Brothers, We Ask You To Abound Even More In Holiness, For This Is God’s Will
4 Finally then, brothers, we ask you, and exhort in the Lord Jesus that just as you received from us how you ought-to be walking and pleasing God (just as you also are walking), that you be abounding more. 2 For you know what commands we gave to you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God: your holiness[a]— that you be abstaining[b] from sexual-immorality; 4 that each of you know-how to acquire[c] control of his own vessel[d] in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of [e] desire[f] as indeed the Gentiles not knowing God; 6 that[g] no one overstep[h] and exploit[i] his brother[j] in the matter[k]. Because the Lord is the avenger concerning all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly-warned. 7 For God did not call us for[l] impurity, but in[m] holiness. 8 So-therefore[n] the one rejecting is not rejecting a human, but God, the One also giving His Holy Spirit to you.
But You Know From God To Love One Another. We Exhort You To Abound Even More
9 But concerning brotherly-love, you have no need that anyone should be writing to you. For you yourselves are God-taught so-that you might be loving one another. 10 For indeed you are doing it toward all the brothers in all Macedonia. But we exhort you, brothers, to be abounding more, 11 and to be ambitious[o] to be quiet[p], and to be doing[q] your own things and working with your own hands just as we commanded you, 12 in order that you may walk properly toward the ones outside and may have need of nothing[r].
Do Not Grieve Over The Dead In Christ. We Will Rise Together To Be With Him Forever
13 And we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, concerning the ones falling-asleep[s], in-order-that you may not grieve as indeed the others— the ones not having a hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose-up, so also[t] God will bring with Him the ones having fallen asleep through[u] Jesus. 15 For we say this to you by the word of the Lord, that we— the ones living, the ones remaining[v] until the coming of the Lord— will in-no-way precede the ones having fallen asleep. 16 Because[w] the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shouted-command[x], with a voice of an archangel[y], and with a trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise-up first. 17 Then we— the ones living, the ones remaining— will be snatched-up[z] together[aa] with them in the clouds[ab] to meet the Lord in the air. And so we shall always be with the Lord. 18 So then, be encouraging[ac] one another with these words.
Footnotes
- 1 Thessalonians 4:3 Or, sanctification.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:3 Or, keeping away, avoiding, holding back.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4 Or, get, obtain, procure, gain.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4 That is, his own body. In this case, Paul is referring to self-mastery with regard to sexual desires, and ‘each of you’ means ‘all of you’ all the time. Or, ‘acquire his own vessel’; that is, his own wife. In this case Paul is referring to premarital purity, and ‘each of you’ means ‘the unmarried’.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:5 That is, proceeding from; or, belonging to (lustful passion).
- 1 Thessalonians 4:5 Or, lust.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 There is a grammatical change here from the previous two ‘that’ statements. Paul may be restating the previous two points from a different perspective. Or, this may indicate he is changing to a new subject, business relations.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 Or, transgress.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 Or, take advantage of, cheat, defraud.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 That is, fellow-believer, whether male or female.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 That is, this matter of sexual relations; or, the matter of business.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:7 That is, for the purpose of.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:7 That is, in connection with, in the sphere of.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:8 Or, Therefore-for-that-very-reason.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:11 Or, make it your ambition.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:11 Or, lead a quiet life.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:11 Or, tending-to your own affairs.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:12 Or, no one.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:13 That is, dying. Or, sleeping; that is, dead.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:14 That is, so also we believe that.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:14 Or, by means of. That is, having entered into God’s rest through what Jesus has done. Or, so also through Jesus God will bring with Him the ones having fallen-asleep.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:15 Or, being left behind. That is, remaining alive at that time.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:16 Or, asleep; that. In this case, this is a second thing Paul ‘says’ to them.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:16 Or, signal-call.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:16 That is, ruling or chief angel.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:17 Our word ‘rapture’ comes from the Latin translation of this word.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:17 Or, at the same time.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:17 Or, in clouds, on clouds.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:18 Or, comforting.