Sunday School Notes: Revelation 3:10-11

¹⁰ For you kept the word of my steadfastness, and I myself will keep you from the hour of testing that is about to come upon the whole world to test those dwelling upon the earth. ¹¹ I am coming soon. Keep what you have so that no-one may take your crown.

I expected to finish up the letter to the Philadelphians this week, but our discussion of verses 10 and 11 kept us going to the end of the class time. Perhaps we’ll finish up next week, and maybe even move on to the next letter. We’ll see…

We started with a recap of verses 7-9, with some discussion around the meaning of “you have a little power” (v. 8), the “synagogue of Satan” (v. 9), and the fact that the letter is addressed to the “angel of the church,” not directly to the church. These are all topics we’ve touched on previously, and it was good to refresh ourselves and consider them again in light of what we’ve seen in Revelation so far. Especially with regard to the “angel,” in light of the trials and persecution the church has been suffering (and should expect to suffer), remembering the fact that, as noted in Revelation 1:20, the Lord hold the angels of the churches in his right hand should be a source of comfort. This is symbolic of the Lord’s sovereign rule over his church, and nothing happens to the churches apart from his will and his decree. Whether we understand these angels to be actual angels standing in the presence of God, or to be symbolic of the elder body of each of the churches, either way, this verse reminds us that we are subject to the Lord of the church, and under his rule and care.

As noted before, this letter is unusual in that it is one of only two that has only words of commendation and encouragement for the church–there is no “this I have against you.” Only Philadelphia and Smyrna have this honor; all the other churches have some issue of sin they need to deal with. It’s also interesting structurally that these letters stand as the second (Smyrna) and second-to-last (Philadelphia) in order.

Jesus commends the Philadelphians for having kept “the word of my steadfastness.” In other words, they have kept the gospel, the message concerning Christ’s endurance and steadfastness in the midst of all he went through for our sake. And it’s Jesus’ steadfastness and endurance they proclaim, not their own. These Christians have been through a lot, but they keep their eyes on Christ, not being willing to compromise with the world to get relief and maybe even some respect.

The Lord then promises to “keep” them “from the hour of testing that is about to come upon the whole world to test those dwelling upon the earth.” This drew a lot of discussion, especially since it is often used to support the idea that the Lord will rapture, or snatch up, the church before an end-times period known as The Tribulation. There are a lot of people in the church that hold to there being a future Great Tribulation from which the church will be spared, and during which the Jews and other unbelievers will be saved. But is that really what this passage is teaching? A few points to consider:

1. Some of the Smyrnans were imprisoned and the Lord told them to expect death. He didn’t promise them physical protection from tribulation. Indeed, he promised them tribulation, and that they should be prepared to give their lives. From what we’ve read so far in Revelation, the emphasis seems to be on the transitory nature of this life, and the significance of holding on to one’s faith despite the circumstance. The promises we’ve read in the “those who overcome” sections of the letters all seem to point to a heavenly reward, not an earthy one. From this I would conclude that spiritual protection from the sin of compromise while enduring persecution is far more important to Christ than protection from persecution itself.
2. The same Greek phrase translated here as “keep from” is used in John 17:15, clearly with reference to spiritual protection.
3. In context, this promise is directed to the church in Philadelphia, so even if it is a promise of physical protection, there’s no warrant for assuming it applies to the whole church.

Was this “hour of testing” something future, or within John’s lifetime? Revelation 14:7 and 15 speak of an “hour” when final judgment will fall, but Jesus also used “hour” to refer to a designated time that is not yet “at hand” or is currently happening (John 2:4; John 12:27). So I think we can understand “hour” to be a fairly generic time period during which something will happen. In this case, a “trial,” or “testing” that will occur “upon the whole world.”

