The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the
THESSALONIANS
Author: Paul
Date: A.D. 50
Theme: The Twin Comforts of Past Ministry and the Future Return of the Lord
Key Words: Thanks, Coming, Faith/Hope/Love
Origin of the Church at Thessalonica. The gospel first reached Europe around A.D. 49. That occurred when, on his second mission tour, Paul and his party responded to the night vision of the Macedonian man by sailing from Troas (site of the ancient city of Troy), via the Aegean island of Samothrace, to Neapolis—the port city for Philippi (Acts 16:8–12). Here the apostle met the businesswoman Lydia, cast a spirit of divination out of a young female slave, and was publicly beaten and wrongfully arrested as a result. On learning that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, the imperial authorities gingerly apologized, freed the apostles, and urged them to leave town. They did (Acts 16:13–40).
Traveling 90 miles southwesterly, Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica. “As his custom was,“ Luke reports, Paul went to the synagogue there and over several weeks preached by arguing that Jesus, the carpenter’s son from Nazareth, was in fact God’s Anointed One—the Messiah—long promised in the Jewish scriptures (Acts 17:1–3). Here Paul established the second major church on the European continent.
Among those who accepted the message were not only Jews like Aristarchus (Col. 4:10, 11) but as well “devout Greeks”—Gentiles who attended the synagogue services but never became full converts to Judaism by taking circumcision. In addition, a considerable number of prominent women in the city responded to Paul’s message (Acts 17:4). The faith of Christian believers at Thessalonica became widely known (1 Thess. 1:7, 8). Twice, at least, the Philippian church sent financial support to Paul while he was at Thessalonica, where his stay lasted at least several weeks (Phil. 4:16).
While Acts emphasizes the Jewish origins of the church at Thessalonica, Paul’s letters to them makes it clear that many of them had “turned to God from idols” (1 Thess. 1:9). Since worship of idols in New Testament times was a Gentile and not a Jewish practice, ethnic variety marked the church of the Thessalonians.
Named for his sister by a Macedonian king in the late fourth century B.C., the city of Thessalonica was the capital of its district of the Roman province of Macedonia and possessed of a fine natural harbor. It was located on the famed Via Egnatia, a major Roman military highway that stretched from the western Balkan coast to present-day Istanbul, and was ruled by politarchs—a class of officials peculiar to the region. Luke shows his usual historical sensitivity by using this rare term (Acts 17:6, “rulers of the city,” NKJV).
As earlier in Philippi and afterward in Berea, Paul’s ministry in Thessalonica caught the attention both of Roman officials and Jewish opponents. Jewish leaders were not pleased with the redirected loyalties of the synagogue adherents. So they brought charges that Paul and his band had “turned the world upside down”—a highly serious charge, much closer to civil rebellion than to tolerable public mischief suggested by long use of familiar words. To call Jesus “Lord” was to employ a title otherwise applied to the emperor: “these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus” (Acts 17:7). Quite possibly, the very Roman authorities who reviewed the case included husbands of the “prominent women” persuaded by Paul. Their ire may have been added to the Jewish hostilities.
When Paul could not be found, his host Jason was arrested and made to pay bail. Under cover of night, Paul and Silas left for Berea—60 miles to the southwest. “But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also, and stirred up the crowds” (Acts 17:13). Thus, from three cities in succession—Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea—Paul and his team left amid civil unrest and with their work cut short. Such was the initial reception of the gospel on the European continent.
Occasion and Date. During his brief ministry in Athens, Paul was deeply concerned with the state of affairs within the infant church at Thessalonica. He had tried to return twice earlier, but Satan hindered (2:18). So when he could no longer endure the uncertainty nor conclusively plan a visit, he sent Timothy back to the church to investigate its progress (3:1, 2).
Timothy brought back a good report. The Thessalonians were thriving in their faith and were equally concerned for Paul. News of their faith amid trouble had spread widely through Macedonia and Achaia, the province to the south. Both Paul and the Thessalonians longed for reunion.
But there was more ministry for Paul in Corinth, about 50 miles west of Athens. From Corinth, it appears, refreshed by the good news from Thessalonica, he wrote the letter today called 1 Thessalonians.
