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.
To the average Christian, Rome has always been held in disrepute because of its cruel treatment of us in the past. We consider the Romans to be vicious tyrants … but the people of that day didn’t think of Rome that way at all. The citizens of Rome loved their government and enjoyed what was known as the “Pax Roma” or “Roman peace” which lasted for nearly two centuries. There was little or no fear of war because Rome had become so strong that no one was foolish enough to attack her. They had banished pirates from the high seas, which made it possible for trade to flourish … which was especially good for harbor towns like Smyrna. The Romans built an amazing system of roads that linked the empire together, which, again, greatly benefited the city of Smyrna.
If you lived in Rome back in those days, you loved Rome. Rome made everything work for you. Rome took care of all your needs. The Roman empire was seen as a great blessing for the people who lived under her protection and rule. Towns like Smyrna were willing to worship the “Spirit” of Rome … their gods and goddess … and that seemed to naturally develop into a love and then worship of the emperor who embodied the “Spirit of Rome.”
At first the emperors resisted the notion of being worshipped but over time they not only reluctantly accepted it but began to demand it. By the time the Book of Revelation was written, emperor worship was compulsory. Every citizen in the Roman empire had to burn incense on the altar to Caesar at least once a year and they were issued a certificate verifying that they had in fact worshiped Caesar in the temple. Failure to worship the “Kaiser Curios” … “Lord Caesar” … was treason and punishable by death. The Apostle John was banished from Ephesus and sent to the island of Patmos for refusing to worship the emperor. Sixty years after Jesus sent this letter to the church in Smyrna, one of Apostle John’s disciples, Polycarp, was burned to death at the stake for the amusement of the people of Smyrna because he, like his master, refused to bow down and declare Caesar “Curios” … “Lord.”
To be a Christian in the Roman Empire was dangerous, to say the least. The threat of arrest and possible death hung over their heads every day and few places were more dangerous for Christians than Smyrna, which prided itself on being the “center” of emperor worship and one of the highly favored cities in the Roman Empire.
In His letter to the church in Smyrna, Jesus used three words to describe the Christians’ suffering: Pressure … poverty … and persecution. “I know your affliction,” Jesus assures them (Revelation 2:9). The Greek word that Jesus used for “affliction” is also translated as “tribulation.” The Greek word is “thylipsus” (tha-lip-sus) … which literally means “pressure.” The picture is one of placing a heavy rock upon a person’s chest until the weight of it slowly crushes a person to death. It’s like the steady grinding of a millstone as it crushes kernels of grain to produce flour … or the steady pressure that a wine press uses to squeeze the juice out of grapes.
The Christians in Smyrna were under constant, grinding pressure from the pagan society around them. There was never a moment of relief … never a moment when the pressure of persecution let up.
Jesus knows their affliction … the pressure that they’re under … and He knows their “poverty” (Revelation 2:9). There are two key words used for “poverty” in the New Testament. One is “penia” … it’s where we get our word “penny” from. In John’s day, “penia” referred to a person who had to work for a living and “just got by” … someone we would call a “working poor” person today. A “penia” was someone who lived from pay day to pay day and was always just one paycheck away from the poor house, so to speak.
The Greek word “ptocheia” (toe-key-ah), on the other hand, describes abject poverty. It describes someone who’s destitute and has to beg to survive because they are utterly without any means of supporting themselves. They have no idea where their next meal is going to come from … or if there even is going to be a next meal. We would describe them as someone who was living “hand to mouth.”
Take that in for moment. In the midst of one of the wealthiest cities in Asia Minor, the Christians in Smyrna were “ptocheia.” They were penniless … struggling to make it through the day … and then the next day … and the next. How could this happen? Because of their faith. Not only were they attacked by mobs and looted and robbed, but they were also boycotted by the local businesses and barred from working by the local trade unions because of their disloyalty to the Roman emperor … and thus the empire.
Jesus then goes on to speak about some Jews who were not Jews slandering the Christians in Smyrna. “I know the slander on the part of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan” (Revelation 2:10). Whoa! Wouldn’t you like to know what that is all about, amen? Well … glad you asked.
