THE CAMBRIDGE BIBLE
FOR SCHOOLS & COLLEGES

THE EPISUES TO
THE THESSALONIANS EDITED BY
G. G. FINDLAY, B.A.

GENERAL EDITOR
J, J, a PEROWNE, Oil
BISHOP OF WORCESTER

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THE EPISTLES TO THE
THESSALONIANS.

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SKETCH MAP OF MACEDONIA AND ACHAIA
ILLUSTRATING THE EPISTLES TO THE THESSALONIANS

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anti Colleges*
General Editor :— J. J. S. PEROWNE, D.D.
Bishop of Worcester.

THE EPISTLES TO TLIE
THESSALONIANS,
WfTH fNTRODUCTfON, NOTES AND MAP

REV. GEORGE G. FINDLAY B.A
5SOR OF BIBLICAL LANGUAGES IN THE WESLI
HEADINGLEY.

I>ROFESSOR OF BIBLICAL LANGUAGES IN THE WESLEYAN COLLEGE,
HEADINGLEY.

EDITED FOR THE SYNDICS OF THE UNIVERSITY PRESS.

©ambrfoge:
AT THE UNIVERSITY PRJJSSc:
1894
[All Rights reserved.

QEamfcrfoge :

PRINTED BV C. J. CLAY, M.A. AND SONS,
AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS.

PREFACE
BY THE GENERAL EDITOR.
The General Editor of The Cambridge Bible for
Schools thinks it right to say that he does not hold
himself responsible either for the interpretation of
particular passages which the Editors of the several
Books have adopted, or for any opinion on points of
doctrine that they may have expressed. In the New
Testament more especially questions arise of the
deepest theological import, on which the ablest and
most conscientious interpreters have differed and
always will differ. His aim1 has been in all such
cases to leave each Contributor to the unfettered
exercise of his own judgment, only taking care that
1—2

PREFACE.
mere controversy should as far as possible be avoided.
He has contented himself chiefly with a careful
revision of the notes, with pointing out omissions,
with suggesting occasionally a reconsideration of some
question, or a fuller treatment of difficult passages,
and the like.
Beyond this he has not attempted to interfere,
feeling it better that each Commentary should have
its own individual character, and being convinced
that freshness and variety of treatment are more
than a compensation for any lack of uniformity in
the Series,

PREFATORY NOTE.
The care of this volume of the Cambridge Bible for
Schools and Colleges was intrusted in the first instance to
the Rev. W. F. Moulton, D.D., Headmaster of the Leys
School, Cambridge, who was compelled by the pres-sure of
other duties to relinquish the work. This he did (as he
permits me to say) with very great reluctance and regret.
It is a loss to all who may have occasion to use this book,
that it is prepared by other hands than those of the original
Editor. I am happy to state, however, that Dr Moulton has not
only favoured me with most valuable counsels and sugges
tions in the preparation of the Commentary, but has, under
conditions of peculiar difficulty, found time to revise the
proof-sheets; and the following pages, however defective
in other respects, will bear some traces of his extreme
accuracy, his admirable judgement and finished scholarship.
GEO. G. FINDLAY.
Headingley, January, 1891.

CONTENTS.

pages
I. Introduction. Chapter I. The City of Thessalonica  9 — 12
Chapter II. How the Gospel came to Thessalonica 13 — 16
Chapter III. The Gospel of Paul at Thessalonica .. . 16 — 22
Chapter IV. The Occasion of the Two Epistles ... 22 — 27
Chapter V. The Genuineness of the Two Epistles 27 — 31
Chapter VI. The Style and Character of the Two
Epistles  32 — 37
Chapter VII. Analysis and Digest of the Epistles ... 37 — 43
II. Text and Notes  45 — 169
III. Appendix. On the Man of Lawlessness  170 — 180
IV. Index  181— 183
Map  facing Title.

The Text adopted in this Edition is that of Dr Scrivener's
Cambridge Paragraph Bible. A few variations from the ordi
nary Text, chiefly in the spelling of certain words, and in the
use of italics, will be noticed. For the principles adopted by
Dr Scrivener as regards the printing of the Text see his In
troduction to the Paragraph Bible, published by the Cambridge
University Press.

"The Apostolic Letters, which made glad
The young and foe-girt Churches of the Lord."
Aubrey De Vere.
art thoix the christ, the son of the blessed'— and
jesus said, i am: and ye shall see the son of man
sitting at the right hand of power, and coming with
the clouds of heaven.

INTRODUCTION.. CHAPTER I.
The City of Thessalonica.
Most of the ancient cities in which St Paul laboured have
in the course of ages either perished or sunk into insignificance.
Rome still remains, " the eternal city," holding a unique place
amongst the world's great capitals. And along with Rome,
though in a far inferior position, Thessalonica has retained its
identity and its importance throughout the immense changes
of the last two thousand years.
The town first appears in Greek history under the name
of Therma, — so called from the warm mineral springs in its
vicinity. Its later designation was given to it by Cassander,
who on seizing the vacant throne of Alexander the Great in
Macedonia married his sister Thessalonica. Her name was,
no doubt, a memorial of some victory gained by her father
Philip of Macedon over his neighbours in Thessaly.
Founding a new city upon this site in 315 B.C., the usurper
called it after his highborn wife. Cassander's foundation rapidly
grew into a place of commercial and political consequence.
After the Roman conquest of Macedonia (168 B.C.), Thessa
lonica was made the head of one of the four districts into
which the kingdom was divided, and on their subsequent
reunion became the capital of the whole province. It was
declared a "free city," with important rights of self-government,
after the civil war which ended with the defeat of Brutus and
Cassius at Philippi (42 B.C.), having fortunately sided with the

INTRODUCTION.

victors. Hence the Thessalonian magistrates are correctly
designated " politarchs " in Acts xvii. 6. At the same time, it
was the seat of the Roman proconsular administration of Mace
donia, and an important military station.
The geographer Strabo (about 24 B.C.) describes Thessa
lonica as the most populous town of Macedonia; a contem
porary author speaks of it as " the mother of all Macedonia."
It is referred to in similar terms by Lucian in the second cen
tury, and by Theodoret in the fifth. At the beginning of the
tenth century it is computed to have held a population of above
200,000. To-day, under the Turkish rule, Saloniki (or Salo-
nica) numbers perhaps 100,000 souls, and is rapidly increasing.
In size it is the third, and in importance quite the second, city
of Turkey in Europe. The Jews still flourish here, even more
than in the Apostle's time ; they form a third or more of the
population. The remainder are chiefly Greeks, mixed with
Turks and Bulgars. The city is now, as it was in the first
century, the emporium of Macedonia and one of the chief
ports of the /Egean. Saloniki is moreover the terminus of the
great trunk line of railway recently completed, running south
through the heart of the Balkan peninsula, which will give it
largely the command of the trade of Central Europe with the
Levant. It is destined still to play, in all probability, an im
portant part in the political and religious history of South-
Eastern Europe.
The city owes its importance to its geographical position.
It stands in a remarkably fine and picturesque situation, on a
hill sloping down to the sea, and guarded by high mountain
ridges on both sides. Below the city there stretched far to the
south-west the broad and well-sheltered Thermaic Gulf (now
Gulf of Saloniki), with the snowy heights of Mount Olympus,
the fabled home of the Greek gods, bounding the horizon.
This bay forms the north-western corner of the /Egean Sea,
occupying the angle which the Greek peninsula makes with the
mainland. It lies moreover near the mouth of the chief passes
leading down from the Macedonian uplands, with the wide
Danubian plains spread beyond them in the north. And

INTRODUCTION.

in Roman times the city held a special importance from its
situation midway between the Adriatic and Hellespont along
the Via Egnatia, the great military road which formed the main
artery linking Rome to her eastern provinces : posita in gremio
imperii nostri, says Cicero. See the map facing the title-page.
Cicero spent some months in Thessalonica during his exile
from Rome in 58 B.C., and again in Pompey's winter camp,
pitched here before the fatal battle of Pharsalus (48 B.C.) ; here
he also halted on his way to and from Cilicia, his province in
the East (51 — 50 B.C.); and from Thessalonica he wrote a
number of characteristic letters, which it would be interesting
to compare with those of the Apostle Paul addressed to the
same place.
St Paul visited Macedonia a second time, on his way from
Ephesus to Greece during the third missionary journey (Acts
xx. 1, 2), spending doubtless considerable time at Thessalonica;
and we find two Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus
(Acts xx. 4), attending him on his subsequent voyage to Jerusa
lem. Aristarchus remained with the Apostle a long while, and
is honourably mentioned in Col. iv. 10, as " my fellow captive,"
during his imprisonment at Rome. It was from Macedonia
(the subscription states, conjectural'.y, " from Philippi ") that
St Paul addressed, in 58 (or 57) A.D., his second Epistle to the
Corinthians (2 Cor. ii. 13, vii. 5, viii. 1). Writing to the Philip
pians (c. 63 a.d.) from his Roman prison, the Apostle "trusts
in the Lord" that he will "come" to see them "shortly" (Phil.
. ii. 24). And we find him some time after his release fulfilling
this intention: "on my way to Macedonia" (1 Tim. i. 3). The
last reference found in the N. T. to Thessalonica is in 2 Tim. iv.
10, and is an unhappy one : " Demas hath forsaken me, having
loved the present world; and is gone to Thessalonica." If
Demas wished to make a fortune, Thessalonian trade would
have more attraction for him than the company of a doomed
and penniless prisoner in Rome. Perhaps he was a Thessalonian.
Singularly enough, Thessalonica claims another Demetrius
(Demas is probably short for Demetrius), a martyr of the
Diocletian persecution (c. 303 A.D.), as her patron saint.

INTRODUCTION.

In Church history Thessalonica bears an honourable name.
It was a bulwark of the Catholic faith and of the Greek Chris
tian Empire in the early middle ages, when it bore the title of
"the orthodox city1." It was also an active centre of mis
sionary evangelism amongst the Gothic, and afterwards the
Slavonic invaders of the Balkan peninsula. In its energetic
zeal for the cause of Christ the Church of Thessalonica nobly
sustained the character given to it by St Paul in these Epistles.
This city was the scene of a memorable tragedy, when in
the year 390 the Emperor Theodosius, in revenge for some
affront, ruthlessly massacred 15,000 of its inhabitants. For
this act St Ambrose, the great Bishop of Milan, compelled the
Emperor to do abject penance, refusing him communion for
eight months until he submitted. Amongst the Bishops of
Thessalonica, only one name is recorded of the first rank,
that of Eustathius (died 1198 A.D.), who was the most learned
scholar of his age and an active Church reformer. During the
decay of the Byzantine empire, the city was for a time under
Latin and later under Venetian rule. It underwent three
memorable sieges, — having been captured by the Saracens in
904; by Tancred of Sicily, the Norman Crusader, in 1 185 ;
and finally, by the Turkish Sultan Amurath II., in 1430 A.D.
Thessalonica possesses three ancient and beautiful Greek
Churches turned into mosques, those of St Sophia2, St George,
and St Demetrius ; as well as a few very valuable and interest
ing remains of Roman antiquity. It is now the seat of an
influential Greek archbishopric.
1 It should be said, however, that Tafel (De Thessalonica ejusque
agro, Berlin, 1839), our chief authority on the history of the city, con
jectures that this epithet was conferred on Thessalonica because of its
stubborn defence of Image-worship against the Iconoclastic Emperors of
Constantinople in the eighth and ninth centuries.
2 In the disastrous fire of September 4th, 1890, the mosque of St
Sophia was destroyed — a heavy and irreparable loss. As a monument
and treasury of Byzantine art, this once Christian cathedral stood second
only to St Sophia of Constantinople itself.

INTRODUCTION. 13

CHAPTER II.
How the Gospel came to Thessalonica.
It was in the course of his second great missionary expedi
tion that the Apostle Paul planted the standard of the Cross in
Europe, in the year of our Lord 53 (or 52). He had slowly tra
versed Asia Minor from the south-east to the north-west, and
was detained in Galatia by sickness for a considerable time;
a circumstance which gave him the opportunity of preaching to
that interesting people, amongst whom he founded at this time
important Churches (Acts xvi. 6, xviii. 23; Gal. iv. 13 — 15).
Twice again were his plans frustrated during this journey. His
chief intention seems to have been to evangelize the Roman
province of Asia (Acts xvi. 6), where he afterwards spent three
fruitful years (Acts xx. 31). This region, with its capital city
Ephesus, was for the Apostle's mission probably the most
important district between Jerusalem and Rome. But for the
present he was " prevented by the Holy Spirit." A similar
mysterious intimation arrested him when afterwards he was
entering the northerly province of Bithynia : "the Spirit of
Jesus suffered them not " (Acts xvi. 7). So St Paul and his
companions (Silas and Timothy) found themselves at the port
of Troas, fronting Europe and the West, where St Luke also
joined them; for just at this point (ver. 10) the narrator of the
Acts passes from the third to the first person plural. It was
here that the true goal ofthe Apostle's journey disclosed itself,
and the reason of God's repeated interference with His servant's
designs. "A vision by night appeared to Paul. There was a
man of Macedonia standing, beseeching him: Come over to
Macedonia, and help us ! " In Macedonia the Gospel was to
find a congenial soil and a people prepared for the Lord.
We need not repeat the story of the missionaries' voyage
across the yEgean, their journey inland to Philippi, their success
and their sufferings in that city, all so graphically related by
St Luke, who writes Acts xvi. 10 — 40 as an eye-witness. One

14 INTRODUCTION.

reference in these Epistles the Apostle makes to his experience
at Philippi : he writes in I Ep. ii. 2, " Though we had already
suffered and endured violence in Philippi, we were bold in our
God to speak to you the good news of God." The pleasanter
side of his connection at this time with Philippi is intimated
when, addressing the Philippians many years later, he recalls
how " even in Thessalonica ye sent to supply my need, both
once and twice" (Phil. iv. 16).
Thessalonica lies a hundred miles west of Philippi along the
Via Egnatia, a distance of three days' journey. " Amphipolis
and Apollonia" are mentioned in Acts xvii. 1 as the chief towns
and halting places on the way. But these places the three
evangelists " travelled through." Thessalonica was their objec
tive point. This city attracted the Apostle of the Gentiles on
several accounts ; and he was resolved to occupy it for Christ.
We have already, in Chap. I., described the position of Thes
salonica and its growing importance as a centre of trade and
population. There was an additional circumstance which gave
the missionaries a vantage-ground here. At Philippi the Jews
were not numerous or wealthy enough to boast a synagogue;
only they had a proseucha, or retired oratory " by the river
side," probably open to the air (Acts xvi. 13). In Thessalonica
"there was a synagogue of the Jews" (Acts xvii. 1). It was
not that St Paul expected to gain many converts from the
synagogue itself; but round the Jewish synagogue there was
usually gathered a circle of devout and enlightened Gentiles, in
various stages of proselytism, weary of heathen superstition
and philosophy, and instructed more or less in the Old Testa
ment, but not prepossessed by the ingrained prejudice, the
pride of religion and of race, and the scorn of a crucified
Messiah which closed the ears of the Jews themselves against
the truth of the Gospel. In this outlying circle of proselytes
and synagogue-hearers, distinguished frequently by the presence
of a number of the more refined and intelligent Greek women
of the upper classes, St Paul was accustomed to find his best
audiences. Here he gathered the nucleus of his Gentile Churches.
At Thessalonica while " some " of the Jews " were persuaded

INTRODUCTION. 15

and consorted with Paul and Silas," a " great multitude of the
devout Greeks" did so, "and of the chief women (the ladies, as we
should say, of the city) not a few" (Acts xvii. 4). Such people
could best be reached through the synagogue, and the Apostle
felt it his duty to address himself to his own countrymen in the
first instance ('to the Jew first'), however often they might repel
him; so "according to Paul's custom he went in unto them,
and for three sabbaths discoursed with them from the Scrip
tures, expounding and explaining that the Christ was bound to
suffer and to rise from the dead, and that this is the Christ,
— this Jesus whom I preach to you" (Acts xvii. 3). After
three weeks of this discussion the synagogue appears to have
been closed against Paul and Silas. They only carried a small
minority of their compatriots with them. But they must have
continued for some time longer in the city, at least a month we
should imagine, to have gathered and formed into a Church
so large a community as the Epistles indicate, and to have
carried them so far in Christian knowledge and discipline.
Before long, however, the jealousy of "the unbelieving
Jews" at their success found means to arrest the work of the
Apostles. They roused the city mob against them. The rioters
attacked the house of Jason (his name is probably equivalent to
Jesus), a Jew of property who had accepted the faith of Christ
and invited the missionaries to lodge with him. Not finding the
two leaders, they seized Jason and some other Christians and
"dragged" them before the magistrates, on the remarkable
charge (1) of being revolutionaries — "turning the world upside
down," and (2) of rebellion against the Roman Emperor, in
"saying that there is another king, one Jesus " (vv. 5 — 7). These
charges, scattered broadcast, alarmed the " politarchs " as well
as the common people (ver. 8); but they could not be sustained,
and the accused were dismissed, security being taken for their
good behaviour (ver. 9). The accusations brought against Paul
and Silas were, however, a distortion of what they had actually
preached, and may help us to understand the special character
and drift of the Apostolic teaching in this city. The outbreak
made it evident that St Paul's unscrupulous enemies were deter-

16 INTRODUCTION.
mined, at any cost, to drive him from Thessalonica. He was
now, as so frequently, in deadly " peril from his own country
men " (2 Cor. xi. 26). " The brethren " insisted on his leaving
them, and "sent Paul and Silas away by night immediately to
Bercea" (ver. io),- — an inland Macedonian town situated forty
miles or more from Thessalonica, in the direction of Achaia.

CHAPTER III.
The Gospel of Paul at Thessalonica.
Now we may ask, What was the gospel brought to Thessa
lonica f Can we give to ourselves any precise account of the
"good news" which "Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus" an
nounced in this city, and which produced so powerful and
enduring an effect? Further, was there anything special to
the place and the occasion in the form which the Apostle's
message assumed, and which will serve to explain the peculiar
tone of Christian feeling, the style of thought and cast of doc
trine, that distinguished the faith of this great Macedonian
Church in its first beginnings ? To these questions the indica
tions of the two Epistles, compared with the story of the Acts,
enable us to give a tolerable answer.
(1) The foundation of St Paul's teaching was laid in the
proof of the Messiahship of Jesus, drawn from the prophecies
of Scripture, compared with the facts of the life, death and
resurrection of the Saviour. The method of this proof, briefly
indicated in Acts xvii. 3, is set forth at length in the report
of his discourse at the Pisidian Antioch given by St Luke in
the thirteenth chapter of the Acts.
(2) The purpose of Christ's death and its bearing on human
salvation must have been abundantly explained by the Apostles.
So we infer not only from the central position of this subject
in St Paul's later Epistles, and from the prominence given to
it in Acts xiii. 38, 39, where the announcement oi forgiveness
of sins and justification by faith forms the climax of St Paul's

INTRODUCTION. 17

whole sermon ; but the language of 1 Ep. v. 8 — 10 leaves us in
no doubt that the same "word of the cross" was proclaimed
at Thessalonica which St Paul preached everywhere. Here
"salvation" comes "through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died
for us " — a salvation from " the anger of God," a salvation in
part received already, in part matter of "hope," and which
belongs to those who " have put on the breastplate of faith
and love." This salvation was the great need of the Gentile
world, which "knew not God," and was enslaved to idolatry and
shameful lusts (1 Ep. i. 9; iv. 5 ; 2 Ep. i. 8).
Now we can understand all this in the light of Rom. i. 16 —
25, iii. 23 — 26, v. 1 — 11, and as touching Him "whom God set
forth in His blood a propitiation through faith"; but without
such knowledge the Apostle's language would have been equally
unintelligible to the Thessalonians and to ourselves. Still it
must be admitted, and it is remarkable, that very little is said
in these two letters on the subject of the Atonement and Salva
tion by Faith. Evidently on these fundamental doctrines there
was no dispute at Thessalonica. They were so fully accepted
and understood in this Church, that it was unnecessary to
dilate upon them ; and the Apostle has other matters just now
to deal with.
(3) The Church- at Thessalonica being chiefly of heathen
origin, St Paul and St Silas had said much to them of the falsity
and wickedness of idolatry, completing the lessons which many
of their disciples had already received in the synagogue. Their
faith was emphatically a "faith toward God— ihe living and
true God," to Whom they had " turned from their idols " (this
seems to imply that many Thessalonian Christians had been
converted directly from paganfsm), and Whom they knew
in "His Son" (1 Ep. i. 9, 10). And this living and true God,
the Father of the Lord Jesus, they had come to know and to
approach as "our Father" (1 Ep. i. 3; iii. n, 13 5 2 Ep. ii.
16), Who was to them "the God of peace" (1 Ep. i. 1; v. 23;
2 Ep. i. 2), Who had " loved them and given them eternal com
fort and good hope in grace," had " chosen " them and " called
them to enter His kingdom and glory," Who " would count them
thess. 2

INTRODUCTION.

worthy of their calling and accomplish in them all the desire of
goodness and the work of faith," Who had "given them His
Holy Spirit," Whose " will " was their " sanctification," Whose
" word " was ever " working in " them, Who would " comfort and
strengthen their hearts " in every needful way and would reward
them with " rest " from their afflictions in due time, Whose care
for His beloved was not limited by death, for He was pledged
at Christ's coming to restore those whom death had snatched
away (i Ep. i. 4 ; ii. 12,13; iv. 3, 7, 8, 14; v. 18; 2 Ep. i. 5, 7,11;
ii. 13, 16, 17). Such a God it must be their one aim to love
and to please ; St Paul's one desire for them is that they may
"walk worthily" of Him ( 1 Ep. ii. 12; iv. 1; 2 Ep. iii. 5). The
good news the Apostle had brought he speaks of repeatedly as
" the gospel of God," while it is "the gospel of our Lord Jesus
Christ" (2 Ep. i. 8), since He is its great subject and centre:
comp. Rom. i. 1, 3, "the gospel of God — concerning His Son."
It is important to note the prominence of God in these
Epistles, and the manifold ways in which the Divine character
and relationship to believing men had been set forth to the
Thessalonian Church. For such teaching would be necessary,
and helpful in the highest degree, to men who had just emerged
from heathen darkness and superstition ; and these letters
afford the best example left to us of St Paul's earliest in
structions to Gentile converts. The next report we have of his
preaching to the heathen comes from Athens (Acts xvii. 22 — 31)
where his discourse bore principally on two subjects — the nature
of the true God, and the coming of Jesus Christ to judge the
world. (4) So we come to that which was the most conspicuous
and impressive topic of the Thessalonian gospel, so far as
we can gather it from the echoes audible in the Epistles
viz. the coming of the Lord Jesus in His heavenly kingdom.
These letters compel us to remember, what we are apt to
forget, that the second advent of Christ is an important part
of the Christian gospel, the good tidings that God has sent to
the world concerning His Son. In 1 Ep. i. 9, 10 the religion
of Thessalonian believers is summed up in these two things :

INTRODUCTION. 19
"serving a God living and true, and waiting for His Son from
the heavens." It was in the light of Christ's second coming
that they had learned to look for that " kingdom and glory of
God" to which they were "called," and "for which" they were
now "suffering" (1 Ep. ii. 12; 2 Ep. i. 5, 10—12). "The
coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints" was an object
of intense desire and fervent anticipation to the Apostle him
self, and he had impressed the same feelings on his disciples
at Thessalonica to an uncommon degree. His appeals and
warnings thoughout these Epistles rest on the "hope in our
Lord Jesus Christ" as their strongest support. It was, more
over, upon this subject that the misunderstandings arose which
the Apostle is at so much pains to correct— the first appearing
in 1 Ep. iv. 13, touching the share of departed Christians in the
return of the Lord Jesus; and the second in 2 Ep. ii. 1, 2,
concerning the imminence of the event itself.
What may have been the train of thought and feeling in the
Apostle's mind that led him to dwell upon this theme with such
especial emphasis at this particular period, we cannot tell.
But there were two conditions belonging to his early ministry
in Europe which naturally might suggest this line of preaching.
In the first place, the Christian doctrine of final judgement was
one well calculated to rouse the Greek people from its levity
and moral indifference ; and it had impressive analogies in
their own primitive religion. It was for this practical purpose
that St Paul advanced the doctrine at Athens : " Having over
looked the times of ignorance, God now commands men that
all everywhere should repent ; because He has appointed a day
in which He will judge the world in righteousness, by the Man
whom He ordained" (Acts xvii. 30, 31). To the busy traders
of Corinth and Thessalonica, just as amongst the philosophers
and dilettanti of Athens, the Apostle made the same severe
and alarming proclamation. The message of judgement was
an essential part of St Paul's good tidings. " God shall judge
the secrets of men, according to my gospel, through Jesus
Christ" (Rom. ii. 16). But the declaration of Christ's coming
in judgement involves the whole doctrine of the Second Advent.

INTRODUCTION.

On this matter St Paul tells us he had abundantly enlarged
in the Thessalonian Church (i Ep. v. 2; 2 Ep. ii. 6).
In the second place it should be observed, that the Apostle,
in entering Europe by the Via Egnatia, was brought more
directly under the shadow of the Roman Empire than at any
time before. Philippi, a Roman colony, and a memorial of the
victory by which the Empire was established ; Thessalonica,
a great provincial capital of European aspect and character ; the
splendid military road by which the missionaries travelled, and
along which troops of soldiers, officers of state with their
brilliant retinues, foreign envoys and tributaries were going and
coming — all this gave a powerful impression of the "kingdom
and glory " of the great world-ruling city, to which a mind like
St Paul's could not but be sensitive. He was himself, it must
be remembered, a citizen of Rome and by no means indifferent
to his rights in this capacity ; and he held a high estimate
of the prerogatives and functions of the civil power (Rom.
xiii. 1 — 7).
But what he saw of the great kingdom of this world
prompted in his mind larger thoughts of that mightier and
Diviner kingdom, whose herald and ambassador he was. He
could not fail to discern under the majestic sway of Rome signs
of moral degeneracy and seeds of ruin. He remembered well
that it was by the sentence of Pontius Pilate (1 Tim. vi. 13)
that his Master was crucified ; and in his own outrageous
treatment by the Roman officials at Philippi and the sufferings
of the Christian flock at Thessalonica he may well have seen
tokens of the inevitable conflict between the tyranny of secular
rule and the authority of Christ. If such thoughts as these
coloured the speech of Paul and Silas at Thessalonica, we can
understand the charge made against them in this city : " These
all do contrary to the decrees of Caasar, saying that there
is another king, even Jesus " (Acts xvii. 7). It was in principle
the charge alleged against Jesus Himself before Pilate, com
pelling the Roman governor to pronounce his fatal sentence :
"If thou let this man go, thou art not Ccesar's friend: whoso
ever maketh himself a king, speaketh against Ccesar." So the

INTRODUCTION. 21

Jews "cried out" (Jo. xix. 12); and at the bottom, the accusa
tion was true ; the sharp-sighted enmity of the Jews rightly dis
cerned that the rule of Jesus was fatal to Caasarism. If the
Apostles preached, as they could do without any denunciation
of the powers that be, a universal, righteous and equal judge
ment of mankind approaching, in which Jesus (crucified by the
Roman State) would be judge and king; if they taught that
"the fashion of this world passeth away " (1 Cor. vii. 31), and
that an atheistic world-wide despotism would one day culmi
nate in a huge disaster, to be " consumed by the breath of the
Lord and the brightness of His coming" (2 Ep. ii. 3 — 11), there
were grounds plausible enough for accusing them of treason
able doctrine, even though no express political offence had
been committed. That such a judgement was impending was
" good news " indeed ; but it was of deadly import to the im
perial tyranny of Caligulas and Neros, and to the social and
political fabric of the existing pagan world of which the
deified Cassars were the top-stone. In this consequence lies
the most significant and distinctive, though not the most ob
vious, feature of the gospel of Thessalonica.
It may be further added, that the hope of Christ's return
in glory was the consolation best suited to sustain the Church,
as it sustained the Apostle himself, in the great fight of affliction
through which they were passing.
(5) The moral issues of the Gospel inculcated by St Paul
at Thessalonica, the new duties and affections belonging to the
new life of believers in Christ, are touched upon at many
different points ; but not developed with the fulness and syste
matic method of subsequent Epistles. ' Most prominent here
are the obligation to chastity, as belonging to the sanctity of the
body and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (1 Ep. iv. 1—8);
and the claims oi brotherly love, with the good order, the peace,
and mutual helpfulness that flow from it (1 Ep. iv. 9, 10 ; v.
12—15 ; 2 Ep- in- I4> I5)- What is singular in these Epistles
is the repeated and strong injunctions they contain on the sub
ject of diligence in labour and attention to the ordinary duties
of life (1 Ep. iv. 10—12; 2 Ep. iii. 6—15).

22 INTRODUCTION.
A striking moral feature of the gospel proclaimed at Thessa
lonica is manifest in the conduct of the missionaries of Christ
themselves, — their incessant labour, their unbounded self-denial,
the purity and devoutness of their spirit, and their fearless
courage (i Ep. i. 6, 7 ; ii. 1— 12 ; 2 Ep. iii. 8, 9).

CHAPTER IV.
The Occasion of the Two Epistles.
I. St Paul had been absent no long time from Thessa
lonica — the "season of an hour" (1 Ep. ii. 17). He had been
at Athens in the interval (1 Ep. iii. 1), and is now engaged at
Corinth (Acts xviii. 1, 5); He had left Thessalonica very un
willingly (1 Ep. ii. 17; Acts xvii. 10: "The disciples sent away
Paul and Silas"), promising and fully expecting to come back
quickly. He had set his heart on returning to his persecuted
flock, and had twice attempted to do so, but insuperable and
malicious hindrances came in his way (1 Ep. ii. 17, 18: "Satan
hindered us "). After the failure of his second attempt, when the
Apostle had now arrived at Athens and his anxiety for the Thes
salonians was unendurable, he resolved to send Timothy in his
place, the only companion now left to him (ch. iii. 1, 2), in order
to comfort and strengthen this infant Church. From Acts
xvii. 14, 15 we learn that Silas and Timothy had in the first
instance both stayed behind at Bercea, with instructions to
follow their chief as soon as they found it possible. This
direction Timothy was able speedily to obey ; and on his
return St Paul despatched him forthwith from Athens to Thes
salonica (see notes on 1 Ep. iii. 1, 2). Timothy had now once
more rejoined the Apostle (Silas too, at or about the same
time, and coming from the same quarter), who had meanwhile
removed from Athens to Corinth.
Timothy brought a report which greatly relieved and
gladdened the heart of the much-tried Apostle. It was a
very " gospel " to him. The Thessalonians were " standing

INTRODUCTION. 23
fast in the Lord." The expectations he had formed of them
were in no way disappointed. Their faith had endured
without flinching the fiery test of persecution. Their love
to each other and to their absent father in Christ was
devoted and sincere. They were mindful of the Apostle's
teaching, maintaining a consistent walk and by their faithful
ness and zeal commending the gospel with powerful effect
throughout Macedonia and Achaia. "What fitting thanks,"
St Paul asks, " can we render to God for all the joy with which
we rejoice over you before our God?" (1 Ep. iii. 6 — 10; i.
2 — 8; iv. 1, 9, 10; v. 11). St Paul's Epistles contain nowhere
a more earnest or unqualified commendation than that which
he bestows on the fidelity of the Thessalonian Church.
What the Apostle hears from his assistant increases his
longing to see them again ; for this he is "praying night and
day with intense desire" ( ch. iii. 10). Indeed his primary object
in writing the First Epistle is to express his great desire to
revisit Thessalonica (ch. ii. 17; iii. 11). Associated with this
wish there are two other purposes that actuate his mind. On
the one hand, he finds it necessary to explain his continued
absence, and in doing so to justify himself from aspersions
thrown upon him by his opponents. This self-defence is the
first subject on which he enters, in ch. ii. 1 — 12. We gather
from it that there were certain enemies of the Christian cause
in Thessalonica (Jewish enemies, as the denunciation of vv.
T4 — 16, together with the general probabilities of the situation,
strongly suggests), who had taken advantage of the absence of
the missionaries to slander them1. They had insinuated doubts
of their courage (ch. ii. 2), of their disinterestedness and honesty
1 It is necessary to observe that the opponents St Paul has in view
in 1 Ep. ii. (see esp. w. 15, 16) are unconverted Jews, altogether hostile
to the gospel Paul preached. The Jews of Thessalonica drove him
from this city, and following him to Bercea attacked him there; and
their compatriots at Corinth imitated their example, though happily
not with the same success (Acts xvii. 5, 13; xviii. 12 — 17). Of the
Jewish Christians opposed to Paul and his Gentile mission, the "false
brethren" who afterwards "troubled" him at Corinth and in Galatia,
we find in these Epistles -no trace whatever.

24 INTRODUCTION.

(vv. 3, 6, 9), and of their real affection for their Thessalonian
converts (vv. 7, 8, 11, 12). They had said: "These so-called
'Apostles of Christ' are self-seeking adventurers. Depend
upon it, their real object is to make themselves a reputation
and to fill their own purse at your expense. They have
beguiled you by their flatteries and pretence of sanctity into
accepting their new-fangled faith ; and then, as soon as trouble
arises and their mischievous doctrines bring them into danger,
they creep away like cowards, leaving you to bear the brunt of
persecution. And likely enough, you will never see them
again ! " Chapter ii. is a reply to innuendoes of this kind,
which are such as unscrupulous Jewish antagonists would be
sure to make. And considering the short time that Paul
and Silas had been in this city, and the influence which the
synagogue-leaders had formerly possessed over many members
of their flock ; considering also the disheartening effect that
continued persecution was likely to have upon a young and
unseasoned Church, one cannot wonder at the danger there
was lest confidence in the absent missionaries should be un
dermined by these insidious attacks. On the whole, that
confidence had not been shaken. " You have good remem
brance of us at all times " (ch. iii. 6) ; so Timothy had assured
St Paul. But the Apostles show themselves, in ch. ii. 1 — 12,
most anxious to increase and strengthen this good remembrance.
On the other hand, and looking onward to the future,
St Paul writes in order to carry forward the instruction of his
converts in Christian doctrine and life, "to perfect what is lack
ing in your faith" (ch. iii. 10). With his entrance into Europe
the Apostle's mission has entered upon a new stage. He is no
longer able quickly to revisit his Churches, which are now
numerous and widely separated, and to exercise a direct pastoral
oversight amongst them. The defect of his presence he must
supply by messenger and letter. When he describes himself
as' "longing to see you and to complete the deficiencies of your
faith," in explaining this earliest of his apostolic letters, we see
how the necessity of such Epistles arose and to what con
ditions we owe their existence.

INTRODUCTION. 25
The " deficiencies " which St Paul has to correct or supple
ment, are chiefly of a practical nature. They concern — (1) on
the moral side, the virtue of chastity, sadly wanting in Greek
city-life, in respect of which the former notions of Gentile
converts had commonly been very lax ; and brotherly love,
with which, in the case of this Church, the duty of diligent
labour was closely associated (ch. iv. 1 — 12). (2) On the doc
trinal side, a painful misunderstanding had arisen touching the
relation of "them that sleep" to Christ on His return, which
Timothy was not able altogether to remove; and there was
in regard to this event generally a restlessness of mind and
over-curiosity unfavourable to sober and steadfast Christian life
(ch. iv. 13 — v. 11). (3) With this we may connect symptoms of
indiscipline in one party, and of contempt for extraordinary
spiritual manifestations in another, which the closing verses of
the Epistle indicate (ch. v. 12 — 22).
Respecting these needs of the Church, as well as concern
ing its loyalty and earnestness of faith, Timothy, doubtless, had
given the Apostle a full report.
II. After writing the First Epistle St Paul received further
tidings from Thessalonica, which moved him to write a Second.
The situation of the Church remained, for the most part, the
same, but accentuated in its leading features. We gather
from the opening Act of Thanksgiving (ch. i.) that the storm
of persecution was still more violent and the fidelity of the
Church even more conspicuous than when the Apostle wrote
a few months before. "Your faith grows exceedingly, and
your love multiplies. We make our boast in you amongst
the Churches of God, because of your faith and endurance in
persecution" (ch. i. 3, 4). The Apostle says nothing further,
.however, of his intention to return; his hands were by this
time tied fast at Corinth (Acts xviii. 5 — 18): he commends
them to "the Lord, Who will stablish them and keep them from
the Evil One" (ch. iii. 3 — 5). Nor does he enter on any further
defence of his conduct toward the Thessalonians. That was
now unnecessary.

26 INTRODUCTION.

There are two things which he is wishful to say. First and
chiefly, about the Second Advent— •" the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ and our gathering together unto Him " (ch. ii. i ). A report
was circulated, claiming prophetic origin, and alleged to have
St Paul's authentication, to the effect that "the day of the Lord
had arrived" and He must be looked for immediately (ver. 2).
This the Apostle declares to be a deception (ver. 3). And he
gives reasons, partly derived from his original teaching, why so
speedy a consummation was impossible. This gives occasion
to his memorable prediction of the advent of " the Man of
Sin " (or " Lawlessness "), whose appearance and exaltation to
supreme power will be, he announces, the signal for Christ's
return in glory (vv. 3 — 12). This prophecy is the one great
difficulty which meets the student of these Epistles. It is
amongst the most mysterious passages in the Bible. See the
Appendix. The other object the Apostle has in writing '2 Thessalonians
is to reprove the disorderly fraction of the Church (ch. iii.
6 — 15). The First Epistle intimated the existence of a ten
dency to idleness and consequent insubordination (ch. iv. II,
12; v. 12 — 14), to which he there alluded in a few words
of guarded and kindly censure. His gentle reproof however
failed to check the evil, which had now assumed an aggravated
and persistent form and endangered the Church's peace. It
was connected with the prevalent excitement on the subject
of Christ's advent. This expectation furnished an excuse and
incentive to the neglect of ordinary labour. The Apostle now
takes the offenders severely to task, and directs their brethren
to refuse support from the funds of the Church to such as
persisted in idleness, and to avoid their company.
That this letter is the second of the two, and not the first
(as Grotius, Ewald, F. C. Baur, and some other critics have-
conjectured), is evident from the course of affairs and the in
ternal relationship of the Epistles, as we have just examined
them. 2 Thessalonians bears on its face the character of a
sequel and supplement to 1 Thessalonians. It deals more fully
and urgently with two important points raised in the former

INTRODUCTION.

letter, as they present themselves in their further development.
The disturbing influences whose presence is only indicated in
i Thessalonians, have now reached their crisis. And the
Apostle's thanksgiving (ch. i. 3 — 12) implies an advance both
in the severity of persecution, and in the growth and testing of
Thessalonian faith ; for which faith he gives thanks in terms
even stronger than before. The personal recollections and ex
planations, so interesting a feature of the other Epistle, are
eminently suited to the Apostle's first communication of the
kind with this beloved Church. The absence of such references
in the shorter Epistle marks it as virtually an appendix to the
other, following it after a brief interval. The expression of ch.
ii. 2, "neither through word, nor through letter as on our
authority," is most naturally explained as alluding to some
misquotation or misunderstanding of the language of I Thessa
lonians on the subject in question.
The two Epistles were written, as we have seen, from
Corinth; not from Athens, as it is stated in the concluding
note, or "subscription," attached to the Epistles in the MSS
followed by the Authorised English version. They were both
composed during the Apostle's residence of eighteen months
in Corinth (Acts xviii. 11), extending from Autumn 53 to Spring
55 A.D. (possibly, 52 — 54). They belong therefore, as nearly
as we can judge, to the winter of 53 — 54 A.D., — the last year
of the Emperor Claudius ; being 23 years after our Lord's
Ascension, two years after the Council at Jerusalem, four years
before the Epistle to the Romans, thirteen years, probably,
before the death of St Paul and the outbreak of the Jewish
War, and seventeen years before the Fall of Jerusalem.

CHAPTER V.
The Genuineness of the Two Epistles.
That these two letters were written by the author whose
name they bear, has never been doubted by anyone until the

28 INTRODUCTION.

present century. No writings of the N. T. are more strongly
and unanimously supported by the testimony of the Early
Church. The German writer Christ. Schmidt first raised sus
picions against 2 Thessalonians in the year 1801, and Schrader
against 1 Thessalonians in 1836. The objections of these
scholars were further developed by Ferdinand C. Baur, the
founder of what is called the Tendency School of N. T.
Criticism, who gave them currency in his influential work on
"Paul the Apostle of Jesus Christ" (1845 : Eng. Trans., 1873).
Baur supposed the Epistles to have been written by some dis
ciple of Paul, with the Apocalypse of John in his hand, who
wished to excite renewed interest amongst Pauline Christians
in the Second Advent. He dates them therefore in the reign
of Vespasian, subsequently to the Fall of Jerusalem (70 A.D.).
I. The authenticity of the First Epistle has been amply
vindicated, and is now acknowledged even by the leading
sceptical critics of the school of Baur, such as Holtzmann and
Pfleiderer. If any one expressed doubts on the subject, it
would be sufficient to point (1) to the picture the Apostle gives
of himself and his relations to this Church in chaps, i. — iii. It
is an exquisite piece of self-portraiture, bearing all the marks
of circumstantial truth and genuine feeling, harmonizing with
what we learn of St Paul from other sources, and free from
anything that could make us suspect imitation by another
hand. One feels the beat and throb of Paul's heart in every
line of these chapters. Nemo potest Paulinum pectus effingere
(Erasmus). (2) The same air of reality belongs to the aspect of the Thes
salonian Church, as it is delineated in these letters. It exhibits
the freshness, the fervour and impulsive energy of a newborn
faith, with something of the indiscipline and excitability that
often attend the first steps of the Christian life, so full at once
of joy and of peril. The Church of Thessalonica has a cha
racter of its own. It resembles the Philippian Church in the
frankness, the courage, and the personal devotion to the
Apostle, which so greatly won his love ; also in the simplicity

INTRODUCTION. 29

and thoroughness of its faith, which was untroubled by the
speculative questions and tendencies to intellectual error that
beset the Corinthian and Asiatic Churches. These character
istics agree with what we know of the Macedonian tempera
ment. At the same time, there was at Thessalonica a tendency
to morbid excitement and to an unpractical and over-heated
enthusiasm, that forms a peculiar feature in the portrait the
Epistles furnish of this Christian Society.
(3) The attitude of St Paul toward the parousia is such as
no disciple or imitator, writing in his name, could possibly
have attributed to him after the Apostle's death. He is
made to write as though Christ were expected to come within
his own lifetime: "we the living, those who survive till the
coming of the Lord," 1 Ep. iv. 15, 17. These words, taken in
their plain sense, leave it an open question whether the Lord
Jesus would not return while the writer and his readers yet
lived. That a later author, wishing to use the Apostle's autho
rity for his own purposes, should have put such words into his
master's lips is inconceivable. For then St Paul had died,
and Christ had not returned.
(4) Observe, too, the manner in which the writer speaks in the
same passage of "those falling asleep" (present tense: see note
ad loci), in such a way as to show that the question concerning
the fate of believers dying before the Lord's return was a new
one, that had arisen in the Thessalonian Church for the first
time. If this be the case, the letter can only have been written
within a few months of this Church's birth. For it is never
long in any large community before death has made its mark.
II. The suspicions cherished against the Second Epistle have
been more persistent; but they are equally ill-founded. Baur
rightly maintained that the two letters are from the same
source, and that both must be regarded as spurious, or both
authentic. The Second is closely bound to the First, alike in
language and in matter; and the two chief and distinctive
passages of the former (ch. ii. 1 — 12; iii. 6 — 15) are based on
the corresponding paragraphs of the latter. If we ascribe the

INTRODUCTION.

3° 
Second Epistle to an imitator of the Apostle, we must suppose
that another writer, at least 20 years later1, taking up 1 Thes
salonians and adding this sequel to it, has reproduced the
Apostle's manner to perfection, and has carried his thoughts
and his line of exhortation forward precisely where he left them
off; and that in doing so he has escaped detection by skilfully
avoiding every kind of reference to intervening events and to
the circumstances of his own time. We have no reason to
believe that any post-Apostolic writer had either the skill or
cunning to execute such a feat. And no adequate motive for
the forgery is adduced.
It is alleged that the purpose of the supposed inventor was
to introduce into the Pauline theology Apocalyptic ideas, similar
to those found in the Revelation of St John, and to dissemi
nate them amongst Gentile Christians. There is manifestly a
relation between the Johannine and the Pauline Apocalypse;
but as we shall endeavour to show (Appendix on "The Man of
Lawlessness"), it is St John who has derived from St Paul, not
vice versa. The brief and enigmatic sketch of this Book is
developed and filled out in larger proportions and with glowing
dramatic colours by the Seer of Patmos. Moreover, it is im
possible to point to any time subsequent to the year 70, at
which there existed an expectation of the immediate coming of
Christ so intense and overpowering as is indicated in 2 Ep.
ii. 2, and which needed to be qualified and checked in the
manner of this Epistle. John's Apocalypse, on the contrary, is
designed to quicken a flagging faith in the parousia.
Add to this, amongst the details of St Paul's Apocalyptic
sketch, the expression of ver. 1, "our gathering together unto
Him," which accords with 1 Ep. iv. 13—18, and indicates a
time when in the first freshness of Christian hope it was natural
to think that the Lord would return to find the body of His
people still living on the earth ; "the temple of God," ver. 4,
pointing to the Jewish Temple yet standing (see note ad loc) ;
and the description of "the Adversary" as "exalting himself
1 Recent hostile critics, such as Hilgenfeld and Pfleiderer, would
say, 60 years later, ' ' in the closing years of Trajan " !

INTRODUCTION. 31

against every one called God," — "seating himself in the temple
of God, showing off himself as God," which is quite intelligible
if written when the blasphemous freaks of the Emperor Caligula
and his attempt to set up his statue in the Temple at Jerusalem
(40 A.D.) were still vividly remembered. 'At a later period
these incidents were effaced by other and yet more portentous
developments of "the mystery of lawlessness," such as have
left their trace on the pages of the Book of Revelation, but
are not indicated here.
There is said to be, after all, a contradiction between
1 Ep. iv. 13 — v. 10 and 2 Ep. ii. 1 — 12, the First Epistle re
presenting the parousia as near and sudden, the second as
more distant and known by premonitory signs. But the latter
modifies and corrects an erroneous inference drawn from the
former statement. The premonitory sign of the coming of
Antichrist shews that the end, though it might be near, is not
immediate. On the other hand, no date is given for the advent
of Antichrist in 2 Ep. ii. ; and the "times and seasons" still
remain uncertain, as in 1 Thessalonians. The same contrast
is found in Christ's own predictions — e.g. between Matt. xxiv.
33 (a preparatory sign) and ver. 36 (uncertainty of date).
Outside ch. ii. 1 — 12 there is nothing to lend a colour to the
theory of a later origin for the Second Epistle. The directions
given respecting the treatment of the "brother walking dis
orderly" belong to quite the incipient stage of Church govern
ment and discipline. To suppose this passage written in the
second century, or even in the last quarter of the first, is to
attribute to the author an extraordinary power of ignoring the
conditions of his own time, and a power exercised in a quite
gratuitous fashion. But these directions harmonise well enough
with those addressed to the Corinthians (1 Cor. v.) respecting
the extreme case of disorder occurring in that Church.

32 INTRODUCTION.

CHAPTER VI.
The Style and Character of the Two Epistles.
In Style the two Epistles are as nearly as possible
identical. The characteristic features of St Paul's dialect and
manner as a writer are very apparent; but they have not yet
taken the bold and developed form which they present in the
Epistles of the second group (Romans, Corinthians, Galatians).
In wealth of language, in force of intellect and spiritual pas
sion, these letters do not reach the height of some of the
later Epistles. Nor should we expect them to do so. The
Apostle's style is the most natural and unstudied in the
world. It is, as M. Renan says, "conversation stenographed."
In Galatians and 2 Corinthians, where he is labouring under
great excitement of feeling, face to face with malignant enemies
and with his disaffected or wavering children, his language is
full of passion and grief, vehement, broken, passing in a moment
from rebuke to tenderness, from lofty indignation to an almost
abject humility : now he "speaks mere flames" — but the sentence
ends in pity and in tears; "yea, what earnestness, what
clearing of himself, what indignation, what yearning, what
jealousy, what avenging!" In Romans and Galatians, again,
you watch the play of his keen and dexterous logic — large and
massive generalisation, bold inference, vivid illustration, swift
retort, and an eagerness that leaps to its conclusion over
intervening steps of argument indicated only by a word or turn
of phrase in passing. But these Epistles afford little room for
such qualities of style. They are neither passionate, nor argu
mentative; but practical, consolatory, prompted by affection,
by memory and hope. Hence they represent, as it has been
aptly said, "St Paul's normal style," the way in which he would
commonly write and talk to his friends.
In their general character, in simplicity and ease of manner,
in the rarity of those involved periods and abrupt transitions
which distinguish the polemical Epistles, these letters resemble

 INTRODUCTION. 33
that to the Philippians. But it is remarkable that the Epistle
to the Philippians contains twice as many hapax legomena to
the chapter (i.e. words used nowhere else in the N. T.), as do
our Epistles1. For Philippians was written nearly ten years
later; and it will be found that as time went on the Apostle's
vocabulary constantly enlarged, and the habit of using new and
singular words grew upon him.
Ch. i. 2 — 5; ii. 14 — 16 in the First Epistle; ch. i. 6 — 10; ii.
8 — 10 in the Second, are good examples of St Paul's charac
teristic practice of extending his sentences to an indefinite
length in qualifying and explanatory clauses, by the use of par
ticiples and relative pronouns and conjunctions. Later Epistles
(Ephesians especially) show how this habit also gained upon
the writer. In 1 Ep. i. 8; ii. 11 ; iv. 4, 14; 2 Ep. i. 9; ii. 7; iii. 6
we find instances of ellipsis and anacoluthon — of those altered
and broken sentences, and dropped words left to the reader's
understanding, to which the student of St Paul is accustomed.
1 Ep. ii. 14, 15 (the Jew s — who killed the Lord Jesus, &c);
v. 8, 9 (salvation— for God did not appoint us to wrath, &c);
2 Ep. i. 10 (that believed— for our testimony was believed)
illustrate St Paul's curious fashion of "going off upon a word,"
where some word suddenly suggests an idea that draws him
away from the current of the sentence, which he perhaps re
sumes in an altered form. In 1 Ep. ii. 4, 19 — 20; iii. 6 — 7; iv.
2 and 6; v. 4 — 5; 2 Ep. ii. 9 and 11, 10 and 12 we see how
expressions of the Apostle are apt to return upon and repeat
themselves in a changed guise. 1 Ep. iii. 5 ; v. 23 ; 2 Ep. iii.
2—3 ; hi. 1 1 (read in the Greek) exemplify the fondness, shared
by St Paul with many great writers, for paronomasia, that is
for playing on the sound of the words he uses.
There is not a single quotation from the O. T. in these
Epistles. St Paul is addressing Gentile converts, and in such a
way that Scriptural proof and illustration are not required. But
there are a number of evident allusions in that direction, show-
1 By counting verses instead of chapters, we find this statement
somewhat modified. Philippians contains not quite two hapax legomena
in every five verses ; 1 and 2 Thess. exactly one in every four. For the
number of hap. leg. see Grimm-Thayer's N. T.JjrrirP«, Apgendix IV.
THESS.

34 INTRODUCTION.

ing how the writer's mind was coloured by the language of the
Old Testament. Compare
i Ep. ii. 4 with Ps. xvii. 3, &c. ;
ii. 16 with Gen. xv. 16;
iv. 5 with Ps. lxxix. 6 ;
v. 8 with Isai. Iix. 17;
2 Ep. i. 8 with Isai. Ixvi. 15;
i. 9, 10 with Isai. ii. 10, 11, 17, 19 — 21 ;
ii. 4 with Dan. xi. 36;
ii. 8 with Isai. xi. 4 ;
ii. 13 ("beloved by the Lord") with Deut. xxxiii. 12.
More remarkable, and quite unusual in St Paul, are the re
peated echoes of the words of Jesus that occur in the passages
relating to the Judgement and Second Coming. Compare
1 Ep. ii. 15, 16 with Matt, xxiii. 29 — 39, Luke xi. 45 — 52,
xii>- 33>345
iv. 16, 17 with Matt. xxiv. 30, 31 ;
v. 1 — 6 with Matt. xxiv. 36 — 44, Luke xii. 38 — 40, 46 ;
2 Ep. ii. 2 with Matt. xxiv. 6.
In their character these oldest extant Epistles of the
Apostle Paul can now be easily described. They are the letters
of a missionary, written to an infant Church but very recently
brought from heathen darkness into the marvellous light of the
Gospel. They lie nearer, therefore, to the missionary preaching
of the Apostle of the Gentiles, as we find it, for instance, in
Acts xiv. 15—17 ; xvii. 22 — 31, than do any of the later Epistles.
This accounts for their simplicity, for the absence in them of
controversy, and the elementary nature of their doctrine1.
They are addressed to a Macedonian Church, and they ex
hibit in common with the Epistle to the (Macedonian) Philippians
a peculiar warmth of feeling and mutual confidence between
writer and readers. They are singularly affectionate letters.
From 2 Cor. viii. 1, 2 ; xi. 9 we gather that the generosity which
endeared the Philippians to St Paul (Phil. iv. 14—17) distin-
1 But compare what is said of the character of the Macedonians in
Chapter IV. above.

INTRODUCTION. 35

guished the Macedonian Churches generally. The Apostle
can scarcely find words tender enough or images sufficiently
vivid to express his regard for the Thessalonians (1 Ep. ii. 7,
11, 17, 19, 20; iii. 9). He feels his life bound up with them (ch.
iii. 8). He boasts of them everywhere (2 Ep. i. 4; 2 Cor. viii.
1, 2). If he exhorts- them, his warnings are mingled with
commendations, lest they should think he has some fault to
find (1 Ep. iv. 1, 9, 10; v. 11 ; 2 Ep. iii. 4). Again and again
he repeats, more than in any other letters, "You yourselves
know," "Remember ye not?" and the like, — so sure he is that
they have understood and bear in mind his teaching, and are
altogether one with him. In like fashion, writing to the Philip
pians (ch. i. 5), the Apostle gives thanks to God "for your fel
lowship in the gospel, from the first day until now."
Further, these two are especially cheering and consolatory
letters. The Apostle sent Timothy to " comfort " the Thessa
lonians "concerning their faith" (1 Ep. iii. 2), and in writing
he pursues the same object. Persecution was the lot of this
Church from the beginning (1 Ep. iii. 4; Acts xvii. 5—9), as it
continued to be long afterwards (2 Cor. viii. 2; comp. what
was written to Philippi ten years later, Phil. i. 28, 29). So the
Apostle bends all his efforts to encourage his distressed and
suffering friends. He teaches them to glory in tribulation. He
makes them smile through their tears. He reveals the "weight
of glory" that their afflictions are working out for them, till in
comparison they seem light indeed. He shows them — and to
a generous Christian heart there is no greater satisfaction — how
much their faithful endurance is furthering the cause of Christ
and of truth (1 Ep. i. 6—8; 2 Ep. i. 3, 4), and how it comforts
and encourages himself and his fellow-labourers (1 Ep. iii. 5—7).
Lastly, these are eschatological Epistles : that is, in the lan
guage of theology, they set forth "the Last Things" in Christian
doctrine,— the second coming of Christ, the raising of the dead
and transformation of the living saints, and the Judgement of
the world ; they announce the advent of Antichrist as the fore
runner and Satanic counterpart of the returning Christ (2 Ep.
ii. 1 — 12). The latter passage is called the Pauline Apoca-
3—2

36 INTRODUCTION.
lypse; since it holds in St Paul's Epistles, in regard to its
teaching and import, the place of the Book of Revelation in the
writings of St John. We have suggested, in Chapter III. of
the Introduction, some circumstances that may have led St
Paul to dwell at this time especially upon this subject. The
persecutions under which the Thessalonians laboured served
to incline their thoughts in the same direction, — toward the
heavenly kingdom that they hoped would soon arrive to put
an end to the miseries of " this present evil world."
By their eschatological views and teachings these letters are
linked to ch. xv. of I Corinthians, which was probably the next
of St Paul's Epistles in order of time to these. Afterwards the
subject of the parousia retreats into the shade in the Apostle's
writings. For this two causes suggest themselves. Between the
writing of I and 2 Corinthians St Paul suffered from a severe
sickness (2 Cor. i. 8 — 10; iv. 7 — v. 8), which brought him
to the gates of death, and profoundly affected his spiritual
experience : from this time he anticipated that death would end
his earthly career (Phil. i. 20, 21; Acts xx. 24; 2 Tim. iv. 6 — 8,
18). And again, the disturbing effect of the thought of the
Parousia in the Thessalonian Church and the danger of a
morbid pre-occupation of mind with this idea such as he had
seen there, may have led him to make the subject less promi
nent in his later teaching. In St Paul's last letters, however,
written at the close of life to his helpers Timothy and Titus, he
reverts frequently and fondly to "that blessed hope and appear
ing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ"
(Tit. ii. 13). Long ago had he reconciled himself to the fact
that he must first indeed be "absent from the body" in order
to be "present with the Lord." Yet still the coming of the Lord
Jesus was the goal of his labours and longings. It was in his
eyes the summit of all Christian hope. And these two fervent
Epistles, with their bright horizon of promise crossed by lurid
thunder-clouds, breathe throughout the constant desire of the
Church with which the Book of Scripture closes, —
AMEN. COME, LORD JESUS!

INTRODUCTION. 37

CHAPTER VII.
Analysis and Digest of the Epistles.
I. In the First Epistle there are two clearly marked sections.
Ch. I. — III. axe personal; Ch. IV. and V., moral and doctrinal.
(1) The first and chief part of the letter is an outpouring of the
Apostle's heart to his readers. He tells them what he thinks of them,
how he prays for them and thanks God for what they are, for all they
have attained and all they have endured as Christian believers. Then
he talks about himself and his fellow-missionaries, reminding his readers
of their work and life at Thessalonica, and informing them of his repeated
attempts to return to them, of the circumstances under which he had
sent Timothy in his place, and the inexpressible delight given to him by
Timothy's good report of their state and of their love for the absent
Apostles. (2) In v. 1 of Ch. IV. the writer begins to preach, and passes from
narrative and prayer to exhortation. His homily bears chiefly on
Christian morals, — " how you ought to walk and to please God." In
the midst of this condensed and powerful address is introduced the
great passage relating to the Second Coming (Ch. IV. 13 — V. 11),
explaining to the Thessalonians what they should believe on this vital
matter of faith, to them so profoundly interesting. The misunder
standings and the agitation existing in this Church affected its " walk ;"
they were injurious to the Church's peace and disturbing to its sober
ness and joy of faith. Hence the introduction of the doctrinal question
at this stage and in this form.
II. The Second Epistle contains very little personal matter. After
the Thanksgiving, which occupies the first chapter, St Paul proceeds
at once to the questions of doctrine and discipline which called for this
further deliverance from him. Ch. II. and III. of 2 Ep. therefore
correspond to Ch. IV. and V. of 1 Ep. But the scope of St Paul's
exhortations is here more limited. He deals (1) in Ch. II. 1—12,
with the false alarm about the parousia, which was just now producing
a demoralising excitement ; (2) with the case of certain idlers and busy-
bodies, whose obstinate indiscipline compels him to take stern measures
for their correction (Ch. III. 6—14). The intervening part of the

38

INTRODUCTION.

Epistle (Ch. II. 13— III. 5) is' taken up with thanksgiving, prayer,
and exhortation of a general character.
The following is the scheme of exposition pursued in the Notes
upon these two Epistles : —

Epistle. §i. §2.
§3- §4- §5-§6-§7-

2 Epist. § i
§3§4§5

Address and Salutation. Ch. i. i.
The Thanksgiving and the Reasons for it.

