Wahyu 2:9

2:9 ‘I know the distress you are suffering ¹  and your poverty (but you are rich). I also know ²  the slander against you ³  by those who call themselves Jews and really are not, but are a synagogue ⁴  of Satan.

Wahyu 3:9

3:9 Listen! ⁵  I am going to make those people from the synagogue ⁶  of Satan – who say they are Jews yet ⁷  are not, but are lying – Look, I will make ⁸  them come and bow down ⁹  at your feet and acknowledge ¹⁰  that I have loved you.

[2:9]  ¹ tn Or “know your suffering.” This could refer to suffering or distress caused by persecution (see L&N 22.2).

[2:9]  ² tn Because of the length and complexity of this Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the phrase “I also know” to link this English sentence back to “I know” at the beginning of the verse.

[2:9]  ³ tn The words “against you” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

[2:9]  ⁴ sn A synagogue was a place for Jewish prayer and worship, with recognized leadership (e.g., Mt 4:23, Mk 1:21, Lk 4:15, Jn 6:59).

[3:9]  ⁵ tn Grk “behold” (L&N 91.13).

[3:9]  ⁶ sn See the note on synagogue in 2:9.

[3:9]  ⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast between what these people claimed and what they were.

[3:9]  ⁸ tn The verb here is ποιέω (poiew), but in this context it has virtually the same meaning as δίδωμι (didwmi) used at the beginning of the verse. Stylistic variation like this is typical of Johannine literature.

[3:9]  ⁹ tn The verb here is προσκυνήσουσιν (proskunhsousin), normally used to refer to worship.

[3:9]  ¹⁰ tn Or “and know,” “and recognize.”