1 Tesalonika 3:1

3:1 So when we could bear it no longer, we decided to stay on in Athens ¹  alone.

1 Tesalonika 3:7

3:7 So ²  in all our distress and affliction, we were reassured about you, brothers and sisters, ³  through your faith.

1 Tesalonika 2:8

2:8 with such affection for you ⁴  we were happy ⁵  to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us.

1 Tesalonika 4:18

4:18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

1 Tesalonika 5:6

5:6 So then we must not sleep as the rest, but must stay alert and sober.

1 Tesalonika 1:4

1:4 We know, ⁶  brothers and sisters ⁷  loved by God, that he has chosen you, ⁸ 

1 Tesalonika 2:18

2:18 For we wanted to come to you (I, Paul, in fact tried again and again) ⁹  but Satan thwarted us.

1 Tesalonika 3:5

3:5 So ¹⁰  when I could bear it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith, for fear that the tempter somehow tempted you and our toil had proven useless.

1 Tesalonika 2:13

2:13 And so ¹¹  we too constantly thank God that when you received God’s message that you heard from us, ¹²  you accepted it not as a human message, ¹³  but as it truly is, God’s message, which is at work among you who believe.

1 Tesalonika 5:11

5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, just as you are in fact doing.

1 Tesalonika 3:9

3:9 For how can we thank God enough for you, ¹⁴  for all the joy we feel ¹⁵  because of you before our God?

1 Tesalonika 5:13

5:13 and to esteem them most highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves.

1 Tesalonika 4:8

4:8 Consequently the one who rejects this is not rejecting human authority ¹⁶  but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

1 Tesalonika 1:5

1:5 in that ¹⁷  our gospel did not come to you merely in words, ¹⁸  but in power and in the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction (surely you recall the character we displayed when we came among you to help you). ¹⁹ 

1 Tesalonika 2:14

2:14 For you became imitators, brothers and sisters, ²⁰  of God’s churches in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, because you too suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they in fact did from the Jews,

1 Tesalonika 2:17

Forced Absence from Thessalonica

2:17 But when we were separated from you, brothers and sisters, ²¹  for a short time (in presence, not in affection) ²²  we became all the more fervent in our great desire ²³  to see you in person. ²⁴ 

1 Tesalonika 2:6

2:6 nor to seek glory from people, either from you or from others,

1 Tesalonika 5:7

5:7 For those who sleep, sleep at night and those who get drunk are drunk at night.

1 Tesalonika 1:6

1:6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, when you received ²⁵  the message with joy that comes from the Holy Spirit, despite great affliction.

1 Tesalonika 2:9

2:9 For you recall, brothers and sisters, ²⁶  our toil and drudgery: By working night and day so as not to impose a burden on any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God.

1 Tesalonika 2:4

2:4 but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we declare it, not to please people but God, who examines our hearts.

1 Tesalonika 1:2

Thanksgiving for Response to the Gospel

1:2 We thank God always for all of you as we mention you constantly ²⁷  in our prayers,

1 Tesalonika 1:9

1:9 For people everywhere ²⁸  report how you welcomed us ²⁹  and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God

1 Tesalonika 4:6

4:6 In this matter no one should violate the rights of his brother or take advantage of him, ³⁰  because the Lord is the avenger in all these cases, ³¹  as we also told you earlier and warned you solemnly.

1 Tesalonika 4:2

4:2 For you know what commands we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

1 Tesalonika 2:5

2:5 For we never appeared ³²  with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed – God is our witness –

1 Tesalonika 5:18

5:18 in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Tesalonika 2:16

2:16 because they hinder us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. Thus they constantly fill up their measure of sins, ³³  but wrath ³⁴  has come upon them completely. ³⁵ 

1 Tesalonika 4:9

4:9 Now on the topic of brotherly love ³⁶  you have no need for anyone to write you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another.

1 Tesalonika 4:3

4:3 For this is God’s will: that you become holy, ³⁷  that you keep away from sexual immorality,

1 Tesalonika 2:19

2:19 For who is our hope or joy or crown to boast of ³⁸  before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not of course you?