The phrase “whole world” (in Greek, oikoumenê holê) is used on two other occasions in Revelation in the context of an end-times scenario, clearly indicating that it means all the inhabited earth. However, it is also used elsewhere in the New Testament with a much more limited scope. For example, in Luke 2:1, it is used with regard to the census, intending, of course, the Roman Empire–those countries not part of the Empire wouldn’t be included in “the whole world” that participated. Also, in Acts 11:28, Agabus predicts a famine upon “the whole world” that was fulfilled, according to Luke, in the time of Claudius. Certainly it was a widespread famine, but contained within the Roman Empire. We must also remember to keep a first-century perspective: John’s audience would not know about the Americas, Antarctica, or Australasia. The view they had of the “whole world” was limited to the world they knew. This is where the qualifying statement at the end of verse 10 is important: “those dwelling upon the earth”–i.e., all people residing on this earth, whether they know of them or not. To me, that sets the scope of the phrase: worldwide, not just a localized tribulation.

I would also favor the idea that this refers to an End-Times tribulation, primarily for two reasons:

1. Whenever we interpret a word or phrase, the first place we should look in terms of usage is how the word is used in the same document. If that doesn’t help, then we should look at how the word or phrase is used elsewhere in the New Testament, and then beyond the New Testament to other contemporary literature. While the use of the phrase “the whole world” in localized contexts by Luke is interesting, the fact that the other occurrences of the word in Revelation are in End-Times scenarios is more significant. There is a time coming when tribulation will fall upon the whole world, everyone dwelling upon the earth.
2. The message of these seven letters is one of endurance to the end, expecting a final vindication at that time. We have seen tribulation come upon both the church and the world during the last 2,000 years, and we will continue to see tribulation on the church and the world until Christ returns. Indeed, we might even expect this to intensity as the time draws closer. Whatever that tribulation will look like, the Lord will protect the faith of His people, and in the end they will be vindicated. So, the church in Philadelphia may be going through a tough time, and Jesus promises tougher times will come, but this is not only for Philadelphia, but the whole world and everyone upon it. Through all this, the Great Shepherd of the church will lose not one of his sheep.

Jesus tells them he’s coming “soon” or “quickly” (Greek: tachu). How soon? How quickly? Some have suggested this points to a pre-parousia coming of Christ to the Philadelphian church (i.e., a separate, “special” coming prior to the Second Coming). I don’t think this is likely since Christ only promised one return, and then that’s it–judgment. Further, he exhorts endurance to the end, not simply “for now.” In other words, as with the Smyrnans, he expected that believers will die either by the sword or naturally during this period. His promise is that history is working toward a crisis, and the end is closer now than it was when Isaiah, Daniel, and Ezekiel laid the prophetic foundations of Revelation. Two thousand years may seem a long time to us, but it’s a few moments in the Lord’s perspective. His point is that the church shouldn’t despair; his return is coming sooner than they think or expect. They (and we) should be both encouraged, watchful, and ready.

“Hold on to what you have” further underscores the point that they should be prepared to endure for as long as necessary–even to the end of their lives. They mustn’t let anyone “take” their “crown.” Don’t cave in to the pressure of society, of the unbelievers trying to get you to compromise for the sake of an easy life and a place at the cultural table. They want to “take your crown”–don’t let them! The crown (Greek: stephanos) was the victor’s prize in ancient athletic games. If a winning athlete was then disqualified, his crown would be taken away. By compromising with the world and denying Christ and the gospel, they would be “disqualifying” themselves from eternal life. Paul uses the same imagery in 1 Corinthians 9:27, speaking of how worldly athletes train and exercise self-control to gain a perishable crown, or wreath. The Christian, however, trains and exercises self-control so that his crown won’t be removed. Of course, this is a hypothetical situation, since the Lord who redeemed us, and in whose hand is our salvation, will never let us go. The interesting point to note is the fact that both Jesus and Paul assume the believer already has the victor’s crown. How else could it possibly be removed? In other words, we don’t train in order to gain the imperishable crown; we have it already.

Next time we will finish the letter to the Philadelphians, and maybe start the letter to the Laodiceans.