By: Lazarus Conley
Thessalonica was founded about 316 BC by Cassander, a
general under Alexander the Great, named after the former’s wife who was a half
sister of Alexander. It was conquered by the Romans in 168 BC and then became
the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia after 146 BC. The city supported
Octavius at the battle of Philippi (42 BC) and consequently became a free city,
with its own deme, boule, and politarchs (cf. Acts 17:5-6). In the 1st
Ce. AD, it was a cosmopolitan city with a large Jewish colony and many pagan
cults. Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy arrived in Thessalonica in AD 50. Paul and
Silvanus had been arrested and expelled from Philippi (Acts 16:16-40). Passing
along the Via Egnatia, through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to
Thessalonica, about 97 miles west of Philippi. There they began to preach the
gospel in a Jewish synagogue “amid much anxiety” (1 Thess. 2:2). [Jerome Study
Bible, 227).
The coming of Christ to judge the living and the dead is an
integral part of Christian faith and hope; it’s embodied in the later creeds…
at that time Christians will share with the Risen Christ the glory he already
enjoys (1 Thes 3:12; 2 Thes 1:10). Paul had already instructed the
Thessalonians in this faith (1 Thes 1:9-10). Since Christ hadn’t revealed the
time of His coming (Mt 24:36 par; Acts 1:7; 1 thes 5:2), it was natural that
early Christians would’ve desired it and expected it to happen soon, even in
their own lifetime. Paul writes from such a point of view in 1 Thes 4:15-17 (in
other words, he speaks in imminence language as we all should and are called to
do). These Christians were nonetheless anxious about those who died before the
coming of Christ. Paul writes to assure them that those who are living at the
time of the Parousia will have no advantage over the dead; the dead will rise
first and together with the living all will go to meet Christ and be with Him
forever. In 2 Thes Paul teaches that before the Parousia of Christ takes place,
there will be an apostasy and the appearance of an Antichrist, an agent of
Satan who will attempt to destroy the work of Christ. Satan is already at work,
but the Antichrist can’t appear because someone or something is at present
preventing it. When he does appear, Christ will come and destroy him. In the
eschatological passages of both letters (1 Thess 4:13-18; 2 Thess 1:7-10;
2:1-12) Paul uses the “apocalyptic” form of writing, where concrete symbols are
used to convey a more transcendent message and mystery. In such writing, the
correspondence between figure and reality will escape us because it is a Divine
Mystery [Jerome Study Bible, 228].
Chapter 1:
v.1 – Paul, Silas/Silvanus, and Timothy are the writers
sending this letter to the Church of Thessaloniki.
v.2 – Gives thanks to God like he did in Romans 1:8 and 1
Cor 1:4, etc. epistles.
v.3 – “labor of love” – Their love was shown especially in
the welcome they gave to the travelers (v.9). Paul commends their love again in
4.9, 4.10, where he says they are “taught by God” in their love for one
another.
St. Chrysostom: What is “your work of faith”? That nothing
has turned you aside from your inheritance. For this is the work of faith. If
thou believes, suffer all things; but if thou suffers not, thou believes
not….He therefore who believes will suffer all things. Faith then is shown
through his works.” [Explanatory Notes for the 1st Epistle to the
Thessalonians, Homily 1. P.G. 62:426 (col. 394)].
Blessed Theophylact: You were patient under many and lengthy
temptations. You endured being strengthened in hope. [Explanation to the 1st
Epistle of St. Paul to the Thessalonians, P.G. 124:504C (col. 1281).]
v.4 – “chosen you” – Divine election is a theme of both
Thessalonian epistles (5.9; 2 Thess. 2.13). Paul isn’t afraid to assure this
young, predominantly Gentile church that they were elected by God. Paul sees in
them the fruit of God’s electing grace, manifested in their response to the
preaching of the gospel and their early progress in sanctification.
v.5 – he was granted to do many things that confirm his
apostleship is genuinely part of the Christian faith.
v.6 – “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Cor 11:1).