From calculations based on the Gallio inscription—a public copy of a letter from the Roman emperor to the proconsul of Achaia—it can be affirmed that 1 Thessalonians was written in A.D. 50 or 51. The letter (with the possible exception of Galatians) is therefore the earliest preserved letter of Paul and, in fact, the first book of the New Testament to have been written. (The four Gospels, though they describe earlier events, were in their final form published later.)
Character and Content. Written primarily in a mood of relief and gratitude, 1 Thessalonians is marked by thankfulness over the growth of the church in Paul’s forced absence. The letter contains no elaborate theology like Romans, no rebuke of a threatening heresy like Galatians, no extensive pastoral counsels like 1 Corinthians.
The usual pattern in Paul’s letter—theological teaching followed by practical application—is slightly modified in 1 Thessalonians. First Thessalonians 1–3 rehearse Paul’s remembrances of his ministry among them, his concern for the state of their faith, his commission of Timothy to return to the church, his conspicuous delight upon learning of their steadfast faith. First Thessalonians 4 and 5 contain the characteristic exhortations toward such matters as sexual purity (4:1–8; 5:23), responsible love (4:9–12), esteem and support for leaders (5:12, 13), patience and helpfulness toward the varieties of human need (5:14, 15).
It is clear that these counsels only repeat what Paul had urged earlier when he was with them and that the Thessalonians already follow his counsel but should do so “more and more” (4:1), “just as you also are doing” (5:11). From the carefully balanced phrases in 1:3 and the repetition of the terms in 5:8, it is likewise clear that Paul and probably other early Christian missionaries repeatedly spoke of faith, hope, and love as a favorite trio of Christian virtues.
One doctrinal and practical concern, probably brought back by Timothy to Paul, led to the major theological emphasis of 1 Thessalonians. They had clearly understood his teaching that Jesus, brought back from the dead by God, would come again in triumph. Since Paul had left Thessalonica, however, several of the Thessalonian believers had died. What would become of them, the Thessalonians wondered, since Christ had not yet returned?
Paul’s response fueled hope and therefore comfort to those who grieved the loss of loved ones. The dead in Christ, in fact, would be the first to be resurrected. Then living Christians would join them and all would be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and forever be with Him. Comfort indeed!
Paul’s language describing the coming of Jesus lies at a distance from the vocabulary of urban technology two millennia later. First-century Mediterranean people were quite accustomed to the splendorous, joyful, and anticipated arrival (“coming”) of a visiting royal figure. On the appointed day, citizens would go outside the city to meet the royal visitor—who came with a vast cortege. Shouts of welcome and acclaim would rise as he passed by, and those who lined the road would then join the monarch as he was borne to an appointed place. Here, special recognitions and awards would be made (2:19). There was joy and awe at the king’s splendorous arrival. So shall it be when the living and the dead go up, not out, to meet the King who comes from heaven.
The theme of Christ’s return, though concentrated in 4:13–18, spills over into 5:1–11 as well. Indeed, the coming of Christ occurs from one end of the letter (1:10) to the other (5:23; see also 2:19; 3:13). Every chapter in 1 Thessalonians refers to this decisive future event.
Personal Application. Christians of all ages, like Paul (“we who are alive,” 4:15), have confidently awaited the return of Christ in their own time. Throughout the history of the church, there have been those who deprived the return of Christ of its intended force by setting dates or specifying limits. Those of any age who do so are claiming to know more than Jesus Himself: “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32).
Immediately following the prediction of Christ’s return (4:13–18), Paul makes the point (5:1–11) that the suddenness of the coming of Jesus will not surprise prepared Christians who have donned the appropriate armor (5:8), which works in all dimensions of time: faith (past), hope (future), and love (present).
Two things are certain: 1) the return of Christ is an assured future event, and 2) that event is closer than it has ever been before. But to specify a date for the Second Coming, or to specify a time by which the Lord must surely return, or to focus solely on detailed prophetic systems that attempt to sequence precisely various final events described in Scripture—such efforts dilute the force of Christ’s return as revealed in 1 Thessalonians. Paul’s bottom line—twice affirmed (4:18; 5:11: the Greek text uses exactly the same words)—is comfort in the face of death. Such a message encourages as well the contemporary descendants of the Thessalonians who mourn “those who sleep in Jesus.” This does not discourage expectancy (5:1–10), but neither does it provide encouragement to presumptuous systems of dating Jesus’ return.
