2 Tesalonika 1:11

1:11 And in this regard we pray for you always, that our God will make you worthy of his calling ¹  and fulfill by his power your every desire for goodness and every work of faith,

2 Tesalonika 2:3-4

2:3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not arrive until the rebellion comes ²  and the man of lawlessness ³  is revealed, the son of destruction. ⁴  2:4 He ⁵  opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat ⁶  in God’s temple, displaying himself as God. ⁷ 

2 Tesalonika 2:7-8

2:7 For the hidden power of lawlessness ⁸  is already at work. However, the one who holds him back ⁹  will do so until he is taken out of the way, 2:8 and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord ¹⁰  will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his arrival.

2 Tesalonika 2:11

2:11 Consequently ¹¹  God sends on them a deluding influence ¹²  so that they will believe what is false.

2 Tesalonika 2:13-14

Call to Stand Firm

2:13 But we ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters ¹³  loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning ¹⁴  for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 2:14 He called you to this salvation ¹⁵  through our gospel, so that you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁶ 

2 Tesalonika 2:16

2:16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope,

2 Tesalonika 3:1

Request for Prayer

3:1 Finally, pray for us, brothers and sisters, ¹⁷  that the Lord’s message ¹⁸  may spread quickly and be honored ¹⁹  as in fact it was among you,

2 Tesalonika 3:3

3:3 But the Lord is faithful, and he ²⁰  will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.

2 Tesalonika 3:5

3:5 Now may the Lord direct your hearts toward the love of God ²¹  and the endurance of Christ. ²² 

2 Tesalonika 3:16-17

Conclusion

3:16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all. 3:17 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand, which is how I write in every letter. ²³ 

[1:11]  ¹ tn Or “your calling.”

[2:3]  ² tn Grk “for unless the rebellion comes first.” The clause about “the day” is understood from v. 2.

[2:3]  ³ tc Most mss (A D F G Ψ Ï lat sy) read ἁμαρτίας (Jamartia", “of sin”) here, but several important mss (א B 0278 6 81 1739 1881 al co) read ἀνομίας (anomia", “of lawlessness”). Although external support for ἁμαρτίας is broader, the generally earlier and better witnesses are on the side of ἀνομίας. Internally, since ἁμαρτία (Jamartia, “sin”) occurs nearly ten times as often as ἀνομία (anomia, “lawlessness”) in the corpus Paulinum, scribes would be expected to change the text to the more familiar term. At the same time, the mention of ἀνομία in v. 7 and ὁ ἄνομος (Jo anomo", “the lawless one”) in v. 8, both of which look back to v. 3, may have prompted scribes to change the text toward ἀνομίας. The internal evidence is thus fairly evenly balanced. Although a decision is difficult, ἀνομίας has slightly greater probability of authenticity than ἁμαρτίας.

[2:3]  ⁴ tn Or “the one destined for destruction.”

[2:4]  ⁵ tn Grk “the one who opposes,” describing the figure in v. 3. A new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the personal pronoun (“he”) and translating the participle ἀντικείμενος (antikeimeno") as a finite verb.

[2:4]  ⁶ sn Allusions to Isa 14:13-14; Dan 11:36; Ezek 28:2-9 respectively.

[2:4]  ⁷ tn Grk “that he is God.”

[2:7]  ⁸ tn Grk “the mystery of lawlessness.” In Paul “mystery” often means “revealed truth, something formerly hidden but now made widely known,” but that does not make sense with the verb of this clause (“to be at work, to be active”).

[2:7]  ⁹ tn Grk “the one who restrains.” This gives a puzzling contrast to the impersonal phrase in v. 6 (“the thing that restrains”). The restraint can be spoken of as a force or as a person. Some have taken this to mean the Roman Empire in particular or human government in general, since these are forces that can also be seen embodied in a person, the emperor or governing head. But apocalyptic texts like Revelation and Daniel portray human government of the end times as under Satanic control, not holding back his influence. Also the power to hold back Satanic forces can only come from God. So others understand this restraint to be some force from God: the preaching of the gospel or the working of the Holy Spirit through God’s people.

[2:8]  ¹⁰ tc ‡ Several important witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western traditions, as well as many other witnesses, read ᾿Ιησοῦς (Ihsous, “Jesus”) after κύριος (kurios, “Lord”; so א A D* F G L^c P Ψ 0278 33 81 104 365 1241 2464 pc latt sy co). But there is sufficient evidence in the Alexandrian tradition for the shorter reading (B 1739 1881), supported by the Byzantine text as well as Irenaeus. Although it is possible that scribes overlooked ᾿Ιησοῦς if the two nomina sacra occurred together (kMsiMs), since “the Lord Jesus” is a frequent enough appellation, it looks to be a motivated reading. NA²⁷ places ᾿Ιησοῦς in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[2:11]  ¹¹ tn Grk “and for this reason.”

[2:11]  ¹² tn Grk “a working of error.”

[2:13]  ¹³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:3.

[2:13]  ¹⁴ tc ‡ Several mss (B F G P 0278 33 81 323 1739 1881 al bo) read ἀπαρχήν (aparchn, “as a first fruit”; i.e., as the first converts) instead of ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς (ap’ arch", “from the beginning,” found in א D Ψ Ï it sa), but this seems more likely to be a change by scribes who thought of the early churches in general in this way. But Paul would not be likely to call the Thessalonians “the first fruits” among his converts. Further, ἀπαρχή (aparch, “first fruit”) is a well-worn term in Paul’s letters (Rom 8:23; 11:16; 16:5; 1 Cor 15:20, 23; 16:15), while ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς occurs nowhere else in Paul. Scribes might be expected to change the text to the more familiar term. Nevertheless, a decision is difficult (see arguments for ἀπαρχήν in TCGNT 568), and ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς must be preferred only slightly.

[2:14]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “to which,” referring to the main idea of v. 13.

[2:14]  ¹⁶ sn That you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. For Paul the ultimate stage of salvation is glorification (Rom 8:30).

[3:1]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:3.

[3:1]  ¹⁸ tn Or “the word of the Lord.”

[3:1]  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 1:8, 4:15). 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 Lord’s message” because of the focus upon the spread of the gospel evident in the passage.

[3:1]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “may run and be glorified.”

[3:3]  ²⁰ tn Grk “who.”

[3:5]  ²¹ tn The genitive in the phrase τὴν ἀγάπην τοῦ θεοῦ (thn agaphn tou qeou, “the love of God”) could be translated as either a subjective genitive (“God’s love”) or an objective genitive (“your love for God”). Either is grammatically possible. This is possibly an instance of a plenary genitive (see ExSyn 119-21; M. Zerwick, Biblical Greek, §§36-39). If so, the emphasis would be on believers being directed toward the love God gives which in turn produces increased love in them for him.

[3:5]  ²² tn The genitive in the phrase τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ (thn Jupomonhn tou Cristou, “the endurance of Christ”) could be translated as either a subjective genitive (“Christ’s endurance”) or an objective genitive (“endurance for Christ”). Either is grammatically possible. This is possibly an instance of a plenary genitive (see ExSyn 119-21; M. Zerwick, Biblical Greek, §§36-39). If so, the emphasis would be on believers being directed toward the endurance Christ showed which in turn produces endurance in them for him.

[3:17]  ²³ tn Grk “The greeting in my hand, Paul, which is a sign in every letter, thus I write.”

[3:17]  sn Up to 3:17 the letter was dictated by Paul but written down by a secretary or amanuensis. But Paul took up the pen and wrote vv. 17-18 personally to authenticate that it was his (how I write in every letter). See similar indications in 1 Cor 16:21; Gal 6:11; and Col 4:18.