59 1 Thessalonians

1

IIII

35 1

I

10

11 12

1 THESSALONIANS

I' H

2Th 1:1-2 Ac 15:22 + ;

16:1 + 2 Th 1:3 Ph 1:3 5:8 1 Co 13; 13+ Rv 2:2 2 T il 2; 13 Ac 20: 18 I Co 2:4 2Col2: 12

AcI:8+

Ac 17: 1·9 2 Th 3:7+

3:3

Rm 14:17

Ga 5:22 2Th 1:4 R ml:8

Ac3: 19~­

Ga4:8 2:19-20:

4:16-17 ; 5:9

Mt3:7+

R m 2:5 r;

5:9

Ac 16:19-40 Ph 1:30

Ac 13:46 +

2 Co 3; 12

Ep 3:7 1 Tm 1;11

Jr 11;20

2 Co 4: 2 ; 5;9 Ga 1;10

RmI:9

In 5:41,44

1 Co 3:2 0.4:19

Rm9:3

0.2;20+

Address From Pau l, Silvanus a nd Timothy, to the Ch urch in Thessalonika which is in God the Father and the Lord Jes us Ch rist; wish ing yo u grace and peace ."

15

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Thanksgiving and congratulations We always mention you in our prayers and thank God for you all, -and co nstantly remember before God our Father how you have shown your fai th in actio n, wor ked for love and perseve red th roug h hope, in our Lord Jesus Christ. We know, bro thers, that God loves you and that you have been chosen, beca use when we bro ught the Good News" to you, it ca me to you not only as words, but as pow er and as the Holy Spirit and as utter conviction. And you observed the sor t of life we lived when we were with you, which was for your instructio n, -and you were led to become imita tors of us, and of the Lord; and it was with the joy of the Holy Spirit that you took to the gospel, in spite of the great opposition all ro und you. •This has ma de you the great example to all believers in Macedonia and Acha ia -s ince it was from you that the word of the Lord started to spr ead - and not only th ro ughout Macedonia and Achaia, for the news of you r faith in God has sp read everywhere . We do not need to tell ot her peo ple about it : -other peopl e tell us how we sta rted the work among you , how you br oke with ido latry when you were conve rted to God and becam e servants of the real, living God; -and how you are now wa iting for Jesus, his Son, who m he raised from the dead , to co me from heaven to save li S from the retribution which is coming. Paul's exam ple in Thessaloni ka Yo u know yours elves, my brothers, that our visit to you has no t prov ed ineffectual. We had, as you know, been given rough treatment and been grossly insulted at Philippi, and it was our God who gave us the courage to pro claim his G oo d News to you in the face of great oppositio n . •We hav e not taken to preaching because we are deluded, or immo ra l, or trying to deceive anyone ; -it was God who decided that we were fit to be entrusted with the Good News, and when we are speaking, we are not tryi ng to please men but God, who can read our inmo st thoughts. • You know very well, and we can swear it before God, that never at any time have our speeches been simply flattery, or a cover for try ing to get money ; nor have we ever looked for any special honou r fr om men, either from you or anybody else, 'when we could have imposed ourselves on you with full weight, as apostles of Christ." Ins tead, we were unassuming." Like a mo ther feedin g and looking after her own chil dren, 'we felt so devo ted and protective towards you, and had come to love

3:5

you so much, that we were eager to hand over to you not only the Good News but ou r whole lives as well. -Let me remind you, brothers, how hard we used to work, slaving night and day so as net to be a burden on anyone of you while we were proclaiming God's Good News to you .• You are witnesses, and so is God, that our treatment of you , since you became believers, has been impeccably right and fair. - You can remember how we treated everyone of you as a fat her treats his children, -teaching you what was right, encouraging you and appealing to you to live a life worthy of God, who is calling:' you to share the glory of his kingdom .

