Paul seems to have been writing to a mixed group which in included both Jews and former pagans (compare verse 9 and Acts 17.1-3). This makes it all the more remarkable that he should call them all brothers, as he does repeatedly in this letter and elsewhere. In the ancient world, it was almost unheard-of for anyone to call a foreigner “brother,” but in the Christian family it was common from the beginning. It makes no difference to Paul that not long before this some of his readers had been fellow Jews and others had been pagans; now, without any distinction, they are all brothers. Though in many languages the Christian community refers to all its members by a word which more of less literally means “brothers” or even “brothers and sisters,” in some instances a term for broader kinship is employed, for example, “relatives” or “clansmen,” since this would be the only appropriate way in which one could address a larger group with which one is intimately associated.

We still includes, of course, Silas and Timothy, but not the Thessalonians. This is the case in the entire section until verse 10, where the first person plural becomes inclusive; that is, the expression us there includes the Thessalonian Christian as well as Paul and his companions.

Good News Translation rightly makes explicit two things which are only implicit in the Greek: (1) the connection between we know and God loves you (literally, “we know, brothers beloved by God”) and (2) the component of meaning expressed by to be his own. Good News Translation, like Revised Standard Version New English Bible etc., avoids the traditional word “election,” which now has political associations, and translates this noun by a verb, since it clearly refers to something God does. But it is not enough to translate simply “we know … that he has chosen you” (Revised Standard Version cf. New English Bible Biblia Dios Habla Hoy Bijbel in Gewone Taal Translator’s New Testament), because the word Paul uses has clear associations in the minds of his readers with God’s choice of Israel to be his special people and to fulfill a special mission. God’s choice of the Thessalonian believers must be brought out by some such phrase as to be his own, “to belong to him” (Bible en français courant), “to belong to his people” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch), or “for a special purpose” (Phillips).

Has chosen you to be his own may be translated more or less literally as “has selected you out so that you could belong to him,” but it is sometimes better expressed in more figurative language, for example, “has chosen you and put his mark upon you,” “has labeled you as his possession,” or “has selected you and marked you as his.”

Expressions corresponding to God loves you frequently reflect terms which denote the love of parents for children, but in some languages figurative expressions are used, for example, “God holds you in his heart,” “God’s heart goes out to you,” or “God treasures you very much.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

This passage is closely related to verses 1-5, but marks a new stage, introduced by a word which may indicate either a contrast or a transition. Those translations which take it as contrastive (King James Version Moffatt Revised Standard Version Phillips New English Bible Translator’s New Testament Zürcher Bibel Luther 1984 La Sainte Bible: Nouvelle version Segond révisée Le Nouveau Testament. Version Synodale Bible en français courant Biblia Dios Habla Hoy) translate the word as “but” (cf. Jerusalem Bible “however”); those which take it as a transitional (Knox Barclay Good News Translation Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch Bible de Jérusalem Traduction œcuménique de la Bible Bijbel in Gewone Taal) simply do not translate it. There is indeed an element of contrast: Paul sent Timothy to Thessalonica because he was anxious, but now that he has returned with good news, Paul is reassured.

A special problem for English translators is that now may indicate either a transition or a point in time. As a transition it usually occurs at the beginning of a sentence (e.g. Genesis 3.1 Revised Standard Version: “Now the serpent was more subtle…”). In this verse, the Greek uses two different words to express (1) the contrast (or transition, see last paragraph) and (2) the now which indicates present time, and it may be necessary to use two different words in translation also.

In pre-New Testament Greek, the temporal now was used to refer to something which had just happened, and here, in an emphatic position at the beginning of the sentence, it may still have this meaning. Moffatt (“a moment ago”), Barclay Translator’s New Testament (“has just returned”), Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch La Sainte Bible: Nouvelle version Segond révisée Le Nouveau Testament. Version Synodale Bible de Jérusalem Traduction œcuménique de la Bible translate it in this way. By New Testament times, however, the word more often meant simply “at the present time,” and this is the translation chosen by Knox Good News Translation Zürcher Bibel Luther 1984 Bible en français courant Bijbel in Gewone Taal Biblia Dios Habla Hoy.

