1 THESSALONIANS 5 [†]Now concerning w the times and the seasons, brothers, x you have no need to have anything written to you. 2[†]For you yourselves are fully aware that y the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then z sudden destruction will come upon them a as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4[†]But you b are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. 5[†]For you are all c children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. 6[†]So then d let us not sleep, as others do, but let us e keep awake and f be sober. 7For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, g are drunk at night. 8[†]But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, h having put on the breastplate of i faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9[†]For God has not destined us for j wrath, but k to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10[†] l who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11[†]Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
12[†]We ask you, brothers, m to respect those who labor among you and n are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. o Be at peace among yourselves. 14[†]And we urge you, brothers, admonish p the idle, q encourage the fainthearted, r help the weak, s be patient with them all. 15See that t no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always u seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16[†] v Rejoice always, 17[†] w pray without ceasing, 18[†] x give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19[†] y Do not quench the Spirit. 20[†]Do not despise z prophecies, 21but a test everything; hold fast what is good. 22[†]Abstain from every form of evil.
23[†]Now may b the God of peace himself c sanctify you completely, and may your d whole e spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at f the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 g He who calls you is faithful; h he will surely do it.
25 i Brothers, pray for us.
26[†] j Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss.
27[†]I put you under oath before the Lord to have k this letter read to all the brothers.
28 l The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:2–3 The phrase day of the Lord is common in the OT Prophets (see note on Amos 5:18–20). It refers to the great and terrible day when Yahweh will intervene to punish the disobedient (e.g., Isa. 13:6–16; Joel 1:13–15; 2:1–11; Obad. 15–20; Mal. 4:5) and to save the faithful (e.g., Isa. 27:2–13; Jer. 30:8–9; Joel 2:31–32; Obad. 21). In Paul’s letters it is equated with the second coming. like a thief in the night. Throughout the NT, the thief simile suggests unexpectedness and unwelcomeness (Matt. 24:43–44; Luke 12:39–40; 2 Pet. 3:10; Rev. 3:3; 16:15). The negative aspect is clearly present in 1 Thess. 5:4, and there is no reason to think that it is absent here. However, although some have wondered whether Paul is threatening the Thessalonians with the prospect of final judgment, it seems more likely, in view of vv. 4 and 9, that he is actually reassuring believers who are insecure, perhaps as a result of the recent deaths in their midst. people. That is, unbelievers. peace and security. Possibly an allusion to imperial Roman propaganda or (perhaps more likely) to Jer. 6:14 (or Jer. 8:11), where similar language is used of a delusional sense of immunity from divine wrath. labor pains. An analogy referring to the judgment and destruction on the day of the Lord. Cf. Isa. 13:8; Jer. 6:24.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:8 breastplate … helmet. Paul is drawing on Isa. 59:17, where the Lord is portrayed as a warrior wearing armor. Here Christians, as those destined to stand alongside the Lord on the last day, are called to put on his armor (see Eph. 6:10–20). faith and love … hope. The triad of essential Christian traits (see 1 Cor. 13:13; 1 Thess. 1:3).
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:1 Now concerning. Paul may be responding to a question from the Thessalonians communicated by Timothy. the times and the seasons. That is, when the day of the Lord will occur (cf. Acts 1:7). The Thessalonians’ question likely arose more from anxiety than idle curiosity, since Paul’s answer reassures rather than rebukes them and seems concerned with both the “how” and the “when” of the day of the Lord. you have no need to have anything written to you. In spite of what the Thessalonians apparently think, there is no real need for Paul to write them on this matter.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:17 Pray without ceasing suggests a mental attitude of prayerfulness, continual personal fellowship with God, and consciousness of being in his presence throughout each day.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:4 But you. The Thessalonian Christians are not among the people who say “peace and security” and upon whom sudden destruction will come (v. 3). in darkness. The realm of sin, evil, unenlightenment, and estrangement from God. surprise you like a thief. The day of the Lord will not be a “thief-like,” unwelcome surprise for the Thessalonian Christians, as it will be for unbelievers (see v. 2).