Ch. i.

The Apostle's Conduct at Thessalonica. Ch. ii. i-
(Parenthetical) Jewish Persecutors of the Church.
ii. 13 — 16-
St Paul's Present Relations to the Thessalonians.
ii. 17 — iii. 13.
A Lesson in Christian Morals. Ch. iv. 1 — 12.
The Coming of the Lord Jesus. Ch. iv. 1 3 — v. 1 1 .
Rules for the Sanctified Life. Ch. v. 12 — 24.
Conclusion. Ch. v. 25 — 28.

-12. Ch.

Ch.

Salutation and Thanksgiving. Ch. i. 1 — 4.
The Approaching Retribution. Ch. i. 5 — 12.
The Revelation ofthe Lawless One. Ch. ii. 1 — 12.
Words of Comfort and Prayer. Ch. ii. 13 — iii. 5.
Discipline for the Disorderly. Ch. iii. 6—15.
Conclusion. Ch. iii. 16 — 18.

It may be convenient to give in conclusion a digest of the Epistles,
in the shape of a running paraphrase : —
The First Epistle to the Thessalonians.
Ch. I. Paul and his colleagues wish the Thessalonian Church
" Grace and Peace." (v. 2) They constantly remember them in their
prayers, and thank God for the rich fruit which their faith and love and
hope in Christ are bearing, (v. 4) They are sure that God in His love
has chosen them for His own. (v. 5) They had proof of this in the
confidence, wrought by the Holy Spirit, with which they at first
addressed them and in the powerful effect which the gospel had upon
them. With joyful courage these young disciples encountered persecu
tion, following the path marked out by the Apostles and their Lord.
(v. 7) They were indeed a pattern to their fellow-believers; and the

INTRODUCTION. 39

story of their conversion from idolatry to the service of the true God
and hope in Christ had spread even beyond Macedonia and Achaia,
and bore signal witness to the truth and power of the Divine message.
Ch. II. "I need scarcely remind you," he continues, "of the
way in which our ministry amongst you began. You know what we
suffered at Philippi, and you remember the boldness with which we
proclaimed God's message to you. (v. 3) There was no delusion or
trickery, no impure motive in our work. We felt that we had a
solemn trust committed to us by God, and we spoke and acted
accordingly, (v. 6) You know that we never flattered you ; and God
knows we sought no gain or glory for ourselves. We might, in our
apostolic quality, have charged you with our maintenance ; (v. 7) but
rather we treated you like a mother nursing her children, ready to give
you, with the gospel, our very lives. So much had we learnt to love
you! (v. 9) We toiled night and day to save you expense, while we
preached to you the gospel. To yourselves we can appeal whether our
conduct towards you did not in every way commend our message.
(v. 11) As our children, with fatherly counsel and encouragement we
strove to make you worthy of your calling and your hopes.
(v. 13) "And, thank God, our labour was not in vain. It was
God's word, not man's, you received in our message; and in you it has
its due effect. You are following in the steps of the Judean Churches
and sharing their persecutions. Your fellow-countrymen treat you as
they were treated by their fellow-Jews— the Jews, (v. 15) murderers of
the Lord Jesus as they were of the prophets ! Enemies of mankind,
offensive to God, they chase us from city to city and would prevent our
preaching to the Gentiles. But His wrath is upon them, and their
doom is near !
(v. 17) "As for ourselves, compelled to leave you for a while (our
hearts indeed still with you), we counted on coming back again to see
you. We made determined efforts, more than once, to do this; but
Satan stood in the way. (v. 19) For you verily will be our glory and
crown at Christ's coming, as you are already ! Ch. III. And so, on
our second failure, finding ourselves at Athens, we thought it best to
send Timothy, just then our only companion. We were fearful lest you
should have been overpowered by affliction ; and we sent him to cheer
you and sustain your faith. We had told you, as you will remember,
what conflicts you might expect ; and so the event proved.

40 INTRODUCTION.
(v. 6) "But now Timothy has returned; and how shall I relate the
joy his tidings give me ! how thank God sufficiently for His grace
manifest in you ! To hear of your steadfast faith and abounding love, of
your affection for us and great desire to see us — all this is an unspeakable
comfort ; it is new life to me. (v. 11) May God our Father and Christ
our Lord grant me soon the delight of seeing you, and helping you onward
in your faith ! May the Lord quicken yet more your love, as ours is
kindled towards you ! May He give you confidence of heart, and the
holiness which will fit you for His coming !
Ch. IV. "Before we close this letter, we have some requests to
make, which we urge upon you in the name of the Lord Jesus. In
general, that you follow the rules of life we gave you. You are doing
this, we know ; but there is room for progress, (v. 3) In particular, be
free from all taint of unchastity. Be masters of your bodily passions.
In this lies great part of your sanctification. Lust, with its dishonour,
is the mark of Gentile godlessness. (v. 6) This sin brings wrong and
injury on others, while it degrades the man himself. The Lord is the
avenger of every offence against social purity. By such offence you set
Him at defiance, and outrage His Holy Spirit given to you.
(v. 9) "As to brotherly love, God Himself is your teacher; and all
your brethren in Macedonia benefit by your proficiency. Still, in this
grace increase is always possible. We desire to see in you a quiet
spirit, (v. 12) and that honourable labour and independence be your
ambition !
(v. 13) " Death has been busy amongst you. And your sorrow is
deepened by a strange fear lest your sleeping friends should have lost
their part in the hope of Christ's return and their place in His heavenly
kingdom. Be comforted. His resurrection from the dead is * pledge
of theirs. God will restore them at His return, (v. 15) They will
have indeed the first and foremost share in His glorious advent. At His
trumpet's call they will rise from their sleep; (v. 17) we who live on
the earth will rejoin them; and together, in one body, we shall ascend
to meet our returning Lord. With Him we and they shall then dwell
for ever I
Ch. V. 1. "But when this will be, and what train of events will
precede the Advent, remains a secret. We are told that the day of the
Lord comes ' as a thief in the night.' (v. 3) So it will prove for the
wicked and unbelieving. Just when they are most secure — like men

INTRODUCTION. 41

asleep at night or drunken — then ruin falls upon them ! But you surely
are not in the dark ; (v. 5) you live in the daylight, as sober, wakeful
men. And when the end comes, it will not find you unprepared. But
take heed that it be so. (v. 8) Be ready, like soldiers on the watch,
clad in the armour of steadfast faith and love, and a high Christian hope.
Well may you hope for salvation in the dread Day, knowing that God
has chosen you for this, (v. 10) and that Christ has died to the end that
in life or death you may live evermore with Him. — With such thoughts
comfort and edify each other.
(v. 12) "But further, we must ask you to appreciate the labours of
those who hold rule and office amongst you. Their work is difficult; give
them your confidence and love. Avoid all contention, (v. 14) Let
each take his part in the work of brotherly admonition, of consolation,
of sympathy and patient help in dealing with weak or troublesome
members of the flock. Never must evil be retaliated ; do nothing but
good to others for your part.
(v. 16) "Let your life be filled with joy, prayer, thanksgiving: this is
the Christian life; it is God's will for you. Beware of quenching the
influence of the Holy Spirit by disparagement of His prophetic gifts.
Put everything to proof indeed ; but hold fast what is good, while you
shrink from every kind of evil. (v. 23) Above all, may God Himself,
Source and Giver of peace, accomplish your full sanctification. In the
integrity of a consecrated body, soul, and spirit may you be preserved
and found without blame at Christ's coming. God has called you for
this end ; He is faithful : it shall be done !
(v. 25) "Have us remembered in your prayers.
" Exchange a holy kiss of salutation as from me.
' ' I solemnly require you to see that this letter is read to every brother
in the Church.
"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you !"

The Second Epistle.
Ch. I. In commencing his second letter, bearing also the names
of "Silas and Timothy" with his own, the Apostle repeats his
salutation of "Grace and Peace." (v. 3) He feels "bound to thank
God" for the signal growth of the Thessalonians' faith, and the
affluence of their love ; and especially for their courageous fidelity under

42 INTRODUCTION.
violent and continued persecution. Over this, as he tells them, he
boasts everywhere on their account, (v. 5) In their steadfastness he sees
a token of the rest and heavenly glory awaiting the sufferers, and an
omen of fearful import for their enemies. "You and they," he says,
"are in the hands of a righteous God. And they will have to pay for
all they are inflicting on you now, and for their refusal of the knowledge
of God and His gospel, when Christ returns in triumph, (v. 9) Eternal
destruction will be their doom, into which the terror and majesty of
His presence will drive them out ; while His glory will shine forth in
His saints — in you who believed our testimony of Him. (v. 11) And so
we pray for you, that you may prove worthy of your calling, that all
may be fulfilled in you that goodness can desire and faith effect ; that so
Christ may find in you His glory, you in Him ! For this is the design
of grace." Ch. II. The Apostle has one principal and urgent purpose in
writing now. It touches "the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," in
regard to which he desires to remove a dangerous and disturbing impres
sion existing in Thessalonica, to the effect that "the day of the Lord
was close at hand !" (v. 2) How this rumour originated, it was hard to
say, — whether through supposed prophetic intimation, or the ordinary
teaching of the Church, or from some misunderstanding or abuse of the
Apostle's written words. But its disastrous effect was manifest, and
its falsity. — "I gave a. token," the Apostle writes, "of that which
must precede the final coming of Christ : there will be first the
apostasy, and the revelation of the Man of lawlessness, the great
enemy of God. (v. 4) He will attempt to annihilate religion, and will
seat himself in God's temple as the sole object of human worship.
The spirit of atheistic lawlessness, to be incarnated in him, is already
actively at work — but for the present under restraint, as I pointed out
to you. (v. 6) One day, however, the restraint will be withdrawn ; and
then the Lawless One will stand revealed ! — whom the Lord Jesus by
His breath will consume, and destroy by the splendour of His coming !
— (v. 9) Satan will instigate the great Opposer, and attest his coming
by miracles, suited to deceive those whose hearts are inclined to false
hood. Their deception will be the fit punishment for their rejection of
the truth of God, and their love of lies and wickedness.
(v. 13) " Far different, brethren, is it with you. God has set His
love upon you and made you His own. For this end He sanctifies
your spirit, and His truth commands your faith. And from ourlins von

INTRODUCTION. 43

received salvation, — for which we owe to God continual thanksgiving.
(v. 15) We bid you stand fast, and hold firmly by all that we have
taught you, both by word and letter. May our Lord Jesus Christ
Himself be your comforter ; may God Who loves you and has given you
in His grace eternal hopes and consolations, comfort your hearts and
sustain you in all your service both of deed and word !
Ch. III. "Let us add, that we in turn need your prayers. We
would fain see the gospel triumph at Corinth, as it did in Thessalonica.
Pray that we may be delivered from evil and unbelieving men. Surely
our faithful Lord will be your keeper, (v. 4) And we rely on your
faithfulness and regard for our injunctions. The Lord lead you still in
the way of God's love and Christ's patience 1
(v. 6) "There is one especial charge we have to lay upon you:
we require, in the name and authority of Christ, that you have no
fellowship with insubordinate brethren, with any who act in defiance of
the rule of life we prescribed. What that is you know by our example.
(v. 8) Far were we from eating the bread of idleness, from burdening
others with our maintenance and insisting on our right to live at their
cost. (v. 10) And we always said, Let the idler suffer hunger, (v. 11)
Yet we hear that there are men of this kind in your Church — unruly,
neglecting their own business, meddling with that of others. In the
name of Christ we solemnly charge them to be quiet, and to earn an
honest living. And none of you must be discouraged by their mis
conduct, (v. 14) If any of the offenders still refuses correction, let him
be a marked man, — have no company with him. Perhaps he will then
be ashamed. Still you must not regard him as an enemy, but as a
brother needing admonition.
(v. 16) "Now may peace be with you, from the Lord of peace!
May He be with you all !
"I add this greeting with my own hand, and sign it, Paul. Note
the signature : you will in future know my letters by it.
" The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all ! "

THE FIRST EPISTLE OF PAUL THE APOSTLE

THESSALONIANS.

P

AUL, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church 1
of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and

To the Thessalonians I. So the title runs in the oldest copies.
St Paul's Epistles were at first gathered into a single volume by
themselves, entitled ' ' the Apostle. " Within this volume the Epistles
were distinguished simply by the names of those to whom they were
addressed. The order of this earliest collection was the same as ap
pears in our English Bibles (except that the position of the Epistle to
the Hebrews varied — now fourth, now tenth, and then last of the four
teen). The Thessalonian letters came last in the second group, which
consisted of five smaller Epistles addressed to Churches — Ephesians to
2 Thessalonians. This was not the order of time (see Introd. p. 27),
but of magnitude and supposed importance.
The Address and Salutation. Ch. I. 1.
This being the earliest of St Paul's extant letters, let us note with
care the form of his address and introduction, for it is that from which
he never departed. But his greetings were enlarged as time went on,
and varied with every variation in the circumstances of his readers and
in his relations to them.
The ordinary address of an ancient letter ran thus : "X. to Y. greet
ing." The greeting was, in Latin, a wish of "Health"; in Greek, of
" Joy " ; in Hebrew, " Peace to thee ! " The Apostle's salutation, adopted
by the Church, combined the Hebrew and Greek (Jewish and Gentile,
Eastern and Western) forms of courtesy, transforming the latter by a
verbal change (chairein becoming charts) — slight indeed to the ear, but
great in its significance — into the devout and Christian "Grace to you!"
On grace and peace see note below.
The Address is usually followed by an Act of Thanksgiving (vv. 3 ff.)
1. Paul] Here and in 2 Ep. St Paul introduces himself without
the title Apostle, or any personal designation. Similarly in his much

46 I. THESSALONIANS, I. [v. i.
in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace,
from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.
later Epistles to the Philippians, and to his friend Philemon. For in
these cases he has no need to stand on his dignity. He is "gentle
among them, as a nurse with her children " (ch. ii. 6 — 8) ; and prefers,
as in writing to Philemon (ver. 9), to merge the Apostle in the friend.
For a further reason comp. note on Apostles, ch. ii. 6.
Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus] "Silvanus and Timotheus" had
been Paul's companions at Thessalonica, see Introd. chap. 11. The
Apostle was accustomed to associate with himself in writing to the
Churches any of his helpers present with him and known to his readers.
This was courteous, and promoted mutual sympathy.
Silvanus (so in 2 Ep. i. 1 ; 2 Cor. i. 19; 1 Pet. v. 12) is the Silas
of Acts xv. — xviii.; comp. Lucas (Luke) for Lucanus. The name
(English, Sylvan : comp. our surname Wood, or Woods) is Latin, like
that of Paul himself (Paulus). Both were Roman citizens, as we learn
from Acts xvi. 37. Silas was notwithstanding a Jew — a leading member
ofthe Church at Jerusalem, and an inspired man (a "prophet": Actsxv.
22, 23). Silas shared with the Apostle Paul the honour of planting the
gospel and first suffering for Christ in Europe; and his name worthily
stands at the head of these earliest books of the N. T. The association
of St Silas with St Paul terminated with the Second Missionary Journey
of the Apostle. But he is probably the " Silvanus " of 1 Pet. v. 12, and
his name is, along with that of Mark, a link between the Apostles Peter
and Paul.
Timotheus (on whom see further ch. iii. 1, 2) is our familiar Timothy,
as the name is uniformly given in the R. V. He shares in the addresses
of 2 Corinthians, Philippians, Colossians, and 1 and 2 Thessalonians ; and
St Paul toward the close of his life wrote two inspired letters to this most
constant and beloved of his companions, his ' ' dear child Timothy. "
He joined the Apostle in the course of this Second Missionary Expedi
tion (Acts xvi. 1 — 3), and remained in his service to the end of St
Paul's life. At this time Timothy must have been very young ; for he
is referred to as a "young man" in 1 Tim. iv. 12 and 2 Tim. ii. 22,
twelve years later. In the narrative of the Acts at this time he stands
quite in the background; while Silas took a leading part in the
common work, Timothy acted as their youthful attendant and appren
tice, just as John Mark was "minister" (or "attendant," R. V.) to
Barnabas and Paul at an earlier period (Acts xiii. 5).
These three names — Paul, Silas, Timothy — are typical of the mixed
state of society in Apostolic times, and the varied material of which the
Church was at first composed. It was built on a Jewish basis, with a
Greeco-Roman superstructure. Paul and Silvanus were Jews, with
Roman name and citizenship. Timotheus had a Greek name and
father, with a Jewish mother (Acts xvi. 1 — 3).
So much for the authors of the letter : the readers are designated the
Church of Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
(R. V.). This remarkable form of address, used in both EDistles. th<»

v. I.] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 47
Apostle does not employ again. We may expand it thus : " To the
assembly of Thessalonians, gathered in the twofold Name, confessing
God as Father and Jesus Christ as Lord."
Observe the two parts of this description : (1) the local qualification,
" church of Thessalonians." Nearest to this is the phrase "churches
of Galatia" (Gal. i. 2), named however from the district, not the people.
In 1 and 2 Corinthians the address runs, " To the church of God that
is in Corinth"; afterwards, "To the saints that are in Ephesus, Phi
lippi," &c. The change from "church ^Thessalonians" to "church in
Corinth" is significant ; it indicates an enlargement during the four years
intervening of the conception of the Church, now no longer constituted
by the local assembly, but thought of as one and the same Church here
or there, in Corinth, Rome, or Jerusalem. Comp. note on ch. ii. 14,
"churches of God which are in Judaea."
(2) The spiritual definition: " the assembly... in God the Father,"
&c. Church is in the N. T. ecclesia (French eglise), the common Greek
word for " assembly," or legal meeting of citizens, " called out " by the
herald; which in the LXX (the Greek rendering ofthe O. T.) is applied
frequently to the solemn religious assemblies of the people of Israel.
The Apostle distinguishes this "assembly of Thessalonians" from both
those gatherings. The Christian ecclesia is "in God the Father," —
therefore a religious assembly marked off from all that is pagan, having
"one God, the Father"; also "in the Lord Jesus Christ," and thus
distinguished from everything Jewish and Pagan alike, by its confession
of "one Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Cor. viii. 5, 6). The creed ofthe Thessa
lonian Church is here contained in brief. Its members had been ' ' baptized
into the name ofthe Father, and ofthe Son "; and all that they believed in
and lived for as a Church centred in these two names — two, yet one (" in
God the Father and the Lord," not "and in the Lord"). "In God
as Father," they knew and owned themselves His children. "In the
Lord," they discerned their Saviour's Divine Sonship and glory (ver.
10); "in Jesus," His human birth and history (ch. ii. 15; iv. 14, &c);
and "in Christ," the living Head and Redeemer of His people. This
is His full style and title, " The Lord Jesus Christ."
Grace be unto you, and peace] In this earliest Epistle the salutation
has its shortest form. The qualifying words, "from God our Father,"
&c. (see R. V.), are not authentic here ; they first appear in 2 Ep.
The usage of St Paul's other Epistles naturally led copyists to make
the addition here. But the "church" that is "in God the Father and
the Lord Jesus Christ," needs not to be told from Whom these gifts
come. Grace is the sum .of all blessings that God bestows through Christ.
Peace is the sum of all spiritual blessing that man receives and ex
periences; it is Grace in its fruit and realisation. In the wide sense
of its Hebrew original (ShalSm), Peace is more than the absence of
hostility and disorder; it denotes health and harmony of nature, inward
tranquillity and wellbeing. And Grace, which in the first instance is
God's love and favour to the undeserving, becomes also the inward pos
session of those who receive it, manifesting itself as the spirit and habit
of their lives. The supreme exhibition of God's grace is the death of

48 I. THESSALONIANS, 1. [vv. 2, 3.
2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making
3 mention of you in our prayers; remembering without
Christ for sinful men, and the great instrument of peace is the sacrifice
ofthe cross: Jesus "by God's grace tasted death for every man,"
" making peace through the blood of His cross " (Heb. ii. 9 ; Col. i.
20; Eph. ii. 14 — 18; &c).
St Paul's whole gospel is in these two words. Grace is his watch
word, as Love is that of St John. For his conversion and Apostolic
call were, above everything, a revelation of Divine grace: see 1 Cor.
xv. 9, 10, "By the grace of God I am what I am"; comp. Eph. ii. 7;
iii. 2 — 8; 1 Tim. i. 12 — 15. See additional note 01a grace, -t Ep. i. 12.
Section I. The Thanksgiving and the Reasons for it.
Ch. I. 2—10.
In every Epistle, except Galatians, the Apostle's first words are of
thanks and praise to God for the fruits of God's grace found in his
readers, according to his own maxim (ch. v. 18), "In everything give
thanks." And his thanksgiving is expressed here in the fullest and
warmest terms. Its special grounds and reasons lie (1) in the earnest
Christian life of the Thessalonians, ver. 3; which gave assurance (2) of
their Divine election, ver. 4 ; already manifest (3) in the signal character
of their conversion, which took place under the most trying circum
stances, vv. 5, 6 ; and which (4) had greatly furthered the progress of
the gospel, w. 7, 8; for (5) everywhere the story was told of how the
Thessalonians had forsaken idolatry in order to serve the true God, and
to await from heaven the return of Jesus, vv. 9, 10.
This long sentence is a good example of St Paul's manner as a
writer. His thought flows on in a single rapid stream, turning now
hither, now thither, but always advancing towards its goal. His sen
tences are not built up in regular and distinct periods; but grow and
extend themselves like living things under our eyes, "gaining force in
each successive clause by the repetition and expansion of the preceding"
(Jowett). See Introd. pp. 32, 33.
2. We give thanks to God always for you all] "We," i.e. the three
above named. Here, asinPhil. i. 4, he has thankfulness and joy over them
"all ;" no other Churches seem to have been so much to the Apostle's
mind as these two. And everything dear to him or useful to others in
his friends moves him to gratitude toward God on their account. This
St Paul felt that he "owed to God" (2 Ep. i. 3), the Source of all
goodness in men ; and it was the best and safest way of commending
them. making mention of you in our prayers] i.e. when engaged in prayer.
As often as the Apostle and his companions prayed, the Thessalonian
Church came to their mind; and with supplication praise on their
behalf constantly mingled. For the connection of prayer and thanks
giving, see notes on ch. v. 17, 18.
3 . remembering without ceasing. . . in the sight of God and our Father]
Standing ever in the presence of God, the witness of all his thoughts,

v. 3-] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 49
ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and pa
st Paul bears with him unceasingly the remembrance of what he had
beheld in the Christian life and spirit of his Thessalonian brethren.
The adjunct comes in with solemn emphasis at the end of the verse.
Comp. ch. iii. 9: "What fitting thanks can we render for all the joy
with which we rejoice over you before our God?" and the frequency
with which the writer appeals to "God" as "witness" of his feelings
and his behaviour (ch. ii. 4, 5, 10) ; similarly in Rom. i. 9, " God is
my witness... how unceasingly I make mention of you, always in my
prayers beseeching," &c; and in the thanksgiving of Phil. i. 8, " God is
my witness, how I long after you all I " We are reminded of Elijah's
protestation, "As the Lord liveth, before Whom I stand!" (1 Kings
xvii. r, &c.)
He says before our God and Father (R.V.): for it is in the cha
racter of Father that St Paul approaches God in prayer (comp. ch. iii.
11 ; 2 Ep. ii. 16 ; and the Lords prayer: "After this manner pray ye,
Our Father"); and "in God" as "Father" (ver. 1) the Thessalonians
became a "church," and had received the blessings for which the
Apostle now gives thanks.
remembering... your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of
hope in our Lord Jesus Christ] " Remembering, i.e. " how active and
fruitful your faith has shown itself to be, how 'devoted and unwearied
your love, and what fortitude your hope in the Lord Jesus has inspired."
Faith, Love, and Hope are the essence of practical Christianity. Fides,
amor, spes — summa Christianismi (Bengel); comp. 1 Cor. xiii. 13.
Work, Labour, Patience are their threefold expression; comp. the
" works and labour and patience " of the Ephesian Church, in Rev.
ii. 2, 3.
i'here was a remarkable vigour, a moral courage and activity in the
life of this Church, over which the Apostle rejoiced even more than he
did in the eloquence and knowledge of the Church of Corinth ( 1 Cor.
i. 5). Warmth of heart and practical energy were the distinguishing
features of Thessalonian Christianity (see Introduction, chap, iv.) :
"Whose faith and work were bells of full accord."
The work of faith includes the two expressions that follow. It em
braces the whole practical issue of a Christian life, denoting that which
faith effects, its outcome and result in the doings of life; expressed from
the Divine side in "the fruit of the Spirit" (Gal. v. 22), and "fruit of
the light " (Eph. v. 9, R. V.). This expression the Apostle uses once
more, in 2 Ep. i. n. This first appearance of the word "faith" in
St Paul's Epistles, conjoined with " work," shows how far he was
removed from antinomianism, from approving either a merely theo
retical, or sentimental faith. In his later Epistles, especially in Gala
tians and Romans, we find "faith" contrasted with "works," — i.e. Pha
risaic " works of law," supposed to be meritorious and to earn salvation
by right and as matter of debt on God's part (see Rom. iv. 1 — 4, ix.
32; Gal. ii. 16, iii. 10 — 14). No such notions had as yet troubled
the simple-minded Thessalonians. But in the later as in the earliest
THESS. 4

50 I. THESSALONIANS, I. [v. 3.
tience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of
Epistles faith is always with St Paul an operative principle of life, a
working power. He quite agreed with St James (ch. ii. 17) that
"faith, if it have not works, is dead." Hence in Gal. v. 6 he writes of
"faith working through love."
The Thessalonians' work of faith was manifest especially in the two
forms of toil of love and endurance of hope. Similarly in 2 Ep.
i. 3, 4, faith is joined with love (the "charity" of 1 Cor. xiii.) on the one
side, and with patience on the other. These are the two chief branches
of Christian work — loving service to the brethren and our fellow-men
(comp. ch. iv. 9, 10; v. 13), and fearless testimony for Christ before the
world, with endurance ofthe loss and suffering this may entail (w. 6, 7;
ii. 13, 14 ; iii. 2 — 4) — " the good fight of faith " (1 Tim. vi. 12). So we
see the Christian life in its simplest elements: "a faith that had its
outward effect on your lives ; a love that spent itself in the service of
others ; a hope that was no transient feeling, but was content to wait
for the things unseen, when it should be revealed" (Jowett).
We must distinguish "work" from "labour" (or toil). The former
points to the thing done, as matter of achievement : the latter to the
pains spent in doing it, as matter of exertion. Under this latteri word
the Apostle refers to his own manual labour (ch. ii. 9; 2 Ep. ni. 8),
also to his labours as a minister of Christ (ch. iii. 5 ; 2 Cor. x. 15 &c. ;
see besides 1 Cor. iii. 8, " Each shall receive his reward according to
his own toil"). Work may be easy and delightful : labour is toilsome;
no selfish man will endure it for another's good. Hence labour is the
test of love. How will a mother toil and weary herself for her child !
So St Paul, to whom with his many infirmities his work must often
have been a heavy task.
"True love is humble, thereby it is known;
Girded for service, seeking not its own."
" Patience of hope " is not all the Apostle means. The Greek word
implies active endurance— perseverantia and tolerantia, as well as pati-
entia or sustinentia (Vulgate) ; the constancy of blind Milton, that both
"bears up, and steers right onward." It is not the resignation of the
passive sufferer, so much as the fortitude of the stout-hearted soldier,
which carries him in the hope of victory through the long day's march
and conflict. In Rom. ii. 7 the first and last of these expressions meet,
and this word is rendered "patient continuance in good work" (see
Trench's N. T, Synonyms, on patientia). Christian hope inspired this
courage : "hope is the balm and life-blood of the soul." So Jesus Him
self " for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross" (Heb. xii.
2). And the Thessalonians were "imitators of the Lord" (ver. 6), fol
lowing the patience of Christ (2 Ep. iii. 5). Being the embodiment
of Hope, Patience takes its place in 2 Ep. i. 4; and elsewhere.
This was the climax of Thessalonian virtue, tried from the first by
fierce persecution (ver. 6 ; iii. 2 — 6). For their " endurance " the Apostle
gloried in this Church, and Christ was glorified in them (2 Ep. i.
4 — 12); such conspicuous courage gave powerful testimony to the Gospel

v. 4] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 51
God and our Father; knowing, brethren beloved, your 4
(vv. 7, 8). Observe that here Hope inspires Patience : in Rom. v. 4,
" Patience worketh hope." Both are true.
Their hope was in our Lord Jesus Christ. This adjunct might,
grammatically, be applied to the three foregoing phrases — to faith, love,
and hope alike; but less suitably, as we think. Faith and love are sub
sequently conceived in a wider sense: God is the Object of faith in
ver. 8, and love embraces brotherly love in ch. iv. 9, v. 13, &c; whereas
"our Lord Jesus Christ," in His final coming, is frequently, and with
concentrated emphasis, represented as the Object of the Thessalonians'
hope (see ver. 10; ii. 12, 19; iii. 13; iv. 14 — v. n; 2 Ep. i. 7 — 10;
ii. 1 — 8. The Second Advent and the Last Judgement had been leading
themes of St Paul's preaching at Thessalonica, and had taken powerful
hold of his hearers' minds (see Introd. pp. 18 — 21). In this expectation
lay the peculiar strength, and at the same time the danger and tempta
tion of their faith, as we shall afterwards see. " If Joy is the key-note
of the Epistle to the Philippians, Hope is that of the present Epistle "
(Ellicott). in the sight of God, &c] Connected most suitably with "remem
bering" (see note above) ; though the clause might grammatically be
attached to the "faith, hope, and love" just preceding, and would so
give a good sense.
4. knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God] Better, following
the A. V. margin and R. V., knowing, brethren beloved by God,
your election : comp. 2 Ep. ii. 13, " brethren beloved by the Lord."
The Apostle thinks of his readers as brethren, for he has just been
carrying them in his thoughts in prayer " before our God and Father."
The knowledge that God their Father loves them and has chosen them
for His own, gives confidence to the Apostle's prayers for them and
inexpressible joy to his thanksgivings. Comp. 2 Ep. ii. 13: "We
are bound to give thanks always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord,
because God from the beginning chose you," &c; and Eph. i. 3 — 5,
"Blessed be God..., Who blessed us in every spiritual blessing, ...ac- -
cording as He chose us in Christ," &c.
The participle "beloved" is not however present in tense, as though
the Thessalonians were simply loved now, in consequence of their
newly-acquired Christian worth ; it is in the Greek perfect tense, signi
fying a love existing in the past and realised in the present, the ante
cedent and foundation of their goodness. So in 1 John iii. 1 : " Behold
what manner of love the Father hath given us, that we should be called
sons of God!"
The Christian excellence of the Thessalonians, therefore, moved the
Apostle and his companions to thanksgiving (vv. 2, 3), not simply on its
own account, but because it marked them out as the objects of God's
loving choice. The word election, here occurring for the first time in
St Paul's Epistles, and expressing one of his most important doc
trines, needs to be carefully studied. The N. T. use of the word origi
nates in the O. T. idea of Israel as God's " peculiar possession," " the
4—2

52 I. THESSALONIANS, I. [v. 5.
5 election of God. For our gospel came not unto you in
people whom He chose for His inheritance " (see Ps. xxxiii. 12, cxxxv.
4; Deut. xiv. 2; Isai. xliii. 1 — 7; &c). Such "election" implies two
things — (1) selection out of others, nations or men, who are not thus
chosen — "the rest" (ch. iv. 13, v. 6); and (2) appropriation by God for
His own love and service. Since Israel as a people now rejected Christ,
St Paul was compelled to distinguish between national Israel and the
true " election," the spiritual kernel ofthe chosen people, who were the
real objects of God's favour: "the election obtained what Israel seeks
after, but the rest were hardened" (Rom. xi. 7). With this true elec
tion, through Christ all believing Gentiles are identified — ' ' wild olive
shoots, grafted into the good olive-tree" (Rom. xi. 17 — 24). So the
national gives place to a spiritual election — the "Israel of God" (Gal.
vi. 16); and the Apostle Paul applies the term, as in this place, to Jewish
and Gentile members of the Church indiscriminately. This transference
is strikingly expressed in 1 Pet. ii. 9 : " You (who believe in Christ)
are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation." God's election
no longer marks out a nation or body of men as such, but it concerns
individuals, each believer in Christ being the personal object of this
loving choice — the "election of grace" (Rom. xi. 5). The end for
which God in His grace so chooses men, appears in 2 Ep. ii. 13,
"God chose you unto salvation," i.e. final deliverance from death and
all evil, to be brought about by the return of Christ from heaven (ver.
10): the same end is set forth in the words of 1 Ep. ii. 12 and v. 9,
10 — "God calleth you to His own kingdom and glory;" He "ap
pointed you not to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord
Jesus Christ, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together
with Him." And the means toward this end are stated in 2 Ep. ii.
13, — "in sanctification of spirit and faith in the truth" (see note ad
loc). Similarly in Eph. i. 4, " He chose us to be holy and without
blemish before Him." In later Epistles (Rom. viii. 28 — 30; Eph. i. 4,
5) St Paul's teaching on this subject receives two further extensions:
(1) it is to sonship toward God that Christian believers are predestined;
and (2) their election is carried back to eternity, "before the foundation
of the world." It is questionable whether "from the beginning" in
2 Ep. ii. 13 points back so far as this (see note ad loc.) The "elec
tion" of Thessalonian believers goes back at any rate as far as the
Divine love of which they are the objects — " beloved by God." But
the Apostle's mind is occupied with the event of the conversion of his
readers, when God's love to them and choice of them were practically
manifest. God's choice of men for His purposes must, of course, precede their
choice of Him and of His salvation; but it in no way precludes human
choice and freedom of will — nay rather anticipates and prepares for our
free volition (comp. Rom. viii. 28 — 30), and invites us to be "workers
together" with it for our salvation: "work out your own salvation,
...for it is God that worketh in you" (Ph. ii. 12, 13). It rests on the
T>ivine foreknowledge of men ("whom He foreknew, He foreordained"),
and seeks from their coming into life its destined obiects (see rial i ,-'

v. S-] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 53
word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and
16). But "Prescience, as prescience, hath in itself no causing efficacy"
(Hooker). Observe that Scripture does not speak of any choice of men
to believe in Christ, but of the choice of (assumed) believers to receive sal
vation. The consistency of man's free-will with God's sovereignty forms
an insoluble mystery, which does not belong to the doctrine of election
alone, but runs through the whole of life and religion.
The Apostle writes "knowing your election," not that he is abso
lutely sure of the final salvation of every one to whom he writes — ch.
iii. 5 speaks otherwise; but from what he knows and remembers of
them, he is practically certain that the circle of his readers belongs to
God's elect and that they will attain Christ's heavenly kingdom (see
ch. ii. 12; v. 8 — n, 24).
The evidence of this to his mind was twofold, lying (1) in the power
given to himself and his companions in preaching at Thessalonica
(ver. 5), and (2) in the zeal and devotion with which the Thessalonians
had embraced the gospel (ver. 6).
5. For our gospel came not unto you in word only, bul also in power]
The R. V. reads, how that our gospel, &c. ; better perhaps, in that ;
the difference is slight : in any case the conversion of the Thessalonians,
described in vv. 5, 6, was not that wherein their election consisted, but
wherein it was evidenced. Paul and Silas were conscious in declaring
their message of a power beyond all words attending it, which made
them sure at the time that it would not be in vain. It was evident to
them that God " had much people in this city."
our gospel is God's good news about Jesus Christ, proclaimed by His
servants. See Rom. i. 1 — 5. Hence it is both God's gospel (ch. ii. 2,
&c), and "our" gospel.
and in the Holy Ghost] The peculiar "power" in which St Paul and
his helpers spoke at Thessalonica was not their own: their message
came in the Holy Spirit, accompanied by the supernatural energy
of the Spirit of God and of Christ. To this, as the N. T. teaches, the
efficacy of the Gospel is always due. "He," said Jesus, "the Spirit
of truth, shall testify of Me; and ye also do testify" (John xv. 26, 27).
Power is an idea constantly associated with the Holy Spirit, according
to the words of Christ in Acts i. 8, "Ye shall receive power, when the
Holy Spirit has come upon you;" so in 1 Cor. ii. 4, " My message was
not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit
and of power," &c, — "that mighty Breath
From heaven's eternal shores."
in the Holy Spirit, and much fulness (R.V. margin), or abundant
fulfilment. The preposition "in" is not repeated in the Greek, so
that the third adjunct is closely identified with the second (Holy Spirit).
The same Greek word is used in the phrase "full-assurance of the
understanding" in Col. ii. 2; "of hope," "of faith" (Heb. vi. 11; x.
22). But the "fulness" of this passage is ascribed to the "gospel" as
it "came to" its Thessalonian hearers. It had its full effect upon them.

54

I. THESSALONIANS, I. [v. 6.

in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we
6 were among you for your sake. And ye became followers
of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much
Comp. 2 Tim. iv. 17, where the corresponding verb is used, — "that
through me the message might be fulfilled " (R. V.)— -fully proclaimed.
This "fulfilment" has been shown in ver. 3; comp. ch. ii. 13;
2 Ep. ii. 13.
The power is in the gospel preached, the fulfilment in the hearers,
and the Holy Spirit above and within them inspires both.
as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake]
The R.V., more accurately, even as ye know.. .we shewed ourselves
toward you. The Apostle appeals to the knowledge of his readers
to confirm what he has just said respecting the powerful effect of
the Gospel upon them. This result in the experience of the Thessa
lonians accorded with the spirit and behaviour of the apostles towards
them. "It was a mutual influence: so we preached, and so ye
believed," 1 Cor. xv. 11 (Jowett). In ch. ii. 1— 12 (see the remarks
introductory to ch. ii.) the Apostle draws a vivid portrait of himself
and his colleagues as they were at Thessalonica.
They so lived and laboured on your account — out of love to their
Thessalonian hearers (comp. ch. ii. 8), to those whom they felt sure
God in His love had chosen for Himself (ver. 4) and was calling by
their means "to His own kingdom and glory" (ch. ii. 12). Comp.
2 Tim. ii. 10, "I endure all things because ofthe elect."
"In the background," behind "the purpose of the Apostle and his
colleagues," there was "the purpose of God," Who for the Thessa
lonians' sake gave this power to His servants (Alford).
6. And ye became followers of us, and ofthe Lord] imitators of
us &c. (R.V.); comp. ch. ii. 14; 2 Ep. iii. 9, where the same
correction is made. An "imitator" not only accepts the teaching of
another, but copies his example. This imitation consisted (1) in the
joyful endurance of suffering for the Gospel's sake, as the following
words show (comp. ch. ii. 2, 14, 15, &c); but (2) also in the vigour
which marked the life of this Church, corresponding to that of the
Apostle's ministry amongst them (ver. 4). See note on "work of
faith " (ver. 3).
Thus imitating their apostles, the Thessalonian believers were
walking in the steps of the Lord, Who Himself "received" from the
Father "the word in much affliction," and "with joy of the Holy
Spirit:" "The words that Thou gavest Me," He said to the Father,
"I have given them ; " men "persecuted Me, and they will persecute
you," He promised His disciples; and He too "rejoiced in the Holy
Spirit" (John xvii. 8; xv. 20; Luke x. 21). Accordingly, in Col. i. 24
the Apostle writes of himself as ' ' filling up what is left behind of the
afflictions of Christ." — Observe two things here: (1) How inspiring to
the Thessalonians to be told they were walking in the very steps "of
the Lord;" this makes toil welcome, and shame glorious. (2) How
bold in the Apostle, and what a good conscience he kept, that he could

v. 7.] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 55
affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost : so that ye were 7
ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.
identify following himself with following Christ. Comp. 1 Cor. xi. 1,
"Be imitators of me, even as I also of Christ."
Ver. 6 is parallel to ver. 5, both serving to establish ver. 4. St Paul
was satisfied that God had set His love upon these Thessalonians and
chosen them to salvation, in the first instance by the extraordinary
power and effect upon them of his preaching, as they will remember
(ver. 5); and further by their joyous endurance of persecution, proving
the thoroughness of their conversion, to which everyone is witness
(vv. 6 — 10). " We give thanks to God for you. ..being well assured of
your Divine election, in that our message to you was attended with
the manifest power of the Holy Spirit, and you gladly consented to
the sufferings that it brought upon you" (w. 3 — 6).
having received the word] On "receive" see note to ch. ii. 13.
"The word" (par excellence) stands alone for "the word of the
Lord" (ver. 8), or "of God" (ch. ii. 13), the same as "our gospel"
(ver. 5).
in much affliction] This great affliction (or tribulation: same Greek
word, ch. iii. 4; 2 Ep. i. 4, 6) is described in Acts xvii. 5 — 9, and re
ferred to frequently in the Epistles: see Introd. pp. 15, 35. Persecution
marked out the path in which the Thessalonians were called to follow
Christ, and gave them an immediate opportunity of showing the
genuineness of their faith. So with the kindred Philippian Church:
" To you it was granted as a favour on Christ's behalf, not only to
believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake" (Ph. i. 29).
with joy of the Holy Ghost] i.e. coming of (or inspired by) the
Holy Spirit. Joy constantly attends suffering for the truth's sake, and
for the word of God. Of this St Paul was an eminent example —
"sorrowing, yet alway rejoicing" (2 Cor. vi. 10, &c.) ; and Christ
Himself, Who promises His disciples "My joy " amidst the sorrows of
His passion (John xv. 11); the Thessalonians were "imitators." At a
later time the Apostle notes in the Macedonian Churches, ' ' in much
proof of affliction, the abundance of their joy" (2 Cor. viii. 2). All
such joy is from the Holy Spirit, and is a sign of His indwelling, —
" Whose blessed unction from above
Is comfort, life, and fire of love!"
The same Spirit Who enabled the apostles to preach with power in
spite of all opposition, enabled the Thessalonians to believe with joy
in spite of all persecution.
The Apostle introduces the Holy Spirit in w. 5 and 6 as One whose
presence and attributes were well known to his readers. They had
been "baptized into the name of the Holy Spirit," as well as "of the
Father and the Son:" see notes on ver. 1, "in God the Father &c."
In these first few verses the whole doctrine ofthe Trinity is implied.
7. so that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and
Achaia] Rather, ye became an ensample (R.V.), — or example, or
pattern (as the same word — naturalized as "type" in English — is

56 I. THESSALONIANS, I. [v. 8.
8 For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only
in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith
rendered in Tit. ii. 7, Heb. viii. 5). The Apostle applies this
expression to himself in 2 Ep. iii. 9 ; also in Ph. iii. 1 7 ; and to Timothy,
in 1 Tim. iv. 12.
"Those that believe" (that is, "in God," or "Christ") equivalent
to believers — is a frequent designation of Christians with St Paul. See
ch. ii. 10, 13; 2 Ep. i. 10; &c. Similarly, "they that are of faith"
(Gal. iii. 7, 9), "him that is of faith in Jesus " (Rom. iii. 26) ; for faith
is the root and essence of all that makes a man a Christian.
The example ofthe Thessalonians affected all believers in Macedonia
and in Achaia (according to the true reading). These were distinct
provinces, and the influence of Thessalonian faith had extended from
the one to the other. The Apostle was now in Corinth, the capital and
centre of Achaia (a Roman province, covering nearly the area of the
present Kingdom of Greece), and could judge of the effect of the
conduct of the Thessalonian Church in that district. And Timothy,
with Silas, had lately returned from the northern province, traversing
various Macedonian towns on his way, and would be able to report of
the influence of this example there (ch. iii. 6; Acts xviii. 5). On the
relation of Thessalonica to Macedonia see Introd. pp. 9, 10, and the
map. In 2 Cor. viii. 1—5 St Paul brings these two provinces into com
petition, in a sort of generous rivalry.
St Paul imitated Christ, the Thessalonians him (ver. 6), and all
neighbouring Christians took pattern by them. So good example
spreads. 8. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord] Better, hath
sounded out, or resounded. The Greek word suggests a clear ringing
note, "as of a trumpet" (Chrysostom); and the tense (perfect) implies
no transient sound, but a continuing effect: see note on beloved, ver. 4.
"The word ofthe Lord " is the standing O. T. designation for God's
revealed will,— all that, as the Lord, He says to men. But "the Lord "
is now Christ in His Divine authority and glory; and this title of
Christ is notably frequent in our two Epistles. Only in them is this
expression applied by St Paul to the Gospel (corrip. ch. iv. 15; 2 Ep.
iii. i). Afterwards he calls it "the word of God," or "of Christ"—
"not men's word, but as it is in truth, God's word " (ch. ii. 13). ' The
fullest declaration of the authorship and purport of this " word" is from
the lips of St Peter, in Acts x. 36: "The word which God sent —in
good tidings of peace through Jesus Christ: He is Lord of all."
Ver. 8 gives proof of the earnestness with which the Thessalonians had
embraced the Gospel, as set forth in w. 6 and 7. For they had so
received it as to echo it far and wide. The violent persecution directed
against them, failing to shake their faith, had served to advertise it.
"Truth, like a torch, the more 'tis shaken shines."
not only in Macedonia and Achaia] Now the two provinces are
united, in contrast with the rest of the world.

v. 9-] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 57
to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak
any thing. For they themselves- shew of us what manner of 9
but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad]
Lit., hath gone out : the Apostle keeps up the metaphor with which he
began the sentence. Ps. xix. 4, quoted also in Rom. x. 18, seems to be
running in his mind: "Their sound went forth into all the earth"
(LXX). For the tense, see note on " hath sounded out."
The conversion of the Thessalonians, taking place under such re
markable circumstances, had made a great sensation, the news spreading
even beyond the limits of Greece. [For a view of the importance of
Thessalonica and its commanding geographical position , see Introd. Ch. I.]
Aquila had lately come to Corinth from Rome (Acts xviii. 2), and may
have brought word that the news was current there. The charge of treason
against Cassar recorded in Acts xvii. 6, 7, would almost certainly be
reported in Rome. "In every place" is a natural hyperbole, used like
our everywhere, everybody and the French tout le monde, of that which
is widely and generally current. The Thessalonian believers in Christ
were "bravely furnished all abroad to fling
The winged shafts of truth."
With "in every place " the sentence of ver. 8 is complete; but as the
writer extends his statement, it alters its shape in his mind, and the
assertion with which he set out (the word. ..hath sounded forth) is now
repeated in another way : your faith that is unto (is directed to) God,
hath gone out. This mobility is characteristic of St Paul's style (see
Introd. Ch. VI.). The same thing appears in a double aspect: the fame
of the gospel spread by the Thessalonians and the fame of their faith
in it travelled together.
"Faith toward God" is a rare and distinct expression. It indicates
the new direction, or attitude of the heart and life, which the next verse
vividly depicts. Comp. 2 Cor. iii. 4 and Philem. 5: "toward the Lord
Jesus." so that we need not to speak any thing] Lit., have no need, — a
phrase used three times in this Epistle (ch. iv. 9, v. 1), and nowhere
else by St Paul.
Read this in close connection with the next verse. It is as much as
to say, "No need for us to tell the story. We hear of it from all
sides; everywhere people are talking about your conversion and your
brave testimony for Christ."
9. For they themselves shew of us] Rather, report concerning us
(R.V.) "They" points to "those in Macedonia and Achaia" and "in
every place," — any whom the Apostle visited, or to whom he had
thought of sending the news. "Instead of waiting to be told by us,
we find them spreading the joyful news already ! " And this self-
diffusing report concerned not the Thessalonians alone, but Paul and
his colleagues. It published their success at this great city, and helped
their further progress: they report... what kind of an entrance we
had unto you.

58 I. THESSALONIANS, I. [v. io.
entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God
io from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for
The "manner" of this "entering in" is not to be found in the kind
of reception given to the evangelists at Thessalonica, but in the way in
which they presented themselves and entered on their ministry here:
comp. ver. 5, and ch. ii. 1, 2. The reports that told of the heroic
faith of the Thessalonians, told also of the wonderful energy and
success with which Paul and Silas had preached to them.
and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true
God] Lit., from the idols, to be bondmen to a God living and
true. This explains the "faith toward God " of ver. 8. "How" im
plies not the fact alone, but the manner of their conversion— "with
what decision and gladness" (vv. 3, 6), parallel to "what manner
of entrance." The Thessalonian Christians had been mainly Gentiles
and heathen; comp. ch. ii. 14, — also Acts xvii. 4, 5, from which it
appears, however, that there was a sprinkling of Jews among them, and
"a great multitude" of proselytes, already more or less weaned from
idolatry. The "faith toward God" defined in this verse, is the faith of the
whole Bible, in which from first to last God asserts Himself as "the
Living and True," against the ten thousand forms of human idolatry.
The word idol (Greek eidSlon) means properly an appearance, a
mere image, or phantom. Homer, e.g., applies the term to the
phantasms of distant persons by which his gods sometimes impose on
men (Iliad, v. 449; Odyssey, IV. 796). Comp. Lord Bacon's idola tribus,
specus, fori, theatri, in the Novum Organum. This word is the
equivalent in the Septuagint Version of Hebrew designations' for
heathen gods and their images of like significance — vapours, vanities,
nothings. To all these the Name of the God of Israel — Who "is the
true God, and the 'living God" (Jer. x. 10) — is the constant, tacit
antithesis: "I am Jehovah" (more strictly Jahveh, or Yahweh,
commonly "the Lord" in the English O. T.)— the HE IS (see Exod.
iii. 13, 14 for its interpretation; and for its use in argument against
idolatry, such passages as Isai. xiii. 8; xiv. 5, 6, 18, 21, 22). Like the
Prophets and Psalmists (e.g. in Ps. cxv. 4 — 8; Isai. xliv. 9 — 20; Jer. x.
1 — 10), St Paul was powerfully impressed with the illusion and unreality
of heathen religions. He defines idolatry in two passages, 1 Cor. viii.
4 and x. 19, 20, as being half lies, half devilry; and in the horrible
immorality then existing in the Gentile world he saw its natural
consequence and judicial punishment (Rom. i. 18 — 25).
"True" signifies truth of fact, not word: "true God" is the "very
God " of the Nicene Creed, the real God: comp. John xvii. 3, — "that
they should know Thee, the only true God;" and 1 John v. 20, "This
is the true God, and life eternal."
The service to this ' ' living and true God " which the Thessalonians
had embraced, was that of bondmen, acknowledging themselves His
property and at His absolute disposal. St Paul habitually calls himself
"Christ's" (once "God's," Tit. i. 1) "bondman." In Gal. iv. 8 le

v. io.] I. THESSALONIANS, I. 59
his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even
Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
speaks of heathenism as bondage to false gods; in Rom. vi. 15 — 23 he
shows that to become a Christian is to exchange the bondage of sin for
bondage to righteousness and to God, bondage under grace. The full
conception of the Christian relationship to God is formed by the
combination of the idea of sonship (in respect of affection and privilege)
with that of bond-service (in respect of duty and submission), to Him
" Whose service is perfect freedom."
On the relation of this passage to St Paul's general teaching see
Introd. pp. 17, 18. So far, in vv. 8, 9, St Paul has related the conver
sion of the Thessalonians in the language and spirit of the O. T., and
as an acceptance of Hebrew faith. In the next verse he advances to
that which was distinctively Christian in their new creed : —
10. and to wait for his Son from heaven... even Jesus] Lit., from
the heavens: comp. 2 Cor. xii. 2, "the third heaven;" and Heb. iv.
14, "Jesus,. ..Who (in ascending) hath passed through the heavens."
Heaven is a plural word in Hebrew, and its conception was manifold,
implying the existence of successive regions and stages, like the Courts
and Chambers of the Tabernacle, leading up to the innermost, im
mediate presence-chamber of the Most High.
This expectation separated the Church of Thessalonians from the
Synagogue. It involved the belief in Jesus as the Christ (Acts xvii.
3); and if Christ, then Son of God arid King of His kingdom amongst
men. "The kingdom and glory of God to" which "He is calling" the
Thessalonians (ch. ii. 12), will be inaugurated by the return of their De
liverer from heaven ; and this they are awaiting. Jesus, God's Son, had
come already, to suffer affliction and to die for men's salvation (ver. 6 ;
ch. ii. 15; v. 9). He had gone to heaven, "that He might receive His
kingdom and return" (Luke xix. 12; comp. Acts iii. 21), — return as
Judge to reward God's faithful servants and to render to oppressors and
persecutors their due (2 Ep. i. 5 — 10). Such, we gather, had been the
line of Paul and Silas' teaching at Thessalonica: see Introd. Ch. m.
Hence their readers were possessed with the idea of the parousia, or
second advent of Christ. This formed a chief part of their religion.
They were in truth " like men looking for their Lord, when Pie should
return from the wedding" (Luke xii. 36). Comp. note on " patience of
hope," ver. 3; also ch. iv. 13, 17, v. 1; 2 Ep. ii. 1, 2, 16.
From vv. 9 and 10 we may draw a definition of religion, as con
sisting of two things — serving and waiting, seen in its present and
future, its practical and its ideal aspect; the first springing out oi faith,
the second out of hope, while both gain through love their Christian
character and spirit.
his Son... whom he raised from the dead] "The palmary argument
in proof of the Divine sonship of Jesus" (Bengel): comp. Rom. i. 4,
' ' declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of
holiness, by the resurrection of the dead." And Christ's resurrection
was equally the warrant of faith in His future kingdom and judgeship, —

bo I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. I.
2 For yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you,
" whereof God hath given assurance, in that He hath raised Him from
the dead" (Acts xvii. 31). Indeed it was the seal of the whole Apostolic
message (read 1 Cor. xv. 3, 14; 1 Pet. i. 3 — 5, 21; Acts ii. 32 — 36; iii.
13 — 21). Raised from the dead, Jesus was exalted as God's Son, and
man's Saviour, and Lord of all things, to the highest heaven (Eph. i.
20 — 22) ; and in this character He will return, as He said, " with His
Father's glory and with the holy angels," to "render to every man
according to his deeds" (Matt. xvi. 27; Mark viii. 38). The Resur
rection was the first step in Christ's glorification, the pledge of all the rest.
even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come] delivered
should be delivereth (R.V.). The Greek participle is present ("the One
delivering") ; and such a participle, with the definite article, approaches
the force of a substantive (see note on "all that believe," ver. 7), de
noting a continued work, or perpetual office. Reference to 2 Cor. i. io,
or 2 Tim. iv. 17, 18, where the same verb is used, will show that it
signifies rescue rather than redemption, indicating the greatness of the
peril, and the sympathy and power of the Deliverer.
This deliverance is not yet complete: see Rom. v. 9, 10, "having
been justified by His blood, — reconciled to God through the death of
His Son, we shall be saved from God's wrath; — saved in His life."
It is a rescue "from the wrath to come" (comp. Matt. iii. 7), — more
strictly, the wrath that is coming ; as in Eph. v. 6 ; Col. iii. 6. For
God's anger against sin is never quiet ; it is on the way, like a tide that
rises till it reach its full height. Comp. 2 Ep. ii. 11, 12; Rom.
i. 18, 28. As against the Jewish nation, the Apostle sees that its term
is now reached : "His wrath is come upon them to the uttermost "
(ch. ii. 16). For others its recompenses are preparing, who "in their
hardness and impenitence of heart" are "laying up for themselves a
store of wrath" (Rom. ii. 4 — 6), comp. 2 Ep. i. 7 — 10 and notes.
How Jesus "delivers us" from the wrath impending over sinful men,
St Paul does not tell us here; he had certainly taught the Thessalonians.
¦In ch. v. 8 — 10 he opposes to God's "wrath" "salvation through our
Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us ; " and this shows that he had pro
claimed at Thessalonica the same doctrine of reconciliation through the
Cross which he expounds in the next group of his Epistles, and which
was the core of his gospel from the beginning. On this most im
portant point, see once more Introd. pp. 16, 17.
SECTION II.
The Apostle's Conduct at Thessalonica. Ch. II. 1—12.
Analysis. The ministry of Paul and his colleagues at Thessalonica
had been unmistakably genuine, ver. 1. This appeared (1) by their
boldness in the conflict amid which their work began, ver. 2; (2) by
their sincerity and freedom from personal ambition, w. 3 — 6; (3) by
their gentleness and tender affection toward the Thessalonians, w. 7,8;
(4) by their extreme and self-denying labours, ver. 9; (5) by the turitv of

v. 2.] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 61
that it was not in vain : but even after that we had suffered 2
before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know, at Phi-
their life, ver. 10; and (6) by the fidelity and high spiritual aim of
their teaching, w. 11, 12. Four words resume the whole: courage,
purity, love, fidelity. Here is a mirror for ministers of Christ, and an
ideal for all His servants. The service of Christ called into exercise
in Paul and his companions the highest and finest qualities of manly
character. And this is still the case, especially on missionary fields of
labour, where similar dangers are encountered and the same powers of
leadership required.
This section is of the nature of a self-defence, called forth (see Introd.
pp. 23, 24) by the calumnies of St Paul's enemies at Thessalonica.
But there blends with his self-defence the lofty strain of thanksgiving
in which the letter commenced, and which breaks forth again distinctly
in ver. 13 and is pursued to the end of ch. hi.; so that this paragraph
grows naturally out of the last.
The Apostle continues to identify Silas and Timothy with himself,
writing in the plural, —
1. For yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you] entering
in (R.V.), same word as in ch. i. 9; see note. And the "For" of this
verse is parallel to the "for" of ch. i. 9: what "they themselves (other
people, strangers in different places) report of us" is confirmed by what
"you yourselves know" of the successful entrance the Gospel had won
at Thessalonica. Both these fors, and all that the Apostle has written
since ver. 4 of ch. i., go to sustain his assurance of God's loving
"choice" of the Thessalonian believers. We must not allow the
artificial division of chapter and verse to break the thread of the
writer's thoughts.
The appeal made to the recollections and experience of the readers
is characteristic of these letters, see vv. 2, 5, 10, 11 ; ch. i. 5, &c. ; and
comp. Introd. p. 35.
Concerning the "entrance" of the missionaries amongst them the
Thessalonians know better than anyone else, that it hath not been
found vain (R.V.). The Greek perfect tense (see note on ch. i. 8)
implies a settled result: not merely did the coming of Christ's servants
produce a striking impression at the time ; their work has proved
thoroughly successful. Its fruit is permanent.
Vain is lit. empty, void of substance and power. So the apostles'
"labour" would "turn out," if "the Tempter" should destroy the
Thessalonians' faith (ch. iii. 5); so his "preaching" and his hearers'
"faith" at Corinth, if Christ's resurrection were not a fact (1 Cor.
xv. 14). "Not empty" echoes the "power" and "much fulness" of
ch. i. 5.
This verse might be rendered somewhat more freely in English
idiom: For you know of yourselves, brethren, that our coming
amongst you has not proved vain.
2. but even after that we had suffered before, and were shamefully
entreated, as ye know, at Philippi] More exactly, having suffered before,

