Chapter 12

2 Thessalonians 3:1–5

Literary Context

Paul introduces a new theme, that his converts should pray for the apostles. It is a context ripe for this request. After all, his formal prayer language in 2:13–17 reveals many of the areas concerning which an apostle might pray—notably, the conversion of the lost. He now enlists their help to pray for the current stage of the gospel work. We will suggest with regard to 3:6–15 that evangelism continues to be the topic throughout 2 Thess 3.

  1. IV. A Second Thanksgiving, an Exhortation, and a Prayer for the Thessalonians (2:13–17)
  2. V. A Request for the Thessalonians’ Prayer (3:1–5)
    1. A. The apostles ask the Thessalonians to pray that Paul’s team will have success in their current evangelistic work (3:1)
    2. B. They ask for prayer that the team be delivered from evil people (3:2)
    3. C. They affirm that the Lord is faithful and will protect the Thessalonians (3:3)
    4. D. They are convinced that through the Lord’s faithfulness, the Thessalonians will carry out the apostolic commands (3:4)
    5. E. They pray that the Thessalonians will grow, particularly with regard to love and endurance (3:5)
  3. VI. Paraenesis: The Problem of Disorderly Thessalonian Disciples (3:6–15)

Main Idea

Paul recruits his recent converts in Thessalonica to support the apostles in prayer—in this context, as they labor in Achaean Corinth. This reference to prayer leads Paul to affirm that the Thessalonians themselves will continue to grow, especially in love and obedience.

Translation

Structure

Paul changes direction in this short section with “beyond that” (τὸ λοιπόν). This phrase does not mean “finally,” as if to mark the conclusion; rather, it indicates a new direction that lies after the principal teaching of a letter (see esp. Phil 3:1). The underlying assumption that Paul here explores is the difference between the believers and the world.

The Thessalonians should pray for the evangelistic work of the Pauline team (3:1–2). Paul delineates what their prayers should accomplish: that God’s word might run well, that the hearers might receive it with approval, and that the team will be protected from God’s enemies. The comparative “just as” (καθώς) reinforces the apostles’ joy over the Thessalonians: they truly received the word. Paul develops the distance between “you” and “them” further: there are evil and wicked people out there, and the reason is that (γάρ) “not everyone possesses faith.”

In v. 3 Paul turns from the world’s wickedness to speak to the spiritual life of the Thessalonians. First, one must think theocentrically: God is at work in them; he will strengthen and guard them (3:3). Second, the apostles have confidence in them, but only because “we are persuaded in the Lord concerning you” that they will obey their apostolic teaching (3:4).

The section ends with yet another prayer, marked by “now” (δέ, see also 1 Thess 3:11; 5:23; 2 Thess 2:16). The apostles pray that the Thessalonians will live lives full of love and endurance (3:5).

Exegetical Outline

  1. I. The Apostles Ask the Thessalonians to Pray That Paul’s Team Will Have Success in Their Current Evangelistic Work (3:1).
  2. II. They Also Ask for Prayer That the Team Be Delivered from Evil People (3:2).
  3. III. They Affirm That the Lord Is Faithful and Will Protect the Thessalonians (3:3).
  4. IV. They Are Convinced That through the Lord’s Faithfulness, the Thessalonians Will Carry Out the Apostolic Commands (3:4).
  5. V. They Pray That the Thessalonians Will Grow in Love and Endurance (3:5).

Explanation of the Text

3:1 Beyond that, pray for us, brothers and sisters, that the word of the Lord might run [well] and be glorified [by its hearers], just as it was with you (Τὸ λοιπὸν προσεύχεσθε, ἀδελφοί, περὶ ἡμῶν, ἵνα ὁ λόγος τοῦ κυρίου τρέχῃ καὶ δοξάζηται καθὼς καὶ πρὸς ὑμᾶς). Beyond that” (τὸ λοιπόν) does not mean “finally” here, but rather “now, on another theme.”1 Paul charges them to “pray.” The ministry of prayer has shown up with particular clarity in the Thessalonian letters, as the Pauline team conformed to the practice of the earliest church: “[we] will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4).