At the start of the Christian movement, the Jews allowed Christians to attend synagogue and offer prayers in Jesus’ name there. In 83 a.d., however, a full thirteen years before Jesus sent the seven letters to the seven churches, some of the leading rabbis at the time sent out a decree declaring that it was blasphemy to pray in Jesus’ name and the Christians were irrevocably kicked out of the synagogues. Now, the Romans occupied and controlled many lands and ruled over many different cultures. Certain religions, like Judaism, were protected under Roman law. As long as Christians were seen as a sect of Judaism and allowed to worship in the synagogue, they enjoyed the same protection as the Jews under Roman law. When the Christians were kicked out of the synagogues and effectively kicked out of Judaism, they were considered to be a “new religion” by the Romans and new religions were illegal under Roman law … which then opened the door to persecution for us.
Jesus is calling the Jews in Smyrna tools of Satan because they were being used by Satan … knowingly or unknowingly … probably unknowingly … to destroy the Christians who were as much under the special provision of Jesus as the Jews were even if they were not covered by the provisions of Jewish and Roman law. In every respect the Jews were faithful and obedient except for the way in which they kicked the Christians out of the synagogues, slandered them, and then turned their backs on the suffering of the Christians in this hyper-Roman city. We don’t know what the slander was, but it was apparently something that stirred the locals up against the Christian community and it was bad enough for Jesus to mention it and condemn it in His letter to the church at Smyrna. It probably gave the Christians some small comfort to know that Jesus was not only aware of their suffering at the hands of the Jews and the local people but that He condemned it. And, if He condemned it, then there was a chance that He might do something to stop the slander and the persecution.
Unfortunately, what Jesus says next is not, well, very encouraging or uplifting. “Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Beware, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison so that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have affliction” (v. 10). See what I mean? I don’t know about you but if I were in Smyrna hearing this letter for the first time, words like “suffer” and “prison” and “affliction” would jump right out at me. Do not fear?! Do not be afraid! Are you kidding me? How can we not be afraid when we live under the never-ending, grinding possibility of jail, torture, and death?
Which takes us back the Author of this letter, doesn’t it? Yea … if we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we will what? We will fear no evil, amen (Psalm 23:4)? Why? Because Jesus, our Shepherd, is with us. His rod and His staff … His Presence … will guide us and comfort us (Psalm 23:4). He has sent us a letter and in that letter, He states that He knows our afflictions … He knows what we’re going through. His letter and His description of what we are going through is proof that He is not ignoring us, amen?
If there is one emotion that we’ve been feeling these days it’s fear, amen? Lots and lots of it, unfortunately. Understandably so. There are a lot of, well, for the want of a better word, there are a lot of “crazy” things going on … too many to keep up with actually. It’s something new just about everyday and everyday we ask ourselves questions like: “What’s going to happen next?” “What’s going to happen to our country?” “What’s going to happen to our economy?” “What going to happen to us? To our churches?”
Listen, brothers and sisters, to Jesus’ own words. They apply as much to us today as they did to the Christians in Smyrna. Just as He is telling them that He is aware of what they’re going through, He is also telling us that He is aware of we’re going through. Just as He is telling them not to be afraid because He knows about their affliction, their trials, their struggles, He is telling us not to be afraid because He knows about the pandemic, He knows about the riots, He knows about the afflictions and trials that we and this nation are going through right now.
Do not be afraid. You don’t have to fear what’s happening or what may happen. The anecdote to fear is not courage, my friends, it is faith. Faith in Jesus. Faith in what Jesus has said. Faith in who Jesus is. Faith in what He has promised us. And what has He promised the Smyrians? What has He promised us? “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).
Think not only about what was just said but Who’s saying it? “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). Can you think of anyone who would know more about being faithful unto death than Jesus Christ? And yet, the One … with a capital “O” … who is writing this letter is clearly not dead, amen?
As you may recall from last week, I pointed out that Jesus begins each of these seven letters by describing Himself. To the church at Ephesus, He described Himself as the One who “walks among the seven golden lampstands … holding the seven stars in His right hand” (Revelation 2:1). To the church at Smyrna, He describes Himself as “the first and the last, who was dead and came to life” (Revelation 2:8).
