3:14 “To 10 the angel of the church in Laodicea write the following: 11
“This is the solemn pronouncement of 12 the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the originator 13 of God’s creation: 3:15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. 14 I wish you were either cold or hot! 3:16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going 15 to vomit 16 you out of my mouth! 3:17 Because you say, “I am rich and have acquired great wealth, 17 and need nothing,” but 18 do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, 19 poor, blind, and naked, 3:18 take my advice 20 and buy gold from me refined by fire so you can become rich! Buy from me 21 white clothing so you can be clothed and your shameful nakedness 22 will not be exposed, and buy eye salve 23 to put on your eyes so you can see! 3:19 All those 24 I love, I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent! 3:20 Listen! 25 I am standing at the door and knocking! If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come into his home 26 and share a meal with him, and he with me. 3:21 I will grant the one 27 who conquers 28 permission 29 to sit with me on my throne, just as I too conquered 30 and sat down with my Father on his throne. 3:22 The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
1 tn Or “obey.” For the translation of τηρέω (threw) as “obey” see L&N 36.19. In the Greek there is a wordplay: “because you have kept my word…I will keep you,” though the meaning of τηρέω is different each time.
2 tn The Greek term λόγον (logon) is understood here in the sense of admonition or encouragement.
3 tn Or “to persevere.” Here ὑπομονῆς (Jupomonhs) has been translated as a genitive of reference/respect related to τὸν λόγον (ton logon).
4 tn On the verb λάβῃ (labh) here BDAG 583 s.v. λαμβάνω 2 states, “to take away, remove…with or without the use of force τὰ ἀργύρια take away the silver coins (fr. the temple) Mt 27:6. τὰς ἀσθενείας diseases 8:17. τὸν στέφανον Rv 3:11.”
5 sn Your crown refers to a wreath consisting either of foliage or of precious metals formed to resemble foliage and worn as a symbol of honor, victory, or as a badge of high office – ‘wreath, crown’ (L&N 6.192).
6 tn Or “who is victorious”; traditionally, “who overcomes.”
7 tn Grk “I will make him,” but the pronoun (αὐτόν, auton, “him”) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.
8 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
9 sn This description of the city of my God is parenthetical, explaining further the previous phrase and interrupting the list of “new names” given here.
10 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated due to differences between Greek and English style.
11 tn The phrase “the following” after “write” is supplied to clarify that what follows is the content of what is to be written.
12 tn Grk “These things says [the One]…” See the note on the phrase “this is the solemn pronouncement of” in 2:1.
13 tn Or “the beginning of God’s creation”; or “the ruler of God’s creation.” From a linguistic standpoint all three meanings for ἀρχή (arch) are possible. The term is well attested in both LXX (Gen 40:13, 21; 41:13) and intertestamental Jewish literature (2 Macc 4:10, 50) as meaning “ruler, authority” (BDAG 138 s.v. 6). Some have connected this passage to Paul’s statements in Col 1:15, 18 which describe Christ as ἀρχή and πρωτότοκος (prwtotoko"; e.g., see R. H. Mounce, Revelation [NICNT], 124) but the term ἀρχή has been understood as either “beginning” or “ruler” in that passage as well. The most compelling connection is to be found in the prologue to John’s Gospel (1:2-4) where the λόγος (logos) is said to be “in the beginning (ἀρχή) with God,” a temporal reference connected with creation, and then v. 3 states that “all things were made through him.” The connection with the original creation suggests the meaning “originator” for ἀρχή here. BDAG 138 s.v. 3 gives the meaning “the first cause” for the word in Rev 3:14, a term that is too philosophical for the general reader, so the translation “originator” was used instead. BDAG also notes, “but the mng. beginning = ‘first created’ is linguistically probable (s. above 1b and Job 40:19; also CBurney, Christ as the ᾿Αρχή of Creation: JTS 27, 1926, 160-77).” Such a meaning is unlikely here, however, since the connections described above are much more probable.
14 sn Laodicea was near two other towns, each of which had a unique water source. To the north was Hierapolis which had a natural hot spring, often used for medicinal purposes. To the east was Colossae which had cold, pure waters. In contrast to these towns, Laodicea had no permanent supply of good water. Efforts to pipe water to the city from nearby springs were successful, but it would arrive lukewarm. The metaphor in the text is not meant to relate spiritual fervor to temperature. This would mean that Laodicea would be commended for being spiritually cold, but it is unlikely that Jesus would commend this. Instead, the metaphor condemns Laodicea for not providing spiritual healing (being hot) or spiritual refreshment (being cold) to those around them. It is a condemnation of their lack of works and lack of witness.
15 tn Or “I intend.”
16 tn This is the literal meaning of the Greek verb ἐμέω (emew). It is usually translated with a much weaker term like “spit out” due to the unpleasant connotations of the English verb “vomit,” as noted by L&N 23.44. The situation confronting the Laodicean church is a dire one, however, and such a term is necessary if the modern reader is to understand the gravity of the situation.
17 tn Grk “and have become rich.” The semantic domains of the two terms for wealth here, πλούσιος (plousios, adjective) and πλουτέω (ploutew, verb) overlap considerably, but are given slightly different English translations for stylistic reasons.
18 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
19 tn All the terms in this series are preceded by καί (kai) in the Greek text, but contemporary English generally uses connectives only between the last two items in such a series.
20 tn Grk “I counsel you to buy.”
21 tn Grk “rich, and.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation, repeating the words “Buy from me” to make the connection clear for the English reader.
22 tn Grk “the shame of the nakedness of you,” which has been translated as an attributed genitive like καινότητι ζωῆς (kainothti zwh") in Rom 6:4 (ExSyn 89-90).
23 sn The city of Laodicea had a famous medical school and exported a powder (called a “Phrygian powder”) that was widely used as an eye salve. It was applied to the eyes in the form of a paste the consistency of dough (the Greek term for the salve here, κολλούριον, kollourion [Latin collyrium], is a diminutive form of the word for a long roll of bread).
24 tn The Greek pronoun ὅσος (Josos) means “as many as” and can be translated “All those” or “Everyone.”
25 tn Grk “Behold.”
26 tn Grk “come in to him.”
27 tn Grk “The one who conquers, to him I will grant.”
28 tn Or “who is victorious”; traditionally, “who overcomes.”
29 tn Grk “I will give [grant] to him.”
30 tn Or “have been victorious”; traditionally, “have overcome.”