Revelation 1:11
saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — A loud voice like a trumpet, heard behind John on the Lord's day while he was in the Spirit (v. 10), commands him to write what he sees and send it to seven named churches in Asia Minor.
The thread — The command to inscribe a divine message for a specific audience recurs in Jeremiah 30:2 and Habakkuk 2:2. Laodicea, the last of the seven, also appears in Colossians 4:15.
Why it lands — The verse reduces revelation to a task: put it in writing, address it to named places, send it. It asks the reader to treat what they have received as something that must be transmitted, not merely held.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 30:2 “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you.
- Habakkuk 2:2 Then the LORD answered me: “Write down this vision and clearly inscribe it on tablets, so that a herald may run with it.
- Colossians 4:15 Greet the brothers in Laodicea, as well as Nympha and the church that meets at her house.
- Revelation 3:1 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of the One who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation for being alive, yet you are dead.
- Isaiah 30:8 Go now, write it on a tablet in their presence and inscribe it on a scroll; it will be for the days to come, a witness forever and ever.
- Ephesians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
- Revelation 1:4 John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven spirits before His throne,
- Revelation 2:8 To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of the First and the Last, who died and returned to life.
- Revelation 2:12 To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of the One who holds the sharp, double-edged sword.
- Revelation 2:18 To the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like a blazing fire and whose feet are like polished bronze.