To the Church of Thyatira
“This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Thyatira: I am the Son of God! My eyes are like flames of fire, and my feet are like bronze. Listen to what I say. I know everything about you, including your love, your faith, your service, and how you have endured. I know that you are doing more now than you have ever done before. But I still have something against you because of that woman Jezebel. She calls herself a prophet, and you let her teach and mislead my servants to do immoral things and to eat food offered to idols. I gave her a chance to turn from her sins, but she did not want to stop doing these immoral things. I am going to strike down Jezebel. Everyone who does these immoral things with her will also be punished, if they don’t stop. I will even kill her followers. Then all the churches will see that I know everyone’s thoughts and feelings. I will treat each of you as you deserve. Some of you in Thyatira don’t follow Jezebel’s teaching. You don’t know anything about what her followers call the “deep secrets of Satan.” So I won’t burden you down with any other commands. But until I come, you must hold firmly to the teaching you have. I will give power over the nations to everyone who wins the victory and keeps on obeying me until the end. I will give each of them the same power that my Father has given me. They will rule the nations with an iron rod and smash those nations to pieces like clay pots. I will also give them the morning star. If you have ears, listen to what the Spirit says to the churches (Revelation 2:18-29).
Thyatira was an ancient Greek city established by the Lydians in Asia Minor, initially named Pelopia, which was renamed Thyatira in 290 B.C. by King Seleucus I, a successor of Alexander the Great.[1] Thyatira was renowned for its vibrant dyes, particularly purple. The Apostle Paul traveled there to preach, where a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple fabric, accepted his message, and she and the members of her household were baptized (Acts 16:11-15). Thyatira is now known as Akhisar, a town in western Turkey located along the Great Zab River. It became a part of Pergamum in 190 B.C.[2]
Archaeologists have discovered various Thyatiran coins, which suggest that the city thrived commercially. These coins mention bronze, wool, dyers, bakers, and more. Kings and leaders worldwide would purchase purple fabric from Thyatira as purple signified royalty and high rank. It was a common practice for purple dye to be extracted from oysters, but archeologists suggest that Thyatira’s purple dye came from certain plant roots.
The message to Thyatira begins with Jesus declaring Himself as the Son of God. Many people believe that Jesus never asserted himself as being equal to or even being the Son of God. However, that ideology is contrary to the Bible, and in this instance, Jesus proclaimed that He was and still is God’s son. One can also see in Scripture that Jesus’ divinity, position, and relationship to the Father regarding His coming birth was revealed to Mary. The Bible says: “And the angel answered her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God’ ” (Luke 1:35). Mary’s miraculous conception of Jesus highlights God’s authority and the Holy Spirit’s power to bring life into an empty womb for the Son of God to be born to fulfill His earthly mission. Therefore, as one continues to read the text, it is clear that Jesus did not want the church to question who these words were from, as he repeated the visual description of himself as having eyes of fire and feet of bronze. (You can reread the symbolisms regarding this in Revelation chapter 1 and Revelation: Removing the Prophetic Veil Bible Lesson 1 of this series.)
Jesus commended the church of Thyatira for the good deeds of service they had rendered, and their endurance through love and faith. One cannot claim to be a servant for Christ and lack in these areas. Although good deeds do not save us, one should know that good deeds reflect Christ's work inside of us. The Bible says: “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17). As ambassadors for Christ, we should look to do good to others, including our enemies, as our light reflects the goodness of Jesus who died so we could be free. Furthermore, everything we do as believers in Christ should reflect the love He has for us and our love for Him. The Bible says: “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). Thyatira showed the Love of God, for which they were commended for doing. They did not just do good works, but their works were done so in love. Yet, many believers in the body of Christ have good works but fail to have love. They sing, dance, preach, teach, give, and render other acts of service but fail to love their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Nevertheless, one must know what love is. So, what is love?
To understand Jesus’ commendation of Thyatira’s ability to love, one must know what love is. While many within the world have a distorted view of love, as evidenced in many secular songs, music videos, books, and movies, there is a love that is unfailing, and that love is God. The Bible says: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails… And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a, 13). These are the traits that Thyatira was commended for having because love exhibits the fullness of who God is because God is love. While Jesus commended Thyatira’s faith and perseverance, the greatest of these was love. Now, let’s take a look at someone who exhibited the opposite of love by their active rebellion against the Lord, which some in Thyatira were guilty of doing.
[1] E. J. Banks, "Thyatira in the Bible Encyclopedia - ISBE (Bible History Online)," last modified 2025, https://www.bible-history.com/isbe/t/thyatira/.
[2] Bible Hub Editorial Staff, "Acts 16:14 Commentaries: A Woman Named Lydia, from the City of Thyatira, a Seller of Purple Fabrics, a Worshiper of God, Was Listening; and the Lord Opened Her Heart to Respond to the Things Spoken by Paul," Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages, last modified 2025, https://biblehub.com/commentaries/acts/16-14.htm.
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