Dear Ma and Pa,

Am well. Hope you are. Tell brother Walt and brother Elmer the US ARMY beats working for old man Mullins by a mile. Tell them to join up quick before maybe all of the places are filled.

I was restless at first because you got to stay in bed till nearly 6 a.m., but am getting so I like to sleep late. Tell Walt & Elmer all you do before breakfast is smooth your cot and shine some things. No hogs to slop, feed to pitch, mash to mix, wood to split, fire to lay. Practically nothing.

Men got to shave but it is not so bad, they get warm water. Breakfast is strong on trimmings like fruit juice, cereal, eggs, bacon, etc… but kind of weak on chops, potatoes, ham, steak, grits, greens and fatback, okra, pie, and other regular food. But tell Walt & Elmer you can always sit between two city boys that live on coffee. Their food plus yours holds you till noon, when you get fed again.

It’s no wonder these city boys can’t walk much. We go on “route marches”, which the platoon sergeant says are long walks to harden us. If he thinks so, it ain’t my place to tell him different. A “route march” is about as far as to our mailbox at home. Then the city guys get sore feet and we all ride back in trucks.

The country is nice, but awful flat. The sergeant is like a school teacher. He nags some. The captain Is like the school board. Majors & colonels just ride around & frown. They don’t bother you none.

This next will kill Walt & Elmer with laughing. I keep getting medals for shooting. I don’t know why. The bulls-eye is near as big as a chipmunk and don’t move. And it ain’t shooting back at you, like the Higgins boys at home. All you got to do is lay there all comfortable and hit it. You don’t even load your own cartridges. They come in boxes.

Be sure to tell Walt & Elmer to hurry and join before other fellers get into this setup & come stampeding in.

Your loving daughter,

Gail

There could not be a more appropriate subject for study than Psalm 22. This is true for at least two reasons: First, the Psalms as a whole are the songbook of God’s nation, the pattern of our hymns, and the meditation of God’s people in all ages. The Psalms speak to the heart. And second, this particular psalm is the key by which we enter the mind of Christ, our Saviour, as he surrendered his life upon the cruel cross as a propitiation for our sins. Our natural affections for one another, our fellowship in the family of God, even our very existences… all these are meaningless except as we live in the shadow of the cross. The life of faith begins upon the knees — when we come to the end of our own strength and cleverness, and discover anew the true meaning of sacrificial living and dedication in the One Perfect Man. For in him alone the loving Father has brought life and immortality to light, and without Christ in our lives there is truly no hope. In our helplessness and fear we look up, and our exclamation becomes that of the Roman Soldier as he gazed upon the Galilean: “Truly this man is the Son of God.”

A true understanding of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is essential to salvation. This is beyond dispute. As Christadelphians we often stress the uniqueness of our beliefs in regard to the kingdom. But the “good news” concerning the name of Christ and all it implies is just as much a mystery to our church friends as is the kingdom. Here also our “pioneer brethren” have rescued the truth from Papal and Protestant superstitions. Here also it is our duty and pleasure to understand, so that we might proclaim to others that “God so loved the world…”

The sacrifice of Christ, however, must be more than a matter of first principles. The scope of Scripture teaching on this subject can never be fully comprehended. As our understanding deepens, we must acknowledge that the cross of Christ has become a moral and not just a “theological” issue. The sufferings of Christ teach us not only “truth”, but also a frame of mind; for they that are truly Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts. And they live henceforth no more to please themselves, but rather to please their Father in heaven.

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In Psalm 22 we find a subject and theme completely outside David’s natural imagination and experience. Sufferings he had, that is a fact — but never of the intensity nor the type which is here portrayed. It was an inspired spectacle of the pen that must have left even the writer himself unnerved at the finished product. It has been truly said that this is a psalm that man (alone) could not have written if he would, and would not have written if he could. It is beyond all doubt a divine pronouncement, a heavenly commentary on the sin of man and the salvation of Yahweh, given a thousand years before Golgotha. Psalm 22 is so explicit in its detail that no further proof is needed of the Bible’s inspiration than its fulfilled prophecy It is a standing challenge (along with Isaiah 53) to all skeptics and critics of Scripture.

“The key to the Psalms lies in the pierced hands.” Christ, after his sufferings, revealed the wounds in his hands to his friends — thereby demonstrating the only principle upon which God may save individuals: We can almost hear the supercharged words to the two disciples of Emmaus:

“Ought not the Messiah (first) to have suffered these things, and (then) to enter into his glory?” (Luke 24:26).

