A young grapevine tied to a wooden stake on a wet stone terrace after a storm, new green shoots climbing, torn leaves on the ground, a grey-blue gulf below in early light.

The Book of

2 Thessalonians 1

The persecution hasn’t stopped. So Paul writes again: God sees, God is just, and Jesus is coming.

12 verses≈ 3 min3 peopleBSB

Images are artistic interpretations.

Tap any post to go deeper

In this chapter

Where we are

1ComfortSuffering now, justice to comeChapter 1
2Stand firmThe day of the Lord hasn't come
3Back to workPray, work quietly, do good

Greetings to the Thessalonians

From PaulTo the church of the Thessalonians

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thessalonians 1:1–2

Tap to go deeper: meaning, history and related Scripture

In this chapter

Stylised map · locations approximate

On the map

From Corinth, again

Paul, Silas and Timothy are probably still at Corinth, a few months after their first letter. News has reached them from Thessalonica, about 200 miles to the north as the crow flies: the young church is still under fire. So a second letter goes back up the road to “the church of the Thessalonians.”

Question

Quick question

Paul’s greeting is short, but every word counts. Before he says a thing about suffering or the future, he tells this church where its blessing comes from.

Where does Paul say grace and peace come from?

Paul

your faith is growing more and more, and your love for one another is increasing.

2 Thessalonians 1:3

That is why we boast among God’s churches about your perseverance and faith in the face of all the persecution and affliction you are enduring.

Reflect

Growing under pressure

Paul boasts about the Thessalonians’ “perseverance and faith in the face of all the persecution and affliction you are enduring.” Their faith didn’t shrink under pressure; it grew, and so did their love for each other. Where is life pressing on you right now? What would it look like for your trust in God, and your love for the people around you, to keep growing right there?

Christ’s Coming

All this is clear evidence of God’s righteous judgment. And so you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering.

After all, it is only right for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief to you who are oppressed and to us as well.

A strong sunrise breaking through heavy dark clouds over an open gulf, shafts of light falling on the water.

This will take place when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in blazing fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might, on the day He comes to be glorified in His saints and regarded with wonder by all who have believed, including you who have believed our testimony.

0:31

Narrated by Bob Souer · BSB audio, public domain

including you who have believed our testimony

2 Thessalonians 1:10

When the Lord Jesus is revealed

Whiteboard

One day, two outcomes. The same Lord Jesus who comes to be “regarded with wonder by all who have believed” brings a just end for “those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel.” Repayment is His to give, not ours to take. And until that day the gospel still calls everyone to believe.

Pray

Leave it with Him

Paul tells suffering believers that “it is only right for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you.” Justice is God’s work, not ours. Bring Him any wrong done to you, and pray for Christians who are suffering for their faith today, leaving the outcome in His hands. Then pray for those who oppose the gospel, that they may yet believe, and thank Him that He is coming “to be glorified in His saints.”

You’ve experienced

2 Thessalonians 1

0 of 3 chapters read

A verse to carry with you

To this end, we always pray for you, that our God will count you worthy of His calling, and that He will powerfully fulfill your every good desire and work of faith, so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Thessalonians 1:11–12

or swipe left