By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou
Sunday, August 2nd 2026
Sunday, August 2nd 2026
In interpreting the Letters that Christ sent, through the Evangelist John the Theologian, to the Bishops of the Churches of Asia Minor, we shall examine the Letter to the Bishop of the Church of Pergamum, which is the third Letter in sequence. It reads:
“And to the angel of the Church of Pergamum write: These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword: I know your works and where you dwell, where the throne of Satan is. Yet you remain faithful to My name and did not deny your faith in Me, even when My faithful martyr, Antipas, was killed in your city, where Satan dwells. But I have something against you: you have there some who hold to the teaching of Balaam. He taught Balak to lead the Israelites astray, to eat meat from sacrifices offered to idols and to commit fornication. Thus, you also have some who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Repent, therefore, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the two-edged sword that comes out of My mouth. Whoever has ears, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. To the one who overcomes the devil I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone, and upon the stone will be written a new name, which no one else knows except the one who receives it” (Revelation 2:12–17).
The city of Pergamum was north of Smyrna and was renowned for the wealth that had been accumulated there. It was a political center, probably the seat of a Roman governor of the province of Asia, as well as a religious center. It was “a city full of idols, more than all Asia.” It had many idols, among them those of Zeus, Augustus of Rome, Athena Nikephoros, and Asclepius the Savior.
In this Letter, Christ describes Himself as “the One who has the sharp two-edged sword,” which signifies a rhomphaia, a sword, and indeed a sharp rhomphaia that cuts from both sides.
According to the interpreters, this two-edged rhomphaia signifies the word of the gospel, which circumcises the heart and separates the faithful from the unbelievers. It is the divine teaching that has powerful efficacy and brings about both the liberation of the heart from the passions and the spiritual separation from unbelievers. After all, Christ Himself said: “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” And then He explains that it separates people from their relatives because they accepted the evangelical truth and encounter their resistance (Matthew 10:34–36). A spiritual separation from evil takes place.
The divine energy that enters into the human heart creates great changes in his life. And this two-edged rhomphaia is the decisive judgment against the ungodly, and indeed “sharp,” swift, because it punishes those who are opposed to the commandments of God. The Bishop of Pergamum is praised because, although he remains in the city where “the throne of Satan” is, he holds fast to the name of Christ and did not deny the faith, and he does this through his works. This is very positive for the Bishop: that he does not compromise with Satan, that he preserves the name of Christ, Christ Himself, and that he does not deny the faith, especially while undergoing a great trial.
Pergamum is characterized as “the throne of Satan,” where “Satan dwells” and creates persecutions against the faithful. In particular, he mentions Antipas, the Bishop of Pergamum, who was a Bishop in Apostolic times and was martyred by the idolaters. He is characterized as a faithful “martyr” of Christ, “My faithful martyr,” because he confessed the divinity of Christ and shed his blood for Him. There is nothing more honorable than for Christ Himself to characterize someone as “My faithful martyr,” which shows a particular unity and friendship. And the Bishop of Pergamum of that period imitates Antipas and remains a faithful martyr, for which he is praised by Christ.
Despite the praise, He also attributes “a few things” to him, that is, He writes: “I have a few things against you.” No one can be found blameless and perfect before God, because man, after the sin of our First Parents, has within himself an inclination toward evil; that is, what is according to nature can easily become contrary to nature if he is not careful. We receive temptations from all sides and directions, principally from the devil through provocations and thoughts, from the world through the senses and pleasures, and from our inner psychological states, our passions. For this reason, the struggle for our spiritual protection is great and multifaceted. Many times in Holy Scripture, man is characterized as a soldier who fights the good fight of faith.
What, then, was the error of the Bishop of Pergamum, for which Christ expressed His displeasure?
It consisted in his tolerating the followers of Balaam, who were followers of the Nicolaitans. Balaam is mentioned in the book of the Old Testament called Numbers. Balaam was asked by King Balak to curse the Israelites, so that afterward he could conquer them. God prevented Balaam from cursing the Israelite people, and he advised him instead to set sacrificial foods offered to idols before the Israelites so that they would eat them and lead them into fornication, and thus they would be distanced from God.
What happened in the Old Testament is now happening in Pergamum. For the teaching of the Nicolaitans, which, as we mentioned in the case of Ephesus, was a heresy that developed in the early Church, held that the spiritual freedom of Christians allowed them to live an unrestrained moral life, because, according to their belief, the flesh is inferior and therefore its abuse, through licentiousness or the eating of sacrificial foods offered to idols, does not affect the salvation of the soul. This was a Gnostic heresy of that period, which set aside bodily pleasures as evil and considered them indifferent, as, unfortunately, many Christians of our own time also do.
Therefore, the error of the Bishop of Pergamum was that, although he remained faithful to the name of Christ and although he did not deny his faith in Him, he tolerated the presence there of followers of the Gnostic heresy of the Nicolaitans. From this it is evident that every Bishop must not only teach the true doctrine, but must also not tolerate moral deviations and must not remain silent when the evangelical life is being corrupted. That is, he does not teach the worship of the flesh, but he tolerates teachers of the worship of the flesh existing within the Church.
For this reason, He urges the Bishop to repent, because if he does not do so, He will come quickly and fight against them with the two-edged rhomphaia that comes out of His mouth. This is the reason why, at the beginning of the Letter, He says that He has “the sharp two-edged rhomphaia.” When Bishops, and Clergy in general, do not protect the members of the Church from wrong and unbecoming actions, then Christ Himself will undertake this work. God cares for His Church. Thus, the repentance of the Bishop will protect the Church from the just punishment of God.
And the Letter concludes that whoever has an ear to hear what the Spirit says to the Churches and overcomes will be given two things. First, he will eat of the hidden manna, which is Christ Himself, the “bread of life,” and it is understood that He will also give him eternal life; and second, He will give a white stone upon which will be written the new name, which only the one who receives it knows. This name is the relationship of the person with Christ. This person will belong to Christ, and this is the person's participation in the radiance of Christ, in deification.
In the Church, we struggle by the Grace of Christ to overcome the passions and to avoid false teachings, so that we may eat the hidden manna and receive the radiance of Christ.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