Though the Greek text specifies that Timothy has returned “to us from you,” it is strictly redundant to add these words in translation. They are one of the emotive elements in the original, but a literal translation may have the effect of making the sentence heavier. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates more simply “Timothy has come back from Thessalonica”; Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “has come back from you”; Bijbel in Gewone Taal “is back with us.” If either “to us” or “from you” is omitted, it fits in better with the context to omit “to us,” since Paul’s main concern is not with his reunion with Timothy, but with the news Timothy brought back about the situation in Thessalonica. Good News Translation omits both phrases.

He has brought us the welcome news. Paul uses here the verb which generally refers to the communication of the Christian message, the announcement of the Good News. Here it has the meaning which is usual in secular writings: that of bringing any kind of good news. It is therefore essential to avoid any translation which might suggest the specifically Christian sense. It is probably for this reason that Good News Translation has welcome news instead of the more common “good news” (Revised Standard Version and New English Bible), which when read aloud could be misunderstood as “the Good News.”

In some languages one does not say “to bring news.” Rather, “one comes and speaks news.” The translation of welcome refers to the emotive response of those who heard the news, for example, “news which made us happy” or, idiomatically, “news which soothed our ears.”

About your faith and love. Commentators discuss whether Paul is thinking mainly of the Thessalonians’ love for God of for one another. This becomes a problem for the translator only if the nouns are replaced by verbs requiring a direct object. In this case, it would be more natural to refer “love,” like “faith,” to the Thessalonians’ relationship to God (see the notes on 1.3). This would give a translation something like “he has brought the welcome news that you still trust God and still love him.” However, Paul rarely writes about men loving God (see notes on 2 Thess. 3.5), and it may be better to translate “he has brought the welcome news that you still trust God and still love one another.”

He has told us that you always think well of us. He has told us is inserted in order to begin a new sentence. The components of meaning in the phrase in the translated think well of us include (1) remembrance and (2) either (a) affection or (b) respect (c) both. In translating the first component, it should be borne in mind that the time between Paul’s leaving Thessalonica and writing this letter was almost certainly counted in months rather than in years. Good News Translation tightly avoids any suggestion that an effort of memory was needed. Within the second component of meaning, the Greek can convey both affection and respect, but the translator may have to choose which is more important in this context. The same expression is used in 2 Maccabees 7.20 in speaking of a heroic mother who “deserves to be remembered with special honour” (New English Bible). Good News Translation‘s think well of us brings out this element of respect, while New English Bible‘s and Barclay‘s “think kindly of us” emphasizes the element of affection (cf. Knox Biblia Dios Habla Hoy; also Phillips “cherish happy memories of us,” cf. Bijbel in Gewone Taal; Jerusalem Bible “remember us with pleasure”; cf. Translator’s New Testament Bible de Jérusalem). On balance, the element of affection seems to fit in better with the warmth of the passage as a whole. An appropriate expression for affection in this context could be “you remember us with happiness,” “you are happy when you think of us,” or “your thinking about us causes you to have joy.”

The center of gravity, so to speak, of this phrase is the Greek word often rendered as “good,” and it is to this that always should be related: not “you are continually thinking of us” (unless possibly as an emotive exaggeration), but “your memories of us are good ones,” “whenever you remember us, it is in a good sense.”

Some editions of the Greek text punctuate this sentence in such a way as to connect always with what follows (i.e. “wanting to see us”), but this is less natural than the punctuation followed by Good News Translation and most other translations.

You want to see us. The word translated want conveys strong emotion, like the English verb “long” in “long to see us.” As in verse 2.17, see must be rendered as implying “visiting” rather than merely looking at.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

The grammatical structure of this verse in Greek is balanced, but the meaning is not. A fairly literal translation would be “for the sleepers sleep at night, and the drunkards get drunk at night.” Paul is not interested here in distinguishing those who sleep and get drunk from those who do not, but in mentioning two of the activities associated with night. Good News Translation effectively focuses attention upon the factor of time by introducing both the sleeping and the drunkenness with the phrase it is at night. Other languages may use “at night people sleep; at night they get drunk,” or “people sleep at night and get drunk at night.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In Greek this verse begins a new sentence which continues at least into verse 7 (see the notes on that verse). Paul continues his self-defense with a series of three parallel negative statements which expand what he has said in verses 3-4, particularly his claim that we do not try to trick anyone, and prepare the way for the positive statement which begins at verse 7b. Into these negative statements are set two brief parenthetical expressions which complement one another and which Moffatt translates “(you know that)” and “(God is witness to that).”

