A. To The Church Of Ephesus (2:1-7)
A. TO THE CHURCH OF EPHESUS (2:1-7)
Ephesus was the most important of the seven cities. Though Pergamum was apparently the official capital of the province of Asia, Ephesus was its greatest city. It was an assize town and a seat of proconsular government (Acts 19:38). When a proconsul took up his appointment he had to enter his province at Ephesus. Situated near the mouth of the river Cayster, it was a great commercial centre (despite problems posed by the silting up of its harbour which persisted so that the site is now several miles inland). Much of the trade of the East came to the Aegean via the port of Ephesus. The great road from the Euphrates terminated there, as did roads from the Cayster valley and the Maeander valley to the south.
Ephesus was an outstanding religious centre, the chief cult being that of Artemis (cf. Acts 19:24ff.). The city had the prized status of neokoros (lit. ‘Temple-sweeper’!) in connection with the great temple which was one of the seven wonders of the world. But religion and magic were hopelessly intermingled, and magical arts were popular (cf. Acts 19:19). ‘Ephesian letters’ were charms widely supposed to cure sickness and to bring luck. Paul spent over two years in Ephesus establishing the church (Acts 19:8,10), to which the important Epistle to the Ephesians was later sent. Timothy was there for a time (1 Tim. 1:3), and tradition says that John lived there in his old age.
1. The greeting is to the angel of the church in Ephesus (for angel see on 1:20), but there is no doubt that the message is to the church. It comes from the risen Christ, described as holding the seven stars in his right hand (cf. 1:16; the verb here is rather stronger than ‘had’ in that passage and denotes a firm grip). He is also said to be walking among the lampstands (in 1:13 there was no mention of walking, but cf. Lv. 26:12; Dn. 3:25). The effect of this salutation is to give a picture of Christ as present in the very midst of the churches, a Christ who is intimately concerned with them and cares for them.
2.. The exalted Christ knows what goes on among his people. He selects three things (cf. 1 Thes. 1:3): your deeds (the general term), your hard work (kopos means labour to the point of weariness), and your perseverance (Barclay, ‘the courageous gallantry which accepts suffering and hardship and loss and turns them into grace and glory’).
The Ephesians’ zeal for the right comes out further in their inability to tolerate wicked men. They have also tested out men who claimed to be apostles and shown them up for what they were. Found them false shows that these men were not merely deluded; they were deceivers. The term apostle is not used here of the Twelve, but in the wider sense (cf. 2 Cor. 11:13). Paul had foretold that ‘savage wolves’ would trouble the Ephesian church (Acts 20:29), and we see the fulfilment here. Clearly the Ephesians did not take their faith lightly. They quite understood that it made demands on them, and they worked hard at being Christians. And they were not credulous. They tested and rejected false claims among professing Christians.
3.. The verb endured is that used in verse 2 of their inability to ‘tolerate’ evil men. But for Christ’s sake they have endured. Have not grown weary likewise takes up the word ’hard work’ of the previous verse, being the verb from the same root (‘you have not grown weary of labour’). In these letters praise is regularly given where it fairly can to those churches which are to be rebuked for some failure. Thus there is more praise for Ephesus and Thyatira which are rebuked, than for Smyrna and Philadelphia which are not.
4.. The condemnation of this church is expressed in one memorable phrase, You have forsaken your first love. It is not clear whether this is love for Christ (‘you do not love me now as you did at first’, GNB), or for one another (‘you have given up loving one another’, Moffatt), or for mankind at large. It may be that a general attitude is meant which included all three (‘you do not love as you did at first’, Phillips). Forsaken (aph
kes) is a strong term; they had completely abandoned their first fine flush of enthusiastic love. They had yielded to the temptation, ever present to Christians, to put all their emphasis on sound teaching. In the process they lost love, without which all else is nothing.
kes) is a strong term; they had completely abandoned their first fine flush of enthusiastic love. They had yielded to the temptation, ever present to Christians, to put all their emphasis on sound teaching. In the process they lost love, without which all else is nothing.5.. There is nothing more to the accusation. But it is damning enough in all conscience. So Christ calls on them to come back. There are three steps. First they should remember their first state (there is a tragic air of completeness about the perfect, pept
kas, fallen). It is possible to slip away gradually without realizing what is happening. A useful counter is to go back in thought to the first days. The Greek imperative is present, with a meaning like ‘keep on remembering’, ‘hold in memory’. They had enjoyed a close walk with God. Let their minds dwell on that. The second step is repent (the aorist points to a sharp break with evil). Christians can never dally with wrong. There must be a sharp break with it. But Christianity is not basically negative and the third step is do the things you did at first, i.e. the works that had issued from their first love.
kas, fallen). It is possible to slip away gradually without realizing what is happening. A useful counter is to go back in thought to the first days. The Greek imperative is present, with a meaning like ‘keep on remembering’, ‘hold in memory’. They had enjoyed a close walk with God. Let their minds dwell on that. The second step is repent (the aorist points to a sharp break with evil). Christians can never dally with wrong. There must be a sharp break with it. But Christianity is not basically negative and the third step is do the things you did at first, i.e. the works that had issued from their first love.If they do not heed, dire consequences are sure and swift. I will come is in fact in the present tense‘I am coming’. John sees it before his eyes. If the church does not heed the injunction Christ will remove its lampstand, which appears to signify the total destruction of the church. A church can continue only for so long on a loveless course. Without love it ceases to be a church. Its lampstand is removed. If you do not repent shows that the judgment is not irrevocable. If they repent they may yet be saved. But if not, there is no hope.
6.
But you have this in your favour, says
Christ: You hate the practices of Nicolaitans, which I also hate. While love is the typical Christian attitude, love for the good carries with it a corresponding hatred for what is wrong. ‘Neither doth he abhor any thing that is evil’ (Ps. 36:4, Prayer Book version) is a terrible condemnation. Notice that it is the practices and not the persons which are the objects of hatred.
Nothing is known about the Nicolaitans other than what is recorded in Revelation. Irenaeus says that they owed their origin to Nicolas, who was one of the Seven (Acts 6:5; Adv. Haer. i.26.3; iii-10-7). Clement of Alexandria defends Nicolas saying that he was misunderstood (Strom. iii.4.25). All here is conjecture. Victorinus of Pettau, the first commentator on Revelation, refers to them as ‘false and troublesome men, who, as ministers under the name of Nicolaus, had made for themselves a heresy, to the effect that what had been offered to idols might be exorcised and eaten, and that whoever should have committed fornication might receive peace on the eighth day’ (ANF, VII, p.346). But this, too, looks like speculation. Etymologically the name combines ’victory’ and ‘people’ and one could get roughly the same meaning from Balaam, from which it has been concluded that the Balaamites (v.14) were at least similar. Since the practices of the Balaamites and the followers of Jezebel (v.20) are much the same, it appears that this group was akin. It cannot be proved but it seems the most reasonable reading of the evidence that all three were connected, though not identical. This is not the enemy from outside openly seeking to destroy the faith. The false teachers claimed ’not that they were destroying Christianity, but that they were presenting an improved and modernized version of it’ (Barclay). This is the insidious fifth column, destroying from within.
7. He who has an ear... occurs in each of the letters. It stresses the continuous activity of the Spirit and is a call to attention. There is a similarity in our Lord’s formula (Mk. 4:9; etc.) though he uses the plural, while the singular is found in Revelation. The expression is a personal challenge. The plural churches shows that the message is not only for those Asian Christians so long ago but for every one who has an ear‘. In each letter Christ is the speaker but we are told what the Spirit says: ’the word of Christ is the word of the Spirit’ (Beasley-Murray).
There is a little message to him who overcomes in each of the letters. Some see a reference to the Nicolaitans (‘overcome’ is nik). But John is fond of this verb (he uses it seventeen times) and the connection is not necessary, though it may not be out of mind in this particular instance. Swete aptly says, ’The note of victory is dominant in St John, as that of faith in St Paul; or rather, faith presents itself to St John in the light of a victory.‘ To the man who perseveres through to final victory Christ says that he will give to eat of the tree of life (cf. 22:2,14,19). After Adam’s sin the way to the tree of life was cut off and guarded by cherubim (Gn. 3:24). Now it is given by Christ to his triumphant follower. But it is not to be taken for granted. Only some have the right to it (22:14), and it may be taken away (22:19). The paradise of God points to bliss in the presence of God himself. Paradise is from the Persian, with a meaning like ’park’ (NEB, ‘Garden of God’). It is used of bliss in the world to come.
). But John is fond of this verb (he uses it seventeen times) and the connection is not necessary, though it may not be out of mind in this particular instance. Swete aptly says, ’The note of victory is dominant in St John, as that of faith in St Paul; or rather, faith presents itself to St John in the light of a victory.‘ To the man who perseveres through to final victory Christ says that he will give to eat of the tree of life (cf. 22:2,14,19). After Adam’s sin the way to the tree of life was cut off and guarded by cherubim (Gn. 3:24). Now it is given by Christ to his triumphant follower. But it is not to be taken for granted. Only some have the right to it (22:14), and it may be taken away (22:19). The paradise of God points to bliss in the presence of God himself. Paradise is from the Persian, with a meaning like ’park’ (NEB, ‘Garden of God’). It is used of bliss in the world to come.