62 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 2.
lippi, we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel
and been shamefully entreated (R.V.), or though we had already
suffered and were shamefully treated at Philippi. "Entreated"
is older English for treated, as in Matt. xxii. 6 and Luke xviii. 32
(spitefully entreated). Shamefully treated is one word in the Greek, —
outraged. It implies insult and injury combined, such as constituted a
legal crime. This accords with the protest of Paul and Silas against
the Philippian magistrates (Acts xvi. 37): "They have beaten us,
publicly, uncondemned, being Romans!" Such indignities the Apostle
felt keenly ; they added a distinct element to his sufferings.
As to the circumstances of the missionaries' visit to Philippi and their
experience there, read carefully Acts xvi., and comp. Introd. Chap. II.
"As ye know," for the Apostle had doubtless told his Thessalonian
friends of his treatment at Philippi. Moreover, this town was but
three days' journey east of Thessalonica along the Via Egnatia, and
news of all kinds readily passed between them (Introd. Chap. 1.).
Instead of being daunted by the violence they suffered, Paul and
Silas at Philippi "sang praises to God at midnight, with their feet fast
in the stocks." And God there signally vindicated His servants and
turned their shame to honour. So we are not surprised to read of the
holy confidence with which they declared their message at Thessalonica:
we waxed bold (R.V.) — or, took courage in our God to speak unto
you the gospel of God amid much conflict.
The last words of the clause explain the first, on which the emphasis
rests. The "conflict" that broke out at Philippi continued under
another form at Thessalonica, and the apostles needed all their courage
and faith in God to sustain them in entering on their ministry in this
new city. Throughout this first European mission it required a hard
struggle to win for the Gospel a footing anywhere. There was much
conflict. The Greek verb (waxed-bold) implies the undaunted bearing and
address of the missionaries, the outspokenness with which they faced
their opposers in the delivery of God's message. This was more than
natural courage : "we waxed bold in our God." God's presence and the
consciousness that His Spirit was with them (ch. i. 5, see note) made
them fearless. "It is not ye that speak," said Jesus, "but the Spirit of
your Father that speaketh in you... Fear them not therefore" (Matt. x.
16 — 32). Besides, it was "the gospel of God" which they proclaimed :
God had put the message into their lips. This is the secret of St
Paul's heroism. The highest moral courage, such as that of President
Lincoln or General Gordon in modern times, springs from faith in
God. The evangelists addressed themselves to their work at Thessalonica
with a high degree of confidence, and under the fullest sense of
Divine direction. Contrast with this the "weakness and fear and much
trembling in" which the Apostle shortly afterwards "was with" the
Corinthians (1 Cor. ii. 3—5). St Paul's mood as a preacher was not
always the same ; circumstances depressed or elated him.

w. 3, 4.] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 63
of God with much contention. For our exhortation was 3
not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile: but as we 4
were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel,
3. For our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in
guile] Read error for deceit ; and supply the Greek ellipsis by is not
(R.V.) rather than was not. The Apostle is setting forth the habit and
spirit of his ministry : " We behaved in this fearless way at Thessalonica,
for our ministry is free from all that is false and impure." It is true
men that make brave men. In ver. 5 Paul returns to his conduct at
Thessalonica ; w. 3, 4 speak of his general policy.
"Exhortation" hardly conveys his full meaning, — our appeal is
perhaps better ; it is the practical "appeal," or "address," which " the
gospel of God," as the missionaries of Christ preach it everywhere,
makes to its hearers. Comp. note on "comfort," ch. iii. 2.
This appeal "is not of error" (deceit, A.V., is incorrect) — not the
product of illusion or deception ; for it is " the gospel of God" (ver. 2),
"the word oi the truth of the gospel" (Col. i. 5). This was amongst
Paul's constant and uppermost convictions. The heavenly Form that
met him on the road to Damascus, the Voice that said, "Depart, for
I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles," — these were no phantasy.
"I know Him whom I have believed" (2 Tim. i. 12).
As the Apostle was sure of the genuineness of his message, so he
was conscious of the purity of his motives: "nor of uncleanness."
This epithet commonly denotes bodily defilement, and is a synonym
for unchastity, as in ch. iv. 7, &c. But there is a "defilement of
spirit" as well as "of flesh" (2 Cor. vii. 1). Self-seeking (ver. 5)
in the witness of truth makes his testimony corrupt. So truth and
purity go together ; each promotes and guards the other. Comp.
1 Pet. i. 22, "Ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth." On
the other hand, the Apostle speaks of the "deceit of unrighteousness"
(2 Ep. ii. 10), and of " men corrupt in mind and bereft of truth,
supposing that godliness is a way of gain" (1 Tim. vi. 5).
So much for his motives : of his method St Paul will only say, "nor
in guile;" as he puts it more at large in 2 Cor. iv. 2, "not walking in
craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by the mani
festation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience
in the sight of God." The servant of truth should use only the weapons
of truth. "Guile" was doubtless imputed to St Paul by his slanderers
in Thessalonica, as it was subsequently at Corinth: "being crafty (as
they say), I caught you with guile" (2 Cor. xii. 16).
To sum up the verse : Our doctrine is true ; our motives pure; and
our conduct straightforward.
4. but as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel,
even so we speak] Again the A.V. misses the force of the Greek perfect:
better, as we have been approved by God to be entrusted. "Allow"
in older English bears the stronger sense of accept, approve (comp.
Rom. xiv. 22), but even so falls short of the meaning of St Paul. His
word is the same that is rendered in the last clause of the verse as trielh

64 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 4.
even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which
(R. V., proveth) ; it includes both proving and approving, it is approving
on trial, or testing: comp. ch. v. 21 (same Greek verb, "Prove all
things) ; and 1 Cor. iii. 13, "The fire will prove each man's work."
The Apostle had been tested for his work, and tested by it ; God
had made proof of him as a minister of Christ, and he was shown to
be worthy of his trust: tried, then trusted (comp. 1 Tim. i. 12). "To
be put in trust with the gospel" is the highest conceivable responsibility;
the sense of it is enough to exclude every base motive and deceitful
practice (ver. 3). On Paul's trust, read 1 Tim. i. 12 — 17 and Acts ix.
15, 16: "He is a chosen vessel unto Me."
so we speak] under the sense of this solemn trust, with the sincerity
and self-abnegation that our charge demands.
nol as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts] R.V., proveth
(see previous note) : more precisely, pleaBing God — Him who proves
our hearts. This last is an O.T. expression, a standing attribute of
God : see Ps. xvii. 3, Jer. xi. 20, &c. ; also Acts i. 24, "Thou, Lord,
which knowest the hearts of all." "Unto whom all hearts be open, all
desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid" (Book of Common
Prayer). The "heart," in the language of the Bible, is not the seat of the
feelings alone; it is "the inner man," the real self, the centre and
meeting-point of all our thoughts, feelings, and resolves. It is there
that God proves us : " The Lord looketh upon the heart." No impure
motive or crafty expedient, such as might deceive men, escapes Him.
The sense of this continual and omniscient scrutiny makes any kind of
dishonesty impossible to the Apostle. Read 1 Cor. iv. 1 — 5 ; 2 Cor.
v. 9 — 1 2 : "He that judgeth me is the Lord."
It is God's gospel that Paul and Silas have to preach ; God had
trusted them with it, and given them strength and courage to proclaim
it (ver. 2); to Gods approval, therefore, they must look, and to that
alone. "Men," such as the magistrates of Philippi and the populace of
Thessalonica, would be pleased only if the messengers of Christ
were silenced. So the authorities of Jerusalem "charged Peter and
John not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus;" but they
answered: "If it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you
rather than unto God, judge ye" (Acts iv. 18, 19). This sense of the
sovereignty of God gives religion its invincible power; it is the con
viction that makes martyrs. It is finely expressed in the Antigone of
Sophocles (11. 450—460), where the heroine replies to the tyrant
Creon : "Nor could I think thine edict of such might,
That one who is mortal thus should overrule
The infallible, unwritten laws of heaven."
St Paul tells us elsewhere, and by way of example, that he "pleased
all in all things for their good, unto edification " (1 Cor. x. 33 ;
Rom. xv. 2). To please men in that which displeases God, is to
injure them: "If (in such circumstances) I pleased men, I should not

vv. 5, 6.] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 65
trieth our hearts. For neither at any time used we nattering 5
words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness; God is
witness : nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor 6
be Christ's slave" (Gal. i. 10). That is, to be the slave of public
opinion, — often an ignorant, sometimes an unprincipled master.
Vv. 3 and 4 are then a general disclaimer of unworthy motives on the
part of the missionaries. Their bold testimony at Thessalonica (vv. 1
and 2) was due to two things — their sincerity of heart, and their loyalty
to God. Now we resume the account of the Apostle's relations to the
Thessalonians, confirming these professions : —
5. For neither at any time used we flattering words] were we found
using words of flattery (R.V.: same verb as in ver. 1, "found vain ") ;
or, did we fall into the use of flattering speech. "Found" might
suggest detection, which is not in the Apostle's mind. Lit., word
of flattery, referring to the tenor and general style of the apostles'
speech. He adds a third time (see note on ver. 1) "as ye know."
St Paul, as his friends well knew, was not one to
"crook the pregnant hinges of the knee,
Where thrift may follow fawning."
In repudiating the cloak of covetousness he appeals to "God" as
"witness" (comp. Rom. i. 9, "God is my witness, whom I serve in
my spirit in the gospel of His Son;" also ii. 15, ix. 1), — "God, Who
proveth our hearts" (ver. 4). The "cloak" signifies the pretext of
an affected self-devotion, such as might be used to conceal the
"covetousness" of a selfish heart. "God is witness," he says, "that no
secret avarice was hidden behind our zeal for your salvation."
The Greek word for "covetousness" denotes greed of any kind,
— oftenest, but not always or necessarily, for money ; it is the spirit of
self-aggrandisement, selfishness as a ruling passion. (Comp. the note
on "defraud," ch. iv. 6.) Such a motive in the servant of God would
constitute the "uncleanness" denied in ver. 3.
This verse gives double evidence of the pure zeal for God professed in
w. 3 and 4 — the one outward and of the lips, the other inward and
known only to God in the heart. Contrast the opposite description of
Ps. xii. 2 : " A flattering lip, and a double heart."
6. nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others] This
clause continues ver. 5, and is so construed in the R.V. : nor (were we
found) seeking glory of men, neither from you, nor from others.
"6y"men"points to the general source of such "glory," indicating its
character; "from you," &c, to the particular quarter whence, con
ceivably, it might have been sought.
The motive of ambition — "that last infirmity of noble minds" — rises
above the selfishness just disclaimed ; but it is just as warmly repudiated,
for it is equally inconsistent with the single-mindedness of men de
voted to the glory of God. Our Lord finds in superiority to human
praise the mark of a sincere faith : "How can ye believe," He asks,
"which receive honour one of another, and the glory that cometh from
the only God ye seek not?" (John v. 44).
thess. S

66 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 6.
yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the
when we might have been burdensome, as the apostles of Christ] Lit.,
as apostles of Christ, without the definite article. St Paul is speaking
for himself and Silas and Timothy; and the latter were not of the
Apostles, but they were, in common with himself, " apostles of Christ.'
"Apostle" signifies by derivation emissary, or envoy, — one "sent
out " by authority with some message or commission. The term was
probably in current use amongst the Jews, when Jesus adopted it for
His chosen Twelve. But it obtained in the early Church a wider
application, concurrently with its stricter reference to the Twelve (in
cluding Paul, afterwards recognized as being of the same order, i Cor.
ix. i ; Gal. i. i, 17, ii. 7, &c). Of this we have examples in Barnabas
and Paul, Acts xiv. 4, 14; Andronicus and Junias, "amongst the
apostles," Rom. xvi. 7; Titus and others, "apostles of the churches,"
2 Cor. viii. 23; Judean emissaries, "false apostles," 2 Cor. xi. 13;
Epaphroditus, sent from the Philippian Church to Paul in prison at
Rome, Ph. ii. 25 ; also in Rev. ii. 2 ; Heb. iii. 1 (Christ Himself is
"the Apostle," being sent forth from God), John xiii. 16. In John
xvii. 18; xx. 21 we find the fundamental idea ofthe word and the basis
of its larger application: " As Thou didst send Me forth into the world,
even so I have sent forth them." In this more general use, apostle did
not differ much from our word missionary. The title belonged to men
who were sent out in Christ's name by particular Churches — either
with a specific and limited mission, or with a general commission to
preach the gospel — as well as to those directly: appointed by Jesus
Himself and charged with His full authority. But after N, T. times
the designation came to be reserved, with slight exceptions, to the
Twelve and Paul. See Bishop Lightfoot's detached note on the Name
and Office of an Apostle in his Commentary on Galatians, pp. 92 ff.;
and Huxtable's very valuable Dissertation in the Pulpit Commentary on
Galatians, pp. xxiii. — 1. St Paul certainly possessed the lower apostle
ship (see Acts xiii. 1 — 3), and there was no need for him in this letter
to claim the higher, nor to distinguish himself from his missionary com
panions. His friend Luke puts the Apostle, in the early stage of his
ministry, on a level with Barnabas (Acts xiv. 4, 14). The time came
when he was compelled to assume the highest Apostolic powers and to
assert his equality with Peter and the Twelve (Gal. i. 1; ii. ; 1 Cor.
ix. 1, 2, xv. 7 — 11 ; 2 Cor. xii. 11— 13, xiii. 3 — 10); but it was not yet.
"Burdensome" is lit. in (or in our idiom, of) weight — an ambiguous
phrase, whose sense is interpreted by ver. 9 : " that we might not
burden any of you." These " apostles of Christ " — according to Paul's
maxim, "They which preach the gospel should live of the gospel"
(1 Cor. ix. 14) — might have claimed their maintenance from the Thes
salonian Church. Had they been " seeking glory of men," they would
certainly have done so ; it was both the easier and the more dignified
course. " Weight " suggests the secondary sense of honour, glory .- R. V.
margin, claimed honour (comp. 2 Cor. iv. 17, "weight of glory":
weight and glory are one word in Hebrew). Not because they were
apostles (as though this were a privilege peculiar to the name), but " as

vv. 7, 8.] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 67
apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, even as 7
a nurse cherisheth her children: so being affectionately de- 8
sirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you,
Christ's apostles" — sent on His errand, preaching His word: "so hath
the Lord ordained" (1 Cor. ix. 14; Luke x. 7). We find that the
Apostle, while in Thessalonica at this time, did receive help twice over
from his Philippian friends, and gratefully remembered it (Phil. iv. 15,
16). So afterwards, at Corinth, he allowed contributions to be sent
him "from Macedonia" (2 Cor. xi. 9).
1. But we were gentle among you] Lit., and more graphically,
in the midst of you (R.V.); also, were found gentle — same verb as
in ver. 1, and ch. i. 5 (shewed ourselves toward you, R.V.).
Instead ol gentle, babes is the reading of " most of the ancient autho
rities" (R.V., margin), including the Vulgate (parvuli): the difference
in the Greek lies only in the repetition or omission of a single letter.
The modern editors (with the weighty exception of Westcott and Hort :
see the Note in their New Testament in Greek, vol. 11., p. 128), decide
in favour of the received reading, — (1) because "gentle" better suits
the context; and (2) because this Greek word occurs only once besides
in the N.T. (1 Tim. ii. 24), for copyists are prone to change an un
familiar into any familiar word resembling it that gives a tolerable
sense, and "babes" is a favourite expression of St Paul. If babes be
the genuine reading — and it is difficult to resist the evidence in its
favour — then it must be explained as it is by Origen and Augustine,
endorsed by Westcott : like a nurse amongst her children, talking in
baby language to the babes.
- The gentleness of these apostles of Christ stands in tacit contrast with
the airs of authority and the exactions of selfish and vain-glorious men
in like circumstances (w. 5, 6). The behaviour ofthe "false apostles"
who appeared at Corinth affords us an example of that which St Paul
and his comrades avoided. See 2 Cor. xi. 20, 21, xii. 13 — 18.
We note the union of gentleness and courage (ver. 2) in the mission
aries : a mark of the true hero, like Wordsworth's ' Happy Warrior, ' —
"who though endued as with a sense
And faculty for storm and turbulence,
Is yet a soul whose master-bias leans
To homefelt pleasures and to gentle scenes."
(We were gentle in the midst of you) as though a nurse were
cherishing her own children. The " nurse" is mother at the same
time— a mother with the babe at her breast, the perfect image of
fostering love. Comp. Christ's picture in Matt, xxiii. 37.
8. so being affectionately desirous of you] R.V., even so.
The rare and peculiar Greek verb (one word) rendered "being affec
tionately desirous " implies the fondness of a mother's love — yearning
over you.
With this mother-like affection, he continues, we were well pleased
to impart unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own
5— 2

68 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 9-
not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because
9 ye were dear unto us. For ye remember, brethren, our
souls (R.V.). The apostles were not merely willing (A.V.) to bestow
themselves on the Thessalonians, they actually did so, and with the
glad consent of a mother nourishing the babe from her own life. The
same verb is rendered " thought-good " in ch. iii. i ; and the corre
sponding noun is "good-pleasure" in 2 Ep. i. 11 (see note).
For "souls" we might read "lives" (psychi is never the soul in
general, but the individual soul, the personality) — our lives, our very
selves. The Apostle sacrificed all personal aims and private interests —
"what things were gains to me "(Phil. iii. 7) — to the cause ofthe Gospel;
his life was put in continual hazard in behalf of the Church; and for
such people as the Macedonian Christians he did this with cordial
satisfaction. " If 1 am made a libation over the sacrifice and service of
your faith, I joy and rejoice with you all" (Phil. ii. 17). Even to the
thankless Corinthians he says, " I will most gladly spend and be spent
for your souls" (2 Cor. xii. 15). This is the true way to "impart the
gospel of God," to give our own heart and soul with it. For it is to
impart the Gospel in the spirit in which it came from God, "Who
spared not His own Son, but gave Him up for us all " (Rom. viii.
32); and in the spirit of Christ, " Who gave Himself up for us " (Gal. i.
4; ii. 20), Who "poured out His soul unto death" (Isai. liii. 12).
because ye were dear unto us] More adequately, ye became very
dear (R.V.) ; lit., beloved, the word so often applied to Christ (in the
Gospels) by the Father: "My Beloved," "My Son, the Beloved"
(comp. Eph. i. 6, "accepted in the Beloved"). This Church had won
upon St Paul's affections in an especial degree. They were lovable
people, dear to God and to the servants of God. Comp. ch. i. 3, 4;
2 Ep. ii. 13, 16; see also Introd. pp. 34, 35, and notes on vv. 19, 20.
9. For ye remember, brethren, our labour and travail] In ch. i. 3
(see note) the Apostle spoke with thankfulness of his readers' "labour
of love ;" this laborious spirit they had learnt from himself: comp.
2 Ep. iii. 8, 9, where it appears that to some of them his example was
a reproof. " Travail" is added to "labour," as in 2 Ep. iii. 8; j. Cor. xi. 27
(the reference being in each case to manual labour), to indicate the
difficulty, as labour the toilsomeness of the Apostle's work.
St Paul was a "tentmaker by trade" (Acts xviii. 3). Jewish fathers,
even if wealthy, had their sons taught some mechanical craft as a
remedy against poverty or idleness; and Paul had leamt in his youth
at Tarsus the business of cutting out and stitching the coarse goats'
hair cloth used in Cilicia for making tents. He found this skill in his
wandering apostleship a great resource. An irksome kind of labour, to
be sure, and but ill paid. It was a pathetic sight when the Apostle
held up "these hands" to the Ephesian elders, hard and blackened
with their rough task (Acts xx. 34). But he thus earned for himself the
necessaries of subsistence, and avoided burdening the infant Churches
with his maintenance. In this way he was free to direct his own mn™:

v. io.] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 69
labour and travail : for labouring night and day, because we
would not be chargeable unto any of you, we preached unto
you the gospel of God. Ye are witnesses, and God also, 1
how holily and justly and unblameably we behaved our-
ments, and raised himself above mean suspicions. At the same time,
he did not refuse occasional aid from a Church like the Philippian, in
which he had full confidence, and whose affection would have been hurt
by refusal. On this subject read 1 Cor. ix. 1— 19; 2 Cor. xi. 7 — 12 ;
Phil. iv. 10 — 20; Acts xx. 33 — 35. Silas and Timothy, who are included
in this statement, may have had other means of support. But in Acts
xx. 34 the Apostle speaks of "these hands" as "ministering" also "to
the needs of those with me."
for labouring night and day] Omit "for," and read this clause in
apposition with the last. Te remember... our labour and travail :
working night and day... we preached, &c. Busy in teaching and
preaching during the daytime, the Apostle often pursued his tentmaking
far into the night.
because we would not be chargeable unto any of you] St Paul puts
it in a more delicate way than this : that we might not lay a burden
on any of you. It was consideration for his Thessalonian flock, rather
than regard to his personal independence, that influenced him. How
different was he from the false shepherds who "eat the fat and clothe
them with the wool, but feed not the flock" (Ezek. xxxiv. 3). Most of
the Thessalonian Christians, doubtless, were poor; while at Philippi
there was " Lydia, a seller of purple," and perhaps others of consider
able means, who could afford to "send once and again to" Paul's
"necessity" (Phil. iv. 15, 16). Yet Jason of Thessalonica, in whose
house the apostles lodged, seems to have been a man of substance
(Acts xvii. 5 — 9) ; and there were "of the first women" of the city "not
a few" amongst Paul's adherents in this place.
Thus "making the gospel without expense," as later at Corinth
(1 Cor. ix. 18), — we preached unto you the gospel of God] " Preached "
is proclaimed, heralded. St Paul refers to the circumstances of his
' ' entrance " (ver. 1 ) and the manner in which he and his companions
then bore themselves. The Herald, or Town Crier, in ancient cities
was commonly a salaried official.
A third time the Apostle writes "the gospel of God" (comp. vv. 2,
4> 8)— a phrase occurring only thrice in all the other Epistles. It sug
gests in' ver. 2 the greatness of the charge entrusted to Paul; here, the
greatness ofthe boon gratuitously bestowed on the Thessalonians.
10. Ye are witnesses, and God also] In ver. 5 the witness of man and
of God (to the outward and inward respectively) were distinguished;
here they are combined : Tou are witnesses, and so is God.
how holily and justly and unblameably we- behaved ourselves among
you that believe] R.V. more correctly, toward you : also righteously
instead oi justly. Concerning "you that believe," as a designation
of Christians, see note to ch. i. 7.
For holily we might substitute religiously. The Greek adverb does

70 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [vv. n, 12.
11 selves among you that believe: as you know how we ex
horted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a
12 father doth his children, that ye would walk worthy of God,
not represent the ordinary N.T. word for "holy" (hagios, i.e. saint),
but another adjective (hosios), which is frequent in the O.T. and in
common Greek. The former denotes Holiness as a relationship to
God ; the latter, as a condition or disposition of the man : they differ
as consecrated from religious or pious. For the combination of Holiness
(in this latter sense) with Righteousness, see Eph. iv. 24 ; Tit. i. 8 ; also
Luke i. 75; in the O.T., Deut. xxxii. 4; Ps. cxlv. 17 (applied to God),
&c. The terms are not mutually exclusive, but may apply to the same
acts and persons. The "holy" man has regard to the sanctities, the
"righteous" man to the duties of life ; but duty is sacred, and piety is
duty. They cover the whole field of conduct, regarded in turn from
the religious and moral standpoint, while "unblameably" affixes the
seal of approval both by God and man.
Unblameably reappears in the "blameless" of ch. iii. 13 and v. 23.
11. as you know lunv we exhorted and comforted and charged every
one of you, as a father doth his children] The R. V. recasts the verse,
restoring the order and emphasis of the Apostle's words : how we dealt
with each one of you, as a father with his own children, exhorting
you, and encouraging you, and testifying, &c. "Dealt with" is not in
the Greek, but English idiom requires some such verb to sustain the
participles that follow. The writer intended to complete the sentence
with some governing verb, but the intervening words carried his thoughts
away. See the observations on St Paul's style in the Introd. Chap. VI.
The Apostle compared himself to a nurse-mother (ver. 7) in his
tender, gentle affection ; now he is a father in the fidelity and manly
strength of his counsels. Comp. 1 Cor. iv. 14 — 21, where he gives a
different turn to the figure.
"Exhorting" is the general term for animating address: comp. notes
on ver. 3, and ch. iii. 2. "Encouraging" (as in ch. v. 14, John xi. 19,
31; rendered uniformly in A.V. , "comforting") is the calming and
consoling side of exhortation, as addressed to the afflicted or the weak.
"Testifying" (same word as in Gal. v. 3; Eph. iv. 17 ; Acts xxvi. 22)
supplies its solemn, warning element. The Thessalonian Church was
both suffering and tempted, and the Apostle's ministry to them had
been at once consolatory and admonitory. So are his two Epistles.
every one] Lit., each single one, as in 2 Ep. i. 3, indicates St Paul's
discrimination and care for individuals. Comp. the "publicly, and
from house to house " of Acts xx. 20.
12. that ye would walk worthy of God] Better, in order that ye
should, and worthily (R.V.) "Walk" is the common Hebrew and
O.T. figure for the conduct of life.
It was Gods message the apostles of Christ had brought to the Thes
salonians (vv. 2, 9); " unto God, the living and true," they had "turned
from their idols to serve" Him (ch. i. 9). They must, therefore, now live
a life " worthy of God " — worthv of those who hnvp mMi - n~ j — -1

v. 13] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 71
who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory. For this 13
His servants and sons. Nowhere, perhaps, does St Paul lay such con
tinued emphasis on the relation of the Christian believer to God as in
these Epistles: see Introd. pp. 17, 18.
To " walk worthily of God" is the noblest possible ideal of life ; so
high that it would appear visionary and impracticable, if it were not for
what follows : —
(worthy of God) who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory]
According to the truer reading, who calleth — for it is a call that
continues till its purpose is accomplished (comp. ch. iv. 8, "God who
giveth His Holy Spirit," R.V.) ; and into His own kingdom, &c.
Such is the confidence of "you that believe" (ver. 10); and this
conviction gives the believer will and courage to aspire to the loftiest
moral attainments: comp. ch. v. 24 (note). Gods summons the Thes
salonians had heard ; His call could not be purposeless or powerless.
The announcement of the Kingdom of God was a leading feature of
St Paul's preaching at Thessalonica; comp. 2 Ep. i. 5, and see Introd.
pp. 18 — 21. It is also designated "the kingdom of the Son," Col.
i. 13; "of Christ and God," Eph. v. 5; Rev. xi. 15; "ofheaven," in
St Matthew. This kingdom is sometimes spoken of as present, some
times as future — a variation which marks the language of Christ equally
with His Apostle. The expression comes in the first place from the
Jewish Rabbis, being derived from the predictions of Dan. ii. 44, 45,
vii. 13, 14; Mic. iv. 7 ; and these predictions again had their foundation
in the great prophetic declarations respecting the throne and house of
David (2 Sam. vii. ; Ps. ii. and ex.). It was the popular designation for
that perfect Divine rule which the Jews expected to see established on
earth by the Messiah at His coming. Itwas called "the kingdom of
heaven" (or "the heavens"), as having its seat and originin heaven, and
in contrast with the existing "kingdoms of this world and their glory,"
of which the Tempter said to Jesus, in harmony with Jewish ideas,
"All this hath been delivered unto me" (Luke iv. 6). But God calls
men "from the dominion of Satan" (Acts xxvi. 18) into "His own
kingdom and glory." The difference is, fundamentally, not one of place
or time ; it is a moral opposition. John the Baptist, and then Christ, in
similar terms announced the new kingdom to be " at hand;" in leaving
the world Jesus declared that His "Father's kingdom" would be
revealed on His return (Matt. xiii. 43, xxvi. 29, 64; Luke xix. 12,
&c). At the same time, He taught that the kingdom already existed in
His Person and was constituted by His presence ; that in its essence it
was set up within His disciples, and therefore its future coming would
be the manifestation and unfolding of what they already possessed in the
spiritual life received from Him : see Luke xvii. 21 ; John xviii. 36, 37;
Matt. v. 3, 10, xiii. 31 — 33, 38, &c. Christ's doctrine of the kingdom is
virtually contained in the two petitions of the Lord's Prayer : ' ' Thy king
dom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven so also upon earth." This
implies that so far as God's will is done on earth, His kingdom is here
already ; earth being ruled from heaven and by heaven's law. But the

72 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 13.
cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye
more it makes its power felt on earth, the more necessary does its
heavenly glory become. St Paul sees the kingdom present^and ruling
where there is " righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit "
(Rom. xiv. 17): but what is now possessed of it he regards as only the
"earnest oi our inheritance" (Rom. viii. 23; Eph. i. 14); God"is"ever
"calling" His servants onward "to His own kingdom and glory."
The glory is God's glory — the splendour of His future revelation as
He will at last, on the return of Christ, be manifested to His saints.
In this glory they will share. "The kingdom and glory of God " are
one, the latter being the full display and consummation of the former.
And in the Apostle's view, "the hope ofthe glory of God" (Rom. v. 2)
is bound up with the " hope in our Lord Jesus Christ," which the
Thessalonians so earnestly cherished.
Obeying the voice of God that calls them to a place in His glorious
kingdom, St Paul's readers will know how to " walk worthily." This
summons is the ever-renewed incitement of a holy life, and inspires us
with the most exalted of those " mighty hopes which make us men."
So " we were saved by hope " (Rom. viii. 24).
This view of the religion of the Thessalonians agrees with what was
said of them in ch. i. 9, 10. " Walking worthily of God" corresponds
to "serving a living and true God;" and the "call to His kingdom and
glory" invites them to "wait for His Son from the heavens."
SECTION III.
Jewish Persecutors of the Church. Ch. II. 13 — 16.
This short paragraph is of peculiar interest. The Apostle was at the
time exposed in his Gentile mission to the bitterest persecution from
the unbelieving Jews, as we gather from the contemporary narrative
of Acts xvi. — xviii. And he employs against them in vv. 15, 16
language more severe than is found in any other .of his writings.
Evidently he regarded the Jews as being now, in the counsels of
God, a doomed nation (ver. 16). Accordingly, we find him in Rom.
ix. — xi., a few years later, arguing upon the reprobation of "Israel
after the flesh " as a settled thing. We observe, too, his desire (ver. 14)
to draw the Jewish and Gentile sections of the Church nearer to each
other in sympathy under the stress of persecution. As to the bearing
of this passage on the date of the Epistle, see Introd. p. 23, foot-note.
Analysis : The Apostle (1) again thanks God for the reception given
to the Gospel by his readers, ver. 13; (2) he sees in their union
with the Judean Churches in persecution a proof of its efficacy in them
ver. 14; and (3) this gives him occasion to denounce Jewish violence
against the Gospel, whose punishment is now decreed and impending,
vv. 15, 16.
13. For this cause also thank we God without ceasing] Revised
reading: And for this cause we also, &c. The Apostle has already
given thanks for the Christian worth of the Thpccnlr,™..,,., /„i. ? _ n- -

v. 1 3-] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 73
received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received
it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of
God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.
his thanksgiving is renewed when he considers that this is the fruit of
his own and his companions' labour amongst them. Hence we is em
phasized here (in the Greek), but not in ch. i. 2.
"For this cause" looks back over the whole of the last section, vv.
I — 12. Accordingly he continues : —
because, whenye received the word of God, which ye heard of us] Better,
(we give thanks) that (R. V.), or in that : comp. notes on ch. i. 5 and
2 Ep. i. 3. The recollections of the last paragraph prompt the writer
to the thanksgiving which takes shape in the words that follow : —
For ye received the word of God, &c, R.V. renders : ye received from
us the word of the message (Greek, word of hearing), even the word of
God. Perhaps the A.V. is nearer to St Paul's meaning: "from us"
in the original immediately follows "hearing," and appears to be de
pendent upon it. We therefore translate, somewhat freely, but after the
order of the Greek : when you received the word you heard from us —
God's word. " Word " is not repeated by the Apostle, nor has it the
definite article ; English idiom requires both. His joy is that a message
heard from his lips, not his own indeed but God's word (see vv. 2, 8, 9,
and note on the last), had been thus received. For the connection of
"hearing" and "from us" comp. 2 Tim. i. 13, ii. 2, "what thou hast
heard from me"; and 2 Cor. i. 19, "the Son of God proclaimed through
me and Silas and Timothy." "Faith comes by hearing"; and hearing
requires "a preacher" (Rom. x. 13 — 17).
ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word
of God] R.V., accepted for received: the Greek verb differs from that
of the last clause, which might signify the mere outward reception of
something "heard"; this term, as in ch. i. 6, denotes a willing, hearty
acceptance — a welcome given to the ' ' word." It is the expression used
in Gal. iv. 14: — "as an angel of God you received me"; again in
Phil. iv. 18, where Paul speaks of his welcoming the timely gift from
Philippi ; and is the common Greek term for receiving a guest.
Literally the clause reads, you accepted not men's word, but, as it
Is truly, God's word. "Men's word" — the mere word of " Paul and
Silas and Timothy." The Thessalonians accepted God's word as
God's, with reverence and faith. They recognised in what they heard
from Paul and Silas a higher Voice, the message of the living and
true God, calling them to life eternal. The success of religious teaching
lies in its power to make God's voice audible through human speech.
If the preacher cannot do this, he does nothing. And this accounts for
tne result, which St Paul next describes : —
which effectually worketh also in you that believe] which also
worketh (R.V. ; read worketh with an emphasis), or is operative,
effectual. The " work of faith" which the Apostle admired in the Thessa
lonian Church (ch. i. 3 : see note) is the work of God's word in them.

74 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 14.
m For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God
which in Judea are in Christ Jesus : for ye also have suffered
like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of
In their lives that word takes effect ; it puts forth its energy, and does
its proper work. " The seed" of all such fruit "is the word of God"
(Luke viii. 1 1).
On "you that believe" see note to ch. i. 7. Here the present tense
of the participle makes its force sensible — "you that do believe;" con
tinued faith being the condition of this sustained efficacy of the word
of God in the Thessalonians. Mighty as it is, that word can do nothing
for us unless we believe it (comp. Matt. xiii. 58).
14. For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which
in Judea are in Christ Jesus] Followers should be imitators (R.V.),
just as in ch. i. 6: imitators of the apostles and of their Lord, the
Thessalonians were imitating the Judaean Churches, and in the same
respect, viz. in the willing endurance of suffering for the word's sake.
Silas, be it remembered, had been an active member of the Church at
Jerusalem (Acts xv. 22, 32), and through him especially the missionary
band would be in communication and sympathy at this time with their
brethren in Judaea.
More strictly, which are in Judsea in Christ Jesus (R.V.). "In
Judaea" is the local, "in Christ Jesus" the spiritual habitat of these
Churches. This latter phrase — an expression characteristic of St Paul
and frequent in subsequent Epistles — signifies "in union and com
munion with Him, incorporated with Him who is the Head" of His
Body the Church (Ellicott). It distinguishes the Christian from other
Judaean communities which also claimed to be "Churches (assemblies)
of God." Comp. note on "Church. ..in God the Father," &c, ch. i. 1.
Observe the order Christ Jesus, a combination almost confined to
St Paul, and which he employs when he thinks of Him in His actual
Person and official character, as the present Head and Life of His people
on earth ; whereas Jesus Christ is the historical order, and points to
His earthly course and exaltation to Messiahship (see Acts ii. 36).
"Church of God" is an O.T. expression, found in the Greek ren
dering of Neh. xiii. 1; Deut. xxiii. 1 — 3 (church of the Lord : congre
gation, A. V. ) ; it denotes that the Church belongs to God, while it
suggests, according to the derivation of ek-klesia, that its members are
called out (of the world) by God (comp. ver. 12). In Gal. i. 22 the
Apostle writes, more simply, "the Churches of Judaea which are in
Christ." This reference to the Home Churches creates a link between far-off
Thessalonica and Judaea. The Thessalonians are not alone in then-
troubles; they are fighting the same battle as the mother Church and
the first disciples of the Lord. Comp. Ph. i. 30, "having the same
conflict which ye saw in me." Their union with Christ's persecuted
flock in its native land shewed that the Gospel was working in them
to purpose (ver. 13), and working everywhere in the same way.
for ye also have suffered like things nf «™» »™«. ~...-.< 

v- 1 5-]  I. THESSALONIANS, II. 75
the Jews: who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own i5
prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God,
as they have of the Jews] St Paul says the same, not like things.
And this "for" represents a different word from the previous "for;"
it is rather in that, not accounting for the Thessalonians imitating
Judean example, but explaining wherein the imitation consisted.
The hostility of their fellow-townsmen formed a bitter ingredient in
their afflictions (Acts xvii. 5 — 9). The Apostle tells them that it was
the same with the primitive Churches in Judaea — that, indeed, the
murder of the Lord Jesus and of the old prophets, and the expulsion
of the apostles, were due to feelings precisely similar to those aroused
in their own city against themselves. This was a proof that they were
in the true succession. Christ had said, "A man's foes shall be they
of his own household." Such comfort has often to be given to young
missionary churches.
But the Apostle has now to add words of awful severity respecting
those whom his readers knew to be the prime instigators of persecu
tion, both against themselves and him — the Jews: —
15. who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets] Re
vised reading, simply the prophets.
Christ represented His death as the culmination of the murders of
the ancient prophets (Luke xi. 47 — 52; xiii. 31 — 33; xx. 9 — 16);
St Stephen had said the same thing in Paul's hearing, with poignant
force (Acts vii. 52). -Now the Apostle takes up the accusation.
More exactly, killed the Lord, (even) Jesus ; or, changing the gram
matical form but retaining the order of the Greek words, The Lord
they slew, Jesus, — as well as the prophets. This sets the deed in an
appalling light. To have killed the Lord — Who bears a - title that
belongs to God, and "Him whom they were bound to serve" (Jowett);
(comp. 1 Cor. ii. 8: They "crucified the Lord of glory"); that Lord
being Jesus their Saviour (comp. Acts iv. 12), and such an one as Jesus
was known to be ! The double name, emphasized in each part, brings
into striking relief at once the Divine authority and the human character
of Christ. Comp. Acts ii. 36 (" Him did God make both Lord and
Christ — this Jesus whom you crucified!"); also the parable of Luke
xx. 9 — 18, Mark xii. 1 — 11, "The husbandmen said, This is the heir;
come, let us kill him ! "
and have persecuted us] Better, and drave us out (R.V.), words
which echo those of Christ in Luke xi. 49: "I will send them pro
phets and apostles; and some of them they will kill and persecute."
Already Christ, like the prophets, had been killed; and now His
apostles were driven out, "fleeing from city to city" (Matt, xxiii. 34)
to avoid the like fate. Read the account of Paul's departure from
Jerusalem in Acts ix. 28 — 30; and his later experience there, Acts
xxi.— xxiii.; also the narrative of James' death and Peter's escape
from Herod's prison, in Acts xii. 1 — 9. Paul and Silas had now been
hunted all the way from Philippi to Corinth by Jewish malignity, and
it was only the authority and good sense of the Roman Governor,

76 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 16.
16 and are contrary to all men : forbidding us to speak to the
Gallio, that made it possible for him to remain in the latter city. Comp.
2 Cor. xi. 26 : "In perils from mine own countrymen."
and they please not God] Omit they, and put a comma only before this
clause, for it is immediately continuous with the last: more exactly,
and are not pleasing to God. This is an instance of what the gram
marians call meiosis or litotes, the studiously restrained and smooth
expression covering intense feeling; as where the Apostle says, "I
praise you not," meaning severe blame (1 Cor. xi. 17, 22). Their
unpleasingness to God was due not to these wicked acts alone, but to
their whole conduct. Comp., in the O.T., such sayings as Isai. Ixv. 5 :
"These are a smoke in My nostrils;" and Jer. xxxii. 30. By contrast,
the Apostle spoke of himself as "not pleasing men, but God" (ver. 4).
and are contrary to all men] At war both with God and men !
The sense of God's displeasure often shews itself in sourness and ill-
temper towards one's fellows. Unbelief and cynicism go together.
The rancour of the Jews against other nations at this time was notorious.
Tacitus, the Roman historian, writing in the next generation, remarks
on their " adversus omnes alios hostile odium" (Histor. v. 5). This
animosity culminated in the war against Rome (a.d. 66 — 70), and
brought a fearful retribution.
The quarrel between Judaism and the world, alas, still continues, as
the Judenhasse of Germany and Russia testifies. Jewish hatred has
been more than repaid by Christian persecution. The antipathy is
powerfully impersonated in Shakespeare's Shylock. The Jew says of
his debtor, ' ' I hate him, for he is a Christian." And Antonio in turn :
"You may as well use question with the wolf,
Why he hath made the ewe bleat for the lamb;
You may as well do anything most hard,
As seek to soften that (than which what's harder?)
His Jewish heart."
But we may hope that better feelings will prevail in the future on
both sides. St Paul is thinking, however, not of the Jewish sentiment
in general, but of the opposition of his people to the rest of the world on
that one point which concerned him so deeply, viz. the salvation of men
through Christ.
16. forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved]
R.V., may be saved. As much as to say: "These Jews, if they had
their way, would prevent us speaking a single word to you about the
Gospel; they would willingly see all the Gentiles perish!" This
stamped them as enemies of the human race. They were furious to
think that unclean Gentiles claimed a share in their Messiah! Their
murderous hatred against Paul was due to the fact that he preached
Christ to the heathen and declared God to be the God of Jews and
Gentiles equally, saving both alike through faith in Christ. So when in
his defence before the Jewish multitude at the Temple he came to the
words, "Depart, for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles" they
broke out in uncontrollable rase. "Awav with snrli •> i»n™ c  "--

v. 16.] I. THESSALONIANS, II. 77
Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway:
for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.
earth, for it is not fit that he should live!" (Acts xxii. 21 — 23). The
Jews of Thessalonica seem to have been especially mean and fanatical
(Acts xvii. 5, n, 13); and the Apostle wishes his readers to see how
entirely he is on their side as against his fellow-countrymen.
to fill up their sins alway] After the death of Christ a space for
repentance was allowed them, the "forty years" alluded to in Heb. iii.
9, 17. Had they accepted Christ's message of reconciliation through
the apostles and become His witnesses to the Gentiles, the judgement
would have been averted (Acts iii. 19). The measure allowed to the
nation's sins was not yet full ; but this last refusal made their cup over
flow — slowly filling, as it had been, for many ages. "Fill ye up then
the measure of your fathers," Jesus had said to them (Matt, xxiii. 32);
and this they had done, beyond all question. The phrase fill up their
sins, signifying ripeness for judgement, is used in Gen. xv. 16 of the
Amorites in Abraham's time — an ominous parallel. "Alway:" comp.
Stephen's reproach, "As did your fathers, so do ye" (Acts vii. 51).
for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost] but the wrath
(R.V.), not for; as though he said, "But the end comes at last : they
have always been sowing this harvest; now it has to be reaped."
Whose wrath this is, goes without saying ; so in Rom. v. 9 God's anger
is called with impressive emphasis "the wrath." It is indeed "the
wrath" of ch. i. 10 (see note): there regarded in its final and general
manifestation to the world, here in its imminent relation to the people
of Israel. There it is "coming;" here it "is come," or has arrived.
These words are prophetical; but the announcement goes beyond
prediction. The Jews as a people had decisively refused the gospel of
Jesus Christ, and their fate was sealed. The nation was moving swiftly
and visibly down the inclined plane to ruin. And this calamity was
to he final. "To the uttermost," says the Apostle; lit., unto an end.
In former threatenings the Lord had said, "Yet will I not make a full
end" (Jer. iv. 27, and often). He does make a full end this time —
an end of the Old Covenant and of national Israel as the elect people ;
still it is not "the end," as though God had no further dealings with
ancient Israel : see on the contrary Rom. xi.
In the year 70 of our Lord Jerusalem fell, after the most dreadful and
calamitous siege known in history; and the Jewish people ever since
have wandered without a home and without an altar. Tristis exilus,
says Bengel: urgebat miseros ira Dei, et els tAos (tandem, at length)
urbem cum templo delevit. SECTION IV.
St Paul's Present Relations to the Thessalonians.
Ch. II. 17— III. 13.
The Apostle had been drawn aside in the last paragraph, by a sudden
and characteristic burst of feeling, from the main purpose of his letter.

78 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 17.
¦7 But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time
in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly
To this he now returns. Ver. 17 might follow quite naturally upon
ver. 12. Having recalled to his readers the circumstances of his
arrival at Thessalonica and the manner of his life amongst them, he
goes on to speak of the feelings and views which he now entertains in
regard to them. And he continues in this vein to the end of ch. iii.
He speaks ( 1 ) of his great desire io revisit them and the attempts he has
made to do so, vv. 17 — 20; (2) he relates how he sent 1'imothy with
messages and enquiries when he found this impossible, ch. iii. 1 — 5;
(3) he expresses his satisfaction at the report Timothy has brought back
to him, vv. 6 — 8; and (4) he repeals his thanksgiving and his longing
to see them, with prayers both on this account and for their final
acceptance in the day of Christ, w. 9 — 13.
We may suppose that St Paul's enemies, while they set down the
preaching of the missionaries in the first instance to base motives (see
note to ver. 3), went on to insinuate that the Apostle's continued
absence showed his unconcern for his persecuted followers. (Comp.
Introd. pp. 23, 24.) Hence the warmth and energy of his protestations.
17. But we, brethren, being taken from you] bereaved of you
(R.V.), or torn away from you; lit., orphaned — a word employed in
Gieek with some latitude — the very strongest expression the Apostle
could find, occurring only here in the N.T.
for a short time] Lit., season of an hour, — as we say, "an hour's
time." St Paul expected, when he left Thessalonica, to be able to
return very shortly. Meanwhile the apostles felt themselves to be
parted from their friends "in presence (or person) — not in heart." The
comfort of their parting was the hope of speedy reunion :
"Parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say Good-night, till it be morrow."
We find from Acts xvii. 10 that it was "the" Thessalonian
"brethren" who "sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Bercea,"
in order to secure their safety. Unwilling to go, the apostles were
eager to return : —
we... endeavoured the more abundantly] exceedingly (R.V.): we were
the more earnest in our endeavours (because our hearts were so
truly one) to see your face, with great desire.
"Face" is identical in Greek with the "presence" of the former
clause: they were parted in sight, not in affection; but true affection
longs for sight. This "great desire" excited and sustained the apostles'
endeavours. "We longed for the sight of your dear faces, and did
our utmost to get back to you:" so in ch. iii. 10, "Night and day
praying exceedingly that we may see your face." Such, too, was the
love of St John to his friends: "But I hope speedily to see thee;
and we will talk mouth to mouth" (2 John 12; 3 John 14). "The
spiritual interest of the Apostle about his converts is never for a moment
separate from his tender human love for them" (TowerrL

vv. 18, 19.] 1. THESSALONIANS, II.

79

to see your face with great desire. Wherefore we would 18
have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but
Satan hindered us. For what is our hope, or joy, or crown 19
18. Wherefore we would have come unto you] The true reading
is because — not "wherefore," due probably to a misunderstanding of
the following verb, which is not removed by the rendering ofthe R.V.,
"because we would fain have come." This but repeats the "great
desire" just expressed; whereas the Greek verb implies resolution
rather than inclination. The Apostle, as we understand him, is giving
the explanation of his strenuous endeavours (ver. 17), lying behind
them in his determined will — because we had resolved to come to
you: "we had set our minds upon it."
even I Paul] Better, I Paul, for my part. He speaks for himself:
Timothy did return after a time (ch. iii. 1, 2); and Silas had been left
behind in Macedonia (Acts xvii. 14; xviii. 5). Paul had not come at
all ; but it was not for want of will.
And the Apostle had made up his mind to this more than once — both
once and twice. Silas had, no doubt, shared in the wish and endeavour
to return from Ber&a; the second attempt, likewise frustrated, was
made by the Apostle alone, from Athens (ch. iii. 1). The expres
sion recurs in Ph. iv. 16. Compare with the whole statement Rom. i.
13 : " Many times I purposed to come to you, and have been hindered
hitherto." The Apostle s prophetic gift did not save him from the dis
cipline of disappointment.
but Satan hindered us] Properly, and Satan, &c. : "but" would be
the regular conjunction here; there is a slight dislocation of structure
in the sentence, due to excited feeling. We may paraphrase the
sentence thus: We strove eagerly to find means of coming to see
you ; indeed, for my part, I had made up my mind to. do it more
than once; and our way was blocked, by Satan! What form the
hindrance took we can only guess. Jewish malice doubtless had much
to do with it. But behind this baffling and unforeseen combination of
circumstances the Apostle discerned the craft of the Arch-enemy.
Satan] i.e. "the Adversary," is the O.T. name of the Leader of
evil spirits, the great enemy of God and man — called also ' ' the Devil "
(Slanderer), "the Evil One" (2 Ep. iii. 3), and "the Tempter"
(ch. iii. 5). Satan is, throughout the New Testament, a real personality,
and no figure of speech. See note on 2 Ep. ii. 9 ; and comp. Rev. xii. 9.
To account for his intense longing to see the Thessalonians, St Paul
describes his interest in them in the glowing terms that follow : —
19. For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing?] Not re
joicing, but glorying (R.V.), or boasting. "Crown of glorying" is a
Hebrew idiom (Isai. lxii. 3; Prov. xvi. 31, &c); it is the crown which
expresses one's exultation, — not the king's "diadem" (as in Rev. xix.
12), but the wreath ofthe victor in the games (1 Cor. ix. 24, 25). So he
calls the Philippians his "joy and crown — a boast to me in the day of
Christ, that I have not run in vain" (Ph. ii. 16, iv. 1). And here : " Who
will furnish our crown at Christ's coming — who, indeed, but you?"

80 I. THESSALONIANS, II. [v. 20.
of rejoicing ? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord
ao Jesus Christ at his coming? For ye are our glory and joy.
Are not even ye] This clause is best read, with Westcott and Hort,
as a, rhetorical parenthesis — are not even ye ? — then the main question
is resumed and completed: "before our Lord Jesus at His coming?"
It is then that the Apostle will wear the crown which the Thessa
lonians furnish for him. His wealth is in hope. He loves them for
what they are, but still more for what they will be in the "unveiling of
the sons of God" (Rom. viii. 19), — "set faultless before the presence
of His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 24). Then how proud (in the
just sense of that word) will their Apostle be of them ! See the prayers
of ch. iii. 13 and v. 23, 24; also Col. i. 28, 29, where the goal of
Paul's labours is that he ' ' may present every man perfect in Christ."
our Lord Jesus Christ] should be our Lord Jesus (R.V.). On a
point like this we should always consult a critical text, such as that of
the Revisers. Copyists were peculiarly liable to error in the names of
Christ. Observe the return in glory, and as Judge, of the same Lord
Jesus Whom the Jews wickedly killed, ver. 15: "I saw in the midst
of the throne. ..a Lamb, as though it had been slain," Rev. v. 6. He
had said to His judges: "Ye shall see the Son of Man sitting at the
right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven" (Matt. xxvi.
64). This title identifies the Divine Judge and Conqueror over sin and
death with the historical and human Jesus (comp. John v. 27; Acts
xvii. 31). The combination Lord Jesus is more frequent in these
Epistles than anywhere else in the N.T., * circumstance due to their
prevailing reference to the Second Coming. For further notes on the
title see ch. i. 10 and 2 Ep. i. 7.
his coming] Lit., presence — Greek, parousia — i.e. "presence" in its
active sense (different from the "presence," or "face," of ver. 17 and
2 Ep. ii. 9) — His arrival.
Here is the earliest example of a word, parousia, that has passed
into the language of theology, denoting the promised Advent of Christ
in glory, when He will come to complete His work of redemption
and to judge mankind. His own teaching on the subject is recorded
in Matt, xxiv., xxv.; Mark xiii.; Luke xii. 35 — 59; xvii. 20 — 37; xix.
11 — 27; xxi. 5 — 36; John v. 27 — 29; xiv. 1 — 3; xvi. 22, &c. Seven
times the Apostle uses this solemn word in these two letters — once
besides, in 1 Cor. xv. 23. From the three writings we learn nearly
all that he has to teach on this mysterious subject. The parousia is
spoken of by Christ, in answer to His disciples, in Matt, xxiv.; and
is referred to also in the Epistles of James, Peter, and John.
20. For ye are our glory and joy] Or : Tea, verily, you are our
glory and joy (Ellicott). Emphasis rests both on "ye" and "are."
This delight was not matter of hope alone (ver. 19), but of present fact.
See ch. i. 2 — 4, and iii. 9: "The joy wherewith we rejoice on your
account before our God"; and 2 Ep. i. 4: "We glory in you in the
Churches of God." Glory is praise and honour from others; joy is
one's own delight.

vv. i, 2. I. THESSALONIANS, III. 81
Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought 3
it good to be left at Athens alone ; and sent Timotheus, 2

CHAPTER Hi.
The division of chapters at this point is unfortunate. The import of
ver. 1 lies in its connection with vv. 17 — 20 of ch. ii. We have included
the whole of this chapter in the same section of the Epistle with the
foregoing paragraph. See note introductory to ch. ii. 17.
1. Wherefore when we could no longer forbear] Wherefore (i.e.
because of our longing to see you) no longer bearing it (the frustration
of our attempts to return to Thessalonica). " Bear " is the same word
as in 1 Cor. xiii. 7 : "Love beareth all things " — bears up under, holds
out against. " This protracted separation and repeated disappointment
was more than we could endure. "
to be left at Athens alone] left behind... alone (R.V.).
2. and sent Timotheus] Timothy: see note on this name, ch. i. 1.
The Acts ofthe Apostles traces St Paul's footsteps from Thessalonica
to Beroea, and on from Bercea to Athens : read Acts xvii. 10 — 16 ; and
consult the map in regard to the route. But its account of the move
ments of his companions appears at first sight inconsistent with what
we read here. For in Acts xvii. 14 — 16 we find Silas and Timothy both
left behind at Beroea, while Paul goes on to Athens, instructing them to
follow and rejoin him there as soon as possible. " Paul waited for them
at Athens;" but they do not seem to have arrived. The two comrades
ofthe Apostle are not mentioned by St Luke again until he tells us
of their return together from Macedonia, when they find him at Corinth
(Acts xviii. 1 — 5). St Paul interpolates between the time of his leaving
the two at Bercea and of their return in company from Macedonia
reported by Luke a distinct mission of Timothy by himself to Thessa
lonica. There is, after all, no conflict between the Apostle and his
historian and friend. He relates an incident which St Luke in his
general and cursory narrative passed over, either as unimportant for his
purpose, or because he was unaware of it. Since we have good reason to
believe in the accuracy of both, we must adjust their statements to each
other. This may be done in two ways: it is possible that Paul on
arriving at Athens and finding that he could not return to Thessalonica
from that city, sent directions to Timothy to go back in his place to the
Macedonian capital, instead of coming on to Athens, while Silas still
remained in Macedonia; and that, after Timothy had made this visit,
they both rejoined their leader at Corinth. Or it may be — and this
agrees better with the words " left behind" — that Timothy did come lo
Athens from Bercea, and was immediately despatched again to Thes
salonica, so that the Apostle was practically alone from the time he
left Bercea until Silas and Timothy rejoined him at Corinth.
The "we" of w. 1, 2, 6 appears to refer to the Apostle himself;
comp. -i Cor. x. and xiii. for the interchange of "I" and "we" in St
Paul's manner of referring to himself. He may write we representa
tively, where others are joined with him in sympathy, though not in
THF.SS. 6

82 I. THESSALONIANS, III. [v. 3.
our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in
the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you
3 concerning your faith : that no man should be moved by
act. If Silas was now with Paul at Athens, he also must shortly have
returned to Macedonia (see Acts xviii. 5); but the words "left alone"
would seem in that case to be pointless. It was a trial to St Paul at
this time to be "left alone." But his anxiety about the Thessalonians
compels him, notwithstanding, to send his young helper to them.
our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in the
gospel of Christ] This description of Timothy is given in varying forms
by the ancient MSS. The Revisers prefer to read, our brother and
God's minister, &c; but they say in the margin, "Some ancient
authorities read fellow-worker with God." Possibly this is what the
Apostle wrote: our brother and a fellow- worker with God. The
other variations can best be explained by it ; and copyists would scarcely
have substituted by this bold expression the easy phrase "minister of
God," which occurs in other Epistles, had the latter* been the original
reading. "God's fellow-worker " expresses a thoroughly Pauline idea
(see 1 Cor. iii. 9; 2 Cor. vi. 1), and would serve to exalt Timothy in
the eyes of the Church. It agrees with what the Apostle says of him
in 1 Cor. xvi. 10 : " Timothy worketh the work of the Lord, as I also
do ; let no one therefore despise him." The Received Text, as in many
other instances, results from the combination of two earlier and briefer
readings of the passage. Codex B, the best of the Greek MSS, reads
simply, our brother and fellow-worker in the gospel of Christ.
to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith] Establish is
stablish in ver. 13 and elsewhere ; the same word is rendered "strengthen
thy brethren" in Luke xxii. 32, also Rev. iii. 2; it signifies to make
stable, fix firmly.
For comfort exhort or encourage is a preferable rendering. St
Paul employed another and quite different verb for "comfort," in
express distinction from that here used, in ch. ii. 11 (see note). The
Greek verb has a wide range of meaning; but all its uses in these two
Epp. may be brought, with that of the cognate noun, under the ideas
of appeal (ch. ii. 3, 11, iv. 1, 10, v. 11, 14; 2 Ep. iii. 12), or en
couragement (ch. ui. 2, 7; 2 Ep. ii. 16, 17). This latter was indeed
an older sense oi comfort in English (Latin confortare).
The Apostle sends Timothy to do what he wished to do himself, and
continues to do by this letter— what, above all, he prays God to do for
them; see ver. 13, 2 Ep. ii. 16, 17: "May He encourage your hearts
and stablish you." (Comp. Introd. p. 35.) They were afflicted, and
needed "encouragement;" they were new to the Christian life, and
needed "establishment."
Concerning is, more strictly, on behalf of (in furtherance of) your
faith. In ch. i. 3 faith, love, and hope; in ver. 6 faith and love ; here
faith alone stands for the whole religion of a Christian.
3. that no man should be moved by these afflictions] Better, that no
man be moved (R.V.). " Objective sentence, explaining and =^»o;a.;„_

v. 4- I. THESSALONIANS, III. 83
these afflictions : for yourselves know that we are appointed
thereunto. For verily, when we were with you, we told you 4
before that we should suffer tribulation ; even as it came to
the subject-matter of the exhortation " (Ellicott). " That " means " to
the effect that."
With "moved" comp. the fuller expression of 2 Ep.ii. 2, " Shaken
in mind or troubled"; also Col. i. 23, "moved away from the hope of
the gospel." But the Greek verb here used seems to imply "moved to
softness" (Jowett).
Not by, but literally in, or amid these afflictions; for these were not
so much the cause by which faith was likely to be shaken, as the circum
stances amid which it was assailed and which lent force to every temp
tation. "Amid these afflictions" the reasonings of unbelief and the
enticements of idolatry and sin would have redoubled force. It was
Timothy's business to shew that such trials ought not to disturb, but
rather to confirm their faith.
for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto] The R.V. gives
the verb its proper emphasis : hereunto we are appointed.
St Paul delicately associates himself with his persecuted friends,
passing from "you" of the last sentence to "we;" comp. the transition
in ch. v. 4, 5. Indeed "these afflictions" were directed in the first
instance against the apostles (see ch. ii. 2, 14, 15; iii. 7, &c), and came
on the Thessalonians through association with them.
Appointed is identical with "set for defence of the gospel" (Phil. i.
16) and "set upon a hill" (Matt. v. 14), indicating the situation in
which one is placed. This was their appointed post and station. And
they well "knew" that such was their "calling of God:" "the fiery
trial " was no " strange thing " (comp. 1 Pet. ii. 20, 21; iv. 12).
4. For verily, when we were with you, we told you before] More
precisely, used to tell you ; this was no single warning, but one re
peated and familiar. For other references to the apostles' previous in
struction, see ch. ii. 11, 12 ; iv. 1, 2 ; 2 Ep. ii. 5, 15 ; iii. 10.
that we should suffer tribulation] So rendered again in 2 Ep. i. 4, 6,
and elsewhere in the A.V.; but the word is the same as that used in
¦vv. 3, 7, and ch. i. 6 — affliction (R.V.). The A.V. too often breaks
the connection of the sacred writer's thought by needless variations of
this sort.
should is made clearer by the Revised are to suffer : this was matter
of certainty in the future, being Divinely appointed (ver. 3), — a thing
one might count upon. And so the event proved : even as it came to
pass, and ye know.
All this is recalled to the minds of the readers and dwelt on with
iteration, not to justify the Apostle's foresight — for it needed no gift
of prophecy to anticipate persecution at Thessalonica — but to make
them realise how well they had been prepared for what they are now
experiencing, and so far to reconcile them to it; comp. John xiv. 29;
1 Pet. iv. 12, "Beloved, count it not strange." Dr Jowett gives an ad
mirable analysis of the causes of persecution in the Apostolic times in his
6—2

