Smyrna: Unto Death Series

Imagine having to hide to do what we’re doing right now because if we get caught, we would be arrested and tortured and made to renounce our faith publicly … or be executed. That was the situation and daily reality for the little church in the beautiful city of Smyrna.

Smyrna is located 35 miles north of Ephesus and is known as the port city of Izmir today. It was founded in 1000 b.c. as a Greek colony on the summit of Mount Pegos on the edge of the Aegean Sea. Today Izmir is the third largest city in Turkey with approximately six million people calling it home. Izmir is a beautiful and busy place, hosting Turkey’s second largest port. Today, as in ancient times, the location of the city makes it a major contributor to Turkey’s economy and provides many, many opportunities for business and trade worldwide.

Smyrna’s significance came down to three factors. The first was its location. The Gulf of Smyrna is a natural harbor on the Aegean Sea. This geographic location made Smyrna’s location on the coastline of this harbor an ideal location for trade and travel and it quickly became a central hub of commerce in the ancient world. Where there’s trade, there’s money! Smyrna was, and still is, a very prosperous city. As travelers from around the world journeyed to Smyrna with their goods, they brought their culture and their religion with them, which made Smyrna a natural melting pot situated on a number of major crossroads for the ancient world.

The second factor that contributed to Smyrna’s significance was its cultural influence. Smyrna boasted a rich history of poets and authors and other important and notable citizens. For example, the poet and philosopher Homer … who wrote the classic masterpieces “The Odyssey” and “The Iliad” … was born in Smyrna.

The third reason for Smyrna’s significance was its reputation for being extremely loyal and faithful to Rome. In fact, it was one of the first cities in Asia Minor to construct a temple dedicated to the worship of the Emperor Caesar. The city’s loyalty and faithfulness to Rome earned it special favor with Rome and so the citizens of Smyrna were pretty much free to indulge in the luxurious lifestyle and opulence that came from living in a thriving and prosperous international seaport like Smyrna.

The Smyrians were proud of their city … very proud … and for good reason. Historians consider it to be one of the most beautiful ancient Greek cities ever built. The city … with its exquisite architecture and temples built on top of Mount Pegos was highly visible from the harbor and was called the “Crown of Smyrna.” On the slope facing the sea was one of the largest Greek amphitheaters ever built … seating over 25,000 spectators. Inscriptions on Smyrna’s coins boasted that the city was the “first” or “premier” city of Asia Minor … a claim that appeared to go undisputed by the other cities in that region.

If Smyrna was such a rich and luxurious city, why did Jesus write to the church there and tell them that He knew of their afflictions and their poverty (v. 9)? Perhaps the name of the city could give us a clue. The city got its name from its chief export … an aromatic extract taken from a thorny tree. The juice was extracted by “crushing” the plant and then boiling the sap into a thick resin know as … “smyrna.” Over time, “smyrna” became known as “myrrh.”

“Smyrna” or “myrrh” was used throughout the ancient world as a base for perfume. For example, “smyrna” or “myrrh” was one of the three gifts that the magi, or wisemen, gave to Mary and Joseph to honor the Christ child (Matthew 2:11). “Smyrna” or “myrrh” was also used as an antiseptic. Jesus was offered a cup of wine mixed with smyrna or myrrh as He was dying on the cross to help deaden the pain of his suffering (Mark 15:23). “Smyrna” or “myrrh” was also used to embalm bodies. When Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea took Jesus’ body down from the cross and placed it in a tomb, they wrapped His body in linen cloth and placed 75 pounds of aloe and myrrh in the folds of the linen as a way to embalm Jesus body (see John 19:39).

The name “Smyrna” perfectly describes what was happening to the church in the city known as the “Glory of Asia.” The Christians in this rich, beautiful city were being crushed and mercilessly persecuted. As one writer put it: “[The Christian community was] lying embalmed in the precious spices of its suffering.”

“I know your affliction and your poverty, even though you are rich” (v. 9). What was it about this congregation that made them so despised that everyone wanted to “crush” them and make them suffer so much? You see, Smyrna was not only the “Glory of Asia,” it was also the center of emperor worship for the entire eastern region of the Roman Empire. In the year 195 b.c. the city built a temple to the Roman goddess Roma, which, as I said earlier, won them favor with the Romans and the Roman state. At the time that Jesus wrote this letter, the city was dominated with temples to various Roman gods. The central, or main, street of Smyrna was called the “Street of the Gods” or “Golden Street,” which was lined with temples to the ancient Roman prophetess, Sybil, and the Roman god Apollo. At the end of the street, elevated above the city, was the temple to the head or supreme Roman god, Jupiter. Among the temples to the Roman gods was, as I also mentioned earlier, the first temple built to honor and worship a Roman Emperor, who was Emperor Tiberias at the time that the temple was built.