Second Thessalonians 1:1-12

II Thessalonians 1:1 and 2:

^1:1Paul and Silvanus and Timothy to the church of (the) Thessalonians in God our Father and (our) Lord Jesus Christ; ^.2grace to you and peace from God our Father and (our) Lord Jesus Christ.

This second letter (epistle, which was written shortly after the first letter by Paul with information he received from God and/or the Lord Jesus Christ via his holy spirit) also begins by detailing whom it was from and to whom it was written. It was from Paul and Silvanus (Silas) and Timothy, and it was to the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. The Thessalonian church already knew who these three men were and so Paul did not need to explain here.

The word "church" comes from the Greek word ekklesia, which comes from two other words meaning "out-from" and "called," so together it means "called out-from." A "church" is an assembly of people called out from other people for any specific reason. This word does not refer to a particular type of building or a house, even though the church may meet in a particular type of building or in a house. Therefore, this letter was written to the assembly of people called out in Thessalonica.

How or why were these people called out from the other people living in Thessalonica? Paul writes that they were "…in God our Father and (our) Lord Jesus Christ…" For someone to be ‘in’ God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ means that he/she has received the gift of holy spirit from God by means of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is the spirit of Christ. Notice that he wrote ‘our’ in the phrase "God our Father" indicating clearly that the only true God was the Father of all of them, including Paul and Silvanus and Timothy. They had all received holy spirit-life from God when they first believed what God says about Himself and His son, the Lord Jesus Christ (summarized in Romans 10:9 and 10). They had become limbs/members of the one spiritual body of Christ, similar to the arm or eye or leg being in the physical body. They were all children of God and brothers of one-another in the spirit category. They were living within the realm of God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul's greeting to the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ was: "grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ." Grace is what is freely bestowed without any merit on the recipient's part; it includes reference to the attitude and quality of the one giving something favorable to another. Grace is not bestowed because somebody deserves a wage that is owed for something they said or did, nor because they begged so hard, nor because they forced the giver to give! Grace is bestowed because the giver wants to give by his own freedom of will to the recipient - it is completely unmerited favor from the giver to the recipient. Here in this context, grace is being given to the holy-people of the church from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.

And peace (tranquil-harmony without strife). We may think of peace as the opposite of war, the opposite of conflict, the opposite of being at odds with the other party. Who are the other parties as far as the holy-people are concerned? God and the Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore we are spiritually at peace with one-another also. Paul makes sure that they know that this grace and peace is originating from God their Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, not from Paul nor Silvanus nor Timothy.

[Reference: Acts 15:22 and 32-34, 16:1-3, and chapter 17; I Thessalonians 1:1.]

Verses 3 and 4:

^.3We owe-it to thank God always concerning you, brothers, according as it is worthy, because your belief super-increases and the love¹ of each one of you all into one-another becomes more-and-more ^.4so-as-for us ourselves to in-boast in you among the churches of God on behalf of your patient-endurance and belief in all your persecutions and the pressures (during) which you hold-yourselves-up,

We owe-it (myself and those with me are obligated, we ought) to constantly thank God about you, brothers…. Paul addresses the holy-people (sanctified-people, Christians, saints, children of God) who constituted the church in Thessalonica as "brothers" just as he did many times in his first letter to them. They continued to have access to God via their holy spirit-life; they had not lost it, it had not decayed, it had not slipped quietly out, it did not leak out, it was not pulled out - they were still brothers in the spirit category because they all had received the same holy spirit-life within them and God was their Father.

The verb "to thank" in the Greek comes from the same root word as the word "grace" plus the word "well" or "well-off." Therefore to thank somebody is done by the freedom of will of the recipient expressing well his gratitude to the giver of the grace (the bestowed unmerited or undeserved favor) given-to and received-by him. It is not a forced or obligated "thank you."

We owe-it to thank God always concerning you, brothers, according as it is worthy (of equal-value, of like-worth to/from God's viewpoint) because:

• your belief super-increases (the belief you believe, your faith, trust relative-to God, presently and actively grows, augments, expands superly, surpassing or being extreme to a great-degree, as if increasing for an extreme distance or measure beyond the limits previously attained); and
• the love¹ of each one of you all into one-another becomes more-and-more (the Godly-love that each one of all of you manifests, evidences directed-to one-another presently and actively becomes more than it was previously, increases the amount)…

The word "love¹" or the verb "to love¹" comes from the Greek word agape which is God's kind of love. To love with His love means to love the same way as God loves, to manifest God's love towards another, whether it is towards God Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ, yourself, your Christian neighbor, or towards anyone else. God tells His children today (all who have the spirit of Christ within us) how to Godly-love by means of His previously-revealed written Word and also via our holy spirit-life whereby we receive information from Him regarding how to love in different specific situations. It is the carrying out of God's commandments, His Word, which is the correct usage or way to manifest God's kind of love according to His will (refer to I Corinthians chapter 13 and I John 5:1-3). It is not the same as the brotherly or friendly kind of love, nor is it the same as the emotional/feelings/sexual kind of love.