Father God Revealed. God the Father (1:1, 3; 3:11, 13) is the source of wrath and displeasure (2:15, 16) to those who oppose Him, but for those who serve Him He is the recipient of thanks (1:2; 2:13; 3:9) and the origin of salvation (5:9), courage (2:2), peace (5:23), and approval (2:4). God raised Jesus and will raise the dead who trusted Him (1:10; 4:14). He is the living and genuine God (1:9), the opposite of idols (1:9), the incontestable witness (2:5). God’s will relates to moral purity (4:3, 7), but as well to continual thanksgiving (5:18). His word, “the gospel of God” (2:2, 8, 9: compare “gospel of Christ,” 3:2), remarkably, comes through human words (2:13; 4:8). In 1 Thessalonians, as elsewhere in the Bible, God is the source and end of all that relates to both natural and spiritual life.
Christ Revealed. Jesus is the Son of God (1:10), whose death and resurrection (1:10; 2:14, 15) provide an example to believers who suffer now (1:6; 2:14, 15) but who, as He was, will be raised in the future (1:10; 4:14, 16). Believers then and now have a mystical spiritual position “in the Lord” (1:1, 3; 4:1; 5:18), which, nevertheless, is practical enough to be the ground of respect for ruling elders (5:12). From Christ comes grace (5:28).
But above all in 1 Thessalonians, Christ emerges as the coming King, the conqueror of death, whose awaited return from heaven (1:10) gives comfort to the bereaved (4:17, 18; 5:11) and joy to his expectant subjects (2:19, 20). This will be His day, the “Day of the Lord” (5:2; see 2 Thess. 2:2, “day of Christ”).
The Holy Spirit at Work. All Christians can affirm that it is God who has “given us His Holy Spirit” (4:8). The Spirit inspires joy even amid affliction (1:6). When the gospel arrived in Thessalonica, it came not only in word “but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance” (1:5), suggesting a balanced mix of intellectual argument, the Spirit’s power (probably with “signs and wonders”), and deep personal response. First Thessalonians 5:19–21 reveals a lively charismatic character to the worship at Thessalonica—prophetic activity, which some were inclined to subdue but for which Paul asks tested acceptance: his words were to be read “to all the holy brethren” (5:27).
Jack W. Hayford, Spirit Filled Life Study Bible
THESSALONIANS
Author: Paul
Date: A.D. 50
Theme: The Twin Comforts of Past Ministry and the Future Return of the Lord
Key Words: Thanks, Coming, Faith/Hope/Love
Origin of the Church at Thessalonica. The gospel first reached Europe around A.D. 49. That occurred when, on his second mission tour, Paul and his party responded to the night vision of the Macedonian man by sailing from Troas (site of the ancient city of Troy), via the Aegean island of Samothrace, to Neapolis—the port city for Philippi (Acts 16:8–12). Here the apostle met the businesswoman Lydia, cast a spirit of divination out of a young female slave, and was publicly beaten and wrongfully arrested as a result. On learning that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, the imperial authorities gingerly apologized, freed the apostles, and urged them to leave town. They did (Acts 16:13–40).
Traveling 90 miles southwesterly, Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica. “As his custom was,“ Luke reports, Paul went to the synagogue there and over several weeks preached by arguing that Jesus, the carpenter’s son from Nazareth, was in fact God’s Anointed One—the Messiah—long promised in the Jewish scriptures (Acts 17:1–3). Here Paul established the second major church on the European continent.
Among those who accepted the message were not only Jews like Aristarchus (Col. 4:10, 11) but as well “devout Greeks”—Gentiles who attended the synagogue services but never became full converts to Judaism by taking circumcision. In addition, a considerable number of prominent women in the city responded to Paul’s message (Acts 17:4). The faith of Christian believers at Thessalonica became widely known (1 Thess. 1:7, 8). Twice, at least, the Philippian church sent financial support to Paul while he was at Thessalonica, where his stay lasted at least several weeks (Phil. 4:16).
While Acts emphasizes the Jewish origins of the church at Thessalonica, Paul’s letters to them makes it clear that many of them had “turned to God from idols” (1 Thess. 1:9). Since worship of idols in New Testament times was a Gentile and not a Jewish practice, ethnic variety marked the church of the Thessalonians.