1 Tesalonika 5:24

5:24 He who calls you is trustworthy, and he will in fact do this. ³⁹ 

1 Tesalonika 1:3

1:3 because we recall ⁴⁰  in the presence of our God and Father ⁴¹  your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope ⁴²  in our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Tesalonika 2:3

2:3 For the appeal we make ⁴³  does not come ⁴⁴  from error or impurity or with deceit,

1 Tesalonika 2:7

2:7 ⁴⁵  although we could have imposed our weight as apostles of Christ; instead we became ⁴⁶  little children ⁴⁷  among you. Like a nursing mother caring for her own children,

1 Tesalonika 5:2

5:2 For you know quite well that the day of the Lord ⁴⁸  will come in the same way as a thief in the night. ⁴⁹ 

1 Tesalonika 5:9

5:9 For God did not destine us for wrath ⁵⁰  but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Tesalonika 4:16

4:16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel, ⁵¹  and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

1 Tesalonika 2:15

2:15 who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets ⁵²  and persecuted us severely. ⁵³  They are displeasing to God and are opposed to all people,

1 Tesalonika 3:4

3:4 For in fact when we were with you, we were telling you in advance that we would suffer affliction, and so it has happened, as you well know. ⁵⁴ 

1 Tesalonika 4:14

4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also we believe that ⁵⁵  God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep as Christians. ⁵⁶ 

1 Tesalonika 5:8

5:8 But since we are of the day, we must stay sober by putting on the breastplate ⁵⁷  of faith and love and as a helmet our hope for salvation. ⁵⁸ 

1 Tesalonika 1:8

1:8 For from you the message of the Lord ⁵⁹  has echoed forth not just in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place reports of your faith in God have spread, ⁶⁰  so that we do not need to say anything.

[3:1]  ¹ map For location see JP1 C2; JP2 C2; JP3 C2; JP4 C2.

[3:7]  ² tn Or “for this reason.”

[3:7]  ³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

[2:8]  ⁴ tn Grk “longing for you in this way.”

[2:8]  ⁵ tn Or “we are happy.” This verb may be past or present tense, but the context favors the past.

[1:4]  ⁶ tn Grk “knowing.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the participle εἰδότες (eidotes) has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence started here in the translation.

[1:4]  ⁷ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).

[1:4]  ⁸ tn Grk “your election.”

[2:18]  ⁹ tn Or “several times”; Grk, “both once and twice.” The literal expression “once and twice” is frequently used as a Greek idiom referring to an indefinite low number, but more than once (“several times”); see L&N 60.70.

[3:5]  ¹⁰ tn Or “for this reason.”

[2:13]  ¹¹ tn Grk “for this reason,” which seems to look back to Paul’s behavior just described. But it may look forward to v. 13b and mean: “and here is another reason that we constantly thank God: that…”

[2:13]  ¹² tn Grk “God’s word of hearing from us.”

[2:13]  ¹³ tn Paul’s focus is their attitude toward the message he preached: They received it not as a human message but a message from God.

[3:9]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “what thanks can we render to God about you.”

[3:9]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “all the joy with which we rejoice.”

[4:8]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “rejecting man.”

[1:5]  ¹⁷ tn Or “because.”

[1:5]  ¹⁸ tn Or “speech,” or “an act of speaking.”

[1:5]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “just as you know what sort of people we were among you for your sakes.” Verse 5 reflects on the experience of Paul and his fellow preachers; v. 6 begins to describe the Thessalonians’ response.

[2:14]  ²⁰ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

[2:17]  ²¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

[2:17]  ²² tn Grk “in face, not in heart.”

[2:17]  ²³ tn Grk “with great desire.”

[2:17]  ²⁴ tn Grk “to see your face.”

[1:6]  ²⁵ tn Or “after you received.”

[2:9]  ²⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

[1:2]  ²⁷ tn Or “mention you in our prayers, because we recall constantly…”

[1:9]  ²⁸ tn Grk “they themselves,” referring to people in the places just mentioned.

