Revelation 2:10

2:10 Do not be afraid of the things you are about to suffer. The devil is about to have some of you thrown ¹  into prison so you may be tested, ²  and you will experience suffering ³  for ten days. Remain faithful even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown that is life itself. ⁴ 

Revelation 2:14

2:14 But I have a few things against you: You have some people there who follow the teaching of Balaam, ⁵  who instructed Balak to put a stumbling block ⁶  before the people ⁷  of Israel so they would eat food sacrificed to idols and commit sexual immorality. ⁸ 

Revelation 2:17

2:17 The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers, ⁹  I will give him some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white ¹⁰  stone, ¹¹  and on that stone will be written a new name that no one can understand ¹²  except the one who receives it.’

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¹ tn Grk “is about to throw some of you,” but the force is causative in context.

² tn Or “tempted.”

³ tn Or “experience persecution,” “will be in distress” (see L&N 22.2).

⁴ tn Grk “crown of life,” with the genitive “of life” (τῆς ζωῆς, th" zwh") functioning in apposition to “crown” (στέφανον, stefanon): “the crown that consists of life.”

⁵ sn See Num 22-24; 31:16.

⁶ tn That is, a cause for sinning. An alternate translation is “who instructed Balak to cause the people of Israel to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols…”

⁷ tn Grk “sons,” but the expression υἱοὶ ᾿Ισραήλ (Juioi Israhl) is an idiom for the people of Israel as an ethnic entity (see L&N 11.58).

⁸ tn Due to the actual events in the OT (Num 22-24; 31:16), πορνεῦσαι (porneusai) is taken to mean “sexual immorality.” BDAG 854 s.v. πορνεύω 1 states, “engage in illicit sex, to fornicate, to whore…W. φαγεῖν εἰδωλόθυτα ‘eat meat offered to idols’ Rv 2:14, 20.”

⁹ tn Or “who is victorious”; traditionally, “who overcomes.” The pendent dative is allowed to stand in the English translation because it is characteristic of the author’s style in Revelation.

¹⁰ tn Or “bright.” The Greek term λευκός (leukos) can refer either to the color white (traditional here) or to an object that is bright or shining, either from itself or from an outside source of illumination (L&N 14.50; 79.27).

¹¹ tn On the interpretation of the stone, L&N 2.27 states, “A number of different suggestions have been made as to the reference of ψῆφος in this context. Some scholars believe that the white ψῆφος indicates a vote of acquittal in court. Others contend that it is simply a magical amulet; still others, a token of Roman hospitality; and finally, some have suggested that it may represent a ticket to the gladiatorial games, that is to say, to martyrdom. The context, however, suggests clearly that this is something to be prized and a type of reward for those who have ‘won the victory.’”

¹² tn Or “know”; for the meaning “understand” see L&N 32.4.