Paul has just offered thanks for them and prayed for them (2:13, 16–17). Now he asks them for a mutual blessing: “pray for us” (see 1 Thess 5:25). To Paul, one of the obligations that his disciples bore, having received the message of salvation from him, was that they pray for the gospel’s advance into other areas (2 Cor 1:11; Eph 6:19–20; Col 4:3). People might also pray for other aspects of the apostles’ work; for example, Paul asks the Romans to pray that he will be able to deliver the Jerusalem offering and then visit Rome (Rom 15:30–32); the author of Hebrews asks for prayers to be released from prison (Heb 13:18–19).

The specific object of prayer in this verse is that “the word of the Lord might run well and be glorified.” Paul is perhaps thinking of Psalm 147:

He who sends out his saying to the earth;

his word will run swiftly. (Ps 147:15 LXX [NETS]; Ps 147:15 MT)

Likewise, Acts and other letters speak of the word growing and advancing (see, e.g., Acts 12:24; 13:49). “Be glorified” (δοξάζηται) could have the eschatological sense that it takes throughout these two letters; that is, that those who receive the word will participate in Christ’s glory when he returns (1 Thess 2:12; 2 Thess 1:10–12; esp. 2:14). Nevertheless, since Paul says “as it was with you,” this verse almost certainly has the sense of “glorified by being received with approval.” There are parallel references to the glorifying of God’s word; for example, “When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord” (Acts 13:48 ESV; cf. Ps 138:2).

The sense of the comparative phrase “just as it was with you” (καθὼς καὶ πρὸς ὑμᾶς) is clear enough, the preposition (πρός) meaning “with” in this context.2 The Thessalonians were remarkable examples of the success of the gospel; why not enlist them to pray that the same work of the Spirit be reproduced in Corinth and elsewhere?

3:2 And that we might be delivered from wicked and evil people; for not everyone possesses faith (καὶ ἵνα ῥυσθῶμεν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀτόπων καὶ πονηρῶν ἀνθρώπων· οὐ γὰρ πάντων ἡ πίστις). Paul delineates what he wishes their prayers to accomplish. He wants to “be delivered” (ῥυσθῶμεν). The verb is a divine passive; that is, “that we might be delivered” means “that God [or the Lord Jesus?] might deliver us.”

Who are the sources of the team’s troubles? Certain “people” who are “wicked and evil” (ἀτόπων καὶ πονηρῶν). The first adjective (ἄτοπος) is relatively uncommon. The KJV’s “unreasonable” does not capture the sense; “bigoted” (NJB) reads more into the text than is there. The “wicked” of most English versions is adequate.

Paul observes, in an elliptical phrase, that “not everyone possesses faith.” In this context Paul is referring to faith in the gospel. Whereas the faith of the Thessalonians has gained notoriety, the lack of Christian faith on the part of others has produced noxious fruit. Paul engages in serious understatement when he asserts that not everyone believes.

3:3 But the Lord is faithful, who will strengthen you and guard you from evil (πιστὸς δέ ἐστιν ὁ κύριος, ὃς στηρίξει ὑμᾶς καὶ φυλάξει ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ). Far more interesting to Paul is what the Lord can do with a hard situation, and so he changes his focus with “but” (δέ). At this point the apostle turns from “we” in the previous verse and begins to speak again of “you,” the Thessalonians; he is moving toward giving them an exhortation and a prayer in 3:4–5.

