The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (230 page)

3
  
Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind
at Athens
alone,
²
and
we sent Timothy
, our brother and God's servant in the gospel of Christ, to establish you in your faith and to exhort you,
³
that no one be moved by
these afflictions
. You yourselves know that this is to be our lot.
⁴
For when we were with you, we told you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction; just as it has come to pass, and as you know.
⁵
For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent that I might know your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and that our labor would be in vain.

Timothy's Good Report

6
 But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you—
⁷
for this reason, brethren, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith;
⁸
for now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.
⁹
For what thanksgiving can we render to God for you, for all the joy which we feel for your sake before our God,
¹⁰
praying earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply
what is lacking
in your faith?

11
 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you;
¹²
and may the Lord make you increase and
abound in love
to one another and to all men, as we do to you,
¹³
so that he may establish your hearts unblamable in
holiness
before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

A Life Pleasing to God

4
  
Finally, brethren
, we beg and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you learned from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, you do so more and more.
²
For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
³
For this is the will of God, your
sanctification
:
 
*
that you abstain from immorality;
 
*
^4
/sup>
that each one of you know how to control
his own body
in holiness and honor,
⁵
not in the passion of lust like heathens who
do not know God
;
⁶
that no man transgress, and
wrong his brother
in this matter,
^c
because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we solemnly forewarned you.
⁷
For God has not called us for uncleanness, but in holiness.
⁸
Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives
his Holy Spirit
to you.

9
 But concerning
love of the brethren
you have no need to have any one write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another;
¹⁰
and indeed you do love all the brethren throughout Macedonia. But we exhort you, brethren, to do so more and more,
¹¹
to aspire to live quietly, to
mind your own affairs
, and to work with your hands, as we charged you;
 
*
¹²
so that you may command the respect of outsiders, and be dependent on nobody.

The Coming of the Lord

13
 
But we
would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are
asleep
, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.
 
*
¹⁴
For since we believe that
Jesus died and rose again
, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
¹⁵
For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that
we who are alive
, who are left until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep.
¹⁶
For
the
Lord himself
will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel's call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first;
¹⁷
then we who are alive, who are left, shall be
caught up
together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord.
 
*
¹⁸
Therefore comfort one another with these words.

5
  
But as
to
the times and the seasons
, brethren, you have no need to have anything written to you.
²
For you yourselves know well that the
day of the Lord
will come like a thief in the night.
³
When people say, "There is
peace and security
," then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a woman with child, and there will be no escape.
⁴
But you are not in darkness, brethren, for that day to surprise you like a thief.
⁵
For you are all
sons of light
and sons of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness.
⁶
So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober.
⁷
For those who sleep sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night.
⁸
But, since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the
breastplate
of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.
⁹
For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
¹⁰
who died for us
so that whether we wake or sleep we might live with him.
¹¹
Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

Final Exhortations, Greetings, and Benediction

12
 But we beg you, brethren, to respect those who labor among you and are
over you in the Lord
and admonish you,
¹³
and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.
^c2
14
And we exhort you, brethren,
admonish the idle
, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.
¹⁵
See that none of you repays
evil for evil
, but always seek to do good to one another and to all.
¹⁶
Rejoice always,
¹⁷
pray constantly
,
¹⁸
give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
¹⁹
Do not quench the Spirit
,
²⁰
do not despise prophesying,
²¹
but test everything; hold fast what is good,
²²
abstain from every form of evil.

23
 May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your
spirit and soul and body
be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
²⁴
He who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.

25
 Brethren, pray for us.

26
 Greet all the brethren with
a holy kiss
.

27
 
I adjure you
by the Lord that this letter be read to all the brethren.

28
 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Commentary on The First Letter of Saint Paul to the Thessalonians

1:1 Paul:
The author of the letter (2:18) as well as the founding apostle of the Thessalonian Church (Acts 17:1-9).
Silvanus:
A Latin transcription of the name "Silas", a Christian prophet from Jerusalem (Acts 15:32) who accompanied Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 15:40). He was a co-founder with Paul of the church in Thessalonica.
Timothy:
A young man selected by Paul to minister with him and Silas on their missionary adventures (Acts 16:1-4). Without stating it explicitly, Acts implies that Timothy played a secondary role with Paul and Silas in evangelizing Thessalonica (Acts 17:1, 14). He was later sent to encourage the community and report back to Paul on their situation (1 Thess 3:1-6).
See note on 1 Tim 1:2
.
in . . . the Father and the Lord:
The Church family in Thessalonica is united "in" the divine family of the Trinity. The heavenly Father has made this possible by choosing believers for adoption (1:4), giving them the Holy Spirit (4:8), and promising to raise even their bodies from the dead (4:14) when his Son returns in glory (1:10; 4:15-17) (CCC 2014).
Grace to you and peace:
A standard Christian greeting used by Paul and other writers in the NT (1 Pet 1:2; 2 Jn 3; Rev 1:4). 
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1:2 We give thanks:
Nearly every Pauline epistle opens with expressions of gratitude (Rom 1:8; 1 Cor 1:4; etc.). Paul is particularly thankful for the Thessalonians, who have admirably committed themselves to living out the gospel (1 Thess 1:8; 3:6; 4:1, 10). 
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1:3 remembering:
Paul recalls the time he first spent with his readers. What stands out in his mind are the theological virtues that changed their lives: in
faith
they abandoned their idols and embraced the living God (1:9); in
hope
they endured suffering and expressed longing for the final salvation that Jesus will bring when he returns (1:10; 5:9); and in
love
they served one another in generous and sacrificial ways (4:9-10). These virtues will protect them like armor in the challenging days ahead (5:8). Paul often reflects on this triad of Christian virtues in his writings (Rom 5:1-5; 1 Cor 13:8-13; Gal 5:5-6; Col 1:4-5) (CCC 1812-29).
See note on 1 Cor 13:13
. 
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1:4 he has chosen you:
Before the founding of the world, the Father chose believers for salvation (5:9) and divine sonship (Eph 1:4-5) (CCC 759).
See note on Rom 8:29
. 
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1:5 also in power:
The power of God bursts forth through the gospel to save sinners who accept it with faith (Rom 1:16). It is also possible that Paul is referring to the powerful signs and miracles that accompanied his preaching and gave incentive for faith (2 Cor 12:12; Gal 3:5). 
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1:6 affliction, with joy:
Suffering for the gospel is a sign of blessedness and divine approval (Mt 5:10; 1 Pet 3:14). It makes the believer more like Christ (1 Pet 2:21) and his apostles (1 Thess 3:3-4). 
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1:7 Macedonia . . . Achaia:
Two Roman provinces that correspond to northern and southern Greece. Paul is writing from the Achaian city of Corinth in the south, while his readers are residents of the Macedonian city of Thessalonica in the north. 
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1:9 turned to God from idols:
Suggests most of the Thessalonians were Gentile converts, although some Jewish converts were made in the local synagogue (Acts 17:4). • Paul is voicing a traditional Jewish critique of idolatry. In the Scriptures, Yahweh is acknowledged and praised as the only
living
God in contrast to the
lifeless
idols of the pagans (Tob 14:6; Ps 135:13-18; Jer 10:6-10; Hab 2:18-20). Regarding belief in the one true God, the faith of Israel (Deut 6:4) remains the faith of the Church (1 Cor 8:6). This was the cutting edge of Paul's preaching among Gentile audiences immersed in polytheistic cultures (Acts 14:15; 17:22-31) (CCC 212). 
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