4:1 1 Ac 18:3 + 2 Th 3:7-9 Ac20:18 2 Co 4:4 1 C04:15 Phm 10 Ph 1:27 Mt4:17 -+

2 T m 2:10 I P 5:10

The faith and the patience of the- Thessalonians

TH E FIRST LETTER OF PA UL TO TH E CH URCH I N THES SALO NIKA R m 1:1 +

THE S SA LO NIANS

16

Anot her reaso n why we consta ntly thank G od for you is tha t as soon as you heard the message that we bro ught you as God's message, you accepted it for what it rea lly is, God's messaged and not some human thinking; and it is still- a living power among you who believe it. -For you, my brothers, have been like the churches of God in Christ Jesus which are in Judaea, in suffering the same treatment fro m your own countrymen as they have suffered from the Jews,! ·the people who put the Lord Jes us to death, and the prophets too. And now they have been persecuting us, and acti ng in a way that ca nnot please God and ma kes them the ene mies of the whole human race. •beca use they are hinderin g us from preac hing to the pagan s and trying to save them. T hey never stop tryi ng to fi nish ojf the sins they ha ve begun, but retributions is overta king them at last.

I Co 11:2 + ;

15:1

E.I:13 Ph 4:9

Rm I:I6

H ob 4:12

I Co 1:2+

2 T h 3:7 -;Mt 23:29-J7 A c 2:23-24 + IJ)

"'w Gn 15:16

2 M 6:14 M t 23:32

Pa ul's anxi ety 4

17

5 IN

I~ 20

I

9 10

4

5

2

3:10 Col 2: 1. 5

Timothy's mission to Thessalonika

1:10+ 1 Co 15:23+

3

When we co uld not bear the waiting any longer , we decided it would be best to be left without a companion at Athen s, a nd -sent our brother Timothy, who is God's helper" in spr eading the G ood News of Christ, to keep you firm and strong in the faith -and prevent any of you from being unsett led by the present troubles. As you know, these arc bound to come our way: -w hen we were with you, we warned you that we must expect to have perse cutions to bear, and that is what has happened now, as you have found out. -That is why, when I could not sta nd waiting any longe r, I sent to assur e myself of your faith : I was afra id

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4

6 7

who le new econ omy o f salvat ion . c. Lit. 'w ra th' . Vv. 9- 10 seem to Mlve an extremely co nd ense d sum ma ry of Pa ul' s cha racterts t!c -e rcc tama no n' . T he two ma in clement s o f t he G ood N ews as pre ached by Paul were ; his emp hasi s o n monotbelam, and th e p ro mine nce he gtves to th e: ret urn o f the risen Lord. d . Rm 1:1-4 ,2or: 1 Co 1:18.21 : Ga I :Jf; 3: 1 ; AI; 1-1.:15 · 17; 17:21·31. etc, 2 a. U I. ' beiu x a b le: to he with weighc as a pos tles of C hris c' : inrcm rcred morally . t his can mean chal Pa ul co u lJ hav e Ins rste d on h is own dla nit y a nd cree uee , o r tn at m a leria lly he co uld ha ve e xpe cted to ha ve bee n fell and "'CP I a t their expense, cf . 2:9: 2 T h 3:9 : 2 ('0 I I : q ,

b. Lit. 'babies" : var. ' gent le' ,

c. Var. 'calle d )'ou' , d. A brief s um mary of the apostolic crldhlon: the

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Rm I :W-11 2 T h 2:9 + E zk 16: 12; 23:42 Pr 16:31 I C o 9:25 + Ph 2:16

2Co 1:14 + AcI7:1<\16+ J CoJ:O 2C06:1

1:6

MI16:24;> Ac 14:22 Rm 8:36 2 Th 1:5 2Tm 3:12 Hob 10:32.3 6

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me saa ge is ~rsc 'received" 4 :1; 2 Th 3:6 ; 1 Co 15: 1; G . 1:9 ; Ph 4:9 ; Col 2:6, or 'heard' , Rm 10:17+;

b. Var . 'the Good New s of God',.or 'of our God', Ep 1:13 ; Ac IS:7. e tc. It then penet rates the mind or Th e Go od News is more than a pr oclamation. It Is the he art . Rm 10:8- 10. where If It Is welcomed, 1:6: 2

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A short time after we had been sepa rated from you-i n body but never in thoug ht. brothers-- we had an especially strong desire and long ing to see you face to face agai n, -a nd we tried hard to come and visit you ; I , Pau l, tr ied more than o nce, but Sata n prevented us. •What do you think is our pride and our joy? You arc ; and you will be the crown of which we shall be proudest in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he com es ; ' you a re our pride and our jo y.

