City of Laodicea illustration

Laodicea is the last of the seven churches listed in Revelation 1-3. Positioned between Hierapolis (modern-day Pamukkale) and Colossae, Laodicea was a profitable city on a major road in Asia Minor. Laodicea was famous for its wealth, expensive clothing and eye salve (note Revelation 3:17-18). While Hierapolis had healing hot springs and Colossae had refreshing cool water, Laodicea suffered from “lukewarm” water that left severe calcium deposits in its aqueducts (note 3:14-16). In the order of letters, a courier traveling from Patmos would have come to Ephesus first, and Laodicea last.