He confirms the Thessalonians did this.
v.7 – They were examples for all of the surrounding areas:
Macedonia and in Achaia.
v.8 – Paul is likely writing from Achaia, having travelled
from Macedonia and come through Athens to Corinth. Their faith has been made
evident as many other churches Paul founded know of them and their deeds and
accomplishments. They’ve become well known in the Christian community.
v.9 – “What sort of entrance we had with you”. St.
Chrysostom: What does this mean? That it was full of perils, and myriads of
deaths, but that none of these things troubled you. But as if nothing happened,
so you took hold of us; as if you’d suffered nothing bad, but had enjoyed
10,000 good things, so you received us after these things….The expression is
complicated, and contains an encomium both of them and of themselves. [Homily
2, P.G. 62:433 (col. 400).]
The Thessalonians have been representing the Christian faith
very well according to Paul.
Their “turning from idols” probably means the Church of Thessaloniki
are primarily former heathens (pagans) and are mostly Gentile Christians. They’re
likely not mostly Jewish Christians because Paul would not normally talk about
Jewish Christians in this manner based on his other letters
v.10 – Jesus is the main topic here in v. 10. His Son-ship
to God is pointed out. The text embraces the topic that it is the Church
waiting on Him from heaven. “Wrath to come” is mentioned which “is an
expression taken from the OT prophets who used it to tell their people that
God’s coming won’t necessarily mean the overpowering of nations and the
glorification of the Israelite people, but that it will be ‘a day of wrath’
(Zeph 1:18) in case the people, and especially their leaders, are carrying on
their evil deeds. The emphasis on the idea of ‘wrath’ derives from the fact
that God is holy and that His holiness can’t bear sin but consumes it totally.
Thus the day of the coming of God started to carry with it the idea of the
wrath to come, in that judgment is in His hand and He will judge all beings.
Due to his sin (Rom 3:9-12) man always sees God’s judgment under the image of a
coming wrath. Therefore the expression, ‘wrath to come’ means God’s just
judgment at the end of days… Jesus’ coming [is] in close relation to the last
judgment (see 1 Thess 3:13). [The] believer has a continuous hope that Jesus
will save him/her from the divine wrath, in that ‘God made Christ our wisdom,
our righteousness and sanctification and redemption’ (1 Cor 1:30)” (71-72. Paul
Tarazi).
v.9-10: “Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come” –
Through Christ’s intervention on the Cross and His Resurrection, believers on
Judgement Day will be spared the condemnation and punishment their sins would
otherwise deserve.
Chapter 2:
v.1-2 – Paul suffered in Philippi. Acts 16:22-24 supports
this. If he and the apostles had been charlatans then no fruit would’ve come.
Yet it had.
vv.3-6: Paul clears his name that he is honest, without
error, trustworthy, and there is no wickedness in him trying to deceive his
followers.
v.8 – St. Chrysostom: He says, “So much do we love you,
that, if it could be yielded, we’d have given even our souls. He who loves,
ought so to love, that if he were asked even for his soul, and it were
possible, he wouldn’t withhold it”. [Homily 3, P.G. 62:437 (col. 403).]
v.9 – He declares he’s labored much and suffered much to get
the Gospel to them.
v.12 – Called to enter this kingdom, believers know its power
and enjoy its life here and now (Rom 14:7; 1 Cor 4:20; Col 1:13, 14) while they
long for the day they’ll enter its fullness.
v.14 –They suffered (the Church of Thessaloniki) persecution
from their countrymen as fellow members of the Church elsewhere did by Jewish
persecution.
v.15 – Consoles them with the fact that they had persecuted
Christ long before them. Count it worthy if you suffer like Christ did.
v.14-15: Persecution did come primarily to the Church of
Thessalonica by Greeks but Paul also discusses how they have been persecuted by
Jews like Christ was.
v.16 – St. Chrysostom: “But the wrath came upon them”. By
saying “the wrath”, he shows that it was long ago due, and foreordained, and
prophesied”. [Homily 3, P.G. 62:443 (col. 408).]
