Besides the promises that the victor shall eat from the hidden manna, it is said by the Spirit, “and I will give to him a white pebble.” To eat from the manna would be to rise from the dead; but when risen, what then? “I will give him a white pebble.” This implies a bless­ing superadded to resurrection of life.

In the English version it reads, “I will give him a white stone.” In

“The Manna which hath been concealed” is a form of speech to be understood by comprehending the signification, first, of “the Manna;” and secondly, of its concealment; the latter of which will be found in­timately connected with the gift of it to him that overcomes.

But, though the Star-Angel, or eldership, of the ecclesia in Pergamos in the general answered to Antipas, the Spirit’s faithful witness, “Yet,” said he, “I have against thee a few things, because thou hast there them holding fast the teaching of Balaam who taught Balak to cast a stum­bling block before the sons of Israel, to eat idol-sacrifices, and to forni­cate. So hast thou also them holding fast the teaching of the Nikolai- tans, which thing I detest.”

The Spirit says to the Star-Angel in Pergamos, “Thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, as in the days in which Antipas was my faithful witness, who was put to death with you where the Satan sojourns.” The Star-Angel was still faithful, and had been so in former days of

The Name and the Faith are terms comprehensive of the whole sub­ject.

After reminding the Angel-Star of the Ecclesia in Pergamos that they dwelt where the throne of the Satan then was, the Spirit tells them that one of their works he had observed was, that they held fast his Name. This was a great thing in the midst of paganism, and the semiheathenism of the apostasy, with all its sanctimonious pretensions on every side.

In the time of ‘‘the things which are” Pergamos was the place the Satan dwelt in. The reader can refresh his mind concerning the Satan by turning to a former page. The Satan in Pergamos, as elsewhere, was the Church Hierarchy claiming to be apostles and ambassadors of Jesus Christ, leading away disciples after them, and teaching perverse

Pergamos having been, as we have seen, the metropolis of the king­dom in whose territory the seven ecclesias were situated, was fitly se­lected by the Spirit as the place of the throne of the Satan. From the writing to the ecclesia there, it would appear that the clerical influ­ence was stronger there than in any other of the seven. They were Balaamites and Nikolaitans; teaching idolatrous practices, committing spiritual abomination, and Judaizers and Gnostics.

This writing affords additional proof that “Angel” is used in these letters as a noun of plurality.

TO THE ANGEL OF THE ECCLESIA IN PERGAMOS.