INTRODUCTION
1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,
To the Church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
THANKSGIVING
3 It is my duty to give thanks to God always for you, brethren. It is befitting that I should. Your faith is increasing exceedingly, and the mutual love of each one and all of you is growing abundantly. 4 Therefore I myself boast of you in the Churches of God for your patience and faith in the face of all the persecutions and afflictions you endure.
5 These afflictions will serve you as evidence of the righteous judgment of God. They will make you worthy of the Kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 Indeed, it will be only just on the part of God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to reward you, the afflicted, as well as us with rest and relief.
8 This retribution will take place on the day when our Lord Jesus will appear from heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire. Then he will condemn those who deny God, and those who disobey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 They will suffer the penalty of eternal punishment. They will be banished from the presence of the Lord and the majesty of his power.
10 When the Lord comes on that day, he will show how glorious he is with his saints and how marvelously he has dealt with the faithful. For my testimony has found belief among you.
PRAYER
11 Therefore I always pray for you with that day in mind. May our God make you worthy of the vocation he has given you. May he fulfill all your desires for good actions and all your efforts of faith through his power.
12 So may the name of our Lord Jesus Christ be glorified in you, and you in him, through the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
THE SECOND COMING
1 Now, brethren, I want to make a request concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our rally to meet him. 3 Do not let anyone scare you out of your wits and terrify you, whether by a prophecy, or a declaration, or a letter purporting to come from me to the effect that the Day of Christ is drawing near.
3 Let no one deceive you in any way. The apostasy must come first. The champion of sin, doomed to perdition, must appear first. 4 I mean the Rebel who will lift up his head above every divinity which is reverenced and worshipped. He will enthrone himself in the temple of the Lord and will proclaim himself as god.
5 Remember that I told you about him before I left your company. 6 You also know who prevents him from appearing before his appointed time. 7 Now the conspiracy of revolt is in operation. When all restraint is removed, 8 the Rebel will reveal himself. But then the Lord Jesus will come. As soon as he appears, he will consume and annihilate the Rebel with the fire of his Spirit.
9 The advent of the Rebel will be supported by all the influence of Satan. It will be accompanied by counterfeit miracles, signs, and wonders. 10 His wickedness will deceive all those who are doomed. They have refused to be saved through the love of the truth. 11 For this reason Divine Providence will let loose among them a current of delusion to single out those who believe in falsehoods. 12 Then he will punish all those who do not believe in the truth, and who find pleasure in wrong-doing.
13 It is our duty to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord. For God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through the sanctification of the spirit and belief in the truth. 14 He has called you through our preaching of the Gospel to obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15 Therefore, brethren, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions you have received from me whether by word of mouth, or by letter. 16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and gave us unfailing courage and steadfast hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and confirm you in every good word and work.
EXHORTATION
1 Now, brethren, pray for me. May the Gospel of the Lord spread rapidly and triumphantly everywhere as it has done with you. 2 May the Lord deliver us from wicked and malicious men who have no faith.
3 The Lord is trustworthy. He will strengthen you. He will protect you from the evil one. 4 I have confidence in the Lord about you, and I am sure that you are doing and will do what I command. 5 May the Lord guide your hearts to divine love and to Christian endurance.
IDLENESS
6 Brethren, I command you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from any brother who is loafing, instead of following the tradition you received from me.
7 You yourselves know that you must follow my example. I did not loaf among you. 8 I did not eat anyone’s bread without paying. On the contrary, I toiled, I labored, I worked day and night. So I did not burden anyone of you. 9 I adopted this policy, not because I have not the right to my support, but in order to give you in my own conduct an example to imitate.
10 When I was among you, I gave you this command: Whoever does not want to work, let him not eat. 11 Now I am informed that there are among you some loafers and busy-bodies who do not work at all. 12 I command and exhort these men, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep quiet, to do their work, and to earn their own living.
13 As for you, brethren, never be weary of well-doing. 14 If anybody refuses to obey my order in this letter, mark that man and do not associate with him. That will make him feel ashamed. 15 Nevertheless, do not treat him as an enemy. Only warn him as a brother.
CONCLUSION
16 May the Lord of peace himself grant you peace at all times in all ways. The Lord be with you all.
17 I, Paul, send you this greeting in my own hand. This is the mark in every letter of mine. This is the way I write.
18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.