Reference: Thessalonians, First Epistle To The
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THESSALONIANS, FIRST EPISTLE TO THE
1.Occasion and date.
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And commanding them to withdraw from the Sanhedrim, they conferred one with another, saying, What shall we do to these men? for that a notable miracle has been performed by them is manifest to all that live at Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it; read more. but that it spread no further among the people, let us threaten them severely, [and charge them] to speak no more to any man in this name.
And on the following sabbath almost all the city came together to hear the word of the Lord. And the Jews seeing the multitudes were filled with envy, and contradicted the things said by Paul, disputing and blaspheming. read more. And both Paul and Barnabas speaking boldly said, It was necessary that the word of God should first be spoken to you; but since you cast it away, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the gentiles.
And having appointed them elders in every church, and having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.
And some of them believed and adhered to Paul and Silas; of the pious Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.
And some of them believed and adhered to Paul and Silas; of the pious Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.
And some of them believed and adhered to Paul and Silas; of the pious Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.
And those conducting Paul brought him to Athens, and receiving a charge to Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed. And while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was moved within him as he saw the city wholly devoted to idolatry.
And when Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul gave himself wholly to preaching the word, testifying to the Jews Christ Jesus.
For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle was destroyed, we have an edifice from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
Because for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if to live in the flesh [is allowed me], I have this fruit of my work, and which I shall choose I know not. read more. But I am in a strait between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ; for this is far better; but to continue in the flesh is more necessary for you.
But our kingdom is in heaven, from which also we expect the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will change our humble body, and make it like his glorious body, by the power by which he is able also to subject all things to himself.
Let your gentleness be known to all men; the Lord is near.
on account of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you heard before in the true word of the gospel
giving thanks to the Father who has made us fit for a portion in the inheritance of the saints in light, who delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love,
PAUL and Sylvanus [Silas] and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be to you and peace.
for they declare of us what introduction we had to you, and how you turned from idols to God, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come.
but we were gentle among you, as a nurse would cherish her own children; so being greatly desirous of you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but our own souls, because you were dear to us. read more. For you remember, brothers, our labor and weariness; that working night and day not to be burdensome to any one of you, we preached to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God, how piously, and righteously, and blamelessly we were with you that believe, as you know how we exhorted and comforted you, as a father each one of his own children, and charged you to walk worthily of God who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
For you, brothers, became followers of the churches of God in Christ Jesus which were in Judea, for you also suffered the same things from your countrymen, which they did from the Jews
For you, brothers, became followers of the churches of God in Christ Jesus which were in Judea, for you also suffered the same things from your countrymen, which they did from the Jews who also killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and persecuted us, and who please not God and are hostile to all men,
who also killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and persecuted us, and who please not God and are hostile to all men, forbidding us to speak to the gentiles that they may be saved, that they may fill up their sins always; and the wrath has come on them to the utmost.
forbidding us to speak to the gentiles that they may be saved, that they may fill up their sins always; and the wrath has come on them to the utmost.
forbidding us to speak to the gentiles that they may be saved, that they may fill up their sins always; and the wrath has come on them to the utmost. But we, brothers, being deprived of you for a short time in presence, not in heart, used greater diligence to see your face, with much desire. read more. For which reason we wished to come to you; I Paul indeed once and again, and Satan hindered us.
When therefore we could no longer refrain, we thought it best to be left alone at Athens,
When therefore we could no longer refrain, we thought it best to be left alone at Athens, and sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-laborer in the gospel of Christ, to confirm you and to exhort you in behalf of your faith,
and sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-laborer in the gospel of Christ, to confirm you and to exhort you in behalf of your faith,
For this reason, being no longer able to forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest in some way the tempter should have tempted you, and our labor be in vain. But now Timothy having come to us from you and told us the good news of your faith and love, and that you have a good remembrance of us always, desiring to see us, as we also you,
But now Timothy having come to us from you and told us the good news of your faith and love, and that you have a good remembrance of us always, desiring to see us, as we also you, therefore we were comforted, brothers, on your account in all our affliction and distress by your faith, read more. for now we live, if you stand firm in the Lord.
