1 Thessalonians

On the Second Coming of Jesus. Paul first deals with the issue of whether and how deceased Christians will participate in the second coming (4:13–18) and then reassures the Thessalonians that they are destined for salvation rather than wrath (5:1–11).

On Pleasing God. Paul calls on the Thessalonians to please God (vv. 1–2) by living in holiness (vv. 3–8) and love (vv. 9–12).

Finally (Gk. loipon). Paul is either indicating that he is approaching the end of his letter or simply that he is beginning a new section (cf. Phil. 3:1); clearly, there is much still to come. To walk and to please God is to live a life that is pleasing to God (see note on Col. 1:10). do so more and more. Their process of growth in sanctification and in their ability to “please God” has not yet been completed.

instructions (Gk. parangelia). Originally a military word, it usually denotes authoritative commands.

Paul commands the Thessalonians to live in sexual holiness. Some converts may have found it a struggle to adjust to Christianity’s demanding ethical code.

that you abstain from sexual immorality. For former pagans, the lure of sexual sins was strong (see 1 Corinthians 5–6). By using the Greek term porneia (which referred to adultery, fornication, or other sexual immorality), Paul forbids any sexual activity outside the bounds of heterosexual marriage (see Eph. 5:3; 1 Pet. 1:15–22).

control his own body. The Greek could be rendered “take a wife for himself” (see esv footnote). However, in view of vv. 4–5 and 1 Corinthians 7, sexual self-control is more likely the intended meaning. in holiness and honor. Behavior suitable before God and humans respectively.

in the passion of lust like the Gentiles. See Rom. 1:24–27. Paul is concerned that some of the Thessalonian Christians may fall back into their former ways.

wrong (Gk. pleonekteō, “to defraud, exploit, cheat”). Defrauding a fellow Christian through sexual sin. the Lord is an avenger. Those who ignore the Christian sexual ethic will face the wrath of Jesus when he returns, and perhaps even before.

called. When the Thessalonians embraced Paul’s gospel, they were responding to God’s effectual call (see note on Rom. 8:30; cf. note on 1 Thess. 1:4). That call did not have as its goal impurity but rather a life of holiness.

Therefore. In view of v. 7, to reject Paul’s teaching on sex is to reject not merely Paul but God, who is the source of Paul’s sexual ethic. who gives his Holy Spirit to you. In the OT (e.g., Ezek. 36:26–27) God promised that he would establish a new covenant in which the Holy Spirit would write the law on people’s hearts and cause them to obey. This new covenant reality, which has been inaugurated by Christ, makes sexual sin inexcusable. To reject the giver of the Holy Spirit is to cut oneself off from the sanctifying power that enables the Christian to be “blameless in holiness” at the second coming (1 Thess. 3:13).

Paul urges the Thessalonians to continue showing brotherly love and to be financially self-supporting. Some in the church have abandoned gainful employment and are living off the charity of wealthier Christians (see 2 Thess. 3:6–15). It is unclear whether or not this problem was related to the Thessalonians’ confusion about the end times.

taught by God to love one another. Jeremiah 31:33–34 prophesied that God would write his law on the hearts of his people and directly teach them as part of the new covenant. Christians already know this reality (1 John 2:27): by love they fulfill the law (Rom. 13:8–10; cf. Lev. 19:18; John 13:34).

live quietly. Live peaceably with others (see 2 Thess. 3:11–12), instead of meddling in others’ affairs. work with your hands. Paul calls on Thessalonian believers to earn their own living rather than to depend on wealthier Christians, as Paul had instructed them when he was at Thessalonica.

walk properly before outsiders. For some Christians to be shamelessly exploiting the charity of wealthier Christians would have been disgraceful in a first-century Greco-Roman environment.

Paul responds to the main problem facing the young church. They lacked detailed knowledge about what happens to Christians who die, because Paul did not have the opportunity to complete his teaching there (3:10) on account of being forced to leave (2:15, 17; Acts 17:5–10). Consequently, the Thessalonians did not have the understanding to cope with the recent deaths of some community members, and so they responded with bewildered hopelessness.