The sufferings and then the glory: this is the divine order, and it is closely paralleled in the two major divisions of Psalm 22:

Verses 1-21: “The sufferings of Christ” and

Verses 22-31: “The glory that should follow” (cp 1Pe 1:11,12).

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The unique character of this psalm, and a further reason for its inability to be satisfactorily applied to David, is seen in this: throughout its 31 verses, there is not the slightest hint of a confession of sins! This intense suffering was the state in which a perfect, unblemished man found himself — and even the extremity of his final situation could not provoke him to sin with his lips against his Creator.

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Before proceeding to a verse-by-verse consideration of Psalm 22, it would be well to consider it in its larger context. We are probably all familiar with the reasons for there being four diverse gospel records instead of one unabridged account. Basically, it is so that each book may present a special view of Christ, and the four separate angles give us that overall grasp of the subject we could not otherwise have. This same principle is evident with Psalm 22 and certain of its companion Scriptures. In its insight and power and feeling Psalm 22 stands alone, but like a precious stone, its effect upon the beholder is enhanced by an appropriate setting. Consider the following arrangements:

(1) THE CROSS OF CHRIST:

Isa 53: The cross from our viewpoint

Psa 22: The cross from Christ’s viewpoint

(2) CHRIST OUR SHEPHERD:

Psa 22	The Good Shepherd in Death — “I lay down my life” (John 10:11,15)	The PAST
Psa 23	The Great Shepherd in Resurrection — “Lo, I am with you always” (Mat 28:20)	The PRESENT
Psa 24	The Chief Shepherd in Glory — “Come, ye blessed of my Father” (Mat 25:34)	The FUTURE

(3) CHRIST OUR SACRIFICE:

Psa 22: The Perfect Sin-Offering

Psa 40: The Perfect Burnt-Offering

Psa 69: The Perfect Trespass-Offering

Verses 1,2: SEPARATION FROM GOD

He was alone on the cross; there was no ministering angel as in the garden of Gethsemane, no direct answer to his fervent entreaties. Imagine this! Imagine that the despair and the limitations of the flesh he had inherited very nearly overcame Christ… very nearly, but not quite!

“My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?”

The cry was wrung in anguished pain from his lips. Yet as he spoke the words, he would know their source. With his wonderful memory of Scriptures, Christ would leap forward in his contemplation to the verses that followed. Unable to ease the physical agony of the flogged back, unable to relieve the pain of the grinding spikes and the chafing of the rough timbers… how his mind — his extraordinary, godly mind — would battle the flesh’s weakness to concentrate on this precious fragment of Scripture.

As the waves of pain swept over him, he would be raised from despair to assurance, from horror to consolation, and he would marvel at the images of this Psalm — being brought at last, as his life ebbed away, to fix his entire being upon the joyous hope of the last phrases. Let this transcendent mind of Christ be in us as we follow his meditations and, like him, fix our affections on the hope set before us.

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A brief chronology, before we commence:

Time	Circumstance	Parallel passage in Psalm 22
1. Early morning	His trial finished, Christ is scourged
2. 3rd hour (9 am)	Crucifixion (Mar 15:25)
3. 6th hour (noon)	Darkness commences, lasting approximately 3 hours (Mat 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luk 23:44)
4. 9th hour (3 pm)	He cries out, “Eli, Eli…” (Mat 27:46; Mar 15:34).	Vv 1-21a: “My God, my God…”: Christ, in darkness, describes his sufferings
5. Shortly thereafter	Light breaks forth at end of the 3 hours, as though to show Christ that his Father has not forsaken him	Vv 21b-31a: “Thou hast heard me…”: Christ, in light, joyfully describes his future glory
6. Some time between 9th and 12th hours	“It is finished” (John 19:30)	V 31b: “He hath done this”
7. 12th hour (6 pm)	By this time, Christ is already dead (Mar 15:42)

Verse 1: “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?”: From dry, chapped, swollen lips the words were wrenched. His speech was almost unintelligible; they thought he was calling for Elijah: “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani!” (Mat 27:46). It was an exclamation perhaps more than a question: “My El, my Strength, Oh how Thou hast forsaken me!” It was the cry of conscious innocence, which knows no cause for estrangement, “but casts itself on the One beloved, and thinks not of a rejection.

“Azavtani” signifies “to leave” or “to decline to help” (Psa 71:11; 2Ch 12:5; Deu 31:17). This is part of the just deserts of every sinner: to be left at last to his fate by God. Thus the forsaking by the Father was a necessary part of Christ’s sufferings on behalf of sinners. In his sufferings he “bore our sins” (1Pe 2:21-24) in that he bore, with all its weaknesses and defects, the nature that resulted from sin. This was the only cause for estrangement — so that Christ might fully experience through his nature and circumstances the affliction and grief of a “man of sorrows” (Isa 53:4-9), that he night be “in all points tempted like as we are, yet without (personal) sin”. In this he became a perfect high priest, “touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Heb 4:15).