A brief look at the items in this verse may help us decide whether Paul is thinking specifically of the Thessalonians or (as in the previous verse) of general principles.

a. This sentence, like verses 1 and 3, contains an introductory “for,” which Good News Translation omits. If Paul is thinking of the Thessalonians, this word would relate the general statement in verse 4b to the more specific statements in verses 5-7. If he is thinking in more general terms, “for” would indicate an unfolding in verses 5-7 of the content of verse 4. The conjunction itself does not help us decide one way or the other.

b. The expression translated “never” in Revised Standard Version etc., used by Paul here and in a slightly variant form in Ephesians 5.29, is also omitted by Good News Translation. It tends to indicate a general reference, but it could mean “at no time during our stay with you.”

c. The tense of the verb translated did come normally indicates a specific event, but here it probably indicates the act of entering into a state in which, it is understood, one then remains. One might paraphrase: “At no time did we take up flattery as part of our normal practice.”

d. On “as you know,” see the general note on verses 3-7a. By themselves these words tend to indicate a specific reference, but they are less emphatic in the Greek than in Good News Translation.

The evidence is thus inconclusive. The wider context does not settle the matter either, since verse 4 is clearly general and verse 7 clearly specific. The translator has to weigh the points at issue, make up his mind, and produce a translation which is clear-cut and consistent. Good News Translation is an admirable example of a translation based on the decision that Paul is here thinking specifically of the Thessalonian situation. Most commentators agree, and most translators either agree (as do Barclay Biblia Dios Habla Hoy Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch) or leave the matter unclear. New English Bible (cf. Phillips Bible en français courant) is a good example of a translation based on the more general interpretation: “Our words have never been flattering words, as you have cause to know; nor, as God is our witness, have they ever been a cloak for greed.” Best (97) thinks that Paul speaks in verses 3-4 of his mission in general, and in verses 5-12 of his mission to Thessalonica. This may, on balance, be the best solution of the problem.

Flattering talk (literally “[a] word of flattery”) can mean either “talk which consists in flattery” or “talk which flatters”; it makes little practical difference. “Flattery” combines the ideas of insincere talk and the desire to use someone else for one’s own ends. Most languages have excellent equivalents for flattering talk, since flattery is a universal phenomenon. In some languages flattery is described in a very direct manner, for example, “telling you that you are very good,” “telling you how great you are,” or “saying beautiful words about you.”

Greed (also New English Bible) means the desire to possess something one does not have. It is the sin condemned in the Tenth Commandment (Exodus 20.17), except that greed does not make explicit the idea of wanting what belongs to someone else. It is a more general term than “the love of money” (1 Timothy 6.10), though Paul may already have this in mind (cf. Bible en français courant Biblia Dios Habla Hoy) and may be preparing to mention it specifically in verse 9. There is no sexual connotation in the word itself, though (as in the Tenth Commandment) greed, can have a sexual object. It is better here to use a general word like greed, “self-seeking” (Moffatt), or “(our) own advantage” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch); cf. Best “with a veiled desire to exploit.”

Good News Translation‘s words (in the phrase words to cover up greed) is not absolutely necessary. The essential idea is that of covering up one’s true motive, which is greed. There is an implied contrast: “You know that we did not flatter people by anything we said, and God knows that greed was not our hidden motive.” On calling God to witness something, see Romans 1.9; 2 Corinthians 1.23; cf. Genesis 31.50 and other Old Testament passages.

If one follows the Good News Translation rendering, words to cover up greed, some misunderstanding may arise. If one translates “We did not use words to cover up our taking advantage of you,” a reader might assume that Paul and his colleagues used another technique to cover up their greed. A more satisfactory equivalent in some languages is “and in nothing that we said to you were we trying to take advantage of you,” “we did not speak to you in order to serve our selfish desires,” or “we did not proclaim the Good News in order to profit from you.”

God is our witness may be rendered in some instances as “God knows very well what we did,” or “God knows our hearts.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In a holy and honorable way is literally “in holiness” (the same word as in verse 3) “and honor” (so Revised Standard Version). The word translated “honor” means (a) “price” or “value,” as in 1 Corinthians 6.20 (“He bought you for a price”), and secondly “honor,” “respect,” or “esteem.” The meaning “honor” or “respect” is needed here, perhaps more specifically “the state of being held in honor” (“respectability” without the ironic overtones of this word in English). If the word “vessel” is translated wife, this phrase will be related to the verb “to get” (to live with). If Paul is referring to the body or a part of the body, the phrase will be related to the noun, as in Knox‘s translation “Each of you must learn to control his own body, as something holy and held in honour.” Holy indicates a relationship with God, and honorable, in this sense, usually a relationship with other human beings. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch brings this out by translating “as is pleasing to God and men,” and this is particularly natural if “vessel” is understood as “wife.”

