then conceived an evil thought. If he could counsel the women of Midian and Moab to tempt the Israelites and cause them to sin, then God would have to punish His people. The seduction worked. Balaam sacrificed eternal riches for earthly gain. The doctrine of the Nicolaitians we looked at previously. Verse 16 “Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.” Exhortation Repent (1 John 1:9) "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive usoursins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Sword of my mouth - God’s word. Eph 6:17, the sword is based on the Roman sword. Paul was tied to a Roman soldier when writing his letter to the Ephesians. The Roman sword was a machira, a short sword that was only useful in close combat and required special training. Likewise if we want to use our Bible successfully, we need training and practice. Verse 17 “He 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.” Phrase “He that hath an ear, let him hear” Promise to the Overcomer “Hidden manna” Ex 16:15, Everyone had to get their own food, you couldn’t get it for anyone else. Manna ceased when Joshua crossed over the River Jordan. “White stone” Various explanations have been made by commentators about what this means. Pergamos worshipped an Asiatic goddess whose symbol in the temple was a black meteoric stone. It is in contrast to Jesus and whiteness and purity. There is also a stone used in a trail by jury. When they had made a decision a stone was put in a box and sent to the judge. If found guilty a black stone was in the box, if innocent then it would be white.