To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:
These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth. 11I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. 13Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
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“These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David.
Christ is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant, the ruler of the New Jerusalem, and the Lord of the kingdom of heaven. The “key of David” implies control of David’s domain, which was promised to the Messiah in both the Old and New Testaments (Isa.9:7; Luke 1:32).
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
And is an allusion to the Messianic prophecy found in Isaiah 22:22
“In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.
What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut.”
The reference to opening what no one can shut and shutting what no one can open, would refer to Christ’s sovereign authority. Regarding the open door that the Lord has place before them reminds me of what Paul wrote to the Corinthians:
“But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost, because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.”
“Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.”
Therefore, though the church of Philadelphia was said to have a little strength yet remained faithful in opposition to those religious hypocrites (the synagogue of Satan) who were persecuting them, I believe that, as with Paul, the open door was/is an opportunity for effective work.
(Philadelphia continued in part II)
These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth. 11I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. 13Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David.
Christ is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant, the ruler of the New Jerusalem, and the Lord of the kingdom of heaven. The “key of David” implies control of David’s domain, which was promised to the Messiah in both the Old and New Testaments (Isa.9:7; Luke 1:32).
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
And is an allusion to the Messianic prophecy found in Isaiah 22:22
“In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.
What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut.”
The reference to opening what no one can shut and shutting what no one can open, would refer to Christ’s sovereign authority. Regarding the open door that the Lord has place before them reminds me of what Paul wrote to the Corinthians:
“But I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost, because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me.”
“Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.”
Therefore, though the church of Philadelphia was said to have a little strength yet remained faithful in opposition to those religious hypocrites (the synagogue of Satan) who were persecuting them, I believe that, as with Paul, the open door was/is an opportunity for effective work.
(Philadelphia continued in part II)