Revelation 2:6: But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

The Ephesian saints left Christ as their first love,¹ but he still commends them because, at least, they hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans (Nic-o-lay-UH-tons).² The Nicolaitans were members of the ancient church³ who patterned their religious lives after the lewd and immoral worship practices⁴ of the Gnostics.⁵ Modern revelation implies that Nicolaitan members also placed personal gain over their duties in the church.⁶ According to Irenaeus (Ear-ee-NAY-oos), John returned to Ephesus after his release from Patmos where he wrote his gospel to specifically oppose the Gnostic-based doctrines (deeds)⁷ of the Nicolaitans.⁸

Irenaeus was a historian and the bishop of Lyons, France in the second century AD.⁹ Based on his writings,¹⁰ many early historians believed the Nicolaitan movement began with a proselyte leader¹¹ of Christ's church from Antioch named Nicolas.¹² He had a beautiful wife that he supposedly shared with others to avoid an unholy jealousy within the church.¹³ However, Nicolas was a common name in that day,¹⁴ which leads to uncertainty about the source of the Nicolaitan name.¹⁵ The name could also be a symbolic derivation from the licentious worship practices of Balaam,¹⁶ whose Hebrew name was the Greek equivalent of Nicolas.¹⁷ Whatever may be the origin of the Nicolaitan name, there is no doubt that the immoral deeds of the Nicolaitans were rampant in all congregations of Christ's church by the end of the first century.¹⁸

The Nicolaitan doctrine introduced a false freedom to engage in self-expression and self-indulgence¹⁹ through idol worship,²⁰ including the immorality associated with pagan feasts and rituals.²¹ The doctrine encouraged licentious behavior²² based on the perverted premise that their immoral conduct would give real purpose and meaning to God's saving grace.²³ Such Nicolaitan nonsense²⁴ gave Christ ample reason to emphatically say: I also hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans.²⁵ Christ expressed his unequivocal hatred for their sins, but he expressed no hatred for the sinners.²⁶