Of the seven churches John was told to write to, Philadelphia receives no rebuke. Christ says, “I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it.” He notes that they have “a little strength” and have kept his word. He promises to keep them from “the hour of temptation” and to make the one who overcomes “a pillar in the temple of my God.” Christians read that hour in different ways. The letter is only seven verses long, Revelation 3:7 to 13.
8 verses
Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;
I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.
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.
Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
Matthew George Easton, 1897
Brotherly love, a city of Lydia in Asia Minor, about 25 miles south-east of Sardis. It was the seat of one of the “seven churches” (Rev. 3:7-12). It came into the possession of the Turks in A.D. 1392. It has several times been nearly destroyed by earthquakes. It is still a town of considerable size, called Allahshehr, “the city of God.”
William Smith, 1884
strictly Philadelphi’a (brotherly love), a town on the confines of Lydia and Phrygia Catacecaumene, 25 southeast of Sardis, and built by Attalus II., king of Pergamos, who died B.C. 138. It was situated on the lower slopes of Tmolus, and is still represented by a town called Allah-shehr (city of God). Its elevation is 952 feet above the sea. The original population of Philadelphia. Seems to have been Macedonian; but there was, as appears from (Leviticus 3:9) a synagogue of Hellenizing Jews there, as well as a Christian church. (It was the seat of one of "the seven churches of Asia.") The locality was subject to constant earthquakes, which in the time of Strabo rendered even the town walls of Philadelphia unsafe. The expense of reparation was constant, and hence perhaps the poverty of the members of the church. (Revelation 3:8) (The church was highly commended.) (Revelation 3:7-13) Even Gibbon bears the following well-known testimony to the truth of the prophecy, "Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee in the hour of temptation": "At a distance from the sea, forgotten by the (Greek) emperor encompassed, all sides by the Turks, her valiant citizens defended their religion and freedom above fourscore years. Among the Greek colonies and churches of Asia, Philadelphia is still erect, a column in a scene of ruins." "The modern town (Allah-shehr , city of God), although spacious, containing 3000 houses and 10,000 inhabitants, is badly built; the dwellings are mean and the streets filthy. The inhabitants are mostly Turks. A few ruins are found, including remains of a wall and about twenty-five churches. In one place are four strong marble pillars, which once supported the dome of a church. One of the old mosques is believed by the native Christians to have been the church in which assembled the primitive Christians addressed in the Apocalypse." Whitney’s Bible Geography.)