Berean Bible Study
The Seven Letters to the Seven Churches
Ephesus
The Loveless Church
Rev 2:1"To the angel of the church of Ephesus write,
'These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands: 2 "I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; 3 and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary. 4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place — unless you repent. 6 But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
7 "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God."'
The history of Ephesus
Here are some of the places that the following history comes from:
http://ancienthistory.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=ancienthistory&cdn=education&tm=29&f=10&su=p897.3.336.ip_&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.abrock.com/Greece-Turkey/ephesus.html
http://www.padfield.com/2000/ephesus.html
"Ephesus was the Gateway of Asia. One of its distinctions, laid down by statute, was that when the Roman proconsul came to take up office as governor of Asia, he must disembark at Ephesus and enter his province there. For all the travelers and the trade, from the Cayster and the Maeander Valleys, from Galatia, from the Euphrates and from Mesopotamia, Ephesus was the highway to Rome. In later times, when the Christians were brought from Asia to be flung to the lions in the arena in Rome, Ignatius called Ephesus the Highway of the Martyrs." (William Barclay, The Revelation Of John, Vol. 1, p. 58).
The main street of the city was the Arcadian Way which led from the harbor to the theater. The street was over 100 feet wide and paved with marble slabs. The street was often used for parades and ceremonies, and was flanked on either side by rows of columns 50 feet deep. The street was named in honor of the emperor Arcadius (A.D. 383-
408) who enlarged and restored it. At night the street was lit by lanterns.
The great theater at Ephesus gives us some idea of the elegance of the ancient city in the time of Paul. The construction began during the reign of Claudies (A.D. 41-54) and was completed during the reign of Trajan (A.D. 98-117). This massive structure measured 495 feet in diameter and seated an estimated 25,000 people. The great uproar over Diana of the Ephesians took place here (Acts 19).
The Library of Celsus built in A.D. 135 by Julius Aguila in memory of his father, Celsus, who was a Roman senator and governor-general of the province of Asia. Here thousands of parchments and papyri were stored, protected from dampness and worms by a double wall. Estimates of the number of rolls that could be stored in the library vary from 9,500 to 12,000. Celsus was a lover of books and was given the honor of being buried, not only within the city, but in the vault of his own library among his books. On the first floor of its façade there stood four female statues representing wisdom, fortune, knowledge, and virtue.
Another important street was Curetes Street, which derived its name from the Curetes (priests), who guarded the sacred fire of the hestia (hearth) in the prytaneion. The Curetes were a college of priests attached to the service of Artemis. Many inscriptions and reliefs may be seen along the street, including a relief representing Nike, the goddess of victory, with a wreath in her left hand and a spike in the right. The most beautiful building on Curetes Street is the Temple of Hadrian (A.D. 117-138). The Fountain of Trajan (A.D. 98-117) is located on the northern end of the street -- it was dedicated to the Emperor Trajan at the end of the first century.
Some other history links:
http://www.padfield.com/acrobat/history/ephesus.pdf
http://www.anzguesthouse.com/turkey/ephesus/
Around 800 B.C., Mother Goddess worship was prevalent in the area we now call Turkey. The Ephesus Goddess Artemis, sometimes called Diana, is not the same figure as the Artemis worshiped in Greece. The Greek Artemis is the goddess of the hunt. The Ephesus Artemis was a goddess of fertility and was often pictured as draped with eggs, or multiple breasts, symbols of fertility, from her waist to her shoulders. (Lovely image)
http://www.unmuseum.org/ephesus.htm
That earliest temple contained a sacred stone, probably a meteorite, that had "fallen from Jupiter." The shrine was destroyed and rebuilt several times over the next few hundred years. By 600 B.C., the city of Ephesus had become a major port of trade and an architect named Chersiphron was engaged to build a new large temple. He designed it with high stone columns. Concerned that carts carrying the columns might get mired in the swampy ground around the site, Chersiphron laid the columns on their sides and had them rolled to where they would be erected.
This temple didn't last long. In 550 B.C. King Croesus of Lydia conquered Ephesus and the other Greek cities of Asia Minor. During the fighting, the temple was destroyed. Croesus proved himself a gracious winner, though, by contributing generously to the building of a new temple.
This was next to the last of the great temples to Artemis in Ephesus and it dwarfed those that had come before. The architect is thought to be a man named Theodorus. Theodorus's temple was 300 feet in length and 150 feet wide with an area four times the size of the temple before it. More than one hundred stone columns supported a massive roof. The new temple was the pride of Ephesus until 356 B.C. when a tragedy, by name of Herostratus, struck.
