I was reading a commentary yesterday by William Barclay on Revelation 3: 1-6, The Letter to Sardis. Here is what he had to say, back in 1959:
So, then, Sardis fell to Cyrus, because its defenders thought it too strong to need a guard. There were a few futile attempts at rebellion; but Cyrus followed a deliberate policy. He forbade any Sardinian to possess any weapon of war. He ordered them to wear tunics and buskins, that is, actor's boots, instead of sandals. He ordered the Sardinians to teach their sons lyre-playing, the song and the dance, and retail trading. Sardis had been flabby already, but the last vestige of spirit was banished from its people, and it became the city of the degeneration.
I was reading a commentary yesterday by William Barclay on Revelation 3: 1-6, The Letter to Sardis. Here is what he had to say, back in 1959:
So, then, Sardis fell to Cyrus, because its defenders thought it too strong to need a guard. There were a few futile attempts at rebellion; but Cyrus followed a deliberate policy. He forbade any Sardinian to possess any weapon of war. He ordered them to wear tunics and buskins, that is, actor's boots, instead of sandals. He ordered the Sardinians to teach their sons lyre-playing, the song and the dance, and retail trading. Sardis had been flabby already, but the last vestige of spirit was banished from its people, and it became the city of the degeneration.
There, but for the grace of God, go we.