“It seems then that the sins of the Jews against God’s will
were piling up til the day when they went beyond measure; that is precisely
what’s meant by ‘filling up the measure of sin’. The adverb ‘always’ results
from the fact that the apostles’ preaching of Christ is the last essential
stage in the life of the Jews regarding their relation to God: with the gospel
the last chance has gone and their sins are fulfilled. Consequently, the time
unfolding after the appearance of Jesus Christ is a time for declating what the
Lord Jesus has done ‘once and for all’. As for the Jews’ rejection of the
apostles’ preaching after their rejection of the prophets and the Lord Jesus,
it means that this sin of reection/refusal has been repeated ‘always’ – that is
generation after generation until the fullness and completeness of salvation
time in Jesus Christ. The result of filling up the measure is the wrath (the
wrath to come) which means here damnation (or lack of salvation) as is clear
from 5:9: ‘For God’s not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through
our Lord Jesus Christ’.” (113-114. Tarazi).
In other words, they’re under
damnation and need to come to repentance.
v. 15-16: There was Jewish opposition to Paul and the Church
of Thessalonica. “Jews who are hostile to Christ and persecute Christians are
left to multiply their sins in view of divine vengeance. “wrath has already
come upon them”: God’s avenging justice is already manifest in his failure to
affect their conversion. The
interpretation of the final phrase, eis
telos is [sometimes] disputed: CCD, ‘to the utmost’; NEB, ‘for good and all’;
RSV, ‘at last’; Moffat ‘to the bitter end’. Paul’s point of view is
eschatological; it’s already the end time when God’s justice [here] will be
manifest”. [Jerome Study Bible, 230]
v.13-16: “[For all the Jews’] boasting of knowing God, of
doing His will and thus being a blessing to the world, they’ve proven themselves
to be ‘contrary to all men’ – i.e. true hostile adversaries of mankind (Gr. Enantion;
compare its use in Mt 14:24 for a severe and contrary wind). The final result
for them is that they ‘always fill up their sins’. Here St. Paul refers to the
idea of one having a certain allowed limit of sin. When one ‘filled it up’, one
exceeded the patience of God and the divine ‘wrath’ descended. (Thus Abraham
was told it was not then time to inherit Canaan because ‘the iniquity of the
inhabiting Amorites wasn’t yet full’, Genesis 15:16; thus the Lord told the
Pharisees to ‘fill up the measure of the guilt of their fathers’ so that the ‘blood-guilt
of all the generations’ would come upon them, Mt 23:32-36.) In like manner, the
Jews opposing St. Paul were ‘filling up their sins’ by persecuting the
apostles. Thus ‘the wrath’ of God was sure to come ‘to the end’ (Gr. Eis telos),
leaving no room for escape.” (p. 33. Farley).
v.17 – “St. Paul continues his defense by affirming his
sincerity and love for the Thessalonians. In recalling the fervency of their
conversion (v.13) and the persecution it subsequently brought (vv.14-16), he
recalls as well his own concern for them. When he left them, being
involuntarily ‘made orphans’ (note the passive, which witnesses to Paul’s sense
of loss), and hurried out to Thessalonica to nearby Berea (Acts 17:10), Paul
worried greatly about his new converts. Indeed, he misses them as ‘orphans’
miss their parents and feels quite desolate. Though he’s been away from them
for a short while (literally ‘the time of an hour’) – and he hastens to assure
them that he’s not away from them ‘in heart’ – yet he agonizes still over them.
Will they persevere in the Faith? Will they fall prey to those who are
slandering him? For this reason, he’s ‘eager’ to return to visit them. The word
translated ‘to be eager (Gr. Spoudazo) combines the idea of haste with that of
intense effort. This is no merely token effort, but an all-out attempt – ‘abundantly’
and ‘with great desire’ (Gr. Epithumia)… The apostle is very intent on seeing
them!” (Farley. 35).
v.18 – Satan had hindered them from coming to see them as
they’d desired to.
v.19 – St. Chrysostom: Are the Macedonians, tell me, thy
hope, O blessed Paul? “Not these alone”, says he. Therefore he added, “Are not
also ye?” …For he said not “ye”, but “also ye”, together with the others.
[Homily 3, P.G. 62:444 (col. 409).]
