5. Sardis (Rev. 3:1) lay 30 miles south of Thyatira, between the river Hermus and Mount Tmolus. It was the capital of Crœsus, the wealthy king of Lydia, whose empire was overthrown by Cyrus the Great. After the time of Alexander it belonged to the kingdom of Pergamos, until its absorption into the Roman empire. It was a place of extensive commerce, which led to prosperity, and the worldliness of the Christian church, rebuked in the message of the Revelation. It is now a miasmatic region, with scarcely an inhabitant, and bears the name Sert Kalessi.
6. Philadelphia (Rev. 3:7) was about 25 miles southeast of Sardis, on the river Cogamus, a branch of the Hermus. It was built and named by Attalus Philadelphus, king of Pergamos, and was the centre of a rich farming region, which has kept it inhabited through all the vicissitudes of the centuries. It was destroyed by an earthquake A.D. 17, but rebuilt. Its population is now about 10,000, and its modern name is Allah Shehr, "city of God."
7. Laodicea (Rev. 3:14) was the capital of Phrygia, and was 50 or 60 miles from Philadelphia, according to route. It was on the bank of the Lycus, near Hierapolis and Colosse. Its ancient name was Diospolis, but was changed by the Syrian king, Seleucus II., in honor of his wife, Laodice. In A.D. 62 it was destroyed by an earthquake; but its people were sufficiently rich to decline the aid of the Romans in rebuilding their city. Its worldly prosperity was reflected in its church, which received the sharpest rebukes of the Revelator. The Mohammedans destroyed the city, which is now a mass of ruins, surrounding a village called Eski-hissar.
It will be noticed, that, in the order of the Revelation, the Seven Churches are arranged in a circuit, as one would find them, starting from Ephesus, and traveling north to Smyrna and Pergamus, then southeast to Thyatira, Sardis and Philadelphia, until the southern and eastern limit is reached at Laodicea.
OUTLINE FOR REVIEW.
I. Let the teacher draw the outlines of the coast of both Europe and Asia, and call attention to the lands as already noticed under other maps. Then locate and name the principal Islands, especially those referred to in Paul's voyage to Palestine (map on [page 122]), and Patmos.
II. Explain the four meanings of the name Asia, as used by the ancients.
III. Locate and name the Seven Churches, as given in Revelation. Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea.