Jesus' message to the Christians in Pergamum
12 ‘Write this to the angel of the church at Pergamum:
“This is the message to you from the one who has the sharp sword with two edges.
13 I know where you live. It is the place where Satan sits on his throne as king. But you still continue to trust me. You remember Antipas who spoke a clear message about me. Because of that, some people in your city killed him. You saw what happened to him, but you continued to believe in me. You still serve me, even there, in the place where Satan lives.
14 But I have a few things to say against you. Some people among you agree with what Balaam taught long ago. He taught Balak to do a bad thing against God's people. Balak caused the Israelites to do wrong things. As a result, they ate food that people had given to idols. They also had sex with people who were not their husbands or wives. 15 Also, some people among you do the bad things that the Nicolaitans teach. 16 So you must stop doing these bad things. If you do not change how you live, I will quickly come to punish you. I will fight against those bad people with my sharp sword that comes out of my mouth.
2:14Balak was the king of Moab. See Numbers 22:1-24:25. The Israelites were the descendants of Jacob, who was also called Israel. They were God's special people. 17 God's Spirit is speaking to you in the churches. You should understand what the Spirit is saying to you. You have ears, so listen carefully! To everyone who wins against Satan I will give some of my special food called manna. I will also give each of them a white stone. I will write a new name on that stone. Nobody will know that name except the person who receives it.” ’
2:17The white stone was a valuable gift.
