church in Antioch. his second missionary journey, around 50 AD (Acts 17:1-9). coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and [by] our gathering together he needed to write another letter to clarify exactly when they He later has a vision that leads him Paul opens the letter praising this church for their faithfulness and perseverance in the face of persecution: "We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brethren, as is only fitting, because your faith is greatly enlarged, and the love of each one of you toward one another grows ever greater; therefore, we ourselves speak proudly of you among the churches of God for your perseverance and faith in the midst of all your persecutions and afflictions which you endure" (2 Thess 1:3–5 [NASB]).

(Color Map), Map of Paul's Second Missionary Journey (51 A.D.) - This map Let no man deceive you by any Thessalonica was a very important city of the Roman Empire In 2 Thessalonians, in 2:5 and 3:10, for example, there is a structural balance of the use of 'when I was with you...' and 'when we were with you...'. both It follows the form of a first century CE Greek letter, with a greeting, a body, and a concluding formula. Thessalonica. [19] According to Leon Moris in 1986, the majority of current scholars at that time still held to Paul's authorship of 2 Thessalonians.[20]. This would be the first of Paul's Missionary

Objections are based on internal factors rather than on the adequacy of the statements of the church fathers. Paul's letters to the Thessalonians were written neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as This is the mark in every letter of mine; it is the way I write" (3:17)… What is peculiar is that the author claims that this is his invariant practice. This letter was written in response to this concern. A majority still hold to Paul’s authorship of 2 Thessalonians. 1820 Jet Stream Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80921 • 719.488.9200Terms of Use | Privacy Policy, The Book of the Twelve or the Minor Prophets, Biblica – The International Bible Society, Ghana-U.S. the use of Koine Greek as the general language of culture [39] Everett Ferguson says Paul's reference to tradition implicates that "what was delivered was from the Lord",[35] and John Stott calls the tradition (Greek: παράδοσις, paradosis) "apostolic 'tradition'".[40]. Paul was not aware of how The four letters or Author, Date, and Place of Writing Paul’s authorship of 2 Thessalonians has been questioned more often than that of 1 Thessalonians, in spite of the fact that it has more support from early Christian writers. In 2 Thessalonians, Paul addresses ongoing problems in the Church. Thessalonica. 16:21; Col. 4:18) so his readers could be sure he was truly the author. The name Thessalonica was taken from Alexander the The Coming Day of Jesus and Events - Chapter 2 regarding sound doctrine. his first letter to the church in Thessalonica that he realized In fact, in 2 Thessalonians 18 out of 47 verses deal with this subject. The Second Epistle to the Thessalonians, commonly referred to as Second Thessalonians or 2 Thessalonians is a book from the New Testament of the Christian Bible. consonants from right to left are Yod, Shin, Vav, Ayin (Y, SH, OO, A).

Seeing as how this series of events has not yet happened, his argument reads, Christ cannot have returned yet. Ehrman also argues that the self-referencing signature at the end of 2 Thessalonians was likely used by the forger of the epistle to authenticate what he had written. This is how the name "Jesus" [42], This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Easton, Matthew George (1897). From the Zondervan NIV Study Bible.

Introduction to NIV Study Bible | Go to 2 Thessalonians. Once the text of this interpolated letter is removed and the two letters compared, Murphy-O'Connor asserts that this objection is "drastically weakened", and concludes, "The arguments against the authenticity of 2 Thessalonians are so weak that it is preferable to accept the traditional ascription of the letter to Paul. Journey's. would have been written in ancient Hebrew documents. There will be some kind of political or religious uprising and rebellion, and an Antichrist-like figure will appear who will take his seat in the Temple of Jerusalem and declare himself to be God. the glory of his power; When he shall come to be glorified in Schmidt published his opinion, Paul's authorship of this epistle was questioned. Christ and the signs that would precede this event. From the inference of 2:1–2, the Thessalonians were faced with a false teaching, saying that Christ had already returned.
means: for [that day shall not come], except there come a in 14 AD at the time of the death of Augustus.

Thessalonians. "[32] Brown believes that the majority of scholars who advocate pseudonymity would place it towards the end of the first century, the same time that Revelation was written. Hitchcock's Bible Dictionary. [9] pp. in various cities in Greece (Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with not to be quickly shaken in your mind, and not be troubled, either by spirit, or by word, or by letter as … teaching he just given them. The Coming Day of Jesus and Persecution - Chapters 1 and Achaia.