Named for his sister by a Macedonian king in the late fourth century B.C., the city of Thessalonica was the capital of its district of the Roman province of Macedonia and possessed of a fine natural harbor. It was located on the famed Via Egnatia, a major Roman military highway that stretched from the western Balkan coast to present-day Istanbul, and was ruled by politarchs—a class of officials peculiar to the region. Luke shows his usual historical sensitivity by using this rare term (Acts 17:6, “rulers of the city,” NKJV).
As earlier in Philippi and afterward in Berea, Paul’s ministry in Thessalonica caught the attention both of Roman officials and Jewish opponents. Jewish leaders were not pleased with the redirected loyalties of the synagogue adherents. So they brought charges that Paul and his band had “turned the world upside down”—a highly serious charge, much closer to civil rebellion than to tolerable public mischief suggested by long use of familiar words. To call Jesus “Lord” was to employ a title otherwise applied to the emperor: “these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus” (Acts 17:7). Quite possibly, the very Roman authorities who reviewed the case included husbands of the “prominent women” persuaded by Paul. Their ire may have been added to the Jewish hostilities.
When Paul could not be found, his host Jason was arrested and made to pay bail. Under cover of night, Paul and Silas left for Berea—60 miles to the southwest. “But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also, and stirred up the crowds” (Acts 17:13). Thus, from three cities in succession—Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea—Paul and his team left amid civil unrest and with their work cut short. Such was the initial reception of the gospel on the European continent.
Occasion and Date. During his brief ministry in Athens, Paul was deeply concerned with the state of affairs within the infant church at Thessalonica. He had tried to return twice earlier, but Satan hindered (2:18). So when he could no longer endure the uncertainty nor conclusively plan a visit, he sent Timothy back to the church to investigate its progress (3:1, 2).
Timothy brought back a good report. The Thessalonians were thriving in their faith and were equally concerned for Paul. News of their faith amid trouble had spread widely through Macedonia and Achaia, the province to the south. Both Paul and the Thessalonians longed for reunion.
But there was more ministry for Paul in Corinth, about 50 miles west of Athens. From Corinth, it appears, refreshed by the good news from Thessalonica, he wrote the letter today called 1 Thessalonians.
From calculations based on the Gallio inscription—a public copy of a letter from the Roman emperor to the proconsul of Achaia—it can be affirmed that 1 Thessalonians was written in A.D. 50 or 51. The letter (with the possible exception of Galatians) is therefore the earliest preserved letter of Paul and, in fact, the first book of the New Testament to have been written. (The four Gospels, though they describe earlier events, were in their final form published later.)
Character and Content. Written primarily in a mood of relief and gratitude, 1 Thessalonians is marked by thankfulness over the growth of the church in Paul’s forced absence. The letter contains no elaborate theology like Romans, no rebuke of a threatening heresy like Galatians, no extensive pastoral counsels like 1 Corinthians.
The usual pattern in Paul’s letter—theological teaching followed by practical application—is slightly modified in 1 Thessalonians. First Thessalonians 1–3 rehearse Paul’s remembrances of his ministry among them, his concern for the state of their faith, his commission of Timothy to return to the church, his conspicuous delight upon learning of their steadfast faith. First Thessalonians 4 and 5 contain the characteristic exhortations toward such matters as sexual purity (4:1–8; 5:23), responsible love (4:9–12), esteem and support for leaders (5:12, 13), patience and helpfulness toward the varieties of human need (5:14, 15).
It is clear that these counsels only repeat what Paul had urged earlier when he was with them and that the Thessalonians already follow his counsel but should do so “more and more” (4:1), “just as you also are doing” (5:11). From the carefully balanced phrases in 1:3 and the repetition of the terms in 5:8, it is likewise clear that Paul and probably other early Christian missionaries repeatedly spoke of faith, hope, and love as a favorite trio of Christian virtues.
One doctrinal and practical concern, probably brought back by Timothy to Paul, led to the major theological emphasis of 1 Thessalonians. They had clearly understood his teaching that Jesus, brought back from the dead by God, would come again in triumph. Since Paul had left Thessalonica, however, several of the Thessalonian believers had died. What would become of them, the Thessalonians wondered, since Christ had not yet returned?
Paul’s response fueled hope and therefore comfort to those who grieved the loss of loved ones. The dead in Christ, in fact, would be the first to be resurrected. Then living Christians would join them and all would be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and forever be with Him. Comfort indeed!