Paul wrote: we owe-it to thank God always concerning you, brothers, according as it is worthy, because your belief super-increases and the Godly-love of each one of you all into one-another becomes more-and-more with the result and consequence for us ourselves (emphatically) to in-boast in you (to speak justifiably loudly whereby you are the cause of our boasting) in/within/among the churches of God in other areas on behalf of (in the interests of)…

• your patient-endurance (your bearing-up, holding, enduring, remaining upwards or upright relative to God and the things of God under any obstacles)
• and belief (the faith, trust relative-to God that you have)

…in all your persecutions (within or during all the times of being pursued as though you were enemies) and the pressures (the compressions, stress that afflicts you, whatever may be pressing-upon or squeezing you, whether it be physical or mental or spiritual) during which you hold-yourselves-up (you hold yourselves in an upright-position putting up with and enduring them).

[Reference: I Corinthians 4:12; I Thessalonians 1:2 and 3, 2:19, 3:2-7 and 12, 4:9 and 10; Hebrews chapter 11.]

Verses 5-10:

^.5(which is the) pointing-out of the righteous judgment of God with-a-view-for you to be-esteemed-worthy of the kingdom of God on behalf of which also you suffer, ^.6since-indeed (it is) righteous with God to repay pressure to the (ones) pressuring you, ^.7and to you, the (people) being pressured, relief with us in the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with his able angels ^.8in flame of fire giving vengeance to the (ones) not having known² God and to the (ones) not obeying the good-message of our Lord Jesus, ^.9the-ones-who will pay right: agelong destruction away-from the face of the Lord and away-from the glory of his strength, ^.10whenever he may come to be in-glorified in his holy-people, even to be marveled-at among all the (people) having believed because our witness on you was believed, in that day,

What is written about in verses 3 and 4 regarding their belief and patient endurance and holding themselves up during persecutions and pressures is the pointing-out (that-which is indicated, the evidence or proof that God gives, the thing He displays as pointing out with His finger)…

• of His righteous judgment (His just action of pronouncing sentence, the process of making a separating decision, passing His righteous judgment, the just decision being made in judgment belonging-to and proceeding-from God)
• for the purpose of you holy-people to be esteemed worthy of the kingdom of God (counted to be of like-worth, deemed to be of equal-value with God's kingdom, all that is contained within God's sovereignty, His kingly or royal dominion and government and rule and territory and power, etc, which of course is holy and spiritual because God is Holy Spirit)
• on behalf of (in the interests of) which kingdom you also suffer (you are experiencing, you are affected-by things as you live your everyday lives awaiting Christ's coming to gather all Christians together with him).

The reason for this: since it is definite that it is righteous/just in God's viewpoint…

• to repay pressure to the ones pressuring you (to give-back pressure to the people and/or evil-spirits who are presently giving you pressure, pay them back in place of what they are giving to you right now, God will requite with pressure);
• and to you, the people presently being pressured, to repay relief (a loosening, relaxation, and so a lack of anything pressing-upon or squeezing you) in company and association with us in the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven (within the sphere of action of and during the time and process of the Lord Jesus being uncovered, revealed away-from heaven, as though removing a veil to expose what had previously been hidden, the apocalypse of the Master Jesus from heaven above) in company and association with his able-powered (capable) angels….

An angel is a spirit-being whose office and character is one of a messenger. The word "angel" comes from the Greek word aggello, which means to tell or deliver a message and therefore an angel could be called a "messager" or messenger. Those angels who have continued to take their instructions from the only true God are also now under the command of the Lord Jesus Christ. See Hebrews chapter 1. But those angels (spirit-beings) who have refused to take their instructions from God and have instead decided to follow the devil (also called satan, the snake/serpent, etc, who once was one of God's angels, but he rebelled against God wanting to take God's place and he continues attempting to do so) are devils (demons, devil-spirits, evil, unclean or unholy spirits). We should also note that the Bible shows us that no human-being was or is or will be a spirit-angel!

You holy-people who are presently being pressured will be given relief with us (myself and those with me) in the revelation of the Lord Jesus from heaven with his able angels…

• in/within flame of fire (bright and burning fire, blazing, flaming fire, indicating God's purification and righteous judgment in action, being implemented and carried-out [some Greek texts read "fire of flame"])
• giving vengeance (the execution of right/justice) to the people and devil-spirits who did not know God (have not perceived or seen the only true God, they have not allowed God to come within their sphere of perception or circle of vision) and who still don't know God, and (even, emphatically, in addition, also) to the people and devil-spirits who are not obeying the good-message of our Lord Jesus (those who are not presently and actively hearing, listening-attentively, then carrying-out what is heard which is the gospel/evangel pertaining-to and proceeding-from our Lord Jesus, the Master of all holy-people).