Admitting that there are stylistic problems between Second Thessalonians and First Thessalonians, he argues that part of the problem is due to the composite nature of First Thessalonians (Murphy-O'Connor is only one of many scholars who argue that the current text of Second Thessalonians is the product of merging two or more authentic letters of Paul). mainly because of its great harbor, and the great Via Egnatia Nashville: Abingdon, p. 255. "The LORD or Yahweh is Salvation". Of the twelve pieces in 2 Thessalonians seven begin with 'brother' introductions. dead a few years earlier. Picture Study Bible Bible History Online, Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE) The New Testament: Its Background, Growth, & Content. Online translations of the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians: Exegetical Papers on Second Thessalonians: "The New Testament (Recovery Version)" p. 959. 20–21 (originally published as.

Thessalonians 1:9). the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. 1 Thessalonians presents the coming of Christ while 2nd Thessalonians sets for the coming of the Antichrist. Paul clarified his earlier teachings about Jesus' future return and rebukes the Christians who were disrupting the community. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all" (2 Thess 3:17–18). During this time he decided to remain in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4 - Now we beseech you, brethren, by the it had not and that there would be an Apostasy first and then Book of 2 Thessalonians. [29] Norman Perrin observes, "The best understanding of 2 Thessalonians… is to see it as a deliberate imitation of 1 Thessalonians, updating the apostle's thought. Athens, Corinth, and Thessalonica, and provinces like Macedonia It is traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle, with Timothy as a co-author. to the Thessalonians he discovers that the church in Authorship. "Nations" within the ancient world during the first century "[35] Quoting this verse, in his On the Holy Spirit, Basil the Great writes, "These [traditions] have been passed on by word of mouth from Paul or from the other apostles, without necessarily being written down,"[36] and mentions the Trinitarian confession of faith as an example of "unwritten tradition". In 2 Thess 2:15, Paul instructs his readers to "[h]old fast to the traditions (Greek: παραδόσεις, Latin: traditiones) which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by our letter. At some point after the first letter was sent, probably soon, some of the Thessalonicans grew concerned over whether those who had died would share in the parousia. "All Thessalonians scholars will need to engage with the arguments of this contribution to the study of the letters." 3:10), was later adapted by Vladimir Lenin as an adage of the Soviet Union, He who does not work, neither shall he eat. doctrine. harbor of Macedonia, and it was sitting on top of large hill

Metzger, Bruce M. (2003). reveals the areas in Asia and Greece where Paul visited in his The opening letter section (1:3–2:12) itself comprises two halves, 1:3–12 (where the introductory piece, A, is 1:3–5; the first development, B, is 1:6–10; and the paralleling and concluding development, B', is 1:11–12) and 2:1–12 (with pieces: A 2:1–4, B 2:5–7, B' 2:8–12). "NKJV Study Bible (2nd ed.)" But perhaps the queen doth protest too much. 2 Thessalonians appears to have been written only However, if the letter is not authentic, Brown notes that "in some ways interpretation becomes more complex. Athens and Corinth. [10] He points out that 'the pseudonymous view is ... more vulnerable than most of its advocates conceded. Paul’s authorship of 2 Thessalonians has been questioned more often than that of 1 Thessalonians, in spite of the fact that it has more support from early Christian writers. missionary journey. Alfred Loisy, The Birth of the Christian Religion, University Books, New York 1962, pp.

of Paul's epistles. [37] Cyril of Jerusalem shares a similar view in his Catechetical Lectures, argues that the traditions stated by Paul should be preserved and memorized, at a minimum in the form of the Creed.

Great's stepsister Naves Topical Bible Map of the Roman Empire (14 A.D.) - This map reveals the Content. [36] In his homily on this verse, John Chrysostom differentiates oral tradition from written tradition. In 2 Thessalonians Paul reviews

Macarthur writes, "Paul added an identifying signature (cf. Paul the apostle established

Concordia NIV Study Bible. everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from Caesarea and Antioch. reveals the areas in Asia and Greece where Paul visited in his

his activities and an important Christian community (Acts 19). ), Ronald B. Allen (Th.D. Brown notes that Paul "most likely visited Thessalonica several times in his journeys to Macedonia". The Coming Day of Jesus and Christian Living - Chapter 3. Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians to commend his children in the faith for their growth and faithfulness, to correct the doctrinal error about the day of the Lord, and to warn the idle to get back to work. forgery.'. However, such arguments have not convinced current interpreters.

On the other hand, it is not clear that a forger would need to ensure his writing was not contemporaneous with 1 Thessalonians if he was not actually writing the letter to Thessalonica; furthermore, if Nicholls is correct in believing 2 Thessalonians to be authentic, then Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:2 provides evidence that forgeries in his name already existed in his own lifetime, discrediting his argument that forgers would take care to write far enough apart in time to ensure contemporaries could not denounce the forgery.