Revelation 2:12

Pergamos] RV 'Pergamum,' about 50 m. N. of Smyrna. Under the Roman empire it was resorted to by invalids, who attended for healing at the temple of Æsculapius. Until the 2nd cent. a.d. it was regarded as the capital of the province of Asia. Under Augustus a temple was built at Pergamum, probably 29 b.c., and dedicated to Rome and Augustus, and Pergamum became the centre of the imperial worship and 'Satan's throne.' 'It has continued to be a place of some consequence, preserving the ancient name Bergama, down to the present day' (HDB.).

Sword] As the centre of the worship of the emperor, Pergamum must have been the seat of authority, and the sword was the symbol of the highest order of authority. The message is that in the city in which the Roman proconsul has the power of life and death, Christ has power and authority greater than his (Ramsay).