Revelation 3:7–13

3:7 As with the other letters, the address is to “the angel of the church in Philadelphia.” As noted above, worship of the emperor was practiced there in the first century. The church is addressed by the glorious Son of Man, who is holy and true (cf. 19:11). The divine nature of Jesus is evident here, for in 6:10 God is addressed as “holy and true.” How do the holiness and truth of the Son relate to the church in Philadelphia? Jesus is the holy one of God (cf. Mark 1:24; John 6:69), i.e., the true Messiah. If we look at the rest of the letter, we see him vindicating his people and judging their Jewish opponents (Rev. 3:9). He will fulfill his promises to the church by preserving and strengthening them in their trials (3:10) and making them a part of his temple and the new Jerusalem (3:12). They are addressed by the one who holds the “key of David.” The key here represents the authority of David (cf. 1:18; Matt. 16:19), another way of saying that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ (Rev. 5:5; 22:16), the one who fulfills the promise that an heir of David would sit on the throne (cf. 2 Samuel 7; Pss. 89:28–29, 35–37; 132:10–11; Isa. 55:3; Jer. 30:9; 33:15, 17, 20–22; Ezek. 34:23–24; 37:24–25; Hos. 3:5). The reference to Jesus’ messianic status is important here, for the Jewish Messiah belongs to Christians (both Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus), not to the Jewish synagogue (Rev. 3:9) that rejects Jesus.

The authority of Jesus is underscored, for what he opens cannot be shut, and what he shuts cannot be opened. We have an antecedent in the words spoken about Eliakim in Isaiah: “I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open” (Isa. 22:22; cf. Job 12:14). The binding authority of Eliakim is featured in Isaiah, but Jesus’ authority surpasses that of Eliakim, since Jesus is David’s heir and the true Messiah. The Jews may have expelled Christians from the synagogue, but Jesus has given them access to his presence and has shut out unbelieving Jews, and no one can reverse his decision.

3:8 Jesus commends the church for its works, and, quite surprisingly, there is no corresponding rebuke. The words about open and shut doors (v. 7) are now applied to the Philadelphian church. Jesus has opened a door for them that no one can shut. It may be that the open door refers to an opportunity for mission and evangelism, since elsewhere the NT speaks of an open door with this meaning (Acts 14:27; 1 Cor. 16:9; 2 Cor. 2:12; Col. 4:3). It seems more likely, however, that the reference here is to entry into God’s presence (cf. Rev. 4:1). In Isaiah 60:11 the gates of Jerusalem are open so that the wealth of the nations can enter, and John refers to these open gates and the entrance into the heavenly city later in Revelation (21:25–26). Such a reference fits the context of the letter to the Philadelphians. They have the open door to God’s presence and access to the heavenly city. The Jewish synagogue did not represent those favored by God; rather, the promises of end-time blessing were given to believers (both Jews and Gentiles) who put their trust in Jesus Christ.

The door was open because, although the church at Philadelphia had “little power” (i.e., they were a small church with little influence), yet they faithfully kept Jesus’ word and did not deny his name. We saw earlier (cf. comment on 3:5) that those who deny Jesus will be denied by him before the Father (Matt. 10:33; 2 Tim. 2:12), but the Philadelphian church, despite opposition from the emperor cult and the Jewish synagogue, continued to be faithful. They confessed Jesus’ name in the face of concerted opposition.

3:9 One source, perhaps the primary source, of opposition to the Philadelphian church is identified. Similar to the situation in Smyrna (cf. comment on 2:9), the Jews in Philadelphia had probably taken advantage of their privileged civic status and told the Roman authorities that Christians were not truly Jews, thereby exposing them to persecution from the state, presumably because of their refusal to participate in the imperial cult. Jews received a special exemption from Rome, but the same exemption was not given to Christianity, a new and strange movement. Jesus, however, did not forsake the church in Philadelphia, which was composed most likely of both Jews and Gentiles. The Jews who did not believe in Jesus claimed to be the true gathering—i.e., the true synagogue—of God, but they were actually a “synagogue of Satan” because they rejected the one who had the key of David—the Davidic Messiah—and discriminated against Christians. True Jews are those who belong to Jesus Christ (cf. Rom. 2:28–29; Gal. 6:16; Phil. 3:3).

