The Church at Smyrna Revelation2:8-11
[8] “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. [9] “‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. [10] Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. [11] He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’ [Revelation 2:8-11 ESV]
Life was hard for the church at Smyrna. Their problems are summed up in two words: 'tribulation' and 'poverty.' Jesus says to them: "I know your tribulation and your poverty." It must have been a comfort to the Christians in Smyrna to know that Jesus knew what was happening to them. The first word, tribulation is thlypsis which literally means 'pressure' and is translated as tribulation or affliction. [See Day Share entitled, "Sharing with their sufferings, 15/05/2023]. Darrell Johnson points out that this word is never used to refer to the normal frustrations of life by which he is probably speaking about illness, bereavement, loneliness, heartache, loss etc. - all of which we suffer as a result of living in a broken world. Darrell Johnson talks about this pressure in terms similar to geological forces which produces an earthquake. He says that the pressure comes about when 'the kingdom of God comes up against the kingdom of human beings in rebellion against God.' [Darrell Johnson: Discipleship on the Edge].
As well as tribulation, the Christians experienced 'poverty.' The two terms might well have been linked. Poverty should not have been an issue in the city of Smyrna because it was a wealthy city. It seems likely that the Christians were poor because of their loyalty to Jesus Christ. This might have caused them to lose their livelihood or to suffer economic hardship as others were encouraged to boycott business owned by Christians. Christians were ostracised and shunned. According to John Stott, their shops were confiscated and their homes were ransacked. [John Stott: What Christ thinks of the Church p38]
The risen Jesus did not give them false hope. Things are going to get even worse. He tells them not to fear 'what they are about to suffer.' This is interesting because we might have been tempted to play down what lay ahead for the Christians in Smyrna. But Jesus was letting them know the truth rather than giving them false assurances which turn out to be hollow.
There were two causes of their suffering. Firstly, Smyrna was a prominent centre of the cult of emperor worship and Christians were out of step with this. It was the first city to build a temple to Dea Roma , the goddess of Rome. In AD 23 it built a temple to Caesar Augustus and two years later they built another temple to the Emperor Tiberius. However, Christians were not prepared to put Caesar before Jesus Christ. Secondly, the Christians were the victim of Jewish opposition. Jesus speaks about those who 'say they are Jews and are not' and he describes them as the synagogue of Satan. It may be that the Jews were siding with the Roman rulers trying to win favour with them and they were afraid of the threat from this new cult, those Christians who were so loyal to this Jesus of Nazareth that they refused to compromise with the Romans. There is an incident described in the Acts when the Jews denounced Christians before Roman officials (Acts 18:12-17). Under Roman law the Jews were exempt from all sacrificial obligations meaning that they did not have to worship Caesar by going to the temple, taking a pinch of incense and then throwing it on the altar as they said out loud, "Caesar is God." They were also excused from military service. They did not want to lose these privileges if the Romans were not able to distinguish between Jews and Christians. The Jews wanted to distance themselves from this Jesus cult and so they sided with the Romans against the Christians.
'Do not fear what you are about to suffer.' John spells out what was going to happen. Some of them were going to be thrown into prison. As I cycle past the prison near my home, I always have a feeling of sadness and sympathy for those mainly young men deprived of their freedom. There are some differences, however. In Scotland, although there are instances of injustice, by and large the inmates are there because they have committed crimes. Not so in Smyrna. The Christians would end up in prison simply because of their loyalty to Jesus. Satan is specifically mentioned and he is the great enemy in the book of Revelation and he will feature in many blogs. It is his bitter hatred of Christ that makes him attack those who follow Jesus. Another difference is that life in prison would be unimaginably worse than life in any of our penal establishments in Scotland.
However blunt John is in his brief letter to these suffering Christians, he also gives comfort and assurance. Let me briefly highlight the words of comfort and assurance to this suffering church.
He reminds them that their life is in their hands not in the grip of the Roman empire - 'The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life' [Revelation 2:8 ESV]
He assured them that their sufferings were time-bound - 'for ten days you will have tribulation.' [Revelation 2:10 ESV]
He promised them future reward - "I will give you the crown of life." [Revelation 2:10] This refers to the wreath awarded to winners in ancient competitions. Many Greek tombstones have a wreath design on them. This crown of life is a metaphor for eternal life.
He promises victory over death - 'The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.'
Jesus reminds them that there was a purpose to this persecution. The Christians in Smyrna were in trouble because they were being tested. "The devil will throw some of you in prison that you may be tested" (Revelation 2:10). We saw in the letter which James wrote to the scattered suffering church that testing has a purpose - to strengthen our faith and to build Christian character.
Jesus gives two commands to the Christians in Smyrna and we should heed these commands today in our own personal experience. "Do not be afraid….. Be faithful.' Fear and faith are two opposites. Fear comes from a lack of faith or faith which has been misplaced. Faith overcomes fear. Jesus wants us to be faithful - which is about loyalty to him. It is not just making claims to have faith in Jesus Christ. It is demonstrating this faith by our loyalty to His teaching and by obedience to His will in our lives.
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