James Everett Frame

“ What effect this letter had, it is impossible fully to say. Apparently, it did not quell the excitement for which the idlers were largely responsible. Paul's discussion of the relation of dead and living at the Parousia seemed insufficient. His refusal to go further into times and seasons than the statement “ the day comes as a thief in the night,” is made the point-of departure for the idlers to assert, on the basis of alleged spiritual utterances, corroborated, to the dismay of the leaders, by at reference to an anonymous letter reckoned to the account of Paul, that “ the day is present.” ”

“ His purpose is to restore in the hearts of the readers the joy of the Spirit, by making them see that Christ fulfils every need, and that through faith in Him and love from faith, the advance is made unimpeded unto the perfect man. ”

“ Following the formal order of the First Epistle, he again thanks God that his converts are chosen to salvation and prays that they may have strength and obey his orders oral or written. Even with a “ finally,” as in the first letter, he is not quite through, for the second point of the letter remains to be treated—the idlers. These, he says, must remember both his example (he was never guilty of begging) and his precept (“ if any man will not work let him not eat ”) . They must work quietly and eat their own food. Those who refuse to heed his written orders are to be noted. ”

“ To those who are tempted by the heathen worship, he points out that Christian consecration is something ethical, to be won only in the power of the consecrating Spirit. Respect for one's wife is an antidote to this enticement, and marriage with pure motives a safeguard against adultery. Passing on to other points, he urges that there would be no schism. in love of the brethren, if the idlers would work and mind their own business (1 Thess. iv. 1–12) . There is no, advantage at the Parousia of the living over the dead, for both simultaneously will meet the Lord. ”

“ Even the worship of angels, not only as mediators of revelation and visions, but also as cosmical beings, is a well-known fact in late Judaism (Apoc. Bar. lv. 3; Ethiopic Enoch, lx. 11, lxi. 10; Col. ii. 8, 20; Gal. iv. 3) . As for the word “philosophy” (ii. 8) , it is not necessary to take it in the technical Greek sense when the usage of Philo and Josephus permits a looser meaning. Finally the references to circumcision, paradosis (ii. 8) and dogmata (ii. 20) , directly suggest a Jewish origin. If we resort solely to Judaism for explanation, it must be a Judaism of the Diaspora type. ”

“ Forced to leave Thessalonica after a brief sojourn (how long is uncertain) , Paul hastened to Athens, from which place he sent Timothy back to Thessalonica, being himself unable to go, much as he longed to see his converts. From Athens, Paul went on to Corinth, where Timothy joined him, bringing good news about the Thessalonian converts, especially about their endurance under affliction, and bringing likewise, as Rendel Harris has suggested, a letter from the leaders of the church. ”

“ The desire for more accurate information about times and seasons is unnecessary, for their present knowledge is accurate enough, viz. that the day is to come suddenly and it is a day of destruction for the wicked. ”

“ The day does not come until the final revolt in heaven and until the lawless one (the man of lawlessness, the son of Perdition) is revealed, which revelation cannot happen, until the controlling or restraining thing or person is removed. ”

“ The letter meets the known situation excellently. The new material, compared with the First Epistle, is the supplementary discussion of the time of the Parousia (2 Thess. ii. 1 ff.) and the fuller treatment of the idlers (2 Thess. iii. 1 ff.) , the points about which the leaders sought advice. The style is Pauline even in the adaptation of Jewish apocalyptic material to Christian purposes. Indeed, the outline of the letter is strikingly similar to that of the First Epistle, and many phrases hold over. ”