“At the mention of the devil and his continual effort to
hinder the apostolic mission, Paul’s mind is suddenly overwhelmed with the
image of the Lord Jesus as judge of all at His 2nd Coming. And Paul
is fully aware that the issue at stake in his case will be essentially whether
he’ll have accomplished his work as an apostle or not: ‘…For I’d rather die
than have any one deprive me of my ground for boasting’ For necessity is laid
upon me. Woe is me if I don’t preach the gospel!’ (1 Cor 9:15-16). In this same
sense the Apostle is saying his hope, joy, and crown of pride are the
Thessalonians themselves, i.e., those who’ve accepted the faith at his hands.
Why? Because they’ll be an indubitable proof before the Judge that Paul has
done his duty, and thus his Master will say to him: ‘Well done, good and
faithful servant; you’ve been faithful over a little; I’ll set you over much;
enter into the joy of our master’ (Mt 25:21 and 23)”. (117. Tarazi)
“They are his ‘hope’ and ‘joy’ and ‘crown of boasting’, his ‘glory’
before the Lord Jesus ‘at His Coming’. It is they (the pronoun is emphatic in
the Greek) who are the crown of his work and the source of his joy at the Lord’s
judgement seat. How could his heart be separated from them?” (Farley. 36).
v.20 – “you are our glory and joy!”
Chapter 3:
v.10 – St. Chrysostom: “To instruct the deficiencies of your
faith”; what then is this? They hadn’t enjoyed the full benefit of his
teaching, nor learned as much as was proclaimed to them to learn. And this he
declares toward the end. Perhaps there’d been inquiries among them concerning
the resurrection, and there were many who made an uproar among them, not by
temptations, nor by dangers, but by playing the part of teachers. This is what
he says are the deficiencies of your faith….He hasn’t said that you should be
established or set firm but that you may be put in proper order,….which is much
rather a matter of teaching than of confirming. [Homily 4, P.G. 62:455 (col. 419).]
v. 13 – “Paul’s concern is that the heart, even the whole
being, of the faithful be in a full state of holiness before God the Judge at
the coming of the Lord Jesus. Now this the Apostle’s stand can be explained by
the fact that the concept of holiness – in the NT summarizes all that which
Christians should be” (131. Tarazi).
3:11-13: “The apostle prays that the Lord will work in them
an ever increasing abundance of love as that which will ‘establish’ their ‘hearts
faultless’ on the last day. For the Lord will commend them with his ‘Well done,
good and faithful servant! Enter into the joy of your Lord!’ (Mt 25:21), if He
finds they have ‘love for the least of their brethren’ (Mt 25:40). This is the ‘faultless
holiness’ which ‘our God and Father’ looks to find in us at His judgment seat,
when the Lord Jesus will have come ‘with all His saints’, the entire heavenly
court of men and angels” (Farley. 38).
Chapter 4:
v.1 – Paul praises them and urges them to continue and
continue to grow in their faith.
v.6 – St. Chrysostom: To each man God has assigned a wife.
He has set bounds to nature-that of intercourse with one only….Herein he speaks
about adultery, but above also about every fornication….You mustn’t have the
wives of others at all, nor even women that have no husbands, and those for
common use. [Homily 5, P.G. 62:461 (col. 424); cf. Bl. Theophylact, P.G.
124:518B (col. 1308).]
v.8 – Paul may very well claim divine authority here.
“God, Who gave His Holy Spirit to you”. KJV reads “to us”.
St. Chrysostom: “The one who refuses, refuses not man, but
God”. God vindicates not the persons who are injured, but Himself….And though
thou shouldn’t commit adultery, but fornication, though the harlot hasn’t a
husband, yet nevertheless God makes retribution, for He avenges Himself. For
thou does this act, not regarding slightly that one (that is, the husband), so
much as God. And it’s manifest from this, that thou does it concealing thyself
from man, but thou takes to thyself what doesn’t belong to thee, assuming that
God doesn’t see thee. [Homily 5, P.G. 62:461 (col. 425); cf. Bl. Theophylact,
P.G. 124:519CD (col. 1308).]
