Revelation Chapter Two, Satan's Throne

Revelation 2:13 “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.

Pergamos appears to have been a residence for the throne of Satan. That is, his power base had been consolidated at Pergamos at the time. If this sounds strange, consider our Lord’s words to the seven Asiatic churches.

There was an angel charged with each of the churches mentioned. In the book of Daniel spiritual warfare is laid rather bare. There are the princes of Greece and Persia (Daniel 10:13, 20) who both appear to be wicked angels charged with the fortunes of that country’s government. These resisted the messenger God sent to speak with Daniel, and did keep him from accomplishing his task until Michael, Israel’s prince and guardian angel, arrived, Daniel 10:21.

Yes, Satan is called the prince of the power of the air, Ephesians 2:2. In that same verse Paul relates that Satan works as a spirit in the sons of disobedience. Like Jesus said of the unbelieving Jews in His time, they were children of the Devil since they fulfilled his will by their choices and actions, so too do the unsaved today when they rebel and reject the message of the gospel. They speak Satan’s language of proud contempt for Scripture, truth, and salvation. No, I do not believe this teaching advocates the ridiculous notion of territorial spirits, and that Christians may bind them in Jesus’ name or spiritually map the globe to look for locations where demons reign. This is extra-Biblical and honestly unbiblical. No mention of these processes occurred in the New Testament. Jesus and the apostles confronted demons and drove them out when the demons were harassing/possessing people. We are not told to (or explained how to) engage in spiritual warfare with principalities that govern cities or countries. That seems to be combat reserved for angelic majesties, as was the case with Gabriel or Michael.

That ultimate victory is assured, as Michael is given the honor of driving Satan out of Heaven and God’s presence for all time toward the end of the tribulation, since his time will have grown short, Revelation 12:7-9. In the meantime his throne was set up in Pergamos. We have already seen that archaeologically there were temples to Zeus and Athena, not to mention Roman emperors. Much pagan worship was being had in Pergamos, and if the Revelation was written in 97 AD., and Antipas died in 92 AD., then they had been suffering persecution for their faith for five years at least. There may have been a wave of persecution that caused enough ill will toward Christians that Antipas was killed because of it. Church tradition (not Scripture) states that Antipas was killed by order of Domitian, who had him roasted alive in a brazen bowl.

Satan’s power was, and is, immense. He is the god of this world, 2 Corinthians 4:4. The NKJV renders the word “world,” as, “age.” The idea behind the term implies that Satan does not govern the world; that is something only God is capable of. Rather, Satan is the rebellious spirit that energizes the will of the unsaved. In this age or era or dispensation he is their god; they serve him either knowingly or unknowingly since by their constant rejection of Christ they prove themselves loyal devotees. This is the place we all begin in, being blinded by the god of this world and kept in service to him. His alternative is never Hell; that would be utterly foolish. His offer is self and present satisfaction wherever it may be found. In this way the distinct relevance of good and evil or right and wrong erode or mutate as people pursue their passions. The pursuit of passion then begins to rewrite the course of right and wrong as feeling replaces truth. How can something that feels this right be wrong? Feelings don’t dictate objective truth or reality. Feelings can reinforce conviction, but conviction can only honestly be arrived at by the examination of truth and its plausibility.

Antipas was martyred, we are told, where Satan dwells. His hold in this place was great. To that end Jesus our Lord tells the church that He is very aware of where they dwell, and the works they still perform despite all of this. They still perform works and refuse to deny the Lord’s name even when persecution became an ugly reality. Antipas became a poster child of what following Christ could cost them, should they persevere. And God bless these amazing men and women, they persevered. They kept the faith and were not ashamed to be associated with the name of Jesus Christ. “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels,” Luke 9:26.