The variation in length arises from the differences in the content of elements 3 and 4, the affirmations and rebukes. The messages vary considerably from one to another, the longest being the one to the assembly at Thyatira (222 words in Greek) and the shortest to the assembly at Smyrna (90 words). To those who are conquering (promise drawn from the vision of the New Jerusalem).
Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.(Command to respond, often including the requirement to repent).I know your (attributes and actions, varying considerable from one message to another)….Thus says he who (appellation drawn from the vision of chapter 1).To the angel of the ekklesia in (place name) write:.Secondly, as is easy to see, the seven messages are striking in their consistent structure of seven main elements, including opening and closing phrases which are repeated word for word: They are addressed to the collective (and occasionally gathered) new Israel of God in Jesus. And they are not written to ‘churches’ in the way we often think-institutions with buildings and leadership structures. There is some debate in scholarship about how best to characterise this section, but the most persuasive suggestion is that these are royal proclamations from the risen Jesus who, having been raised, ascended and vindicated, exercises royal power from the throne he shares with the One seated there. In fact, the whole of Revelation is a letter, with part of the introduction looking very similar to Pauline letters elsewhere in the NT. There are some important and challenging things to note about these messages.įirst, these are not ‘letters’ as they are commonly called, since they do not have the features of first-century letter-writing. In chapters 2 and 3, we have messages to the ekklesiae in seven cities of Roman Asia, the west end of what we now know as Turkey. Each year, during November, the Morning Prayer weekday lectionary takes us through the first few chapters of the Book of Revelation.
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