Chapter One (NASB)

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Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians was written just months after his first, sometime around 51 CE. The issues it addresses are very much the same ones that 1 Thessalonians are concerned with: in particular, remaining faithful until the end. The church there remains in Christ and continues to face its troubles faithfully; Paul, like last time, is concerned with their remaining so. However, 2 Thessalonians is not an exact repetition or mere extension of what came before it.

Paul’s first letter to the church is best seen as a letter of general encouragement to a group of new, Gentile Christians to help them remain faithful amid a cultural, religious, and societal landscape that could very easily tempt them away from Christ. Added to this is the fact that their bit of the world had been facing food shortages for some time; it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine that there would be an urge to just go back to the way they were present in the Thessalonian church. What is familiar and common can be very tempting.

They are surrounded by well-established religious cults, money, and all the signs of imperial power. And since Thessalonica had a strong history of loyalty to the emperor, this would have likely been their home to run to when things got bad. Paul in 1 Thessalonians, then, is akin to a coach preparing and encouraging his team of underdogs as it faces off against a much stronger opponent; talking up the nerd who has to ask the homecoming queen to prom. He encourages them and builds them up before instructing them on how to remain faithful and overcome.

In his first letter to them, the only specific problem that the Thessalonians are facing that we catch a glimpse of involves questions about the disposition of God’s blessing of eternal life for those who have died before Christ’s return. Will those who have died before the Judgement—the end-times—receive eternal life, or is this gift only for the living? And it is on this subject, the end-times, that 2 Thessalonians focuses; specifically, that it appears that someone was deliberately misleading them that the end-times had already occurred. In fact, according to 2 Thessalonians 2:2, they were trying to pass-off these teachings as Paul’s! (But more on that when we get there.)
 
“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 perseverance and faith in the midst of all your persecutions and afflictions which you endure.”

How similar this opening is to that found in 1 Thessalonians:

“Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. 2 We always give thanks to God for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers; 3 constantly keeping in mind your work of faith and labor of love and perseverance of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father…”

Paul offers the Thessalonians grace and peace and tells them that he is thankful for the example of their faithfulness and love. Like in his former letter, Paul here in 2 Thessalonians tells them how proud he is of them for their example. He is going to rinse and repeat until it finally sinks in.

Paul continues:

“5 This is 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 For after all it is only right for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to give relief to you who are afflicted, along with us, when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels.”

Paul is once again echoing James who said that it is a blessing to face trials because to endure them is to strengthen faith. The Thessalonians’ perseverance and faith in their trials indicate that they are “worthy of the Kingdom of God, for which [they] are suffering.” They could run back to the emperor or to Artemis or Apollo, but they don’t.

Nevertheless, the pressure of these trials will undoubtedly increase to a point when bearing it will be next to impossible. Who among us hasn’t thought, “Why does this keep happening? When will it end? It seems that Paul thinks that the Thessalonians are at this point.

“For after all it is only right for God…to give relief to you who are afflicted, along with us, WHEN the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels.”
 
Don’t give up. God will see you through. Paul can’t say when precisely this relief will come, but only that it will. Is it worth it? Well, each of us must decide for ourselves if the juice is worth the squeeze.

You’ll notice that I omitted part of verse six a second ago when I quoted 6 and 7 about the promise of God’s relief in the second coming. “6 For after all it is only right for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you…”

God promises relief for His faithful—for those who persevere—but He also promises to do unto those that which they have done unto you. Sadly, it seems like the human condition hasn’t changed much in 2000 years. Paul says that it is not our place to pay our afflicters back for the troubles that they have caused us. Paul, like James, surely would have in his possession a collection of Jesus’ teachings and sayings. He would know that Jesus taught us to pray for our enemies and to do good to them.

How strange that even today, nearly two millennia later, many of us just can’t do a Frozen and let it go—can’t let go of the hurts, hangups, and hates. We simply refuse to be happy until they get their comeuppance.

“…when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with 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.”

“…to those who do not know God, and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.” This is key. The church is facing pressure from those who do not know God and who do not desire to live like Jesus. This isn’t God is about to bring down fire on a specific person—Ms. Smith or your estranged friend or some politician. Nor is this God laying the flames down on any specific group of sinners. Paul here is speaking about those outside of the faith who directly afflicting the Thessalonians. This is personal.

Though this will be denied some, in my experience there seems to be a bit of glee attached to thoughts about the Last Day among our more self-righteous sisters and brothers. Their longing for divine comeuppance is directed at those whose actions have had zero, real impact on their daily lives in the faith. It’s like Jonah at the beginning of chapter four. (This is from the RSV.)

“But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. 2 And he prayed to the LORD and said, “I pray thee, LORD, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that thou art a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and repentest of evil. 3 Therefore now, O LORD, take my life from me, I beseech thee...