Astonishingly, the Jewish synagogue had assumed the role the Gentiles played under the old covenant. In Psalm 86:9 the Lord predicts the Gentile nations would come and bow before Israel (cf. also Isa. 45:14; Zech. 8:20–23). The prophecy was fulfilled in a shocking way, for the church of Jesus Christ is now the true Israel. Jewish members of the synagogue will “bow down” before believers in Christ (Rev. 3:9; cf. Isa. 49:23; 60:14) and will acknowledge that Christians are “loved” by the Lord. The love of the Lord for Israel, communicated in texts such as Isaiah 43:4, is applied now to Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus (“I have loved you”; Rev. 3:9). Believers in Christ are the “offspring” who come from all over the world; they are ones “called by my name” (Isa. 43:5–7). Those whom the Lord loves, he elects to be his people, for God’s love manifests itself in election (cf. Deut. 7:7–8; 10:15; Isa. 41:8), and thus the church of Jesus Christ (not ethnic Jews who refuse to believe in Jesus) are the elect people of God. Some interpret the confession by the Jews (that Jesus loves the church) as predicting the conversion of Israel (Rom. 11:25–27), but the OT background points instead to their judgment. An eschatological reversal is coming. The Philadelphian believers are thereby encouraged and strengthened to persevere—they are the true people of God and will be vindicated on the last day.

3:10 The faithfulness of the Philadelphian church would be rewarded. They had kept the message (“the word”), which called for endurance. They had persevered and continued to confess Jesus amid opposition. As a result, Jesus promised to keep them from the time of testing that was coming upon the world. We find here the notion that things will become more difficult before the end comes. The messianic woes preceding the second coming of Christ will intensify as history draws to a close (cf. 2 Thess. 1:4–5). The judgments described here doubtlessly include some of what we see in the seals (Rev. 6:1–17; 8:1–5), trumpets (8:6–9:21; 11:15–19), and bowls (16:1–21) described in the remainder of the book. The testing is restricted to “those who dwell on the earth.” At first glance this phrase seems to refer to everyone on earth without exception, but the context indicates that the testing is particularly for unbelievers. This is confirmed by the use of the phrase “earth dwellers” (hoi katoikountes) elsewhere in Revelation; in every case the term refers to unbelievers (6:10; 8:13; 11:10 [2x]; 13:8, 12, 14 [2x]; 17:2, 8).

Interpreters who believe in a pretribulation rapture maintain that being kept from “the hour of trial” (3:10) means that believers will be raptured and taken away from the earth before that time of testing. Being kept from the hour of testing means, they affirm, that one is absent from the affliction striking the earth. It is more persuasive, however, to say that believers are preserved, guarded, and protected by God amid the testing. First, the message is for all the churches (3:13; cf. 2:7 et al.), and it seems quite obvious that some Christians will be present on earth when the time of testing comes. Second, the phrase “keep from” (tēreō ek) does not have the sense of being “removed from the scene” but of being “preserved in the midst of the situation.” The parallel in John 17:15 makes this clear: “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” Believers are preserved from committing apostasy as they continue to live in the world. Similarly, Lot and Noah, who lived many years in the midst of the wicked, were “rescued” (2 Pet. 2:9; cf. also 2 Tim. 4:18), their faith being preserved despite the oppressive situation in which they lived (2 Pet. 2:7–8). Third, when the plagues struck Egypt (Exodus 7–12), Israel was not preserved by being removed from the land. Instead, the Lord protected Israel as the plagues were inflicted upon the Egyptians, even though Israel continued to live in Egypt. Fourth, we probably have an allusion to Daniel 12:1, where the people who belong to the Lord will escape the time of tribulation, not by being removed from the world but by persevering in spite of suffering (Dan. 12:10).

