First Thessalonians

11Paul and Silvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace to you and peace. Instead of Grace to you and peace, some older versions read Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

2We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention {of you} in our prayers continually, 3remembering your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope of our Lord Jesus Christ before our God and Father; 4knowing, brothers loved by God, your election, 5because our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance—just as you know what kind {of men} we were among you for your sake. 6And you yourselves became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit, 7so that you became examples to all the ones believing in Macedonia and in Achaia. 8For from you the word of the Lord has been sounded out not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but your faith toward God has gone out into every place, so that we do not have need to say anything. 9For they themselves report concerning us what kind of entrance we had to you and how you turned to God from the idols to serve the living and true God 10and to wait for his Son from the heavens, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, the one rescuing us from the coming wrath.

21For you yourselves know, brothers, that our entrance to you has not been in vain. 2But having previously suffered and having been mistreated at Philippi, just as you know, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God in much struggle. 3For our exhortation {was} neither from error, nor from impurity, nor in deceit, 4but just as we have been examined by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing to men, but to God, the one examining our hearts. 5For we were not at that time in a word of flattery, just as you know, nor in a pretext of greed—God {is} witness— 6nor seeking glory from men, neither from you nor from others, 7being able to be a burden as apostles of Christ; but we became little children Instead of little children, some manuscripts read gentle. in the midst of you, as if a mother might comfort her own children. 8Longing for you in this manner, we were pleased to share with you not only the gospel of God, but also our own souls. For you became beloved to us. 9For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil, night and day working in order not to burden any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God. 10You and God {are} witnesses, how piously and righteously and blamelessly we were to you, the ones believing, 11just as you know how, {with} each one of you, as a father his own children, 12exhorting you and encouraging and testifying in order that you might walk worthily of God, the one calling you into his own kingdom and glory.

13And because of this, we also thank God continually, that having received the word of hearing of God from us, you received it not {as} the word of men, but just as it truly is, the word of God, which is also working in you, the ones believing. 14For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God that are in Judea in Christ Jesus, because the same things you also suffered from your own countrymen, just as they also from the Jews, 15the ones having killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and having persecuted us and not being pleasing to God and {being} hostile to all men, 16forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles so that they might be saved, so that {they} always fill up their sins. But the wrath has come upon them to the end.

17But we, brothers, having been separated from you for the time of an hour, by face, not by heart, became extremely eager to see your face, in much desire. 18For we desired to come to you—indeed I, Paul, both once and twice—but Satan hindered us. 19For what {is} our hope or joy or crown of boasting? Instead of boasting, some manuscripts have great joy. Or {is it} not also you before our Lord Jesus at his coming? 20For you are our glory and joy.

31Therefore, enduring {it} no longer, we thought it good to be left behind in Athens alone, 2and we sent Timothy, our brother and a servant of God Instead of a servant of God, some ancient manuscripts read a fellow worker of God or fellow worker or a servant of God and our fellow worker. in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you regarding your faith, 3that no one be disturbed by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that for this we are appointed. 4For also when we were with you, we were telling you in advance that we are about to be afflicted, just as also it happened and you know. 5Because of this, I also, no longer enduring {it}, sent to know about your faith, lest somehow the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might have been in vain. 6But just now Timothy has come to us from you and has told us the good news about your faith and love and that you always have good memory of us, longing to see us just as we also, you. 7Because of this, brothers, we were encouraged about you in all our distress and affliction, through your faith. 8For now we live, if you yourselves stand firm in the Lord. 9For what thanks are we able to give back to God concerning you for all the joy with which we rejoice because of you before our God, Some ancient manuscripts replace the two occurrences of God with Lord. 10night and day pleading earnestly to see your face and to provide what {is} lacking in your faith?

11But may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. 12Now may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we also toward you, 13to strengthen your hearts, blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. Amen!

41Therefore, finally, brothers, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus, just as you received from us how it is necessary for you to walk and to please God (just as also you are walking), that you might abound even more. 2For you know what commands we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you keep yourselves from sexual immorality; 4that each of you knows to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5not in the passion of lust (just as also the Gentiles, the ones not knowing God); 6not to transgress and take advantage of his brother in this matter, for the Lord {is} an avenger concerning all these things, just as we also said before to you and testified. 7For God did not call us for uncleanness, but in sanctification. 8Therefore, the one rejecting, rejects not man, but God, the one giving Instead of the one giving, some ancient manuscripts read the one having given. his Holy Spirit to you. Instead of to you, some ancient manuscripts read to us.

9But concerning brotherly love, you have Instead of you have, some ancient manuscripts read we have. no need {for us} to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. 10For also you do it to all the brothers who {are} in all Macedonia. But we encourage you, brothers, to abound even more 11and to strive to be quiet and to perform your own things and to work with your own hands, just as we commanded you, 12so that you may walk properly before the ones outside and have need of nothing.

13Now we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning the ones sleeping, so that you may not grieve just as also the rest, the ones not having hope. 14For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, thus also God will bring the ones having slept through Jesus with him. 15For this we say to you in a word of the Lord, that we, the ones living, the ones surviving to the coming of the Lord, will certainly not go before the ones having slept. 16For the Lord himself, with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with a trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17Then we, the ones living, the ones surviving, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and in this way we will always be with the Lord. 18Therefore, encourage one another with these words.

51Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need {for anything} to be written to you. 2For you yourselves know perfectly well that the day of the Lord comes in this manner—as a thief in the night. 3Whenever they say, “Peace and safety,” then sudden destruction comes on them, just as the birth pain to the one having in the womb, and they will certainly not escape. 4But you, brothers, are not in darkness, so that the day might overtake you as a thief. 5For you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night, nor of darkness. 6So then, let us not sleep as the rest, but let us keep watch and be sober. 7For the ones sleeping sleep at night, and the ones getting drunk get drunk at night. 8But let us, being of day, be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and of love, and a helmet—the hope of salvation. 9For God did not appoint us for wrath, but for the obtaining of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10the one having died for us so that, whether we keep watch or sleep, we will live together with him. 11Therefore, encourage one another and build up one the one, just as also you are doing.

12Now we ask you, brothers, to recognize the ones laboring among you and leading you in the Lord and admonishing you, 13and to regard them highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14Now we encourage you, brothers: Admonish the disorderly, comfort the discouraged, help the weak, be patient toward all. 15See that no one repays evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue {what is} good, both for one another and for all. 16Rejoice always. 17Pray continually. 18In everything give thanks, for this {is} the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 19Do not quench the Spirit. 20Do not despise prophecies. 21Test all things. Many ancient manuscripts include the word But at the beginning of this sentence. Hold fast to what {is} good. 22Keep yourselves from every form of evil.

23Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, and soul, and body be kept blamelessly at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24Faithful {is} the one calling you, who also will do {it}.

25Brothers, pray also for us.

26Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss. 27I solemnly charge you {by} the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers. Instead of all the brothers, many ancient manuscripts read all the holy brothers.

28The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ {be} with you. Some ancient manuscripts add Amen.