[1:9]  ²⁹ tn Grk “what sort of entrance we had to you” (an idiom for how someone is received).

[4:6]  ³⁰ tn Grk “not to transgress against or defraud his brother in the matter,” continuing the sentence of vv. 3-5.

[4:6]  ³¹ tn Grk “concerning all these things.”

[2:5]  ³² tn Or “came on the scene,” “came.”

[2:16]  ³³ tn Grk “to fill up their sins always.”

[2:16]  ³⁴ tc The Western text (D F G latt) adds τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) to ὀργή (orgh) to read “the wrath of God,” in emulation of the normal Pauline idiom (cf., e.g., Rom 1:18; Eph 5:6; Col 3:6) and, most likely, to clarify which wrath is in view (since ὀργή is articular).

[2:16]  tn Or “the wrath,” possibly referring back to the mention of wrath in 1:10.

[2:16]  ³⁵ tn Or “at last.”

[4:9]  ³⁶ tn Grk “concerning brotherly love.”

[4:3]  ³⁷ tn Or “your sanctification.”

[2:19]  ³⁸ sn Crown to boast of (Grk “crown of boasting”). Paul uses boasting or exultation to describe the Christian’s delight in being commended for faithful service by the Lord at his return (1 Cor 9:15-16; 2 Cor 1:12-14; 10:13-18; Phil 2:16; and 1 Cor 3:14; 4:5).

[5:24]  ³⁹ tn Grk “who will also do,” with the object understood from v. 23.

[1:3]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “making mention…recalling.” The participle ποιούμενοι (poioumenoi) in v. 2 has been translated as temporal, and μνημονεύοντες (mnhmoneuonte") in v. 3 has been translated as causal.

[1:3]  ⁴¹ tn Or the phrase may connect at the end of the verse: “hope…in the presence of our God and Father.”

[1:3]  ⁴² tn These phrases denote Christian virtues in action: the work produced by faith, labor motivated by love, and endurance that stems from hope in Christ.

[2:3]  ⁴³ tn Grk “For our exhortation.” Paul here uses παράκλησις (paraklhsis) to speak in broad terms about his preaching of the gospel, in which he urges or appeals to people to respond to God’s salvation (cf. the verb form παρακαλοῦντος [parakalounto"] in 2 Cor 5:20).

[2:3]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “[is] not” (the verb “to be” is implied in the Greek construction).

[2:7]  ⁴⁵ tn Punctuating vv. 6 and 7 is difficult. One must consider the difficult textual problem of v. 7 (see tc note on the word “children” in that verse) as well as the grammar of the verse. In the translation above, “little children” is understood to be a predicate nominative connected to the verb “became.” This allows a full stop to be placed at the end of v. 6 and before the phrase “like a nursing mother” in v. 7. This separates the two metaphors which impact the textual problem and allows for greater clarity in the way the sentence is read.

[2:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “were,” “proved to be.”

[2:7]  ⁴⁷ tc The variant ἤπιοι (hpioi, “gentle”) has fair support (א² A C² D² Ψ^c 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï), but νήπιοι (nhpioi, “little children”) has significantly stronger backing (Ì⁶⁵ א* B C* D* F G I Ψ* pc it bo). It is not insignificant that the earliest Alexandrian and Western witnesses in support of ἤπιοι are actually not Alexandrian or Western; they are the second correctors of Alexandrian and Western mss. Such correctors generally follow a Byzantine Vorlage. The reading νήπιοι is thus superior externally. Further, νήπιοι is much harder in this context, for Paul mixes his metaphors (“we became little children in your midst…Like a nursing mother…”). Thus, the scribes would naturally alter this reading to the softer ἤπιοι (“we became gentle…”). Paul is not known for his consistency of figures, however (cf., e.g., Gal 4:19); hence, the intrinsic evidence points to νήπιοι as original. On the other hand, it is possible that νήπιοι was caused by dittography with the preceding -μεν (-men). It is even possible that νήπιοι was caused by an error of hearing right from the beginning: The amanuensis could have heard the apostle incorrectly. But such a supposition cuts both ways; further, Paul would no doubt have corrected the reading in the ms before it was sent out. If so, one would surely have expected both earlier witnesses on the side of ἤπιοι and perhaps a few first correctors to have this reading. The reading “little children” thus stands as most probably original. (For an extended discussion of this problem, see J. A. D. Weima, “‘But We Became Infants Among You’: The Case for NHPIOI in 1 Thess 2.7,” NTS 46 [2000]: 547-64; T. B. Sailors, “Wedding Textual and Rhetorical Criticism to Understand the Text of 1 Thessalonians 2.7,” JSNT 80 [2000]: 81-98.)