Those not having known and continuing not knowing God and those not obeying the good-message of our Lord Jesus are the ones who will pay that-which is right (they will pay justice, as paying the required penalty which is right in the judicial sense, which will be):

• agelong destruction (a lifetime duration of destruction which is that-which ruins and slays, disaster with death, everlasting or eternal in the sense of this destruction never changing once it begins but will end when the time of their life ends)
  • away-from the face (in motion from the countenance or presence) of the Lord Jesus Christ and
  • away-from the glory of his strength (in motion from the importance, splendor and renown of his inherent-strength, the strength which he now is, having received it from God when He raised him up from among the dead-people – see Ephesians 1:19-23).

This will occur at whatever time (we don't know the time but we know this time will definitely arrive – the time when) the Lord Jesus Christ will come to be in-glorified in his holy-people (to be given the importance, splendor and renown, caused to be in the state of glory, glorious, being and living within glory within or among his sanctified-people, his saints), even to be marveled-at among all the people having believed (to be astonished or looked-on with wonder and amazement among all the people who have had faith, trust relative-to God) because our witness on you was believed (the attestation or declaration which we bore down-on you, bringing to light, confirming as authentic information or knowledge regarding God, the Lord Jesus Christ, etc, was believed), in that day – in that day whenever it will be that our Lord Jesus Christ comes to be in-glorified in his holy-people, even to be marveled-at among all the people having believed because our witness on you was believed; these things will definitely happen, they will occur during that time-period, no doubt about it.

In Paul's first letter to these Thessalonian holy-people he taught them that all the holy-people will first be united together with the Lord Jesus Christ (I Thessalonians 4:13-17) and we will from that moment onwards forever be with him. Therefore, following that event, when the Lord from heaven is revealed with his able angels we holy-people, having received our new spiritual bodies and rewards (I Corinthians chapter 15 and II Corinthians 5:10), will be together with him helping our Lord Jesus Christ. We will not be suffering persecutions and pressures at that time - we will have relief! It is "in that day" that God by means of the Lord Jesus Christ will repay those pressuring the Thessalonian Christians, and this also includes all Christians, with pressure; that is the day, which will span a certain length of time, when those rejecting what God says regarding Himself and His son, the Lord Jesus Christ, will pay the right penalty; that is the day of the wrath of God which God has foretold so that there will be no just or legal excuse which can be made by any person or by any spirit in that day against what God will do by means of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[Reference: Matthew chapters 24 and 25; John 8:55; Acts 5:41, 7:30; 14:22; Romans 1:18-32, and 12:19; I Corinthians 3:12-15; Philippians 1:28 and 29; Hebrews 1:7; Revelation 1:14, 2:18, 19:12, and chapters 19 and 20.]

Verses 11 and 12:

^.11with-a-view-to which-thing also we pray always concerning you in order that our God may esteem you worthy of the calling and may fulfill all good-consideration of goodness and work of belief in ability ^.12so-that the name of our Lord Jesus may be in-glorified in you and you in him according to the grace of our God and (our) Lord Jesus Christ.

It is regarding or with a view to which-thing (the future events promised by God to come to pass) that we (myself and those with me) always pray (constantly communicate to/with God, the general speaking towards/with God) about you Thessalonian holy-people for the purpose and result that our God (the God of you and of us and of all holy-people) would:

• esteem you worthy of the calling (hold, count, deem you to be of equal-value or like-worth - notice that this is the third time "worthy" is used in this short passage - esteem you worthy of the invitation that God issued to you and you accepted when you believed what He says regarding Himself and His son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and you received holy spirit) and
• fulfill (make full, accomplish) all/every…
  • good-consideration of goodness (willing-purpose with good-design, that-which God considers or supposes to be well proceeding-from and consisting-of goodness, the quality of that-which issues from God) and
  • work of belief (deed of faith, that-which is wrought proceeding-from trust relative-to God, work consisting-of the belief which God gives you to believe)
  • in ability (within able-power, capability).

We know that the Thessalonian Christians were already worthy in the spirit category because they had received holy spirit-life, but this prayer is referring to their walk, their behavior, their day-to-day living. Paul and those with him were praying to God concerning the everyday living of their lives. How tender and loving of Paul to talk to God about them and to let them know! We too can pray to God regarding ourselves and all holy-people as we all live our everyday lives awaiting Christ's coming to gather us together with him.

Paul wrote: …with-a-view-to which-thing also we pray always concerning you in order that our God may esteem you worthy of the calling and may fulfill all good-consideration of goodness and work of belief in ability in such a manner for the eventual outcome to be that…

• the name of our Lord Jesus (everything involved in his name: all his authority, ability, strength, etc)
  • would be in-glorified (given the importance, splendor and renown, caused to be in the state of glory, glorious, being within glory) in/within/among you and you in/within him (this is not one-sided - it works both ways)
  • in accordance (conformity and proportion) to/with the grace of our God and our Lord Jesus Christ during the everyday living of your lives today.

[Reference: Ephesians 1:18 and 21; Philippians 2:9-11; Colossians 1:27; I Thessalonians 1:2 and 3. Note: verbs with a superscript 2 (²) immediately following them indicate the "perfect" tense - details are provided in the "Relevant Notes" link of this study.]