Consider the monumental character of such a man — a man who suffered overwhelming temptations and excruciating tortures, and yet… and yet his greatest sorrow, his only complaint, was to be separated for a few moments from his Heavenly Father. It was a terrible trial to one so sensitive, so dependent upon prayer, so intimate with the Father. It is a measure of our feeble moral stature alongside him, that our separation from God is for most of the time not a worry to us at all! We fret about finances and holidays, about minor bumps and bruises and how our friends have “wronged” us; only once in a while do we come face to face with the enormity of the gulf that divides us from God. For us, there is a different answer than Christ’s to the question, “Why hast Thou forsaken us?” The answer is in Isa 59:2:

“Your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you…”

Did Yahweh truly “forsake” His Son in whom He was well pleased? We have noted already that the cry from the cross was more of an exclamation than a question. Christ knew the reason for the temporary cessation of his Father’s loving presence and support, and he bowed himself to the Father’s will: “Thy will be done.” But the question remains: Did Yahweh forsake Christ There is perhaps in this heart-rending cry a reference to the departure of the sustaining Holy Spirit, which the Son had possessed without measure since baptism. There is perhaps an allusion at the same time to the absence of the ministering angel. But perhaps most to the point there is implied by poetic overstatement a momentary despair — a despair, however, which did not continue into sin. (No other man could have dared to speak in such a way to God, without sinning!)

In one sense Yahweh did forsake His Son. It was by His “determinate counsel and foreknowledge” that Christ was delivered into the hands of sinners (Acts 2:23). “God gave His only Son…” (John 3:15). (But in another sense He never could forsake him: “I knew that Thou hearest me always” — John 11:42.) It was a measure of His transcending parental love that Yahweh forsook His Son in death — love foreshadowed best, perhaps, in Abraham’s offering of Isaac (Rom 8:32).

And this particular incident, filled with meaning, brings to light another facet of the cry from the cross: While the word “azavtani” (forsake) is used in Psalm 22:1, a word of slightly different significance is used by Christ in the Gospel accounts. We are familiar with it: the Aramaic “sabachthani”. One suggested meaning is “to entangle” and when so understood this takes our mind immediately to Gen 22. The corresponding noun “sabach” is found in v 13 there: “a ram caught in the thicket (sabach)”. Christ was the ram caught in the thicket, the ram provided by God as an offering. In using this slightly different word his cry becomes an exclamation of assent: “My God, Thou hast ensnared and provided me as the sacrificial victim!”

“Why art Thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring (groaning)?”: The reason is the same as in the previous phrase. God could not help Christ, because the final victory must be his own. In suffering on account of sin, he must be obedient unto death (Phi 2:8; Heb 5:8,9), and the Father could not go with him there.

Verse 2: “O my God, I cry in the daytime, but Thou nearest not”: Or, “Thou dost not answer” (RSV). This is more appropriate, due to John 11:42 (cited above), to name one example. Like Jacob of old, Christ clings to God in prayer without ceasing — “I will not let Thee go, except (or until) Thou bless me” (Gen 32:26).

“And in the night seasons, and am not silent”: At this time darkness has fallen over the hill of Calvary. Though it is the middle of the day, it is dark as night — for God cannot and will not at this time answer His Son’s pleas, and the natural elements conspire to reinforce this divine silence. The last phrase of v 2 might best be rendered: “…But I have no rest”; this maintains the parallelism. In other words, “I have no reason as yet to cease my crying.” The darkness emblematic of God’s silence and separation continues until Christ, in his meditation and prayer, reaches v 21. Then light breaks forth (see the chronology above) and he exults, “Thou hast heard me.” He has received in the renewed light a tangible proof that God is yet watching over him.

Verses 3-5: ISRAEL TRUSTED IN THEE

Though separated by silence and darkness from his Father, Christ still expresses trust in Him; “I know Thou wilt hear me, since Thou heard Israel” (Exo 15:1; 1Sa 2:1; Psa 34:3,4).

Verse 3: “But Thou art holy, O Thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel”: “Kadosh” signifies righteous, just, or pure. It is used of Yahweh in the highest ideal of absolute perfection. Christ’s words are the language of profound resignation: Thou art just… Not as I will, but as Thou wilt:

“With gentle resignation still,

He yielded to the Father’s will…”

The unanswerable justice of the Holy One was being enacted in solemn and terrible drama on Golgotha. The perfect righteousness of the Holy One was being attested in the sufferings of His Son (Rom 3:25,26). This is what “flesh and blood” deserves; look upon it and consider!

Here is the triumph of faith. Even in the awesome stillness Christ still trusts in the Hearer of prayers, although He hears him not. In the wide swirling ocean of dark temptation, the Saviour stands like a rock and a beacon. “It matters not what I endure — even rejection; Thou alone art holy!”

Verses 4,5; “Our fathers trusted in Thee… and Thou didst deliver them”: Here is the intelligent pleading of precedent, and also for us the answer to the questions we may sometimes ask or think, “Why should I read the Old Testament?” or “Why should I learn all that history?” Our Saviour continually mined these fields for gems of faith, and he stored up these treasures against the time when he would need them. “Our fathers trusted in Thee; so I trust, and more so. Thou didst deliver them; I know Thou wilt deliver me. They cried unto Thee; I cry even more, my God, my God. They were not confounded; so now leave me not in these straits to the confusion of my face and the eclipse of Thy purpose, O Thou Who inhabitest the praises of Israel!”

Verses 6-8: THE SCORN OF MEN

As if in justification of his Father’s absence from him, Christ disparages himself — “I am a worm.” The lonely prisoner becomes more sensitive to the gloom of his dungeon walls when his visiting friend has withdrawn. So also the lofty spirit of this man is drawn to consider now the stark reality of his earthly tabernacle — in its corruptibility not superior to the lowliest of God’s creatures. Powerless and passive as a worm, he feels himself scornfully crushed beneath the foot of man.

Verse 6: “I am a worm”: Yes, he was a worn (Job 25:6). Shrouded in insuperable weakness, his words might well have been those of Job:

“I have said to the worm, Thou art my mother and my sister” (Job 17:14).

But for all that, Christ was a very special worm, as the Hebrew “toolath” indicates. This is the coccus, or cochineal, a unique worm from which scarlet dye is produced by crushing. The dye was used in the manufacture of the priestly garments and the other fabrics associated with the tabernacle. When the soldiers prepared to lead Christ out to be crucified, they first stripped him and put on him a robe dyed scarlet (Mat 27:28). Was he not the greatest of all priests, and the tabernacle itself, which God pitched and not man?

The scarlet derived from the “toolath” was required for the cleansing of lepers and those defiled by the dead (Lev 14:4; Num 19:6; Heb 9:19). As he stood before his executioners in the scarlet robe, Christ was this very “toolath” — lowly and contemptible, yet bringing cleansing to others by his death. “He was despised and rejected”; yet with his bruising we are healed (Isa 53:3-5), who were once “dead” in the “leprosy” of sin.

“And no man”: The word here is “ish” — honorable man. “I am not what man is — because of my sinlessness. I am not what man should be — because of my nature. But I will yet become, through this death, what from the beginning God intended man to be; perfect, glorious, and immortal, having dominion over all creation” (Gen 1:26,28; Psa 8:6).

“A reproach of men”: This word is “adam” — common, sinful man. Here we approach most closely the spirit of this Psalm’s great counterpart, Isaiah 53:

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not…”

Christ was not just reproached by his enemies as he hung upon the cross. He was and has often been since a reproach to his friends; this is in large part Isaiah’s message: “We hid our faces… we esteemed him not…” Have not each of us, at one time or another, felt ashamed or embarrassed to be associated with Christ? What man or woman among us has not glanced furtively at the spectacle of a crucified Saviour, and then like Peter slipped into the shadows, with perhaps an oath on the lips — “I know him not; leave me alone!” Our Saviour went forward to his cross of wood and nails; all too often we flee from our “crosses” of words and looks.

The perfect man, lifted up, draws all men to himself — that Is, he offers all men the opportunity to come unto him. But, naturally speaking (and we are all more “natural” than “spiritual”) the uplifted Christ repels men! Faced with the awesome majesty of a righteous God and the unwelcome wages of our own sins, we all seek to hide in one way or another: from our duties to proclaim the gospel, from our call to a devout and holy life, from the task of loving the unlovable. And in so neglecting his commandments we also reproach Christ and “break his heart” (Psa 69:20).

“Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?” (Lam 1:12).

To weak and indifferent believers much like us, Paul sounded the call:

“Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach” (Heb 13:13; cp 2Co 12:10; Luke 6:22; 1Pe 4:14).