1 a. A dd. ' (rom G od ou r F ather and th e Lord Jesu s C hr ist '. cf. 2 Th J:2.

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2 T h 2:10 ; 2 Co 11:4 : Ac 8:14, etc . Mk 4:20 . It proves th a t the hea re r ack now ledges that God ha s bee n sPeake Ina th ro u gh his rrussto nar v, 4: lf: 2 Co 3:5: 15:3 . e. Or ' h as bec o me' : G od ac ts throu gh h is messaae that ha s been we lcomed by the be liever. cr. 1:8 : 2 T h 3: 1. r. T he harsh to ne of vv. 15- 16 gives a good idea of how bitter th e a tmosphere was in Je ru sa lem. Mt 5:12; 21:33-46 ; 23:29-37 ; Ac 2:23 + . ow in g to the way Paul u PSC"1 rhe Jewish co mmu nity by preach in g to pagans v. 16; cr . Ac 13:5 + . Later on Pa u l was a ble to cake a more ba lanced altitude than he t akes he re . by frequent referen ces to t he spec ta t po sicion of God's chosen peop le , d. R m 9: 11: G a 4: 21-3 1. He tr ied ' har d to rec oncile convert paean with Jewish C hr tsttan , cr. 1 C o 16:1+ ; En 2: 11-22 . &. Lit , "th e w rat h'; ad d ' o f God' . J a . Om . 'who Is God's helper'. var. 'w ho Is God's

slave" or 'God', slave and our helPer'.

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1 THESSALO NIANS

35 2

353

th e Tempter> might have tried you too hard, and all our work might have been wasted.

2 T h 1:3; 2 :15 ·~

2 Co 7:7

2 Th -2:15

Rv 2:9-10 2:17

2 Th 2:16- 17 5:15 Rm 12:17 Ga 6:10 2 Th 1:3 T t 3:2 5:23 Z c 14:5 1 Co 1:8 +; 15:23 +

Paul thanks God for good reports of the Thessalonians However, Timothy is now back from you and he has given us good news of your faith and your love, telling us that you always remember us with pleasure and want to see us qu ite as much as we want to see you. -An d so, brothers, your faith has been a great comfort to us in the middle of our own troubles and sorrows; now we can breathe again, as you are still holding firm in the Lord.• How can we thank God enough for you, for all the joy we feel before our G od on your account? We are earnestly praying niglll and day to be ab le to see you face to face agai n and make up any shortcomings" in your faith. May Go d our Father himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, make it easy for us to come to you . •May the Lord be generous in increasing your love and ma ke you love one another and the who le human race" as muc h as we love you . -And may he so confirm your hearts in hol iness that you may be blameless in the sight of our God and Fa ther when o ur Lord Jesus Christ co mes with all his saints.'

4 5 6

9 10

11 II

2:13+ R m 12:1-2 I Co 11:2+ 5:18 "It 6:10 Ep 1:4 1 Co 6: 12-20 Jr 10:25 Ps 79 :6

D r 32:35

Ps 94:1-2

'In 17:19 Lk 10:16 Ez k 37: 14 2 T h 2:13 Is 54: 13 J r 31:33-34 In 6:45 ; 13:34 + 1 In 4:7 2 T h 1;3

2:9 Ac 18:3 + Ep 4:28 2 Th 3:6- 12 1 Co 5: 12 +

Finally, bro thers, we urge you and appeal to you in the Lord Jesus" to make 4 mo re an d mo re progress in the kind of life that you are meant to live: the life tha t G od wants, as you learnt from us, and as you are already living it. You b •