There is a play on “faith” (πίστις, v. 2) and “faithful” (πιστός): not everyone has faith, but God is faithful (see a parallel in 2 Tim 2:13). That the Lord is faithful (1 Cor 1:9; 10:13; 1 Thess 5:24) is not an unusual theme in Paul and has its roots in the OT covenant: “Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands” (Deut 7:9). Again, in Paul’s mouth “the Lord” is Jesus, who is the Yahweh of the covenantal faithfulness (ḥesed). In 1 Thess 5:24 he states that God is faithful in carrying through their sanctification (cf. Phil 1:6).

The relative clause “who” (ὅς) expands on the person of the Lord Jesus. There are two future tense verbs: he will “strengthen you” (στηρίξει; see comments on 1 Thess 3:13; 2 Thess 2:17) and “guard” (φυλάξει) you. What follows is almost certainly taken from some version of the Lord’s Prayer. “Deliver” in 3:2 is followed up with “from evil” (ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ) in 3:3 (see Matt 6:13). As in the Lord’s Prayer, it is possible to take the substantival adjective as “the evil one,” though it is difficult to prove which one is intended.

3:4 And we are persuaded in the Lord concerning you, that whatever we command, you are already doing and will continue to do (πεποίθαμεν δὲ ἐν κυρίῳ ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς, ὅτι ἃ παραγγέλλομεν [καὶ] ποιεῖτε καὶ ποιήσετε). Paul’s affirmation of the Thessalonians’ obedience is heartening, and it is also the key to understanding the general tone of the letter. Paul is not speaking to a rogue congregation, even though he will go on in 3:6–15 to correct a few of the members about their work ethic.

With “we are persuaded” (πεποίθαμεν) Paul expresses the opinion of the apostolic team with regard to the church. Although it is a perfect tense, it has a present meaning, “to be so convinced that one puts confidence in something.”3 Paul also uses this verb to speak of the confidence he has in the Corinthians (2 Cor 2:3). This confidence now is not principally grounded in the behavior of the Thessalonians but “in the Lord”; that is, he has just spoken of the Lord’s ongoing work in them, and within that sphere he can rest more easily about them.

The apostles are convinced that the Thessalonians will obey “whatever we command” (ἃ παραγγέλλομεν), with the relative clause referring generally to their instructions. This harks back to 2 Thess 2:15, where Paul tells them to hold fast to the traditions he has taught them. It also anticipates what he is about to say in 3:6–15: those who do not wish to work will obey the apostles and change their course; the rest of the church will obey the apostles and take the appropriate stance toward the disobedient. Paul emphasizes his confidence by using two tenses of the verb “to do” (ποιέω)—present and then future: “already doing and will continue to do” capture the contrast.

3:5 Now may the Lord direct your entire person unto [living] in the love that comes from God and the endurance that comes from Christ (Ὁ δὲ κύριος κατευθύναι ὑμῶν τὰς καρδίας εἰς τὴν ἀγάπην τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ εἰς τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ). It is not unusual for Paul to insert a blessing or prayer before the closing verses of a letter. Here we already see in this small letter the second of four prayers.

Paul uses the optative “may [he] direct” (κατευθύναι), as he had in 1 Thess 3:11. There he meant it quite literally, that God and Christ would “guide their steps” to travel to see the Thessalonians again. Here he uses the same form to speak of the Lord Jesus’ direction of the Thessalonians’ spiritual walk toward a goal. “Your entire person” translates a word often rendered “heart” (καρδία), but here the term speaks not as the seat of the emotions but of the whole person (see comments on 1 Thess 2:4; 3:13). In the same way he prayed for their whole “spirit and soul and body” in 1 Thess 5:23.

The two virtues Paul mentions underlie much of the two letters, love and endurance:

The phrase “endurance of Christ” (lit. trans.) is the easier of the two, probably a genitive of source.4 That is, Paul prays that the Thessalonians may receive the endowment of endurance in tribulation from Christ himself. The genitive “love of God” is more difficult. As with “labor of love” in 1 Thess 1:3, this phrase might mean love for God or love for others. In 1 Thess 1:3, the second choice was preferable, given that the theme of mutual love runs throughout these letters. We will therefore choose “love that comes from God” for this text as well, translating both as genitives of source. The fact that both love for other believers and endurance are mentioned in 2 Thess 1:3f–4 means that 3:5 closes off a so-called inclusio:

Theology in Application

Theology in Thessalonica

Paul asks the Thessalonians to pray for his work in Corinth, just as months earlier unnamed others might have been interceding for his work in Macedonia. By this point they would have been no strangers to the task of praying for lay evangelists. Besides Paul’s team, the disciples might also be praying for missionaries who had gone out from their own church.

The Thessalonians learned about prayer, not just as an abstract doctrine but by actually praying with Paul’s team. They came to realize during the first few months of their church’s existence that Satan could block even the great missionary to the Gentiles (1 Thess 2:18), and that it was their duty to invoke God’s powerful intervention against the forces of evil (2:17–19; 2 Thess 3:2).

Biblical Theology

Prayer for missionaries has elements both defensive and offensive. The defensive side is emphasized in the Thessalonian letters. Paul is going to face evil people (see the parallel in Rom 15:30–32) and invisible spiritual forces. Some Christians find a demon under every stone, while others cannot imagine that they’ve ever run across the devil. Both of these extremes are approved by hell itself, since either one ties up the Christian from meaningful prayer. Satan endeavors to ruin the harvest of new believers by any means possible, be it killing or shaming the messenger, or using the tools of superficiality, distraction, or persecution of new disciples (see Matt 13:3–9, 18–23). He might use the foolishness of other Christians to try to discourage those who are walking the right path. Paul tries to counter this effect here; believers must pray against these attacks.

The offensive side of prayer, found in other texts, is just as imperative. Jesus spoke in Matt 9:38 of praying to the Lord of the harvest for “reapers” to enter the field. There is a sense of urgency, to bring in the harvest when it is ready but before it spoils, is burnt by the sun, or is destroyed by rain. In another parable, workers are brought in without thought to how much it might cost (see Matt 20:1–16). If Christians follow Jesus’ teaching, they not only labor in the harvest but they also pray for God to recruit workers.

In Eph 6:10–20, believers put on God’s armor to battle against angelic forces. Even there we find offensive weapons—the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God, that is, Christ’s gospel (6:17). The Ephesians must pray so that Paul might declare the gospel boldly (6:19–20), just as he did in Thessalonica (1 Thess 1:5). This is the church’s counterattack against Satan; it is not simply prayer for the defense of the missionaries, but prayer that they inflict damage against Satan’s strongholds.

Message of This Passage for the Church Today

Each missionary associated with your church must be able to depend on prayer, both from the congregation as a whole and even more importantly from a smaller, more deeply committed group, perhaps composed of members of various churches.

We can assume that the prayer time of Paul’s congregations included local needs of health, employment, and so on. Yet, given what we may infer from the letters, it seems that they would have prayed more for missionaries than for, to name one example, the sick; also they would have prayed for the mission in an informed manner. Believers of an earlier age with their intelligent prayer might put us to shame, despite our rapid advances in communication technology.

Of course, missionaries themselves must be careful to communicate to churches “back home.” Some post information as much as daily; others communicate rarely, starting with, “We’re so sorry it’s taken so long, we’ve been so busy….” A missionary of the Pauline mold knows how important it is to teach the church that prayer changes things. If the missionary is incommunicado, it transmits the message that prayer is less than efficacious.

Missionaries distribute cards with options that may be checked off: financial support and/or prayer support. Perhaps the recipient is thinking, “I’ll check off prayer support, it’s the easier of the two.” In fact, prayer support is not the easier path. When our family goes out to raise missionary funds, we suggest the figure of fifty dollars per month from a family or individual. We also ask people to commit themselves to pray for us. I am sure when someone truly carries through on a commitment to be prayer partners with us (daily, with focus, in a substantial fashion), it demands far greater time and effort than a pledge of money.