Abstract
The Letters to the Seven Churches in the Book of Revelation follow a fixed sevenfold literary pattern. The single form elements are developed in view of the special situation of each of the seven churches but, at the same time, aim to create linkages with the main body of the book. In addition, referencing between form elements within one and the same letter often help to construe ambiguous metaphors. While the seven letters all together build a unit, this unit falls into two groups: the letter to Thyatira closes the first section, the letter to Laodicea closes the second one, with the letter to Sardis serving as a hinge between the two groups. The literary and the text-pragmatic purpose of the seven letters are well combined. In the second group, the linkages serving as a connection with the rest of the book make an increasing use of motives that describe the final victory at the end of the Book of Revelation. In this way, the author tries to focus the reader's attention on this eagerly awaited future.
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