Thyatira

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Seven Church Ages: Introduction • Ephesus • Smyrna • Pergamos • Thyatira • Sardis • Philadelphia • Laodicea • CAB • Last Messenger?

Messengers: Paul • Irenaeus • Martin • Columba • Martin Luther • John Wesley • William Branham??

Thyatira (Greek: "odour of affliction", or "dominating female") was the fourth city mentioned in the Book of Revelation to receive a message from Jesus Christ. Thyatira was located in Asia Minor, on the borders of Lydia and Mysia, and is now the city of Akhisar (meaning "white castle") in the Province of Manisa, Turkey. It is located 67 km/42 miles inland from the Aegean Sea and is known today for its olive, olive oil, and tobacco production.

A woman named Lydia, converted by Paul in Philippi, was a dealer in purple cloth from Thyatira (Acts 16:11–15).

History

There is archeological evidence to suggest an early Hittite occupation of Thyatira. The Persian occupation took place around 500 BC, and around 300 BC Thyatira was conquered by Alexander the Great. Thyatira was later captured by the Seleucids until the Roman Era, which started at around 80 BC. Although an important city in its own right, at times Thyatira protected Sardis (59 km/37 miles to the south) from Pergamum (75 km/47 miles to the northwest), and at other times it was controlled by the rulers of Pergamum to protect the southeastern approach to their city.

It is known that the Roman Emperor Caesar visited Thyateira in 48 BC. Following a major earthquake in 20 BC, a delegation from Thyateira travelled to Roman Senate in search of aid for towns in ruins. Another Roman Emperor, Caracalla, also visited Thyateira in 214 AD, and announced the town as a regional and administrative center with the power of adjudication. The Catholic Saint Epiphanius relays that at the beginning of the third century, almost all Thyatira was Christian (Contra haer., LI, 33). In 366, a battle fought near Thyateira saw the army of Roman emperor Valens defeat the Roman usurper Procopius.

Thyateira went under Arabic rule for some period in 700 AD, and witnessed many battles between Turks and Crusaders in the following years.

Artifacts

Thyatira was one of the first cities to use money. Since there is limited excavation of historic sites in the city, much of the knowledge of Thyatira comes from the images depicted on these coins. From these images, it is evident that guilds of bakers, bronze smiths, wool workers, potters, linen weavers and tanners were active in the city. These coins also depict the following images:

• Baskets of fruit
• Serpents
• A double-sided battle axe
• Apollo and Artemis together
• Cybele, possibly expressing the matriarchal nature of the Lydian society.
• Images of Roman emperors and local governors,
• Sports,
• Festivals, and
• Some coins indicate an economical alliance between Thyatira, Smyrna (İzmir) and Pergamos (Bergama).

The Greek gods on these coins indicate the activities that were sacred or common in Thyatira. A summary of these gods and their worship is included below:

Cybele's was the mother of Apollo and Artemis, and her most ecstatic followers were males who ritually castrated themselves, after which they were given women's clothing and assumed "female" identities (referred to by the third century commentator Callimachus in the feminine Gallai). Her priestesses led the people in immoral ceremonies with wild music, drumming, dancing and drink.

Artemis was Apollo's twin sister. Artemis was the moon godess, the patron of hunters, and godess of fertility. In Rome Artemis was known as Diana. Artemis was also known as the perpetual virgin, and was older than Apollo by a day.

Apollo was depicted as a beardless youth, and his name means "to redeem, to purify, ever shooting, assembly, and fold" and he was known as the sun god, the god of flocks, politics, medicine, music, poetry, archery, and plague. Priestesses acted as oracles of Apollo, and sat on a sacrificial tripod while prophecying (after inhaling some substance). A laurel branch would rest on the tripod during their absence. Apollo was often associated with order and moderation, but had numerous relationships with immortal and mortal women (and men).

Guilds in Greece and Rome were actually religious confraternities that linked a trade with pagan worship. In Ephesus, Paul was confronted by silver smiths crying 'Great is Diana of the Ephesians'. Similarly, acceptance into the business community was often contingent on joining a guild, and therefore joining in worship of a pagan deity.