In addition to the problems of interpretation of verse 4, there are certain difficulties inherent in the expression rendered in the Good News Translation should know how. A literal translation could imply that the people in Thessalonica should know how to be married to a woman in the proper manner, but apparently they did not know! In reality, however, it is not the knowledge which is so important, but the behavior. The focus of attention is not upon marrying a woman, but upon the way a man should behave toward his wife after marriage. Therefore, in some languages this verse is translated as “each of you men should behave toward your wife in a holy and honorable way.”

In some languages there is a problem in the use of the singular, when in reality a number of person are involved. Languages which have distributive plural present no difficulty at this point, but in some languages it may be necessary to say “all men should live with their wives in such a way….” With the use of the plural (“wives”), however, it is important to avoid the implication that each man may have more than one wife.

It may be particular difficult in some languages to speak of the relation of a man to a woman as being “holy.” The Greek term translated “holy” suggests the kind of behavior fitting for the person belonging to God or the kind of behavior which God prescribes. One may therefore translate “each man should behave toward his wife in a way which is right before God and before people,” or “… in the eyes of God and in the eyes of people.” This type of rendering can be employed since holy is seen to refer primarily to the divine relationship, and honorable to the manner in which people would view such behavior.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

God is emphatic and means “God himself.” The God who gives us peace makes clear the relation between God and peace implied in the Greek construction “the God of peace.” On peace, see the notes on 1.1 and 5.13. Paul is using the word in the sense of the Hebrew shalom, a total material and especially spiritual well-being which God gives. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch brings this out to some extend by translating “God who gives us his peace.” Though some persons might want to see in this phrase a reference to the reconciling function of God in “making peace,” that is not the meaning in this context. It is rather a reference to “God who provides fully for us.” One should certainly avoid the meaning of “God who stops the fighting”!

Make you holy in every way is literally “make you completely holy.” Christians are already holy (3.13) in the sense that they belong to Christ, but they need to share more completely in his life and being. The word whole reinforces the idea of completeness. Being (cf. Traduction œcuménique de la Bible note) is implied in the text, which uses a singular adjective.

In many contexts it is easy to translate “holy” as “a person who belongs to God,” thus avoiding the meaning of “holy” as ritual performance or taboo. In the present context, however, it is difficult to say that “God will make you belong to himself,” since the Thessalonians were already related to God as his possession. In some languages the concept of holiness is so closely related to the character of God himself (as being one of his most distinctive characteristics) that one can justifiably render holy in the present context as “make you like himself in every way,” “save you from sin,” or “make you completely good.” Such a paraphrase would be used, however, only in circumstances where there is simply no term for “holy” which would fit this type of context.

This is the only place in which Paul makes the threefold distinction: spirit, soul, and body. In such a passage as this, which is close to poetic or liturgical language, it is not surprising that Paul does not define precisely the relations between these three elements. Luther 1984 seems to think that the first includes the second and third: “your whole spirit, together with soul and body,” but this sense is unlikely.

It is clear from the context that spirit is here a part or aspect of human nature, that the Holy Spirit is not referred to. In biblical though generally, each of the three terms designates the whole of man seen from a particular point of view, spirit being the inner man who thinks and worships, soul being equivalent to life in its outward manifestations, and body being man in his weakness (though not explicitly in his sin). Here, as often, Paul is using Greek words with Hebrew meanings. It is neither possible nor necessary to burden the text, or even the footnotes of a translation, with a complete analysis of the meaning of the Hebrew words. Paul’s overriding purpose is to pray that every aspect of his readers’ existence may belong completely to God, and so be kept safe at the coming of Christ. The translator should therefore feel free to choose a variety of terms (not necessarily three) which in the receptor language refer to various aspects of human nature.

The expression keep your whole being—spirit, soul, and body is extremely difficult to translate adequately in many languages. This is not merely because a language may not have three words such as “spirit,” “soul,” and “body” to represent three parts or aspects of the personality. It is rather because the words which a language does have are differently related to the concept of “your whole being.” Many languages have no expression for “being.” In reality, this term refers, not to an abstract “being,” but to existence or life. For this reason, in many languages one must translate “keep your whole life … free from all fault.”

