2 Tesalonika 2:13--3:5

Call to Stand Firm

2:13 But we ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters ¹  loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning ²  for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 2:14 He called you to this salvation ³  through our gospel, so that you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁴  2:15 Therefore, brothers and sisters, ⁵  stand firm and hold on to the traditions that we taught you, whether by speech or by letter. ⁶  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, 2:17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you ⁷  in every good thing you do or say. ⁸ 

Request for Prayer

3:1 Finally, pray for us, brothers and sisters, ⁹  that the Lord’s message ¹⁰  may spread quickly and be honored ¹¹  as in fact it was among you, 3:2 and that we may be delivered from perverse and evil people. For not all have faith. 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, and he ¹²  will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. 3:4 And we are confident about you in the Lord that you are both doing – and will do – what we are commanding. 3:5 Now may the Lord direct your hearts toward the love of God ¹³  and the endurance of Christ. ¹⁴ 

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

[2:13]  ² 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]  ³ tn Grk “to which,” referring to the main idea of v. 13.

[2:14]  ⁴ sn That you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. For Paul the ultimate stage of salvation is glorification (Rom 8:30).

[2:15]  ⁵ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:3.

[2:15]  ⁶ tn Grk “that you were taught whether by word or by letter of ours.”

[2:17]  ⁷ tn Grk simply “strengthen,” with the object understood from the preceding.

[2:17]  ⁸ tn Grk “every good work and word.”

[3:1]  ⁹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:3.

[3:1]  ¹⁰ 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]  ¹¹ tn Grk “may run and be glorified.”

[3:3]  ¹² tn Grk “who.”

[3:5]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ 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.