Revelation
2
- "To the angel of the church in Ephesus
write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand
and walks among the seven golden lampstands:
- I know your deeds, your hard work and your
perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested
those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.
- You have persevered and have endured hardships
for my name, and have not grown weary.
- Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken
your first love.
- Remember the height from which you have
fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I
will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
- But you have this in your favor: You hate
the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
- He who has an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to
eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
- "To the angel of the church in Smyrna
write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died
and came to life again.
- I know your afflictions and your poverty--yet
you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not,
but are a synagogue of Satan.
- Do not be afraid of what you are about to
suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you,
and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point
of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
- He who has an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the
second death.
- "To the angel of the church in Pergamum
write: These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.
- I know where you live--where Satan has his
throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in
me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death
in your city--where Satan lives.
- Nevertheless, I have a few things against
you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught
Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and
by committing sexual immorality.
- Likewise you also have those who hold to
the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
- Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon
come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.
- He who has an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the
hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on
it, known only to him who receives it.
- "To the angel of the church in Thyatira
write: These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing
fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze.
- I know your deeds, your love and faith,
your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did
at first.
- Nevertheless, I have this against you: You
tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching
she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed
to idols.
- I have given her time to repent of her immorality,
but she is unwilling.
- So I will cast her on a bed of suffering,
and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless
they repent of her ways.
- I will strike her children dead. Then all
the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will
repay each of you according to your deeds.
- Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira,
to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan's so-called
deep secrets (I will not impose any other burden on you):
- Only hold on to what you have until I come.
- To him who overcomes and does my will to
the end, I will give authority over the nations --
- 'He will rule them with an iron scepter;
he will dash them to pieces like pottery' -- just as I have received authority
from my Father.
- I will also give him the morning star.
- He who has an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit says to the churches.
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