The One who wrote this letter is the “Alpha and Omega” … the Logos … the Word … with a capital “W” … Who was with God before there even was a creation, let alone a beautiful city like Smyrna, amen? The Author of this letter is the “Great I Am” who has always existed and will always exist, amen? In the same manner that Jesus was with the Smyrians when their trouble started, He would be with them long after their struggles were over. And the same can be said about us. Jesus was with us long before all this insanity started and He will be with us long after it’s over, amen?
“These are the words of the first and the last, who was dead and came to life” (Revelation 2:8). This image of “resurrection” struck a deep and powerful note for ALL of the residents of Smyrna. You see, Smyrna was not only known for its beauty, its wealth, and its loyalty to all things Roman … it was also known at that time as the city that died and came back to life. Smyrna was captured and destroyed in 600 b.c. by hostile forces. Recognizing its strategic geographical location, one of Alexander the Great’s generals was assigned the task of rebuilding the city in 300 b.c.
The city may still stand today but where are the Romans and Jews who persecuted the Christians in Smyrna? And where are the Christians that they persecuted and killed? Jesus kept His promise. Those who were faithful in the face of trials and persecution … those who were “ptocheia” … those who were oppressively poor in regard to material things but abounding in faith … those who were faithful until death … are still alive and doing well … better than well. They are living as citizens of another country … an eternal country ruled by the Alpha and Omega, the Great I AM, who died and who is alive. They have received the “crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). Not a temporary “crown” of laurel branches or flowers like the Romans gave to the victors in athletic competitions but something far better … the crown of life … the crown of eternal life. Think about it. Which would you rather win? An Olympic gold metal would be sweet … something to brag about, to be sure … but to have Jesus place the “crown of life” on your head after finishing your life here on earth … well, there’s no comparison in my book, amen?
The suffering servant in Smyrna who conquers, who is faithful until death, says Jesus, “will not be harmed by the second death” (Revelation 2:11). Do you know what Jesus means when He says that those who conquer and are faithful to the end will not be harmed by the “second death?” What is the “second death”? The “first death” is when you physically die. The “second death” is when we stand before God on the Day of Judgment and those who are condemned are separated from God forever! The “first death” is but a shadow of the “second death.” If you think the “first death” is dreadful, the “second death” will be a million million times worse. The world may live to die but those who are conquerors and faithful until death die to live, amen?
The world may live to die but those who are conquerors and faithful until death die to live. If you were born once, you will die twice. If you were born twice, you will only die once! Think about that. If you were born once ... physical birth ... you will die twice ... a physical death and a spiritual death. If you were born twice ... in other words a physical and spiritual birth ... you will only die once ... a physical death! Thank and praise Jesus if you have been born again. We may have to go through a physical death but if we are faithful until death, Jesus promises us that we will never, ever experience the second death of eternal separation from Him. The tone and the Greek language that Jesus uses when He makes us this promise is strong and binding. He is promising that those who suffer, those who are possibly killed on account of their faith in Him will in no way, in no wise ever, NEVER, ever experience the pain of going through the second death (Revelation 2:11).
Many in the Smyrian church would pay the ultimate price for their faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus promised them that their faith in Him would not be in vain. While it may seem like their detractors and tormenters have the upper hand right now, they need not fear … for in the end, they will be richly rewarded for the suffering that their detractors and tormenter put them through … and trust me, I wouldn’t want to be standing in the shoes of their detractors and tormenters when judgment day comes, would you?
In Matthew 10:28, Jesus tells us not to be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul, but rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. They may throw us out of the synagogue, so to speak. They may bar us from gainful employment … take food out of our mouths. They may reduce us to living at a “ptocheia” level of poverty. They may attack us and imprison us because of our faith. They may even take our very lives, but they can’t take away our souls. They can’t take away our eternal relationship with Almighty God if we are faithful to the very end, amen? And it is that promise and that hope that strengthens us so that we, like the Christians in Smyrna, can not only over come but conquer our fear, our despair, our hopelessness in these very troubling times, amen?