And may God himself, even our Father, and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you; and the Lord cause you to be full and abound with love one to another and to all men, as we also to you, read more. to confirm your hearts without blame in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
FINALLY, therefore, brothers, we beseech and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, as you have received from us how you ought to walk and please God, that you abound still more. For you know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus. read more. For this is the will of God, your purity, that you should abstain from fornication, that each one should know how to have his wife in purity and honor, not with inordinate desires like the gentiles who know not God, that he should not go beyond and defraud his brother in the matter, because the Lord is a punisher of all these, as we also told you before and fully testified. For God has not called us to impurity, but to purity. He therefore that despises, despises not man, but God, who also gives us his Holy Spirit. But concerning brotherly love, you have no need that I should write to you; for you are taught by God to love one another; for you also do the same to all the brothers in all Macedonia. But we exhort you, brothers, to abound still more, and strive to be quiet and pursue your own business, and work with your hands, as we charged you, that you may walk becomingly towards those without and have need of nothing. And we wish you not to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those that have fallen asleep, that you may not grieve as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also will God bring with him those that have fallen asleep on account of Jesus. For we tell you this by the word of the Lord, that we who live and remain till the coming of the Lord, shall not anticipate those that have fallen asleep,
For we tell you this by the word of the Lord, that we who live and remain till the coming of the Lord, shall not anticipate those that have fallen asleep, for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, read more. then we the living who remain shall be caught up together with them in clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall be always with the Lord. Comfort one another, therefore, with these words.
But concerning the times and season, brothers, you have no need that I should write to you; for you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night. read more. When they say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction comes, like pain upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness, that the day should come upon you like a thief; for you are all children of light, and children of day; we are not of night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep as others, but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night, and they that are drunk drink in the night; but let us who are of day be sober, putting on a cuirass of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation, for God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we may live together with him. Wherefore exhort one another, and edify one another, as you also do. And we beseech you, brothers, to know those who labor among you, and preside over you in the Lord and admonish you,
And we beseech you, brothers, to know those who labor among you, and preside over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love on account of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. read more. And we exhort you, brothers, admonish the disorderly, comfort the dispirited, assist the sick, be of long suffering towards all men. See that no one renders evil for evil, but always pursue the good both one to another and to all. Rejoice always; pray without ceasing, give thanks on every occasion; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus to us. Quench not the Spirit, despise not prophecies. Prove all things, hold fast the good; abstain from every form of evil. And may the God of peace himself purify you wholly, and your whole spirit, and soul, and body, be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calls you, who will also perform. Brothers, pray for us. Salute all the brothers with a holy kiss. I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brothers. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
Smith
Thessalo'nians, First Epistle to the,
was written by the apostle Paul at Corinth, a few months after he had founded the church at Thessalonica, at the close of the year A.D. 62 or the beginning of 53. The Epistles to the Thessalonians, then (for the second followed the first after no long interval), are the earliest of St. Paul's writings --perhaps the earliest written records of Christianity. It is interesting, therefore, to compare the Thessalonian epistles with the later letters, and to note the points of These differences are mainly
1. In the general style of these earlier letters there is greater simplicity and less exuberance of language.
2. The antagonism to St. Paul is not the same. Here the opposition comes from Jews. A period of five years changes the aspect of the controversy. The opponents of St. Paul are then no longer Jews so much as Judaizing Christians.
3. Many of the distinctive doctrines of Christianity were yet not evolved and distinctly enunciated till the needs of the Church drew them out into prominence at a later date. It has often been observed, for instance, that there is in the Epistles to the Thessalonians no mention of the characteristic contrast of "faith and works;" that the word "justification" does not once occur; that the idea of dying with Christ and living with Christ, so frequent in St. Paul's later writings, is absent in these. In the Epistles to the Thessalonians, the gospel preached is that of the coming of Christ, rather than of the cross of Christ. The occasion of this epistle was as follows: St. Paul had twice attempted to re-visit Thessalonica, and both times had been disappointed. Thus prevented from seeing them in person, he had sent Timothy to inquire and report to him as to their condition.
Timothy returned with more favorable tidings, reporting not only their progress in Christian faith and practice, but also their strong attachment to their old teacher.
The First Epistle to the Thessalonians is the outpouring of the apostle's gratitude on receiving this welcome news. At the same time there report of Timothy was not unmixed with alloy. There were certain features in the condition of the Thessalonian church which called for St. Paul's interference and to which he addresses himself in his letter.
1. The very intensity of their Christian faith, dwelling too exclusively on the day of the Lord's coming, had been attended with evil consequences. On the other hand, a theoretical difficulty had been felt. Certain members of the church had died, and there was great anxiety lest they should be excluded from any share in the glories of the Lord's advent. ch.
2. The Thessalonians needed consolation and encouragement under persecution. ch.
3. An unhealthy state of feeling with regard to spiritual gifts was manifesting itself. ch.
4. There was the danger of relapsing into their old heathen profligacy. ch.
Yet notwithstanding all these drawbacks, the condition of the Thessalonian church was highly satisfactory, and the most cordial relations existed between St. Paul and his converts there. This honorable distinction it shares with the other great church of Macedonia, that of Philippi. The epistle is rather practical than doctrinal. The external evidence in favor of the genuineness of the First Epistle to the Thessalonians is chiefly negative, but this is important enough. There is no trace that it was ever disputed at any age or in any section of the Church, or even by any individual till the present century. Toward the close of the second century from Irenaeus downward. we find this epistle directly quoted and ascribed to Paul. The evidence derived from the character of the epistle itself is so strong that it may fairly be called irresistible.
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For you, brothers, became followers of the churches of God in Christ Jesus which were in Judea, for you also suffered the same things from your countrymen, which they did from the Jews
When therefore we could no longer refrain, we thought it best to be left alone at Athens, and sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-laborer in the gospel of Christ, to confirm you and to exhort you in behalf of your faith,
and sent Timothy, our brother and God's co-laborer in the gospel of Christ, to confirm you and to exhort you in behalf of your faith, that no one should be moved by these afflictions. For you know that we are appointed for this;
that no one should be moved by these afflictions. For you know that we are appointed for this; for indeed when we came to you, we told you before that we were about to suffer affliction, as it also happened, and you know.
for indeed when we came to you, we told you before that we were about to suffer affliction, as it also happened, and you know. For this reason, being no longer able to forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest in some way the tempter should have tempted you, and our labor be in vain.
For this reason, being no longer able to forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest in some way the tempter should have tempted you, and our labor be in vain. But now Timothy having come to us from you and told us the good news of your faith and love, and that you have a good remembrance of us always, desiring to see us, as we also you,
But now Timothy having come to us from you and told us the good news of your faith and love, and that you have a good remembrance of us always, desiring to see us, as we also you,
But now Timothy having come to us from you and told us the good news of your faith and love, and that you have a good remembrance of us always, desiring to see us, as we also you, therefore we were comforted, brothers, on your account in all our affliction and distress by your faith,
therefore we were comforted, brothers, on your account in all our affliction and distress by your faith, for now we live, if you stand firm in the Lord.
for now we live, if you stand firm in the Lord. For what thanksgiving can we render to God for you for all the joy with which we rejoice on your account before our God,
For what thanksgiving can we render to God for you for all the joy with which we rejoice on your account before our God, desiring exceedingly, night and day, to see your face, and to perfect what is lacking of your faith?
desiring exceedingly, night and day, to see your face, and to perfect what is lacking of your faith? And may God himself, even our Father, and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you; read more. and the Lord cause you to be full and abound with love one to another and to all men, as we also to you, to confirm your hearts without blame in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
that each one should know how to have his wife in purity and honor, not with inordinate desires like the gentiles who know not God, read more. that he should not go beyond and defraud his brother in the matter, because the Lord is a punisher of all these, as we also told you before and fully testified. For God has not called us to impurity, but to purity. He therefore that despises, despises not man, but God, who also gives us his Holy Spirit.
And we wish you not to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those that have fallen asleep, that you may not grieve as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also will God bring with him those that have fallen asleep on account of Jesus. read more. For we tell you this by the word of the Lord, that we who live and remain till the coming of the Lord, shall not anticipate those that have fallen asleep, for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, then we the living who remain shall be caught up together with them in clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall be always with the Lord. Comfort one another, therefore, with these words.