vv. 10-12: “Although Paul’s aware there’s no need for him to
write to them concerning brotherly love…as apostle and spiritual father he didn’t
miss the opportunity to exhort them to continue and improve on that path. But
what about manual work, and why’d he mention this topic in conjunction with the
brotherly love? It appears from both epistles – especially the 2nd –
to the Thessalonians that some of the faithful there thought that the Lord was
coming again very soon. These started to see no reason to work for livelihood;
they even tried to convince others to follow their way and thus were disturbing
the serenity and orderliness of the community life. Further, after some time
spent in idleness these people came to be in need of being fed. Naturally all
this made more difficult and even hindered the brotherly love prevailing in the
community. Besides, this type of behavior started to distort the image of God’s
church in the sight of non-Christians. This is precisely the reason that made
Paul not only exhort them to live quietly, to each mind his own affairs and to
work with their own hands for livelihood, but even made him instruct, i.e.,
order them to do so…This is what made the Apostle emphasize that we are unable
to pinpoint the time of the Lord’s coming (1 Thess 5:1-2) as well as comment lengthily
that there are signs which are to precede that coming (2 Thess 2:1-12).” (144
& footnote 12. Tarazi).
v.13 – “the dead in Christ will rise first”. Those “in
Christ” also constitute a subcategory of those “in Adam” (the whole human
race), and comprise of all who participate in salvation by Christ, whether they
lived before or after Christ. This rising of the “dead in Christ” is a
resurrection of all the righteous dead, and not merely of NT believers, at the
time of Christ’s return (as in 1 Cor 15:23; John 5:28, 29). The resurrection of
the unrighteous will also happen (Acts 24:15), though he also presupposes it in
his warnings of a universal judgment of individuals at the time of Christ’s
return (Acts 17:31; Rom 2:5-16).
“We do not wish” KJV reads as “I wouldn’t have you”. –
St. Basil: All things are directed by the goodness of the
Master. Nothing which happens to us should be received as distressful, although
at present it affects our weakness. In fact, even if we’re ignorant of the
reasons for which each event is applied as a blessing to us from the Master,
nevertheless, we ought to be convinced of this – that what happens is assuredly
advantageous either for us as a reward for our patience, or for the soul which
is taken up, lest, tarrying too long in this life, it should be filled with the
evil which exists in this world. [Letter 101, in FC, 13:225.]
The topic is deceased Christians. “Paul’s teaching made it
clear that death had no power any longer over the faithful who will be
accompanying the Lord at His coming in glory. Now doubt had overtaken some of
the Thessalonians, who started asking: If that’s true, then why have some of us
died before the Lord’s coming? Does this mean that the deceased won’t have a
part in the welcoming procession of the Lord? The Apostle starts by saying that
only non-believers grieve in the face of death, and the reason for this is that
they have no hope. For the Christian, the heathen is defined as the one without
hope; hence the importance of hope not only in the life of the faithful, but
also in the definition of his being. The believer is the one who hopes for victory
over death in Christ. [Note also] that Paul uses in the verses 13, 14, 15 the
verb ‘to lie down’ when speaking of death. This is what he’ll also do in 1 Cor
15 in the context of his teaching regarding our forthcoming resurrection in
Christ, where he uses 4x ‘to lie down’ (vv.6, 18, 20, and 51) besides the verb ‘to
die’…This use itself is a consolation since it means that the believer falls
asleep in his death awaiting the dashing victory over death at the Lord’s
coming. This explains why the terms ‘those who are asleep’ and ‘those who’ve
fallen asleep’ to speak of our deceased have made their way into Christian
tradition”. (145-146 Tarazi).
v.14 – “So also those who fell asleep through Jesus will God
bring with Him”; literally “through”, or “by means of Jesus”; ambiguous in
position, as even St. Chrysostom notes: How “through Jesus”? Either that they
fell asleep through Jesus, or that through Jesus will He bring them, that is,
the faithful….But why does he say “those who fell asleep”? So that he’s not
speaking of a general resurrection, but about a partial one….But how do the
faithful fall asleep through Jesus? Clearly they’ve Christ in themselves. And
the verse, “He’ll bring with Him”, indicates that they’re brought from many
places. [Homily 7, P.G. 62:473 (cols. 435, 436); cf. Bl. Theophylact, P.G.
124:520 BC (col. 1312).]