In His letter, Jesus warns them that the devil is about to throw some of them in prison so that they may be tested, and for 10 days they would be afflicted by persecution and suffering (Revelation 2:10). Hum … 10 days. We know that many of them were thrown into prison but we also know that their “affliction” lasted a lot, lot longer than 10 days, amen? So, what did Jesus mean when He said that? Some scholars suggest that Jesus is referring to the 10 years of persecution and tribulation that the Christians in Smyrna would have to suffer. We don’t actually know how long the Christians were persecuted in the “Glory of Asia.” Some scholars think Jesus’ reference to “10 days” represents the 10 waves of persecution that took place under 10 different Roman emperors beginning with Emperor Nero.
The explanation that I like best is that Jesus was being merciful in letting the Christians in Smyrna know that their trials, their persecution, their tribulation would not last forever. They would certainly go on for more than 10 days … but definitely not forever. God had placed a limit on how long their suffering would go on … just as God had placed limits on what Satan could do to torture Job. Jesus would never allow His saints to be tempted, proved, tested, or tried beyond what they can bear (1st Corinthians 10:13).
The intent of Jesus’ words was to encourage the Christians in Smyrna to hold on and not lose hope or faith in the midst of their suffering and persecution. While their suffering may seem to keep going and going and going, in the end it would only be a blink of the eye compared to the eternity that they would get to spend with Jesus in Heaven. Remember, Jesus is the first and the last, who died and came back to life (Revelation 2:8). Jesus is in full control … over life and over death. Ten days is Jesus’ way of saying that our suffering has a beginning and our suffering has an end. It may feel like what we’re going through right now is never going to end, but trust me, there is a limit. There will come an end. It may not be the ending that we want but there will come an end to all this insanity and madness that we’re going through right now. Everything that begins in this world will eventually come to an end. Everything in this world has a time … a season … a limit put on it by God, who alone is forever and eternal, right? And that should give us hope … that should give us the strength, the resolve to endure until it either ends or we die. And if we die, Jesus is saying that we will be more than conquerors because none of this stuff that’s got us so tangled up here on earth will matter to us any longer. So … whether the pandemic ends or not … whether the capitol gets burned to the ground … whether we end up in jail … whether we die from some illness or old age or we die because of our beliefs … our current suffering will inevitably come to an end, amen?
The first word that Jesus speaks to all seven of His churches is “oida” … “I know.” “Oida … I know your afflictions.” “Oida … I know your tribulation.” “Oida … I know your poverty.” “Oida … I know what it’s like to be slandered … to be to be falsely accused.” “Oida … I know what it’s like to be faithful to the end.” “Oida … I know what it’s like to die and I know what it is like to conquer death … and I want you to know what it is like to be victorious … to receive the crown of life.”
“Oida” means to know by personal experience. Whatever the Christians were going through in Smyrna … whatever we are going through in our lives right now … Jesus not only knows what we are going through, He’s experienced it Himself. The One … with a capital “O” … who lived for three years under the sentence of death can honestly say, “Oida … I know your fear … I know the pressure that you are under.” The One who had no place to lay His head while He was on this earth and was poorer than the foxes and the birds can honestly say, “Oida … I know your ‘ptocheia’ … your poverty. Though I was rich, yet for your sake I became ‘ptocheia’ … poor … that through my ‘ptocheia’ … through my poverty … you might become rich” (2nd Corinthians 8:9). The One who was slandered and falsely accused by His own can honestly say, “Oida … I know your sense of betrayal … I know what it’s like to be persecuted unto death … but I also ‘oida’ … I also know the riches and the rewards that await you if you remain faithful to me, the first and the last.”
Let us pray:
Lord:
In Your mercy, bless all who are suffering. Pour Your grace into their lives. Comfort them and grant them peace. Strengthen them in their weakness and carry them through their time of distress. Meet them in the midst of their suffering and remind them of what is so often forgotten when we’re in despair … that this too shall pass. Most importantly, may those who are suffering never forget that the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, is not only with us, not only knows what we’re going through, but has it all under control. Help us all to be faithful until death so that when we overcome this world with all its pain and turmoil and we conquer death … thanks to You … that we will get to wear the crown of life for all eternity and never, ever be harmed by the “second” death.
In the name of Jesus who poured Himself out and became poor for our sake, we pray. And would all who are rich in the things of the Spirit join me in making it so by saying … amen!
