Question 154: Who were the Nicolaitans?

Answer:

Though they are mentioned in Revelation 2:15 it is not positively known, but from the context it would appear that they were people who abused Paul's doctrine of believer’s liberty, which they turned into license. It is supposed that Jude 4 refers to them. They appear to have attended the heathen rites and shared in the abominations there practiced. Some suppose them to have been followers of Nicolas of Antioch, but if so, they falsely claimed that he taught such things. It is more probable that the name, if relating to a person at all, has been confused with some other Nicolas.