II Thessalonians 1, Temporary Suffering, Longterm Glory

Shortly after Paul wrote a letter to the church in Thessalonica, he wrote a follow-up letter.  This follow-up letter explains more about the second advent of Jesus and how the church is to respond in the meantime, while patiently waiting for Jesus's return.

2 Thessalonians 1: 1-2, Paul, Silas and Timothy greet you!

Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

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1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is only fitting, because your faith is increasing abundantly, and the love of each and every one of you toward one another grows ever greater. 4 As a result, we ourselves speak proudly of you among the churches of God for your [a]perseverance and faith [b]in the midst of all your persecutions and afflictions which you endure. 5 This is [c]a plain indication of God’s righteous judgment so that you will be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you indeed are suffering. 6 [d]For after all it is only right [e]for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to give relief to you who are afflicted, along with us, [f]when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with [g]His mighty angels 8 in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God, and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 These people will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, 10 when He comes to be glorified among His [h]saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed—because our testimony to you was believed. 11 To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will consider you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power, 12 so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you, and you in Him, in accordance with the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Man of Lawlessness

Just as in his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul is writing this along with coworkers Timothy and Silas. (The Greek name Paul uses here for Silas is "Silvanus".)  This greeting, standard for Paul, wishes the Thessalonians, "grace" and "peace".  I think most of us understand "peace" but "grace" is a little more complex, for here it relies on the freedom and forgiveness provided by the Savior-Messiah. (See this article for more on "grace and peace".)

2 Thessalonians 1: 3-7a, Encouraged by suffering

We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

All this is evidence that God's judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. 

The Thessalonians continue to suffer in some way, probably in persecution from the authorities and some Jews who have been confronting Paul's message.  Paul wants the young church to know that suffering has a purpose. 

As always, Paul is upbeat at the beginning of his letter, encouraged by the growth of his readers.

2 Thessalonians 7b-10, Blazing fire
This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.  He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

Paul explicitly mentions the return of the Messiah as a final time of judgment and restoration.  He describes "blazing fire", most likely an image of a bright noonday sun. (John has a more detailed description of what the returning Messiah might look like in Revelation 1: 12-18.)

2 Thessalonians 1: 11-12, Be worthy!

With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith.  We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul prays for the Thessalonians, for their growth and fulfillment as faithful followers of the Messiah.

The NIV footnotes say that the ending of verse 12 could be translated "God and Lord, Jesus Christ" just as easily as "God and Lord Jesus Christ."  The Greek has no punctuation; Paul could be identifying Jesus as both God and as Lord (or Master).

The next chapter focuses on this returning Messiah.