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Revelation 2 — Greek text and reception

Saints Translation: Revelation 1–22 [V2]

Each card preserves the Greek reading and its textual and reception notes. This source provides a Greek study edition; Hebrew counterparts and Hebrew–Greek classifications are not supplied.

Chapter 2

To Ephesus

Verse 2:1

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

“To the angel of the Church in Ephesus write: These things says the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The speaker both holds the stars and walks among the lampstands; the active participles sustain the opening vision's relation to this Church.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:2

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

‘I know your works, and the labor and your endurance, and that you cannot bear evil people; and you tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them false.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The claimants call themselves apostles, but testing finds them false. The text neither names them nor identifies their disputed credentials.

Reception: R010 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:2–3).

Verse 2:3

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And you have endurance and bore up for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The Church has endured for the speaker's name without growing weary; the following charge does not cancel this explicit commendation.

Reception: R010 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:2–3).

Verse 2:4

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

But I have this against you: you abandoned your first love.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: First love is retained without choosing whether its primary object is Christ, fellow believers, or both.

Reception: R011 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:4–5).

Verse 2:5

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the first works. Otherwise I am coming to you and will move your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Remember, repent and do are three coordinated commands. Removal of the lampstand is conditional on continued failure to repent.

Reception: R011 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:4–5); R083 (John Bunyan; scope 2:5).

Verse 2:6

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

But this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The object of hatred is the Nicolaitans' works. Their practices or founder are not independently described in this verse.

Reception: R012 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:6–7).

Verse 2:7

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Let the one who has an ear hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. To the one who conquers I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.’

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The singular hearer is addressed through a message to plural Churches. Conquering leads to permission to eat from God's tree of life.

Reception: R012 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:6–7); R089 (John Bunyan; scope 2:7,3:4,21:4–5).

To Smyrna

Verse 2:8

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And to the angel of the Church in Smyrna write: These things says the first and the last, who became dead and lived:

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The speaker's becoming dead and living identify the first-and-last title in relation to His death and renewed life.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:9

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

‘I know your affliction and poverty—but you are rich—and the slander from those who say that they themselves are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The accusation concerns the opponents described in this address to Smyrna; it is not expanded into a statement about all Jews. Slander renders blasphēmia in this interpersonal setting.

Reception: R013 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:9–11).

Verse 2:10

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Fear none of the things you are about to suffer. Look, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison so that you may be tested, and you will have affliction for ten days. Become faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Some of you supplies natural English for the partitive expression. Ten days and until death remain the stated limits, without a calculated historical timetable.

Reception: R013 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:9–11).

Verse 2:11

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Let the one who has an ear hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. The one who conquers shall certainly not be harmed by the second death.’

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The emphatic negative promises immunity from the second death; it does not promise freedom from the earthly death envisaged in 2:10.

Reception: R013 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:9–11).

To Pergamum

Verse 2:12

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And to the angel of the Church in Pergamum write: These things says the One who has the sharp two-edged sword:

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The sharp two-edged sword identifies the speaker by His earlier appearance; the text does not place a physical weapon in the Church's hands.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:13

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is, and you hold fast My name and did not deny My faith, even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The Greek construction shifts into nominative Antipas; the English supplies of in the days of to make the reference intelligible. My faith can mean faith in Me or faithfulness associated with Me.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:14

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

But I have a few things against you: you have there those who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Balaam's instruction to Balak is the cited model for a stumbling block involving idol food and sexual immorality; both acts remain explicit.

Reception: R014 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:14–16).

Verse 2:15

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

So you also have those who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans in the same way.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: In the same way links the local teaching to the preceding Balaam comparison without declaring Balaam and the Nicolaitans historically identical.

Reception: R014 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:14–16).

Verse 2:16

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Therefore repent. Otherwise I am coming to you quickly and will wage war against them with the sword of My mouth.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: You addresses the Church, whereas against them singles out the implicated people; the shift is retained rather than spreading the threatened war indiscriminately.

Reception: R014 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:14–16).

Verse 2:17

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Let the one who has an ear hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and upon the stone a new name written, which no one knows except the one who receives it.’

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: White stone renders psēphos leukē; the verse does not explain whether it is a token, voting stone, or another kind of object. The new name is not disclosed.

Reception: R015 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:17); R080 (C. S. Lewis; scope 2:17).

To Thyatira

Verse 2:18

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And to the angel of the Church in Thyatira write: These things says the Son of God, who has His eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like burnished bronze:

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Son of God is explicit here. Fiery eyes and bronze-like feet repeat the visionary features without resolving the rare metal term's exact composition.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:19

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

‘I know your works and love and faith and service and your endurance, and your last works are more than the first.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The last works exceed the first in number or extent. Love, faith, service and endurance are separately named commendations.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:20

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

But I have this against you: you allow the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and deceives My slaves to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The woman is the accessed wording, without an added your. The name Jezebel is retained; no historical identification of this person is inserted.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:21

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And I gave her time to repent, and she does not wish to repent of her sexual immorality.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The refusal is stated as does not wish, not inability to repent; the time already given makes the willful response part of the accusation.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:22

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Look, I am throwing her into a bed, and those committing adultery with her into great affliction, unless they repent of her works.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Bed is the actual noun; sickbed is an interpretation of the judgment image. Her works is the accessed pronoun, not their works.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:23

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And I will kill her children with death, and all the Churches will know that I am the One who searches kidneys and hearts, and I will give to each of you according to your works.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Kidneys and hearts preserves the ancient bodily pair for inward life. With death retains thanatos; plague or pestilence is a contextual interpretation.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:24

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

But to you, the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as they say, I say: I place no other burden upon you.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: As they say marks reported language about deep things. The remaining believers who reject this teaching receive no additional burden.

Reception: R016 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:24–26).

Verse 2:25

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Only hold fast what you have until I come.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Hold fast governs what the hearers already possess; until I come supplies the speaker's horizon without specifying its date.

Reception: R016 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:24–26).

Verse 2:26

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

And to the one who conquers and keeps My works until the end, I will give authority over the nations,

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Conquering is joined to keeping the speaker's works until the end. Authority over nations is the promised gift, not a present command to seize power.

Reception: R016 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:24–26).

Verse 2:27

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

and he will shepherd them with an iron rod, as vessels of pottery are shattered,

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: Shepherd renders poimainō, carrying the royal shepherd image into the iron-rod judgment. The comparison with shattered pottery remains explicit.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.

Verse 2:28

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

as I also have received from My Father; and I will give him the morning star.

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The opening comparison continues the grant of authority in 2:26–27. The morning star is a further gift; its identification is not explained here.

Reception: R017 (Victorinus tradition; scope 2:28).

Verse 2:29

Greek–English: Literal-Smooth (Saints Priority)

Let the one who has an ear hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.’

Textual & Reception Notes

Textual [G]: The hearing formula closes Thyatira's address while extending its message to the Churches in the plural.

Reception: No passage-specific reception verified in this review.