Herostratus was a young Ephesian who would stop at no cost to have his name go down in history. He managed this by burning the temple to the ground. The citizens of Ephesus were so appalled at this act they issued a decree that anyone who spoke of Herostratus would be put to death.
Shortly after this horrible deed, a new temple was commissioned. The architect was Scopas of Paros, one of the most famous sculptors of his day. Ephesus was one of the greatest cities in Asia Minor at this point and no expense was spared in the construction. According to Pliny the Elder, a Roman historian, the temple was a "wonderful monument of Grecian magnificence, and one that merits our genuine admiration."
The temple was built in the same marshy place as before. To prepare the ground, Pliny recorded that "layers of trodden charcoal were placed beneath, with fleeces covered with wool upon the top of them."
The building is thought to be the first completely constructed with marble and one of its must unusual features were 36 columns whose lower portions were carved with figures in high-relief (left). The temple also housed many works of art including four bronze statues of Amazon women.
Pliny recorded the length of this new temple at 425 feet and the width at 225 feet. Some 127 columns, 60 feet in height, supported the roof. In comparison the Parthenon, the remains of which stand on the acropolis in Athens today, was only 230 feet long, 100 feet wide and had 58 columns.
According to Pliny, construction took 120 years, though some experts suspect it may have only taken half that time. We do know that when Alexander the Great came to Ephesus in 333 B.C., the temple was still under construction. He offered to finance the completion of the temple if the city would credit him as the builder. The city fathers didn't want Alexander's name carved on the temple, but didn't want to tell him that. They finally gave the tactful response: "It is not fitting that one god should build a temple for another god" and Alexander didn't press the matter.
OK, so the first Temple of Artemis is built on the coastline of the Aegean Sea. Within a couple hundred years, Ephesus is a major port city. In 550 B.C. King Croesus (the one famous for being so rich) of Lydia conquered Ephesus. Then it was conquered by the Persians in 541 B.C. and became part of the Persian Empire. In 334 B.C., Alexander the Great conquered it and it became part of the Greek Empire. The Temple of Artemis was still being built when Ephesus was conquered by Alexander. It was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Ephesus itself continued to grow and became one of the most important cities of the world. When Alexander died, his general, Lysimachus, inherited it.
When it was conquered by the Romans, Ephesus was one of the largest cities of that time, and became of the four most important cities of the Roman Empire. The others were Rome (of course), Antioch (also in Turkey, near the Syrian border on the Mediterranean coast — called Antakya today) and Alexandria (in Egypt at the edge of the Nile delta).
By 100 A.D., or about in John the Apostle’s day, Ephesus had 400,000 to 500,000 people. It was the center of Goddess Worship – Artemis – for the entire world. The Temple of Artemis defined Ephesus.
This was the city that Paul came to on his second missionary journey:
Acts 16:6 Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia.
You read that and think it was forever. No – the Holy Spirit just wanted him to go Macedonia (Greece, more or less) first.
Acts 18:18 So Paul still remained a good while
(in Corinth, this is). Then he took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him. He had his hair cut off at Cenchrea, for he had taken a vow. 19 And he came to Ephesus, and left them there; but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20 When they asked him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent, 21 but took leave of them, saying,"I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem; but I will return again to you, God willing." And he sailed from Ephesus.
Ephesus is part of what the Bible calls Asia, or what we would call Asia Minor. So, somewhere around 50 A.D., Paul is preaching at Ephesus to the Jews. He stays a short time and then leaves. Aquila and Priscilla apparently stay.
Acts 18:24 Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. 25 This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26 So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. 27 And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; 28 for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
Acts 19:1 And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples 2 he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?"
So they said to him,"We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit."
3 And he said to them, "Into what then were you baptized?"
So they said,"Into John's baptism."
4 Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus."
5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. 7 Now the men were about twelve in all.
8 And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God. 9 But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. 10 And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.
The School of Tyrannus was apparently a lecture hall, where there was public teaching and discussion, such as the Greeks loved. Tyrannus, whoever he was, welcomed Paul and let him speak there for two years. Now, remember, this is a huge city – big even by our standards, and it is the very center of Goddess worship for the world. Yet, in this pagan city, Paul boldly preached, and the word spread, until the Gospel had been heard throughout Asia Minor.