3:11 Jesus declares that he is coming soon, a common theme in Revelation (cf. comments on 1:1; 2:16, 25; 22:7, 12, 20). The reference here is probably to the second coming, as it seems to end the suffering that believers must endure. Believers must always be ready for Jesus to return, showing their preparedness by enduring in the faith, by holding on to the faith they have confessed. Those who persevere will receive a crown, and the crown, as in Revelation 2:10, denotes eschatological reward: eternal life (cf. 1 Cor. 9:25; 2 Tim. 4:8; James 1:12; 1 Pet. 5:4).

3:12 The promise and challenge to the conquerors, which is present in all seven letters, is given in this verse. Believers will be immovable pillars in the temple, will have God’s name written on them (cf. Ex. 28:36–38), and will bear the name of the new Jerusalem. The promises to the overcomers in the previous letters suggest the reward here is eternal life itself. John employs highly symbolic language to describe the final reward believers will enjoy if they conquer. If we connect what is said here to what we read earlier in the letter, the “open door” for believers (Rev. 3:8) is access to the heavenly temple and the new Jerusalem (v. 12). Induction into the temple and the heavenly Jerusalem are two ways of describing the same reality.

First, believers will be immovable pillars in the temple (cf. Gal. 2:9)—a striking promise for a city beset by earthquakes. John is simply saying that believers will be where God dwells, for as we shall see in the comments on Revelation 21–22, the whole universe will be his temple. In fact, there will be no temple in the new heaven and earth, as John forthrightly declares later in the book; God and the Lamb are the temple (21:22). The language of being a pillar in the temple means believers are secure; they will never be dislodged from the coming new creation. No enemy will ever be able to harm them or remove them from God’s presence. Members of the Jewish synagogue in Philadelphia believed the true temple was in Jerusalem, but Jesus reminds the church that the true temple is the coming new world, the new Jerusalem descending from heaven, the place where God and the Lamb dwell.

Second, Jesus will inscribe God’s name on believers. We saw earlier that one’s name signifies one’s identity and nature (2:3, 13, 17). When the Lord reveals his name, he discloses his character (Ex. 33:19; 34:5–7). God’s name in particular is to be consecrated as holy (Ex. 20:7; Matt. 6:9), since he is the Creator and is infinite in all his perfections (cf. Ps. 8:1). How amazing it is, then, that the name of God is inscribed upon believers. Christians belong to God and are secure in the care of the one who has put his name on them, for God is jealous above all else for the glory and honor of his name (cf. Deut. 6:13; Ps. 72:19; Ezek. 36:20–23).

Third, God will write on his people the name of the city of God, “the new Jerusalem.” They will be members of the heavenly city. The Jewish synagogue prized the earthly city of Jerusalem, but the earthly Jerusalem points above and forward to a better Jerusalem, a new Jerusalem, an eschatological Jerusalem, a heavenly Jerusalem. Describing it as heavenly means it is a transcendent reality; as John says, it “comes down . . . out of heaven.” John here anticipates Revelation 21:1–22:5, where the new creation is described as the “holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God” (21:2; cf. 21:10), and various features of the city are portrayed. It is abundantly clear, then, that the new Jerusalem is the eschatological reward for believers (cf. 2 Bar. 4:2). The notion of a heavenly Jerusalem is found also in Galatians 4:26, where Paul says that “the Jerusalem above is . . . our mother” (cf. Psalm 87; Isa. 66:7–11; 2 Esd. 10:7). Hebrews 12:22 also refers to the “heavenly Jerusalem” as the destiny of believers. Those who overcome will be citizens in the new Jerusalem, the heavenly Jerusalem, the Jerusalem to come. The verse concludes by reverting to the name given to believers, and here Jesus says they will have his own name written on them. Jesus has a “name written that no one knows but himself” (Rev. 19:12). In other words, no one holds power or sovereignty over Jesus. True believers “hold fast” and don’t deny Jesus’ name (2:13; 3:8), and his name is inscribed on their foreheads (14:1; 22:4). The main point here is clear: having Jesus’ name means believers belong to Jesus and are protected by his love and power.

3:13 As in the other letters, the words of Jesus are also the words of the Spirit, and the message is directed to all the churches, not just the church at Philadelphia. Hence, believers in all the churches are exhorted to pay attention to the message from the Spirit.