Calvary Bible Church Bible Study

The Book of the Revelation

LESSON 3:  THE LETTERS TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES. 2:1–3:22. (Part 2)

The Letter To The Church At Sardis

vrs     1                  Sardis is about twenty-seven miles due south of Thyatira. It was one of the oldest and greatest cities of western Asia. In ancient times it was a proud, wealthy city, the capital of the kingdom of Lydia. It had a history of many wars, and it was the city of the wealthy Croesus. The patron deity of the city was Cybele, whose form appeared on their coins. She was represented as half-human and was regularly associated with a pair of lions or single lion. The deity was supposed to have power to restore the dead. The city fell before Cyrus the Great of Persia in the sixth century B.C. In 17 A.D. the city suffered greatly from an earthquake. When John wrote this letter, the city was a city of the past.  Later, it was restored and continued to flourish until 1400–1403 A.D., when the Tartar (Mongol) Tamerlane swept over the area and destroyed everything. The city has never recovered from this desolation. Continue Reading Here