“Jesus died and rose again”. “Since the apostles’ teaching
and the faith of the Church is that those who are asleep in Jesus will share in
his lot (1 Cor 15), it’s only logical that God will bring them in the company
of the Lord Jesus at His coming in glory.” (147. Tarazi).
It should be noted Paul says “we” because he is giving a
teaching of the Apostles. And this teaching applies to the entire Church.
Whenever the 2nd Coming does happen, the 2nd Coming will
affect and happen for WE, all as believers. Paul doesn’t know the day nor the
hour of His coming so naturally there’s no reason for him not to use and apply
what’s called imminence language.
V. 13-18: “Their present anxiety concerns not the judgement
of the living and the dead (1:10), but the participation of their dead friends
in the glorious coming of Christ. V.13: ‘we’d
not have you ignorant concerning those who sleep’: The Christian dead. Death
is spoken of like a sleep even in pagan literature, without necessarily
presupposing faith in immortality or resurrection. The image is used in the OT
(Gen 47:30; Dt 31:16; 3 Kings 2:10, etc.), but in Christianity it acquires a
special sense because of faith in the resurrection of Jesus (Mt 9:24; Acts
7:60; 1 Cor. 15: 18, 20, 51, etc.). lest
you should grieve: Not with a natural sorrow at the loss of dear ones, but
with a pagan sorrow that is without Christian hope (Col 1:27; E[j 2:12; 1 Thess
4:5). The object of this hope is specific, viz., the resurrection and a life of
glory with Christ. V.14: if we believe:
…the death and resurrection of Christ (cf. 1 Cor 15:3-4; Rom 14:9; Acts 17:3 at
Thessalonica itself) bear a causal relationship to the resurrection of
Christians (houtos kai). God will bring
into his company those who have fallen asleep through Jesus: The
resurrection of Christians is likewise attributed to God (1:10). Jesus isn’t
the cause of death, but a bond persists between the Christian and Christ in
death as in life (Rom 14:7-9; 1 Thess 5:10). Moreover, his death is full of
hope because of Jesus; cf. ‘the dead in Christ’ (4:16). The goal of God’s
activity is the reunion of the believer with the Risen Christ. … Not knowing
the time of the Lord’s coming (5:2; Mt 24:43 par), Paul cherishes the hope of
living until the day of the Parousia (cf. Dan 12:12-13; 2 Esdras 5:4; 13:24)
and so includes himself and his Christians among the survivors on the last day…
The living ‘shall not precede’: …shall have no advantage over” the dead when He
comes. V.16-17 a partial description of the Parousia… heaven, the dwelling
place of God and the Risen Christ is above the earth and so the Lord descends;
in going out to meet Him, Christians must therefore ascend into the air… God
Himself is the cause of this… [we see clearly this is] the reunion of
Christians with Christ their King. ‘We
shall always be with the Lord’ [Jerome Study Bible, 232].
4:13-18 – The Apostle next deals with some concerns the
Church had with the 2nd Coming. “It seems they expect the Lord’s
Coming to take place in a short time and are worried that those who recently
died, before that expected Coming, would somehow be deprived of their final
salvation. Given their belief that the Lord will come soon, they seem to think
that one must be alive to welcome the Lord in order to participate in the age
that will follow. It’s in order to correct these misunderstandings that St.
Paul gives the following teaching…In correcting their erroneous notions, St.
Paul once again deals with them tenderly, calling them ‘brothers’, for he’s
dealing with those who are grieving the eternal loss (as they imagine) of their
loved ones. He would not have them ‘sorrow as the rest’ of mankind ‘do who don’t
have hope’. The pagan world around them did indeed grieve hopelessly over their
dead. Though certain religions and philosophies spoke of a hope of eternal life
after death, the basic pagan culture viewed death with unshakable despair. For
them, the dead were forever lost to the living. There was no hope. The only
consolation left for the bereaved was the iron certainty that one day they too
would die and cease to exist, substituting annihilation for the pain of loss.
