2:14-16 The accusation that Paul was guilty of anti-Semitism (because he accused "the Jews" of killing Jesus) misunderstands the text. Paul—a Jew himself—was not speaking of all Jews but only of that small minority in Judea involved in anti-Christian persecution. Furthermore, logically Paul could not have meant "all Jews," because many of those who followed Jesus (including himself) were Jews. Paul taught that our sins are the reason Jesus died; we all share responsibility in his death (Rm 4:25; 1 Co 15:3; Gl 1:4; 1 Tm 1:15).
2:17–3:6 The remarkable correlation between 2:17–3:6 and Ac 17:1-16 with 18:1-5 confirms the historical value of Ac, which adds detail to Paul's comments. Paul and his companions came to Thessalonica from Philippi (Ac 17:1; cp. 1 Th 2:2). Forced out of Thessalonica (Ac 17:5-10; cp. 1 Th 2:17-18), they went to Beroea (Ac 17:10). From there Paul went on alone to Athens (Ac 17:14-16; cp. 1 Th 3:1), leaving instructions for Silas and Timothy (Ac 17:16; cp. 1 Th 3:2-3), and eventually traveled to Corinth (Ac 18:1), where his companions rejoined him (Ac 18:5; cp. 1 Th 3:6).
4:17 Some critics claim that Paul believed he would live to see Christ's return but didn't and that therefore either Paul wasn't inspired or the Bible contains false statements. But while Paul's use of "we" may imply that he expected to be alive, it does not require or prove that he believed this. At 1 Co 15:52-53, Paul expressed virtually the same idea as he did here, yet in the same letter he wrote, "God . . . will also raise us up by His power" (1 Co 6:14). So he apparently considered both options to be possible for him (cp. 1 Th 5:10, "whether we are awake or asleep"). In 5:1-2, Paul implied the same thing that Jesus said about not knowing the time of Christ's return (see Mt 24:36; Mk 13:32; Ac 1:6-7). It would be odd for Paul to contradict himself within a few short verses.