Paul’s language describing the coming of Jesus lies at a distance from the vocabulary of urban technology two millennia later. First-century Mediterranean people were quite accustomed to the splendorous, joyful, and anticipated arrival (“coming”) of a visiting royal figure. On the appointed day, citizens would go outside the city to meet the royal visitor—who came with a vast cortege. Shouts of welcome and acclaim would rise as he passed by, and those who lined the road would then join the monarch as he was borne to an appointed place. Here, special recognitions and awards would be made (2:19). There was joy and awe at the king’s splendorous arrival. So shall it be when the living and the dead go up, not out, to meet the King who comes from heaven.
The theme of Christ’s return, though concentrated in 4:13–18, spills over into 5:1–11 as well. Indeed, the coming of Christ occurs from one end of the letter (1:10) to the other (5:23; see also 2:19; 3:13). Every chapter in 1 Thessalonians refers to this decisive future event.
Personal Application. Christians of all ages, like Paul (“we who are alive,” 4:15), have confidently awaited the return of Christ in their own time. Throughout the history of the church, there have been those who deprived the return of Christ of its intended force by setting dates or specifying limits. Those of any age who do so are claiming to know more than Jesus Himself: “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32).
Immediately following the prediction of Christ’s return (4:13–18), Paul makes the point (5:1–11) that the suddenness of the coming of Jesus will not surprise prepared Christians who have donned the appropriate armor (5:8), which works in all dimensions of time: faith (past), hope (future), and love (present).
Two things are certain: 1) the return of Christ is an assured future event, and 2) that event is closer than it has ever been before. But to specify a date for the Second Coming, or to specify a time by which the Lord must surely return, or to focus solely on detailed prophetic systems that attempt to sequence precisely various final events described in Scripture—such efforts dilute the force of Christ’s return as revealed in 1 Thessalonians. Paul’s bottom line—twice affirmed (4:18; 5:11: the Greek text uses exactly the same words)—is comfort in the face of death. Such a message encourages as well the contemporary descendants of the Thessalonians who mourn “those who sleep in Jesus.” This does not discourage expectancy (5:1–10), but neither does it provide encouragement to presumptuous systems of dating Jesus’ return.
Father God Revealed. God the Father (1:1, 3; 3:11, 13) is the source of wrath and displeasure (2:15, 16) to those who oppose Him, but for those who serve Him He is the recipient of thanks (1:2; 2:13; 3:9) and the origin of salvation (5:9), courage (2:2), peace (5:23), and approval (2:4). God raised Jesus and will raise the dead who trusted Him (1:10; 4:14). He is the living and genuine God (1:9), the opposite of idols (1:9), the incontestable witness (2:5). God’s will relates to moral purity (4:3, 7), but as well to continual thanksgiving (5:18). His word, “the gospel of God” (2:2, 8, 9: compare “gospel of Christ,” 3:2), remarkably, comes through human words (2:13; 4:8). In 1 Thessalonians, as elsewhere in the Bible, God is the source and end of all that relates to both natural and spiritual life.
Christ Revealed. Jesus is the Son of God (1:10), whose death and resurrection (1:10; 2:14, 15) provide an example to believers who suffer now (1:6; 2:14, 15) but who, as He was, will be raised in the future (1:10; 4:14, 16). Believers then and now have a mystical spiritual position “in the Lord” (1:1, 3; 4:1; 5:18), which, nevertheless, is practical enough to be the ground of respect for ruling elders (5:12). From Christ comes grace (5:28).
But above all in 1 Thessalonians, Christ emerges as the coming King, the conqueror of death, whose awaited return from heaven (1:10) gives comfort to the bereaved (4:17, 18; 5:11) and joy to his expectant subjects (2:19, 20). This will be His day, the “Day of the Lord” (5:2; see 2 Thess. 2:2, “day of Christ”).
The Holy Spirit at Work. All Christians can affirm that it is God who has “given us His Holy Spirit” (4:8). The Spirit inspires joy even amid affliction (1:6). When the gospel arrived in Thessalonica, it came not only in word “but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance” (1:5), suggesting a balanced mix of intellectual argument, the Spirit’s power (probably with “signs and wonders”), and deep personal response. First Thessalonians 5:19–21 reveals a lively charismatic character to the worship at Thessalonica—prophetic activity, which some were inclined to subdue but for which Paul asks tested acceptance: his words were to be read “to all the holy brethren” (5:27).
Jack W. Hayford, Spirit Filled Life Study Bible
