G. Interpretation of the Prophecy (A.D. 100-3 12)

The church at Smyrna characterises the church from A.D. 100 to 312, when Christianity was officially recognized by Constantine the Great. The church of this period was under severe persecution.

The name Smyrna means “crushed myrrh.” Imagine!

D. Rebuke Like the church at Philadelphia, the church at Smyrna received no rebuke, as Smyrna's sufferings had helped to keep the believers pure in faith and life.

Myrrh is a bitter-tasting preservative, so wouldn't crushed myrrh taste even more bitter? It was a prophetic name that foretold how terrible the persecution would be for the church there.

The church at Smyrna follows the church at Ephesus. Don't forget that when love waned at the Ephesian church, the judgment of God followed. Through persecution and tribulation God restores the pure first love to the church.

The Bible says the church at Smyrna would have tribulation for ten days (see v. 10). This signified that ten Roman emperors would persecute the church.

The first was the notorious Nero, who reigned in Rome from A.D. 37 to 68. He was sixteen years old when he ascended the throne, and he killed his wife, Octavia, and his mother and put all his brothers to death. Tradition says that after he committed those horrible crimes, he wanted to write a poem. However, when no poetic inspiration came into his mind, he was suddenly possessed with a wild desire to see the city of Rome aflame, and he ordered it set on fire.

The entire city was engulfed in flames, and the citizens were dying with agonizing cries. Nevertheless, in the midst of this hellish conflagration Nero was enjoying himself by writing a poem. The truth began to circulate that the fire had been started by the emperor, so he concocted a false rumour that the Christians were responsible and ordered their arrest. Many Christians were imprisoned and executed because of this. In A.D. 67 Peter, the chief of the disciples and a pillar of the early church, was arrested and died a martyr's death. It is said he was crucified upside down at his own request because he felt himself unworthy to be put to death in the same manner as his Master. In A.D. 68, the year following Peter's martyrdom, Paul also became a martyr. According to tradition, Paul was beheaded.

Thus, during the persecution of Nero, the two most prominent figures of the early church died.

The second persecution occurred from A.D. 81 to 96 during the reign of Domitian. He ordered the people to worship him as the god Jupiter. Under his persecution the apostle John was exiled to the Isle of Patmos, where he wrote the book of Revelation. The third persecution arose during the reign of Trajan. He outlawed the Christian faith and persecuted the church from A.D. 98 to 117. During this period, tradition says that Ignatius, the chief disciple of Peter, was thrown into a den of lions, where he was torn into pieces.

The story goes that a judge urged Ignatius to betray Jesus, but the disciple, who was more than eighty years old, refused.

He answered, “I have believed in Jesus from my youth until today. He has never betrayed me even once. How can I betray Him now?” When such heroic martyrdom occurred in the amphitheatre, the grace of Jesus Christ touched the hearts of the onlookers. They were so greatly moved that they were converted. Christianity is like a burning bonfire. The more you strike it with a stick, the more sparks will fly in all directions, starting thousands of new fires. The fourth persecution occurred during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, who was on the throne from A.D. 161 to 180. He was a philosopher who tried to restore the Roman ideal of self-reliant, stoic virtue and the old state religion. The emperor martyred (among many others) Polycarp and Justin. The fifth persecutor was Septum's Severus, who reigned from A.D. 202 to 211. He enacted a rigid law against the spread of Christianity. As a result, the father of Origen, North Africa's renowned theologian, was beheaded.

The sixth persecutor was Maximum, who reigned from A.D. 235 to 237. He was a rude barbarian who massacred the Christians and had their bodies buried together in lots of fifty and sixty.

Emperor Decius reigned from A.D. 249 to 253 and persecuted the church fiercely, intending to destroy it. Fortunately, God caused him to die at an early age.

The next ruler to persecute the church was Valerian, who reigned from A.D. 257 to 260. During his persecution Cyprian, the bishop of Carthage and a renowned Christian author, died a martyr's death.

The ninth persecutor was Aurelian, who reigned from A.D. 270 to 275.

The last persecutor was Diocletian, who ruled from A.D. 303 to 312. He issued edicts causing the Christian churches to be destroyed and all copies of the Bible to be burned. His persecution was so extensive and violent throughout the entire Roman Empire that Diocletian erected a monument commemorating the termination of Christianity. Twenty-five years after his death, however, Christianity became the state religion of Rome.

Thus, ten persecutors tried in vain to destroy Christianity throughout the years from 100 to 312. Christianity never did die completely, and the prophecy “ye shall have tribulation ten days” was fulfilled.

During that period the church went underground to avoid capture. The underground galleries called catacombs still remain in Rome. I once entered a catacomb, following a guide. It seemed like a labyrinth with long, winding tunnels. It seemed to me that there would be no possible way out.

The catacombs had enough space for places of worship. Additionally, their perpendicular walls contained small compartments that had been cut out to bury the dead. On the walls of these tombs, pictures were drawn of a bird and the face of Jesus with the following inscription: “Our beloved resurrects and goes to the presence of the Lord. Wait for the coming of the Lord. TM The symbolism meant that the soul flies away like a bird and goes to the throne of Jesus Christ.

I was greatly moved to see joy and hope in the epitaphs and pictures the Christians had left behind rather than the shadow of sorrow. For more than two centuries numerous Christians were born in those dark catacombs. But they never gave up the staunch hope they cherished in their hearts for a bright tomorrow.

To those spiritual warriors who kept their faith under persecution and handed it down to us, we owe our freedom to hear and read and preach the gospel.

Sometimes we're frustrated and prone to complain at small hardships and afflictions. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus, however, that you and I will look at those heroes of the faith and become victorious warriors ourselves by overcoming tribulation and persecution with boldness.

Next Part Il1 To THE CHURCH in PERGAMOS (2:12-17)