84 I. THESSALONIANS, III. v. 5.
pass, and ye know. For this cause, when I could no longer
forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the
notes upon this Chapter (The Epp. of St Paul to the Thessalonians, &c,
pp. y0 — 73, 2nd edition), from which we extract the following sen
tences: — "The fanatic priest, led on by every personal and religious
motive ; the man of the world, caring for none of these things, but not
the less resenting the intrusion on the peace of his home ; the craftsman,
fearing for his gains; the accursed multitude, knowing not the law, but
irritated at the very notion of this mysterious society of such real,
though hidden strength, would all work together towards the overthrow
of those who seemed to them to be turning upside down the political,
religious, and social order of the world  The actual persecution of
the Roman government was slight, but what may be termed social
persecution and the illegal violence employed towards the first disciples
unceasing." 6. For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I senl to know your
faith] Rather, I also, no longer enduring it, sent, &c. St Paul
repeats what he said in ver. 1, but in a different manner, there stating
the facts themselves, here indicating his own share in the trouble of
his readers: "You were in affliction, and your faith endangered; and
I too felt for you an unendurable anxiety." He has just spoken of
Timothy as sent to comfort them, but he was sent at the same time to
comfort him (the Apostle), to relieve his distressing fears about them
(see w. 5<5 and 6). His own troubles and despondency at Corinth
helped to make him apprehensive for the Thessalonian Church (see
ver. 7, and comp. Acts xviii. 5, 9, 10 and 1 Cor. ii. 3).
The Greek verb for "know in this clause is different from that
employed in the last; it means to ascertain, get to know — that I might
ascertain your faith — "might learn its condition, and know whether
or not you were still standing fast in the Lord."
lest by some means the tempter have tempted you] " Have" is here the
English subjunctive perfect, modern "should have"; but the Greek
verb is indicative, and implies a positive expectation : lest by any means
the tempter had tempted you (R.V.) — a fact of which there was little
doubt ; the apprehension is revealed in the next clause (Greek sub
junctive), — and our labour should prove in vain. This was the dark
thought which crossed the Apostle's mind, that he could "no longer
bear." This "labour" (or "toil," same word as in ch. i. 3, see note, and ch.
ii. 9) is that which St Paul described pathetically in ch. ii. 1 — 12, be
ginning with the "entrance" that certainly "was not vain." To think
that all this labour might be lost, and a success at first so glorious end
in blank failure ! — The sentence might be rendered quite as gram
matically, and more vividly, in the interrogative, expressing the ap
prehension as it actually arose in the Apostle's mind : 1 sent that I
might know about your faith : had the Tempter haply tempted you,
and would our labour prove in vain 1
"The Tempter" is so styled once besides, in the account of Christ's

v. 6. I. THESSALONIANS, III. 85
tempter have tempted you, and our labour be in vain. But 6
now when Timotheus came from you unto us, and brought
us good tidings of your faith and charity, and that ye have
good remembrance of us always, desiring greatly to see us,
Temptation, Matt. iv. 3. Comp. note on Satan, ch. ii. 18. While
"hindering" Paul from coming to their help, Satan would be " tempt
ing" the Thessalonians to forsake their faith. This fear wrung the
Apostle's heart.
In passing from ver. 5 to 6 there is a striking change from painful
suspense to relief and joy —
6. But now when Timotheus came from you unto us] But when
Timothy came even now unto us from you (R.V.): this rendering
puts due emphasis on the words "from you" (it was Timothy's
coming with news from Thessalonica that relieved the Apostle's mind) ;
and it gives the proper meaning and connection to the introductory
"now," which qualifies "came " and denotes just now, at this juncture.
Timothy's return has been anxiously awaited; and no sooner has he
arrived and told his story, than Paul sits down and writes out of a full
heart this affectionate and grateful letter. For Timothy brought us
glad tidings of your faith and love (R.V.).
" Brought-glad-tidings " forms a single word in the Greek, the same
that everywhere else in the N.T. signifies " the glad tidings" — the
news of God's salvation and of the coming of His kingdom. Hence
the peculiar force of the word here. This was gospel news, witnessing
to the truth and enduring power of God's message ; for this reason it
was glad tidings to the Apostle from the Thessalonians ("now we live"
ver. 7) — a gospel sent to him in return for his gospel brought to them
(ch. i. 5; ii. 2, &c).
of your faith and charity] tor these comprise the whole Christian life,
and imply the "hope in our Lord Jesus Christ" added to them in ch.
i. 3; comp. 2 Ep. i. 3; Eph. i. 15; Philem. 5—7; 1 John iii. 23:
" that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love
one another." This is the sum of our religion. Read, faith and
love (R.V.).
and that ye have good remembrance of us always] So that the Thessa
lonians reciprocate Paul's feelings towards them; he "remembers"
them "without ceasing" (ch. i. 3), they equally remember him. Good
is kindly, well-disposed remembrance ; their sufferings and the slanders
of his enemies might have alienated their minds from the missionaries,
but it was otherwise.
"Remembrance" represents the same Greek noun as "mention" in
ch. i. 2 ; following make it has a more active, following have a passive
signification. desiring greatly] R.V., in one word, longing, — which renders fitly a
delicate Greek verb, rare except in St Paul, that denotes yearning regret
for an absent beloved object (comp. ch. ii. 17, "bereaved oi you"). He
uses it in 2 Cor. v. 2 to express his desire for the new, spiritual body,
" the house from heaven." Longing to see us, even as we also to see

86 I. THESSALONIANS, III. vv. 7, 8.
7 as we also to see you : therefore, brethren, we were comforted
s over you in all our affliction and distress, by your faith : for
you. The expression recurs in Rom. i. 11 and 2 Tim. i. 4. For the
Apostle's "longing," see ch. ii. 17, 18.
7. therefore, brethren, we were comforted over you] for this cause
(R.V. ), the Greek phrase being identical with that of ver. 5. But
while its reference there was to the peril of the tempted Thessalonians
causing the Apostle intense anxiety, here it is to their loyalty and affec
tion bringing him a corresponding joy. For a similar instance, comp.
2 Cor. vii. 6, 7 : "He that comforteth the downcast, even God, com
forted us by the coming of Titus. ..and in the comfort with which he
was comforted over you," &c.
For the verb "comfort" see note on ver. 2.
in all our affliction and distress] distress and affliction (R.V.), or
necessity and affliction. The first of these terms, as e.g. in 1 Cor. ix.
16 ("Necessity is laid upon me"), implies outward constraint, stress
of circumstances, or sometimes of duty ; while the second (see ch. i. 6;
iii. 3, 4) commonly denotes trouble from men. For similar and more
extended combinations, see 2 Cor. vi. 4, xii. 10.
The preposition is literally over (as in last clause), not in. It was
not simply that Timothy's tidings brought comfort to the Apostle
amidst his present trials ; but this comfort bore upon those trials. The
steadfastness of the Thessalonians heartened him to meet his troubles at
Corinth. This effect of Silas and Timothy's arrival "from Macedonia"
is hinted in Acts xviii. 5.
we were comforted... through your faith (R.V.). This conveyed the
needed solace to the lonely Apostle. Their "faith" was the essential
point, that about which Timothy was sent to enquire (ver. 5) ; if this
remained, all would go well. So our Lord prayed for Peter, "That thy
faith fail not" (Luke xxii. 32). "By faith ye stand" (2 Cor. i. 24; see
next verse).
8. for now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord] "ii ye stand fast:"
the pronoun bears the emphasis. St Paul felt as though his life was
wrapped up in this Church. A load of apprehension was lifted from
his mind, and he resumed his work at Corinth with the sense of
renewed health and vigour, saying to himself, "Yes, now one really
lives ! " For in truth
"The incessant care and labour of his mind
Had wrought the mure, that should confine it in,
So thin, that life looked through and would break out."
His heaviest burden, weighing down body and mind alike, was "the
care ofthe Churches" (2 Cor. xi. 28, 29).
This passage, like the Epistle to the Galatians and the Second to
Corinth, shews St Paul as a man of high-strung and ardent nature,
sensitive in his affections to an extreme degree. His whole soul was
bound up with the Churches he had founded (comp. ch. ii. 8, and note).
They were his "children," his "loved nnrl lonoWl far " v.:,- <<; — __ >

vv. 9, io. I. THESSALONIANS, III. 87
now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord. For what thanks 9
can we render to God again for you, for all the joy where
with we joy for your sakes before our God; night and day 1°
praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might
glory, and crown of boasting." He lived for nothing else. Read in
illustration of this 2 Cor. vii. 2 — 16.
9. For what thanks can we render to God again for you] "Again"
belongs to the verb "render;" and "thanks" is strictly "thanks
giving." So we may translate, more freely : what due return of
thanksgiving can we make to God ? The Apostle puts this question in
proof of the strong declaration he has made in ver. 8. He says: "The
news that Timothy brings from you is new life to me, so much so that I
can find no words sufficient to express my gratitude to God for the
abounding joy which now fills my heart in thinking of you."
The same verb, to render due return (one word in Greek), is employed
in a very different connection in 2 Ep. i. 6.
for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes] More exactly, because
of you, or on your account. Observe the emphasis of delight with
which the Apostle -dwells on "you;" he repeats the pronoun eight
times in the last four verses.
before our God] comp. ver. 13, and ch. i. 3. God was the witness cf
this exceeding joy, which strove in vain, to find expression in fit words
of praise.
The condition of alarm and depression which St Paul had previously
experienced made this rebound of joy the more vivid. Only those who
have suffered much know joy in its full capacity, "as dying, and behold
we live! as sorrowing, but ever rejoicing" (2 Cor. vi. g, 10).
10. night and day praying exceedingly] In this last adverb, peculiar
to St Paul, he strains language to express the ardour of his feeling :
beyond measure exceedingly; it recurs in ch. v. 13 and Eph. iii. 20.
Night and day puts more vividly the " without ceasing "of ch. i. 3 ;
comp. ch. ii. 9.
"Praying" is here, more strictly, begging, or beseeching, and points
to the want of the suppliant (comp. 2 Cor. v. 20, "We begyou, on Christ's
behalf, Be reconciled to God"); whereas the ordinary word for prayer
(see e.g. ch. i. 2; 2 Ep. iii. 1) indicates devotion tcnvards the object of
worship. Prayer goes with thanksgiving, as in ch. i. 2, 3, and constantly
in St Paul; comp. ch. v. 17, 18.
that we might see your face] might makes the realisation seem distant
and doubtful; read may (R.V.). See notes on ch. ii. 17.
and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith] Or, may make
good the deficiencies of your faith ; not so much what was lacking in
as lacking to their faith. Thessalonian faith was in itself steadfast and
vigorous (ch. i. 3, 8; ii. 13; iii. 6—8; 2 Ep. i. 3, "Your faith groweth
exceedingly ") ; but it needed the supplement of added Christian light and
moral wisdom. Hence the teaching and admonition the Apostle
supplies in chaps, iv., v. and in the Second Epistle (see Introd. pp. 23 —
25). Timothy's return from Thessalonica and the news he brought,

88 I. THESSALONIANS, III. vv. n, 12.
™ perfect that which is lacking in your faith ? Now God him
self and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our
12 way unto you. And the Lord make you to increase and
abound in love one towards another, and towards all men,
while removing St Paul's great anxiety, made him still more sensible of
the need this young and most promising Church had for the continued
instruction which he alone could supply. This increased his eager
ness to revisit the Thessalonians. For a similar wish — less warmly
expressed, inasmuch as it concerned strangers — see Rom. i. 9 — 15,
xv. 23.
The word rendered "perfect" means 107?^ up, furnish, fully equip ; it
is used of "mending nets" (Matt. iv. 21), of "vessels fitted for de
struction" (Rom. ix. 22), and of "perfecting saints for work of minis
tration" (Eph. iv. 12).
11. Now God himself and our Father] Now may our God and
Father Himself (comp. ch. i. 3), and our Lord Jesus (R.V.). For this
title of Christ, see notes on ch. ii. 15 and 19. The copyists have added
Christ. Literally the verse begins, But may our God, &c. There is a transition,
by way of contrast, from the thought of Paul's own (human) wish and
longing, that has been so fervently uttered, to the thought of God,
Who alone can fulfil His servant's desire. The prayers of ch. v. 23 and
2 Ep. ii. 16 begin in the same style.
direct our way unto you] Lit., make straight. This verb is rendered
"guide our feet into the way of peace" in Luke i. 79; 2 Ep. iii. 5
gives the only remaining example of it in the N.T. It is frequent in
the Septuagint; see, e.g., Ps. xxxvii. 23, "The steps of a good man are
ordered (Greek, directed) by the Lord ; and He delighteth in his way."
Perhaps this verse of the Psalm was running in the Apostle's mind.
It is notable that the Greek verb of the prayer is singular, though
following a double subject; similarly in 2 Ep. ii. 16, 17 (comp. the
Salutation, ch. i. 1). For Christ is one with the Father in the
prerogative of hearing and answering prayer. This belief was derived
from our Lord's own teaching : see John v. 17, 19 ; x. 30, 38; xiv. 13,
14; Matt, xxviii. 18 — "I and the Father are one. ..If ye shall ask Me
(R. V.) anything in My name, I will do it," &c.
The prayer of ver. 11 has its goal in ver. 13. "Our Lord Jesus" is
He whose "coming" Paul and his leaders are looking for. And He,
together with the Father, is desired to "direct" the Apostle's steps to
Thessalonica, with the aim, ultimately, of furthering their preparation for
His coming (comp. ch. v. 23; also i. 10).
12. And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one to
wards another] In the Greek order, But you may the Lord make
to increase, &c. — " whatever it may please Him to appoint in respect
to us and our coming " (Ellicott). Ver. 12 is linked with 11, just as
ver. 1 1 with 10, by contrast. The Apostle is thinking now of what the
Thessalonians were to each other and might do for each other, in dis
tinction from himself.

v. 13. I. THESSALONIANS, III. 89
even as we do towards you : to the end he may stablish your 13
"The Lord" is still the "Lord Jesus" ofthe adjoining verses, the
Pattern and Fountain of love. Comp. John xiii. 34; Eph. v. 2 ("Walk
in love, as the Christ also loved you "). Christ is invoked as the Lord,
in His Divine authority and power to grant this prayer (comp. 2 Ep.
iii. 5).
Increased love would be the best supplement of their "defects of
faith" (ver. n), and the basis ofthe unblameable holiness in which they
are to appear at Christ's coming (ver. 13). In "brotherly love" the
Thessalonians already excelled (ch. iv. 9, 10; comp. i. 3 and 2 Ep. i.
3); but this is a grace of which there can never be too much. Its " in
crease" lies in its own growth and enlargement; its "abundance" is
the affluence with which it overflows toward others. These synonyms
are delicately varied in Rom. v. 20: "where Sin increased (or multi
plied), Grace superabounded."
But this multiplied and overflowing love is not to be confined to the
brotherhood: toward one another, and, he adds, toward all. Simi
larly in ch. v. 15. For the Thessalonian Church, cruelly persecuted,
this wider love was peculiarly necessary, and difficult. It meant lov
ing their enemies, according to Christ's command (Matt. v. 44).
The Apostle has shewn them by his example how to love each
other in Christ (see ch. ii. 7 — 12, 19, 20); and remembering this he
adds, even as we also toward you. Comp. the appeal of Christ in
John xiii. 34 ("even as I loved you"). Paul's iove too was not
stationary, but living and growing. This verse has the same turn of
expression as ver. 6, " even as we also (long to see) you."
Faith was the object of the Apostle's prayer in ver. 10 ; Love in ver.
12; and now ver. 13 crowns both, as it seeks for the Thessalonians, in
view of Christ's coming, a well-assured Hope (comp. ch. i. 3) : —
13. to the end he may stablish your hearts] On " stablish " see note
to ver. 2; and on "hearts," ch. ii. 4; comp. also 2 Ep. ii. 17.
This is an O.T. phrase, found in Ps. civ. 15, "Bread that strength-
eneth (Greek, stablisheth) man's heart"; and cxii. 8, " His heart is estab
lished, he shall not be afraid," The only N.T. parallel is in Jam. v. 8,
" Be patient; stablish your hearts ; for the coming of the Lord is at
hand." In all these places it signifies the imparting of conscious
strength; and denotes here, therefore, not so much a. making firm or
steadfast in character, but giving a firm confidence, a steadfast and assured
heart (contrast the language of 2 Ep. ii. 2). This would be the effect of
the abounding love prayed for in the last verse. The Apostle's thought
runs in the same groove as St John's in 1 Ep. iii. 18 — 21 and iv. 16, 17,
"Herein is love made perfect with us, that we may have boldness in the
day of judgement... .Perfect love casteth out fear." The Church was
living in the expectation of Christ's speedy return to judgement, a pro
spect before which the heart naturally quails; in order to "assure their
hearts before Him," the Thessalonian believers must increase and
abound in love. " Love " is the one thing that " never faileth "( 1 Cor.
xiii. 8). Ch. iv. 13, 18, and v. 14 show that courage and joyous confi
dence in Christ were wanting in some members of this Church.

oo I. THESSALONIANS, III. v. 13.
hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father,
at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.
The words unblameable in holiness form, then, a secondary predi
cate of the sentence : "to the end He may establish your hearts,
making them unblameable," or "so as to be unblameable in holiness
before our God," &c. The clause appears to be proleptic, or anticipa
tory (comp. 1 Cor. i. 8 ; Ph. iii. 21). Similarly in ch. v. 23 the keeping
oi "spirit, soul and body" prayed for belongs to the present, but un
blameably carries our thoughts at once to "the coming of our Lord
Jesus Christ" (see note). We take the Apostle's thought, amplified, to
be this: "May the Lord make you to abound in love. ..so that you may
have the confidence and strength of heart in which abiding you will be
found blameless in holiness before God at Christ's coming." This
blamelessness will be manifest at the coming of the Judge ; but it is
imparted already, and belongs to those whose hearts are filled with
love to their fellow-men, and so with confidence toward God (comp.
again 1 J ohn iv. 1 6, 1 7) ; in which confidence they anticipate the day
when they shall be found "holy and without blemish before Him."
This assurance of heart resembles St Paul's, expressed in 2 Cor. i. 12:
" Our glorying is this, the testimony of our conscience that in holiness
and sincerity of God we have behaved ourselves in the world." Such
confidence must always be guarded by strict self-scrutiny and absolute
dependence upon Christ. It was encouragement, however, rather than
caution that St Paul's readers just now required (see ver. 2). This verse
and the last set forth Christian perfection in its twofold aspect, as
constituted at once by an unbounded love to men and a blameless
consecration to God.
On "holiness" see notes to ch. iv. 3 and 7, also ii. 10.
This "blamelessness" ofthe Thessalonians will be approved before
our God and Father, Who listens to the Apostle's prayers and thanks
givings and witnesses his joy on their account (ver. 9, ch. i. 3), and
delights to see the good pleasure of His will accomplished in His
children. . He, the Trier of hearts (ch. ii. 4), permits them now
through Christ, and will surely permit them hereafter to stand in His
presence with hearts unafraid — in the coming of our Lord Jesus with
all His saints.
This is the goal of the Apostle's prayers and labours for the Church
(comp. ch. ii. 19; v. 23; 2 Ep. i. 11, 12); and the aim of the hopes
and strivings of the Thessalonian believers (ch. i. 3, 10; iv. 13; v. 11;
2 Ep. i. 5, &c). He prays that they may be able with good right to
look forward confidently toward that Day, trusting not to be "ashamed
before Him at His coming" (1 John ii. 28; iii. 3). On the title "Lord
Jesus" see notes to ver. 11, and ch. ii. 15, 19; and on "coming"
(parousia), ch. ii. 19.
Observe that "the Lord" (Christ) is the Agent of all that is set forth
inzw. 12 and 13. Christ fills His people's hearts with love and sanctifies
them by His Spirit, so that at the last He may present them to the
Father as His joy and crown. Then He will be "glorified in His
saints, and admired in all them that believed" tt F.n. i- m — *n\

v. I. I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 91
Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort 4
His saints (or holy ones) are those, "unblameable in holiness," whom
Christ will acknowledge and associate with Himself at His coming.
These last words have been shaping the Apostle's prayer all along. To
those who possess abundantly the spirit of love (ver. 12) the hope is
given of being found amongst the " holy ones," approved by God,
who will attend the Lord Jesus on His glorious return to earth. Christ
will not then be solitary, but will have a vast retinue of "the saints,"
visible in forms of splendour like His own (Ph. iii. 20, 21) and "with
Him in glory " (Col. iii. 4). For this association of the returning
Saviour and His saints, see further ch. iv. 14, 17, and notes; v. 10; and
2 Ep. ii. 1, "The coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering
together unto Him."

CHAPTER IV.
Section V. A Lesson in Christian Morals.
Ch. IV. 1—12.
We now pass from the first to the second of the two main divisions
ofthe Epistle (see Introd. Chap, vn.), from narrative to exhortation.
Chaps, i. — iii. are complete in themselves, and the letter might fitly have
terminated with the prayer just concluded (ch. iii. 11 — 13). For the
Apostle has accomplished the chief objects with which he began to
write, — viz. to assure his readers of the intense interest he takes in their
welfare, to express his sympathy with them under their persecutions,
and to explain how it was that he had not himself returned to them.
But he cannot let the occasion pass without adding counsel and exhorta
tion on certain subjects in which the Thessalonian Church was specially
in need of guidance. Chief amongst these were the misunderstandings
that had arisen touching the parousia, or second advent of Christ (ch.
iv. 13 — v. 11). But before he deals with this topic, there are a few things
he wishes to say to them about morals and matters of conduct toward
each other, which we have before us in this Section. It is significant that
the Apostle puts these things first in his exhortation, although the ques
tion of the Parousia was of such absorbing interest.
The topics embraced in this Section are (1) and chiefly, that of chas
tity and the sanctification ofthe body, vv. 3 — 8 ; (2) brotherly love, vv. 9,
10; (3) diligence in secular work, vv. 11, 12.
That chaps, iv., v. form an addendum, supplementing the primary
intention of the Epistle, is shown by the introductory phrase : — •
1. Furthermore then] R.V., finally ; as the same Greek phrase is
rendered by A.V. in Phil. iii. 1, iv. 8, &c. Lit., for the rest therefore,
for what remains.
we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord J esus] More ex
actly, and in the Greek order : brethren, we beseech you, and exhort
in the Lord Jesus.

92 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. v. 2.
you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how
ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound
= more and more. For ye know what commandments we
The first of these verbs, "beseech" (or " ask "), frequent with St John,
is only found in St Paul besides in ch. v. 12; 2 Ep. ii. 1 ; and Phil.
iv. 3. The Apostle asks as in a matter touching himself and his interest
in his readers ; he exhorts, as it concerns them and their own duty and
relation to Christ; for it is on the basis and within the sphere of this
relationship — in fact, because they are Christians — that such an appeal
is addressed to them. Comp. „ note on "church in the Lord Jesus
Christ," ch. i. 1; and for the title "Lord Jesus," on ch. ii. 15, 19.
St Paul's deep affection for the Thessalonians and his longing to see
them prompted the prayer with which the last chapter concluded, that
the Lord Himself would make them to be found blameless in holiness at
His coming. And it is "therefore" — in accordance with this prayer
and these desires — that he now urges them to a still more earnest pursuit
of Christian virtue.
that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God]
"That" requires a comma after it, as in R.V.; for it looks forward to
the final clause ofthe verse — " that ye abound more and more."
"Received" corresponds to the first ofthe two words so rendered in
ch. ii. 13 (see note), and signifies the reception as matter of instruction.
Beside the doctrine of the Gospel the apostles taught its practice — what
men should do and what should be the "work" and effect of their
faith (ch. i. 3), as well as what they should believe. In their earliest
lessons the Thessalonians had received the moral along with the theo
logical elements of Christianity, — "how you ought to walk." On this
last word comp. note to ch. ii. 12.
" Ought to walk and please God " is not the same as " walk so as to
please God," though this is implied; but rather "how you ought to
walk, and ought to please God." The duly of pleasing God had been a
subject of St Paul's admonitions, and he had set all other duties in this
light. Similarly in ch. ii. 4 he spoke of himself and Silas as governed
in their work by the thought of "pleasing God," while in ver. 15 the
condemnation of the Jews was found in the fact that they were ' ' not
pleasing God." Our conduct is always, and in everything, pleasing or
displeasing to Him; and the religious man finds in this the highest
sanction of right-doing. The word Sanctification (ver. 3) expresses in
another way the same religious necessity attaching to moral obligation.
The clause even as ye do walk is restored to the text by the Re
visers, on the best authority. Comp. w. 9, 10, "for indeed you do it;"
also ch. v. 11. The Apostle would not appear to censure his readers.
He is sure that they are walking in the true path, mindful of his in
structions; he wishes to keep them in it, and to urge them forward.
The sum of his entreaty is (resuming the " that " left incomplete in the
earlier part of the sentence), that ye abound more and more (R.V.).
2. For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus]
Lit., charges... through the Lord Jesus; similarlv in ver. n "*= ™-

v. 3- I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 93
gave you by the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, 3
even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornica-
charged you," and in 2 Ep. iii. 4, &c. The Greek word signifies an
announcement, then a command or advice publicly delivered. In 1 Tim.
i. 5 and 18 the whole practical teaching of Christianity is called a
" charge." Here the Apostle is referring to particular items of conduct
as matter of so many "charges." These charges were given "through
the Lord Jesus," since His name and authority were used to support
them (comp. 2 Ep. iii. 6, "in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ");
while they were given "in the Lord Jesus" (ver. 1), as they appealed to
the Christian standing of the readers and their conscious relationship to
Christ, Whose coming in glory they expected.
The Apostle is "writing no new commandment;" he recalls to his
readers' remembrance what he had so often urged upon them (see note
on ch. i. 5). It is on one prominent subject of those well-remembered
charges that he has now to dwell : —
3. For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, &c] The
connection will be clearer if we render thus : For this is God's will —
it is your sanctification — that you abstain from fornication, &c.
It was not some counsel or wish of his own that he pressed on the
Thessalonians under the authority of Christ ; it was nothing less than
Gods holy will: the primary ground of this charge. At the same time
it was their sanctification. God's will and their consecration to Him
are the double reason for their leading a chaste life; and these two
reasons are one, the latter springing out of the former. God had chosen
them to be His own (comp. ch. i. 4). And He willed that their sancti
fication should be realised and carried into effect in the important
particular about to be stated. This will of God was proclaimed in
His "call," by which the Thessalonians had been summoned to a pure
and holy life (ch. v. 23, 24; comp. ii. 12). In all endeavours after purity
it is our best support to know that God wishes and means us to be holy ;
that His almighty help is at the back of our weak resolves, Who both
"puts into our minds good desires" and "brings the same to good
effect." "Sanctification" is the act or process of making holy: then, in the
second instance, it comes to denote the result of this process, the state
of one who is made holy, — as in Rom. vi. 22, "You have your fruit unto
sanctification, and the end eternal life;" similarly in Heb. xii. 14,
"Follow after sanctification." It is synonymous with consecration,
i.e. devotion to God, — but to God as the Holy One.
Holy is the single word which by itself denotes the Divine character,
as it is revealed to us in its moral transcendence, in the awfulness and
glory of its absolute perfection, raised infinitely above all that is earthly
and sinful (see 1 Sam. ii. 2, Ps. xcix., cxi. 9, Isai. Ivii. 15, &c). Now it
is the character of God — " thy Maker.. .and thy Redeemer, the Holy One
of Israel" — that constitutes His right to the consecration of those to
whom He is revealed. Our "sanctification" is the acknowledgement of
God's claim upon us as the Holy One Who made us. This involves our
assimilation to His nature. In Him, first the character, then the claim:

94 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. v. 4.
4 tion: that every one of you should know how to possess his
in us, first the claim admitted, then the character impressed. In short,
Sanctification is fulfilment ofthe supreme command, "Be ye holy, for I
am holy" (1 Pet. i. 15, s.6 ; Lev. xi. 44 ; xix. 2 ; xx. 7). — See, further,
notes on ver. 7, and ch. v. 23 ; also on ch. ii. 10, for the difference
between the two Greek words for holy used in this Ep.
St Paul makes chastity a part of holiness. He finds a new motive
and powerful safeguard for virtue in the fact of the redemption of the
body. Our physical frame belongs to God; it is a sharer in Christ's
resurrection, and in the new life received through Him. " Know you
not," he asks, " that your bodies are limbs of Christ, — a temple of the
Holy Ghost, which you have from God? Therefore glorify God in your
body " (1 Cor. vi. 15 — 20). This is bodily sanctification. And faith in
Christ effectually subdues impure and sensual passion.
The foul and heathenish vice oi fornication was so prevalent in Greek
cities and so little condemned by public opinion— it was even fostered
by some forms of pagan religion — that abstinence from it on the part of
the Thessalonians was a sign of devotion to a Holy God. But their
purity was imperilled from the condition of society around them, and in
many cases from former unchaste habits. The temptations to licentious
ness assailing the first generation of Christians were fearfully strong;
and all the Epistles contain urgent warnings upon this subject. The
sense of purity had to be re-created in men gathered out of the midst
of pagan corruption.
4. that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel]
Rather, that each one of you know how to possess himself of his own
vessel (R.V.); or, freely rendered, that each be wise in the mastery
of his bodily frame.
This is the positive side of what has just been expressed negatively.
The " vessel " we take to be the body, regarded as the vehicle and in
strument of the inner self — "the vessel of himself." What the tool is
to the hand, or vase to the essence it holds, that the body is to the
man's self. Comp. 2 Cor. iv. 7, "this treasure in earthen vessels";
similarly in 2 Cor. v. 1 — 4 the body is "the earthly house of our taber
nacle," the clothing without which we should be "found naked." The
victim of sensual passion ceases to be master of his own person — he is
possessed; and those who formerly lived in heathen uncleanness, had
now as Christians to possess themselves of their bodies, to "win" the
"vessel" of their spiritual life and make it truly their own, and a fit
receptacle for the redeemed and sanctified self (comp. Luke xxi. 19, "In
your patience ye shall win your souls," R.V., — the same Greek verb).
This they must "know how" (i.e. have skill) to do — a skill for which
there was continual need. The Greek expression for Temperance 
enkrateia, i.e. continence, self-control — expresses a similar thought ; so
the simile of 1 Cor. ix. 27, "I buffet my body, and make it my slave."
in sanctification] For it was under this idea, and within the sphere of
the new, consecrated life that such mastery of the body was to be gained
{see notes on vv. 3 and 7). And in honour ; for as lust dishonours and
•degrades the body (Rom. i. 24, 26; 1 Cor. vi. 15), so its devotion to

vv. 5,6. I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 95
vessel in sanctification and honour; not in the lust of concu- 5
piscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God : that 6
no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter :
because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also
God in a life of purity raises it to " honour." Self-respect and regard
for the honour of one's own person, as well as reverence for God, forbid
unchastity. 5. not in the lust of concupiscence] Far better, not in the passion
Of lust (R.V.). The sense of the last verb (to possess) is carried on,
with a modified application, into this clause : not (to have it : i.e. your
body) in a state of lustful passion. (For the altered meaning of the
verb, comp. 1 Cor. iii. 2 : "I gave you milk to drink, not meat"). This
condition — the state of one immersed "in" wicked desire — is the
opposite of "sanctification and honour."
The word "passion" signifies not so much a violent feeling, as an
overpowering feeling, one to which the man so yields himself that he is
borne along by evil as if he were its passive instrument ; he has lost the
dignity of self-rule, and is the slave of his lower appetites. Comp. Rom.
vii. 5, "the passions of sins which wrought in our members;" and ver.
20, "It is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me."
In such shameful bondage lived the Gentiles which know not God (an
O. T. expression, Ps. lxxix. 6, Isai. xiv. 4,5; recurring in 2 Ep. i. 8,
see note). For impurity, often in most abandoned and revolting forms,
was a prevailing feature of Pagan life at this time. In Rom. i. 24, &c,
St Paul speaks of this as a punishment of the heathen world for its
wilful ignorance of God: "He gave them up unto passions of dis
honour." Man first denies his Maker; then degrades himself.
The God Whom these degraded "Gentiles knew not," is the "living
and true God" of ch. i. 9, to Whom Thessalonian believers had "turned
from their idols." Coming to know Him by His gospel, they had
devoted themselves to Him ; and so their bodies had been redeemed
from vice and dishonour, and the soul had a clean house to live in, a
clean vessel to use for holy service.
6. that no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter]
More exactly, that none overreach and take advantage of his brother
in the matter. " The matter" is obviously that which occupies the
last two verses. Acts of impurity are social wrongs, as well as sins
against the offender's person. The warning may include any injury
done to another touching the affections and engagements that belong
to marriage, — "the matter" concerned in the present charge — which is
expressly violated by "fornication." The Apostle sets the wrong in
the strongest light: it is to "cheat one's brother," and that in what
touches most nearly the sanctities of life. Hence the stern warning
that follows : —
because that the Lord is the avenger of all such] Rather, an avenger;
and concerning all these things — in everything that concerns the
honour ofthe human person and the sacredness of wedded life. Comp.
Heb. xiii. 4, "Let marriage be had in honour... Fornicators and adul-

96 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. vv. 7, 8.
7 have forewarned you and testified. For God hath not called
8 us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. He therefore that
despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given
unto us his holy Spirit.
terers God will judge." It is written that "Vengeance belongs to
God ; " and in this matter He is peculiarly bound to exercise it.
as we also have forewarned you and testified] or, solemnly attested :
the latter verb implies reference to God, as it is expressed in 2 Tim. iv.
1, " before God and Christ Jesus." On this subject it appears — as to
the moral consequences of faith in Christ and the social purity that
belongs to the sanctified life — the apostles at Thessalonica had spoken
very plainly and solemnly from the first.
7. For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness]
The two prepositions alike rendered " unto " in the A.V., are quite dis
tinct in the Greek. St Paul writes, God called us not for (with a
view to) uncleanness, but in sanctification; similarly in 2 Ep. ii. 13,
"God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of
spirit." The call of God was from the first a sanctifying call for the
Thessalonians, and was attended with holy influences that forbade all
uncleanness. Certainly He never intended them to live impure lives,
when He "called them to His own kingdom and glory" (ch. ii. 12);
the understanding on which that call was received was the opposite of
this. The entire purpose and tendency of God's message to them was
" in sanctification." For this last word, see notes to w. 3 and 4. True
believers in Christ are necessarily "saints;" so the Apostle commonly
addresses all Christians to whom he writes (see Rom. i. 7, &c. — "called
saints," i.e. " saints in virtue of your calling") ; and their sainthood ex
cludes impurity and wrong-doing.
Observe that Gods call is the starting-point of a Christian's life.
All the motives and aims by which that life is governed are virtually
contained in this. "Walk worthily of the calling wherewith you
were called" is with St Paul an exhortation that includes all others
(Eph. iv. 1). So he comes to his last word on this matter : —
8. He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God] There
fore should stand first, as in R.V.; it gathers up and re-affirms with
emphasis the charge of vv. 2 — 7 : Wherefore then.
For despiseth read rejecteth (A.V. margin, and R.V.), as this word
is rendered in Luke x. 16; in Gal. ii. 21 we read it, "I do not make
void the grace of God." It points to some authority set at nought, or
engagement nullified. It was God's call which had summoned the
Thessalonians to their new life; His voice, not man's, had reached them
by the Gospel (see ch. ii. 12, 13). It will be God's authority therefore,
not man's, that they defy, if this charge is disregarded ; comp. ver.
1, "how you ought to please God;" and ver. 3, "This is God's
will. "
And the God Whom they would thus set at nought, is He who
gives His Holy Spirit unto you. The Greek text of this clause is
doubtful in several points. The Revisers are Drohablv rio-ht in r^ari;™

v. 9. I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 97
But as touching brotherly love ye need not that / write 9
unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one
giveth in place oi hath also given (A.V.) ; andyou in place of us (A.V.),
this word closing the sentence with emphasis.
The preposition is strictly into you, implying beyond the mere fact
of the impartation of the Holy Spirit, His entrance into the soul.
There is probably a reminiscence of Ezek. xxxvii. 6, where the LXX
represents the Lord as saying to the dry bones, "I will give (Hebrew,
put) My Spirit into you, and you shall live, and shall know that I am
the Lord." Similarly in Gal. iv. 6, "God sent forth the Spirit of His
Son into your hearts;" and in Eph. iii. 16, "strengthened through His
Spirit (entering) into the inward man." The gift of the Holy Spirit of
God, bestowed to dwell within the soul of him who believes in Christ,
is the peculiar distinction and the essential blessing of Christ's religion.
"I will pray the Father," said Jesus, "and He will give you another
Paraclete, that He may be with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth.
He abideth with you, and shall be in you" (John xiv. 16, 17; comp.
Luke xi. 13). The whole grace of the Gospel is summed up by St Paul
in "the promise of the Spirit," received "through faith" (Gal. iii. 14).
Through His indwelling we know the love of .God, and are conscious
of being sons of God and heirs of life eternal (Rom. v. 5 ; viii. 14 — 17;
Gal. iv. 6, 7; Eph. i. 13, 14).
Now the unchaste act or thought is an affront to the Holy Ghost,
Who dwells as Guest in the soul and body of the Christian. This
final warning seals the Apostle's charge. He appeals to the presence
of the Holy Spirit, of Whose continued visitations and influence his
readers were sensible. To "reject the God Who gives" this gift
would be for the Thessalonians to sin against the light that was in them.
We are reminded again of 1 Cor. vi. 19, "Know you not that your
body is a temple of the Holy Ghost Which is in you, Which you have
from God?" " Gentle, awful, holy Guest,
Make Thy temple in each breast,
There supreme to reign and rest,
Comforter Divine."
9. But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you]
More exactly, you have no need that one write to you. " Have no
need " recurs in ch. v. 1 ; comp. ch. i. 8 and 1 John ii. 27. There was
need for the Apostle to write on the previous subject (w. 3 — 8). But
in this grace the Thessalonian Church excelled (comp. note on ch. i. 3,
also 2 Ep. i. 3).
In this respect they were (literally, and in one word) God-taught —
an expression found only here in the N.T. ; comp. "God-breathed,"
2 Tim. iii. 16. The separate elements of the compound appear in
John vi. 45, where our Lord cites the words of Isai. liv. 13, "They
shall be all taught of God." The former "charge" the Thessalonians
had received through men from God (w. 2, 8) : the lesson of "brotherly
love" they learnt so readily and with so little need of human instruction,
THESS. 7

98 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. w. io, ii.
io another. And indeed ye do it towards all the brethren
which are in all Macedonia : but we beseech you, brethren,
ii that ye increase more and more; and that ye study to be
quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your
that they were evidently taught it by God Himself. It seemed to come
to them "naturally" as we say — ye are of yourselves God-taught; or
as we ought to say, more reverently, "by God's direct endowment."
taught of God to love one another] Lit., to the end (or effect) that
you love one another. This was the purport and issue, rather than the
mere content of the Divine teaching : God taught them many lessons ;
this was the aim of all.
10. And indeed] should be For indeed. Their practice of the
Divine lesson, as described in this verse, showed that they were truly
" taught of God " to this effect.
ye do it towards all the brethren which are in all Macedonia]
Thessalonica was a prosperous commercial city and the capital of
Macedonia (see Introd. Chap. I.). It was the natural centre of the
Macedonian Churches — including Philippi and Bercea, with other com
munities which had probably sprung up around these principal towns.
The Thessalonian Christians were using their position and influence
for the good of their brethren around them, and thus giving proof that
they had learnt the great lesson of Divine grace. Silas and Timothy,
recently returned from Macedonia (Acts xviii. 5 ; see ch. iii. 6), had
doubtless told the Apostle how well they did their duty towards the
neighbour Churches (comp. ch. i. 7, 8, and notes).
but we beseech you, brethren] should be exhort (R.V.), as in ver. 1
(comp. note, also on "comfort," ch. iii. 2); same word in ver. 18, and
ch. v. 11, 14.
that ye increase &c] Better rendered, that you abound still more;
the Apostle repeats the exact phrase employed in ver. 1, which takes
up the verb of ch. iii. 12 (see notes).
In all Christian virtues growth is possible and desired, but "brotherly
love" above others is susceptible of constant and unlimited increase.
The Apostle reverts to this point once more, in ch. v. 16.
Philadelphia (brother-love) in common Greek did not go beyond its
literal sense. In Christian speech it was at once applied to the
"brothers" of the new life in Christ, those who are united in the
acknowledgement of God as their Father (ch. i. 1, see note). Comp.
1 John iv. 21, and v. 1, " This commandment have we from Him, that
he who loveth God love his brother also.... Whosoever loveth Him that
begat, loveth him also that is begotten of Him." The word recurs in
Rom. xii. 10; Heb. xiii. 1; 1 Pet. i. 22; also in 2 Pet. i. 7, where in
"brother-love" charity (or love) is directed to be "supplied," as its
spiritual and universal principle.
From the second topic of his "charge," which the Apostle is happily
able to dismiss in a few words, he proceeds to the third: —
11. and that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business] Lit.,
that you be ambitious to be quiet— an example of St Paul's character-

v. 12. I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 99
own hands, as we commanded you; that ye may walk 12
honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may
have lack of nothing.
istic irony ; the contrast between ambition and quiet giving a sharper
point to his exhortation, as though he said, "Make it your ambition to
have no ambition!" The love of personal distinction was an active
influence and potent for mischief in Greek city life; possibly the
Thessalonians were touched with it, and betrayed symptoms of the
restless and emulous spirit that afterwards gave the Apostle so much
trouble at Corinth. Comp. 1 Tim. ii. 2, where he makes it an object
of prayer, "that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life." * Eager and
active as his own nature was, St Paul much admired this kind of life,
and deemed it ordinarily the fittest for the cultivation of Christian
character, and (study), he continues, to be occupied with your own
affairs. This, too, was to be their aim and ambition, in contrast with
the busybody, gad-about habits to which some of them were inclined
(see 2 Ep. iii. 11, and note).
Those who meddle with other people's business, commonly neglect
their own; and idleness goes hand in hand with ofnciousness. Ac
cordingly St Paul adds, and to work with your hands. Most of the
Thessalonian Christians were probably handicraftsmen of one kind or
other. Even for the few who possessed larger means the Apostle may
have thought manual labour a good discipline ; comp. note on ch. ii. 9,
and 2 Ep. iii. 7 — 12. He perceived the danger, especially marked in
this Church, arising from the unsettling effect which great spiritual ex
citement is apt to have upon the pursuance of the ordinary duties of life.
Hence this had been a subject of his warnings from the beginning — even
as we charged you (comp. ver. 2). The Apostle Paul combined in his
teaching a lofty spirituality with a quick sense for practical necessities.
12. that ye may walk honestly toward them that are without]
Honestly is rather honourably, honesti (Vulgate) — in decent, comely
fashion, in such manner as to "adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour"
(Tit. ii. 10), and to win for Christian faith respect even from those who
did not embrace it. In 1 Tim. iii. 7 this is laid down as a condition
specially important in the case of men appointed to office in the Church,
that they should "have a good testimony from them that are without."
Those without— "outsiders," as we say— is an established phrase,
used by contrast with "those within" the fold of Christ, or the walls of
the city of God ; see 1 Cor. v. 12, 13 ; Col. iv. 5, " Walk in wisdom to
ward those outside;" also Mark iv. 11. In a thriving commercial town
like Thessalonica, indolence or unfitness for the common work of life
would bring great discredit on the new society.
and that ye may have lack of Kothing] Better, need of nothing
(R.V.), or of no one (no man, A.V. margin). As much as to say:
"That every one, inside or outside the Church, may respect you, and
you may be no man's dependents."
The sense of honourable independence was strong in St Paul (see
ch. ii. 6, 9, and again 2 Ep. iii. 8) : he desires to see it in all his
7—2

ioo I. THESSALONIANS, IV. v. 13.
J3 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, con-
people. The Church was already in danger of having its charities
abused by the indolent, so as to foster a spirit of pauperism. In Eph.
iv. 28 the Apostle enlists on the side of diligent secular work the spirit
of charity, in addition to that of self-respect — "that he may have to
give to him that needeth;" comp. Acts xx. 34, 35, "It is more
blessed to give than to receive." And in 1 Tim. v. 8 he includes under
the necessities to be met by honest labour those of the man's household,
condemning the neglecter of these claims as "denying the faith" and
"worse than an unbeliever."

Section VI. The Coming of the Lord Jesus.
Ch. IV. 13— V. 11.
This solemn topic, as we have already seen (note on ch. i. 10, and
Introd., pp. 18 — 21), is the principal theme of the Epistles to the
Thessalonians. It is not treated by way of argument or indoctrination,
but as a matter already familiar to the readers; on which, however,
further explanation and admonition were needful. The Apostle's teach
ing about this event had been on some points misunderstood, while
new and anxious questions had arisen respecting it. Death had visited
the Christian flock at Thessalonica since St Paul left them ; and this
had aroused in the survivors a painful fear lest those who were thus
snatched away should have lost their place and their share in the ap
proaching advent of Christ. This apprehension the Apostle proceeds
to remove ; and we may entitle the remaining verses of the chapter :
Concerning them that fall asleep.
St Paul (1) bids his readers be assured of the safety of their departed
fellow-believers, vv. 13, 14; and he makes the revelation (2) that these
will have the first place in the assembling of the saints at Christ's
return, vv. 15 — 17. He goes on to remind them (3) of the uncertainty
of the time of His coming, ch. v. 1 — 3 ; and (4) exhorts them to be
always ready for the event, like soldiers on guard and fully armed,
w. 4 — 9.
13. But I would not have you to be ignorant] True reading, we
would not, — consistently with the first person plural ("Paul and Silas
and Timothy") in which the Epistle commenced (ch. i. 1). This
impressive phrase ("would not— ignorant") the Apostle employs, as in
Rom. xi. 25 and elsewhere, to call attention to a new topic on which he
is especially anxious to have a clear understanding with his readers.
concerning them that fall asleep (R.V.), or are falling asleep : are
asleep (A.V.) represents a different and faulty Greek reading. The
Greek participle is present, and denotes what is now going on. The
Apostle had not been long absent from Thessalonica, and apparently
this question had nowarisen for the first time. There were members
of the Church who wereevidentTy~iyj7?HJy in some instances death had
already supervened (vv. 14, 15), in others it was impending. So vivid

v. 13- I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 101
cerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as
was the expectation of the Lord's return, that this contingency had not
been thought of till it arose ; and it seemed as though these dying men
would miss the great hope that had been so precious to them, of seeing
Christ return to reign in His glory. The "brotherly love" which St
Paul has just commended in the Thessalonians, would make this
apprehension -intensely painful.
Death is "sleep" to the Christian. Occasionally it bears this title
in pagan writers, but only by way of poetical figure. Jesus Christ
made it the standing name for Death in the dialect of His Church
(Luke viii. 52; John xi. n, &c). This expression indicates the restful*
(and perhaps restorative) effect of death to the child of God, and at the
same time its temporary nature. The use of the word by our Lord in
connection with the raising of Jairus' daughter and of Lazarus brings
out strikingly this latter truth. So the early Christians called their
place of burial (in Greek) koimeterion (cemetery), — i.e. dormitory^
sleeping-chamber. that ye sorrow not, even as others] More precisely, in order that :
the Apostle corrects the ignorance of his readers "in order" to remove
their sorrow; he would give them "words" with which they may
"encourage one another" (ver. 18).
Lit., as the rest: synonymous with "those without" (ver. 12), and
occurring in the same sense in Eph. ii. 3; the expression has a note of
sadness, as of those who are left to sorrow and darkness.
Even before Christ came and "brought life and immortality to light"
(2 Tim. i. 10), the Church had attained hope in view of death. See
the noble passage in the Apocryphal Book of Wisdom (c. 100 B.C.),
ch. iii. 1 — 4: "The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and
there shall no torment touch them  Their hope is full of immortality."
But of "the rest" — the unconverted Gentiles — it is sorrowfully added,
which have no hope. Comp. Eph. ii. 12, "having no hope, and without
God in the world." Hopelessness was a prevalent feature of the
world's life at this time. The more enlightened and thoughtful a
Greek or Roman citizen might be, the less belief he commonly had in
any existence beyond death. See, e.g., the speeches of Cato and of
Caesar given in the Catiline of Sallust. The loss of Christian faith in
modem times brings back the old Pagan despair, and throws over us
again "the shadow of a starless night." Amongst many sorrowful
examples, the Journal of Marie Bashkirtseff, recently published,
supplies one of the most touching. Dying at 24, with her splendid
gifts wasted and hungry ambition unappeased, this Russian girl writes :
"O to think that we live but once, and that life is so short! When I
think of it I am like ' one possessed; and my brain seethes with
despair!" Against this great sorrow of the world the word sleep, four
times in this context applied to Christian death, is an abiding protest.
The specific hope which the Thessalonian Christians had embraced 1
and which those they had. left behind in heathenism were without, was
/"'hope in our Lord Jesus Christ," centring in the prospect of His!
glorious return from heaven (ch. i. 3, 10). This hope, the Apostle

102 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. v. 14.
14 others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus
died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus
will show, belongs to all who are "in Him;" and the circumstance of
their having fallen asleep before His coming makes no difference in this
relationship. "Whether we live or die, we are the Lord's" (Rom. xiv.
8; comp. ch. v. 10): to be "the Lord's" is the essential thing.
We gather that it was not their personal resurrection, but tlieir share
in the Parousia about which the Thessalonians were anxious on behalf
of their departed friends. Probably they had sent enquiries to St Paul,
through Timothy, upon the subject.
14. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again] The faith of a
Christian man in its briefest and simplest form. So in Rom. x. 9 the
Apostle declares the faith that "saves" to be the belief of the heart
that "God raised Jesus from the dead." This involves everything
else ; it carries with it the conviction that Christ is Divine (Rom. i. 4),
and that His death brings "justification of life" for men (Rom. iv. 25).
Such faith St Paul assumes, for himself and his readers, as a fun
damental fact. He speaks of "Jesus," thinking of Him in His human
Person and in the analogy of His experience to our own. He is
"Firstborn of many brethren, Firstborn out of the dead" (Rom. viii.
29 ; Col. i. 18) ; and what we believe of Jesus, we may expect to see
fulfilled in His brethren.
even so them also which sleep in Jesus] Rather, which fell asleep.
The verb is past (historical) in tense. The Apostle is looking back
with his readers to the sorrowful event of their friends' decease, that
he may give them comfort ; comp. ver. 15.
in Jesus is in the Greek through Jesus, — or more strictly, that
fell asleep (possibly, were laid to sleep) through the Jesus just
spoken of, — Him "Who died and rose again." For the force of
the preposition, comp. ver. 2 and note. The departed Thessalonian
Christians had "fallen asleep;" for them Death was robbed of his
terrors and transformed to Sleep. "Through Jesus" this came to
pass — the Jesus of their faith, the dying, risen Saviour I Trusting in
His Name, remembering and realising what it meant, they had met the
last enemy, and conquering their fears they "laid them down and
slept." Such is the power of this Name in the last conflict :
"Jesus! my only hope Thou art,
Strength of my failing flesh and heart!"
(Chas. Wesley's Dying Hymn.)
them that fell asleep through Jesus, God will bring with Him.
God (expressed with emphasis) is the Agent in their restoration, as
in ch. i. 10 in the "raising" of "His Son from the dead." He
"Who raised up the Lord Jesus, will raise up us also with Jesus" (2
Cor. iv. 14; comp. Eph. i. 19, 20). But the Apostle does not say here
"will raise them with Jesus," it is not the resurrection of the dead that
is in question, but their relation to the Parousia, their place in Christ's
approaching kingdom. Therefore he says: "God will bring them with

v. 15. I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 103
will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the is
word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto
Him," — they will not be forgotten or left behind when Jesus comes in
triumph. The argument of this verse is condensed and somewhat subtle.
When the Apostle begins, "If we believe" &c, we expect him to
continue, "so we believe that those who died will, by the power of
Christ's resurrection, be raised to life, and will return to share His
glory." But in the eagerness of his inference St Paul passes from the
certainty of conviction in the first member of the sentence ("If we
believe") to the certainty of the' fact itself ("God will bring them") in
the second. In the same eagerness of anticipation he blends the final
with the intermediate stage of restoration, making the resurrection of
Jesus the pledge not of the believer's resurrection simply (as in 2 Cor.
iv. 14), but of his participation in Christ's glorious advent, of which His
resurrection is the prelude (comp. ch. i. 10, "to wait for His Son
from the heavens, Whom He raised from the dead," and .note). The
union between Christ and the Christian, as St Paul conceives it, is
such that in whatever Christ the Head does or experiences, He carries
the members of His body with Him. The Christian dead are "the
dead in Christ" (ver. 16) ; they will therefore be in due course the
risen and the glorified in Christ (2 Ep. i. 12); comp. 2 Tim. ii. n,
"If we died with Him, we shall also live with Him." The point of
the Apostle's reasoning lies in the connection of the words "died and
rose again." Jesus has made a pathway through the grave, and by this
passage His faithful, fallen asleep, still one with the dying, risen Jesus,
will be conducted, to appear with Him at His return.
15. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord] Lit., in a
word of the Lord, — in the character of a message coming from "the
mouth ofthe Lord;" comp. 1 Cor. vii. 10, "I give charge, — not I, but
the Lord;" and ch. ii. 13 above, "not men's word, but God's." The
"word" that follows (w. 15—17) can hardly be explained as a.
traditional saying of Christ, unrecorded in the Gospels, like Acts xx.
35 ; nor as an inference from the teaching of Jesus on the subject of
His return. St Paul claims to have received this communication
directly from Christ, "the Lord" of His Church, as a revelation to
himself (comp. Gal. ii. 2, Eph. iii. 3 for similar instances), given to
him expressly in order to allay the fears of his readers. The Lord
is manifestly Christ, as it is four times in the immediate sequel. St
Paul applies to Christ's word the same august phrase that in the O. T.
denotes "the word of God" Himself; comp. note on ch. i. 8.
that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord]
This should be : we that are alive, that remain (or survive) unto the
coming of the Lord. The second designation qualifies the first,— "those
(I mean) who survive till the Lord comes." St Paul did not count on
any very near approach of the second Advent : comp. 2 Ep. ii. i, 2.
At the same time, his language implies the possibility of the great event
taking place within his lifetime, or that of the present generation.

104 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. v. 16.
the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are
is asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven
with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the
This remained an open question, or rather a matter on which question
ing was forbidden (see Acts i. 7; Matt. xxiv. 36). "Concerning the
times and seasons" nothing was definitely known (ch. v. 1, see note).
The Apostles "knew in part" and "prophesied in part" (1 Cor. xiii.
12); and until further light came, it was natural for the Church, ever
sighing "Come Lord Jesus, come quickly !" to speak as St Paul does
here. The same "we" occurs in this connection in 1 Cor. xv. 51, 52.
But from the time of the dangerous illness recorded in 2 Cor. i. 8, 9,
the prospect of death occupied the foreground in the Apostle's thoughts
of his own future, and he never afterwards writes "we that remain."
shall not prevent] "Prevent" is obsolete in this sense : comp. the
Collect, "Prevent us in all our doings with Thy most gracious favour."
Better, shall in no wise precede (or anticipate) those that fell asleep.
The shadow which the event of their premature death had cast over
the fate of the sleeping Thessalonian believers was wholly imaginary,
and should be dismissed at once from the minds of their sorrowing
friends. Instead of their having no place, they will have, as Christ now
reveals to His Apostle, the foremost place in His triumphant return.
Though dead, they are "dead in Christ" (ver. 16), — departed to "be
with Christ" — "absent from the body" but "at home with the Lord,"
as St Paul subsequently teaches (2 Cor. v. 6 — 8; Phil. i. 23). So it
cannot be that those who are found in the flesh when He comes again,
will be beforehand with them in this reunion. "God will bring them
with Him," for they are with Him already.
The Apostle proceeds to support this assurance by a description of
Christ's coming, derived from the revelation, or "word of the Lord,"
to which he has just appealed. This was one of the most remarkable
of the many "visions and revelations" which St Paul experienced
(comp. 2 Cor. xii. 1 — 5). ~-S
16. For the Lord Himself] "In His personal august presence"
(Ellicott). Comp. 2 Ep. ii. 16, iii. 16, for this kind of emphasis; also ch.
iii. n, v. 23, "God Himself:" in each case we feel the majesty with which
God (or ' ' the Lord ") rises above all human doings and desires.
with a shout] Strictly, word of command, or signal, — the shout with
which the general gives the order to his troops, or the captain to his
crew. Such "command" might be given either by voice, — his own or
another's ; or through a trumpet : both are added here, to complete the
impressive picture, — with the voice of an archangel, and with the
trumpet of God.
We must not look for literal exactness where things are depicted
beyond the reach of sense. These three may form but one idea, that
of "the voice of the Son of God," by which the dead will be called
forth (John v. 28), Christ's "command" being expressed by an
"archangel's voice," and that again constituting the "trumpet of God."
Christ predicted His return attended by angels (Matt. xxiv. 31 ; xxv.

v. 17. I. THESSALONIANS, IV. 105
trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then 17
we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together
31 ; comp. 2 Ep. i. 7) ; and the Divine voice of the Book of Revelation
is constantly uttered by an "angel," or "mighty angel" (Rev. v. 2 ; vii.
2 ; &c). In the same Book voice and trumpet are identified, where
St John describing the glorified Son of Man says, "I heard behind me
a great voice, as of a trumpet talking with me" (Rev. i. 10, 12; iv. 1).
This verse, like the above passages of the Apocalypse, echoes the
words of Christ in Matt. xxiv. 31 : "He shall send forth His angels
with a trumpet of great voice." In 1 Cor. xv. 52 the whole is de
scribed in one word: "The-&"»#z/^-shall-sound, and the dead shall
be raised."
This is the military trumpet, like "word of command" above, by
which the Lord of Hosts musters and marshals His array. Comp. ch.
v. 8, with its "breastplate" and "helmet;" see note. "As a Com
mander rouses his sleeping soldiers, so the Lord calls up His dead,
and bids them shake off the fetters of the grave and rise anew to
waking life " (Hofmann).
St Paul does not write "the Archangel," as though pointing to some
known Angelic Chief who is to blow this trumpet ; his words are,
with an archangel's voice, indicating the majesty and power of the
heavenly summons. This is the earliest example of the title archangel.
In Jude 9 we read of "Michael the archangel" — an expression pro
bably based on Dan. xii. 1, "Michael the great prince" (LXX: "the
great angel;" comp. Rev. xii. 7, where "Michael and his angels" are
arrayed against "the Dragon and his angels"). Of equal rank with
Michael is Gabriel, the angel of comfort and good tidings in Dan. viii.
16, ix. 21, and Luke i. 19, 26. The military style of this passage suits
rather the character of Michael. Amongst the seven chief angels re
cognised at this time in Jewish teaching, Raphael stood nearest to the
two that appear in the New Testament (Tobit xii. 15). St Paul
probably ranged the Archangels amongst the Principalities (Greek
Archai) to which he refers in Rom. viii. 38 (angels and principalities),
Eph. i. 21, iii. 10, Col. i. 6, ii. 10, 15. See the Article on Angels
in Smith's Dictionary of Christian Antiquities.
the Lord Himsdf, &c....will descend from heaven. See note on ch.
i. 10. These words close the sentence, the accompaniments of the
descent being first described, and then the descent itself, with solemn
brevity and an effect of peculiar grandeur.
and the dead in Christ] This gives us the key to the Apostle's
meaning throughout. Being "in Christ," having died as they lived in
Him, nothing can part them from Him, "neither death nor life" (Rom.
viii. 38). And when He returns in bodily presence, their bodies must
rise to meet Him and do Him homage.
shall rise first] Not before the other dead, as though theirs were a
select and separate resurrection (comp. John v. 28, 29); the antithesis
is plainly given in the next verse, — "first," Le. before the living saints :
"we shall not take precedence of them, but rather they of us."
17. then we which are alive and remain] Better, we that are alive,

106 I. THESSALONIANS, IV. v. 17.
with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air : and
that remain (or survive). The phrase of ver. 1 5 repeated ; see note.
The Apostle distinguishes, as in 1 Cor. xv. 51, 52, between those
"living" and those "dead in Christ" at the time of His advent, mark
ing the different position in which these two divisions of the saints will
then be found.
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds] In the Greek
order : together with them will be caught up in the clouds, emphasis
being thrown on the precedence of the dead: "we the living shall join
their company, who are already with the Lord. " Together with implies
full association.
"Caught" in the original implies a sudden, irresistible force, —
seized, snatched up! \n~iliatt. xi. 12 it is rendered, "The violent take
it by force;" in 2 Cor. xii. 2, 4 St Paul applies it to his rapture into
the third heaven.
"In" signifies not into, but "amid clouds," — surrounding and up
bearing us "like a triumphal chariot" (Grotius). So Christ Himself,
and the angels at His Ascension, promised He should come (Matt.
xxvi. 68 ; Acts i. 9 — n) ; comp. the "bright overshadowing cloud" at
the Transfiguration, and the "voice out of the cloud" (Matt. xvii. 5).
There is something wonderful and mystical about the clouds, half of
heaven and half of earth, that fits them to be the medium of such
events. They lend their ethereal drapery to form the curtain and
canopy of this glorious meeting. "What belongs to cloudland is no
less real than if set down on the solid ground."
Such a raising of the living bodies of the saints, along with the
risen dead, implies the physical transformation of the former to which
the Apostle afterwards alludes in 1 Cor. xv. 51 : "we shall not all
sleep, but we shall all be changed" (comp. 2 Cor. v. 1 — 4 ; Phil. iii. 21).
Some change had taken place in the sacred body of Jesus after His
resurrection, for it was emancipated from the ordinary laws of matter.
And this. transformation the Apostle conceived to be possible without
dissolution. to meet the Lord in the air] Lit., into (raised into) the air. "The
air," like the "clouds," belongs to the interspace between the heaven
from which Christ comes and the earth to which He returns. Here He
will meet His Church. She will not need to wait until He sets foot on
earth ; but those who are ready, "looking for their Lord when He shall
return" (Luke xii. 35 — 40), will hear His trumpet call and "go forth to
meet the Bridegroom" (Matt xxv. i, 6). St Paul employs the same,
somewhat rare Hebraistic idiom which is found in this passage of
St Matthew, as though the words of Christ lingered in his ear.
and so shall we ever be with the Lord] Where the Apostle does not
say ; whether still on earth for some longer space, or in heaven. The
one and all-sufficing comfort is in the thought of being always with
the Lord. This, too, was the promise of Christ, " Where I am, there
shall also My servant be" (John xii. 26; xiv. 3). Those living in the
flesh cannot be so in any complete sense ; "at home in the body, " we
are "absent from the Lord" (2 Cor. v. 6).

w. 18, i. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 107
so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one '8
another with these words.
But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no 5
18. Wherefore comfort one another with these words] Lit., in these
words, — in the revelation just communicated the readers are to find
comfort for each other under their recent bereavement, and in all such
seasons. Observe how wishful the Apostle is that his flock should
minister to each other. Comp. ch. v. 12, 14, and notes.
Comfort — or encourage: same as the "exhort" of w. i, 10; it de
notes any kind of animating and cheering address. See notes on
"exhortation," ch. ii. 3, iii. 2.
"Listen! it is no dream: the Apostles' trump
Gives earnest of the Archangel's ; — calmly now,
Our hearts yet beating high
To that victorious lay,
(Most like a warrior's, to the martial dirge
Of a true comrade,) in the grave we trust
Our treasure for a while."