[5:2]  ⁴⁸ sn The day of the Lord is the period of time in the future when the Lord will intervene in the events of this earth to consummate his redemption and his judgment (Isa 2:11-12; 13:6-13; Ezek 30:3; Joel 1:15; 2:32; 3:18; Amos 5:18-20; Obad 15-17; Zeph 1:7-18; 2:2-3; Zech 14:1, 13, 20-21; Mal 4:1, 5; 1 Cor 1:8; 5:5; 2 Cor 1:14; 2 Thess 2:2; 2 Pet 3:10). It includes both blessings and curses, though the latter is emphasized here.

[5:2]  ⁴⁹ sn Jesus used a thief coming at night as an illustration of the unexpected and hostile nature of the coming of God’s judgment in the future. This is repeated in various ways in v. 4; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15.

[5:9]  ⁵⁰ sn God did not destine us for wrath. In context this refers to the outpouring of God’s wrath on the earth in the day of the Lord (1 Thess 5:2-4).

[4:16]  ⁵¹ tn Neither noun in this phrase (ἐν φωνῇ ἀρχαγγέλου, ejn fwnh ajrcangelou, “with the voice of the archangel”) has the article in keeping with Apollonius’ Canon. Since ἀρχάγγελος (ajrcangelo") is most likely monadic, both nouns are translated as definite in keeping with Apollonius’ Corollary (see ExSyn 250-51).

[2:15]  ⁵² tc ἰδίους (idious, “their own prophets”) is found in D¹ Ψ Ï sy Mcion^T. This is obviously a secondary reading. Marcion’s influence may stand behind part of the tradition, but the Byzantine text probably added the adjective in light of its mention in v. 14 and as a clarification or interpretation of which prophets were in view.

[2:15]  ⁵³ tn Or “and drove us out” (cf. Acts 17:5-10).

[3:4]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “just as it also occurred and you know.”

[4:14]  ⁵⁵ tn “we believe that” is understood from the first clause of the verse, which is parallel. Grk “so also God will bring.”

[4:14]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “those who have fallen asleep through Jesus.” It is possible that “through Jesus” describes “bring,” but this gives the unlikely double reference, “through Jesus God will bring them with Jesus.” Instead it describes their “falling sleep,” since through him their death is only sleep and not the threat it once was. Also Christians are those whose total existence – life and death – is in and through and for Christ (1 Cor 8:6).

[5:8]  ⁵⁷ sn An allusion to Isa 59:17.

[5:8]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “hope of salvation” (“a helmet…for salvation” is an allusion to Isa 59:17).

[1:8]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “the word of the Lord.”

[1:8]  sn “The word of the Lord” is a technical expression in OT literature, often referring to a divine prophetic utterance (e.g., Gen 15:1, Isa 1:10, Jonah 1:1). In the NT it occurs 15 times: 3 times as ῥῆμα τοῦ κυρίου (rJhma tou kuriou; Luke 22:61, Acts 11:16, 1 Pet 1:25) and 12 times as λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (logo" tou kuriou; here and in Acts 8:25; 13:44, 48, 49; 15:35, 36; 16:32; 19:10, 20; 1 Thess 4:15; 2 Thess 3:1). As in the OT, this phrase focuses on the prophetic nature and divine origin of what has been said. Here the phrase has been translated “the message of the Lord” because of the focus upon the spread of the gospel evident in the passage.

[1:8]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “your faith in God has gone out.”