Historical accuracy in the Church Age Book

1. The Timeline Clash (AD 606–1520 vs. 521–597 AD)

William Branham claimed that God gave him the exact dates and timelines of the Seven Church Ages by divine revelation. He assigned the Thyatirean Church Age to the period between AD 606 and AD 1520. Under his "Pauline key," he chose Columba of Iona as the star-messenger to this age.

• The Audit: There is a massive, irreconcilable chronological conflict here. Saint Columba lived from 521 AD to 597 AD. This means that Columba was already dead and in his grave for nine years before his own allotted Church Age even started! He spent his entire life, ministry, and death before the Thyatirean Age.
• The Source of the Error: This "revelation" was actually a direct copy. Branham plagiarized these dates verbatim from page 24 of Clarence Larkin’s 1919 book, The Book of Revelation. By copying Larkin’s arbitrary dispensational chart, Branham trapped himself in a historical anachronism, completely unaware of the timeline clash.

2. The Monasticism Misrepresentation

Branham described Columba’s ministry as "unorganized," claiming he set up independent "Gospel-centered towns" and "Bible schools" that stood apart from Rome's hierarchy.

• The Audit: Columba didn't set up modern "Bible schools" or "Gospel-centered towns." He was a tonsured monk who founded monasteries under a strict, highly organized monastic rule. Monasticism is one of the most structured and disciplined systems in Christian history, requiring absolute obedience to monastic superiors.
• The Source of the Error: Branham plagiarized this dramatic "unorganized" description almost verbatim from Rachel C. Hazeltine’s 1958 book, How Did It Happen!. Hazeltine openly admitted her book was written "by deduction"—meaning she fabricated historical events to fit her theological ideas.

3. The Gentile Prophet Contradiction

In his sermon The Seventh Seal, Branham declared:

"when the Gentiles came in, into the inheritance of God... there never has been on the pages of history, a Gentile prophet... Why? Exactly, it would be contrary to the Word."

• The Audit: This is a classic Self-Defeating Argument. In An Exposition of the Seven Church Ages, Branham spent paragraphs describing Columba—a Gentile, Irish Celt—as a mighty prophet-messenger whose ministry was characterized by supernatural signs, prophecies, and the Pillar of Fire. If Columba was a Gentile prophet-messenger, then Branham’s absolute rule that "there never has been a Gentile prophet" is false. If his rule is true, then Columba was not a prophet, and Branham was not honest in his description of Columba.

4. The Trinitarian Messenger Dilemma'

Branham asserted that the true vine of believers must have perfect doctrine and that the doctrine of the Trinity is "of the devil" and a "Satanic heresy".

• The Audit: Columba and the Celtic Church were devoutly Trinitarian, baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If Trinitarianism is a Satanic heresy, then God’s chosen "messenger of the hour" for the Thyatirean Age was preaching a Satanic doctrine. If the messenger was preaching a Satanic doctrine, then the Bride of that age had to believe a Satanic heresy to be saved. The entire dispensational model of "messenger-led salvation" collapses.

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Conclusion

When we take away the emotional delivery and the absolute certainty of the pulpit, the logic collapses. A prophet's message cannot be built on plagiarized charts, historical fabrications, and deep logical contradictions. Loving God with your mind is not a sin; it is a direct command from Jesus Christ Himself.

I understand how painful it is to face these facts. It was painful to realize that the prophet I revered was committing basic, textbook errors in reasoning, copying unreliable Pentecostal fables, and plagiarizing the eschatological timelines of other authors. But if we are to be honest with ourselves, we must place our loyalty in the Truth, not in a man. Accuracy always beats comfortable illusions.

References

• City of Ankhisar website [1]
• This information is based on material from Wikipedia. As a result, this article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License which governs this website as well.

Links to other articles in the series

This article is one in a series of studies on the Seven Church Ages - you are currently on the topic that is in bold:

• Introduction
• Ephesus
• Smyrna
• Pergamos
• Thyatira
• Sardis
• Philadelphia
• Laodicea
• CAB
• Last Messenger?

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