CHAPTER V.
Section VI. (continued) : vv. 1 — 11.
The first part of this Chapter stands in close connection with the
last six verses of ch. iv. Together they form the most distinctive and
the weightiest section of the Epistle. The two paragraphs of the
section touch upon two different aspects of our Lord's Coming, viewed
first as it concerns departed Christians, and then in its relation to men
living on the earth. The former passage supplies comfort respecting
the dead in Christ, the latter enjoins watchfulness and preparedness
upon the living. See note introductory to ch. iv. 13.
From w. 1 and 2 it appears likely that the Thessalonians had been
enquiring from St Paul "about the times and the seasons" of Christ's
return and the Day of Judgement.
1. But of the times and the seasons] Better, concerning the times
and the seasons. The Greek word for "times" denotes stretches of
time, that for seasons particular times: the question as to the former
was, "How long before the Lord comes? what periods will elapse
before the final establishment of His kingdom?" as to the second,
"What events will transpire meanwhile? how will the course of history
shape itself?" These enquiries our Lord put aside. "It is not for
you," said He, "to know times or seasons, which the Father has put
within His own province" (Acts i. 7); and previously Jesus had de
clared respecting the end of the world, "Of that day and hour knoweth
no man, not even the angels in heaven, neither the Son, — only the
Father" (Mark xiii. 32). Such knowledge, it appears, is outside the
province of human thought. Speculations of this nature have been

108 I. THESSALONIANS, V. v. 2.
a need that / write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly
that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
repeatedly ventured on since the Apostle's day ; they have proved in
variably worthless, and afford so many confirmations of the Lord's
warning. Chrysostom remarks on this passage somewhat severely:
"Our nature is officious and greedy for the knowledge of things invisible
and hidden from us. This comes of our conceit, and from having
nothing to do. Often therefore is the mind in haste to learn and
understand these things before the time."
ye have no need that I write unto you] Lit., that aught be written
to you (R. V.). The phrase is a repetition of that of ch. iv. 9, except
that there the emphasis lies on you as persons not needing this in
struction, here upon the writing as a thing in itself needless. On the
topic of the last paragraph, viz. the position of Christians dying before
the Lord's return, it was needful that something should be written; as
to the "times and seasons" nothing need be written, for the readers
already knew so much as could be known (ver. 2).
2. For yourselves know perfectly] "For yourselves know:" a turn
of expression characteristic of these Epistles; ch. i. 5 (see note), ii. 1
(identical with this), 2, 5, 11; iii. 4 ; iv. 2 ; 2 Ep. ii. 6 ; iii. 7 (identical).
"Perfectly" is a somewhat vague rendering of an adverb that with
verbs of knowing signifies precisely, or accurately; in Mat. ii. 8, &c. , it is
rendered carefully (R.V. ). Possibly the Thessalonians in sending their
query had used this very word: "We should like to know more pre
cisely," they may have said, "about the times and seasons, and when
the Day of the Lord will be." 2 Ep. ii. 1—3 shows that the Church
was full of eagerness about the Second Advent, and even after this
caution many of its members continued to listen to those who professed
to answer their irrepressible questions. The Apostle replies, with a
touch of gentle irony (comp. note on ch. iv. n) : "You already know
precisely that nothing precise on the subject can be known, — that the
Great Day will steal upon the world like a thief in the night !"
the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night] More exactly,
as a thief in the night, so there is coming a day of the Lord ; the
definite article is absent in the Greek. Such a Day of the Lord as the
Church expected is coming; it is on the way (comp. note on ch. i. 10).
The event is certain : when it will arrive, no man can tell. Even in
the act of going away Jesus said repeatedly, "I come," " I am coming
to you" (John xiv. 3, 18, 28 ; &c).
The figure of the night-thief points, as the next verse shows, to
the effect of the Day upon the unprepared. The simile is taken
from the lips of Jesus in His discourse of the Judgement (Matt.
xxiv. 43 ; also Luke xii. 39, 40, where it is applied in warning to
Christ's servants): it is employed by other Apostles, in 2 Pet. iii.
10; Rev. iii. 3, &c. It signifies, beside the unexpectedness of the
event, its bereaving effect: it brings "sudden destruction" (ver. 3);
the house of the worldling is "broken through."
"Tlie day of the Lord" was a standing designation in the O.T.,
occurring first in Joel (ch. i. 15; ii. 1, 2, 11, 31; iii. 14; comp. Amos

v. 3. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 109
For when they shall say, Peace and safety ; then sudden 3
destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman
v. 18) amongst the written prophets and handed down to Isaiah and
Ezekiel, denoting the great epoch of judgement which in their age
impended over Israel and the surrounding nations, and closed the pro
phetical horizon. In the O.T. therefore, the Day of the Lord has
chiefly, if not exclusively, a judicial aspect. This meaning the ex
pression carries over into the N.T. ; and "the day of the Lord" is
synonymous with "the day of Judgement " (Matt. xi. 22, &c.) — often
called simply "that day" (Matt. vii. 22; Luke xvii. 31; &c), also
"the last day" (John vi. 39, &c). Moreover Christ ascribes to Himself,
"the Son of Man" (Luke xvii. 24, 26, 30), what the O. T. in this
connection predicts of " the Lord" (Jehovah). Hence St Paul describes
the same Day ofthe Lord as "the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. i. 6, &c).
But our Apostle loves to regard the Day on its brighter side, as the
time when Christ's glory will be revealed in His people (2 Ep. i. 10;
Phil. ii. 16; &c), "when He comes to be glorified in His saints and
wondered at in all that believed." Now the world is having its day ;
"this is your hour," said Jesus to those who seized Him, "and
the reign of darkness" (Luke xxii. 53). But that will be the Lord's
day, when the Lord and His Christ will be manifested, and vindicated
whether in salvation or judgement, — when "the glory of the Lord
shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together " (Isai. xl.
5). Afterwards the weekly day of Christ's resurrection came to be
called "the Lord's Day," as we call it now (Rev. i. 10) — this also a day
of Divine vindication, and a pledge and foretaste of the final and
perfect Day of the Lord : comp. the connection of the resurrection of
Jesus with the Last Judgement in ch. i. 10 and Acts xvii. 31.
We have already observed a tacit reference under the words "as a
thief in the night " to our Lord's discourse on the Judgement ; and we
shall find others in the sequel. These allusions make one think that
"the Apostle in his preaching at Thessalonica had surely quoted from
Christ's words on this solemn theme. Otherwise, how would the
Thessalonians "precisely know" that "the Day comes as a thief in the
night"? While in regard to the state of the sainted dead a new revela
tion was needed (ch. iv. 15), on the question of the time of His
coming His own well-remembered words were sufficiently explicit,
3. For when they shall say] Rather, when they are saying (R. V.).
In the very act of their saying "Peace and safety" — just when men of
the world pronounce everything secure and quiet — then the thief comes,
who steals from them the possessions they imagined safe from aii
attack. A reminiscence of Ezek. xiii. 10, "Saying Peace, and there
was no peace!" Such times of security are pregnant with judgement
to the wicked, and premonitory of some "day ofthe Lord."
then sudden destruction cometh upon them] Or, in the vivid order of
St Paul's Greek, then suddenly over them stands destruction.
Without a moment's warning ruin comes, — not seen approaching, but
first visible hanging over the doomed transgressors ! We hear again
Christ's warning of Luke xxi. 34, "lest that day come upon you

no I. THESSALONIANS, V. vv. 4, 5.
4 with child ; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren,
are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a
s thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of
suddenly (a Greek word found only in these two places in the N. T.), as
a snare ; for so will it come on all them that dwell on the face of all the
earth." Christ compares His advent to the coming of the Flood "in
the days of Noah" (Matt. xxiv. 36 — 39).
The Apostle describes the calamity under another figure, frequently
applied in the O. T. to Divine inflictions: as the birth-pang upon her
that is with child. This image signifies, beside the suddenness of the
disaster, its intense pain, and its inevitableness. Accordingly he con
tinues : and they shall in no wise escape. See 2 Ep. i. 9, and note ;
and comp. the terrible picture ofthe Judgement in Rev. vi. 15 — 17.
4. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should over
take you as a thief] Properly, the day — the great Day, the "day of
the Lord" (ver. 2) ; comp. the other elliptical phrase, "the wrath," of
ch. i. 10, ii. 16. At the same time, this word, while it looks back to
vv. 2 and 3, suggests the wider, figurative sense of day that comes out
in ver. 5. Since the Thessalonians are "not in darkness," the coming
of day will be no terror or surprise to them. The Day of the Lord will
not ' ' overtake them as a thief, " stealing on them suddenly and despoil
ing them of their treasures unawares, but it will come to them as the
welcome daybreak, full of light and joy. To the wicked and careless,
by a sad contradiction, the Day ofthe Lord will be night! it is to them
"darkness and not light, — yea, very dark, and no brightness in it"
(Amos v. 20). But for "the sons of light" (ver. 5) it is day indeed,
and wears its true character.
The margin ofthe R. V. contains the interesting reading, found "in
some ancient authorities," preferred also by Westcott and Hort : overtake
you as thieves! This gives a striking sense. It depicts the guilty as
themselves "thieves," surprised by daylight. But it involves an abrupt
change of metaphor, not sustained by the following context ; it trans
forms the "thief" from the cause of the surprise (ver. 2) into its object.
5. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day]
More correctly, For you are all sons of light and sons of day. This
confirms positively what was stated by way of denial in ver. 4. Those
cannot be "in darkness" who are "sons of light." Light is their
native element and abode.
By a common Hebrew idiom, a man is said to be a son of any
influence that determines or dominates his character. So there are
"sons of Belial" (worthlessness) in the O. T. ; and Christ speaks bf
"sons of thunder," "sons ofthe Resurrection," &c.
Light is a favourite figure with St Paul: see Rom. xiii. ri  14;
Eph. v. 8 — 14; Col. i. 12. St John employs it still more frequently;
in his Gospel, Christ applies it with emphasis to His Person as well as
to His doctrine : "/ am the light of the world" (John i. 49, viii.
12), &c. Both conceptions meet in the words of Ps. xxxvi. 9, ad
dressed to God : "In Thy light shall we see lio-lit " ti,;- ----- •

v. 6. I. THESSALONIANS, V. in
the day : we are not of the night, nor of darkness. There- «
fore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be
beautiful metaphor describes the truth revealed by God to men (i) in
its moral purity, as opposed to the darkness of sin (see w. 7, 8 ; comp.
Rom. xiii. 12, 13, John iii. 19, 1 John i. 5 — 7) ; but especially (2) in
its saving effect, as the bringer of life, deliverance and joy (Ps. xxvii. 1,
"The Lord is my light and my salvation;" Isai. lx. 1 — 3 ; John viii.
12 ; 2 Cor. iv. 6; &c. ). These two meanings are united in St Paul's
conception. (3) The thought of mental enlightenment also accompanies
the figure (see e.g. Eph. i. 17, 18).
"Day" is here not a mere synonym for "light" in general; it takes
up again the "day of the Lord" of vv. 2, 4. Now receiving the light
of Christ's truth and assimilated to it, the sons of light will be ready
for "that day." Christ's advent will be to them like sunrise after long
twilight. It is their birthday, the time of their full redemption and
revelation. "The day of the Lord" claims them for its own, — "sons
of day," being "sons of God" and "the resurrection" (Luke xx. 34 — 36).
See 2 Ep. i. 7; Rom. viii. 18 — 24; Col. iii. 4.
This the Apostle assumes of "all" his readers; for he counts upon
them all maintaining the watchful hope that befits the sons of light.
we are not of the night, nor of darkness] The Apostle passes from
the second person to the first (comp. ch. iii. 3, 4) ; he associates himself
with his readers in this repudiation of night and darkness.
Night, as the opposite of "day," is the period, or the state, of
ignorance and estrangement from God, which for believers in Christ
has passed away. And yet in contrast with the full light which
will burst forth on "the day of the Lord," the present hour is even
for them one of comparative darkness and obscuration : see Rom.
xiii. 12; Col. iii. 1 — 4; 1 John iii. t. Darkness is the element and
empire of night; the condition in which "the rest" (ver. 6) live
and have their being. Such darkness involves, along with ignorance
of God, moral debasement (see ver. 7, and ch. iv. 5) and insensibility
(2 Ep. ii. n, 12; Rom. i. 30; Matt. xxiv. 38 — 40); hence exposure to
surprise and ruin (vv. 2, 3).
6. Therefore] More exactly, Accordingly then. The double con
junction here employed is an idiom peculiar to St Paul, which appears
once in 2 Thess. (ch. ii. 15), eight times in Romans, and twice besides
in his Epistles. It combines the logical and practical inference, — that
which both reason and duty require.
let us not sleep, as do others] the rest (R. V.); as in ch. iv. 13, see
note. "Sleep" is natural to those who are "of the night" (comp.
Eph. v. 11-14); it is symbolic of the insensibility and helplessness that
sin produces. Comp. Rom. xiii. 11, 12: "It is high time to awake out
of sleep. ..Let us put off the works of darkness, and put on the armour
of light. " In this sense we may well pray the prayer of Ps. xiii. 3,
"Lighten Thou mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death."
but let us watch and be sober] Lit., let us keep awake. It is our
Lord's word of warning and entreaty in the Garden, Mark xiv. 34, 37,

112 I. THESSALONIANS, V. vv. 7, 8.
7 sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they
8 that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who
are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith
38; comp. Luke xii. 36, 37, "Be ye like unto men looking out for
their lord, when he shall return from the wedding. ..Blessed are those
servants whom the Lord when He cometh shall find watching." It
indicates the wakeful activity of a mind devoted to Christ's service and
busy with thoughts of His coming. Of such "watching" prayer is a
necessary accompaniment (Mark xiv. 38 ; Col. iv. 2).
"Be sober" gives the moral, as "watch" the mental side of the
attitude enjoined in view ofthe coming Day; comp. ver. 8; also 1 Pet.
v. 8. Soberness, in its narrower sense the opposite of drunkenness
(ver. 7), includes habits of moderation and self-control generally. It
excludes, for one thing, morbid excitement and unreasoning credulity
about the Parousia (2 Ep. ii. 1 — 3).
7. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken
are drunken in the night] The "sons of day" must be wakeful and
sober, for the opposite conditions belong to night and are proper to
its children. To be drunken by day was a monstrous and almost
unheard-of thing (comp. Acts ii. 15). Negligence and wantonness
have no place in those who belong to "the day."
These words look .beyond their literal sense, as "sober" in ver. 6.
Drunkenness signifies the condition of a soul besotted and enslaved by
evil. We catch here another echo of our Lord's warnings : "Lest
haply your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and
cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly as a snare"
(Luke xxi. 34; comp. ver. 3 above; also Luke xii. 45, 46; and Rom.
xiii. 13). Thus dawn surprises guilty revellers.
8. But let us, who are of the day, be sober] Better, since we are of
the day (R. V.); comp. notes on "sober" (ver. 6), and "day" (ver. 5).
Watchfulness has been sufficiently urged already. The Apostle
now reiterates the other half of the appeal made in ver. 6 : " let us be
sober." putting on the breastplate of faith and love ; and for a helmet, the hope
of salvation] The daylight rouses the soldier to action. If he has slept,
with the dawn he is awake and alert; if he has spent the night in
carousals, he is instantly sobered. The things of darkness are dismissed
and forgotten. At the bugle-call he starts up, he dons his armour and
is ready for the field. In Rom. xiii. 12, 13 the same figure is still more
graphically applied : " Let us put off the works of darkness — revellings,
drunkenness, and the like " — loose and shameful garments of the night —
"and let us put on the armour of light. ..Let us walk in the day,
becomingly." Comp., for the military style of the passage, ch. iv. 16,
and notes.
In the later passage parallel to this, Eph. vi. 13 — 17, the Christian
armour, "the panoply of God," is set forth in greater detail and
somewhat differently. "Breastplate" and "helmet" make up this
picture, being the two chief pieces of defensive armour, that protect

v. 9. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 113
and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. For God 9
hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by
the two most vital parts of the body. "The breastplate of faith and
love" guards the heart, the centre of life and spring of the body's
forces; and to this quarter "faith and love" are naturally assigned.
What belongs to "breastplate" here, is virtually divided between
"shield" and "breastplate" in Ephesians. — The "helmet" is the same
in both Epistles: there consisting of "salvation," here "the hope of
salvation," in accordance with the fact that Hope is the dominant key
note of this Epistle (see ch. i. 3, and note). The fitness of this
metaphor lies in the place of the helmet as the crown of the soldier's
armour, its brightest and most conspicuous feature, covering the head,
the part of his person that most invites attack. The simile, in both
Epistles, is based on Isaiah Iix. 17, where the Lord appears "putting
on righteousness as a breastplate" and "an helmet of salvation upon
His head," as He goes forth to fight for His people.
Observe again the Apostle's favourite combination, Faith, Love, Hope,
in the same order as in ch. i. 3 (see notes) ; also in 2 Ep. i. 3, 4. As
we might expect, "hope the helmet" is that on which he is here most
disposed to dwell. Accordingly he continues —
9. For God hath not appointed us to wrath] In the strict order of the
words, appointed us not unto wrath, but (to something very different)
unto the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
"Obtaining" is securing, making a thing absolutely one's own,— as in
2 Ep. ii. 14 (see note), "the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ." In Heb. x. 39 the same word is rendered "saving of the
soul;" in Eph. i. 14 it signifies, passively used, a sure possession. In
all these instances it points beyond the present attainment of salvation,
still subject to trial and hazard, to the full realisation thereof, which is
the object of the Christian's hope (ver. 8), as it is the end of God's
designs for him.
"Salvation," in St Paul and in the N. T. generally, includes the
whole of the benefits and blessings of the Gospel, the entire new life and
well-being that it brings, both to the individual man and to the world;
but it is referred more specifically to two essential elements, or
moments, in the great process of renewal — (1) that spoken of in
Luke i. 77 as "knowledge of salvation... in remission of sins," and (2)
to man's deliverance from the grave and entrance on the risen life of the
future world, — "salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory"
(2 Tim. ii. 10). In the word redemption this double reference is even
more conspicuous: see, e.g., Eph. i. 7 and 14. To this ultimate
"salvation" the Apostle directs his readers' thoughts and hopes.
"Appointed" reminds us of "election" (ch. i. 4, see note); it implies
the aut/iority with which God called the Thessalonians to salvation
(comp. ch. ii. 12), as well as the fact of His gracious intention
respecting them. Comp. 1 Tim. i. 12, "appointing me to service," and
ch. iii. 3 above. In 2 Ep. ii. 13, 14 (see notes) this Divine appoint
ment of grace is more fully set forth.
THESS. 8

114 I- THESSALONIANS, V.  v- io.
io our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that, whether we
For the negative side of God's purpose — not unto anger — see notes
on wrath in ch. i. io; ii. 16; 2 Ep. i. 8, 9. With the thought of
Christ's second coming, so constantly present to St Paul's pind at this
time (see Introd. pp. 18 — 21), there were present also the issues of the
Last Judgement and its solemn contrast — the glorious "salvation" then
to be attained by the sons of God, and the final and awful manifestation
of His "anger" against the wicked. Similarly "the day of the Lord"
is seen in Rom. ii. 5 as a "day of wrath and revelation of the righteous
judgement of God;" and in this light, wrath and future salvation are
contrasted in Rom. v. 9, 10, just as they are here. There also, as in
this passage, Christ's death (see ver. 10) is set forth as our ground of
hope in this prospect ; through "His blood" we are brought from the
sense and fear of God's anger into His favour, and entitled to expect
that eternal redemption will be ours.
It was the conviction that such is God's purpose and will respecting
those who believe in Christ that made St Paul's "helmet of salvation"
so strong, and gave it all its splendour. Read Rom. viii. 31 — 39 as a
commentary on this saying.
On the full title "our Lord Jesus Christ" see note to ch. i. 3.
10. (through our Lord Jesus Christ,) who died for us] It has been
said that the gospel which Paul preached at Thessalonica was "not the
gospel of the Cross of Christ, but of the Coming of Christ." But these
two are not exclusive or conflicting doctrines ; they are complementary
parts of one and the same Gospel. This clause is enough to show
how far the apostles were from ignoring the Cross of Christ in their
ministry at Thessalonica. When St Paul writes, "Christ died for us...
that we should live together with Him," his words involve the entire
doctrine of Redemption by the death and resurrection of Jesus, as it
is set forth at length in the next group of Epistles — in Rom. iii. 21 — 26;
iv. 25 — v. 2; vi. 1 — 11; viii. 1 — 4; Gal. ii. 10 — 21; iii. 9 — 14; 2 Cor.
v. 14 — vi. 2 ; &c. They imply the Atonement and Salvation by Faith,
the receiving of Christ's Spirit of sonship, and abiding union with Him
in His risen and heavenly life. The whole theology of the Cross is in
this sentence, — which indeed could only be interpreted and understood
by the Thessalonians in the light of such teaching as we find in the
later Epistles. The message of salvation through the death of Christ
had been the staple and centre of the Apostle's testimony all along.
In writing to the Corinthians, and referring to his preaching in Co
rinth at the very time when he wrote the letters before us, he calls his
message simply "the word of the cross" (1 Cor. i. 17, 18, 23; ii. 2);
comp., for an earlier period, Acts xiii. 38, 39; Gal. iii. 1, also vi.
14. See Introd. pp. 16, 17.
that, whether we wake or sleep] More exactly, whether we be awake
or asleep, i.e. living or dead — with allusion to the use ofthe same terms
to denote spiritual wakefulness or slumber in vv. 6, 7 (see notes).
At the same time these words carry us back, with a sudden change
of metaphor, to ch. iv. 13 — 18. There it was shewn that believers
living at the Lord's return, and those who "fall asleep" before He

v. II. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 115
wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore «
comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as
also ye do.
comes, alike belong to Him, and will share alike in the glory of His
advent. And now it appears that this deep and sure relationship of
the saints to Christ, unbroken by the sleep of bodily death, is grounded
upon His death for them. That death He underwent for the very
purpose of giving them a deathless life: in order that. ..together with
Him we should live (comp. Rom. xiv. 8,9: " Whether we live or die,
we are the Lord's.... Christ died and came to life, that He might be
Lord of both dead and living"). The stress lies upon the last word :
Christ died for us, that we might live with Him — a life consisting in
spiritual union with Him, and continuing undestroyed whether the man
wakes or sleeps to this world. "I came," said Jesus, "that men might
have life... I am the living bread, which came down from heaven. If
any one eat of this bread, he shall live for ever . Yea, and the bread
which I will give is My flesh, for the life of the world" (John x. 10;
vi. 51). Risen from the grave, our Saviour "lives" evermore "to God;
death no longer lords it over Him" (Rom. vi. 9, 10). And those
who are Christ's, "joined to the Lord" as "one spirit" with Him
(1 Cor. vi. 17), share His life, which flows from the heavenly Head
to all the earthly members of His Body. This is the life "that is
life indeed" (1 Tim. vi. 19); it is superior to the accidents of time, since
in its spring and essence "hid with Christ in God" (Col. iii. 1 — 4).
Such is St Paul's conception of the nature of the Christian's life.
The "with Him" of ch. iv. 14, 17 is echoed and unfolded in the
"together with Him" of this verse, as it formed the basis of the
" together with them" of ch. iv. 17. All joy and strength for the pre
sent life and hope for that to come, for ourselves and for those dear to
us, are centred in the words "together with Him." So the Apostle
resumes the strain of consolation, from which he had turned aside in ver.
1 to utter words of caution; and he concludes, almost in the language
of ch. iv. 18 —
11. Wherefore comfoi-t yourselves together] exhort (or encourage)
one another — same verb as in ch. iv. 18 (see note, and on ch. iii. 2).
While "encouragement" would be drawn especially from vv. 9, 10, as
from the closing vv. of ch. iv., the appeal to the Thessalonians to edify,
i.e. build up each other, rests on the whole content of the paragraph,
from the beginning of the chapter. The warnings of vv. 3 — 8 tend to
edification, promoting as they do seriousness and solidity of Christian
life. The word "edify" — a favourite word of St Paul's — points to the
Church as a house, the "habitation of God in the Spirit " (Eph. ii. 22),
each part contributing to the welfare of every other and furthering the
life and strength of the whole. In this word lies the germ of the
Apostle's conception of the Church, which he unfolded at a later time,
in 1 Cor. xii. 12 — 27, and still further in the Epistle to the Ephesians.
even as also ye do\ Comp. ch. iv. r, 9, 10, and notes. These re-
8—2

Ii6 I. THESSALONIANS, V.  v^i2.
And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which
labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and ad-
peated acknowledgements attest the high quality and spirit of this
Church. It excelled especially in mutual kindness and helpfulness.
St Paul ascribes the functions of "edification" to the whole body of the
Church, and does not regard them as confined to the official ministry, of
which he has immediately to speak (w. 12, 13). This collective office
of edification is powerfully set forth in Eph. iv. 16: "All the Body,
jointed together and compacted... each single part operating in its
measure, makes its growth, to the end it may build up itself in love."

Section VII. Rules for the Sanctified Life.
Ch. V. 12—24.
In Section V. (ch. iv. 1 — 12) the sainlship of his readers supplied the
basis and the nerve of the Apostle's charge. He there enforced on the
Thessalonian believers the virtues which they needed to cultivate, in the
light of their consecration to God. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit
served as the sovereign motive for the leading of a pure life (ch. iv.
3, 7, 8). The same thought runs through this- Section. The string of
sententious exhortations it contains, find their goal and their uniting prin
ciple in the prayer, " May the God of peace Himself sanctify you fully"
(ver. 23). Hence the title we prefix to the paragraph.
Vv. 12 — 15 relate to social duties, spreading out in widening circles
from "those who preside over you in the Lord" (ver. 12) to " all men"
(ver. 15). Then we pass to religious duties, w. 16 — 22 : to those (1) of
the most general character, vv. 16 — 18; and (2) to the more specific in
junctions arising from the special gifts of the Spirit then bestowed upon
the Church, w. 19 — 22. These directions lead up to the great prayer
of the Apostle for entire sanctification, w. 23, 24.
12. And we beseech you, brethren] For "beseech" (or "ask") see
note to ch. iv. 1. The Apostle resumes the line of exhortation
which he there commenced, and which was interrupted by the con
solations and warnings he had to give on the subject of the Second
Coming. The "But" with which this entreaty begins, points back to ver. 11.
The Apostle has been directing his readers generally to "encourage
and edify each other:" but at the same time they must not ignore the
services of their official ministry or deem their oversight and teaching
needless. to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord
and admonish you] A clear testimony, from this earliest writing of the
N.T. , to the existence in the Church at the beginning of a ministerial
order — a clergy (to use the language of a later age) as distinguished from
the laity — charged with specific duties and authority. But there is
nothing in the grammar of the sentence, nor in the nature of the
duties specified, which would warrant us in distributing these functions

w. 13, 14. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 117
monish you; and to esteem them very highly in love for 13
their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves. Now 14
amongst distinct orders of Church office. " Labouring," "presiding,"
and " admonishing" form the threefold calling of the local Christian
ministry. Doubtless St Paul had organized this Church before leaving
it, as he and Barnabas did the Churches of Lycaonia at an earlier time,
" ordaining elders in every city" (Acts xiv. 23). It is not likely that it
had advanced beyond the incipient stage of Church government.
The Epistle to the Philippians, in which "bishops and deacons" are
addressed (Ph. i. 1), was written nearly ten years later.
"Labour" — or toil, as in ch. i. 3 (see note) — implies difficulty in the
work; the Apostle uses it of his own spiritual work in 1 Cor. xv. 10;
Gal. iv. 11; Ph. ii. 16; Col. i. 29. The chief instrument and method
of this "labour" are pointed out in 1 Tim. v. 17: "who labour in
word and doctrine."
Lit., and preside over you in the Lord. The Pastoral Epistles,
describing Church office in its more advanced development, represent
this as the chief duty of the elders : " Let the elders who preside (rule,
A.V. and R.V.) well, be counted worthy of double honour"; comp.
also 1 Tim. iii. 5 and 12. There, however, as here, "labouring" is
honoured even more than "ruling." The presidency of the elders in
the Church assemblies naturally carried with it, as in Jewish com
munities, the right of exercising discipline over the moral life of the
community. Hence "preside" comes to signify "rule," as also in
Rom. xii. 8. In Heb. xiii. 7, 17 the ministers are called ' ' your
leaders." — To "preside in the Lord" is to preside over a Christian
assembly in Christ's name and authority.
The duty of admonition devolved chiefly on the officers of the Church ;
but not exclusively, as vv. n, 14 and 2 Ep. iii. 15 show.
To "know those who labour and preside and admonish" is to under
stand them and the nature of their duties — to know their character
and labours, to have due acquaintance with them. Ministers are
often told that they must know their people : the Apostle points out
the duty that exists on the other side. Such knowledge, wanting
apparently in some of the Thessalonians, would result in high esteem : —
13. and to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake]
exceeding highly (R.V.) — the same Greek adverb as in ch. iii. 10, the
strongest intensive possible to the language. So deep and warm should
be the affection uniting pastors and their flocks. Their appreciation is
not to be a cold esteem ; it has mutual "love" for its pervading
element, a grace in which the Thessalonians were already "taught
of God " (ch. iv. 9). Their "work," described in ver. 12, is the reason
for this devoted esteem. In work this Church excelled (ch. i. 3) ; and
this it knew how to appreciate.
And be at peace among yourselves] And is wanting in the Greek. But
this appeal is closely connected with the last. Looking, moreover, at
the exhortation to "admonish the unruly" that follows, and at the
command "study to be quiet" of ch. iv. n, and the measures pre-

n8 I. THESSALONIANS, V. v. 15.
we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort
the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all
15 men. See that none render evil for evil unto any man ; but
scribed against the idle and disorderly in 2 Ep. iii. 6 — 15, we can read
between the lines sufficiently to see that the tendencies adverse to peace
in this community were interfering with its discipline, and set" the
Church authorities at variance with a certain section of its membership.
14. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly] More
strictly, But we exhort, &c. The Apostle is not passing to a new topic.
His exhortation to "peace" needs to be qualified. "The unruly" must
not for the sake of peace be left unreproved. It is a false and
cowardly peace that leaves disorder to range unchecked.
Read admonish for warn — same verb as in ver. 12. The Church at
large must second its presiding elders in such admonishing. In every
well-ordered community, whether church or school or nation, needful
discipline claims the support of public opinion. The disorder that
required this general censure was doubtless that hinted at in ch. iv. 1 1
(see note), and which had grown more pronounced when St Paul wrote
2 Ep. iii. 6 — 15 ; it was a common injury and discredit.
The unruly: better, the disorderly (R.V.), as in 2 Ep. iii. 11.
comfort the feebleminded, support the weak] Rather, the faint
hearted (R. V.). The former verb was used in ch. ii. 11 (see note),
where the Apostle reminds his readers how he had "exhorted, and
comforted (or consoled)" them, "as a father his own children." The
second of these directions also St Paul enforces by his example, in
Acts xx. 35: "In all things I have shown you how that so labouring
you pught to help the weak." Comp. Eph. iv. 28, for the same
sentiment. "The weak" and "fainthearted" stand in contrast with "the dis
orderly." The latter are overbold, and need to be checked : the former
are despondent, and need stimulus and help. Fainthearted men think
themselves weak, but perhaps are not so; and encouragement may
make them bold. The mourners whom St Paul consoled in ch. iv.
13 — 18, would be amongst "the fainthearted" at Thessalonica.
be patient toward all men] longsuffering toward all (R.V.) 
"whether weak or strong, whether they try you by their presumption
or timidity, by rude aggressiveness or by feebleness and incapacity."
Longsuffering is one of the special marks of Christian grace : "Charity
suffereth long " (1 Cor. xiii. 4) ; it was a chief quality of Jesus Christ,
and is an attribute of God Himself (1 Pet. iii. 20; 1 Tim. i. 16; &c).
15. See that none render evil for evil unto any man] The stress lies
not on the personal object, as in the former clause (all, any), but on the
quality of the act : better, See that none render unto any one evil in
return for evil. The Thessalonian Christians were receiving much evil
from the world ; possibly some of its members were wronging others :
there must be no retaliation. "Blows may fall on you; you must
never return them." This command is linked closely with the last • for
while that bids each man restrain his own anger, this requires him tn

w. ib— 18. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 119
ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and
to all men. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In \l *7
check the resentful spirit wherever it appears. It is a reproach to all,
a discredit to the common faith, when a Christian gives back wrong for
wrong. Comp. Rom. xii. 19 — 21, "Be not overcome of evil, but over
come evil with good;" also 1 Pet. ii. 18 — 25; and especially the
teaching of Christ in Matt. v. 38 — 48. On evil, see note to ver. 22.
but ever follow that which is good] This is to "follow" not by way
of imitation, as in ch. i. 6, ii. 14, but by way of aim and pursuit: hence,
follow after (R.V.). And "the good" is here "the beneficial."
As much as to say: "Make the good of your fellow-men your con
stant pursuit, and let no injury or unworthiness on their part turn you
aside from it."
This line of conduct is to be pursued both within and without the
Church: one toward another, and toward all. Amongst Christians
such seeking of the good of others is mutual, and there its best results
will appear. But its exercise is to be unlimited. No follower of
Christ will do wilful harm to any man. The distinction made "by
them of old time, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine
enemy," Christ, our Lawgiver, has abolished (Matt. v. 43 — 48).
From social duties the Apostle's homily now rises to matters of reli
gion, from the claims of Christians on each other to " the will of God "
concerning them. See note introductory to ver. 12.
16. Rejoice evermore] alway (R.V.)— same as in ch. i. 2, ii.. 16, &c.
This seems a strange injunction for men afflicted like the Thessa
lonians (see ch. i. 6, ii. 14, iii. 2 — 4; 2 Ep. i. 4). But the Apostle had
learnt, and taught the secret, that in sorrow endured for Christ's sake
there is hidden a new spring of joy. See Rom. v. 3 — 5, " Let us glory
in our tribulations;" 2 Cor. xii. 10; and the Beatitude of Christ in Matt.
v. 10 — 12; also 1 Pet. iv. 12 — 14.
This phrase supplied the key-note of St Paul's subsequent letter,
written from prison, to the Philippians (ch. iv. 4, 5).
17. Pray without ceasing] Twice the Apostle has used this adverb
(ch.i. 3, ii. 13), referring to his own constant grateful remembrance of his
readers before God. Numberless other objects occupied his mind during
the busy hours of each day ; and the Thessalonians could not be dis- ; >r
tinctly present to his mind in every act of devotion ; still he felt that
they were never out of remembrance, and thankfulness on their account
mingled with and coloured all his thoughts and feelings at this time.
In like manner Prayer is to be the accompaniment of our whole
life — a stream ever flowing, now within sight and hearing, now dis
appearing from view, forming the under-current of all our thoughts and
giving to them its own character and tone.
18. In every thing give thanks] This again the Apostle taught by
example as well as precept; see ch. i. 2; iii. 9, 10; and comp. Ph. iv.
6 ; Col. iv. 2. "In everything," even in persecution and shame, suffered
for Christ's sake; comp. Phil. i. 29, 2 Cor. xii. 9, 10.
Prayer and Thanksgiving are the two wings of the soul by which it
rises upward to God.

I. THESSALONIANS, V. vv. 19, 20.

every thing give thanks : for this is the will of God in Christ
19 20 Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit. Despise
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you] Rather,
to you-ward (R.V.) :— "You Thessalonian believers— so greatly af
flicted and tempted to murmuring and despondency— are the special
objects of this Divine purpose, whose attainment is made possible for
you in Christ Jesus. God intends that your life should be one of
constant prayer, constant joy and thanksgiving." In ch. iii. 3 it was
said that the Thessalonians were "appointed" to their extraordinary
sufferings (comp. ch. iv. 3). Now the reason of this appointment is
shown ; it is that they may grow perfect in thankfulness, grateful for
the bitter as well as for the sweet in their experiences, — for
"each rebuff
That turns earth's smoothness rough,
Each sting that bids nor sit nor stand, but go."
Such cheerfulness of soul needs strong faith, and is won through
hard trial. Rom. v. 3 — 5 supplies the reasoning by which tribulation
is made matter of thanksgiving and the sorrows of the Christian are
turned to songs of joy. — On Chiist Jesus, see note to ch. ii. 14.
From joy, prayer and thanksgiving the Apostle passes by a natural
transition to the Spirit and prophesying. For Christian joy and Chris
tian prayer are inspired by the Holy Spirit. See ch. i. 6, " with joy of
the Holy Spirit " ; also Rom. viii. 26, Eph. vi. 18, and Jude 20,
"praying in the Holy Spirit." "Praying" and "prophesying" are
kindred, spiritual exercises (see 1 Cor. xi. 4, 5).
19,20. Quench not the Spirit. Despise not prophesyings] The R.V.
properly reduces to a semi-colon the full stop between these sentences.
What is revelation on God's part, is prophecy in its human instrument.
"Prophecy" bears to "revelation" the same relation as "teaching"
to "knowledge" (1 Cor. xii. 6), the former being the utterance and
outcome of the latter. Prediction, to which we limit the term in com
mon speech, is but a part — and not an essential part — of Prophecy, in
its Biblical sense. It is, etymologically, the forth-speaking of what
was otherwise unknown and hidden in the mind of God.
This power of declaring by direct inspiration the mind of God was
widely diffused amongst the first Christians ; see 1 Cor. xii. 10, xiv.
1—5, Rom. xii. 6, where it is spoken of as an ordinary and familiar
thing. This gift manifested in the highest and most effective way
the power of God's Spirit in man; but it was liable to be abused
(see 1 Cor. xiv. 26 — 31), and to be simulated (1 John iv. 1). The ex
pression "through Spirit" in 2 Ep. ii. 2 probably refers to some
spurious prophetic manifestation. A fanatical element appears to have
mingled with the prophesyings of the Thessalonian Church ; and this
had doubtless given offence to- sober minds, and created distrust in
regard to prophecy itself. Hence the double caution. Contempt for
this great gift of His must of necessity grieve the Holy Spirit, and
limit His action in the Church. Nothing is more chilling to religious
life than a cold rationalism which suspects the supernatural beforehand

vv. 21—23. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 121
not prophesyings. Prove all things; hold fast that which is 21
good. Abstain from all appearance of evil. And the very 22 23
and is ready to confound the manifestations of the Spirit of God with
morbid excitement or insincere pretension.
But the command, " Quench not the Spirit," is universal. Whatever
obstructs or disparages His work in the souls of men — whether in
others, or in ourselves — is thus forbidden. It is a strange and awful,
but very real power that we have to "resist the Holy Spirit" (Acts
vii. 51).
Since He may be "quenched," He is afire, as appeared on the Day
of Pentecost (Acts ii. 3). This emblem sets forth the sudden and
vehement activities of the Holy Spirit, with His gifts of warmth for
the heart and light for the mind and His power to kindle the human
spirit. Prophecy exhibited His presence under this aspect, in its inten
sity and ardour. On the other hand, He appears in gentler form under
the emblem of the dove, in whose guise the Spirit descended on Jesus
at His baptism.
21. Prove all things; hold fast that which is good] Some of the
best ancient authorities read, But prove all things. In any case, this
exhortation, while capable of the widest application, arises out of the
subject of the last. " Instead of accepting or rejecting wholesale what
is addressed to you as prophecy, use your judgement ; learn to
discriminate ; sift the wheat from the chaff. " So needful was it to
distinguish between true and false revelations, that a special en
dowment was bestowed on some persons for this end — the "discernment
of spirits" (1 Cor. xii. 10). And St Paul gives a criterion for the purpose
in 1 Cor. xii. 3. Comp. 1 John iv. 1 — 3, "Beloved, believe not every
spirit ; but try the spirits, whether they are of God."
"The good" represents a different word from that of ver. 15 (see
note) ; it signifies what is good or fine in quality, as in 2 Ep. iii. 13.
22. Abstain from all appearance of evif] from every kind of evil
(R.V.). The Apostle does not advise the Thessalonians to avoid
what looks like evil ; the command thus understood encourages the
studying of appearances, and tends to the "doing of our works to be
seen of men" which our Lord condemns (Matt, xxiii. 5). But in
completing on the negative side the previous command, "hold fast the
good (in prophesyings)," he gives to it the widest possible extension:
"Keep yourselves not only from this, but from every sort of evil." It
is difficult, however, for the Greek scholar to justify the reading of evil
in this sentence as a substantive, and the rendering of the governing
noun by kind instead of appearance (rendered form, fashion, shape, in
Luke iii. 22, ix. 29, John v. 37). This noun St Paul uses once besides,
in 2 Cor. v. 7 : "We walk by faith, not by sight" — i.e. with no visible
form, or appearance, to walk by. His meaning here may be similar :
Abstain from every evil sight (or show) — from all that is evil in the
outward show of things about you : ab omni specie mala (Vulgate).
There are two words for "evil" in Greek— that used here, signifying
harmful, mischievous (so designating "the Evil One," see note on

122 I. THESSALONIANS, V. v. 23.
God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your
2 Ep. iii. 3); and that employed in ver. ij, denoting bad, base, ma
licious. With this emphatic word, keep yourselves, the Apostle concludes
his directions to the Thessalonians, extending from ver. 12 — 22, as to
what they must do in order to preserve and sustain the life of grace in
themselves. The prayer of the next verse invokes the power of God
to accomplish for them that which mere human effort can never attain.
Comp. the transition of ch. iii. 11, expressed in similar language (see
note), and of 2 Ep. ii. 16 and iii. 3. All that the Christian can do for
his own safe-keeping, or for the service of his fellows, is merged in
the greatness and completeness of that which God will do for them.
23. And the very God of peace] the God of peace Himself (R.V.) —
so "God Himself" in ch. iii. 11, and "our Lord Jesus Christ Him
self" in 2 Ep. ii. 16, where the like contrast is implied between human
wish or endeavour and Divine power. With this contrast in his mind,
St Paul begins, But, not and: "I bid you keep yourselves from evil;
but may God, Who only can, cleanse and preserve you. " Comp. Ph. ii.
12, 13, " Work out your own salvation; for God is He that worketh in
you." "The God of peace" is a favourite designation with St Paul (found
also in Heb. xiii. 20), in wishes and blessings : see 2 Ep. iii. 16; Rom.
xvi. 20, &c. For peace, see note on ch. i. 1. This is God's dis
tinguishing gift in the Gospel, that by which He makes Himself and
His grace known in the hearts of men. In like fashion He is named
from other gifts, "The God of patience and consolation " (Rom. xv. 5),
"of hope" (ver. 13), "of love and peace" (2 Cor. xiii. 11), "of all
grace" (1 Pet. v. 10). While He is "the God of peace," true peace is
J' the peace of God" (see Phil. iv. 7 and 9). And His peace bears fruit
in our sanctification.
sanctify you wholly] Rather, unto completeness, or full perfection.
The readers are already sanctified in Christ Jesus (see ch. iv. 7, 8, "in
sanctification"; 2 Ep. ii. 13; comp. 1 Cor. i. 2); the Apostle prays
that they may be sanctified to the fullest extent, — or rather, that God
may so sanctify them as to bring them to the full perfection of their
nature, that as sanctified men they may realise the end of their being
in all its length and breadth. See Trench's Synonyms of the N.T.,
§ xxii., on the relation of this expression to entire in next clause.
On sanctification, see notes to ch. iv. 3 and 7; also 2 Ep. ii. 13.
and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blame
less] "I pray God" is needlessly supplied in the A.V. More precisely,
and in the Greek order : entire (or in full integrity) may your spirit
and soul and body, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ, be preserved. The word "entire" takes up the thread of the
last sentence, to the prayer of which the Apostle seeks to give more
comprehensive expression. But the completeness of blessing desired
now assumes a new aspect. From the degree of holiness desired we
pass to its range, from its intension (as the logicians would say) to its
extension. St Paul prays that in the integrity of their human */.*¦<•„„

v. 23. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 123
whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto
and nature they may be preserved, — "spirit, soul, and body" alike
finding their safety, with their oneness, in the holy service of God.
St Paul has already treated, in ch. iv. 3—8, of one chief branch of
bodily sanctification. Now he thinks of this sanctity as penetrating
the whole being of the man. It is not necessary to regard spirit and
soul and body as three distinct logical divisions of man's nature 1. The
Apostle aims at making his wish exhaustive in its completeness. He
begins with the innermost — "your spirit," nearest to God "Who is
spirit," and with which the Holy Spirit directly unites Himself,
"witnessing to our spirit" (Rom. viii. 16); and he ends with "body,"
the vessel (ch. iv. 4) and envelope of our nature, through which it
belongs to the external world and holds intercourse with it. The
"soul," poised between them, is the individual self, the living per
sonality, in which spirit and flesh, common to each man with his fellows,
meet and are actualised in him. When St Paul bids the Corinthians
to "cleanse" themselves "from all defilement of flesh and spirit"
(2 Cor. vii. t : contrast 1 Pet. i. 22, "having purified your souls" —
your individual selves), that phrase covers the same ground as this,
but it treats the matter as one of contrast between man's outer and
inner relations ; whereas the stress here lies on the integrity of the
man himself, with his balanced and developed nature, and all his
faculties in exercise. Hence the verb (be preserved) is singular : spirit,
soul, and body forming one whole man. The "spirit" is "kept,"
when no evil reaches the inner depths of the man's nature, or disturbs
his relations to God and eternity ; his "soul," when the world of self
is guarded, when all his feelings and thoughts are sinless ; his "body,"
when his outward life and relations to the material world are innocent.
The connection between sanctity and safety ("be preserved") lies in
the fact that what is sanctified is given over to God. "No one is able
to pluck them out of My Father's hand," said Jesus (John x. 29). See
the next verse, and comp. 2 Tim. i. 12; also Ps. cxxi. ; Isai. xxvii. 3.
The word "preserved" stands with emphasis at the end of the sentence.
In the intercession of John xvii., our Lord prays first, "Holy Father,
keep them" (w. 11, 15), then "sanctify them" (ver. 17). But He is
thinking there of the situation of His disciples, in the midst of the
world ; the Apostle leads up to their future manifestation, at His
coming. St Paul writes blamelessly — not blameless (A.V.); and in — not
««rV;— the coming &c. This adverbial adjunct must belong, despite its
position, to the foregoing adjective (entire), not to the verb (be preserved);
for God is the keeper in this context, and no blame can conceivably
attach to the manner of His keeping: "In full integrity may your
spirit and soul and body be preserved, — blamelessly entire in the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ."
1 Those who maintain a threefold analysis of Human nature in Scripture are called
Trickotomistss and the advocates of a twofold division, Dichotomists. Amongst
the chief expositions of the former view is that given in Delitzsch's System of Biblical
Psychology, and in Heard's Tripartite Nature of Man; on the other side, consult
Beck's Biblical Psychology, or Laidlaw's Bible Doctrine of Man.

124 I. THESSALONIANS, V. vv. 24—26.
24 the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that
calleth you, who also will do it.
*5 26 Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy
" The coming of our Lord Jesus Christ " is the end of the Apostle's
thoughts in this letter, the goal of his readers' hopes. It will supply the
final lest of the worth of character, and of the completeness of the
sanctification effected in believers. Then the whole work of Christ's
servants will be brought to its issue and determination. "The Day
will declare it" (1 Cor. iii. 13).
On "the coming" (parousia), and "our Lord Jesus Christ," see
notes to ch. i. 1, 3; ii. 19; iii. 13; iv. 14 — 17; on "blamelessly," iii. 13.
24. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it] who will also
do it (R.V.). The Apostle often appeals to the faithfulness of God,
as of One pledged to carry out what He promises in the Gospel ; see
1 Cor. i. 9; 2 Tim. ii. 13, &c. The Thessalonians were conscious that
God was calling them (ch. ii. 12, see note) to a life of consecration to
Himself, a consecration that claimed every power of their nature.
This call was itself a proof of the possibility of their entire sanctification,
which probably appeared to some of them a thing out of the question.
will do (the object is unexpressed),. — as well as call. God will carry
out His own purpose. His "calling" declared His intention toward the
Thessalonians, which the Apostle declares He "will execute." In the
like emphatic sense "do" is frequently used of God in the O.T.:
"Hath He said, and shall He not do!" (Numb, xxiii. 19; comp. Ps.
xxii. 31, Isai. xliv. 23 ; &c). God is the great Doer in the work of
man's salvation, in deed true to His word ; "no word from God shall
be powerless" (Luke i. 37 ; comp. Phil. ii. 13).

The Conclusion.
vv. 25 — 28.
The conclusion of the Epistle is very brief. It contains no reference
to the autograph signature, which St Paul in 2 Ep. iii. 17 and in
subsequent letters is careful to notify. The urgent request " that the
Epistle be read to all the brethren," is its notable feature.
25. Brethren, pray for us] St Paul has just prayed for his readers
(ver. 23; comp. ch. i. 2; iii. 10 — 13); he desires that they in turn
should pray for him. " Some ancient authorities," very suitably, "read
also" (R.V. margin): pray also for us, — i.e. as we do for you.
In 2 Ep. iii. 1, 2 he repeats this request, in more definite form. Comp.
Eph. vi. 19; Col. iv. 3, 4; Phil. i. 19; Rom. xv. 30, "that you strive
together with me in your prayers to God for me." St Paul, in all the
strength of his gifts and his office, yet felt his dependence on the prayers
of the Church, and realised through this means his fellowship with
brethren in Christ however distant.
26. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss] Better, Salute (R.V.).
The kiss, as the common sign of affection amongst kindred and neaT

vv. 27, 28. I. THESSALONIANS, V. 125
kiss. I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read 27
unto all the holy brethren. The grace of our Lord Jesus 28
Christ be with you. Amen.
friends in meeting or parting, was universal in the primitive Christian
assemblies, and is still a. usage of the Greek and Oriental Churches,
especially at Holy Communion. In the West the ceremony gradually
died out during the Middle Ages. It was unsuitable to the reserved
manners of the Germanic races. The custom was naturally liable to
abuse and suspicion, when the simplicity of primitive Christian feeling
declined; and it became the subject of numerous regulations in early
Councils. The Apostle desires "a holy kiss" to be exchanged by
those who heard the Epistle read, as an expression through the Church
of his love to each of its members. So in Rom. xvi. 16, after bidding
the Church "salute" by name a number of his personal acquaintances,
he includes all present at the reading of the letter by saying, "Salute
one another with a holy kiss." The same thing is said in 1 Cor. xvi. 20,
followed by the words, "My love be with you all in Christ Jesus;"
also in 2 Cor. xiii. 12. In 1 Pet. v. 14 the salutation is called "a kiss
of love."
27. / charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy
brethren] Holy is probably an erroneous insertion of the copyists, due
to Ph. iv. 21, or Heb. iii. 1.
Charge should be the much stronger adjure (A.V. margin, and R.V.).
It is as much as to say, " I put you on your oath before the Lord to do
this:" an extraordinary expression, and one difficult to account for.
There is no appearance of such jealousy or party spirit existing in this
Church as could lead to the letter being intentionally withheld from any
of its members. Two circumstances, however, occur to one's mind
which might occasion in some cases neglect of the Epistle, — (1) the
extreme desire that was felt for St Paul's presence at Thessalonica (ch.
iii. 6), and the disappointment caused by his failure to return, to which
he addressed himself so fully in chaps, ii. and iii. This feeling might
lead some to say, " O, it is only a letter from him ! We do not want
that. Why does he not come himself?" (2) Further, amongst the
bereaved members of the Church, some in consequence of their recent
and deep sorrow (ch. iv. 13) might be absent from the Church
meetings, so that unless the Epistle were carried to them and read in their
hearing, they would miss the consolation designed especially for them.
It must be remembered, too, that this is the first Apostolic letter
extant, and that the custom of reading such letters officially to the
whole Church had yet to be established.
Observe the repetition of "all the brethren" in w. 26, 27. The
same love which dictates the salutation to "all" without distinction,
even though some had incurred censure (ver. 14), prompts the anxiety
that "all" should hear this letter read, which contains so much of the
Apostle's mind and heart.
28. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you] This is St
Paul's usual form of final benediction. He expands it later into the full

126 I. THESSALONIANS, V.
IT The first epistle unto the Thessalonians was written from
Athens.Trinitarian blessing of 2 Cor. xiii. i\, or shortens it into the brief
" Grace be with you " of Col. iv. 18. It contains all spiritual good that
one Christian can wish another. Such grace is with us, when it
constantly attends us, when it forms the atmosphere we breathe, the
light by which we see, the guiding and sustaining influence of our whole
lives. Comp. note on ch. i. i ; and on grace, 2 Ep. i. 12.
The liturgical Amen is added by the Apostle in some of his letters,
and was very naturally supplied by devout copyists in others. Here it
is not authentic.
IT The first epistle unto the Thessalonians was written from Athens]
This, like the other "subscriptions" to St Paul's Epistles, is a note of
the Greek editors, which may be perhaps as old as the second century.
It is almost certainly erroneous in point of fact; see Introd. pp. 22, 27.
In the oldest MSS the words "To the Thessalonians I" are placed at
the end, repeated from the beginning of the Epistle. See note on
the title, p. 45.

THE SECOND EPISTLE OF PAUL THE APOSTLE
TO THE
THESSALONIANS.
PAUL, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church 1
of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ : grace unto you, and peace, from God our 2
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Older Title, To the Thessalonians II.
(See note on title of 1 Epistle.)
Section I. Salutation and Thanksgiving. Ch. I. 1—4.
1, 2. This salutation is nearly identical with that of Ep. I., see
note. Only the Apostle writes here church of Thessalonians in God
our Father (Father of us, whom He loves and calls to be His own :
comp. ch. ii. 16, Rom. i. 7, Luke xii. 32, &c), instead ofthe Father"
(1 Ep.): and the wish of grace and peace is followed by the words
from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, wanting in the true
text of the former Epistle, but which became from this time a regular
part of St Paul's epistolary greeting. So these great blessings are
traced to their source, — twofold yet one : ' 'God the Father" the ulti
mate spring, "the Lord Jesus Christ" the mediating cause of "grace
and peace " to men.
He associates Silas and Timothy with himself, just as before.
The Thanksgiving, vv. 3 ff., while resembling that of the First
Epistle, has a special character and fitness of its own. The Apostle
dwells (1) on the signal growth of the Thessalonian Church in faith and
love, ver. 3 ; (2) on his own boasting over their faith and patience to other
Churches, ver. 4 ; and (3) on the token he sees in this of God's righteous
judgement as between them and their oppressors, which is to take effect
at the approaching advent of Christ, w. 5 — 10. This third ground of
thanksgiving assumes so much prominence in the Epistle, that it will
be convenient to make it the subject of a distinct Section.

