Revelation  ◦   Chapter 2

1"Write to the messenger to my recovering children in the church in Ephesus:

This message comes from Jesus, who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven lampstands:
2I know you — your choices, actions, works, determination, and commitment. I know that your hearts are repulsed by wickedness in humanity, and that you have examined those who claim to be my ambassadors but are not; and you rightly determined them to be false.3I know that you have stayed true, revealing my character of love despite persecution, and have not given up.

4"Yet I have diagnosed you with one serious problem: You have let go of your first love.5I implore you, remember the pinnacle of purity from which you have fallen! Turn back to your first love and practice again the methods you did then. If you do not turn back, the light of truth will be lost to you and your minds will be darkened.6To your advantage, you have hated the hedonistic practices of the Nicolaitans that so damage the mind–which I also hate.

7"Those whose minds are open to truth will understand what the Spirit reveals to the churches. Those who overcome–complete the treatment and are renewed in love–will eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

8"To the messenger to my recovering children in the church in Smyrna, write:

This message comes from Jesus, who is the Beginning and the Ending, the Origin and Completion; who died, but in so doing destroyed death and now lives again:
9I know about your suffering and poverty, but in reality, you are incredibly rich in what heaven values! I know that you have been misrepresented by those who claim to be loyal to God but really are not; they have enthroned Satan in their hearts–their spirit temples.10Don't fear the coming trials. Satan will put some of you in prison, and your faith will be tried; and some will be persecuted for ten days. Trust me–even if threatened with death–and I will give you eternal life.

11"Those whose minds are open to truth will understand what the Spirit reveals to the churches. Those who prevail by completing the treatment and by being renewed in love cannot be harmed by the second, eternal death.

12"To the messenger to my recovering children in the church in Pergamum, write:

This message comes from Jesus — the source of truth as sharp as a double-edged sword:
13I know you live, where Satan has enthroned himself, yet you have continued to live in harmony with my character, methods, and principles. You did not reject me, even when Antipas, my trustworthy witness, was executed in the place where Satan lives.

14"Yet I have diagnosed a few serious problems: Some of you are like Balaam, seeking to empower and enrich yourselves. You have infected the Remedy with appeasement theology, and you promote sexual practices deviant from my design in Eden.15And as if this isn't bad enough, you have those who advocate the hedonistic practices of the Nicolaitans, which destroy the mind.16Reject these falsehoods and return to my methods! Otherwise, I will come and fight against these distortions with the sword of truth spoken from my mouth.

17"Those whose minds are open to truth will understand what the Spirit reveals to the churches. To everyone who prevails by completing the treatment and being renewed in love, I will give some of the hidden manna–my nature and character of love. I will recreate them in my likeness, with their own unique individuality purified by my character. They will be like pure-white stones, each stamped with their own unique self, signed by me.

18"To the messenger to my recovering children in the church in Thyatira, write:

This message is from Jesus — the Son of God — whose eyes shine brightly like a fire, and whose feet glow like metal in a furnace:
19I know the choices you have made, your love and devotion, your service and dedication, and how your healing progresses as you are achieving more now than when you first took the Remedy.

20"Yet I have diagnosed this problem: You have accepted the teachings of Jezebel, which make me look like Baal–a being who imposes law, inflicts torture, and must be appeased. Her teachings mislead people into internalizing pagan ideas about God–including God being like Baal and requiring bloody payments–and thus committing spiritual adultery by giving their hearts to a false god.21I have given her time to turn away from the lies about God, but she refuses;22so I will let her reap the suffering that comes from operating outside my design for life. And all those who accept her view of God commit adultery with her and will suffer terribly unless they reject the lies and return to the truth about God and his methods of love.23I will destroy her offshoots — then all my children will know that I diagnose perfectly the condition of hearts and minds — and I will provide to each person what is in accord with their own choice.24Now for the rest of you in Thyatira: Those who have rejected the lies about me and refused to believe that I am like Satan alleges–no other burden will come upon you;25just hold true to what you currently know until I return.

26Everyone who prevails by completing the treatment and lives in harmony with my methods of love until the end, I will free from the power and authority of the nations.

27'He will intervene with an unbreakable shepherd's rod; he will destroy the nation's ability to coerce and deceive, like iron crushing pottery.' I will give them the same power to break free as I received from my Father.28I will give them the morning star–I will give them all of myself.

29"Those whose minds are open to truth will understand what the Spirit reveals to the churches.