As an explanation for or amplification of “whole life,” one may introduce these various aspects of the personality, namely, “spirit,” “soul,” and “body.” On the other hand, the Greek term translated “soul” is often rendered as “life,” and a more natural translation in some languages would be “keep your whole life, spirit, and body.” In this way one can include all that is spiritual and material in one’s existence. For many languages this is more effective and meaningful, as well as more accurate, than an inclusion of three terms which might be either confusing or misleading.

Free from every fault translates a single word which includes the meaning of not being blamed for anything, that is, of not deserving any blame (cf. 3.13). In the background is the picture of the coming of Christ for a trial in which Satan will accuse and Christ will judge. Paul does not simply mean that the Thessalonians are to be kept safe until the coming of Christ; Christ’s coming is itself the supreme test which those, and only those, whom God has made holy can meet without fear. Keep … free often involves a causative expression, for example, “cause you to be blameless,” “cause to happen that no one can blame you,” or “… can accuse you about anything.”

At the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ may be rendered as “when our Lord Jesus Christ comes again,” or “when our Lord Jesus Christ shows himself.” The choice of terms will depend upon the way in which one translates the same type of expression in other passages in 1 Thessalonians. On coming, see the notes on 2.19 (cf. 3.13; 4.15).

May … God … keep correctly translates a passive, “may your whole (being) … be kept,” implying an activity of God.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In tried to stop us, “tried to” is implied. The verb Paul uses means to prevent or hinder, either by words (cf. the English “forbid”) or by actions. Phillips‘ “refused to allow” limits the reference to verbal pressure, but more is probably included here. In English, “prevent,” like its more common equivalent “stop,” includes the idea that the pressure is effective. This suggestion should be avoided here, since the Jews clearly did not succeed in preventing Paul from preaching to the Gentiles. That is why Good News Translation inserts tried to. Revised Standard Version and New English Bible have “hindering.” The Greek implies continual pressure over a period of time.

In some languages an attempt which does not succeed must be clearly marked as such, for example, “they tried to stop us from preaching … but they could not.”

Gentile is a technical word which the TEV word list defines as “a person who is not a Jew.” (The Greek word can sometimes mean “peoples,” but here there is an explicit contrast with Jews.) “Pagans” (cf. Luther 1984 La Sainte Bible: Nouvelle version Segond révisée Le Nouveau Testament. Version Synodale) emphasizes the religious aspect of the distinction between Jews and non-Jews, to the exclusion of the racial aspect. It also has bad overtones which were far from Paul’s mind. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy (cf. Phillips) avoids the need for an explanatory note by translating “those who are not Jews,” while Bible en français courant has “non-Jews” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “the other peoples.”

Preaching to the Gentiles the message that would bring them salvation. The more literal Revised Standard Version (cf. New English Bible) “speaking to the Gentiles that they may be saved” fails to express an implied but quite specific reference to the communication of the Christian message. Good News Translation accordingly inserts message (cf. Bible en français courant), Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “the Good News”; Moffatt has “words of salvation” and Phillips “the message by which they could be saved.” “Speak” (Good News Translation preaching) does not, however, suggest a formal discourse within the setting of public worship, usually in a church building. Phillips avoids this misunderstanding by translating “tell”; Translator’s New Testament, similarly, has “telling the Gentiles how they may be saved”; Bible en français courant and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch have “announce” (cf. Bijbel in Gewone Taal “make known to the Gentiles how they can be saved.”)

In many languages it is impossible to talk about “bringing people salvation.” This would be especially true of the activity of a “message,” since the real agent of salvation is always God. Accordingly, the last part of this first sentence in verse 16 may be recast as “the message by which God would save them,” or “the words that told them how God would save them.” In some languages “save” is translated “to be given a new liver by God,” or “God has given them new hearts.” Another possibility is “to receive new life from God.”

In this way they have completed the full total of the sins they have always committed. The difficulties here are cultural as well as linguistic, so that even the clearest translation will not solve all the problems of understanding. In speaking of a full total, Paul may have in mind the rabbinical idea of God’s keeping a record of a person’s good and bad deeds and judging the total. Genesis 15.16 suggests a similar idea, but Bible de Jérusalem and Jerusalem Bible seem to go too far in labeling Paul’s words as a direct quotation of this passage. The expression total is not explicit, and some translations remove or change it. Bible en français courant has “sum,” Bible de Jérusalem “culmination,” Phillips “finishing touch.”