have not for gotten th e instructions we gave you on the aut hor ity of the Lo rd Jesus. Wha t G od wants is for you all to be holy.« He want s you to keep away from fornication, -a nd each one of you to know how to use the body tha t belongs to him« in a way that is holy and honourab le, -n ot giving way to selfish lust like the pagans who do not k now God. • He wants no body at all ever to sin by taki ng advantage of a brother in these matters ; th e Lo rd always pun ishes sins of tha t sort, as we to ld you before and assu red you .• We have been called by God to be holy, not to be immoral; -i n ot her words, anyone who o bjects is not o bjec ting to a human a utho rity, but to God, who gives yo u his Holy S pirit.' As for loving our brot hers, there is no need for anyo ne to write to you a bout that, since you have learn t from Go d yourselves to love one another, -a nd in fact this is what you are doing with all the brot hers th roughout the who le of Macedonia. However, we do urge you, brothers, to go on makin g even grea ter prog ress -a nd .to mak e a point of living quietly , att endin g to your own busin ess and ea rn ing your living, ju st as we to ld you to , -so tha t you are seen to bc respecta ble by those ou tside the Church, th ough you do not have to depend on them.

13

Rm 1:4 '1 ; 8:11+; 10:9 + 1 Co 15: 1+ .20 I Co 15:51 I Co 15 :23 MI24:3ll31 + 1 Co 15:52 + 2 T h 1:7f

Dn2:21 Ac 1:8 + M t 14: 36 .43 2 P 3:10

We want you to be quite certain, bro thers, ab o ut thos e who ha ve died,' to ma ke sure that yo u do not grieve about them, like the o ther people who have no hope . We believe that Jes us died and rose aga in, an d tha t it will be the same for those who have died in Jes us: God will bri ng them with him.• We can tell you this fro m the Lord's own teaching," that any of us' who are left alive until the Lo rd's com ing will not have any adv antage over those who have died. -At the tr umpet of God, the voice of the archangel will call out the co mmand and the Lord himse lf will co me down fro m heaven ;' those who have died in Christ will be the first to rise, and then those of us who a re still alive" will be ta ken up in the clou ds, toge ther with them, to meet the Lo rd in the air. So we shall stay with the Lo rd for ever.' With such tho ughts as t hese you should comfort one another. Watchfulness while awaiting the coming of the Lord" Yo u w ill not be expecting us to write anything to you , broth ers , abo ut 'times and seasons'," -since you know very well that the Da y of the Lord is going to

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come like a thie f in the night. -It is when peopl e are saying, 'How quiet and peaceful it is' tha t the wors t sudde nly ha ppens, as suddenly as lab our pains come o n a preg nant woman; and there will be no way for anybody to evade it. But it is not as if you live in the dar k, my br others, for that Days to o vertake yo u like a th ief. •No, you are all so ns of light and so ns of the day : we do not belong to the night or to da rkn ess, -so we should not go on sleeping, as everyo ne else does, but stay wide awake and so ber. • Night is the time for sleepers to sleep and drunkards to be dru nk, • but we belong to the day and we should be sober; let us put o n faith an d love fo r a breastplate, and the ho pe of salvation for a helmet. G od never meant us to exper ience the Retri butio n, but to win salvation through o ur Lor d Jesus Christ, -who died for us so that, alive or dead," we sho uld still live united to him. -So give encouragement to each other, and keep strengthening one another , as you do already.

Some demands made by life in community We a ppeal to you, my brothers, to be considerate to those who are worki ng 13 amo ngst you and are above yo u in th e Lo rd as your teachers. -H ave t he great est respect and affection for th em because of their work. 14 Be at peace am on g yourselves.• And th is is what we ask you to do, broth ers: warn the idlers, give courage to those who are a pprehensive, car e for the wea k an d 15 be patient with everyone. • Make sure tha t people do not try to take revenge; 16 yo u must all th ink of what is best for each other an d for the comm unity. -Be : ~ ha ppy at all times; -p ray constantly; -and for all things give thanks to God, beca use th is is what God expects you to do in Christ Jesus. 12

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The dead and the living at the time of the Lord's coming! ED 2:12 C ol 1:27