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:22 Abstain from. Paul now moves on to stress, more generally, the importance of rejecting every form of evil.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:10 awake or asleep. Alive or dead. “Awake” alludes to the concern of the living Christians regarding their destiny on the day of the Lord (vv. 1–11), while “asleep” alludes to the destiny of deceased Christians (4:13–18). live. At the second coming, Christians will experience a new quality of life in the company of Christ.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:14 idle (Gk. ataktos, “undisciplined, insubordinate”). Some Thessalonians were shirking their responsibility to work in accord with the creation mandate (Gen. 2:15). See 1 Thess. 4:9–12; also 2 Thess. 3:6–15. fainthearted. Due to persecution (1 Thess. 3:3–4) or the unexpected deaths (4:13–5:11). weak. Either those with weak consciences (see 1 Corinthians 8–9), those rattled by the ongoing persecution, or those anxious about the day of the Lord (1 Thess. 5:1–11).
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:6 So then. Paul gives general exhortations based on the reassurances of v. 5. To sleep is to be morally and spiritually disengaged, and/or living without a consciousness of the coming day.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:9 For connects this verse with either vv. 6–8 in general or the specific exhortation in v. 8 to put on the helmet of hope. Paul restates what he said in v. 4: the Thessalonians have nothing to worry about, because they are destined not for wrath but for salvation at the second coming.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:11 just as you are doing. As elsewhere (e.g., 4:1), Paul seeks to avoid looking as if he is criticizing the Thessalonians. As in 4:18, his purpose is encouragement.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:16 Rejoice always. Joy in Paul’s letters is a basic mark of the Christian (Rom. 14:17) and a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). It is often associated with the firm hope of the Christian (e.g., Rom. 5:2–5; 12:12).
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:20–21 Do not despise prophecies. Believers are to be open to the disclosure of God’s will through fellow Christians exercising the gift of prophecy (see note on 1 Cor. 14:22–25). The Thessalonians apparently despised manifestations of prophecy and hence were cutting off a valuable source of encouragement and extinguishing the Spirit’s fire. test everything. Rather than rejecting prophecies outright on the basis of inferior prophetic words, the Thessalonians need to weigh prophecies to distinguish the true from the false. Tests presumably include the prophecy’s conformity with authoritative revelation, its value for edification, and its evaluation by those with spiritual discernment. See 1 Cor. 14:29–33 and the note on 1 Cor. 12:10 regarding the operation of prophecy in the church. what is good. In context, this most likely refers to prophecies that pass the test.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:1–11 These verses are closely linked to 4:13–18: both offer reassurance concerning the fate of Christians at the second coming, and 5:9–10 alludes back to 4:13–18. It seems that the Thessalonians either were worried that they might not be prepared for the day of the Lord or were insecure about their status on that day in view of the recent unexpected deaths.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:19 Do not quench the Spirit. The manner in which the Thessalonians were extinguishing the Holy Spirit’s fire is specified in the next verse.
1 THESSALONIANS—NOTE ON 5:5 For. Paul grounds his assurance of v. 4 in the Thessalonians’ status and destiny. children of light. This phrase is used in Jewish literature and in the NT (e.g., Luke 16:8; John 12:36) of those who belong to the realm of God and his salvation (Col. 1:13). children of the day. This phrase, which is unique to Paul, seems to link the concepts of “light” and “day” together. Thus, because Jesus is “the light of the world” (John 8:12; 9:5), Christians are “children of the light”; but Christians are also those who are called to live a godly life as people who “belong to the day” (1 Thess. 5:8) and who are destined to inherit salvation on “the day of the Lord,” when Christ (the light of the world) will return in power and great glory (cf. Matt. 24:30; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27). We. Paul shifts to the first person plural to reinforce his confirmation and perhaps to prepare for and soften the exhortation of 1 Thess. 5:6–8. night … darkness. The dominion of evil and enmity with God.