128 II. THESSALONIANS, I. vv. 3, 4.
3 We are l>ound to thank God always for you, brethren, as
it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and
the charity of every one of you all towards each other
4 aboundeth ; so that we ourselves glory in you in the
3. We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren] The
case is put in the same way in ch. ii. 13 ("we are bound to give
thanks"), and nowhere else in St Paul. The Apostle feels himself
under a special debt of gratitude to God for that which His grace had
wrought in the Thessalonians. This is explained by 1 Ep. iii. 6 — 9
(see notes), where it appears that the faithfulness of this Church had
cheered and sustained the Apostle in a season of peculiar trial, perhaps
even of discouragement to himself; comp. Acts xviii. 9, 10; 1 Cor. ii.
3 : " Now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord ! "
even as it is meet] For this thanksgiving is matter of intrinsic fitness,
not due from personal feeling only. "Your growth in grace deserves
such acknowledgement to God." Comp. Phil. i. 7, "even as it is right
for me to think this of you all;" and the pleonasm of the Liturgy, "It
is very meet, right, and our bounden duty."
because that your faith groweth exceedingly] This was the essential
point, about which St Paul was anxious when he sent Timothy "to esta
blish you and exhort you about your faith," and on which Timothy
had brought back reassuring news (see notes on 1 Ep. iii. 2 and 6); sub
sequent tidings confirmed Timothy's report, and testified to an extra
ordinary growth in Thessalonian faith. This was due to two causes:
(1) to the practical and energetic character of their faith from the be
ginning (see note on "work of faith," 1 Ep. i. 3); and (2) to the perse
cution they had undergone. Great trials, if they do not destroy faith,
strengthen it, as storms make the oak take deeper root.
"So fed by each strife won, each strenuous hour,
The strong soul grows, its patience ends in power."
We are not surprised that the Apostle adds : and the love of each
one of you all toward one another aboundeth (r.V.). This is at once
a consequence and cause of growth in faith. Faith and Love are the
chief, sister graces of St Paul's theology ; and Hope appears in the next
verse, under the guise of "patience," to complete the trio; comp. notes
on 1 Ep. 1. 3, v. 8; also 1 Cor. xiii. 13, and Gal. v. e, 6.
In this fundamental quality of Love the Thessalonian Church ex
celled; see 1 Ep. iv. 9, 10— where the Apostle, acknowledging their
excellence, had exhorted them to "abound yet more in love." This thev
are doing, and he is "bound to thank God" for it. He dwells on the
universal prevalence of mutual love in this admirable Church— "the
love of each one of you all ! "

4. so that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God] The
triumph of the Gospel at Thessalonica had given peculiar gratifica
tion to the Apostle (1 Ep. i. 8; iii. 7-9; ii. 20, "yIu Te Z glory
and joy ). For the advantageous position of this Church and its Ireat
activity caused its testimony for Christ to spread throughout the neigh-

v. 5- II. THESSALONIANS, I. 129
churches of God for your patience and faith in all your
persecutions and tribulations that ye endure: which is as
bouring provinces. He is thinking now, however, of more distant
Churches — those of Judsea, for example (which he calls "churches of
God" in 1 Ep. ii. 14), and of Syria, with whom Silas and himself
would be in correspondence. To them he had sent this cheering news,
expressing his joy over the faith and devotion of the new converts in
language of exultation. Similarly in 2 Cor. ix. 2 he speaks of "boast
ing to the Macedonians" of the liberality of Corinth. He delighted
to praise one Church before another.
But why does he write "we ourselves" laying stress on the fact that
he and his companions were thus boasting? Because, surely, they were
slow to boast of anything that redounded to their own credit (see Gal.
vi. 14; 2 Cor. xii. 1 — 6, "It is not expedient for me, doubtless, to
glory"), as the Thessalonians well knew (1 Ep. ii. 6, 7); and yet they
could not refrain from "boasting" over them. This unwonted and irre
pressible glorying before men shows how deep and fervent was St Paul's
thanksgiving to God.
for your patience and faith] On "patience" see note to 1 Ep. i. 3.
There we find endurance of hope, here endurance and faith are linked
together. For it was the persistence of the Thessalonians' faith, the
way in which it endured the severest strain, that was so wonderful and
made the Apostle point them out with pride to the older Churches.
in all your persecutions and the afflictions which you are en
during: so the last clause ofthe verse literally reads. "Persecutions"
formed the chief element in their sufferings (1 Ep. ii. 14; Acts xvii. 5 —
9) ; but they had to endure afflictions of many kinds. Comp. Heb. x.
32, 33, "Ye endured a great conflict of sufferings, — being made a
gazing-stock by rei roaches and afflictions, ...and partakers with those so
used." Afflictions: same word as in 1 Ep. i. 6; iii. 3, 4, 7 (see notes on the
last two w.).

Section II. The Approaching Retribution. Ch. I. 6 — 12.
These w. contain further reasons for thanksgiving on the writer's
part, concluding with a prayer that his readers may receive the entire
fruition of the blessedness to which their sufferings are designed to
lead. At the same time, the thoughts here expressed travel far from
those which formed the immediate ground of. the Thanksgiving, and
present a distinct topic of their own. We therefore treat them under a
separate heading.
The Retribution the Apostle foresees is twofold, — consisting of rest
and glory for Christ's persecuted saints, vv. 5, 7, 10, 12; and oi punish
ment for their godless persecutors, vv. 6, 8, 9. In the view presented
to us of this judgement we must carefully observe — (1) its essential
righteousness, mi. 5, 6; (2) that it attends on Christ's advent, w. 7, 9,
THESS. Q

130 II. THESSALONIANS, I. v. 5.
manifest token of the righteous judgement of God, that ye
may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which
10; (3) that the chief purpose ofthe Saviour's coming is the glorification
of His people, to which the vengeance falling on their oppressors appears
to be incidental, vv. 8, 10:
6. which is a manifest token of the righteous judgement of God]
Better, without the connecting words of the English version, — a token
of the righteous judgement of God.
The heroic faith ot the Thessalonians showed that God was on their
side. By the courage He inspired in them the Righteous Judge already
showed what His judgement was in their case, and gave token of His
final recompense. Comp. 1 Ep. i. 6; Phil. i. 27, 28, "Stand fast — in
nothing terrified by your adversaries, which is to them an evident token
of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God." So the joy
of Stephen, when before the Council his face shone "as it had been the
face of an angel" (Acts vi. 15); so the triumph of Paul and Silas sing
ing psalms in prison ; so the rapture of Christian martyrs at the stake,
were signs of God's presence with them and omens of retribution to
their enemies.
that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God] More precisely,
to the end that (R.V:): "a token of God's righteous judgement,
given with the purpose that you may be counted worthy of His
kingdom." God's judgement in this controversy is already manifest to those
who have eyes to see, in the brave endurance and growing faith of the
persecuted Christian flock. But this sign looks onward and points to
the final award, when "the blessed of My Father," said Jesus, shall
"inherit the kingdom prepared for them" (Matt. xxv. 34). God designs
this blessedness for them — "chosen from the beginning unto salvation"
(ch. ii. 13); — He "calls them unto His own kingdom and glory" (1 Ep.
ii. 12). And this "manifestation" of His approval helps to prepare
them for it.
That kingdom will be "given to those for whom it has been
prepared" (Matt. xx. 23); but at the same time, only to those who
are "counted worthy" (see ver. 11; 1 Ep. ii. 12, iii. 13 and notes; also
Luke xx. 3s; Matt. xxii. 8, "The wedding-feast is ready; but those who
were called were not worthy"). There must be manifest in the final
judgement a personal fitness of character, corresponding to God's pur
pose, in those admitted to His heavenly Kingdom. Read the solemn
words of Rev. xxii. 10 — 15.
The sufferings of the Thessalonians were endured for the King
dom's sake: for the sake of which you are also suffering. Their
strong hope of the coming of Christ and the triumph of God's King
dom sustained them in their distress. " If we endure, we shall also reign
with Him" (2 Tim. ii. 12): so sang the early Christians. But yet it
was not so much their own share in it, as the prospect of the glory of the
Kingdom itself, that made them "exult in tribulations." Comp Heb
x. 34; Rom. viii. 16, 19; Phil. i. 20.

w. 6, 7. II. THESSALONIANS, I. 131
ye also suffer : seeing it is a righteous thing with God to 6
recompense tribulation to them that trouble you ; and to 7
you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus
6. seeing it is a righteous thing with God] Lit., if verily (if, as
all will admit) it is righteous with God.
The Apostle has just spoken (ver. 5) of "God's righteous judge
ment " as manifest in the unshaken faith and courage of His servants.
That visible token points to their future and unrevealed reward — on the
admitted assumption, on which he now dilates, that the retribution
awaiting the persecutors and the persecuted from His hand is in truth
a righteous thing.
Now the justice of the award is self-evident ; since it is affliction to
them that afflict you, and to you the afflicted ease. Once besides
St Paul speaks of the future suffering of the wicked as "affliction," in
Rom. ii. ,9 — " affliction and distress upon every soul of man that doeth
evil. " The term represents this suffering as of the nature of a personal
infliction. It indicates the reversal that will take place in the other
world between the position of the sufferers and inflicters of wrong;
comp. our Lord's picture of Dives and Lazarus in Hades: "Now he
(Lazarus) is comforted, and thou (Dives) art tormented," Luke xvi. 25.
Similarly in Col. iii. 25, " He that doeth wrong shall receive back the
wrong that he did." In Rev. xiii. 10, Matt. xxvi. 52, the same prin
ciple of retribution in kind is illustrated. This is "just with God:"
He must count it so ; for it is a common rule of justice, and of all true
justice He is the Fountain.
If this law demands that the inflicters of wrongful suffering shall
suffer and smart for it, so it requires that faithful endurance shall win
"relief." The Greek word denotes relaxation, abatement, — as of a
tightly strung bow, or the paroxysms of fever. So the Apostle desig
nates his own "relief" from anxiety in 2 Cor. ii. 13, vii. 5; it is con
trasted with "affliction" again in 2 Cor. viii. 13.
"Sleep after toil, port after stormy seas,
Ease after War, death after life does greatly please."
Job iii. 1 7 is a striking parallel to the phrase to you the afflicted rest:
"There the wicked cease from troubling; and there the weary be at
rest." But the rendering of the LXX in this pass_age is so different,
that it is scarcely likely that these words were in the Apostle's mind.
Nor is he thinking, like Job and Edmund Spenser, of rest in death.
7. rest with us] St Paul's was a life full of harassment and fatigue,
and the hope of rest was sweet to him (note the outburst of Gal. vi. 17).
Men of an easy untroubled life miss the delight of the thought of
Heaven. But in his visions of future-joy his children in Christ always shared.
Comp. 2 Cor. iv. 14, " God will raise us up with Jesus, and will present
us with you;" again in 2 Tim. iv. 8, "the crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous Judge (comp. ver. 5 above), shall give
me at that day — and not to me only, but also to all who lave His
appearing."
9—2

132 II. THESSALONIANS, I. v. 8.
8 shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in
flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God,
when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven] Lit., in the
revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven. His advent is His people's
deliverance ; it guarantees, and virtually contains in itself the relief for
which they sigh.
Note, once again, the prevalence of the title Lord Jesus in these
letters— the designation of the returning, triumphant Saviour. Compare
notes on i Ep. ii. 15, 19.
Here and in 1 Cor. i. 7 (so in 1 Pet. i. 7, 13, iv. 13) Christ's second
coming is called His revelation ; for it will exhibit Him in aspects of
majesty unknown and inconceivable before. In like manner there will
be a "revelation of the sons of God," and "of the righteous judgement
of God" upon the wicked (Rom. viii. 19, ii. 5) ; those events, along with
this, certified beforehand, but in their form and nature beyond our
present conception. The "coming" of Antichrist is also foretold as a
" revelation" (ch. ii. 3, 6, 8, see notes). So this revelation comes —
from heaven] comp. 1 Ep. i. 10 (see note) ; iv. 16 ; Phil. iii. 20, "from
whence we wait for a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ;" and the very
definite promise of Acts i. n. It will be the unveiling of Christ in His
glory (descending) from heaven; whereas His previous coming was in
the form of a lowly man on earth.
with his mighty angels] Lit., with angels of His power: i.e. "at
tended by angels as signs and instruments of His power." Comp.
1 Ep. iv. 16 (and note) for the office of the angels in Christ's advent;
and for their relation to Divine Power, Ps. ciii. 20, "Ye angels,
mighty in strength, that fulfil His word." Their presence suits the
majesty in which He comes as the Judge of mankind, "in his Father's
glory, with the holy angels" (Mark viii. 38); and they are, perhaps, the
agents of those changes in material nature by which it will be accom
panied. Comp. Deut. xxxiii. 2, Ps. Ixviii. 17, for older theophanies.
New and severe features are added to the picture of the Advent in
the next verse :
8. in flaming fire] Lit., fire of flame; or, in other copies, flame
Of fire. "Fire" is a symbol of Divine anger and majesty, in Scripture;
and "flame" is fire in motion, leaping and blazing out. According to
2 Pet. iii. 7, 10, fire will be the means of destruction for the visible
world at the Day of the Lord ; while in Heb. i. 7, quoted from Ps. civ.,
this element is represented as a form of angelic manifestation (see last
note). In 1 Cor. iii. 13 — 15 fire is itself made' the means of judge
ment. The comma parting this clause from ver. 7 in the A.V. must be
struck out. The "flaming fire" is the element "in" which the Lord
Jesus is "revealed," not the means by which He "takes vengeance" on
the wicked. It is His awful robe of glory. The words which follow
show why He must appear in majesty so dreadful :
taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not
the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ] Better, rendering vengeance
to them (R. V.). We must dissociate from "vengeance" all notions of

v. 9- II. THESSALONIANS, I. 133
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ : who 9
vindictiveness and passion; it is the inflicting oi full fustice on the
criminal — nothing more, nothing less. In this sense it is written,
"Vengeance belongeth unto Me; I will repay, saith theLoRD"(Deut.
xxxii. 35; Rom. xii. 19; Heb. x. 30). The wronged are forbidden
to avenge themselves, just because this is God's prerogative. Now
"the Father hath committed all judgement to the Son " (John v. 22) —
this, therefore, with the rest.
The R.V. properly distinguishes the two classes here marked out for
retribution. Those who know not God belong to the heathen; on
this expression comp. note to 1 Ep. iv. 5. In Rom. i. 18 — 25, speak
ing of the heathenism of his own day and of the course and working of
Gentile idolatry, the Apostle declares that this ignorance of God was
wilful, that idolatry was the outcome of ungodliness, and that its
wickedness was shown by the horrible depravity of morals it pro
duced. It was therefore culpable in the highest degree and merited
vengeance, being the ignorance of men who " did not think God worth
having in their knowledge" (Rom. i. 28). Such is the sentence that
St Paul pronounces on the Paganism of his time, in view of its general
character and fruits. By no means does he suppose that this "ven
geance" will fall on all idolaters at the Last Day, and for the mere fact
of "not knowing God" as Christians do. He speaks otherwise in
Rom. ii. 14. Countless millions of heathen have had no such know
ledge of God brought to them. Each will be judged according to his
personal responsibility and share in the common offence. God "leaves
Himself not without witness to any" (Acts xiv. 17; John i. 9) ; and by
the measure of light and opportunity vouchsafed to him will the conduct
of every man be weighed and estimated. The Apostle is thinking of
the Gentile persecutors at Thessalonica (ver. 6), who refused the know
ledge of God and showed their hatred to Him by their hatred toward
His children (comp. John xv. 24; 1 John iii. 13).
Those who obey not the gospel are all, whether Jews or Gentiles,
to whose knowledge God's good news of Christ is brought, and who
reject the message. Obedience is practical faith, the submission of heart
and life to the demands of Christ. This is what such men refuse ; they
will not say, "Jesus is Lord" (1 Cor. xii. 3; Phil. ii. 10). . And the
wilful rejecters of Christ became furious persecutors.
St Paul's warning echoes that of Christ concerning all who are
brought face to face with His Gospel: "He that disbelieveth shall be
condemned" (Mark xvi. 16). This condemnation takes effect at once,
and operates in the present life ; it has the certainty of a moral law :
"He that believeth not is condemned already. And this is the con
demnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness
rather than light" (John iii. 18, 19). This sentence the Lord Jesus
pronounces now on those who, with His light shining upon them, refuse
Him the obedience of faith. The Judgement of the Last Day will be
the consummation of this present, actual judgement.
Read our Lord Jesus, for our Lord Jesus Christ.
9. who shall be punished with everlasting destruction] Rather,

134 II. THESSALONIANS, I. v. 9.
shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the pre
sence. of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
men who will pay the penalty of eternal destruction. In these
awful words the Apostle describes the retribution designed for godless
men and rejecters ofthe Gospel. His word for "penalty" (dike, the
root of the words righteous and righteousness in Greek) brings to a
climax the idea of justice developed in vv. 5 — 8 ; see note on " ven
geance." But the clause while defining, qualifies the foregoing; for
"who" is equal to such as, who with all like them. The threatening
applies to the impious and malignant opposers who were seeking
to crush the infant Church. Their sin corresponded to that which our
Lord denounced as the sin against the Holy Spirit, the "eternal sin,"
the "blasphemy against the Spirit which shall not be forgiven" (Matt.
xii. 31, 32 ; Mark iii. 28, 29, R.V.).
"Destruction," as applied to man and his destiny in the N.T., sig
nifies perdition, ruin, the utter loss of blessedness. It is opposed to
"salvation" in Heb. x. 39; 2 Cor. ii. 15, &c; and "eternal destruction"
is the antithesis of "eternal life." There is no sufficient reason for
interpreting the destruction of the reprobate as signifying their anni
hilation, or extinction of being; they will be lost for ever — lost to God
and goodness. Nor can we limit the range of the word eternal in its
relation to this fearful doom ; it removes all limits of time, and is
the express opposite of temporary (2 Cor. iv. 18). Seventy-two times
the Greek original of the adjective is found in the N.T. : forty-four of
these examples are repetitions ofthe phrase "eternal life;" itis arbi
trary to suppose that in the opposite combination "eternal" bears a
restricted sense. Christ's judicial words in Matt. xxv. 46 bar all attempts
to minimize the penal effect of the sentence of the Last Day; "eternal
punishment," He says, and "eternal life." Comp. Phil. iii. 19, "whose
end is destruction."
from the presence ofthe Lord, and from the glory of his power] Better,
as in R.V., and without the comma, from the face of the Lord and
from the glory of His might. Language borrowed from Isai. ii.,
where it occurs thrice repeated, all but identically (vv. 10, 19, 21), in
the prophet's picture of Jehovah's coming in judgement: "Enter
into the rocks and hide yourselves in the earth frotn the face of the
fear of the Lord and from the glory of His might, when He ariseth to
shake the earth." The words of Rev. vi. 15, 16 are based on the
same original: "They say to the mountains and rocks, Fall onus and
hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the
wrath of the Lamb." The preposition here seems, however, after the
word "destruction," to signify coming from, rather than shrinking from
the face of the Lord. The sight of their Judge and His Almightiness,
robed in fire and attended by His host of angels, will drive these
wretched men, terror-stricken, into ruin. Their destruction proceeds
"from the face of the Lord;" in His look the evildoers read their
fate. So we can imagine it will be with the murderers of Jesus, and
with malicious persecutors of His people. Comp. Ps. xxxiv. \6

v. io. II. THESSALONIANS, I. 135
when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be »>
admired in all them that believe (because our testimony
lxxvi. 7, "The face of the Lord is against them that do evil : " " Who
may stand in Thy sight, when once Thou art angry ? "
While the destruction of the persecutors and the deliverance of the
persecuted are contrasted in themselves (vv. 6, 7), they are identified
in point of time. For justice will overtake the former —
10. when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be
udmired in all them that believe] Better, without the comma: when
He hath come to be glorified in His holy ones and wondered at in
all those who believed. The last verb, in the true reading, is past
in tense. We are transported to the time of the Parousia. With
astonishment all beholders look back on the faith of these now per
fected saints, and view its glorious outcome; they think of the "mus
tard seed" which has grown into so mighty "a tree" (Matt. xiii. 31,
32). And they give the praise of all to Christ. Comp. ver. 12, and
note ; for holy ones, see note on 1 Ep. iii. 13.
At His coming ' ' the glory of His might " brings ruin to the wicked
(ver. 9). But there is another glory dearer to Him, that " of His
grace (Eph. i. 4 — 6), which will be now exhibited in its full splen
dour, in His holy ones. " I am glorified in them," said Jesus (John
xvii. 10; comp. 2 Cor. viii. 23). Himself "the Holy One of God"
and "Firstborn among many brethren," His triumph is realised in the
multitude of those who through believing in Him have become holy
like Himself. So the Thessalonian believers "in that day" will be
Christ's high glory, as they are already the "glory and joy" of their
Apostle (1 Ep.ii. 20).
With glory like that rendered to God, a tribute of wonder will then
he paid to Christ — by the angels surely (see Eph. iii. 10, and 1 Pet. i. 12,
for the interest they take in Christ's work on earth), and by the saints
themselves, wondering at themselves and at each other, and at the un
dreamed-of results of their faith. It will be said then, in the fullest
sense, ' ' This is the Lord's doing ; it is marvellous in our eyes " (Ps.
cxviii. 23). The praise that will be rendered to Christ at His advent
is anticipated in such words as thbse of Rev. i. 5, 6: "Unto Him
that loveth us, and loosed us from our sins in His blood; and He
made us His kingdom, made us priests unto His God and Father —
to Him be the glory and the might for ever and ever."
because our testimony among you was believed] Rather, unto you
(R.V.) — "our testimony addressed to you," or "in its application
to you." This parenthesis, characteristic of St Paul's style (see Introd.
p. 33), emphasizes the fact of the Thessalonians' faith, the primary
condition in all His holy ones of the glory He will reap from them.
"Glorified, I say, in you- that believed. Yes, for the testimony we
addressed to you won your faith ; and in that faith of yours we see
the pledge of Christ's glorification." Similarly in 1 Ep. i. 3, 4 the
Apostle found in the vigorous faith of his readers an evidence of their
"election" to eternal life (see note).
in that day] Added with solemn emphasis to signalize the time of

i36 II. THESSALONIANS, I.  v- !»¦
: among you was believed) in that day. Wherefore also we
pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy
of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his good-
the revelation of Christ, when He will win honour and admiration
from His saints, and inflict ruin on their enemies and His. The
clause looks beyond the foregoing parenthesis to "the revelation of
the Lord Jesus " described in w. I — io. Comp. the position and
emphasis of the similar adjunct in Rom. ii. 16. For " that day," see
notes on i Ep. v. 2, 4.
The Apostle's Thanksgiving, as in other instances (1 Ep. iii. 9 — 13;
Eph. i. 3—19 ; Ph. i. 3 — 11 ; &c), ends in prayer, that the marvellous
results which he anticipates from his readers' faith may be fully
realised. 11. Wherefore also we pray always for you] .Rather, To which end
also we pray always for you (comp. 1 Ep. i. 2; iii. 10), that our
God may count you worthy of His calling. God was "calling"
the Thessalonians " to His own kingdom and glory," and calling
them accordingly to the sanctification of their whole nature, such as
would enable them to be presented faultless at the coming of Christ.
All this we have leamt from the First Epistle (ii. 12; iv. 3 — 8;
v. 23, 24). Now a third aspect of this calling is presented, which
combines and completes the other two. The Thessalonian believers in
Christ are called by the fruit and effect of their faith to crown their
Saviour with glory. For that this is, in St Paul's mind, the end of
their calling is manifest both from w. 10 and 12. To exhibit in oneself
the honour and worth of the Lord Jesus so as to make others think
more highly of Him, to add something to the splendour of His
heavenly crown, is a privilege of which we may well pray "that God
may count us worthy."
For St Paul's idea of Christian worthiness, comp. ver. 5 ; 1 Ep. ii. 12 ;
iii. 13, and notes ; also Luke xx. 35 ; Rev. iii. 4, "They shall walk with
Me in white ; for they are worthy."
and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith
with power] Lit., every good pleasure of goodness and work of
faith in power. As much as to say, "May God mightily accomplish
in you all that goodness would desire and that faith can effect."
The "goodness," like the "faith," must be in the readers, since
the two clauses are parallel — not "His (God's) goodness," therefore,
as in the A. V. The Apostle afterwards tells the Romans how he
is persuaded of them that they are "full of all goodness" (Rom. xv. 14).
He thinks quite as highly of the Thessalonians, and believes that their
desires are bent in the direction of Christ's glory. Still he is not
thinking of their goodness so much as of what goodness in itself, good
ness as being goodness must approve and desire. His prayer resembles
the Collect for the days of Easter Week: "That as by Thy special
grace preventing us Thou dost put into our minds good desires so by
Thy continual help we may bring the same to good effect."
For "work of faith" comp. 1 Ep. i. 3 (note). Goodness holds

v. 12. II. THESSALONIANS, I. 137
ness, and the work of faith with power: that the name of our 12
Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, arid ye in him,
to Faith a relation similar to that of Love ; it is bonitas and benignitas,
an active excellence of disposition. " Goodness," the first " fruit of the
Light" in Eph. v. 9 (R. V.), accompanies Love, the first "fruit of the
Spirit" in Gal. v. 22.
" In power " belongs to the verb " fulfil," denoting the manner and
style of God's working in believing men. See 1 Ep. i. 5 ; also Col.
i. 29 ; Eph. iii. 20, for similar expressions.
The verb "fulfil" applies to will (good pleasure) and work in not
quite the same sense. To fulfil the former is to carry it into
practice and effect ; to fulfil the latter is to perfect what is already
commenced. 12. that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you]
Once more read Lord Jesus (R. V.), not Lord Jesus Christ.
For this end, " to be glorified in His saints," we were told in ver. 10,
Christ is coming ; the call by which God summoned the Thessalonians
in the Gospel has this in view ; with the same purpose, therefore, the
Apostle prays for the fulfilment of the work of grace in them. There
is nothing he desires in his own case so much as "that Christ may be
magnified " (Phil. i. 20) ; nor anything that he covets more eagerly for
his friends.
But now it is the Saviour's name that is to be glorified ; for their
salvation, when complete, will set forth with astonishing lustre the
Divine-human name of our Lord Jesus. This " name" is " glorified,"
when its full import is recognized, and the worship which it requires is
paid to Him who bears it. So in Phil. ii. 9, 10, we read how the work
and sufferings of Christ will have their consummation when "in the
name of Jesus every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord! "
and ye in him] This glorification will be mutual. It will be the
honour of the Head to have such members, and of the members to
have such a Head ; of the " Firstborn " to have such and so many
younger brethren (Rom. viii. 29), and theirs to have such an Elder
Brother. This is the perfection of love, that each should see its own
joy and pride in the other. Comp. 2 Cor. i. 14, " we are your glorying,
as you are ours, in the day of our Lord Jesus." For the glorification of
the saints in Christ, its nature and conditions, see further, Rom. viii.
17 — 23, 28 — 30; Col. iii. 1 — 4; Phil. iii. 20, 21 ; 2 Tim. ii. 10 — 13.
And this joyous and triumphant issue of the faith of the persecuted
Thessalonians is according to the grace of our God and the Lord
Jesus Christ. , " Our God " is the fountain, " the Lord Jesus Christ "
the channel of this grace.
The "grace of God and of Christ " — now named from one, now from
another of its Divine Bestowers, seldom, as here, from both — had from
the first this issue of its working in view. And the glorious result
is only what we might expect from such grace. It is " the grace of our
God," as it shows Him to be ours and makes Him ours in experience.
Our God is a rare expression with St Paul, occurring twice here

138 II. THESSALONIANS, I.  v- 12-
according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus
Christ.(vv. ii, 12), twice in 1 Ep. (ii. 2; iii. 9), and only once elsewhere,
1 Cor. vi. 11; more frequent is God our Father, or occasionally our
God and Father. It is found often in St John's Apocalypse.
For the meaning of Grace, and its place in St Paul's vocabulary, see
note on 1 Ep. i. 1, adding the following observations. — There is no word
in the N.T. more original and characteristic than this. Its usage springs
from the nature of the Gospel of Christ, as that expresses the character
of God and His relationship towards men. (1) The radical sense
of Grace (charts) in common Greek is pleasingness. From the artistic
feeling ofthe Greek mind, this came to be synonymous with loveliness
(gracefulness), which was idolized in the three Graces (Charlies), embodi
ments of all that is charming in person and in social life. Such was the
connection of this word with religion in classical Greek. (2) It further
signified pleasingness of disposition, favour — both in the active sense (a)
oi obligingness, graciousness ; and in the passive sense (b) of acceptableness.
In the Greek ofthe O.T., Ps. xiv. 2, "Grace is poured into thy lips,"
supplies an example of (a), similarly Col. iv. 6 ; while (b) is exemplified
in the familiar phrase, to "find grace in the eyes of" so and so (comp.
Luke ii. 52). On 2a is based the specific N.T. signification of Grace,
so conspicuous in St Paul. It denotes, therefore, (3) the favour of
God towards mankind, revealed in Jesus Christ. Hence, on the one
hand, it stands in contrast with human sin and ill-desert ("where sin
multiplied, grace superabounded," Rom. v. 20) ; and is the moving cause
of man's salvation, embodied and acting in Jesus Christ, above all in
His death upon the Cross (John i. 17; Tit. ii. 11; Gal. ii. 21; &c):
God's grace is His redeeming love to sinners. On the other hand, it is
the attribute of Gods Fatherhood: "Grace to you... from God the
Father" (ver. 2, &c. ; comp. ch. ii. 16; John i. 14). The revelation of
the Grace and the Fatherhood of God go together. Grace acts in the
way oi forgiveness (St Paul's "forgive" in Eph. iv. 32; Col. ii. 13, iii.
13, is derived from charts, and signifies to "show grace"), and in the free
gift ofthe blessings of salvation (Rom. iii. 24, v. 17, &c). Hence,' in
the Apostle's teaching, Grace is opposed not only to sin which it con
quers and destroys, but to human merit which it sets aside— to "works
of law" regarded as means of our salvation, and to everything that
would make God's benefits conferred on us in Christ matters of "debt"
on His part: see Rom. iii. 19 — 21; iv. 4 — 15; Gal. ii. 15 — 21; Eph. ii.
1 — 10, for the establishment of this leading principle of St Paul's doc
trine. It is the idea of mercy (not grace) that in the O.T. brings
us nearest to this N.T. conception. But while the former expresses
God's pitiful disposition as the Almighty toward man who is weak
and wretched, this denotes His loving, forgiving disposition as our
Father in Christ toward sinful and lost men. — Two further uses of the
word, arising out of this principal use, should be noted. Grace signifies
(4) sometimes an act, or bestowment of Gods grace — this or that manifes
tation of grace (Rom. i. 5; Eph. iii. 8). (j) Sometimes, again, it
denotes a state of grace in man, — God's grace realized and operative in

v. I. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 139
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our 2
the Christian: "this grace in which we stand," Rom. v. 2 (comp.
2 Tim. ii. 1 ; 2 Pet. iii. 18; &c). — (6) Lastly, charts bears in the N.T.
and in common Greek the sense of thanks, gratefulness.
The 'course of the Apostle's Thanksgiving has carried his readers far
away from their present troubles into a region of heavenly rest and
triumph ; while for a moment, by the way, it lifts the curtain to reveal
the judgement hanging over their tormentors. The " vengeance " that
awaits the latter, and the "relief" that awaits the former, are in each
case a just and inevitable recompense.

CHAPTER II.
Section III. The Revelation of the Lawless One.
Ch. II. 1—12.
In this Epistle, as in the former, the specific object of the letter
comes into view at the beginning of the second chapter, so soon as the
introductory prayer and thanksgiving have been offered. The Thessa
lonians were too eager and positive in their expectation of the Parousia,
and the Apostle begs them "for its sake" to be cautious (ver. 1). Some
of their teachers declared that "the day ofthe Lord was already come;"
and it was reported that Paul himself had written to this effect (ver. 2).
The Church was in danger of falling into mischievous deception (ver. 3).
That they may "prove the prophesyings" addressed to them on this
subject (1 Ep. v. 20, 21), the Apostle gives them a token or omen of
the Second Coming, which indeed he had already supplied in his
previous ministry (ver. 5). He foresees that before Christ's return in
judgement there must be a supreme manifestation of evil (vv. 3 — 12).
This development, as he indicates, will be twofold — producing (1) within
the Church "the apostasy;" and (2) the "revelation" of "the Man of
Lawlessness" (or "Sin"), a personage in whom tlie sin of humanity will
be consummated, reaching its furthest possibilities and taking on an
absolutely Satanic character (w. 3, 4, 9, 10). This gigantic impersona
tion of evil is exhibited as the personal antagonist and antithesis of
Christ, in such a way that though the Apostle does not himself give
to his conception the name of Antichrist, yet it is probable that the
designation, afterwards made familiar by St John's use of it in his great
Epistle, was derived in the first instance from the passage before us.
Meanwhile, we are told, there exists a "withholding" influence, that
delays the appearance of Antichrist, although the lawlessness which
in him will reach its climax "is already actively at work" (vv. 6, 7).
When the revelation of the "mystery" at last takes place, while on the
one hand it will herald the return of the Lord Jesus (ver. 8), on the other
it will prove to be for His rejecters a signal means of judgement, capti
vating by its magical delusions all who are not armed against them by
"love of the truth" (w. 10 — 12).
This paragraph is the most obscure to us in St Paul's Epistles. It is

140 II. THESSALONIANS, II. v. 2.
Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
1 that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither
written in a reserved and elliptical fashion, and bears reference through
out to the Apostle's oral communications, without which, in fact, he did
not expect what he wrote to be fully understood. In their recollection
of the writer's words the Thessalonian Church had a key to his meaning
not transmitted to our hands. We must grope for it as best we can. We
find, however, considerable light thrown on this dark passage by its
relation to other prophetical teachings of Scripture, and to the history
of the Apostle's own time. Yet this added light casts its shadows over
the field. We shall return to the subject in the Appendix attached to
these Notes, on "The Man of Lawlessness."
1. Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ] Lit., But we beseech you, brethren, on behalf of the coming.
The prospect of this Coming has been held out in language of ardent
hope (ch. i. 7, 10, &c); "but" the readers must not entertain wild and
unreasonable notions respecting it. The preposition (touching, R. V.)
signifies "in the interest of," and not merely "with reference to;" for
the confusion of mind and the alarm existing at Thessalonica upon this
matter tended to discredit the Second Advent ; they obscured the fea
tures of "the blessed hope" which the Apostle has just delineated
(ch. i. 10 — 12).
He adds and our gathering together unto Him, remembering what
he has written in 1 Ep. iv. 17 and v. 10 concerning the reunion of the
living with departed saints at Christ's coming. The corresponding verb
appears in the promise of Jesus (Matt. xxiv. 31; Mark xiii. 27): "He
shall gather together His elect from the four winds;" comp. the echoes
of our Lord's sayings on the Last Things noted in 1 Ep. iv. 13 — v. 11.
The intense sorrow of the Apostle at his separation from the Thessalo
nians (1 Ep. ii. 17, iii. 6, 11) may also have prompted this thought;
comp. note on "rest with us," ch. i. 7.
On beseech (or ask) see note to 1 Ep. iv. 1.
2. that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled] Lit., to the
end that ye be not quickly shaken from your mind (R. V.): — more
freely rendered: we beseech you. ..not to lose your balance of mind
under any sudden shock; or keeping nearer to the Greek, not to be
shaken out of your wits.
"Quickly" points, as probably in Gal. i. 6, to the speedy effect of the
disturbing cause. Startling declarations were made about the Second
Advent; the Thessalonians must take care that they are not carried
away by them. Let them resist the first impression of these sensa
tional announcements, and put them to the test of cool judgement and
enquiry, as men who "prove all things" (1 Ep. v. 21); they will find
out how baseless they really are.
nor yet, he continues, be kept in alarm. The former clause describes
the overthrow of one's mental equilibrium; this deprecates a continued
agitation, a nervous, fluttered condition of mind. The word occurs in
the like connection in Matt. xxiv. 6 j Mark xiii. 7 : "When ye shall hear

v. 2. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 141
by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the
of wars, &c, be not troubled" — i.e. alarmed, discomposed. From the
words that follow it is evident that various attempts were made to
disturb the Church upon this subject; and while some would be startled
at once out of their self-possession, others, less excitable, would still by
the recurrence of the rumours be kept in perturbation.
neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us] There is a
contrast in the Greek between the two states of mind just referred to
(shaken, nor yet troubled), but not between the various means by which
they were produced ; for the latter were used not as alternatives, but in
combination. Hence the R.V. renders : either by spirit, or by word,
or by epistle as from us.
The import of the phrase "by spirit" is apparent from 1 Ep. v. 19,
2\ (see notes). Gifts oi prophecy were possessed by various members of
the Church, and men professing to speak "through Spirit" — i.e. under
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and by a supernatural influence —
were declaring, "The Day ofthe Lord is come!"
"Word" stands in contrast with "spirit," just as "word of wisdom"
and " of knowledge " with "prophecy," and "doctrine" with "revela
tion," in 1 Cor. xii. 8 — 11 and xiv. 26. It denotes the ordinary ex
pression of rational thought and judgement, in distinction from the
ecstatic or prophetic utterances of supernaturally inspired persons.
" As from us" — strictly, as through (or by) us; the preposition is the
same that has been used thrice already in the clause. But this phrase
appears to qualify epistle alone, not spirit or word; for these latter
modes of communication belonged to others besides the Apostle. It
was by letter that his authorisation was claimed for the rumour in
question. "As through us" signifies as though on our authority;
comp. "through the Lord- Jesus," 1 Ep. iv. 2. — Was this opinion
ascribed to the Apostle from misinterpretation of his previous letter, or
of some other letter to the Thessalonians not preserved for us? or on the
authority of a pretended, or even forged.Epistle? It is impossible to answer
with certainty. His reference is vague, perhaps intentionally so. He
surmised that his authority was being abused in this way, but possibly
had no precise information on the point. If some members of the
Church had not had the former Epistle communicated to them, as when
writing I Ep. v. 27 he feared might happen, it may easily have been
misrepresented, or misquoted, to the effect indicated. On the other
hand, the fact that at the close of this Epistle (ch. iii. 17) he guards his
readers against imposture, suggests to us that actual deceit was at
tempted; comp. the words of the next verse, "Let no one cheat you."
The authors of the false announcement must at least have hinted at the
existence of another letter in their favour, if they wished to persuade
those well acquainted with our First Epistle ; for 1 Thessalonians lends
no countenance to their views. A hint of this kind, brought to the
Apostle's knowledge, would put him at once upon his guard.
as that the day of Christ is at hand] Both reading and rendering are
at fault here. As that is equal to supposing that : the agitation which
the Apostle deprecates being such as this belief would naturally create.

142 II. THESSALONIANS, II. v. 3.
3 day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any
__ means: for that day shall not come, except there come a
Day of Christ should be day of the Lord, as in 1 Ep. v. 2 (see note), and
elsewhere (of Christ, however, in Phil. i. 10; ii. 16). And the verb
means more than is at hand, — rather, is now present (R.V.), is upon us;
under the same verb (in its participle) "tilings present" are contrasted
"'- with "things to come" in Rom. viii. 38, and 1 Cor. iii. 22.
This enthusiastic Church, full of the thought of Christ's heavenly
kingdom, was ready to believe what it'wished, and lent too credulous an
ear to those who in such a time of spiritual tension and exaltation were
sure to be found crying out, "Lo here!" or "Lo there!" Against this
class of agitators the Lord warned His people. When He does return,
He will have no need of heralds or forerunners ; "For as the lightning
shines out, flashing from the one side of heaven unto the other, so will
the Son of Man be in His day" (Matt. xxiv. 27 ; Luke xvii. 24).
3. Let no man deceive you by any means] beguile you, — as the
Revisers commonly render this Greek verb, and the A. V. in 2 Cor. xi.
3; 1 Tim. ii. 14, and Rom. vii. 11 (comp. Gen. iii. 13, "the serpent
beguiled Eve"). It implies a thorough, commonly a wicked deception;
comp. also Rom. xvi. 18. The kindred noun (deceit) appears in ver. 10.
in any wise (R. V.) points to the variety of ways ("by spirit, word,"
&c, ver. 2) in which the readers were being plied with this delusion.
for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first]
The R. V. supplies the ellipsis more simply : for it will not be. The
Apostle's mind becomes absorbed in bis description of "the Man of
Lawlessness" (ver. 4), and he forgets to complete the sentence; but his
meaning is clear enough. For a similar dropped, or broken sentence
comp. 1 Ep. ii. 11 (see note, and Introd. Chap, vi., on the Style of St
Paul). His manner is that of a speaker rather than a studied writer,
and such lapses are natural in the freedom of conversation.
"A falling away" is a mistranslation. The Apostle uses the definite
article; he refers to the apostasy of which he had spoken dis
tinctly to his readers (ver. 5). This word in common Greek denotes a
military or political revolt, a defection; then in the LXX it is applied
to revolting from God— e.g. in Jer. xxix. 32 ("rebellion against the
Lord"), 1 Mace. ii. 15 ("revolt," consisting in sacrificing to idols): so
the corresponding verb in Heb. iii. 12 ; comp. Acts xxi. 21 ("thou teachest
apostasy from Moses"), 1 Tim. iv. 1. Here this ominous expression
appears for the first time within the Christian Church, as signifying
revolt from Christ, the faithless defection of men "denying the Lord
that bought them" (2 Pet. ii. 1). It is sad to find such a prediction in
the earliest writings ofthe N. T. It originated, doubtless, in the words
of Christ, Matt. xxiv. 10 — 13 : "Then shall many stumble... Many false
prophets shall arise, and shall lead many astray. And because iniquity
shall abound, the love of the many shall wax cold." Comp. the mourn
ful prophecy of Moses concerning the future of his people (Deut. xxxi.
28, 29, &c). This presentiment of St Paul grew in distinctness and
was expressed with increasing emphasis, as time went on ; comp. Rom.
xvi. 17—20; Acts xx. 29, 30; Eph. iv. 14; 1 Tim. iv. 1, &c. Such words'

v. 3- II. THESSALONIANS, II. 143
falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son
as those of 1 Cor. xvi. 22 ("If any man love not the Lord, let him be
anathema"), and Col. ii. 19 ("not holding fast the Head"), shew that
in his view personal loyalty to Christ was the safeguard of Christianity. >
As to the particular form and direction of the apostasy, nothing is
said, nor as to the time of its rise or duration. Disloyalty to Christ
confronted St Paul in his later years in many forms ; and ever since
the Church has had to struggle with inward corruption, as well as with
outward foes. The Apostle anticipates this conflict; he foresees that
tares will spring up along with the wheat, and "both" must "grow
together until the harvest" (Matt. xiii. 24- — 30). Such development of
internal evil had not yet taken place, and by this the Thessalonians
might be sure that the Day ofthe Lord had not dawned.
and'Cnat man of sin be revealed] Lit., and there be revealed the man of
sin; or, according to the reading of the Greek preferred by Tischendorf,
Westcott and Hort, in agreement with the two oldest MSS, the man
Of lawlessness. In ver. 7 the writer speaks of "the mystery of lawless
ness" as of something present to his readers' minds; and in ver. 8 this
same "man" is styled "the lawless one." Throughout St Paul lays the
utmost stress upon this attribute of the system of evil, with which he
apprehends that the Kingdom of Christ must have a final and conclusive
struggle. Lawlessness is the essence of that system, and "the man of
lawlessness" its complete impersonation (comp. 1 John iii. 4).
Now "lawlessness" is in the Apostle's eyes a characteristic of the
Gentile world, which "knew not God" (ch. i. 8; 1 Ep. iv. 5) and had
cast off moral restraint. But he looked beneath the formal and outward
possession of God's law in the letter, and recognized in the Jewish
people the like lawlessness of spirit (Rom. ii. 1, 17 — 19) ; while " Gen
tiles not having law," sometimes " shewed the work of the law written
in their hearts" (Rom. ii. 14, 15). "The man of lawlessness" is therefore
one in whom St Paul sees the lawlessness of a godless world culminat
ing — the ne plus ultra of "the carnal mind" that is "enmity against
the law of God," which "is neither subject to His law nor can be" .
(Rom. viii. 7). And he is emphatically "the man of lawlessness" (with
no distinction of Jew or Gentile: comp. Rom. iii. 19, 23), being the
person in whom human nature, in so far as it is separated from and
opposed to God (see next ver.), finds its ultimate realisation.
We must distinguish, then, between "the apostasy" and "the man
of lawlessness," in that the former is the corruption of the Church,
while the latter is the culmination of the evil of the world. (Comp.
"the wild beast" of Rev. xiii. 1, "rising out of the" murmuring and
restless "sea" of the nations, the "many waters" of ch. xvii. 1, 15.)
But the two influences, though not identical, are in combination. The
former naturally contributes to the latter, an apostate Church paving
the way for the advent of an atheistic world-power. We shall find in
the next verse an echo of the prophecies of Daniel, so clear as to
justify us in regarding these two evil powers as analogous to those of
Dan. viii. 23 : "When the transgressors are come to the full, a king of
fierce countenance shall arise ; " where, as it proved in the Maccabean

144 II. THESSALONIANS, II. v. 4.
4 of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all
that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God
times, the apostasy within Israel gives the signal for the rise of the
heathen despot.
"The man of lawlessness" is "the son of perdition," being the one
to whom this doom peculiarly belongs, who like Judas Iscariot (John
xvii. 12) in going to "perdition" will "go to his own place" (Acts i.
25). For the Hebraistic phrase "son of" comp. 1 Ep. v. 4, and note.
Perdition is synonymous with destruction, ch. i. 9 ; there it falls on
the godless, here on the Lawless One — lawlessness being the moral
counterpart of godlessness, and both fatal to man's true life.
4. who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or
that is worshipped] Better, as in R.V. he that opposeth, &c. ; for this
is a third and distinct designation of the personality in question. Also
against, in place of above. And the comma after "God" in A.V.
should be cancelled; the phrase object-of- worship (a single word in the
Greek, found also in Acts xvii. 23) extends the idea of God to include
everything religious: comp. 1 Cor. viii. 5, "There are that are called
gods... gods many and lords many." The Man of Lawlessness embodies
not merely an Anti-christian, but an Anti-theistic revolt. His aim will
be to abolish religion in every existing form. This is made still clearer
by the next clause.
"He that opposeth" renders the Greek word elsewhere translated
the adversary, and is the equivalent of the Hebrew Satan (1 Ep. ii. 18,
see note); so that the Lawless One bears the name of him "after"
whose "working" he will come (ver. 9). He will be, therefore, in the
most absolute sense, the enemy of God, concentrating in himself all that
in human life and history is hostile and repugnant to the Divine nature.
For exalteth himself comp. 2 Cor. xii. 7, where the same compound
verb is twice used, and is rendered "exalted-above;measure." The
above description recalls the language of Dan. viii. 25 and xi. 36, 37,
concerning the great enemy and persecutor of the Church delineated in
that prophecy: "He shall magnify himself in his heart;. ..he shall also
stand up against the Prince of princes. ..He shall exalt himself, and
magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things
against the God of gods... Neither shall he regard the god of his fathers,
...nor any god; for he shall magnify himself above all." (Comp. the
similar language of Ezek. xxviii. 2, respecting the worldly pride of
Tyre.) St Paul takes up and carries forward this O.T. prediction; and
as the figure sketched in the Book of Daniel found its proximate realisa
tion in the heathen tyrant Antiochus Epiphanes, who defiled the Temple
at Jerusalem and attempted to crush the Jewish religion, it is along the
same line that we must look for the accomplishment of this prophecy.
In the words that follow we are carried, however, beyond the horizon
of the Book of Daniel.
so that he as God sitteth, &°c] Omit as God (R.V.) More lit., in the
Greek order, so that he in the temple of God takes his seat, showing
off himself, to the effect that he is God.

v. 4- II- THESSALONIANS, II. 14;
sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
So that the Man of Lawlessness will not only seek to abolish Divine
worship, but will substitute for it the worship of himself (see the pas
sages quoted from Daniel, p. 144), declaring his rule the supreme power
and exhibiting his person to receive in place of Almighty God the
reverence of mankind. Such atheism is, after all, but egotism full
blown, the kind of egotism to which men are tempted who have great
power over the minds of their fellows.
The deification of the Roman Emperors suggested this trait of the
description. Never has the world witnessed so blasphemous a usurpa
tion, and so abject a prostration of the human spirit as the Csesar- wor
ship of St Paul's time — the only real religion now left to Rome. This
passage reflects the horror inspired by it in the mind of the Apostle.
So far-reaching was the impression produced by the Emperor-worship,
that Tacitus represents the German barbarians as speaking in ridicule of
ille inter- numina dicatus Augustus — "Augustus, forsooth, enrolled
amongst the gods ! " (Annals, I. £9). The destructive effect which this
cultus had on what remained of natural religion in the rites of Paganism
is indicated by the pregnant words of Tacitus (Annals, I. 10) : Nihil
deorum honoribus relictum, cum se templis et effigie numinum per
flamines et sacerdotes coli vellet — "The gods were stripped of their
honours, when he (Augustus) consented to be worshipped with temples
and statues as a deity, with flamens and- with priests." Compare the
words of Suetonius referring to Julius Caesar, with whom the deifica
tion of the dead Csesars began : " Omnia simul ei divina atque humana
decreverat (senatus)...Periit sexto et quinquagesimo aetatis anno atque
in deorum numerum relatus est, non ore modo decernentium, sed et
persuasione volgi " (De vita Caesarum, I. 84, 88). The unconscious irony
of the last sentence is finely pointed by the exclamation ascribed to the
dying Emperor Vespasian (viii. 23) : Vae, puto deusfio I — " Woe's me !
I think I am turning god!" The shout of the Greek populace at
Caesarea, hailing "the voice" of Herod Agrippa as that "of a god and
not of a man," indicates the lengths to which a corrupt and servile
heathenism was prepared to go in this direction (Acts xii. 20 — 24).
Deep and wide-spread was the execration caused by the attempt of the
mad Emperor Caius (Caligula), in the year 40, to place his statue in
the Jewish Temple, an attempt only frustrated by the perpetrator's
death. This was a typical event, showing of what the intoxication of
supreme power might make a man capable. It was but the last of
many similar outrages on "every so-called god." Amongst other
monstrous profanities of Caligula, Suetonius relates (iv. 22) that he
transported the statue of Olympian Jupiter to Rome, and put his own
head upon it in place of the god's ! Also, that he built his palace up
to the Temple of the ancient Roman gods, Castor and Pollux, making
of it a kind of 'vestibule, where he exhibited himself standing between
their twin godships for the adoration of those who entered. Even
this, as Olshausen remarks, was "modesty" compared to what the
Apostle ascribes to Antichrist. The very name Sebastos, the Greek
rendering of the Imperial title Augustus — to which Divus was added
THESS. IO

146 II. THESSALONIANS, II. vv. 5, 6.
5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told
s you these things f And now ye know what withholdeth
at death — signifying "the one to be worshipped" (comp. sebasma,
"object-of- worship," in the previous clause), was an offence to the
religious mind. In later times the offering of incense to the deity of
the Emperor became the crucial test of fidelity to Christ. Casar or
Christ was the martyr's alternative.
When he speaks of "the temple of God," without other qualifica
tion, St Paul appears to refer to the existing Temple of Jerusalem
(comp. Dan. xi. 31; xii. 11, cited by our Lord in Matt. xxiv. 15; Mark
xiii. 14). Attempts have been made to show that the Apostle's words
were literally fulfilled by certain outrages committed by Nero or Vespa
sian upon the sacred building. This does not seem to us clearly made
out ; and it will be evident from what has been said, that even the
worst of the Roman Emperors was only a type, or adumbration of the
Antichrist. The Jewish Temple being still, while it stood, God's holy
place, St Paul naturally associates with it this crowning act of profana
tion. But we have learnt from 1 Ep. ii. 16 that he believed national
Judaism to be immediately coming to an end ; and its Temple was the
type and representative of all places consecrated to the worship of
the true God. The great Usurper who claims for himself that he "is
God," appropriates consequently the sanctuaries of religion and pros
titutes them to his own worship. " Within the temple of God — not
" in Jerusalem alone," says Chrysostom, "but in every church."
5. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these
things?] More precisely, I used to tell you; comp. 1 Ep. iii. 4, for
the tense.
This reminder serves two purposes : — (1) It is a gentle reproof to the
readers, who ought not to have been so easily unsettled by the alarmists,
after what the Apostle had told them. (2) It obviates the necessity
of explanation by letter. Any more explicit statement would probably
have raised political suspicion, exposing the Apostle to a renewal of
the charges which led to his expulsion from Thessalonica (see Acts
xvii. 6, 7; Introd. pp. 15, 20, 21). St Paul had watchful enemies, who
would be quick to seize on anything that might compromise him with
the Roman Government.
6. And now ye know] After this allusion: "now that you call to
mind what I used to say about the final struggle with the powers of
evil, that will precede Christ's coming."
(ye know) what withholdeth] Better, that which restraineth — ren
dered "letteth" in ver. 7; only it is masculine there, denoting personal
agency; here neuter, indicating a principle or power. The Thessa
lonians not only knew what the restraining influence was, they were ac
quainted with it; it lay within the range of their experience. We have
not therefore to look far a-field for this "restraint."" A hint was
sufficient, verbum sapientibus; more than a hint would have been
dangerous. that he might be revealed in his time] The R.V. is more exact: to
the end that he may be revealed in his own season. The unnamed

v. 7. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 147
that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of 7
subject is the dread personality whose form looms through this para
graph in ever-growing proportions.
With this ver. comp. 1 Tim. vi. 14, 15; where we read of "the
appearing of the Lord Jesus, which in its own times He shall show,
Who is the blessed and only Potentate" (comp. Acts i. 7). As Christ's
advent has its proper season reserved for it, so has that of Antichrist.
To this end the restraining power operates, holding back and setting
bounds to human lawlessness, until the set time has come for its final
outbreak and revelation. ^— -
This order of things belongs to God's purposes. If He allows moral!
evil to exist in His creatures (and its possibility seems to be inseparable
from moral freedom), yet He knows how to control its activity, till the'
time shall come when its full manifestation will best subserve its over
throw and judgement. This "season" of the Man of Lawlessness, in
whom the bad element in human nature gets at length full play, will be
the last and worst of many such crises; chiefest of which was that of
Luke xxii. 53 : "This is your hour," said Jesus to His enemies, "and
the power of darkness. "
7. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work] Better, of lawless
ness (R.V.) — same word as that we adopted from the marginal Revised
reading of ver. 3; comp. "the lawless one," ver. 8.
"Doth work," i.e. is operative, or in operation. See note on "work
ing," ver. 9.
Lawlessness has indeed been "at work" ever since man fell from
God by sin. But this "mystery of lawlessness" is surely some embodi
ment of the universal principle of sin which it has assumed in times
recent to St Paul ("doth already work"), and which contained, in his
belief, the germ and potency of the supreme revelation of evil reserved
for the eve of Christ's advent.
A mystery is not some secret knowledge or practice reserved to a
select few, like the Mysteries of Greek Paganism; it is, in St Paul's
dialect, the counterpart of revelation, and the word here takes up again
the "revealed" of ver. 6 : "until he be revealed, I say; for the mystery
(the thing to be revealed) doth already work." It denotes something
by its nature above man's knowledge, which can only be understood
when and so far as God reveals it. Comp. note on "revelation," ch.
i. 7; also the various "mysteries" of Col. ii. 2, 3; Eph. iii. 4 — 6; Rom.
xi. 25, &c. So monstrous and enormous are the possibilities of sin in
humanity, that with all we know of its present and past effects, the
character of the Man of Lawlessness must remain beyond comprehen
sion, — till he be "revealed in his season."
only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way]
Again, as in ver. 3, there is a hiatus in the Greek, due perhaps to the
excitement raised by the apparition of this awful personality in the
writer's mind. The R.V. completes the sense more simply and natur
ally: only there is one that restraineth now, — or, there is at present
the Restrainer. "Let" has this sense in the Collect for the Fourth

148 II. THESSALONIANS, II. v. 7-
iniquity doth already work : only he who now letteth will
Sunday in Advent, as often in old writers: "We are sore let and hin
dered in running the race set before us."
On "the Restrainer"'see note, ver. 6. It passes from neuter to mas
culine; while the thing restrained makes an opposite transition, and
appears predominantly in a personal form (comp. vv. 3, 4 with 7, and
again with vv. 8, 9). For the Apostle contemplates the power of Law
lessness in its ultimate manifestation, as embodied in some one human
antagonist of Christ; whereas the restraint that delays his appearance
is thought of rather as a general influence, or principle, which at the
same time has its personal representatives. We prefer, therefore, to
render St Paul's phrase he that restraineth rather than one that
restraineth ; for it signifies not an individual, but a class.
Where then are we to look, amongst the influences prevalent in the
Apostle's time and known to his Thessalonian readers, for the check
¦ and bridle of Lawlessness ? Where but to law itself (Staat und Gesetz,
Dorner) ? The fabric of civil law and the authority of the magistrate
formed a bulwark and breakwater against the excesses both of autocratic
tyranny and of popular violence. For this power St Paul had a pro
found respect (see Rom. xiii. 1 — 7). He was himself a citizen of Rome,
and had reason to value the protection of her laws. (See Acts xvi. 35 —
39; xxii. 23 — 29; xxv. 10 — 12.) About this very time he found in the
upright Proconsul, Gallio (brother of Seneca, the tutor and ill-fated
" restrainer" of Nero), a shield from the lawlessness of the Jewish mob
at Corinth; the Thessalonian "politarchs" at least tried to do him
justice (Acts xvii. 5 — 9). We must distinguish between the laws ofthe
Roman State and the personal power of the Emperor, whose despotism
habitually trampled on the laws and yet was checked by them. Within
a year of the writing of this letter Nero assumed the purple, who
pushed the principle of lawless autocracy, the idolatry of a wicked
human will, to lengths unimagined before. In Nero's reign it seemed
as though St Paul's vision of the Man of Lawlessness were already
realised. This monster of depravity, "the lion" of 2 Tim. iv. 17, stood
for the portrait of "the wild beast" of St John's Apocalypse, which
carries forward Paul's image of the Lawless One, as the latter takes
up Daniel's conception of the godless king, impersonated in Antiochus
Epiphanes. The absolutism of the bad Caesars found, after all, its
limit in the strong framework of civil legalism and the sense of public
justice, native to the Latin race. Nero fell, and did not drag down
Rome with him, nor bring about the final ruin. Wiser rulers and better
times remained for the Empire. In the crisis of the 8th Century, "the
laws of Rome saved Christianity from Saracen domination more than
the armies. ..The torrent of Mohammedan invasion was arrested" — for
700 years. "As long as Roman law was cultivated in the Empire, and
administered under proper control, the invaders of the Byzantine terri
tory were everywhere unsuccessful " (Finlay, Hist, of Byzantine Em
pire, pp. 27, 28). Nor did Roman Law fall with the Empire itself, any
more than it rose from it. It has been in spirit, and to a large extent
in substance, the parent of the legal systems of Christendom. Mean-

v. 8. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 149
let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that 8
Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the
spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of
while Casarism survives, a legacy from Rome and a word of evil
omen, — the title and model of illegal sovereignty.
The lawlessness of the world holds this "mystery" of St Paul in
solution, ready to precipitate itself. It betrays itself in many partial and
transitional manifestations, until "in its season" it shall crystallize into
its complete expression. Let reverence for law disappear in public life,
along with religious faith, and there is nothing to prevent a new Caesar
becoming master and god of the civilized world, armed with infinitely
greater power.
8. And then shall that Wicked be revealed] Then, "in his own
season" (ver. 6), in contrast with the now of the last clause, the time of
his restraint : then shall be revealed the lawless one (R.V.).
It is essential that we keep in mind the identity of the figure de
picted from ver. 3 onwards. The variety of synonyms employed by the
A.V. is distracting. This "revealing of the Lawless One" is the
unveiling of "the mystery of lawlessness already at work;" he is no
other than "the man of lawlessness, the son of perdition" announced in
ver. 3. Three times, with persistent emphasis, the word revealed is
repeated (w. 3, 6, 8), as of some unearthly and portentous object, that
holds the gazer spell-bound. Comp. note on "mystery," ver. 7.
" The lawless" (anomos) is a term frequently occurring in the LXX,
both in the singular and plural; it denotes the typical "sinner," or
"wicked person" ofthe O.T.
whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of his mouth] Accord
ing to the true reading, and better rendering, whom the Lord Jesus
shall slay with the breath of his mouth (R.V.).
On the title " Lord Jesus" and its relation to the Second Advent, see
note to 1 Ep. ii. 19. Jesus, the human Name, could not be wanting
here, where the overthrow of ' ' the man oi lawlessness " is in question.
The words that follow come from the prophecy of the judgement of
the Rod of Jesse, Isai. xi. 4 : " He shall smite the earth with the rod of '
His mouth, and with the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked."..
Such predictions had not been accomplished in the humble, suffering
Messiah, — or but in foretaste, by the denunciations of Jesus (Matt, xxiii.
&c.) ; they remain to be verified in His triumph. The Lawless One,
being the ultimate embodiment of the world's wickedness and defiance
of God, must suffer the conclusive fulfilment of the prophet's words.
Just as the sight oi the Lord Jesus will suffice to bring ruin on cruel
persecutors (ch. i. 9), so it will need but the breath of His mouth to lay
low the haughty and Titanic Antichrist: "A word shall quickly slay
him!" and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming] More exactly, and
shall bring to nought with the manifestation of his coming (or
presence: Greek parousia ; see note on this word, 1 Ep. ii. 19).
The Greek verb signifies to make inoperative, destroy in effect ; it is a

