The Letter to Thyatira

The Letter to Thyatira
Revelation 2.18-29

Some cities are known by their industrial products. The city near where I grew up, Newcastle in the north-east of England, was famous for two hundred years as one of the chief suppliers of coal to the country, and to many places abroad. The phrase ‘carrying coals to Newcastle’ has become a proverbial way of referring to someone taking something to people who have quite enough of it already – a bit like ‘selling sand to the Saudis’, or ‘selling ice to the Eskimos’ (yes, I know: we might want to say ‘Inuit’ instead of ‘Eskimo’, which some (not all) find offensive). Sadly, Newcastle exports hardly any coal now, though there is still plenty underground in the region. We await a change of government policy which would allow the area once again to exploit one of its most obvious assets. Perhaps the proverb will continue until the reality once again catches up, and Newcastle will again be known for the trade in its celebrated local product...

Taken from Revelation for Everyone – by Tom Wright