It is difficult to decide whether the “filling up” or “completing” refers to the whole series of the Jews’ misdeeds, or only to the last sin mentioned, that of trying to keep the gospel from reaching non-Jews. The form of the Greek verb suggest action(s) at one or more specific points in time, and the idea of repeated action is emphasized by the word always. Good News Translation‘s image of a total amount being filled or completed again and again makes sense of this text, but it does not seem to have any parallel. New English Bible‘s “have been filling up the full measure of their guilt” is ambiguous, since “have been filling” could (in this context wrongly) suggest a process rather then repeated action. Jerusalem Bible‘s “they never stop trying to finish off the sins they have begun” conveys well the idea of repeated action, but unfortunately implies that their sinning was interrupted! Paul’s thought, here as in many other places, is compressed and therefore not entirely clear, but the main elements are: (1) the Jews have sinned repeatedly in the past, and (2) now the total of their sins has been completed. In (2) Paul is probably referring to the last sin in his list, as being the last sin, or at least the last type of sin, for which there will be time before the End. As the last part of the verse will show and many other passages in 1 and 2 Thessalonians confirm, Paul’s mind is full of the nearness of Christ’s coming and the judgment which will accompany it.

The translation of in this way they have completed the full total of the sins they have always committed is perhaps even more difficult than the interpretation, especially if the translation must be done in a language which employs only a verb for sins. One can sometimes say “this is only the last of all the sins that they have always been committing.” The use of “all” is one way of reproducing the concept of “full total.” If a language requires a verb for “sins,” one may translate such as “and this finally is how they have sinned, just like all the other times that they have been sinning.”

The last sentence in verse 16, and now God’s anger has at last come down on them, is abrupt. The abruptness is reinforced by the verb has come down, which suggests a sudden event. Best translates “has caught up with them.” For the meaning of anger, see the notes on 1.10. God’s is implied by the use of the definite article (King James Version cf. Luther 1984 “the anger”). In using this expression, Paul, like a good Jew, commonly omits the name of God. For the reader of today, “the anger” would be at best too general, and at worst unclear. Accordingly, Revised Standard Version Bible en français courant Biblia Dios Habla Hoy Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch Bijbel in Gewone Taal Barclay (cf. Phillips) like Good News Translation add “God’s.” Bible de Jérusalem has “the wrath” with an explanatory note, and Moffatt has “the Wrath” (capital W), but neither solution is appropriate for a translation intended to be read aloud. Jerusalem Bible and New English Bible have “retribution.”

In some languages God’s anger must be translated as “God is judging them harshly” or “God is angry with them and judging them.” As already noted in 1.10, anger includes the concept of judging.

The translations of at last vary. Moule (70) suggests “completely,” under Hebrew influence. Most translations, on the other hand, see some kind of a reference to time, which would fit in well with the preceding always. Two kinds of time reference are possible: (1) backward: at last (Good News Translation cf. Jerusalem Bible Bible en français courant; Phillips “finally,” cf. Bible de Jérusalem La Sainte Bible: Nouvelle version Segond révisée Le Nouveau Testament. Version Synodale Bijbel in Gewone Taal), contrasting a single recent event with a preceding period: ——>——|- and (2) forward: “to the end” (cf. Luther 1984 Moffatt; New English Bible “for good and all”; Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “God’s irrevocable anger”), linking a decisive event with its future consequences: -|——>——. The backward reference seems to suit better both the immediate context and Paul’s general view of time.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

What we are teaching you now is the Lord’s teaching raises the same question that “for this other reason” raised in 2.13. The verse literally begins “for this to you we say.” Does the word “this” (Good News Translation what) refer backward or forward? Is the Lord’s teaching contained in verse 14 or in 15b ff.? The answer to this question is not immediately clear, since verses 15-17 repeat in more specific terms the content of verse 14. However, it is practically certain that “this” refers forward to the sentence which follows. Paul has announced his theme briefly in verse 14; now, as he prepares to expand it, he makes a solemn appeal to the authority of Christ. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch here, as in 2.13, makes this clear by reversing the two parts of verse 15: “You need have no fear: those who have already died will not be at any disadvantage compared with us, who are still alive when the Lord comes. For this, I can appeal to a word of the Lord.” Bible en français courant solves the problem by beginning “here is…,” an expression which in French is regularly forward-looking. Good News Translation‘s colon after the Lord’s teaching has the same function, but when the passage is read aloud, the punctuation needs a sensitive reader to interpret it with the appropriate intonation. Translator’s New Testament expands the text and divides the sentence: “We are now telling you something which the Lord himself said. It is that those of us who are alive….”