150 II. THESSALONIANS, II. v. 9.
9 his coming : even him, whose coming is after the working of
favourite word with St Paul: comp. 2 Tim. i. 10, "having abolished
death ; " and Gal. iii. 17, "to make, the promise of none effect" The
effect of the manifestation of the Lord Jesus will be to paralyse the
Lawless One and strip him of his power. See note on ch. i. 9, " de
struction (coming) from the presence of the Lord. "
The word rendered "manifestation" (epiphaneia, our Epiphany) is
not found in St Paul again till we come to his latest Epistles, where it is
applied to the Second, and once to the First Coming : 1 Tim. vi. 14 ;
2 Tim. i. 10; iv. i. 8; Tit. ii. 13. It signifies by usage an extraordi
nary, commonly a superhuman, divine appearance. Similarly the corre
sponding adjective, rendered " notable" in Acts ii. 20 (from Joel ii. 31 :
Hebrew, "terrible"). Prima ipsius adventus emicatio (Bengel).
In w. 9 — 12 we are told (1) of the agency which brings about the
coming of the Man of Lawlessness and the means employed for the
purpose, (2) of the victims of his ascendancy (ver. 10), and (3) of the
issue for which in the sovereignty of Divine judgement his power is over
ruled (w. 11, 12).
9. even him, whoie coming is after the working of Satan] Rather,
even he, whose coming is according to the working of Satan (R.V.) ;
for this sentence does not qualify the last clause of ver. 8 by itself, it
looks back to the principal subject of the paragraph, — "then shall
be revealed the lawless one. ..whose coming," &c.
The two " coinings " (vv. 8, 9) — theparousia of the Lord Jesus and that
of the Man of Lawlessness — are set in contrast. The second forms the
dark background to the glory of the first. ' ' According to the working
of Satan" is not, therefore, subordinate to the clause that follows, but
forms a chief predicate. It is Satan that inspires and directs the
advent of the Lawless One ; hence the ' ' powers and signs " which
attend it : " who comes as one empowered by Satan, attended by all
kinds of lying miracles. " For "Satan" comp. 1 Ep. ii. 18, and "he
that opposeth " in ver. 4 above.
"Working" (Greek energeia, energy) is a word that St Paul uses
elsewhere of the operation of God: comp. note on "manifestation"
above ; and see e.g. Col. ii. 12 ; Eph. i. 19; similarly the kindred verb,
as in ver. 7 (see note, and on 1 Ep. ii. 13). With studied emphasis
and precision he borrows for the coming of Antichrist the terms proper
to the coming of Christ, making the one appear as a frightful mimicry
and mocking prelude of the other. The Lawless One has his "mys
tery," his " revelation," his "parousia," and his "power and signs and
wonders," in which the " working of Satan" in him apes the working
of God in Christ. This systematic, and as one might suppose, calcu
lated adoption by Antichrist of the attributes of Christ is a most appal
ling feature in the Apostle's representation. Satan himself, through
his agent, usurps God's throne amongst men. And the Man of Law
lessness holds a relation towards Satan the counterpart of the relation
' of Christ to God.
/ with all power and signs and lying wonders] Lit., in aU power and
signs and wonders of falsehood. There is no reason in grammar

v. io. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 151
Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with *>
all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish ;
because they received not the love of the truth, that they
why the concluding epithet should not be referred to the three synonyms
alike ; it suits them all. St Paul does not mean to say that the
miracles in question are pretended miracles, but that they aid and abet
falsehood. They come from "the father of falsehood" (John viii. 44),
to whose realm all lies belong. Comp. Matt. xxiv. 24, and Rev. xiii.
13, for predictions of Satanic miracles.
The three terms by which these manifestations are designated, are
precisely those used of the miracles of Christ and the Apostles.; comp.
Acts ii. 22; Rom. xv. 19; 2 Cor. xii. 12; Heb. ii. 4, where they are
variously combined. Ofthe three, signs is the most frequent, unfortu
nately rendered "miracles" in the A.V. ofthe Fourth Gospel (corrected
in R.V.) ; occasionally signs and wonders (never wonders alone) are
combined; more frequently power is used, or powers, rendered in the
Gospels "mighty works." The Greek word for wonder, nearest in
sense to our "miracle," denotes the outward effect of such deeds, the
astonishment or fear they excite ; while power points to the Divine (in
this instance Satanic) agency that effects them, and signs calls attention
to the significance of the event, its spiritual import.
While the last clause delineates the nature of the operations of Anti
christ and the means by which he is accredited, the next verse goes on
to describe their fatal effect : — •
10. and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish]
Both reading and rendering need to be amended ; it is rather, and in '
all deceit of unrighteousness for the perishing — the opposite of
"them that are being saved," or "the subjects of salvation" (1 Cor. i.
18; 2 Cor. ii. 15). They follow, alas, the guidance of "the son of per
dition," and share his ruin (ver. 3).
"Deceit of unrighteousness" is a phrase compounded similarly to
" good pleasure of goodness," ch. i. 11; it signifies such deceit as
belongs to unrighteousness, that which it is wont to employ. These
devices are " deceit for the perishing," for men without the life of God,
whose spiritual perception is destroyed by sin and who therefore fall a
prey to deceit. The children of God are not imposed upon by these
means; they know how to "prove all things" (1 Ep. v. 21). Read
carefully 1 John iv. 1 — 6, and compare with this context.
because they received not the love ofthe truth, that they might be saved]
Placing himself amid the scenes of the triumph of Antichrist and view
ing the sad fate of his victims, St Paul explains their ruin. They had
no "love of the truth." This sentiment they never "entertained."
And so — in compensation for this — they believe wicked lies, to their
undoing : in return for their refusal to entertain the love of the
truth. On receive, see note to 1 Ep. ii. 13 (second "received") ; there
is implied a want of heart to receive."
It is not "the truth" simply, but "the love of the truth" that these
unhappy men repudiate. Their unbelief is not of the reason so much as

152 II. THESSALONIANS, II.

ii might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them
of the heart. Those of whom the Apostle speaks resist "the truth"
with an instinctive, invincible prejudice ; for they have no desire to "be
saved" from the sins it condemns. Christ found in this moral preposses
sion the reason why so many rejected His word. " Every one that doeth
evil," He said, " hateth the light" (John iii. 20; comp. x. 26 ; &c). So
St Paul writes in 2 Cor. iv. 3, 4, " Our gospel is a veiled thing amongst
them that perish. The god of this world has blinded their minds... that
the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ may not shine upon them."
It is a just, but mournful result, that rejecters of Christ's miracles be
come believers in Satan's, and that atheism should be avenged by
superstition. So it has been, and will be.
11. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion] Rather
sends to them, the present standing for the future by anticipation of the
predicted certainty ; or better explained as the statement of a principle
already at work. What will take place in those deceived by Antichrist,
is seen on a smaller scale every day.
For strong delusion read, with R.V., working of error, parallel to
"working of Satan," ver. 9 (see note on working); a superhuman force
and fascination is implied, that of Satan's miraculous working in the
Antichrist. " Delusion" is deceit accepted, falsehood taken for truth
(w. 9, 10). And " God sends" this effectual deceit, with the very pur
pose that they should believe the lie. "O Lord, why dost Thou
make us to err from Thy ways?" (Isai. Ixiii. 17).
Vv. 11, 12, therefore, ascribe to God the great delusion that we have
been all along regarding as the masterpiece of Satan. Three things must
be borne in mind here : ( 1 ) that Satan is never represented in Scripture
as an independent power, or rival deity of evil, like the Persian
Ahriman. However large the activity allowed to him in this world, it
is under Divine control (see Job i. ii. ; 1 Cor. v. 5; x. 13 ; &c). (2) St
Paul teaches that God makes sin work out its own punishment. In Rom.
i. 24, 25, he represents the loathsome vice of the Pagan world as a
Divine chastisement for its long- continued idolatry: "For this cause
God sends effectual delusion" is parallel to " For this cause God gave
them up to vile passions." In each case the result is inevitable, and
comes about by what we now call a natural law. That persistent
rejection of truth destroys the sense of truth and results in fatal error, is
an ethical principle and a fact of experience as certain as any in the
world. Now he who believes in God as the Moral Ruler of the
Universe, knows that its laws are the expression of His will. Since
this Satanic delusion is the moral consequence of previous and wilful
rejection of the truth, it is manifest that God is here at work ; He
makes Satan and the Lawless One His instruments in punishing false
hearted men. As they loved lies, God "sends them" lies for their por
tion. Comp. Ezek. xiv. 9, and 1 Kings xxii. "Righteous and true are
Thy ways, Thou King of the ages 1" (Rev. xv. 3). (3) The advents of
Christ and of Antichrist are linked together (vv. 3, 9) ; they are parts of
the same great process and drama of judgement. God sends "the

v. 12. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 153
strong delusion, that they should believe a lie : that they all »
might be damned who believed not the truth, but had plea
sure in unrighteousness.
working of error" in the Lawless One, Who will quickly send His Son
to be Judge of the lawless and Avenger of His elect.
For "a lie" the Greek reads "the lie" (same word as falsehood, ver.
9), which probably means here not falsehood in general, but this parti
cular falsehood — " the lie" par excellence, in which all previous delusions
of Satan are consummated, viz. that the Lawless One is himself God
(w. 4, 9, 10). Similarly Idolatry is called "the (great) lie," in contrast
with "the truth of God" (Rom. i. 25).
12. that they all might be damned who believed not the truth] that
they may be judged is what the Apostle says.
Here is the further, judicial purpose of the great imposture. God
intends that men who are so disposed should "believe the lie," so that
their false belief may be a touchstone and demonstration of their false
ness. Men without love of truth naturally believe the lie when it comes;
there is nothing else for them. And this is a terrible judgement upon
them. As Christ came at first "for judgement into this world " (John
ix. 39, &c), by His presence discriminating the lovers of truth and false
hood, so it will be with Antichrist at his coming. He will attract his
like ; and ¦ this attraction will be the exposure of their hatred of the
truth. Comp. Rom. ii. 8 : "To those who obey not the truth, but obey
unrighteousness... wrath and indignation."
This is not yet the Last Judgement, and it is possible that some under
this retribution may yet repent, seeing how shameful is the delusion into
which they have fallen by rejecting Christ.
all (probably all together, in the Greek) marks the universal range
of this judgement ; the delusion takes effect everywhere; it will be the
one thing in which the enemies of Christ agree, and it furnishes a
decisive test of their character. Comp. "the mark of the Wild Beast " in
Rev. xiii. 3, 16: "The whole earth wondered after the beast. ..All that
dwell on the earth shall worship him, every one whose name hath not
been written in the Lamb's book of life."
That they had pleasure in unrighteousness explains the readiness of
these unhappy men to accept the " deceit oi unrighteousness" (ver. 10).
They are credulous of that which falls in with their evil inclination.
Wicked men are the dupes of wickedness. Comp. Rom. i. 32, where
the fact that men not only do the vilest things, but " take pleasure in
those who do them," adds the finishing touch to the Apostle's black
picture. Such an one does wrong not through force of passion or
example or habit, but out of sheer delight in wrong. " The light that
is in him has become darkness." He says with Milton's Satan,
"Farewell remorse, all good to me is lost;
Evil be thou my good ! "
Men of this type will welcome eagerly the reign of Antichrist. But
their triumph will prove shortlived.

154 II. THESSALONIANS, II. v. 13.
13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you,
Section IV. Words of Comfort and Prayer.
Ch. II. 13— III. 5.
Passing from the last Section, we breathe a sigh of relief, and gladly
join in thanksgiving for those who will "prevail to escape all these
things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man "
(Luke xxi. 36).
Under the solemn feelings awakened by his contemplation of the
image of Antichrist, the Apostle turns to his readers, blending thanks
giving with exhortation and renewed prayer on their account. (1) He
renders thanks to God Who had chosen and called them to salvation,
vv. 13, 14 ; (2) he urges them to be steadfast, ver. 15 ; (3) he prays that
Gods love may be their comfort, vv. 16, 17. In turn he (4) requests
their prayers for himself, ch. iii. 1, 2; (5) he assures them of Gods
faithfulness, and of his own confidence in them, vv. 3, 4; and (6) prays
once more for Divine guidance on their behalf, ver. 5.
13. But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you] Comp.
ch. i. 3, and notes. The strain ofthe opening thanksgiving ofthe two
Epistles is here blended. For while this clause repeats the first words
of 2 Ep., the sentence that follows echoes 1 Ep. i. 4.
Here the subject, we, bears emphasis : " we, with this sad prospect of
apostasy and delusion in view." Those who see deeply into the evil of
the world, its immense power and untold possibilities, turn with the
greater satisfaction to that which "speaks better things."
brethren beloved by the Lord (R.V.) is parallel to "beloved by
God " (1 Ep. i. 4 : see note).
"The Lord" is surely Christ, as distinguished from "God" in the
adjoining clauses. The Church assailed by persecution, and appalled by
the thought of Antichrist, finds in the love of Christ her refuge (comp.
Rom. viii. 35, 39). To the same Divine Protector the Apostle commits
his "brethren," so dear to him (vv. 16, 17; ch. iii. 3, 5). He recalls
in this expression the blessing pronounced on Benjamin, his own tribe,
in Deut. xxxiii. 12 : " The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by
Him; He covereth him all the day long, and he dwelleth between His
shoulders." The two phrases correspond precisely in the Greek.
because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation] Better,
in that God chose you ; see note on ch. i. 3.
These words are partly borrowed from Deut. vii. 6, 7 ; x. 15 ; xxvi. 18:
" Thou art a holy people unto the Lord thy God. He hath chosen you
to be a peculiar people unto Himself... He set His love upon you; " &c.
The Apostle's thanksgivings in the First Epistle centred in the fact of
the "election" of the Thessalonian believers in Christ. (See note on
election, 1 Ep. i. 4; and context.) To this his grateful thoughts now
revert. God deals with them far otherwise than He will do with those
to whom He "sends effectual delusion. ..that they may be judged"
(vv. 1 1, 12): He "chose you for salvation.. .not for wrath " (1 Ep. v. 9).
How safe and high above fear are "God's elect" (Rom. viii. 22 — 30^ 1

v. 13. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 155
brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the
beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of
"From the beginning'' points to the time when the Gospel first
visited the Thessalonians; so the " election" of 1 Ep. i. 4 is associated
with the "coming of our gospel to you" (1 Ep. i. 5, 9). Then it was
that, practically and in human view, God chose this people — i.e. selected
them for His own out of the world in which they moved. In later
Epistles this "beginning" is traced back, on its Divine side, to "the
foundation of the world" (Eph. i. 4, &c), and shown to be a part
of that which was absolutely "from the beginning" (comp. 1 John
i. 1). There is an absolute beginning of salvation, hidden in the nature
and eternal counsels of God ; this is its relative, historical and manifest
beginning (comp. Phil. iv. 15; Acts xv. 7).
And this choice is "unto salvation," in the utmost sense of the
word, extended in ver. 14 to " the obtaining of the glory of our Lord
Jesus Christ;" comp. 1 Ep. ii. 12; iii. 13; v. 9 (see note).
This salvation rests on God's election ; at the same time it has its
human conditions: salvation (experienced) in sanctification of spirit
and faith In the truth. God chooses none to salvation apart from
these qualifications; the end implies the way. It is believing and
sanctified men who wear "for a helmet the hope of salvation" (1 Ep.
v. 8). Comp. 1 Pet. i. 2 : "Elect... in sanctification of spirit" (or the
Spirit). ' ' Chosen unto salvation " stands in contrast with " son of perdition "
and " the perishing" (vv. 3, 10); "sanctification of spirit" and "belief
in truth" on the part of God's elect, with the "pleasure in unrighte'ous-
ness" and "belief in the lie" that mark the dupes of Antichrist. These
are the moral preconditions of final salvation and perdition respectively. \
St Paul writes sanctification of spirit, withojat_Jhedefinite article.
No doubt " spirit" may grammatically denote "the (HoTy7~SprritjJ' but
the Apostle can scarcely have so intended here. For (1) the intimate
connection of this phrase with "belief of truth" inclines us to read
the two (Greek) genitives alike — "truth" being the object of "faith,"
and "spirit" of "sanctification." (2) "Your spirit" is the primary
object ofthe sanctification prayed for in 1 Ep. v. 23. That memorable
prayer is probably in the mind both of writer and readers. (3) " Sanc
tification of spirit," understood as an inward state ofthe Thessalonians,
is a condition of ' ' salvation " the opposite of the disposition described in
vv. 10 — 12 as marking " those who perish " at the coming of Antichrist.
For this reason sanctification is put first; but it depends in turn upon
faith, — "belief in the truth." See Acts xxvi. 18; Eph. i. 13. The
normal order therefore is that of 1 Tim. ii. 15, "in faith and sancti
fication." — For sanctification, see note to 1 Ep. iv. 3.
Lit., belief of truth. The Apostle is not stating what the truth is
that saves, but that it is truth which saves, and faith in it as truth.
A truth-accepting faith is the root of salvation, while the disposition to
" believe the lie " is the root of perdition (vv. 9 — 12). " Sanctify them
in the truth," prayed Jesus for His disciples; "Thy word is truth"

156 II. THESSALONIANS, II. vv. 14, IS-
14 the Spirit and belief of the truth : whereunto he called you
by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord
is Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the
(John xvii. 17). The trustful acceptance of the truth revealed by Christ
brings with it the consecration of our spirit to God. In such faith and
consecration our salvation lies.
14. whereunto (to which end, including the whole salvation de
scribed in ver. 13) he called you by our gospel] i.e., "through the good
news we brought." On our gospel see note to 1 Ep. i. 5; and on the
call of God, 1 Ep. ii. 12, 13 (where mark its connection with the Divine
glory), iv. 7, v. 24. The connection of vv. 13 and 14 resembles that of
vv. 3 and 4 in 1 Ep. i., and of Rom. viii. 29, 30 : "whom He foreor
dained, He also called." God's election is the moving spring of human
salvation ; but His call came to the Thessalonians, when the good
tidings first sounded in their ears. That summons declared God's good
will toward them, and His loving choice of each believing heart.
to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ] More freely
rendered, that you might win the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
This defines more closely the " whereunto" just above, and brings to a
climax the "salvation" contemplated in ver. 13 : "To which end God
sent you through us the gospel message, that so you might have Christ's
glory at last for your own."
In ch. i. 12 (see note) the glory of Christ and that of His saints were
declared to be mutual. Here they are identified. In the glory which
the exalted and perfect "Lord Jesus Christ" receives, the Thessalonians
were called each of them finally to share. This is the goal of their
salvation, " the prize of their high calling " (Phil. iii. 14).
" Obtaining of glory " is therefore synonymous with the "obtaining^
of salvation" of 1 Ep. v. 9, where the same rare verbal noun is used I
(see note). Christ's glory is already won in principle, in its ground and
beginning, both for Himself and His people. So He said, leaving the
world, " Now was the Son of Man glorified" (John xiii. 31) ; yet He '
prays further, "Now, O Father, glorify Thou Me;" while He says of
His disciples, "The glory which Thou hast given Me, I have given
them" (John xvii. 5, 22). His glory is ever advancing and, as it unfolds
itself,ever anew imparting itself to men, till it is consummated in "the
revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven" (ch. i. 7 — 12, ii. 8; comp.
Tit. ii. 13; Matt. xxiv. 30, &c). Then the giory of His saints will be
complete and secure, in the completeness of His: "with Him in glory"
(Col. iii. 4; comp. Phil. iii. 20, 21; and His own words in John xvii.
24). " We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is" (1 John
ii. 2).
is. Therefore, brethren, standfast] So then (R.V.), as in 1 Ep. v. 6
(see note) : the practical conclusion in which the Apostle gathers up all
he has been saying in this letter. ' ' Since the Lord's return is delayed
and its time uncertain, and in prospect of the coming of Antichrist,
whose deceptive influence is already secretly at work, — inasmuch as
God by our means has made you heirs of His glorious kingdom —

v. 16. II. THESSALONIANS, II. 157
traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or
by our epistle. Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and 16
God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given
us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
Stand Fast." Comp. 1 Cor. xv. 58; Col. i. 23, — where, as in this
place, hope is the incentive to steadfastness.
and hold the traditions which ye have been taught] " Hold " is an
emphatic word: stand firm and hold fast (Ellicott) gives the Greek
sense more adequately.
In traditions which you were taught there is no suggestion of the
Romanist idea of Tradition, conceived as an authority distinct from the
written Word of God ; for the Apostle continues, whether by word or
letter of ours (the pronoun belongs to both nouns). He bids them
hold by what he had taught, whether it came through this channel or
that, provided it were really from himself (comp. ver. 2, and ch. iii. 14,
17). He is now beginning to communicate with the Churches by letter,
and stamps his Epistles with the authority of his spoken word. The
sentence asserts the claim of the true Apostolic teaching, as against any
who would ' ' beguile " the Church away from it. Comp. 1 Cor. xi. 2 :
" I praise you that in all things you remember us, and holdfast the tra
ditions, even as I delivered them to you. "
The Apostle's "traditions" included, besides doctrine, also the
"charges" (or "commands") he gave on matters of morals and prac
tical life (ch. iii. 4; 1 Ep. iv. 2). The body of Christian doctrine,
brought to its finished form, he calls in his last letters "the deposit"
(1 Tim. vi. 20; 2 Tim. i. 12, 14) ; while his practical teaching is "the
charge" (or "commandment"), 1 Tim. i. 5, 18.
— 16. Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father]
This remarkable invocation corresponds both in form and place in the
Epistle to that of 1 Ep. iii. 11 (see note). But here Chris fs name
comes first, a circumstance indicating the Divinity with which the
writer invests it: "Where now are those who would lower the Son of
God?" (Chrysostom). Comp. 2 Cor. xiii. 14. — Again the Subjects are
united by the singular number of the following verbs (comfort, &c,
ver. 17).
As in . 1 Ep. iii. 1 1, we prefer to render the particle of transition But
(rather than Now) may our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father.
On " Lord Jesus Christ," see note to 1 Ep. i. 1 . St Paul invokes our
Lord Jesus Christ Himself as their stablisher, with God our Father,
in contrast with the efforts on their own part to which he has exhorted
his readers (ver. 15) ; comp. the transition in 1 Ep. v. 22, 23 (see note).
St Paul prays with confidence for his emperilled brethren at Thessa
lonica, because of the grace which Christ and God had already be
stowed both on them and him : Who loved us and gave us eternal
comfort (or encouragement) and good hope.
"God our Father, Who loved us and gave," &c. There is the tender-
est connection of thought in these words. God's Fatherly love prompts
His great gifts. See the words of Christ in Matt. vii. 1 1 ; Luke xii.

158 II. THESSALONIANS, II. III. vv. 17— I.
17 comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word
and work.
3 Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord
may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with
32 : " Your Father who is in heaven shall give (you) good things," &c. ;
comp. John iii. 16; ijohn iii. 1; also Rom. v. 8. While the Thessa
lonians are "beloved of God" (1 Ep. i. 4), they are also "beloved
by the Lord" (ver. 13); and this clause, though singular, may include
Christ in its reference, He and the Father being one in love as in com
fort (ver. 17).
In His love the Father had already given the readers gladness of
heart in trouble (ch. i. 4; 1 Ep. i. 6), such as the Apostle often acknow
ledges in his own case (e.g. in 2 Cor. i. 4 — 6) — an "eternal comfort,"
which the sorrows of time will never waste. To know that God loves
us is in itself a comfort infinitely rich. " Consolation " (A.V.) represents
the Greek noun corresponding to the verb " comfort" of ver. 17. It is
comfort in its older sense of heartening, encouragement, rather than con
solation: see note on "comfort," I Ep. iii. 2.
A ' 'good hope " is such a hope as it is good to have, that gives worth
and joy to life. See note on "hope," : Ep. i. 3.
These kindred blessings flowing from the love of God, are given in
grace — not out of merit, and as to the worthy; but in the way of bounty
to the undeserving. See notes on "grace," ch. i. 12 and 1 Ep. i. 1.
17. comfort your hearts] Comp. ch. iii. 5 ; 1 Ep. iii. 13 ; and the
similar expression in Col. ii. 2. The "heart" is the inward man, the
seat of our thoughts and emotions (see note, 1 Ep. ii. 4) ; there doubt
and fear arise, which can be allayed only by Divine comforting. For
this verb, comp. note on "consolation" above, and on 1 Ep. iii. 2.
and stablish you in every good word and work] Rather, establish
them, i.e. your hearts, understood from the last clause. This expres
sion was previously used in 1 Ep. iii. 13, see note. The Apostle does
not mean, " May God make you steadfast in saying and doing all that
is good," for the "heart" neither speaks nor works; but rather, "May
God give you courage and confidence of heart in all good that you say
or do." He knows that they are busy in doing good (1 Ep. i. 3; iv.
10), and he would have them do it with a good and cheerful heart
(comp. 1 Ep. v. 17, 18).

Section IV. (continued). Ch. III. 1—6.
1. Finally] See note, 1 Ep. iv. 1. -The chief topic of the letter is
disposed of, and the wishes and hopes immediately arising out of it
have been expressed. For what remains : —
brethren, pray for us] So in 1 Ep. v. 25 (see note) : a frequent
request with St Paul — addressed to "brethren," concerned in everything
that concerns their Apostle and the Christian cause. Their prayers,

v. 2. II. THESSALONIANS, III. 159
you : and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and »
desired generally in 1 Ep., are now to have a more specific object, —
viz., thai the word of the Lord may run and be glorified (R. V.)
On "the word ofthe Lord," see note to 1 Ep. i. 8.
This singular metaphor of the running word is probably suggested by
Ps. xix. s, where the course of the sun is pictured in glowing poetic
language — "rejoicing as a hero to run a race" (ver. 5), while the latter
part ofthe Psalm sets "the law of the Lord" in comparison with his
glorious career. St Paul applies ver. 4 of the Psalm in Rom. x. 18,
with striking effect, to the progress of the Gospel. See also Ps. cxlvii.
15, "His word runneth very swiftly." Through "running" the word is
"glorified," and that is true of it which Virgil writes in his splendid
lines on Fama (Aeneid IV. 173 ff.): —
"Mobilitate viget viresque adquirit eundo."
even as it is with you] Lit., even as also with you. They are
to pray that the work of the missionaries may be as successful in Achaia
as itwas in Macedonia: comp. 1 Ep. i. 5; ii. 1. From Thessalonica " the
word of the Lord has sounded forth" over all the neighbouring region,
and "in every place your faith is gone forth:" might it only be so in
Corinth ! Reading Acts xviii. 5 — 11, we gather that St Paul's work in
the Achaian capital was at first discouraging in its results ; and it was
during the earlier period of his residence there that he wrote these
letters (comp. 1 Ep. iii. 7, 8, and notes).
.2. and (pray) that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked
men] Better, perverse and evil men. The Apostle is thinking, no
doubt, of the fanatical Jews at Corinth (see Acts xviii. 5 — 17), who
stood in the way of the Gospel; when Gallio's judgement removed
this obstacle, Christianity appears to have spread rapidly in this city.
Comp. Rom. xv. 31, "that I may be delivered from the disobedient
in Judaea." From Ephesus four years later he writes (1 Cor. xvi. 9),
"A great and effectual door is opened" to me, notwithstanding " many
adversaries." Through this open door the word gloriously ran ; at
Corinth it was not so as yet.
For "wicked" (or "evil"), see notes on 1 Ep. v. 22, and also ver. 3
below. For "delivered" (or rescued) comp. 1 Ep. i. 10 (note), where the
same word is used. It points to enemies who seemed to have the
writer in their power. Read 3 Cor. xi. 23 — 33 for a graphic descrip
tion of the Apostle's perils.
for all men have not faith] Or, not to all does the faith belong.
There are those, alas, with "no part nor lot in the matter" (Acts viii.
21). The Apostle puts his meaning in a pathetically veiled and softened
way (see note on "not pleasing," 1 Ep. ii. 15). "It is not all who
share our faith: many are its enemies, and bear us on its account a
deadly hatred. Will you pray that we may be delivered from their
power?" Their unbelief in Christ made the Corinthian opposers "per
verse and evil." Not being for Him, they came to be furiously
against Him (Matt. xii. 30). This is enough, in the Apostle's view, to
explain their conduct; comp. ver. 10, "they received not the love ofthe
truth, that they might be saved."

i6o II. THESSALONIANS, III. vv. 3, 4.
3 wicked men : for all men have not faith. But the Lord is
faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
4 And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye
With relief he turns from these perverse unbelievers to think of the
safety and confidence that abide within the Church of Christ : —
3. But the Lord is faithful] In the Greek order, But faithful is
the Lord. Man's want of faith suggests by contrast the faithfulness of
our Divine Lord (Faith and Faithfulness are alike denoted by pistis in
Greek ; as Believing and Faithful— Trusting and Trusty — alike by pislos).
Comp., for this contrast, Rom. iii. 3; 2 Tim. ii. 13.
"The Lord" appears to be throughout these Epistles the Lord Christ,
Ruler and Defender of His people. Comp. 2 Tim. iv. 17, "The Lord
stood by me. ..The Lord shall save me into His heavenly kingdom."
So he continues : who will establish you, and guard you from the
Evil One.
On "stablish," see notes to 1 Ep. iii. 2, 13, and ch. ii. 17 above. It
denotes the settled, steady confidence which this young Church required,
assailed by persecution from without and alarms from within.
While the unbelief of men made the Apostle think of the faith-
keeping Lord, behind these "evil men" (ver. 2) he saw another and
mightier enemy, — "the Evil One" (R.V.). The Greek adjective may
be read either in the neuter (the evil, evil in general), as by A.V.
and R.V. margin; or in the masculine, as by the R.V. text. There
is the same ambiguity in the words of the Lord's Prayer, and in the
Sacramental Prayer of Jesus (Matt. vi. 13 ; John xvii. 15) ; in which
instances also the Revisers, rightly as we think, prefer the personal
rendering. Both our Lord and the Apostle John, in passages where
the termination ofthe adjective is unequivocal— Matt. xiii. 19; 1 John
ii. 13, 14, v. 18 — point out the Evil One as the enemy of Christ and His
people and injurer of their work; and in Eph. vi. 16, while the gram
matical form is ambiguous, it is " the Evil One" who shoots " the fire-
tipped darts." So, surely, here; and in the two prayers of Jesus,
echoed seemingly in this passage. The conflict of the Church and
of the Christian life is not " a matter of principles alone and abstract
forces ; it is a personal encounter, and behind all forces there are living
wills. This is the plain teaching of Christ and the New Testament.
The Evil One is "the Satan" of ch. ii. 9; 1 Ep. ii. 18; and "the
Tempter" of 1 Ep. iii. 5.
"The Lord will guard you;" comp. the words of Jesus in John xvii.
12, "I guarded them (the disciples), and not one of them perished,
except the son of perdition." Like rescue (ver. 2), guard is a mili
tary word, implying conflict and armed protection : Vulgate, custodiet.
Though St Paul began by asking the Thessalonians to pray for him,
yet "it is plain that he was more anxious for them than for himself"
(Calvin). Their safety is ensured by the Lord's fidelity: but it requires their
own obedience ; and this the Apostle counts upon : —
4. And we have confidence in the Lord touching you; that ye both do

v. 5- II. THESSALONIANS, III. 161
both do and will do the things which we command you.
And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and s
into the patient waiting for Christ.
and will do the things which we command you] "The Lord" is not, as
the English phrase may suggest, the object of this confidence — ver. 3
declared the Apostle's trust in Him — but the ground on which rests his
confidence in the Thessalonian Church. His relations with them and
feelings towards them have the common relationship of both to Christ
for their foundation and background, their vital underlying bond ;
comp. 1 Ep. iii. 2; iv. 1, 16; v. 12, and ver. 12 below. No idiom is
more frequent or characteristic of St Paul than this — in the Lord, in
Christ. But it is "to you" that his confidence is now directed; the
construction of the Greek is identical with that of 2 Cor. ii. 3, "having
confidence in you all." Let us accordingly read here, in the Lord we
have confidence in you. Such is the trust that all true Christians
should give to each other.
For command read charge, as in 1 Ep. iv. 2, 11 (see notes). The
word is taken up again in ver. 6. The Apostle seems to have an eye
already to the "charge" that he is about to give, which will put to the
test his readers' obedience. The like satisfaction he has repeatedly
expressed (ch. i. 3, 5; ii. 13; 1 Ep. i. 3; iii. 6 — 10; iv. 1,9, 10; v. 11).
5. And (or But) the Lord direct your hearts] ' ' The Lord " is still
Christ : see note, ver. 3.
" May He direct (ox guide) you as Lord of His people, Shepherd of the
sheep" (John x.). The Apostle expects his Thessalonian flock to follow
his directions (ver. 4) ; but above both himself and them is the Supreme
Director of hearts, Whose guidance he invokes. For the transitional,
contrastive But, comp. notes on ch. ii. 16 and 1 Ep. iii. 11. "Direct
your hearts" is a Hebraism, used in the LXX to translate the words
rendered "set" or "prepare the heart" in our Version (Ps. lxxviii. 8;
1 Chron. xxix. 18, &c.) It denotes giving a fixed direction, a. steady
purpose, as to "stablish the heart" (ch. ii. 17) signifies to give u. sure
position. On direct see also 1 Ep. iii. 11.
into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ] A. V.
margin and R. V., patience of Christ. Patience (or endurance) is
what the Greek noun signifies in ch. i. 4; 1 Ep. i. 3 (see note), and
in the other numerous examples of its use in the N.T. For the way in
which "Christ's endurance" is made a model for our own, see 1 Pet. ii.
19 — 24; iii. 17, 18; iv. 1, 1, and Heb. xii. 2, 3. Elsewhere St Paul
speaks of His sufferings as shared by His people (2 Cor. i. 5 ; Phil.
iii. 10, &c.) ; and if the sufferings, surely the patience. The Thessalonians
were eagerly awaiting His return (1 Ep. i. 10; 2 Ep. ii. 1, 2); let them
wait for it in His patient spirit. Had the Apostle wished to speak
of waiting for the glorified Christ, he would surely have called Him, as
so often in these Epistles, "the Lord Jesus."
Christ is in this place the patient Christ, who "endured the cross"
and the "contradiction of sinners," fulfilling the prophetic ideal of
Jehovah's suffering Servant, Isai. liii. ; comp. i Pet. ii. 21 — 25 ; Matt. xi.
THESS. 1 1

i62 II. THESSALONIANS, ML  v- 6.
6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our
29, 30, &c. The Greek article is therefore not otiose, but has its dis
tinctive and graphic force— Christ as the prophets foresaw Him, and we
know Him: the patience ofthe Christ. Comp. Rom. xv. 3, " The
Christ did not please Himself;" Eph. iv. 20, "You did not so learn
(get to know) the Christ,"— the great Ideal. We wish that the Revisers
had seen their way to restore to us the expressive definite article in such
passages. To "love God" was the Lord's "great and first commandment"
(Matt. xxii. 36 — 38); it is the soul of religion (see Rom. viii. 28; 1 Cor.
viii. 1 — 3; and 1 John, passim). "God our Father has loved" the
Thessalonian believers (ch. ii. 16); Christ must teach them to recipro
cate the Divine love, and in the strength of this love to endure evil
and sorrow even as He Himself endured.

Section V. Discipline for the Disorderly.
Ch. III. 6—15.
In his former letter St Paul had found it needful to exhort his
readers to live a quiet life and to attend to their daily duties and pur
suits. Some members of the Church were of an idle and improvident
disposition. The Day of the Lord, they supposed, was imminent, and
worldly occupations would therefore soon be at an end; the only
business worth minding any longer, so they said, was to prepare for
His coming. Their conduct was likely to bring discredit on the whole
community ; and they did it a material injury, by throwing the burden of
their maintenance on their hard working and charitable brethren (see
notes on 1 Ep. iv. 11, 12). These men were "the disorderly" of 1 Ep.
v. 12 — 14 (comp. vv. 7, 8 below) ; they gave trouble to the officers of the
Church, whom the Apostle in the First Epistle urges the Thessalonians
loyally to support (ch. v. 12), while they united to "admonish" the
offenders. This evil, which should have been checked by the reproofs
of the first letter, had grown to larger proportions. The startling
announcements that were made respecting the Second Advent, tended
to aggravate the mischief. Indeed these rumours so unhinged the
minds of some of the Thessalonian Christians, that it must have been
difficult for them, however diligently inclined, to pursue their common
avocations. And the Apostle, having calmed the agitation of his readers
by what he has written in the second chapter, proceeds now in strong
terms to rebuke the disorder which had thus been unhappily fostered
and stimulated.
The chief points in St Paul's charge on this subject are the following: 
(1) First, and last, he enjoins the avoidance of those who persist in
disorder, w. 6, 14 (whom notwithstanding he still, and pointedly, calls
"brethren," w. 6, 15) ; (2) he recalls his personal example and teaching
in their bearing on this matter, w. 7 — 10; and (3) he solemnly charges
the offenders to amend, ver. 12. '

v. 7- II. THESSALONIANS, III. 163
Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every
brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition
which he received of us. For yourselves know how ye ought 7
to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among
6. Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ] Or, But we charge you, brethren. See note, ver. 4.
St Paul has declared his confidence that the readers will do what he
enjoins. Well ! his injunction is this : that you withdraw your
selves from every brother walking disorderly. It is uttered "in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ," — a solemn judicial sentence (comp.
1 Cor. v. 4, 5) pronounced by the Apostle who acts as judge in
his Sovereign's name, and with the deepest sense of his responsibility ;
similarly, "through the Lord Jesus" in 1 Ep. iv. 2 (see note).
He does not wish these troublesome persons to be expelled; nor
does he invoke supernatural penalties upon them, as in the vastly worse
case of discipline at Corinth ; he directs the loyal Thessalonians not to
associate with them, nor lend countenance in any way to their pro
ceedings. On "walk," see note to 1 Ep. ii. 12; and on "disorderly,"
ver. 7 ; \ Ep'. v. 14.
The rule of order or disorder in the case in question is thus laid down :
and not after the tradition which they received of us (R. V.).
" They received " is the older reading, referring to the class of persons
just described as "eveiy brother walking disorderly." This slight gram
matical discord the ancient copyists corrected, some by writing "ye
received" (R. V. margin), and others "he received" (A. V).
On tradition (or instruction), see note to ch. ii. 15. The nature
of Paul's "tradition" at Thessalonica on Christian behaviour may be
gathered from the verses that follow, and from 1 Ep. ii. 9 — 12; iv. 1 — 12;
v. 12 — 24. It consisted of example equally with precept : —
7. For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us] Lit., imitate us :
see note on 1 Ep. i. 6 ; and again, ch. ii. 14, and ver. 9 below, you
know of yourselves — "without our needing to tell it all again." Such
references are frequent in these Epistles ; see note on i Ep. ii.i.
"How you ought to imitate us" points beyond the mere duty to the
spirit and manner of the imitation desired — "with what diligence
and devotion."
for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you] This "for"
differs from that at the beginning of the verse; it is a specifying for —
giving not a reason for what has just been said, but a definition of its
meaning: in that we did not play a disorderly part among you.
The readers' attention is called to this feature of the missionaries' con
duct, and imitation is recommended. There is a meiosis (or litotes) in the
expression, resembling that of ver. 2, and of 1 Ep. ii. 15 (see notes).
"Far indeed was our walk from giving an example of disorder ! " How
far, the next line shows.
To-be-disorderly (a single verb in the Greek) is a word applied to
soldiers out of rank. Officers in the army are as much subject to its
discipline as the rank and file ; and the Apostle Paul felt it to be due to

164 II. THESSALONIANS, III. w. 8, 9.
8 you; neither did we eat any maris bread for nought; but
wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we
9 might not be chargeable to any of you : not because we
the Churches over which he presided, that he should set an example of
a strictly ordered and self-denying life.
8. neither did we eat any man's bread for nought] This clause
follows up and makes application of the last, showing by contrast in
what lay the chief complaint against the "brethren walking disorderly."
They would not work for their bread, and seemingly expected the
Church to support them. The Church officers very properly resisted
this demand, telling them to return to their occupations ; so the
Apostle himself had directed in 1 Ep. iv. 11, 12. This some of them
refused to do; and they went up and down (ver. n) retailing their
supposed grievances, allying themselves with the false prophets of the
Parousia, and making all kinds of mischief. Such is the picture of this
unruly faction that we draw from the two Epistles. The fraternal
spirit of the Primitive Church and the readiness of its members to put
their goods at the common service (see Acts ii. 44, 45; iv. 32 —
35), were thus abused by idlers and fanatics — qualities not unfrequently
united — by men impatient of the monotony of daily toil, and who
found in spiritual excitement at once a diversion from irksome duty
and an excuse for its neglect.
To correct this morbid tendency was one reason of many for
which the Apostle practised manual labour. He tries to make these ill-
conducted men feel by his own example the disgrace of living, with
out an effort, at the cost of others : neither did we eat bread for
nought at any man's hand (R.V.) There was a manly pride about
St Paul in this matter. Comp. 2 Cor. xi. 9, 10, and 1 Cor. ix. 15:
"No man shall stop me of this glorying." — "To eat bread" is a
Hebraistic synonym for receive maintenance ; comp. 2 Sam. ix. 7.
but wrought with labour and travail night and day] Rather, but in
labour and travail, night and day working (R.V.). Here are two
clauses, the former standing in opposition to the foregoing sentence:
"It was not for nought that we ate our bread, but in labour and
travail;" then he continues, "working night and day." Dearly, and
with hard labour did St Paul and his comrades earn their daily bread.
The Thessalonians had seen him at his task. For the particular words
of this clause see 1 Ep. ii. 9, which it repeats almost identically.
that we might not be chargeable to any of you] More lit., that we
might not put a burden on any of you. Comp. again 1 Ep. ii. 9.
"The disorderly," without any right, were leaning heavily on their
brethren and taxing their charity ; the orderly apostles, with every right
to do so, had never charged them anything.
9. not because we have not power] Better, have not the right
(moral power, authority) — viz., "to lay the charge of our maintenance
upon the Church ; " see note on 1 Ep. ii. 6. In the other Epistle
St Paul refers to this matter in order to prove his earnest care for the
Thessalonian Church; but here, for the sake of making his behaviour

vv. io, ii. II. THESSALONIANS, III. 165
have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto
you to follow us. For even when we were with you, this 10
we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither
should he eat. For we hear that there are some which walk «
among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busy-
an example to them. Similarly in 1 Cor. x. 33; xi. 1 ; and Acts xx. 34,
35 ; compare with 2 Cor. xii. 14, 15.
but to make ourselves an ensample unto you, &c] Or, more freely
rendered : to furnish you with an example in ourselves, so that you
might imitate us. The apostles sacrificed their own rights and comfort
for the benefit of the Thessalonians (comp. 1 Ep. ii. 8, also i. 5),
wishing to supply them with the kind of example most suitable for
their imitation; and we learnt from 1 Ep. i. 5 — 7, that this purpose
had in most respects been realised.
On example (or pattern), see note to 1 Ep. i. 7 ; and on imitate
(follow, A. V.), 1 Ep. i. 6, and ver. 7 above.
10. For even when we were with you, this we commanded you]
Better, For also : St Paul's present charge on the subject repeats and
reinforces what he said in his oral teaching; this we used to charge
you — same verb as in w. 4 and 6 (see note), and same tense as in
ch. ii. 5 ("I was wont to tell you"), and r Ep. iii. 4 (see note). To
this original "charge" the Apostle referred in 1 Ep. iv. 11, touching
the same point; it formed part of "the tradition" which he and his
fellow-missionaries "delivered" to the Thessalonians (ver. 6, ch. ii. 15).
that if any would not work, neither should he eat] In the Greek this
is put vividly in direct narration : If any will not work, neither let
him eat. A stem, but necessary and merciful rule, the neglect of
which makes charity demoralising. But this law of St Paul's touches
the idle rich, as well as the poor; it makes that a discredit which
one hears spoken of as if it were a privilege and the mark of a
gentleman, — to "live upon one's means," to live without settled occupa
tion and service to the community — "natus consumere fruges."
The form of the Greek implies in this case a positive refusal to
labour : the man wont work (Latin nonvult operari). Then it is God's
law that he shall starve.
11. For we hear that there are some which walk among you dis
orderly] Rather, we hear of some walking, &c. It was not simply
that the Apostle heard that there were such people at Thessalonica;
he knew about them, — who they were, and how they were behaving.
Further news had come since he wrote the First Epistle, in which he
touched briefly, in mild and general terms, upon the subject (1 Ep. iv.
11, 12; v. 14). Now he is compelled to single out the offenders and to
address them with pointed censure. For similar allusions to reports
from a distant Church, comp. i Cor. i. 11; x. 18.
He writes, "some which walk among you disorderly" (not "some
among you which walk," &c), which implies that their public conduct
and relations with the rest of the Church were irregular.
On ' ' walk disorderly," see note to ver. 6.

166 II. THESSALONIANS, III. vv. 12, 13.
" bodies. Now them that are such we command and exhort
by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work,
»j and eat their own bread. But ye, brethren, be not weary
This disorder was not merely negative, consisting in refusal to work :
mischief and idleness are proverbially companions; and we are not
surprised to find the Apostle adding the further condemnation, that
work not at all, but are busybodies (R.V.).
There is a play of words in the Greek, which gives to this reproach
a keener edge, whose one business is to be busybodieB ; or rendered
still more freely, minding everybody's business but their own, — idly
busy with the concerns of others. These mischief-makers the Apostle
had already bidden to "study to be quiet and to do their own work"
(1 Ep. iv. 11); comp. the extended note on ver. 8 above. For the
same disposition St Paul in 1 Tim. v. 13 reproves certain "younger
widows" — "not only idlers, but tattlers also and busybodies."
For similar examples of paronomasia in St Paul, see vv. 2, 3 ("faith
...faithful"), Rom. i. 20 ("The unseen... clearly seen"); Introd. p. 33.
12. Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord
Jesus Christ] The "exhort" of the first Epistle (iv. 10) is now
charge and exhort, put with a new tone of sternness.
Not by but in the Lord Jesus Christ (R.V.) ; on this phrase— both as
to the preposition, and the triple name — see notes to vv. 4, 5 above, also
1 Ep. iv. r, i. 1 (p. 47). The appeal assumes a character of the most
grave urgency.
These idle meddlers, a burden and scandal to the Church, the
Apostle "charges, and appeals" to them, on the ground of their
relationship to Christ and with all the weight of Christ's authority
committed to him, that working with quietness, they eat their own
bread — not the bread of their honest and laborious brethren. See
notes to ver. 8, and 1 Ep. iv. 11.
In the Teaching ofthe Twelve Apostles (ch. i.), probably the oldest
Post- Apostolic writing extant, there is a remarkable warning addressed
both to givers and receivers of alms, which illustrates this passage :
" Blessed is he that giveth according to the commandment, for he is
guiltless. Woe to him that takes! For if indeed one takes out of
necessity, he will be guiltless; but he who takes without need shall give
account why he took, and for what purpose ; and thrown into prison
he will be examined respecting his conduct, and will not come out
thence until he has paid the uttermost farthing. Moreover, concerning
this matter it has been said : Let thine alms sweat into thy hands, until
thou knowest to whom thou shouldst give."
13. But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing] From this do-
nothing, or ill-domg fraction of the Church the Apostle turns to the
rest, who were busy in "well-doing," and bids them persevere. Como
ch. 11. 17 and note; also 1 Ep. i. 3, iv. 1, 10, for the diligent and
honourable character which in the main this Church bore.
The pronoun bears marked emphasis : But as for you, brethren —
in contrast with "them that are such," ver. 12. '

vv. 14, 15. II. THESSALONIANS, III. 167
in well doing. And if any man obey not our word by this 14
epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that
he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but 15
On "well-doing," see note to 1 Ep. v. 21. The word rendered
"well" here is "good" there ; it implies a fine quality of action.
The Greek verb for " be not weary " appears in other passages (e.g.
Luke xviii. 1; Gal. vi. 9) as "faint not," and signifies failure of courage
rather than of strength: do not falter in well-doing; comp. notes on
"stablish your hearts," ch. ii. 17 and 1 Ep. iii. 13. Perhaps the
Apostle's rebuke of "busy-bodies" and commendation of "quietness"
might have damped the ardour of some whose activity was praiseworthy,
had it remained unqualified. The misconduct of the unruly was of a
kind to disappoint and grieve all zealous friends of the Church.
14. And if any man obey not our word by this epistle] More strictly,
But if any one obeys not, &c. As the writer passes, by a contrasting
But in ver. 13, from the disorderly fraction to the well-conducted
majority of the Church, so he returns again from the latter to the
former, in order to give his final directions concerning them. "Obeys
not " (indicative) : the Apostle is not providing for a contingency, but
dealing with the existing case. The matter is put, according to the
Greek epistolary idiom, from the standpoint of the readers. The letter
has been read to the assembled Church ; the disorderly have received
the Apostle's message; some acknowledge their fault, and submit;
.others — one or more — are still refractory ; and he tells the Church how
it must now proceed.
"Our word through the Epistle," — i.e. what we say by this letter.
Word and Epistle were distinguished in ch. ii. 2, 15, here identified; the
letter has the force and authority of the writer's spoken word (see note
on ch. ii. 15).
note that man, and have no company with him] Better reading : note
that man, that ye have no company with him (R.V.); i.e., "mark
him as a man with whom you are not to associate," — literally, not to
be mixed up with him: comp. the use of the same verb in 1 Cor.
v. 9, 11. The "noting," one imagines, would be effected by publicly
naming the culprit in the Church as one disobedient to the Apostle's
command. This "mark" set on the obstinate breaker of rule is intended for his
good — to the end that he may be ashamed (R.V.), or abashed. This
is all the punishment desired for him. If shame is awakened in him,
when he finds himself condemned by the general sentiment and left
alone, this may be the beginning of amendment. Compare the direc
tions given in the extreme case of offence at Corinth, 2 Cor. ii. 6 — 8.
The door for repentance is left wide open.
15. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a
brother] Lit., And do not regard him as an enemy, &c. The R.V.
retains "yet" in italics ("And yet"); but the contrast thus implied is
not in St Paul's thought, any more than in his language. The measure
which he directs to be taken in ver. 14 is a saving measure, designed

i68 II. THESSALONIANS, III. v. lb.
16 admonish him as a brother. Now the Lord of peace himself
give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with
you all.
to bring the intractable man to a better mind — "that he may be
ashamed." Hence there must be no unkind feeling towards him, no
bitter expression. This would provoke him to suUenness instead of
shame, defeating the Apostle's purpose. In its sympathy with St Paul
the assembly might easily be stirred, on reading this letter, to some
hostile demonstration that would cause a decisive rupture; this he
deprecates. The instruction of ver. 6 was general in its terms, and would apply
to any sort of disorder; so the direction of i Ep. v. 14, "Admonish the
unruly." Those two injunctions are here combined, and enforced
in this specific instance. For in such a case the disorder takes the
form of open and avowed disobedience to the Apostle, such as the
Church is bound to deal with publicly and to put an end to. But even
now expulsion is not so much as named.

Conclusion of the Letter. Ch. III. 16 — 18.
16. Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all
means] Lit., But may the Lord, &c. ; for there is a contrast between
the directions just given and the peace for which the Apostle prays.
Peace was disturbed by an irritating kind of disorder in the Church,
by wild rumours and alarms respecting the Parousia (ch. ii. 1, 2),
as well as by the unrelenting persecution from without. St Paul has
done his best to tranquillize his readers' minds, and bring them all to a
sober and orderly condition. But he looks to " the Lord of peace
Himself" to shed on them His all-controlling and all-reconciling
influence. Christ is invoked as the Lord of peace (comp. ver. 5), just
as God was called "the God of peace" in 1 Ep. v. 23 (see note; and on
the import of "peace" in St Paul, note to 1 Ep. i. 1). Christ is Lord
and Disposer of the peace which the Gospel brings (comp. Col. iii. 1 5,
R.V.). This St Paul asks, first (ch. i. 2) and last, for the troubled and
harassed Thessalonians.
"Always" represents a different Greek adverb from that so often
used in these letters (1 Ep. i. 2, &c); it denotes not on every occasion,
but through all, — "continually," as the same adverb is rendered in
Luke xxiv. 53, Heb. xiii. 15 : the Lord. ..give you peace at all times
in all ways (R.V.).
Nor is it the Lord's sovereign peace alone, but the Lord Himself, in
His personal presence and authority (comp. Matt, xxviii. 18, 20), Whom
the Apostle invokes. The Lord be with you all, as in ver. 18, — not
excluding the "brother walking disorderly," who even more than
others needs the presence of the Lord and the virtue of His peace.
Comp. 1 Cor. xvi. 24, 2 Cor. xiii. 14, where the "all" ofthe Benediction
has a like pointed significance; also note on 1 Ep. v. 27.

vv. 17, 18. II. THESSALONIANS, III. 169
The salutation of Paul with mine own hand, which is the 17
token in every epistle : so I write. The grace of our Lord 18
Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
T The second epistle to the Thessalonians was written from
Athens. 17. The salutation of Paul with mine own hand] Lit. , The saluta
tion with my own hand — of PAUL. In the last word the Apostle's
formal signature is attached. Pen in hand, he adds the brief concluding
sentences to the letter, lying now all but complete before him.
The Apostle commonly employed one of his helpers as amanuensis.
"I Tertius, who wrote this letter," e.g., in Rom. xvi. 22; comp. Gal.
vi. n, Philem. 19, where he notifies his writing sua manu. But it was
needful that he should sign his name, with a few words of greeting
written by himself, in order to authenticate the Epistle. In other
Epistles we find the autograph conclusion without the final signature,
which was not usual in ancient letters. There is no reference of this
kind at the close of his First Epistle ; but since that time his written
authority had been alleged for statements he had never made (ch. ii. 2).
He is careful to guard against this possibility in writing to Thessalonica
a second time. He calls attention, as he pens this attestation, to his
handwriting, and gives notice that no document bearing his name will
be genuine without this seal: which is the token in every epistle
(" Paul's mark," as one might say) — thus I write.
There was something peculiar and noticeable in the Apostle's
penmanship, which could not be mistaken. Some infer from Gal.
vi. 11 that St Paul's script was distinguished by its large and bold
appearance ; but it may be that he used large characters in that passage
for the sake of emphasis. Further allusions to the autograph conclusion
are found in 1 Cor. xvi. 21, and Col. iv. 18.
18. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all] This
sealing Benediction is identical with that of ¦¦ Ep. v. 20 (see note), and
is repeated in Rom. xvi. 20, and Rev. xxii. 21. Only the Apostle adds
here, as in ver. 16 (see note), the "all" which is fitting where some had
been objects of censure.
The Amen oi the Received Text is absent in the oldest copies;
comp. 1 Ep. v. 28.
On the subscription, see note in : Epistle, and Introd. p. 27.

APPENDIX.
The Man of Lawlessness (or Man of Sin).
2 Thessalonians ii. i — 12.
To give a full account of the interpretation of 2 Thess. ii. 1 — 12 would
be almost the same thing as to write a history of Christendom. This is
one of those dark passages of Scripture which in ordinary Christian
teaching, and in peaceful and prosperous times, receive little attention ;
they are traversed with hasty step, and willingly dismissed as things
hard to be understood. But in seasons of conflict and danger, such
as those which gave them birth, and when some critical struggle arises
between the kingdoms of God and Satan, the Church turns to these
neglected prophecies ; from their obscurity there breaks out a new and
awful light ; again she hears in them the " voices and thunders " that
"proceed out of the Throne" and the shout of His coming Who
"brings forth judgement unto victory." To such epochs we must look
for the interpretation of these words of destiny. History is the expositor
of Prophecy. For the seeds of the future lie in the past ; and not the
seeds alone, its buddings and beginnings, its leaves and blossomings
are there, if we had eyes to see them. " First the blade, then the
ear," said Jesus, — " then the full corn in the ear." The growth is con
tinuous, until full ripeness.
Let us endeavour, therefore, to trace in its historical outline the
development of the doctrine of Antichrist— ^?>-.tf, as it appears in Scrip
ture ; and secondly, as it has been unfolded in the belief and teaching of
the Church. 1. The Apocalypse of Daniel.
We must go back to the Book of Daniel1 for the origin of St Paul's
conception of the Man of Lawlessness, as well as for that of the kindred
visions of St John. Daniel's Apocalypse has its starting-point in the
dream of Nebuchadnezzar (ch. ii.) : the Fourfold Metal Image, with its
feet of mixed iron and clay, broken in pieces by the " Stone cut out of
the mountain without hands." This dream takes another and enlarged
form in Daniel's first Vision, that of the Four Wild Beasts (ch. vii.).
1 See the article in Smith's" Bible Dictionary, by Bishop Westcott, on the Book of
Daniel. There is nothing written on the subject, within our knowledge, more nene
traling and suggestive. v c

APPENDIX. 171

Amidst the " ten horns" of the fourth Beast there springs up "a little
horn," before which "three of the first horns were plucked up by the
roots, " having ' ' eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking
great things " (ver. 8). In a moment the scene is changed : the
" thrones " of the Last Judgement are placed ; " the Ancient of Days "
is beheld sitting; and there is "brought near before Him" the
"One like unto a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven,"
whom the Lord Jesus at the High Priest's tribunal identified with
Himself. To Him the prophet assigns universal and everlasting
dominion (w. a — 14). As the judgement is proceeding, and before the
appearance of the glorified Son of Man, the fourth Beast is slain and
"his body destroyed, and given to be burned with fire" (ver. n),
" because of the voice of the great words which the little horn spake."
The idea is here presented of a cruel, haughty and triumphant military
power, to be overthrown suddenly by the judgement of God, whose
fall, apparently, gives the signal for the establishment of the kingdom of
heaven, which is to be ruled by one like unto a son of man yet sharing
the Divine attributes.
In the next vision, ch. viii., of the duel between the Ram and the
He-goat the Little Horn reappears, and takes on a distinct personal
shape. He becomes " a king of fierce countenance and understanding
dark sayings," who will " destroy (or corrupt) the people of the saints. . .
and stand up against the Prince of princes ; but shall be broken without
hand" (vv. 22 — 25). The third vision, ch. xi. — of the wars of North
and South — leads up to a further description of the great Oppressor, in
which his atheism forms the most conspicuous feature : ' ' Arms shall
stand on his part, and they shall profane the sanctuary... and they shall
set up the abomination that maketh desolate... And the king shall do
according to his will ; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself
above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of
gods : and he shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished " (vv.
31 — 36). This series of tableaux gives a continuous view of a polity or
empire evolved out of the warring kingdoms of this world, from which
emerges at last a monster of wickedness armed with all earthly power
and bent on the destruction of Israel's God and people, in whose
person the realm of evil receives its decisive judgement.
2. The Messianic Times.
Antiochus Epiphanes1, it is agreed, was the primary subject of
Daniel's visions of judgement. In his overthrow, and in the Maccabean
revival of the nationality of Israel, this Apocalypse had its verification;
it received a fulfilment adequate and appropriate to the age. But when
1 Antiochus IV., or Antiochus Epiphanes — i.e. the Brilliant, called also in mockery
Epimanes, the Madman — was the seventh king of the Graeco-Syrian dynasty of the
Seleucids, and reigned from 175 to 164 B.C. His father was Antiochus III. (called
the Great), after whose defeat by the Romans (188 B.C.) he was given to them as
a hostage, and brought up at Rome. He returned to take his father's throne, full of
wild ambition and of reckless impiety and prodigality. On the character and career
of Antiochus Epiphanes see Stanley's History of the Jewish Church, vol. in ;
Ewald's History 0/ Israel, vol. v. (Eng. Trans.); Smith's Bible Dictionary.

