{In Laodicea} (en Laodiki(8369)). Forty miles south-east of
Philadelphia and some forty miles east of Ephesus, the last of
the seven churches addressed with special messages, on the river
Lycus on the border of Phrygia, near Colossae and Hierapolis,
recipient of two letters by Paul ( Col 4:16 ), on the great
trade-route from Ephesus to the east and seat of large
manufacturing and banking operations (especially of woollen
carpets and clothing, Ramsay, _Cities and Bishoprics of Phrygia_,
p. 40ff.), centre of the worship of Asklepios and seat of a
medical school and also of a provincial court where Cicero lived
and wrote many of his letters, home of many Jews, called by
Ramsay (_op. cit._, p. 413) "the City of Compromise," the church
here founded apparently by Epaphras ( Col 1:7  4:12f. ), now a
deserted ruin, one of six cities with this name (meaning justice
of the people). No praise is bestowed on this church, but only
blame for its lukewarmness. {The Amen} (ho Am(886e)). Personal
(masculine article) name here alone, though in  Isa 65:16  we
have "the God of Amen" understood in the LXX as "the God of
truth" (	on theon ton al(8874)hinon). Here applied to Christ. See
 1:5  for ho martus ho pistos (the faithful witness) and  3:7 
for ho al(8874)hinos (the genuine), "whose testimony never falls
short of the truth" (Swete). {The beginning of the creation of
God} (h(8820)arch(8820)t(8873) ktise(9373) tou theou). Not the first of
creatures as the Arians held and Unitarians do now, but the
originating source of creation through whom God works ( Col
1:15,18 , a passage probably known to the Laodiceans,  Joh 1:3  Heb 1:2 , as is made clear by  1:18  2:8  3:21  5:13 ).