we do not want you to be uninformed. The Thessalonians are unaware of the things Paul will explain in vv. 14–17. those who are asleep. Paul refers to Christians who have died as being “asleep” (cf. vv. 14, 15; 5:10; also 1 Cor. 15:6, 18, 20, 51), which reinforces his main point that they will awake from the grave at the second coming. The metaphor is not intended to deny that the dead are in conscious fellowship with God in the intermediate state. Referring to death with the metaphor of sleep is simply suggested by the physical condition of those who sleep. It gains appropriateness from the fact that all who have died will rise at Christ’s return. grieve as others do who have no hope. Grieving per se is not wrong (cf. Acts 8:2), but it is wrong to grieve in a hopeless manner like unbelievers. The Thessalonians apparently did not understand that deceased Christians would rise from the dead and thus would not miss out on the blessings brought by the second coming. Epitaphs from the first century indicate that most first-century Greeks had a strongly pessimistic view of death.

rose again. The resurrection of Christ is the center of God’s plan for history and is the basis for hope in the future resurrection of the body (1 Cor. 15:42–57; Rev. 21:4). through Jesus, God will bring. Jesus is shown to be God’s mediator of salvation who will “bring” deceased Christians with him (those who have fallen asleep), that is, the souls of those who have been in heaven with Christ up to this point. The direction of movement (whether upward or downward) is debated, although the allusion to Zech. 14:5 suggests a picture of Christ coming down from heaven, bringing with him the souls of those who have already died. Paul’s point is that all the Christians who have died (“fallen asleep”) will be with Christ in his second coming, as Christ descends to earth. Paul then explains in more detail (in 1 Thess. 4:16–17) how the dead are able to be present with Christ—that is, because their bodies will, at that moment, be resurrected and reunited with their souls, as they are “caught up to meet the Lord in the air” (v. 17).

Word from the Lord probably refers to something the Lord revealed personally to Paul, which he then states in vv. 15b–17. We who are alive does not imply that Paul was convinced that he himself would be alive at the second coming, but rather that all Christians should be prepared for Christ to return during their lifetime. who are left. Left behind, that is, by all Christians who have already departed this life. will not precede those who have fallen asleep. It is unclear whether the Thessalonians were assuming that the dead would rise only after the second coming, or whether they thought that the dead had no hope of salvation at all.

cry of command … voice of an archangel … trumpet of God. The three noises summon the dead to wake from their slumber. The only “archangel” identified in the Bible is Michael (Jude 9). Trumpets in the OT proclaimed the Lord’s presence (Ex. 19:16; 1 Chron. 16:6; Ps. 47:5; Joel 2:1; Zech. 9:14); in Jewish tradition, the “trumpet” was associated with battle, the day of the Lord, and the resurrection (cf. 1 Cor. 15:52). first … Then. Dead Christians rise from their graves to the realm of the living, and then the living and the dead together are caught up from the earth into the air to meet Christ. The Greek for “caught up” (harpazō, “to grab or seize suddenly, to snatch, take away”) gives a sense of being forcibly and suddenly lifted upward (see John 6:15; Acts 8:39). together with. The dead Christians would suffer no disadvantage (cf. “we who are alive … will not precede,” 1 Thess. 4:15). clouds. Probably not earthly rain clouds but the clouds of glory that surround the presence of God (cf. Ex. 13:21; 33:9–10; 40:38; Num. 12:5; 1 Kings 8:10–11; Ps. 97:2; Dan. 7:13; Matt. 17:5; Mark 13:26; Acts 1:9; Rev. 14:14). to meet. The Greek term apantēsis is often used of an important dignitary’s reception by the inhabitants of a city, who come out to greet and welcome their honored guest with fanfare and celebration, then accompany him into the city (cf. Matt. 25:6; Acts 28:15; a related term hypantēsis is used in Matt. 25:1; John 12:13). It may indicate that the subsequent movement of the saints after meeting Christ “in the air” conforms to Christ’s direction, thus in a downward motion toward the earth. However, some interpreters caution that the vivid symbolism of apocalyptic language must be kept in mind to avoid over-interpretation of the apocalyptic details. in the air. The sky.

Some critics claim that Paul believed he would live to see Christ’s return but didn’t and that therefore either Paul wasn’t inspired or the Bible contains false statements. But while Paul’s use of “we” may imply that he expected to be alive, it does not require or prove that he believed this. At 1Co 15:52-53, Paul expressed virtually the same idea as he did here, yet in the same letter he wrote, “God . . . will also raise us up by his power” (1Co 6:14). So he apparently considered both options to be possible for him (see 1Th 5:10, “whether we are awake or asleep”). In 5:1-2, Paul implied the same thing that Jesus said about not knowing the time of Christ’s return (Mt 24:36; Mk 13:32; Ac 1:6-7). It would be odd for Paul to contradict himself within a few short verses.

Clear teaching about the Lord’s return should result in comfort and encouragement (Paul’s goal), rather than fear and divisiveness. These words refers to vv. 13–17.