Revelation 2:13 mentions the martyrdom of Antipas at Pergamum – the city where “Satan dwells”. This mention is sometimes employed to date Revelation to the reign of Domitian (81-96 AD) as Antipas is said to have been ordained as bishop by John the Apostle and is supposed to have been martyred in ca.92 AD. However, two problems exist with this interpretation.
Firstly, historical evidence falls short of confirming any organized program of Christian persecution under Domitian’s reign (in contrast we have strong evidence of Christian persecution under Nero). Secondly, the martyrdom of Antipas is not recorded in respectable historical sources but is only known from the Eastern Orthodox Church where it appears for the first time in the work of Symeon the Metaphrast,[1] who compiled a collection of saint’s lives in around 1,000 AD. His mention of the martyrdom of “Saint” Antipas should therefore be regarded as orthodox fiction – a legendary story, unknown to the early Fathers.
The mention of a single martyr is neither proof of nor evidence for any particular persecution without corroboration. Large numbers of Christians were martyred by Nero in Rome but not in the Asian provinces. A single martyr does not necessarily attest to a wide-spread phenomenon and it could be an exception local to Pergamum before or after the persecution of Nero (and, for that matter, whatever happened under Domitian). As we cannot be certain of the reasons behind the death of Antipas it has no evidential value for dating Revelation.
[1] F. Wheeler, “Antipas” ABD 1:272.
1st Peter: Some New Testament Allusions