1“And to the angel of the assembly in Sardis write:
“He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars says these things:
“I know your works, that you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2Wake up and strengthen the things that remain, which you were about to throw away, for I have found no works of yours perfected before my God. 3Remember therefore how you have received and heard. Keep it and repent. If therefore you won’t watch, I will come as a thief, and you won’t know what hour I will come upon you. 4Nevertheless you have a few names in Sardis that didn’t defile their garments. They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. 5He who overcomes will be arrayed in white garments, and I will in no way blot his name out of the book of life, and I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. 6He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.
7“To the angel of the assembly in Philadelphia write:
“He who is holy, he who is true, he who has the key of David, he who opens and no one can shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says these things:
8“I know your works (behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one can shut), that you have a little power, and kept my word, and didn’t deny my name. 9Behold, I make some of the synagogue of Satan, of those who say they are Jews, and they are not, but lie—behold, I will make them to come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10Because you kept my command to endure, I also will keep you from the hour of testing which is to come on the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11I am coming quickly! Hold firmly that which you have, so that no one takes your crown. 12He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he will go out from there no more. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God, and my own new name. 13He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.
14“To the angel of the assembly in Laodicea write:
“The Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of God’s creation, says these things:
15“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were cold or hot. 16So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will vomit you out of my mouth. 17Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have gotten riches, and have need of nothing,’ and don’t know that you are the wretched one, miserable, poor, blind, and naked; 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich; and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. 19As many as I love, I reprove and chasten. Be zealous therefore, and repent. 20Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with me. 21He who overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.”
Rev[HH1] 3:4 “Sardis” - Site Study with Image
Sardis was situated inland on the south side of the fertile Hermus River valley approximately 35 miles southeast of Thyatira and 60 miles east of Smyrna. It was the capital of the Lydian empire (ca 680–547 BC). The legendary king Croesus (c 560–547 BC) derived his weath from the gold of the Pactolus River that flowed through the city. As the west terminus of the Royal Road that ran east to the Persian capitals of Susa and Persepolis, Sardis prospered greatly from trade, especially its textiles. Following Alexander the Great’s capture of the city from the Persians in 334 B.C., it served as the western capital of the Seleucid Empire (281–190 BC). The Attalid dynasty in Pergamum controlled Sardis from 190–133 B.C. The city then became part of the Romans province of Asia. In AD 17 Sardis was devastated by an earthquake but rebuilt with aid from the emperor Tiberius. The population during the Roman period numbered between 60,000 and 100,000 residents. Sardis was the fifth church addressed by John in the book of Revelation (Rev 3:1–6). Melito was a prominent bishop of Sardis in the second century A.D. Melito’s only extent work is the Homily on the Passion as well as a letter he preserved from Antoninus Pius forbidding the koinon (commoners) of Asia to continue the persecution of Christians.
[HH1]From other file