Revelation 3:15 (LSB)

Passage

‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot.

Nearby Context

Revelation 3:13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

Revelation 3:14 “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: This is what the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God, says:

Revelation 3:15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot.

Revelation 3:16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.

Revelation 3:17 Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and pitiable and poor and blind and naked.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "deeds", "neither", "cold", and "wish". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "deeds" and "neither", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "And to the angel of the church..." into verse 16's "So because you are lukewarm and neither...", so "deeds" and "neither" belong inside that flow. In Revelation context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "deeds" and "neither" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.