5: 18 Rv 3:3... J r6:14 Jr4:31+ "I t 24:8 + Lk 21:34-35 ED 5:8-9

In 8: 12+

"I t 24:42+ R m 13:12-13 1 P 1:13; 4: 7; S:S

Ep 6: JJ

1:3 Is 59: 17 I Co l3:l3-t 1:10+ 4:14+ Ep 2:20

12

Live in holiness and cha rity 2 Th 3:6

10

TH ESSAL O N IA NS

13 14 15 i6

17 18

b . 'T empler' , i.e. 'S a tan ' as in 2:18. cr. Mk l :l 3. c . T hi s wou ld refer to gaps in th ei r kno wledge of C h r is tia n d octr ine, as we ll as eaps in their code o f C h ris t ia n behavio ur . cf. R m 14:1; 2 Co 10: 15 ; Ph 1:25. d . Bro therl y love of on e a no the r in t he C hristia n comm un ity is o nly th e begin ni ng of chari ty; it has to SPread to lo ve fo r t he who le hum an rac e. e. Add . ' Am en' . Ho liness . 4:3 + . beg ins with b rothe rl y lo ve but will not be pe rfect ti ll the parousia . In t his co ntex t 'sai nts ' ca n re fe r to th e cho sen. the saved or th e ang els, Ac 9: 13-l-. 4 a , Pa ul spea ks ' in ' ( v. L) 'by' (v.2) o r ' in the nam e of ' C h rist. cf. 4:15 ; 2 T h 3:6.12. His do ctrine on moral be ha viour whic h is based on the ear liest Ch ris tian teac hing invest s ord inary day-to-day life with a new dept h: it ha s t he seal of C h rist o n it , Co l 3: 18 -t-, b. O m. 'a nd as yo u ar e already living it'. c , I t is the wilt of God , cr. Mt 6:10, th a t makes peop le ho ly, vv, 3,7 ; 2 Th 2:13; Ep 1:4. It is God who makes the m holy, 5:23; I Co 6:1 1. C hris t has made him self o ur ' ho liness'. 1 Co 1:30. T he Ho ly Sp irit is invo lved In mak ing us holy, v.8; 2 T h2: 13; I Co6:11. d. Lit . 'ea ch o ne of you to 'k now' (or 'be able') to possess th e vess el of hi m self ir sa nctiflcation and ho no ur ' , 'Vesse l' means 'wife ' in 1 P 3:7 a nd man y rabbinic texts, but it means ' bod y' in 5:23 : cf. Rm 12: 1: 1 C06: 19. e , Ezek iel foretold that the Spirit would be given to the messia nic people: this reference draws attention to the co ntinuity betwee n the ch u rch of Thessalonik a a nd th e giving of thi s gifl to the ea rly C hristian co mmonity, Ac 2: 16C, 33.38 et c. On the gift of the Spirit to th e spirit of each believer, cf. Rm 5:5 + . t, T he co nver ts in Th essa lo nika had ob vious ly been worried abou t th is and un certa in what the C h ristian pos it ion was. Replying to th eir Questions Pa ul affirms the fund am ent a l doc trine of th e res urrec t ion so as to st re ng the n t he fait h an d hope of a ll th e co nvert s. K, Li t. 'we do not wish you to be igno rant . bro thers, co ncerni ng th e sleeping'. T he eup hem ism was co mm on in t he O .T ., th e N .T ., a nd in Greek lit er a ture: th e na tural con com itant was to call the res urr ection (t o new life o r fro m dea th) an ' awaken ing'. h. N o precise reference in t he written go spels ca n be given for thi s saying of Jesu s, but cr. Mt 24 with vv, 15· 17. Per hap s Pa ul is relyin g here on th e a utho rity he had been given by the visio n on th e Da masc us road,

