What Does Revelation 3:4 Mean in the King James?
Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The “few names” are not merely a headcount: the nature carried in each name remains visible in an unstained garment.
THE MEANING
A few names remain in Sardis whose garments are unstained, and they walk with Jesus in white. Their number is small, yet the verse calls them worthy: what they wear accords with the way they walk.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
This undoes the idea that worth is measured by how many share your standing: the few are still worthy.
THE ROOT
ὄνομα
onoma
GROWS FROM
ὀνοματ-
onomat-
Name, naming, or designation; a name carries a person’s recognized identity.
The verse calls them “names,” making identity itself visible. A name carries nature: their garments are not a second identity but the visible surface of what remains true in them.
ALSO GROWS
onoma: name, identity
ὄνομα
The verse’s “few names” points beyond a headcount to the nature by which each person is known.
onomazō: to name, designate
ὀνομάζω
Naming makes identity recognizable; here the names are recognized by garments that remain unstained.
μολύνω
molynō
GROWS FROM
μολυν-
molyn-
To stain, soil, or defile.
“defiled” in this verse is molynō. English can make defilement sound like a mark only on fabric, but this word family also names defilement reaching flesh and spirit. The garment connects what is worn with the condition carried by the person.
ALSO GROWS
molynō: to stain, defile
μολύνω
This is the verb used of the garments in the verse, placing the emphasis on a stain that has not marked them.
molysmos: defilement, pollution
μολυσμός
This related noun appears in 2 Corinthians 7:1 for defilement of flesh and spirit, extending the image from clothing to the person.
THE PATTERN
The condition of a garment makes the bearer’s state visible, whether it is kept clean or washed white.
And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment.And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.THE THREAD
Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.The word rendered “filthiness” is a noun from the same Greek root as “defiled” here. Revelation places the stain on garments; this verse names defilement of flesh and spirit, showing how the clothing image can reach the condition carried by the whole person.
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