Miracles Glorify Christ
Acts 19:11 Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, 12 so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. 13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches." 14 Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.
15 And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?"
16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. 17 This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. 18 And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. 19 Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20 So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.
The Riot at Ephesus
Acts 19:21 When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, "After I have been there, I must also see Rome." 22 So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus, but he himself stayed in Asia for a time.
23 And about that time there arose a great commotion about the Way. 24 For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen. 25 He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: "Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade. 26 Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands. 27 So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship."
28 Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians!" 29 So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one accord, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul's travel companions. 30 And when Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not allow him. 31 Then some of the officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater. 32 Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander motioned with his hand, and wanted to make his defense to the people. 34 But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians!"
OK, get the picture here. This huge city, dedicated to Artemis, has been affected enough by Paul and the Gospel that its livelihood is actually threatened? Wow. So, this guy, Demetrius, stirs up the crowd, so that they rush into this enormous theater that can hold 25,000 people. And then, this crowd starts chanting "Great is Diana of the Ephesians!" for two full hours. They were just a little upset. From this one guy and his teaching, who had turned their world upside down.
Acts 19:35 And when the city clerk had quieted the crowd, he said: "Men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple guardian of the great goddess Diana, and of the image which fell down from Zeus? 36 Therefore, since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rashly. 37 For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess. 38 Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a case against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another. 39 But if you have any other inquiry to make, it shall be determined in the lawful assembly. 40 For we are in danger of being called in question for today's uproar, there being no reason which we may give to account for this disorderly gathering." 41 And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.
Acts 20:1 After the uproar had ceased, Paul called the disciples to himself, embraced them, and departed to go to Macedonia.
From there, he went to Greece, and later to Troas. (Where Eutychus fell out of the window)
Acts 20:13 Then we went ahead to the ship and sailed to Assos, there intending to take Paul on board; for so he had given orders, intending himself to go on foot. 14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene. 15 We sailed from there, and the next day came opposite Chios. The following day we arrived at Samos and stayed at Trogyllium. The next day we came to Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hurrying to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the Day of Pentecost.
The Ephesian Elders Exhorted
Acts 20:17 From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18 And when they had come to him, he said to them: "You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; 20 how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21 testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. 24 But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
25 "And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more. 26 Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. 27 For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God. 28 Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. 31 Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.
32 "So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel. 34 Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. 35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"
36 And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. 37 Then they all wept freely, and fell on Paul's neck and kissed him, 38 sorrowing most of all for the words which he spoke, that they would see his face no more. And they accompanied him to the ship.
Now, after Paul’s time in Ephesus, the Apostle John is also there, and by John’s day, Emperor worship is also required. Emperor Domitian (81-96 CE the one who exiled John to Patmos) is credited by some as having erected a great altar and temple to himself on Curetes Street, with a statue more than 20 feet high.
In 263 A.D., Ephesus was destroyed by Goths. It was rebuilt and became the second most important city in the Byzantine Empire through the 400’s and 500’s A.D.
In 700 and again in 716, the Arabs destroyed the city. At about the same time, earthquakes changed the flow of the Cayster River, and the harbor filled with silt. The ruins at Ephesus are now miles from the coast. Without the harbor, and with the destruction of many of its buildings, Ephesus quickly lost population. By the time the Turks conquered the area in 1090, Ephesus was just a small village occupying the city ruins and was completely abandoned in the 1400’s.
Today, many of the ruins have been restored and Ephesus has become a popular tourist destination, especially for Christians, who stay in nearby Selcuk. (Selcuk is not modern-day Ephesus. It is a small town, several miles away. Ephesus no longer exists, except as ruins.
We’ll go through each of these again, but here are the current states of the other cities:
İzmir, historically Smyrna, is Turkey's third most populous city and the country's largest port after Istanbul. Has stayed important throughout the entire time. There is still a Christian congregation there.
Pergamum, is modern day Bergama, although Bergama, at 55,000 is much smaller than Pergamum had been with 180,000.
Thyatira is Akhisar or Akisar, or Ak-Hissar is a fair sized village with 20,000 people or so.
Sardis is just ruins – No modern city there. In fact, it was not even re-discovered until 1958.
Philadelphia today is known as Alasehir, a city of about 40,000. While it is mostly Muslim, there are about 2500 Greek Orthodox Christians there today.
Laodicea is just ruins, and even those aren’t in good shape.