To make clear that the Lord’s teaching refers to what follows, one may use Good News Translation‘s wording of a similar one, for example, “what we are going to tell you is just what the Lord taught.” Otherwise, the transposition of this first clause to the end of verse 15 may be the most satisfactory solution, for example, “we who are still alive when the Lord comes, will not go ahead of those who have already died. This is just what the Lord himself taught.”

The identification of participants in this verse raises linguistic problems which have important theological implications. The first we (in we are teaching you) is defined by the word you; it means Paul and his fellow evangelists. There is no need, as we have seen in many other passages, to limit the reference to Paul alone, as Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch does. The second we (before who are alive on the day the Lord comes) is most naturally understood as including both Paul and his companions on the one hand and his readers on the other. Here (as is not always the case) the grammatical structure of the Greek sentence corresponds to the semantic relations between its parts. Paul’s principal concern, expressed in the main verb, is that those who are still living when the Lord comes will have no priority over those who have already died. Paul is not concerned to make any dogmatic statement, either about which of his readers will still be alive at that time, or about whether he will himself still be alive. The we is quite general (and Phillips is not justified in omitting it completely, translating “those who are still living…”). Paul may have assumed, as the Thessalonian Christian did (see 2 Thess. 2.1-3), that Jesus would come soon, and that he, Paul, would be alive at that time. But the question of Paul’s own survival is not for the moment in focus.

The Lord’s teaching is literally “a word of the Lord.” “Word” clearly means here a whole “message” rather than a single word; and “of the Lord” means “from the Lord” rather than “about the Lord.” Paul is not quoting any recorded saying of Jesus. Nor does he seem to be quoting any particular saying which has since been lost. It would certainly be difficult to decide where to insert quotation marks to identify an assumed quotation. Paul may be giving the general content of Jesus’ teaching about the end of the age, such as was later recorded in such passages as Mark 13. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch‘s literal translation “a word of the Lord” (cf. La Sainte Bible: Nouvelle version Segond révisée Zürcher Bibel Le Nouveau Testament. Version Synodale Luther 1984 Bijbel in Gewone Taal) is therefore probably too specific; teaching (cf. Bible en français courant Biblia Dios Habla Hoy Traduction œcuménique de la Bible) or “message” (Barclay Phillips) is to be preferred. Moffatt‘s “we tell you, as the Lord has told us” is an attractive restructuring which brings out the similarity in the Greek of “we say” and “word,” as Good News Translation‘s we are teaching and teaching also do.

The Greek connecting word “for” (translated by King James Version Revised Standard Version Moffatt) is rightly omitted in modern English and some other languages.

Verse 15b, and probably verses 16-17 also, contain the teaching referred to in 15a. The connection is shown in Greek by a “that” (cf. King James Version Revised Standard Version) which has the same function as the colon in Good News Translation. The verse continues, in literal translation, “we, the living, the left-behind to the appearing of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.” “We” is emphatic, in contrast to “those who have fallen asleep.” “Not” is also emphatic, showing that Paul’s main concern is to show that Christians who have died will benefit from the coming of Jesus, just as much as those who are still alive. Several translations combine “living” and “left-behind” in some such phrase as “we who are left alive” (New English Bible); Good News Translation omits the second element. Exactly the same expression is used in verse 17. Good News Translation‘s the day is not expressed in this verse in the Greek.

On the word for “appearing,” see the notes on 2.19. On sleep as a metaphor for death, see the notes on verse 13.

Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch restructures the sentence so as to make the dead, rather than the living, its subject: “Those who have already died will … be at no disadvantage….” The meaning is the same, but this translation brings out more clearly the fact that Paul’s main concern, and that of his readers, is for the Christians who have died. Note that in doing this, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch removes the metaphor which Good News Translation translates go ahead of. Alternatively, Good News Bible‘s spatial metaphor may be replaced by a temporal metaphor without distorting the meaning, for example, “we who are alive when the Lord comes will not be with him any sooner than those who have died.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .