Ticonius — Commentary on Scripture

Revelation 2:7

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

“Who conquers, I will grant to eat from the tree of life,” that is, from the fruit of the cross, “which is in the paradise of my God.” The church is to be regarded as paradise, for “all things were done in figure,” and Adam was “the shadow of the one to come,” as the apostle teaches. Indeed, the tree of life is the wisdom of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, who hung on the cross. In the church and in the spiritual paradise, he gives to the faithful food of life and the sacrament of the celestial bread, of which you read, “Wisdom is the tree of life to those who embrace her.”

Revelation 2:9

I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

He speaks to every church that is poor in spirit yet possesses all things, as the apostle says, “as having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” “And you are slandered by those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” Here certainly it is shown that he was not speaking only to a special church, for it was not only at Smyrna where there were or are Jews who slander. However, it is possible that there is a double meaning of “Jews” here, either those who are openly Jews outside or those who are Jews within [the church], that is, false Christians. For religiosity is characteristic of the Jews, as the apostle says, “He is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, spiritual and not literal.” And again he says, “We are the circumcision who worship God in spirit, and put no confidence in the flesh.” Nor ought we ourselves to abandon those [in the church] when they are even called a synagogue of Satan. For we know that the Lord has presented us with an example of longsuffering by tolerating Judas even unto the end.

Revelation 2:13 · 2 passages

I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

“I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is.” This he says to every church, since the tempter is everywhere, and to him it is said, “She shall watch your head, and you shall watch for her heel.” “For the world is placed in evil.” Those persons are the throne of Satan whom he owns in wickedness. The Evangelist reverts to the species, for although the entire sevenfold church is symbolized by these seven locales, nonetheless certain things have occurred in them specifically which he either praises or rebukes.

“You hold my name and you did not deny my faith, even in the days of Antipas my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you.” Indeed, Christ is killed among many, who either do not believe that he rose again, or who deny him among themselves through condemnable faults, and this is “where Satan dwells.”

Revelation 2:14

But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

“But I have a few things against you.” To be sure, he speaks against some members who must be blamed, but not against those to whom he says, “But you did not deny my faith. You have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat food sacrificed to idols and to practice immorality.” To eat and to commit fornication are the two principle forms [of sin] that the hypocrites struggle to enjoy, as the Lord says, “Inside you are full of plunder and incontinence and every iniquity.” Idolatry is spiritual fornication. “You have lost,” it says, “all who go whoring from you.”

Revelation 2:17

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

“To him who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna.” This manna is the invisible Bread which came down from heaven, which indeed was made man, so that “man might eat the bread of angels.” And the figure of this was indicated beforehand in the manna given in the desert. Whoever ate of that bread were said by the Lord to have died, because remaining faithless, they did not eat of this hidden and uniquely spiritual manna by which [Christ] offers immortality to the faithful. For he said, “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you will not have eternal life in you.” For, indeed, whoever at that time was able to eat spiritually, they were worthy to obtain the same immortality, as were Moses and others. As the apostle teaches, “They ate the same spiritual food.” For the visible manna was in no way detrimental to those who used the bodily food in a spiritual manner. So also now, the spiritual manna of the Lord’s body does not profit persons in the present if they receive it unworthily, for “they eat and drink judgment upon themselves.”

Revelation 2:23

And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.

How is it that before God hands over adulterers to death the churches do not know that God is he who searches mind and heart? How is it that the church is said to know at the end of things and not at the beginning of her faith that God knows all secrets? When he said, “all the churches will know,” he was not saying that the church would know only after the event but that the church knows from faith. For the words “I will kill” do not refer to that death that is visible but to spiritual death. Just as his revenge on the mother specifically would become visible, so he here promises that among all the churches it would become clear that the children of the woman, that is, those born of the same spirit, were subject to spiritual death, although they were not [visibly] delivered over to it. David also made this distinction between the particular and the general when he fought Goliath. He said, “I will kill you and all the earth will know that there is a God in Israel.” … Then he adds the particular when he says, “And all this assembly will know that the Lord saves his people not with swor…

How is it that before God hands over adulterers to death the churches do not know that God is he who searches mind and heart? How is it that the church is said to know at the end of things and not at the beginning of her faith that God knows all secrets? When he said, “all the churches will know,” he was not saying that the church would know only after the event but that the church knows from faith. For the words “I will kill” do not refer to that death that is visible but to spiritual death. Just as his revenge on the mother specifically would become visible, so he here promises that among all the churches it would become clear that the children of the woman, that is, those born of the same spirit, were subject to spiritual death, although they were not [visibly] delivered over to it. David also made this distinction between the particular and the general when he fought Goliath. He said, “I will kill you and all the earth will know that there is a God in Israel.” … Then he adds the particular when he says, “And all this assembly will know that the Lord saves his people not with sword and spear.” He said “all this assembly” because there were persons there who doubted that David could prevail against Goliath. To be sure, there were also spiritual persons who believed that he would defeat [Goliath] in the name of God. Those among whom this event occurred in their presence saw with their own eyes, not by faith. However, through faith we see God at work today, not as they did but in a marvelous way. And so, as with Goliath we see the children of Jezebel, who do not want to be subject to the truth, punished with death. We recognize from the phraseology [of the text] itself that in her children the Lord signifies the woman’s posterity. For he threatened the mother with a temporal punishment that he might hand her over to eternal sorrows. However, he did not say, “I kill the children with the sword” but “I will slay them with death.”

Revelation 2:24-25

But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.

To be sure, the Lord speaks to those who kept their minds from the doctrines of the devil, lest they turn from the dogma of the truth of the church. For they were taught that they should follow no man but rather the truth of the faith, for the Lord said to those who had left the faith, “I never knew you, you evildoers.” For just as those who do iniquity do not know God, although they speak of him, so also God does not acknowledge the workers of iniquity, although he knows them all. In this way, the righteous do not know the teaching of Satan, although they might hear it and feel the attraction of his temptations. And so it can happen that the righteous do not hear evil things from which they abstain by righteous living, since it is written, “There must be heresies so that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.” And again, “Should they say to you, Lo, Christ is in the inner rooms, do not believe it.”

Revelation 2:26-27

And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:

The church has this power in Christ. Whoever holds fast to his body will be co-heir with the Lord and will have whatever the Son of man received, for “he has given us all things with him.”

Revelation 2:28

And I will give him the morning star.

It is appropriate that we understand the morning star to represent both Christ and the first resurrection, because his appearance scatters the darkness of error and the worldly shadows of the night are put to flight by the approaching resurrection. For, as this star brings an end to the night, so also does it mark the beginning of the day.

Revelation 3:7 · 2 passages

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;

“Who has the key of David,” that is, royal authority. He says “the key of David” either because Christ was born from his family or because David himself foretold many things concerning Christ. Through the dispensation of Christ, as though by a key, the secrets of the law and of the prophets and of the psalms were made manifest. Christ himself attests to this when he says, “Everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled.”

“Who opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens.” It is evident that Christ opens [the door] to those who knock, but to hypocrites who knock and say, “Lord, Lord open to us,” he closes the door of life and says to them, “I do not know from where you come; I never knew you, you evildoers.”

Revelation 3:8 · 2 passages

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.

The door, which Christ opened, he then began to reveal to the church when he opened the mind of his disciples so that they might understand the Scriptures. This door is never shut, by the power or the effort of anyone, which is already opened to those who preach to the whole world. For this reason the apostle says, “A wide door has opened for us in the Lord, and there are many adversaries.”

He had said before, “who opens and no one shuts,” lest anyone say that the door of the church, which God opens in the whole world, can be closed by anyone in some part of the world.

Revelation 3:9

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.

“Behold, those from the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie: behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and learn that I have loved you.” At that time he promised to the universal church that there will be “one flock and one Shepherd.” We should note that it was not only in Philadelphia that there were believers from the synagogue of the Jews, as we find recorded in the Acts of the Apostles.… He said to the second angel, “You have the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not.” Nevertheless, he did not promise that there would be some who would come from them, that is, [fall] at the feet of the body of Christ. We believe that this will happen everywhere, since God will command his church to be gathered from the whole world. Therefore, to the sixth angel, that is the one before the last, he promised what he had indicated to the others without any promise. And so he foretells to the sixth angel what will happen before the final end, that the unbelieving will come as suppliants to the church of God.

Revelation 3:10

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.

Although the church is constantly put to the test by both internal and external conflict, and either individuals partially or the whole generally are attacked by various temptations, yet the hour of temptation may also refer to the time of the antichrist who will come in the future. From this hour Christ the Lord promises that he will free every church that remains firm in his [commandments], so that the temptation to ruin might be recognized to be a deception.

Revelation 3:12 · 2 passages

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.

“And he shall never go out of it.” The nations went out from God, and they gave to idols that worship which they owed to God alone. But “all the families of the nations will remember and turn to the Lord and shall worship before him.” This refers to those whom he foretold would come “from the synagogue of Satan.” For having broken the bond of charity, the schismatics have gone out of the house of God. They are those who have separated themselves from the body of the whole church which is throughout the world and who vainly glory in themselves and firmly believe that they are the whole church, even though they themselves are not everywhere. For when he says that “he shall never go out of it,” he shows that at the end of time there will be a struggle. For it will happen that after unity there will be a final struggle in which there will be another separation. And wherever anyone will have been freed, he shall certainly not go out, and he shall remain in the house, not as a slave but as a son. And therefore God allowed those who were saved from the flood in the ark to go out, because un…

“And he shall never go out of it.” The nations went out from God, and they gave to idols that worship which they owed to God alone. But “all the families of the nations will remember and turn to the Lord and shall worship before him.” This refers to those whom he foretold would come “from the synagogue of Satan.” For having broken the bond of charity, the schismatics have gone out of the house of God. They are those who have separated themselves from the body of the whole church which is throughout the world and who vainly glory in themselves and firmly believe that they are the whole church, even though they themselves are not everywhere. For when he says that “he shall never go out of it,” he shows that at the end of time there will be a struggle. For it will happen that after unity there will be a final struggle in which there will be another separation. And wherever anyone will have been freed, he shall certainly not go out, and he shall remain in the house, not as a slave but as a son. And therefore God allowed those who were saved from the flood in the ark to go out, because until that time there was still time for returning from one’s sins. However, at the end of time it will not be allowed one any longer to come out, for whoever at that time will go out, will have not occasion for repentance.

“And I will write on him the name of my God.” That is, we are signed with the name of Christian. “And the name of the city of the new Jerusalem which comes down from my God out of heaven.” The name of the church that daily comes down from God out of heaven, that is, from the church that is reborn by the Lord. He speaks of it as new because of the newness of the Son of man who is the new Jerusalem.… “Indeed, the name which is above every name.” However, this name is not new because it refers to the Son of God, who existed before the world and possessed this glory with the Father. Rather, this name is new in regard to the Son of man who died and on the third day rose again and, ascending to the heavens, sits at the right hand of the Father. For it is the Son of man who said “my new name,” whom [John] saw “in the midst of the seven lampstands.” This Son of man is God “at whose name every knee bows, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.”

Revelation 3:21

To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

[In the image of the Son] sitting with [the Father], he shows that the Son participates in the power of the Father. For what else does it mean that he is seated on the throne of the Father than that he is of one and the same substance? And just as he conquered the devil and sat at the right hand of the Father, so also he who conquers will sit with him. For God the Son is powerful, who in the Father is everywhere and by his own power fills the heaven and the earth.

Revelation 4:1

After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.

“Afterwards,” John said, “I saw.” After seeing the vision, he remembered that he had seen another. The interval in time belongs not to the events but to the visions. If one were to describe a single event in different ways, it would be the descriptions that differ in time, not what took place at one time. In this way, he retraces the whole span of the church using various figures to describe it. “Behold,” he says, “an open door in heaven.” The open door represents Christ, who was born, suffered and was raised. Christ is the gateway, as he himself said, “I am the door.” Heaven represents the church because it is the habitation of God where the celestial realities are effected. This is why we pray that the will of God be done on earth even as it is in heaven. Sometimes, however, the church is represented by both heaven and earth, since the earth comes into agreement with heaven, either when the unfaithful are won by the righteous proclamation of the faithful, or when the flesh is subdued by the Spirit, or when the things of the earth are reconciled and united to the things of heaven.