cf. Dn 7; 1. 13.16. L ' us' ; Pa ul inclu des himself a mon g th ose who will be pr ese nt a t th e oarousta: mo re by aspira tio n, howe ver . t han by co nvict io n, cf. 5:1 +. j . T he tr um pet, vo ice and clo ud s were tra dition a l sig ns tha t accom panied manifesta tion s of God. cf , Ex 13:32 + : 19:16 + a nd th ey were ado pted as co nven tio na l ele ments of apocalypt ic literature. cf . "I t 24:3 0f +; 2 T h 1:8 + . k . Om . '(we) who ar e st ill ali ve", I, O f all th e det ail s given here: tha t the dea d will answ er th e summons by retu rn ing to life, th at t hey a nd t he livin g will be ta ken to mee t t he Lo rd . a nd th a t they wi ll accom pa ny him to the iu d gem ent wit h which the etern al kingdom be gins, t he essenti a l o ne is th e last: e terna l life with Ch rist, cf. 5:10; 2 Th 2:1. That is to be the 'sa lva tio n' , th e ' glory' , t he 'ki ngdom ' that Jesus sha res a mo ng his chos en foUower s. 5 8 , Pa ul a sse rts th at he ha s no ide a whe n the Last D ay will come, and he merely repeats wha t the Lor d sa id. M t 24:36p ; AC 1:7, abo ut havin g to stay awake till It co mes, "I t 24:42p,5 0 ; 2S:13. T he Da y of t he Lo rd , 1 Co 1:8 + , will co me like a t hief, cf . "It 24:43 p . so It is nece ssa ry to stay awake. v.s , cr . Rm 13:11: 1 Co 16:13 ; Co l4:2 ; I P 1;13; 5:8; Rv 3:2f; 16:15. It wil1 come soon, 2 Co 6:2 +. A t flrst Pa ul expected he wo uld live to see the Last D ay. I T h 4:17 : cf . 1 Co 15:51 ; he late r realised he might die before It. 2 C o 5:3: Ph 1:23. and he warns people it will no t co me as soon as they tho ught . 2 Th 2:1f. Mo re tha n a nyt hing , th e prospect of how lo ng it would ta ke to convert t he pa gan s, Rm II :25, mad e it cer tai n th at the La st Day would not co me fo r a very long tim e. cf'. Mt 25:19 ; LIc. 20:9: 2 P 3:4. b. 'a bo ut times an d sea so ns' : a cliche. cf. Ac 1:7 -t-, un der lyin g which is th e idea of God as outs ide tim e a nd ye t a s con tr olling it a nd its d ivis ions. Ac 17:26. c . Me ntio n of 'the Day' wit ho ut fu rther ouanncat ion. 1 Co 1:8 + , helps Paul to in tr oduce the menti o n of ligh t and day and co nt ras t ' wakefulness' with th e dar k, ni ght and sleep (in a d ifferent sense from 4:130, and also make t he contrast be twee n C hris tia ns (so ns of th e light) and others (son s of darkness), cr. In 8:12 -r. d . Li t. ' awa ke or asl eep' in sa me sense a s 4: 14-17: al l the faithful will share in the final sa lva tion.

1 Co 16:16 I Tm S:17

Tt 1:5 +

Heb 13:17 Ga6:6 Rm 14:1 2 T h 3:6- 12

Ex 21:25 +

MI 5:3Sf R m 12:17 Co l 3:12- 13 Ph 1:4+

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4:3

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1 THE S SAL O NI AN S

354

Never try to sup press the Spirit -or treat the gift of pro phecy wit h contempt; ~g thi nk before you do anyt hing-hold on to what is good -and avoid every for m of H evil. Closing prayer and farewell

Is 11:6 + 2 T h 3:16 3: /J I·

1 Co 1:9 t2 T h 3:3

2 Th 3:1

R m 15:30 + 2 Co 13:1 2 1-

('014 :16

May the God of peace mak e you perfect a nd holy; and may you a ll be kept safe and blameless, spirit, soul and body, e for the co ming of our Lord Jesus Christ. G od has called you and he will no t fail you. Pray for us, my brothers. Greet all the bro thers with the holy kiss.• My order s, in the Lord's name, are that this letter is to be read to all the! brothers. The grace of our Lord Jesus C hrist be with you.'