172 APPENDIX.

the period of the Maccabees was past, and no further sign appeared of
the Messiah, it grew plain to believing readers that the revelation had a
further import. In this faith the sufferings of the Jewish people under
the Herodian and Roman oppression were endured, as "birth-pangs of the
Messiah;" it was felt that Israel's hope was nigh at hand, even at the
doors. Our Lord by assuming the title Son of Man appealed to and
justified the expectations of those who in His day " looked for Israel's
redemption," — expectations founded to no small extent upon the Apo
calypse of Daniel, and coloured by its imagery. Again "the abomina
tion of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet," was to "stand in
the Holy Place" (Matt. xxiv. 15) ; and the "sign ofthe Son of Man"
would be "seen in heaven," and at last the Son of Man Himself,
"coming with the clouds ofheaven" (Matt. xxiv. 30, xxvi. 64).
But the Messianic anticipations of our Lord's time, being drawn from
this source, could hardly fail to be attended with their counterpart in the
image of Daniel's Antichrist. In later Judaism Antichrist was known
as Armillus (or Armalgus), under which name he figures largely in the
Jewish fables of the Middle Ages, the Rabbinical conception being
developed in forms partly analogous and partly hostile to the Christian
doctrine. Armillus appears already in the Targum of Jonathan upon
Isai. xi. 4, the passage quoted by our Apostle in ver. 8 above : " With the
breath of His lips shall He (Messiah) slay Armillus, the wicked one."
This interpretation was traditional, and may have been older than
Christianity. The existence of an earlier Jewish doctrine of Antichrist,
in however incipient a form, would make it easier to understand the
rapid development which this conception receives in the New Testa
ment, and the manner in which it appeals to the mind of the Apostolic
Church. The words of Christ fixed the attention of His first disciples upon
Daniel's prophecies, and supplied the impulse and starting-point from
which proceeded the revival of the O.T. Apocalypse in the teaching of
SS. Paul and John. Besides His express citations of Daniel, there were
other traits in our Lord's picture of the Last Things — the predictions of
national conflict, of persecutions from without and defections within
His Church (Matt. xxiv. 3 — 13) — which reproduced the general charac
teristics of this prophet's visions, and lent emphasis to the specific and
most solemn references that He made to them. His use of this
obscure and suspected Book has raised it to a position of high honour
and importance in the regard of His Church.
3. Antichrist in the Book of Revelation.
St Paul treats the subject in the passage before us in an incidental
fashion, and nowhere in his extant Epistles does he again advert to it.
His language, so far as it goes, is very positive and definite. There is
scarcely a more matter-of-fact prediction in the Bible. While he
refuses to give any chronological datum, his description of the per
sonality of Antichrist is vividly distinct ; and he asserts the connection
between his appearance and Christ's return from heaven with an
explicitness that leaves no room for doubt as to his meaning. But John's

APPENDIX. 173

Apocalypse was cast in a different mould. Like that of Daniel, his
revelation came through visions, received apparently in a passive and
ecstatic mental state, and clothed in a mystic robe of imagery through
which it is difficult and indeed impossible altogether to distinguish the
body and substance of truth, which one feels nevertheless to be every
where present underneath it. St John's visions border upon those "un
speakable things " of " the third heaven," which it may be lawful for
the human soul in rare moments of exaltation to see and hear, but not
"to utter" in clear discourse of reason (2 Cor. xii. 2 — 4).
. The visions of the Wild Beast, contained in Revelation xiii. — xx., do
nevertheless present a tolerably distinct and continuous picture; and
it is just in this part of John's Apocalypse that it comes into line
with the Apocalypses of Daniel and Paul, and, as at least it seems
to us, into connection with the course of secular history then proceed
ing. It accords with the nature of the two Revelations that St John's
mind is possessed by the symbolic idea of the Horned Wild Beast of
Daniel (chh. vii., viii.), while St Paul reflects in his Man of Lawlessness
the later and more definite form which Daniel's conception of the great
enemy of God assumes in ch. xi. But the representations of the two
Apostles coincide in their essential features. The first Beast of St John,
seven-headed and ten-horned, receives the "power and throne of the
Dragon and great authority," from "him that is called Devil and the
Satan, that deceives the whole world" (Rev. xii. 9, xiii. 1, 2), just as St
Paul's Lawless One comes " according to the working of Satan " and
"in all deceit of unrighteousness" (vv. 9, 10). He " opens his mouth
in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and tabernacle "
and everything Divine; and "all that dwell in the earth worship him,"
whose names were "not written in the book of life; " and "torment" is
promised to them, who "worship the Beast and his image" (Rev. xiii.
5 — 8 ; xiv. 11): so the Man of Lawlessness " exalts himself against all
that is called God or worshipped," he "takes his seat in the temple of
God, setting himself forth as God;" and men are found to "believe the
lie," who will be "judged" for their "pleasure in unrighteousness" and
are of "them that perish" (vv. 4, 10 — 12). Again, the authority of the
Wild Beast is vindicated by means of "great signs," through which
"they that dwell on the earth are deceived" (Rev. xiii. 13, 14): simi
larly, in our Apostle, Satan's great emissary " comes with aU power and
signs and wonders of falsehood" (vv. 9, 10). This token of false mira-
cles was furnished by our Lord as the sign of " false Christs and false pro
phets" generally (Matt. xxiv. 24). Finally, having "come up out ofthe
abyss," the Wild Beast "goes into perdition" (Rev. xvii. 8), like the
Lawless One, with his Satanic coming, who is "the son of perdition"
(vv. 3, 9).
The ten-homed Beast of John is set forth as the secular antagonist
of the Man-child, son of the Woman1, who was born "to rule all the
nations," as His would-be destroyer and the usurper of His throne;
1 Mr W. H. Simcox with good reason sees the woman who brings forth the Man-
child, and then "flies into the wilderness unto her place" till the appointed time, in
the Jewish Church: see his notes, in Cambridge Bible for Schools, on Rev. xii.
Comp. Rom. ix. 5, "of whom is the Christ according to flesh."

174 APPENDIX.

by Whom at last when He appears as Conqueror upon the "white
horse1," the Beast is taken and cast with his followers "into the lake
that burneth with fire and brimstone " (comp. Rev. xii. with xiii., and
then see ch. xix. n — 21). This conflict translates into an expanded
picture the antagonism between the Lord Jesus and the Lawless One,
Christ and Antichrist, which breathes in every syllable of St Paul's
condensed and pregnant lines. The outlines etched in rapid strokes by
Paul's sharp needle, are thrown out upon the glowing canvas of the
Apocalypse in idealized and visionary shape ; but the same conception
dominates the imagination of the seer of Patmos which haunts the
writer of this sober and calm Epistle.
The first Wild Beast of Rev. xiii. is the centre of a group of symbolic
figures. There "comes up out of the earth another Beast," kindred
to him, and called afterwards the ' ' false prophet, " who acts as his apostle,
re-establishing his power after the deadly wound he received, and per
forming the "signs" by which his worship is supported and enforced.
To this second actor, therefore, a religious part is assigned, resem
bling that of a corrupt Church serving a lawless, despotic State. The
False Prophet supplies a necessary link between the Apostasy and the
Lawless One of 2 Thess. ii. 3; by his agency the "lying miracles" of
ver. 10 are provided, and superstition is enlisted in the service of atheism.
While the Beast has the False Prophet by his side for an auxiliary, he
carries on his back the Harlot-woman, the antithesis of the Church,
Christ's Bride. She is identified in the plainest manner with the im
perial city of Rome. On her forehead stands written the legend, "Mys
tery, Babylon the Great, the mother of the harlots and the abominations
of the earth." This is but Paul's "mystery of iniquity" writ large and
illuminated. What Babylon was to O.T. prophecy, that Rome became
to the prophets of the New, being the centre of the world's evil and the
nidus of its future development. And the imperial house of Rome — Nero
in particular for St Paul, and Domitian, probably, as Nero redivivus for
St John — held to the prophetic spirit of the Apostles a relation similar
to that of the Syrian monarchy and Antiochus Epiphanes toward the
prophecy of Daniel, serving as a proximate and provisional goal of its
anticipations, the object around which the secular forces of evil were
about to gather and the fittest type of their further and ultimate evo
lution. But as history pursued its course and the Church passed beyond
its Apostolic horizon, the new Apocalypse was found like the old
to have a wider scope. The Wild Beast survived many wounds ; it
survived the fall of the great city, mistress of the earth, — the Woman
whom John saw riding upon its back. The end was not yet; the word
of prophecy must run through new circles of fulfilment.
It is only in the barest outline that we may pursue the subsequent
history of the doctrine of Antichrist2. It has passed through four
principal stages.
1 In the Conqueror's name of Faithful and True, and in the "righteousness" with
which "He judges and makes war," and "the righteous acts of the saints"  the
"fine linen, clean and white" which clothes His army— we may see another antithesis
to the moral picture given in 2 Thess. ii. 10 — 12.
2 For the history of this question, see the Article Antichrist, Vol. i. (2nd ed ) 0f

APPENDIX. 175

4. Antichrist in the Early Church.
In the age of the early Church, ending with the conversion of the
Empire and the Fall of Rome (410 A.D.), one consistent view prevailed
upon this subject, — viz. that Antichrist was an individual destined one
day to overthrow the Roman Empire and to establish a rule of con
summate wickedness, which would quickly be terminated by the ap
pearing of the Lord Jesus from heaven. Chrysostom probably repre
sents the popular belief when he speaks of Nero as "a type of Anti
christ," and "the mystery of iniquity already working." In the earliest
times men associated with this tradition the expectation, long current in
the East, of Nero's return and re-inthronement.
Many of the Fathers, after the manner of 1 John ii. 18 — 22, pointed
out the workings of Antichrist in the various forms of heresy. It was
frequently inferred from 2 Thess. ii. 4 that the Jewish Temple would
in the last days be rebuilt in Jerusalem, and made the seat of Antichrist's
empire and worship. In connection with this opinion, a Jewish origin
(from the tribe of Dan, Gen. xlix. 17) was assigned to the Man of Sin.
Others regarded the Church, either in a spiritual or local sense, as "the
temple of God" signified by St Paul (see note on ver. 4).
"The withholder" was commonly understood to be the Roman
Empire, with its fabric of civil polity, — Romanus status, as Tertullian
says; its downfall imported the end of the world to the Church of
the first three centuries. By some the withholding influence was seen in
the Holy Spirit, or in His miraculous gifts.

5. Antichrist in the Middle Ages.
The Western Empire was submerged under barbarian invasions. But
the fabric of society still held together ; and out of the chaos of the
early Middle Ages there gradually arose the modern polity of the
Romanized European nations, with the Papal See for its spiritual
centre, and the revived Roman Empire of Charlemagne — magni no-
minis umbra — holding the leadership of the new world (800 A.D.).
Meanwhile the ancient Empire maintained a sluggish existence in the
New Rome of Constantine on the Bosphorus, where it arrested for
centuries the destructive forces of Mohammedanism, until their energy
was comparatively spent. This change in the current of history, fol-
Smith's Bible Dictionary, also Herzog's Real-Encyklapadie (2nd ed.). There are
valuable dissertations on "The Man of Sin" by Liinemann (Meyer's Handbook),
Riggenbach (Lange's Commentary), and Olshausen ad loc, also in Alford's Prole
gomena to the Epp. Dollinger elucidates the subject with great learning and exact
ness in Appendix I. to his First Age of the Church (translated by Oxenham); and
Eadie in the Appendix to his Commentary on Thessalonians. For the interpreta
tion of the parallel texts in the Apocalypse, see Simcox's Notes in this Series and
his most interesting and valuable Introduction. As to the bearings of the sub
ject on the doctrines of Eschatology at large, see the profound remarks of Dorner
in his System of Christian Doctrine, vol. iv, 373 — 401 (Eng. Trans.). We find our
selves in general agreement with Dorner, Olshausen, Riggenbach, Alford, Ellicott,
Eadie ; and, to a large extent, with Hofmann.

176 APPENDIX.

lowing upon the union of Church and State under Constantine, discon
certed the Patristic reading of prophecy. And the interpretation of
Scripture, along with the general cultivation of the human mind, fell
into decline after the fourth century. Things present absorbed the
energy and thought of the Church to the exclusion of things to come.
The Western Church was occupied in converting and assimilating the
Barbarian hordes, the Eastern Church was struggling for its very
existence against Islam; while they contested with each other for
supremacy. For the most part, the teaching of the Fathers respecting
Antichrist was repeated by medieval divines, and embroidered with their
fancies. Gradually new interpretations forced themselves to the front. The
Greeks naturally saw "the lawless one" in Muhammad, and "the
apostasy" in the falling away of so many Eastern Christians to his
delusions. In the West, the growing arrogance of the Bishops of Rome
and the traditional connection of Antichrist with Rome united to suggest
the idea of a Papal Antichrist. This view has high Papal authority in
its favour; Gregory I. (or the Great, 590 A.D.), denouncing the assump
tions of the contemporary Byzantine Patriarch, wrote as follows : "Ego
autem fidenter dico quia quisquis se universalem sacerdotem vocat, vel
vocari desiderat, in elatione sua Antichristum pra>currit ;" he further
styles the title of Universal Priest "erroris nomen, stultum ac super-
bum vocahaSxan... nomen blasphemia." By this just sentence the later
Roman Primacy is marked out as another type of Antichrist.
In the 13th century, when Gregory VII. (or Hildebrand, 1073 — 1085
AD.) and Innocent III. (1198 — 1216 A.D.) had raised the power ofthe
Roman See to its highest point, this doctrine was openly declared by the
supporters of the Hohenstaufen Emperors ; and the German State re
sumed the office of the Roman State as "the restrainer" of the Man of
Sin. This century witnessed a general revival of religious zeal, of
which the rise of the Waldenses, the theology of Thomas Aquinas, the
founding of the Dominican and Franciscan orders, the immortal poem
of Dante, and the widespread revolt and protest against 'the corrup
tions of Rome were alike manifestations. This awakening was attended
with a renewal of Apocalyptic study. The numbers of Dan. xii. 6 —
13, Rev. xii. 6, &c. , gave rise to the belief that the year 1260 would
usher in the final conflict against Antichrist and the end of the world ;
while the invasion of the Mongols and the intestine divisions of Chris
tendom threatened it with destruction. In the East, by adding 666, "the
number of the Beast" (Rev. xiii. 18) to 622, the date of the Hejira, it
was calculated that Mohammedanism was about to meet its doom. This
crisis also passed, and the world went on its way. But it remained
henceforth a fixed idea, proclaimed by every dissenter from the Roman
See, that Antichrist would be found on the_ Papal throne. So the
Waldenses, Huss, Savonarola, and our own Wickliff taught1.
1 We must distinguish, however, between an Antichrist and the Antichrist A
sincere Roman Catholic might assign to this or that unworthy Pope a place amo'na-st
the "many Antichrists," adopting St John's expression in 1 Ep. ii. ts . 35 jn-jjld
Romanists have done in the case of Luther and others of their opponents without
supposing the Apostle's prophecy to be in this way absolutely fulfilled. '

APPENDIX. 177

6. The Lutheran Doctrine of Antichrist.
Martin Luther's famous protest adversus execrabilem bullam Anli-
christi inaugurated the Protestant Reformation (1320 A.D.). It was
one of his firmest convictions, shared by all the great Reformers, that
the Papal system was the Antichrist of prophecy; Luther expected
that it would shortly be destroyed by Christ in His second advent. This
belief was made a formal dogma of the Lutheran Church by the standard
Articles of Smalkald (1537 A.D.)1. It has a place in the English Bible ;
the translators in their address to King James I. credit that monarch
with having given, by a certain tractate he had published, "such a blow
unto that Man of Sin, as will not be healed. " Bishop Jewel's Expo
sition of the Thessalonian Epistles, delivered in the crisis of England's
revolt from Rome, gives powerful expression to the Lutheran view. In
the 17th Century, however, this interpretation was called in question
amongst English Divines. Amongst its recent advocates, the late Bishop
Wordsworth, in his Lectures on the Apocalypse and Commentary on the
Greek Testament, has supplied a learned and most earnest vindication.
This theory has impressive arguments in its favour, drawn both from
Scripture and history. It contains large elements of truth. But mar.y
reasons forbid us to identify the Papacy with the Man of Lawlessness.
Two must here suffice. (1) St Paul's words describe, as the early Fathers
saw, u personal Antichrist; they cannot be satisfied by any mere suc
cession of men, or system of Antichristian evil. (2) His Man of Lawless
ness is to be the avowed opposer and displacer of God. Now, however
gross the idolatry of which the Pope has been made the object, and
however daring and blasphemous the arrogance of some occupants of
the Papal Chair, one must seriously weaken and distort the words of
the Apostle to adjust them to the Romanist pretensions. It is not true,
in any strict sense ofthe words, that the Bishop of Rome "exalts him
self against every one called God and every object of worship." The
Roman Catholic system has multiplied, instead of abolishing objects of
worship ; its ruling errors have been those of superstition, not of atheism.
At the same time, its exaltation of the Pope and the priesthood has
debased the religious instinct of Christendom, and has nursed the spirit
of anthropolatry — the man-worship, which St Paul believed was to
have in the Man of Lawlessness its supreme object. Romanist teaching
has prepared a fruitful soil for the seeds of atheism. It enervates the
conscience, and loosens the bonds of moral obligation2.
7. Antichrist in Modern Times.
It would occupy several pages merely to state the various theories
promulgated upon this mysterious subject in recent times.
1 Melanchthon admitted a second Antichrist in Muhammad. He distinguished
between the Eastern and Western Antichrists. The conjunction of Pope and Turk
was common with our Protestant forefathers.
8 Whatever is said in condemnation of the Romanist system, is said in remem
brance and joyful recognition of the fact that_ within the Roman communion there
are multitudes of sincere and exemplary Christians.
THESS. 12

178 APPENDIX.  ___
Not the least plausible is that which saw "the apostasy" in the later
developments of the French Revolution, with its apotheosis of an aban
doned woman in the character of Goddess of Reason, and wbicn iden
tified Napoleon Buonaparte with the Man of Sin. The Empire ot
Napoleon was essentially a restoration of the military Csesarism ot the
first century. He came within a little of making himself, like Julius
Caesar, dictator of the civilized world. To our minds, this unscrupulous
despot, with his superb genius and insatiable egotism — the offspring
and the idol, till he became the scourge of a godless democracy— is in
the true succession of Antiochus Epiphanes and Nero Csesar. He has
set before our times a new and commanding type of the Lawless One.
Nor is godlessness wanting in a bold and typical modern expression.
Following upon the negative and destructive atheism of the last century,
the scientific, constructive and humanistic atheism of this century has built
up for itself an imposing system of thought and life. The theory of
Positivism, as it was propounded by its great apostle, Auguste Comte,
culminates in the doctrine that "Man is man's god." God and immor
tality, with the entire world of the supernatural, this philosophy abo
lishes in the name of science and modern thought. It sweeps them
out of the way in order to make room for le grand fire huviain,
or collective humanity ; which is to command our worship through the
memory of its heroes and men of genius, and in the person of woman,
adored within the family. This scheme of religion Comte worked out
with the utmost seriousness, and furnished with an elaborate hierarchy
and ritual, based on the Roman Catholic model. Although Comte's
religion of humanity is disowned by many of his followers, it is a phe
nomenon of great significance and interest. It testifies to the persist
ence of the religious instinct in our nature ; and it shews the direction
which that instinct is compelled to take when deprived of its rightful
Object (see the Apostle's words in Rom. i. 23). Comte would carry us
back, virtually, to the Pagan adoration of deified heroes and deceased
Emperors, or to the Chinese worship of family ancestors. Moreover,
Positivism provides in its Great Being an abstraction which, so far as it
takes possession of the human mind, must inevitably tend to realise
itself in concrete personal shape. It sets up a throne of worship which
the man of destiny will be forthcoming "in his season" to occupy.
Since the time of Hugo Grotius (1583 — 1645 A.D.), the famous Dutch
Protestant scholar, theologian, and statesman, numerous attempts have
been made to demonstrate the fulfilment of N.T. prophecy within the
Apostolic, or Post-apostolic age. This line of interpretation was adopted
by Catholic theologians, as by Bossuet in the 17th century and Dol
linger1 in our own times, partly by way of return to the Patristic view,
and partly in defence against Protestant exegesis. These prceterist
theories, restricting the application of St Paul's prediction to the first
1 Dollinger sees "the Lawless One" in Nero, in the first instance; and "the
Withholder" — or, as he prefers to render the word, "the Occupier" (viz. of the seat of
power)— in Claudius,. Nero's predecessor: the latter a very improbable identification.
He does not suppose the meaning of the prophecy exhausted by this first fulfilment'
but expects a second at the end of the world. All intermediate applications he
regards as speculative and illegitimate.

APPENDIX. 17Q

age of the Church, in various ways strain and minimize his language, in
attempting to make it square with actual events. Or else they assume,
as rationalistic interpreters complacently do, that such prophecies were
incapable of real fulfilment, and have been refuted by the course of his
tory. Almost every Roman Emperor, from Caligula down to Trajan —
some even of later times — has been adopted in turn for the Man of
Sin or the Restrainer by one or other of the commentators. Nero
figures in both characters ; so does Vespasian. Others hold — and this
view is partly combined with the last, as e.g. by Grotius — that Simon
Magus, the traditional father of heresy, was the Lawless One ; while
others, again, see "the mystery of iniquity" in the Jewish nation ofthe
Apostle's time. Outside the secular field, the power of the Holy Spirit,
the decree of God, the Jewish Law, the believing remnant of Judaism,
the Christian Church, and even Paul himself have been put into the
place of "that which withholdeth," by earlier or later authors. But
these fancies have never obtained much acceptance.
Like other great prophecies of Scripture, this word of the Apostle
Paul has, it appears to us, a progressive fulfilment. It is carried
into effect from time to time, under the action of Divine laws ope
rating throughout human history, in partial and transitional forms,
which prefigure and may contribute to its final realization. For such
prophecies are inspired by Him Who " worketh all things after the
counsel of His will;" and they rest upon the principles of God's moral
government, and the abiding facts of human nature. We accept, with
Chrysostom, an earnest of the accomplishment of St Paul's prediction in
the person of Nero. We recognize, with the later Greek Fathers and
Melanchthon, that there are plain Antichristian tokens and features in
the polity of Muhammad. We recognize, with Gregory I. and the
Protestant Reformers, a prelude of Antichrist's coming and conspicuous
traits of his character in the spiritual despotism of the See of Rome ;
and we sorrowfully mark in the history of the Church how the tares
ever grow beside the wheat, and in what manifold forms "the apostasy"
which prepares the way of Antichrist and lays the foundations of his
rule, has continued its baleful working. We agree with those who
discern in the Napoleonic idea an ominous revival of the lawless abso
lutism and worship of human power that prevailed in the age of the
Caesars; while Positive and materialistic philosophy, with sensualistic
ethics, unless we are much deceived, are making for the same goal1.
1 The following extract from Comte's CaUchisme Positiviste is a striking proof of
the readiness with which scientific atheism may join hands with political absolutism :
" Au nom du pass£ et de l'avenir, les serviteurs tbeoriques et les serviteurs pratiques
de L'Humanite viennent prendre dignement la direction generale des affaires
terrestres, pour construire enfin la vraie providence, morale, intellectuelle, et mate"-
rielle; en excluant irreVocablement de la suprematie politique tous les divers esclaves
de Dieu, Catholiques, protestants, ou ddistes, comme etant a la fois arrieres et pertur-
bateurs." — The true Pontifical style 1 It is not a very long step from these words
to that which the Apostles intimate in 2 Thess. ii. 4 and Rev. xiii. 16, 17, &c. It
is significant that Comte issued this Catechism of the new religion just after the coup
d'etat of Louis Napoleon, whom he congratulates on "the happy crisis"! In the same r
preface he does homage to the Emperor Nicholas of Russia, as "the sole truly emir^t
chief of whom our century can claim the honour, up to the present time." Comte's
^ -12— -2

180 APPENDIX. 
The history of the world is one ; the first century lives over again in
the nineteenth. All the factors of evil co-operate, as do those of good.
There are, in truth, but two kingdoms, of Satan and of Christ ; though to
our eyes their forces lie scattered and confused, and we distinguish ill
between them. But the course of time quickens its pace, as if nearing
some great issue. Science has given an immense impetus to human pro
gress in all directions, and moral influences propagate themselves with
greater speed than heretofore. There is going on a rapid interchange
and interfusion of thought, a unifying of the world's life, and a gathering
together of the forces on either side to " the valley of decision," that
seem to portend some world-wide spiritual crisis, in which the glorious
promises, or dark forebodings of revelation, or both at once, will be
anew fulfilled. But still Christ's words stand, as Augustine said, to
"put down the fingers of all the calculators1." It is not for us to know
times or seasons. What backward currents may arise in our secular
progress, what new seals are to be opened in the book of human fate,
and through what cycles the evolution of God's purpose for mankind
has yet to run, we cannot guess.
The first disciples deemed themselves to live already in the dawn
of the world's closing day. We in its later hours keep watch for the
Lord Who said, "Behold, I come quickly," — yet seems to tarry. Be it
ours, none the less, with unwearied love and faith to repeat the cry
which has never ceased from the lips of the Church, the Bride of
Christ : COME, LORD JESUS !
ignorance of politics is some excuse for these blunders ; but the conjunction remains
no less significant. Faith in God and faith in freedom are bound up together. See
Arthur's Physical and Moral Law, pp. 231 — 237 ; and his Religion without God,
on Positivism generally.
1 "Omnes calculantium digitos resolvit;" on Matt. xxiv. 36.

INDEX.

Words specially defined or explained are printed in italics. Such
references are omitted as are sufficiently indicated by chapter and
verse of the two Epistles. Csesarism, 20 — 1, 145-^9, 178 — 9
Caligula, Emperor Caius, 21, 145
chastity, 21, 25, 93 — 7
Christ Jesus, the title, 74
Chrysostom, 56, 108, 146, 157 ; on Anti
christ, 1 75
churchy 47, 74, 115
Cicero, 11
Claudius, Emperor, 27, 17S
clergy, 116 — 7
Colossians, Ep. to, 11, 46, 54, 91, 105,
115, 131, 137, 158
comfort, 82
coming, second, of the Lord Jesus, its
place in the Epp., 18 — 21, 25 — 6, 29 —
31, 35 — 7; other reff., 59—60, 80, 90 — ¦
1, 100 — 16, 123 — 4, 132 — 7, 149 — 50,
156, 170 — 80
Comte, his new religion, 178 — 9
conduct of Paul at Thess., 22 — 4, 60 — 72,
164—5
Constantinople, 175
conversion of Thess., 14 — 5, 53 — 9, 72 —
4, 155
Corinth, 22, 27, 56, 159
Corinthians, 1 Ep. to, on the Parousia,
36, 105 — 6 ; other reff., 31, 49 — 50, 58,
64, 66, 82, 94, 114, 120, .152, 157, 165
Corinthians, 2 Ep. to, 32, 36, 46, 66 — g,
81, 86 — 7, 104, 106, 114, 121, 129, 131,
134, 152, 159. l64> 167, 173
cross of Christ, 48, 60, 114

Achaia, 23, 55 — 7 ; see -map
Acts of Apostles, comp. with 1 and 2
Thess., 13 — 6, 18 — 20, 22 — 3, 27, 34 —
6; other reff, 46, 62, 64, 66, 68, 75—7,
81, 98, 145, 148, 159, 164
address of ancient letters, 45
advent (see coming)
^Egean Sea, 10
affection of Paul for Thess., 35, 67 — 8,
78 — 80, 84 — 90, 128 — 9; of Thess. for
Paul, 85—6
Alford, 54, 175
Amos, Book of, no
analysis ofthe Epp,, 37 — 8
Antichrist, 139—53; in Daniel, 170 — 1;
in Messianic times, 171 — 2; in Reve
lation, 172 — 4; in 1 John, 175 — 6; in
Early Church, 175; in Middle Ages,
175— -6; in modern times, 177 — 80;
Eastern and Western views of, 176" — 7;
Lutheran doctrine of, 177; supposed
Jewish origin of, 175
Antiochus Epiphanes, 144, 171, 174
Apocalypse, of Daniel (see Daniel); of
John (see Revelation) ; of Paul, 26* —
31, 100 — 16, 129 — 53, 170 — 80
apostle, twofold meaning of, 66
Aristarchus, n
Armillus, 172
atheism, 143 — 6, 178
Athens, 18 — 9, 22, 27, 79, 81 — 2
atonement, doctrine of, 17, 114
Augustine, 67, 180
Augustus, the imperial title, 145
Bashkirtseff, Marie, Journal of, 101
Baur, F. C, 26, 28—9
beast, the wild, of Revelation, 143 ; the
first and second, 173 — 4; the four, of
Daniel, 171
Bengel, 40, 59. 77. z5°
Berosa, 16, 22, 81, 98
body, the human, 94, 123
Byzantine Empire, 12, 148, 175

Daniel, Book of, 34, 71, 105, T43 — 6, 170
— 2, 176; Christ's use of, 172
day of the Lord, in the O. T., 108 — 9;
in the N. T. and Paul, 19, 21, 26, 60,
- &c.
Demas, n
Demetrius, St, n — 2
Deuteronomy, Book of, 34, 132, 142, 154
diligence, 99, — 100
discipline, need of, 26, 31, 118, 162 — 8
Divinity of Christ, 47, 75, 88 — o

182

INDEX.

DSllinger, on Man of Sin, 175, 178
Domitian, Emperor, 174
Dorner, 148, 175
ecclesia (see church)
edification, common office of Christians,
115 — 6, 167 — 8
election, by God, 51 — 3, 154 — 5
EUicott, Bp., 51, 88, &c.
ellipsis, 33, 142, 147
Emperors, Roman, 15, 146, 174
Ephesians, Ep. to, 33, 71, 96, 100, 112 — 3,
115 — 6, 118, 138, 160, 162
epistles of Paul, their origin, 24 ; cha
racter, 32 — 3; arrangement, 45; au
thority, 157, 167; abuse of, 141; au
thenticity guarded, 169; reading en
joined, 125
eschatology (see coming, and Antichrist),
35—7. 175
ethics (see morals)
Eustathius, Bp. of Thess., 12
Exodus, Book of, 58
Ezekiel, Book of, 69, 109, 144
Fathers, the Early, on Antichrist, 175
Finlay, on Byzantine Empire, 148
French Revolution, and Antichrist, 178
Gabriel, the archangel, 105
Galatians, Ep. to, 13, 32, 47 — 8, 58, 66,
86j 97, 114, 131, 138
Gallio, 75 — 6, 148
Genesis, Book of, 34, 77, 175
Gentiles, Epp. addressed to, 17 — 8, 33 —
4, 58, &c.
God, doctrine of, 17-^, 48, 58, 64, 70 — 2,
122, 124, 133, 152, 157
gospel, the, how it came to Thess., 13 —
6; of Paul at Thess., 16" — 22, 114; a
gospel to Paul from Thess. , 85
grace, of God, 47 — 8, 138, &c.
Gregory I., on Antichrist, 176, 179
Grotius, Hugo, 26, 106; on Antichrist,
178-9
hapax legomena. 33
heart (figurative), 64, &c.
Hebrews, Ep. to, 45, 77, 95, 113, 117,
129, 132, 161
heresy and Antichrist, 175, 179
history and prophecy, 170, 180
Hofmann, 105, 175
Hohenstaufen Emperors, 176
holy, twofold meaning of (see also sancti
fication), 69 — 70, &c.
hopelessness of pagan world, 101
horn, the little, 171
humanity, worship of, 178
idleness, at Thess., 99 — 100, 164 — 6
idolatry, 17, 58, 133, 145, 153* T77> *79
Isaiah, Book of, 34, 58, 76, 93, 113, 134,
~ *<o, 152, 161, 172

James, Ep. of, 50, 80, 89
Jason of Thess., 15, 69
Jehovah, 58
Jeremiah, Book of, 58* 77» *42 .
Jesus, name of, 47> io2I union with,
103 ; Jesus Christ, 74
Jewel, Bp., on Antichrist, 177
Jews, the, in Thess., 10, 14 — 5, 23_ 4i
77; other reff, 46, 68, 72 — 7, 143, 172,
175
Job, Book of, 131, 152
Joel, Book of, 108, 150
John, the Apostle, 48, 78
„ Gospel of, 53, 58, 65—6, 80, 88, 97,
101, 105 — 6, 108, no, 115, 133) I5I — 2i
156, 160 — 1
John, 1 Ep. of, 58, 89 — 90, 111, 121, 139,
143, 151, 160, 162, 175
Jowett, Dr, on Paul's style, 48; on per
secution, 83 — 4; other reff., 50, 54, 78,
&c.
Jude, Ep. of, 80, 120
Judenhasse, 76
judgement, the last, Paul's preaching of,
19, — 21; other reff., 60, 77, 108—14,
129—39, 147—53
Julius Csesar, 145, 178
kingdom of God, 71 — 2, &c.
Kings, 1 Book of, 49, 152
law, the withholder, 148
lawlessness, the man of, 26, 30, 143 — 53,
170 — 80 (Appendix)
Leviticus, Book of, 94
life in Christ, 115
Lightfoot, Bp., 66
litotes, 76
Lord, the (Christ), 56, 88, 154, 160, 168
„ (Jehovah), 58
„ Jesus, 75, 80, 137, 149, &c.
,, „ Christ, 47, 51, 166, &c.
Luke, St, association with Paul, 13, 81;
Latin name of, 46
Luke, Gospel of, 34, 59, 67, 71, 75, 80,
108 — 9, in — 2, 121, 124
Luther, on Antichrist, 177
Maccabean times, 143, 172
Maccabees, 1 Book of, 142
Macedonia, 9 — n, 13, 81 — 2, &c; see
map
Macedonian churches, 34 — 6, 56, 68, 98
manifestation, 150
Mark, Gospel of, 75, 107, 132 — 4
marriage, 95 — 6
Matthew, Gospel of, 31, 34) 7Ij 77> g0i
104, 106, 109—10, 119, 130, 146, 168!
172—3
Melanchthon, on Antichrist, 177 170
Micah, Book of, 71 79
Michael, the arcliangel, 105
military metaphors, 104 — 5, n2  ->
miracles of Antichrist, 151, i74

INDEX.

183

Muhammadanism and Antichrist, 175 — 6
morals, Christian, 21 — 2, 91 — 100, 116 —

Napoleon Buonaparte and Antichrist,
Nehemiah, Book of, 74
Nero, Emperor, 148 ; the wild beast, 174 ;
a type of Antichrist, 175
Numbers, Book of, 124
Old Testament, use of, 33 — 4
Olshausen, 145, 175
Olympus, Mt, 10; see map
Origen, 67
paganism, 17, 47, 58, 95, 101, 133, 145,
Ml
Papacy and Antichrist, 175 — 7, 179
paraphrase of the Epp. , 38—43
paronomasia, 33, 166
parousia (see coming)
pauperism, danger of, 100, 166
persecution, causes of, 83 — 4 ; at Thess.,
22 — 5, 35, 72 — 7, 129 — 31, &c.
Peter, 1 Ep. of, 46, 52, 60, 80, 83, 119, 123,
Iz5» 155, 161
Peter, 2 Ep. of, 98, 132, 142
Pfleiderer, 28, 30
Philemon, Ep. to, 46, 57, 85, 169
Philippi, 13 — 4, 20, &c.
Philippians, Ep. to, resemblance to
Thess. Epp., 32, 34—5, 46, 55, 68, 79;
difference from Thess. Epp., 33, 36, 51,
117; other reff., 69, 91 — 2, 106, 109,
119, 122, 130, 136 — 7, 155
politarchs, 10, 15
Positivism and Antichrist, 178 — 9
preaching, Paul's, at Thess., 16 — 21, 62
—3, 69—72 _ _
prophecy, 120; of Antichnst, 143 — 9, 170
¦ — 4; of Christ's coming (see coming);
progressive fulfilment of, 170, 179
proselytes, 14, 58
Psalms, Book of, 34, 52, 57—8, 71, 88, 93,
111, 123, 132, 134—5* 138, 159
purity, 63, 93—7
Rabbinical teaching, 71, 172
Reformers, the Protestant, on Antichrist,
177, 179
retaliation, 118 — 9
retribution, 95 — 6, 129 — 35
revelation, 132, 147; of the lawless one,
*39 — 53
Revelation, Book of, 28, 30, 36, 79, 105,
109 — 10, 130, 134—6, 143, 148, 151, 169,
172 — 4, 176
right of maintenance, apostolic, 66" — 9,
164—5

Romans, Ep. to, 17, 32, 49, 52, 58, 60, 66,
72, 88, 95, 97, 102, 105, in — 2, 114 — 5,
119, 133, 137—8, I43i i48j J52— 3i 156,
162, 178
Rome, 9, 11, 20, 57, 76, 174, 176
saints (see holy)
St Sophia, mosque of, 12
Samuel, 1 Book of, 93
„ 2 Book of, 71
sanctified life, rules for, 116
Saracens, 12, 148
self-defence of Paul, 23 — 4, 61, 63 — 70
Silas, or Silvanus, 13---5j 22, 4°\ 81 — 2
Simcox, W. H., on Revelation, 173, 175
Simon Magus, 179
Stephen, St, 77
subscription to Epp., 126
Suetonius, on life of Csesars, 145
synagogue, the Jewish, 14, 17, 24
Tacitus, 76, 145
Tafel, 12
Targum of Jonathan, 172
Teaching of Twelve Apostles, 166
Tendency school of criticism, 28
Tertullian, 175
Theodosius, Emperor, 12
Thermaic Gulf, 10 ; see map
Thessalonians, their character, &c, 14—
6, 23—9) 34—5) 49) 54—7, 68—9, 74,
79 — 80, 85 — 9, 97 — 101, 108, 117 — 21,
125, 128 — 30, 139 — 41, 160 — 8
Thessalonica, its position, 10 — 1, 14, 56 —
7, 98, see map; history, 9 — 12; Paul's
experience there, 14 — 6, 53, 57, 60 — 74
Timothy, 22, 24, 46, 81 — 2
„ 1 Ep. to, 46, 64, 67, 93, 99, 100,
113, 117, 142, 147) I5o, 155
Timothy, 2 Ep. to, 36, 46, 54, 63, 73, 97
131, 137, 148, 150, 160
Titus, Ep. to, 36, 58, 70, 138, 150
Tobit, Book of, 105
Trench, on N. T. Synonyms, 50
Trinity, the Divine, 55
union of Christians with Christ, 103, 115
Vespasian,_ Emperor, 28, 145
Via Egnatia, 11, 14, 20, 62 ; see map
Westcott, Bp., on Daniel, 170
Westcott and Hort, N. T. in Greek, 67,
no, 143
withholder, the, 139, 146 — 9, 175, 179
woman, the scarlet, 174
Wordsworth, the late Bp., 177
worship, objects of, 144, 178

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purpose that we know of. The opening sections at once prove the
thorough competence of the writer for dealing with questions of criti
cism in an earnest, faithful and devout spirit ; and the appendices discuss
a few special difficulties with a full knowledge of the data, and a judicial
reserve, which contrast most favourably with the superficial dogmatism
which has too often made the exegesis of the Old Testament a field for
the play of unlimited paradox and the ostentation of personal infalli
bility. The notes are always clear and suggestive; never trifling or
irrelevant; and they everywhere demonstrate the great difference in
value between the work of a commentator who is also a Hebraist, and
that of one who has to depend for his Hebrew upon secondhand
sources. " — Academy.
I. Kings and Ephesians. " With great heartiness we commend
these most valuable little commentaries. We had rather purchase
these than nine out of ten of the big blown up expositions. Quality is
far better than quantity, and we have it here." — Sword and Trowel.
II. Kings. "The Introduction is scholarly and wholly admirable,
the notes must be of incalculable value to students." — Glasgow Herald.
"It would be difficult to find a commentary better suited for general
use. " — Academy.
10.000
8/1094

2 CAMBRIDGE BIBLE FOR SCHOOLS &• COLLEGES.
The Book of Joh. "Able and scholarly as the Introduction is, it is
far surpassed by the detailed exegesis of the book. In this _Dr Davidson's
strength is at its greatest. His linguistic knowledge, his artistic habit,
his scientific insight, and his literary power have full scope when he
comes to exegesis...." — The Spectator.
" In the course of a long introduction, Dr Davidson has presented
us with a very able and very interesting criticism of this wonderful
book. Its contents, the nature of its composition, its idea and purpose,
its integrity, and its age are all exhaustively treated of.... We have not
space to examine fully the text and notes before us, but we can, and do
heartily, recommend the book, not only for the upper forms in schools,
but to Bible students and teachers generally. As we wrote of a previous
volume in the same series, this one leaves nothing to be desired. The
notes are full and suggestive, without being too long, and, in itself, the
introduction forms a valuable addition to modern Bible literature." — -The
Educational Times.
"Already we have frequently called attention to this exceedingly
valuable work as its volumes have successively appeared. But we have
never done so with greater pleasure, very seldom with so great pleasure,
as we now refer to the last published volume, that on the Book of Joh,
byDr Davidson, of Edinburgh.. ..Wecordially commend the volume to
all our readers. The least instructed will understand and enjoy it ;
and mature scholars will learn from it." — Methodist Recorder.
Psalms. Book I. "His commentary upon the books of Samuel
was good, but this is incomparably better, shewing traces of much more
work and of greater independence of scholarship and judgment.. ..As a
whole it is admirable, and we are hardly going too far in saying that it
is one of the very ablest of all the volumes that have yet appeared in the
'Cambridge Bible for Schools'." — Record.
"Another volume of this excellent Bible, in which the student may
rely on meeting with the latest scholarship. The introduction is ad
mirable. We know of nothing in so concise a form better adapted for
Sunday-School Teachers." — Sunday-School Chronicle.
" It is full of instruction and interest, bringing within easy reach of
the English reader the results of the latest scholarship bearing upon the
study of this ever new book of the Bible. The Introduction of eighty
pages is a repertory of information, not drily but interestingly given." —
Methodist Recorder.
"For a masterly summary of all that is known and much that is
hazarded about the history and authorship of this book of religious
lyrics we can point to that with which Mr Kirkpatrick prefaces his new
volume. From a perusal of this summary the student will be unimpres
sionable indeed if he rise not convinced of the vitality imparted to the
Psalter by a systematic study of its literary character and historical
allusions.... In conclusion, we may say that for a work which is handy,
and withal complete, we know none better than this volume; and we
await with considerable interest the next instalment. " — Education.
"It seems in every way a most valuable little book, containing a
mass of information, well-assorted, and well-digested, and will be useful
not only to students preparing for exammations, but to many who want

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.

a handy volume of explanation to much that is difficult in the Psalter.
 We owe a great debt of gratitude to Professor Kirkpatrick for his
scholarly and interesting volume." — Church Times.
"In this volume thoughtful exegesis founded on nice critical scholar
ship and due regard for the opinions of various writers, combine, under
the influence of a devout spirit, to render this commentary a source of
much valuable assistance. The notes are 'though deep yet clear,' for
they seem to put in a concentrated form the very pith and marrow of all
the best that has been hitherto said on the subject, with striking freedom
from anything like pressure of personal views. Throughout the work care
and pains are as conspicuous as scholarship." — Literary Churchman.
Job — Hosea. " It is difficult to commend too highly this excellent
series, the volumes of which are now becoming numerous. The two
books before us, small as they are in size, comprise almost everything
that the young student can reasonably expect to find in the way of helps
towards such general knowledge of their subjects as may be gained
without an attempt to grapple with the Hebrew ; and even the learned
scholar can hardly read without interest and benefit the very able intro
ductory matter which both these commentators have prefixed to their
volumes. It is not too much to say that these works have brought
within the reach of the ordinary reader resources which were until
lately quite unknown for understanding some of the most difficult and
obscure portions of Old Testament literature." — Guardian.
Eecleslastes ; or, the Preacher. — "Of the Notes, it is sufficient to
say that they are in every respect worthy of Dr Plumptre's high repu
tation as a scholar and a critic, being at once learned, sensible, and
practical. ...Commentaries are seldom attractive reading. This little
volume is a notable exception." — The Scotsman.
Jeremiah, by A. W. Streane, B.D. "The arrangement of the book
is well treated on pp. xxx., 396, and the question of Baruch's relations
with its composition on pp. xxvii., xxxiv., 317. The illustrations from
English literature, history, monuments, works on botany, topography,
etc., are good and plentiful, as indeed they are in other volumes of this
series." — Church Quarterly Review.
Malachi. "Archdeacon Perowne has already edited Jonah and
Zechariah for this series. Malachi presents comparatively few difficulties
and the Editor's treatment leaves nothing to be desired. His introduction
is clear and scholarly and his commentary sufficient. We may instance
the notes on ii. 15 and iv. 1 as examples of careful arrangement,
clear exposition and graceful expression." — Academy.
" The Gospel according to St Matthew, by the Rev. A. Carr. The
introduction is able, scholarly, and eminently practical, as it bears
on the authorship and contents of the Gospel, and the original form
in which it is supposed to have been written. It is well illustrated by
two excellent maps of the Holy Land and of the Sea of Galilee." —
English Churchman.
"St Mark, with Notes by the Rev. G. F. Maclear, D.D. Into
this small volume Dr Maclear, besides a clear and able Introduc
tion to the Gospel, and the text of St Mark, has compressed many

4 CAMBRIDGE BlitLE FOR SCHOOLS cV COLLEGES.
hundreds of valuable and helpful notes. In short, he has given us
a capital manual of the kind required — containing all that is needed to
illustrate the text, i. e. all that can be drawn from the history, geography,
customs, and manners of the time. But as a handbook, giving in a
clear and succinct form the information which a lad requires in order
to stand an examination in the Gospel, it is admirable  I can very
heartily commend it, not only to the senior boys and girls in our High
Schools, but also to Sunday-school teachers, who may get from it the
very kind of knowledge they often find it hardest to get " — Expositor.
"With the help of a book like this, an intelligent teacher may make
'Divinity' as interesting a lesson as any in the school course. The
notes are of a kind that will be, for the most part, intelligible to boys
of the lower forms of our public schools ; but they may be read with
greater profit by the fifth and sixth, in conjunction with the original
text." — The Academy.
"St Luke. Canon Farrar has supplied students of the Gospel
with an admirable manual in this volume. It has all that copious
variety of illustration, ingenuity of suggestion, and general soundness of
interpretation which readers are accustomed to expect from the learned
and eloquent editor. Anyone who has been accustomed to associate
the idea of 'dryness' with a commentary, should go to Canon Farrar's
St Luke for a more correct impression. He will find that a commen
tary may be made interesting in the highest degree, and that without
losing anything of its solid value.... But, so to speak, it is too good for
some of the readers for whom it is intended." — The Spectator.
The Gospel according to St John. "The notes are extremely
scholarly and valuable, and in most cases exhaustive, bringing to the
elucidation of the text all that is best in commentaries, ancient and
modern." — The English Churchman and Clerical Journal.
"(i) The Acts of the Apostles. By J. Rawson Lumby, D.D.
(2) The Second Epistle of the Corinthians, edited by Professor Lias.
The introduction is pithy, and contains a mass of carefully-selected
information on the authorship of the Acts, its designs, and its sources.
 The Second Epistle of the Corinthians is a manual beyond all praise,
for the excellence of its pithy and pointed annotations, its analysis of the
contents, and the fulness and value of its introduction." — Examiner.
"The Rev. H. C. G. Moule, B.D., has made a valuable addition
to The Cambridge Bible for Schools in his brief commentary on
the Epistle to the Romans. The 'Notes' are very good, and lean,
as the notes of a School Bible should, to the most commonly ac
cepted and orthodox view of the inspired author's meaning ; while the
Introduction, and especially the Sketch of the Life of St Paul, is a model
of condensation. It is as lively and pleasant to read as if two or three
facts had not been crowded into well-nigh every sentence." — Expositor.
"The Epistle to the Bomans. It is seldom we have met with a
work so remarkable for the compression and condensation of all that
is valuable in the smallest possible space as in the volume before us.
Within its limited pages we have ' a sketch of the Life of St Paul,'
we have further a critical account of the date of the Epistle to the
Romans, of its language, and of its genuineness. The notes are

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS

numerous, full of matter, to the point, and leave no real difficulty
or obscurity unexplained." — The Examiner.
"The First Epistle to the Corinthians. Edited by Professor Lias.
Every fresh instalment of this annotated edition of the Bible for Schools
confirms the favourable opinion we formed of its value from the exami
nation of its first number. The origin and plan of the Epistle are
discussed with its character and genuineness." — The Nonconformist.
Galatians. "Dr Perowne deals throughout in a very thorough
manner with every real difficulty in the text, and in this respect he has
faithfully followed the noble example set him in the exegetical master
piece, his indebtedness to which he frankly acknowledges." — Modern
Church. "The introductory matter is very full and informing, whilst the
Notes are admirable. They combine the scholarly and the practical in
an unusual degree  It is not the young students in 'schools and
colleges' alone who will find this Commentary helpful on every
page. ' ' — Record.
"This little work, like all of the series, is a scholarly production;
but we can also unreservedly recommend it from a doctrinal standpoint ;
Dr E. H. Perowne is one who has grasped the distinctive teaching of
the Epistle, and expounds it with clearness and definiteness. In an
appendix, he ably maintains the correctness of the A. V. as against the
R. V. in the translation of II. 16, a point of no small importance." —
English Churchman.
The Epistle to the Ephesians. By Rev. H. C. G. Moule. B.D.
"It seems to us the model of a School and College Commentary —
comprehensive, but not cumbersome; scholarly, but not pedantic." —
Baptist Magazine.
The Epistle to the Philippians. " There are few series more valued
by theological students than ' The Cambridge Bible for Schools and
Colleges,' and there will be no number of it more esteemed than that
by Mr H. C. G. MOULE on the Epistle to the Philippians." — Record.
Thessalonians. "It will stand the severest scrutiny, for no volume
in this admirable series exhibits more careful work, and Mr Findlay is
a true expositor, who keeps in mind what he is expounding, and for
whom he is expounding it. " — Expository Times.
"Mr Findlay maintains the high level ofthe series to which he has
become contributor. Some parts of his introduction to the Epistles to
the Thessalonians could scarcely be bettered. The account of Thessa
lonica, the description of the style and character of the Epistles, and the
analysis of them are excellent in style and scholarly care. The notes
are possibly too voluminous ; but there is so much matter in them, and
the matter is arranged and handled so ably, that we are ready to forgive
their fulness  Mr Findlay's commentary is a valuable addition to
what has been written on the letters to the Thessalonian Church." —
Academy. "Of all the volumes of this most excellent series, none is better
done, and few are so well done as this small volume.... From begin
ning to end the volume is marked by accurate grammatical scholarship,
delicate appreciation of the apostle's meaning, thorough investigation

6 CAMBRIDGE BIBLE FOR SCHOOLS &> COLLEGES.
oi all matters open to doubt, extensive reading, and deep sympathy
with the spiritual aim of these epistles. It is, on the whole, the best
commentary on the Thessalonians which has yet appeared, and its
small price puts it within reach of all. We heartily recommend it." —
Methodist Recorder.
"Mr Findlay has fulfilled in this volume a task which Dr Moulton
was compelled to decline, though he has rendered valuable aid in its pre
paration. The commentary is in its own way a model — clear, forceful,
scholarly — such as young students will welcome as a really useful guide,
and old ones will acknowledge as giving in brief space the substance of
all that they knew." — Baptist Magazine.
Hebrews. " Like his (Canon Farrar's) commentary on Luke it
possesses all the best characteristics of his writing. It is a work not
only of an accomplished scholar, but of a skilled teacher." — Baptist
Magazine. The Epistles of St John. By the Rev. A. Plummer, D.D.
"This forms an admirable companion to the 'Commentary on the
Gospel according to St John, ' which was reviewed in The Churchman
as soon as it appeared. Dr Plummer has some of the highest qualifica
tions for such a task ; and these two volumes, their size being considered,
will bear comparison with the best Commentaries of the time." — The
Churchman. Revelation. "This volume contains evidence of much careful
labour. It is a scholarly production, as might be expected from the pen
of the late Mr W. H. Simcox. ...The notes throw light upon many
passages of this difficult book, and are extremely suggestive. It is an
advantage that they sometimes set before the student various interpre
tations without exactly guiding him to a choice." — Guardian.
"Mr Simcox has treated his very difficult subject with that con
scious care, grasp and lucidity which characterises everything he
wrote." — Modern Church.
W$t ^mailer ©ambtOige Mbk for Spools.
' ' We can only repeal what we have already said of this admirable
series, containing, as it does, the scholarship of the larger work. For
scholars in our elder classes, and for those preparing for Scripture exami
nations, no better commentaries can be put into their hands." — Sunday-
School Chronicle.
"Despite their small she, these volumes give the substance of the
admirable pieces of work on which they are founded. We can only hope
that in many schools the class-teaching will proceed on the lines these com
mentators suggest." — Record.
" We should be glad to hear that this series has been introduced into
many ofour Sunday-Schools, for which it is so admirably adapted." —
Christian Leader.
"All that is necessary to be known and learned by pupils in junior
and elementary schools is to be found in this series. Indeed, much more
is provided than should be required by the examiners. We do not know
what more could be done to provide sensible, interesting, and solid Scrip
tural instruction for bovs and eirls. The Syndics of the Cambridge

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.

University Press are rendering great services both to teachers and to
scholars by the publication of such a valuable series of books, in which
slipshod work could not have a place." — Literary World.
"For the student ofthe sacred oracles who utilizes hours of travel or
moments of waiting in the perusal of the Bible tkere is nothing so handy,
and, at the same time, so satisfying as these little books  Nor let anyone
suppose that, because these are school-books, therefore they are beneath
the adult reader. They contain the very ripest results of the best Biblical
scholarship, and that in the very simplest form." — Christian Leader.
" Altogether one of the most perf ect examples of a Shilling New Tes
tament commentary which even this age of cheapness is likely to produce."
— Bookseller.

Samuel I. and II. "Professor Kirkpatrick's two tiny volumes on
the First and Second Books of Samuel are quite model school-books ;
the notes elucidate every possible difficulty with scholarly brevity and
clearness and a perfect knowledge of the subject." — Saturday Review.
"They consist of an introduction full of matter, clearly and succinctly
given, and of notes which appear to us to be admirable, at once full and
brief." — Church Times.
Kings I. " We can cordially recommend this little book. The Intro
duction discusses the question of authorship and date in a plain but
scholarly fashion, while the footnotes throughout are brief, pointed, and
helpful. " — Review of Reviews.
St Matthew. "The notes are terse, clear, and helpful, and teachers
and students cannot fail to find the volume of great service." —
Publishers' Circular.
St Mark. St Luke. " We have received the volumes of St Mark
'and St Luke in this series. ...The two volumes seem, on the whole, well
adapted for school use, are well and carefully printed, and have maps
and good, though necessarily brief, introductions. There is little doubt
that this series will be found as popular and useful as the well-known
larger series, of which they are abbreviated editions." — Guardian.
St Luke. "We cannot too highly commend this handy little book
to all teachers." — Wesleyan Methodist Sunday-School Record.
St John. "We have been especially interested in Mr Plummer's
treatment of the Gospel which has been entrusted to his charge. He is con
cise, comprehensive, interesting, and simple. Youngstudents of this inim
itable book, as weU as elder students, even ministers and teachers, may
use it with advantage as a very serviceable handbook." — Literary World.
"A model of condensation, losing nothing of its clearness and force
from its condensation into a small compass. Many who have long since
completed their college curriculum will find it an invaluable handbook."
— Methodist Times.
Acts. "The notes are very brief, but exceedingly comprehensive,
comprising as much detail in the way of explanation as would be needed
by young students of the Scriptures preparing for examination. We
again give the opinion that this series furnishes as much real help as
would usually satisfy students for the Christian ministry, or even minis
ters themselves." — Literary World.

THE CAMBRIDGE GREEK TESTAMENT
FOR SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES
with a Revised Text, based on the most recent critical authorities,
and English Notes.
•' Has achieved an excellence which puts it above criticism." — Expositor.

St Matthew. " Copious illustrations, gathered from a great variety
of sources, make his notes a very valuable aid to the student. They
are indeed remarkably interesting, while all explanations on meanings,
applications, and the like are distinguished by their lucidity and good
sense."— Pall Mall Gazette.
St Mark. "Dr Maclear's introduction contains all that is known
of St Mark's life; an account ofthe circumstances in which the Gospel
was composed, with an estimate of the influence of St Peter's teaching
upon St Mark ; an excellent sketch of the special characteristics of this
Gospel; an analysis, and a chapter on the text of the New Testament
generally. " — Saturday Review.
St Luke. " Of this second series we have a new volume by
Archdeacon Farrar on St Luke, completing the four Gospels  It
gives us in clear and beautiful language the best results of modern
scholarship. We have a most attractive Introduction. Then follows
a sort of composite Greek text, representing fairly and in very beautiful
type the consensus of modem textual critics. At the beginning of the
exposition of each chapter of the Gospel are a few short critical notes
giving the manuscript evidence for such various readings as seem to
deserve mention. The expository notes are short, but clear and helpful.
For young students and those who are not disposed to buy or to study
the much more costly work of Godet, this seems to us to be the best
book on the Greek Text ofthe Third Gospel." — Methodist Recorder.
St John. "We take this opportunity of recommending to ministers
on probation, the very exeellent volume of the same series on this part
of the New Testament. We hope that most or all of our young ministers
will prefer to study the volume in the Cambridge Greek Testament for
Schools." — Methodist Recorder.
The Acts of the Apostles. "Professor Lumby has performed his
laborious task well, and supplied us with a commentary the fulness and
freshness of which Bible students will not be slow to appreciate. The
volume is enriched with the usual copious indexes and four coloured
maps." — Glasgow Herald.
I. Corinthians. "Mr Lias is no novice in New Testament exposi
tion, and the present series of essays and notes is an able and helpful
addition to the existing books." — Guardian.
The Epistles of St John. "In the very useful and well annotated
series of the Cambridge Greek Testament the volume on the Epistles
of St John must hold a high position.... The notes are brief, well
informed and intelligent." — Scotsman.
CAMBRIDGE: PRINTED BY C J. CLAY, M.A. AND SONS, AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS.