Revelation 3:22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Well that went quickly. The online study I am doing with Dr. Dilday, will probably take until spring to get this far. But while this is still early in the book lets remember.

Revelation 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Rev 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:

Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

There are several recurring themes in the seven letters. First they all have a fitting statement about out Lord Jesus, that validates who is speaking..aka:

Revelation 3:1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.

And all are written to the angel(messenger/pastor(s)) of the faithful in these churches.

All are to be shared. And all show the intimate know of Christ of their circumstances, pointing out strengths and weaknesses.

They end with exhortations and this sentence.

Revelation 3:22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Two specific points from this chapter…

Revelation 3:9 Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

Much the same as we saw before:

Revelation 2:9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

Gill, has this traditional reformed futuristic view of these verses….Pastor Dilday mentioned the Judiazers and the Gnostics as potential candidates, but there is no certainty of knowing.

Revelation 3:9

Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan,…. Which may be understood either of the Papists, the followers of the man of sin, whose coming was after the working of Satan, and whose doctrines are the doctrines of devils, many of whom will now be converted, and brought to the true church; or rather of the Jews, who had, and have, and will have till this time, their synagogues for religious worship in their way; but they are no other than synagogues of Satan; the men that assemble in them are of their father the devil, and do his works, and will do them:

which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; they are Jews by name and nation; they are. Jews outwardly, but not inwardly and spiritually, Rom 2:28; they are carnal wicked men, under the influence of Satan, though they pretend to be religious men, and worshippers of God:

You can read this extract for Dr. Dilday’s Matthew Poole Project:

[And, etc., καὶ τὴν βλασφημίαν, etc.] And (that is, I know [Durham]) the blasphemy (that is, most grievous insults, as βλασφημεῖν, to blaspheme, is taken in Matthew 27:39;[7] Mark 15:29;[8] Acts 13:45; 18:6; and elsewhere [Grotius]) of them (namely, of the Jews against Christ, whom they were denying and anathematizing, 1 Corinthians 12:3: See also Acts 26:11 and 1 Timothy 1:13 [Cluverus]; and against Christians, Hebrews 11:36 [Durham], whom by their calumny they made odious among the Gentiles [Cocceius]) who say that they are Jews (that is, who boast that they alone worship God rightly according to the institution of the Law [Brightman, thus Durham], so that Jew is taken metonymically for the one people of God: otherwise it was not blasphemy for a Jew to claim that he is a Jew [Brightman]), and are not (Beza, Piscator, etc.), that is, true Jews (Menochius), with respect to spirit (Tirinus). He calls them Jews in name, not in reality (Grotius, Ribera); for they were not confessing Christ to be God, whom the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets preached and worshipped (Ribera, Menochius). In this place, there is an allusion to the origin of the word, plainly as in Romans 2:28. But how were they Jews who did not confess that God was revealed in Christ (Grotius)? Others: Concerning the Gnostics it is here spoken, who, so that they might escape persecution by Jews, were circumcising themselves, and were feigning themselves to be Jews, although they were not. See Galatians 6:3, 12 (Hammond). Others: By Pseudo-Jews here are to be understood Pseudo-Christians (Mede’s Works 5:1111, similarly More’s Prophetical Exposition of the Epistles to the Seven Churches in Asia 4:4); who, while they call themselves Christians, with persecution pressing they were denying the faith, and thus were loading Christianity with the greatest abuse (More). It is certainly permitted to observe in the Apocalypse everywhere that the Jews, or the Israelitish Synagogue, sustain the person of the true Church of Christ replaced out of the Gentiles. Thus in Revelation 7 the Assembly of the Christian Church is exhibited by the type of the one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed out of all the tribes of Israel (Mede’s Works 5:1111); not improperly, for the Church, which after the rejection of the Jews is hitherto gathered out of the Gentiles, succeeded into the place of Israel, and is, as it were, the surrogate of Israel (Mede’s Works 3:563). Nations against the type of Idolaters and enemies of the same Church: evidently with the entire parable from the state of matters under the Old Testament changed, in which the worship of the true God thrived in the midst of one Israel; but the rest of the Nations served Idols (Mede’s Works 5:1112).

And I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not: God also knows the evil speeches of his church’s enemies, whether native Jews, glorying in circumcision and the law, and that they were descended from Abraham; or false Christians, who may be here meant (called Jews by a figure; the Jews being once the only church of God).

[But they are the synagogue (or, gathering, or, congregation [Vatalus]) of Satan] Because they imitate him, partly by falsely accusing good men, partly by lying in wait for their life; they are of their father, the Devil, as it is said for like cause in John 8:44 (Grotius): they are a congregation, wicked and obedient to Satan, at his instigation raging against Christians (Menochius, similarly Durham); and a reviling congregation, which Satan stirs and wastes (Pareus): they are the disciples of Satan, whom they hear teaching in their synagogues, and they receive, propagate, defend, and lustily actuate, his lies (Cluverus): they appear to have had a synagogue there, which, says He, appears to be dedicated to the Devil, rather than to the worship of God (Durham).

But are the synagogue of Satan; but are indeed a collection of devils, or the children of the devil, whose works they do, continually reviling true Christians, and murdering the saints, after the manner of their father, who was a murderer from the beginning.