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2 T H E SSA LO NI ANS

24 25

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T HE SECOND LETTER OF P A UL TO T HE CHU R CH I N THESSA LON IKA

28

Address Fro m Pau l, Silvan us and Timothy, to the Church in T hessalonika which is in G od our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ ; -wish ing you grace a nd peace fro m God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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Thanksgiving and encouragement. The Last Judgement We feel we must be conti nually thanking God for you, brothers; quite right ly, beca use yo ur faith is grow ing so wonderfully and the love that you hav e for one a not her never stops increasing; -and amo ng t he chu rches of G od we can take specia l pride in you for your consta ncy a nd faith under all the persecuti ons and troubles you have to bear. - It all shows that G od's judgemen t is j ust, and the purpose of it is tha t yo u may be fou nd worthy of the kingdom of G od; it is for the sa ke of this that you are su ffering now . G od will very rightly repay with injury tho se who a re injur ing you, -a nd reward you, who are suffering now, with the same peace as he will give us, a when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven wit h the angels of his power. • He will co me in flaming fire " to impose the penal ty on all who do not acknowledge God and refuse to accept the Good News of our Lor d Jes us." -It will be t heir punishment to be lost eterna lly, excluded f rom the presence of the Lord and fro m the glory of his strength on that day when -he com es to be glorified among his saints and seen in his glory by all who believe in him ;" an d you are believers, through our witness .' K nowing this, we pra y cont inua lly tha t our God will make you worthy of his call, and by his powe r fulfil all yo ur! desires for goo dness and complete all that yo u ha ve been do ing through faith; • becau se in this way the name of our Lord Jes us C hrist will be glorified in you and you in him, by the grace of ou r God and the Lord Jes us C hrist. The coming of the Lord and the prelude to it a To turn now, brothers, to the comi ng of our Lo rd Jesus Christ and how we sha ll all be gathered rou nd him: -p lease do not get excited too soon or alarmed by any pred iction or rumour or any letter claiming to come from us,

2

1 T h 1:1

Ac 15:22 +: 16:1 +

1 Th 1:2 I T h 3:6-12 1 Til 3:12 : 4:9-10 Ac 14:22 I Co 1:2 + I Th 1:7-8 : 2:19-20 M t4:17 + 1 Th 2:14; 3:4 ,

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Ph 1:28 R~' 14:13 I Co 1:7 + Ex 3:2 Is 66:15 Jr 10:25

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Is 2: 10 Is 2:11 7; 49 :3 : 66:5 Ps (LXX)68: 34: 89:7 R1

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Ph 2:13 Is 66:5: 24:15 In 17:JO,U

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c . Pau l see ms to have dev elo ped no coh erent system givi ng him new life in union with C h r is t. Rm 5:5 +. or o f a n th ro nol o a y: th is is th e on ly p lace he men tions a more probably a s the innerm ost dep ths of the human tr ipa r t ite divi sio n of bo dy (cf. Rm 7:24 + ). so ul bei ng , open a nd awake to the Sp ir it. cf. Rm 1:9 4 ), (cr. I Co 15:44 -1-) and s p ir it (w hi ch can be take n in f . Vu lg . inserts 'holy '. two ways: as the div ine pre senc e in a human be ing, 2 . A d d . (V ulg.) 'A m e n'

e . Vv.6-1 0 form a pa re n thes is, v. Ll foll o ws o n 1 a . Pa ul o ften compares h is own s it u at ion with th at o f th e ch u rc hes h e is writ ing to . cr. 1 T h 2:3: I Co 4:8 ; from v.s. f. Or 'hi s' Ph 1:30. etc. b. Heav en. ct. 1 Th 4:16. the a nge ls, cr. M t 13:39. 2 a . In 1 T h 4: 13-5:11 Pa u l avoided su ggesting 4 1.49 : 16:270 : 24:31: 25: 31: Lk 12:8f (and p ro ba b ly an ything t hat wo uld indica te whe n th e parousia would t he ' sa int s ' o f 1 Th 3: 13), the ' fire' of va rious ta ke p lace . cr. 1 Th 5: 1 +. O bvio us ly rep lyin g to fu r ther theo phanles. cr. Ex 13:22 +; 19:16 + . a re all con ven - Ques tions . Pa u l d oe s not now re pea t all he said. about t io na l e le me n ts o f apo cat ynr ic li te rature, cr. 1 T h 4:16 +. wha t wou ld happen to t he livi ng and the dead : a ll he is c. I.e . both p aga ns. 1 Th 4:5. an d Jews. R m 10:16 . co nce rn ed with is to em p has ise t ha t th e coming is no t d . Pa u l he re see m s to be th inki ng of a ng els (the imminent. a nd tha t it ca n no t take place t ill certain 'sa ints' , cr . Ac 9: 13+> and C h ris tia ns ('those who specific srees h av e p rece ded it . be lie ve').

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