The Gospel was 1st preached against this background of inevitable
loss and despair. The Christians were those who were placed beyond the grip of
death. ‘Through Jesus’ (Gr. dia tou Iesou), through the death of the humble
carpenter of Nazareth, death has been transformed to become a mere sleep of the
flesh, from which the Lord will take them to immortal transfigured life at the
2nd Coming. (In talking about the believers ‘sleeping’ in Jesus, we
must be clear that it’s the body that reposes and sleeps, not the soul, which
rejoices wakefully with the Lord in heaven after the death of the body. The
image of sleep is used for the dead body because, just as those who sleep at
night will wake and rise again in the morning, so the bodies of the faithful
will rise again at the final resurrection). St. Paul here assures the
Thessalonians that, just as the Lord ‘died and rose’ again, so will all those
who have already died as believers. For our baptism is our participation in
Christ’s death and Resurrection (Rom 6:3), and through our incorporation into
Him, we share, even now, His resurrection life and His ascended glory (Eph
2:6). How then could we not also share His physical triumph over death? So it’s
that God will ‘bring with’ Jesus at His 2nd Coming those believers
who have already ‘fallen asleep’ in death. These departed Christians won’t be deprived
of the age to come because they died before the 2nd Coming. On the
contrary, the dead in Christ ‘will rise first!’ We who ‘live and remain’ at the
time of the Coming ‘will not precede’ them in honor in the coming Kingdom. They’ll
be glorified before us, and it’s we who shall ‘then’ (Gr. epeite, ‘next’) be
caught up together with them in the clouds’ to welcome the Lord as He returns
at the 2nd Coming”. (Farley. 43-45)
Chapter 5:
v.1-11: They’re told to prepare for the same thing that will
come unexpectedly upon the ungodly – the day of the Lord (vv.2, 4). Paul
assumes that Christians and non-Christians alike will be alive and present when
this Day arrives. Christians watchful and ready, non-Christians surprised as a thief
who comes at night. The rising of Christians spoken of in 4.17 won’t occur
before the arrival of that Day that will also bring sudden and inescapable
destruction to the wicked (2 Thess 2:1).
v.1 – “[They] have no need for him to remind them of the ‘times
and appointed times’ (Gr. chronon kai kairon). The nuances of these Greek words
defy easy English translation.
Chronos time is time such as is marked by the
clock and calendar – time as easily and objectively measured, wherein year
succeeds year and each year is measured the same as the last.
Kairos time is
time as it’s charged and laden with critical meaning. It’s time as opportunity,
time as the moment of action come at last. Chronos becomes Kairos when the time
to act is at hand… [Paul says they] don’t need to be told again of how the ‘times’
and years will suddenly become the ‘appointed time’ of crisis and judgement. He
told them when he was with them, so that they know this ‘exactly’ (Gr. akribos);
they’ve been taught specifically how ‘the Day of the Lord’ comes as suddenly
and unexpectedly as the breaking in of ‘a thief in the night’ (see Mt
24:42-44). They shouldn’t imagine that the Kingdom will be characterized and
marked by gradual social changed and improvements. Men won’t be able to chart
the steady progress and coming nearness of the Kingdom. One can’t bring it
about (as many Jews thought) by military force or social moral reformation, nor
see it gradually spread throughout the earth by the pious efforts of men. Like
the lightning flash, it’ll come suddenly and independently of any earthly
events or causes (Mt 24:27). The 2nd Coming, the ‘Day of the Lord’
long expected by all the prophets, wherein God’s cause and Name will be
glorified over all others in the earth (Is 2:12; Joel 2:1; Amos 5:18), will
finally come. Indeed, the Lord is now on His way. (The verb ‘comes’, Gr. erchetai,
is here in the present tense.) The Day will come suddenly and take the world
off guard”. (Farley. 46-47).
v.2 – “day of the Lord” – The association of the day of the
Lord with judgment is carried on in the NT, where the last judgment and final regards
and punishments are in view (Acts 17:31; Rom 2:5, 16; 2 Cor 1:14). In 2 Peter
3:10-13, the heaven, earth, and the elements will be changed and make way for a
new heaven and a new earth.
[Cf. Rev 3:3, 16:15]
vv. 1-2: Paul proceeds to his next topic, “namely: the time
of the Lord’s coming…[It’s] absolutely in God’s hand (Acts 1:7 and 17:26) and
no one can know them except He (Acts 1:7). The Apostle starts by saying there’s
no need for them to receive any further comment in this regard, since they know
but too well the church’s teaching in this matter: the day of the Lord will
come like a thief in the night. And a thief doesn’t inform anyone of the hour
of his arrival (Mt 24:43/Lk. 12:39).” (155-156. Tarazi).
v.3 – “When people say, ‘There’s peace and security,’ then
sudden destruction will come upon them as travail comes upon a woman with
child, and there’ll be no escape”. This Tarazi translates as a general truth
(not as a specific future event). He reasons that such a translation follows
the rules of Greek syntax, the subject in the main phrase is indefinite. And
this verse follows the preceding one without any of the conjunctions needed “de”,
“gar”, or “oun”; nor is even the coordinating word, kai, used. It thus seems to
be a comment by Paul on his statement that the day of the Lord will come like a
thief in the night. (157. Tarazi).
v.4 – St. Symeon the New Theologian: As many, therefore, as
are children of the light also become sons of the day which is to come, and are
enabled to walk decently as in the day. The day of the Lord will never come
upon them, because they’re already in it forever and continually. The day of
the Lord, in effect, isn’t going to be revealed suddenly to those who are ever
illumined by the divine light, but for those who are in the darkness of the
passions and spend their lives in the world hungering for things of the world;
for them it’ll be fearful, and they’ll experience it as unbearable fire. [“The
Church & the Last Things”, On the
Mystical Life: The Ethical Discourses, Vol. I, 10th Discourse,
146, 147.]
v.8 – [Cf. Isa. 59:17]
v.10 – St. Chrysostom: Here, “whether we be asleep”
(present, active subjunctive), signifies bodily death, that is, fear not
dangers; though we should die, we shall live. [Homily 9, P.G. 62:491 (col.
451).]
v.15 – We must as Christians seek justice for others (Isa
56:1; 58:6-8).
v.19-21: He tells them not to despise legitimate prophecy;
both Silas and Paul were “prophets” (Acts 13:1; 15:32). These claims must
obviously be tested.
v.19, 20: St. Athanasius: He’s desirous that the grace of
the Spirit not grow cold in us. It’s not because the Spirit is placed in the
power of men, and is able to suffer anything from them, but because bad and
unthankful men...wish to quench it, since they, like the impure, persecute the
Spirit with unholy deeds. [“Letter III, for 331”, Paragraph 4, in Nicene, 2nd Sermon, IV: 514.]
v.23 – Paul gives a blessing and prays that, “as God is
indeed in their midst, He will ‘sanctify’ them ‘completely’, so that their entire
selves will be preserved ‘intact’ and ‘faultless at the Coming of our Lord’.
Paul describes this entirety of person as consisting of ‘spirit, soul, and body’”.
(Farley. 56-57)
St. Chrysostom: There were many among them who indeed
prophesied truly, but some prophesied falsely….For the devil, defiled with blood,
wished by means of this gift to overthrow everything pertaining to the Church.
For since both the demon and the Spirit prophesied concerning the future, the
one indeed uttering falsehood, and the Other Truth,….when the time came for
them to be convicted, He gave also the “discerning of spirits [1 Cor. 12:10]”.
Since therefore then also among the Thessalonians many were prophesying…he
says, “Don’t, because there are false prophets among you, on their account
hinder also these, and turn away from them. Cease quenching them; that is,
cease setting at nought prophecies”. [Homily 11, P.G. 62:503 (cols. 462, 463).]
v.24 – St. Chrysostom: For if He called you to salvation,
and He’s true, He’ll assuredly save you, in that He wills it. [Homily 11, P.G.
62:504 (col. 463).]
----
Works Used:
Orthodox Biblical Studies - 1
Thessalonians: A Commentary by Fr. Paul Nadim Tarazi. SVS Press. Crestwood NY.
1982.
Words of Fire – Fr. Lawrence
Farley. Conciliar Press. Chesterton Indiana. 2010.
Jerome Study Bible
Orthodox Study Bible
The Orthodox New Testament. Holy
Apostles Convent. Bueno Vista, CO. 2000.
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