“And despised of the people”: Many of Christ’s countrymen vainly expected that he would assume the power and glory of an earthly king. “We trusted that it would have been he who should have redeemed Israel” (Luke 24:21). Therefore, the bitterness of their disappointment is proportionally greater. Due to this failed hope, and also the cunning deceit of the leaders, the people “disesteem” Christ and choose the brigand and terrorist Barabbas instead. “His blood be upon us and our children,” they cry derisively, as though the guilt associated with the death of this man who betrayed their hopes were no more than that of a worm.

Verse 7: “All they that see me laugh me to scorn”: Scorn and mocking accompanied the Saviour from Gethsemane until he expired on Golgotha. Judas set the tone with his insidious kiss. The men that apprehended him mocked him, as did the officers of the various courts, the chief priests, the Pharisees, the servants, the soldiers, and finally the common mob (Mat 27:39-43; Luke 23:35).

Unto the Gentiles, as Paul said, the crucified Christ was a “foolishness” (1Co 1:23) — a source of laughter and derision. In his sacrificial death, set forth before all men, Christ was enacting the prophesied experiences of his nation Israel. As was Israel (Isa 43:10,12; 44:8), he was also God’s “witness”: a curse and a byword to all nations (Deu 28:37), “the man that hath seen affliction” (Lam 3:1).

“They shoot out the lip, they shake the head”: Their malevolence was too great to be expended in words only; there were also signs and gestures. They “curl the lip”, invoking the vision of a pack of wild snarling dogs (v 16).

Verse 8: “He trusted on the LORD”: These were the very words of the priests and scribes who taunted him (Mat 27:43). Literally, as the margin, “he rolled himself upon” Yahweh. The Hebrew is “galah” — from the word for circle; this root word gives rise to “Galilee” (the geographical circle of the Gentiles) and “Golgotha” (the skull, from its circular shape). It was at “Gilgal” that Joshua cut off the flesh and “rolled away” the reproach of Israel (Jos 5:9). And it was at Golgotha that the Galilean “rolled himself upon” his Father and “rolled away” for all time the reproach of sin from his brethren!

Verses 9-11: GOD’S CARE FROM THE WOMB

The bitterness of the taunts of his enemies has only the effect of driving the Messiah again to appeal directly to his Father. In these verses he reduces himself to the lowest point of frailty, when he had no separate existence in the womb of his mother. From that point he casts himself upon the Almighty. What more excellent representation is there of man’s utter dependence upon God! And so aptly chosen were these words, in that Jesus the Son of God and Saviour of the world graciously put himself on a level with the most humble man; he was one of us! Thus we may see ourselves in his plea to the Father. Of his cry we partake, and the Father replies to all his children:

“Hearken unto Me, O house of Jacob… which are borne by Me from the belly, which are carried from the womb: Even to your old age I am He; and even to hoar hairs will I carry you… and I will deliver you” (Isa 46:3,4).

Verse 9: “Thou art He that took me out of the womb…”: Here is a faint echo of the more prominent Scripture references to the virgin birth of the Son of God (Isa 7:14; Gen 3:15; Mat 1:23; Luke 1:35). Similar to this is Isa 49:1 — which begins the section of that prophecy pertaining to the suffering servant:

“The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath He made mention of my name.”

“Thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother’s breasts”: This should be “…make me repose upon” or “…keep me in safety”. A baby, even Jesus, could have no special knowledge or hope. What we see here instead is Christ’s acknowledgment of the special providence of God in his life from his infancy — protecting him from such threats as the murderous Herod (Mat 2:20).

“Unnumbered comforts to my soul

Thy tender care bestowed,

Before my infant heart conceived

From whom those comforts flowed.”

Verse 11: “Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help”: All human aid, even all angelic sustenance, had deserted Christ as he had known it would:

“Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me” (John 16:32).

And though the Father is still silent, His Son is now persuaded that the Supreme Creator will never really desert His supreme creation. This momentary helplessness of the Son was designed by God — so that no flesh, looking upon this spectacle, could ever glory again. In his absolute lack of strength Christ found the only help that was meaningful.

Brethren, may we do the same! May we learn that our strength and safety lie in Yahweh alone. He that believeth shall not make haste (Isa 28:16), he shall not be ashamed (Rom 10:11), he shall not be confounded (1Pe 2:6). To the cross we come, and learn that with God nothing is impossible, and for His children there is no ultimate evil. The Helper of the helpless is our God; all things in the world are ours, and we are His, the sheep of His flock — scattered once but now regathered through the Great Shepherd’s sacrifice.

The sufferings of Christ were both mental and physical, as the following outline will show:

MENTAL	PHYSICAL
Vv 12,13: Mocking by rulers
	V 14: Complete exhaustion, excruciating pain
	V 15: Agonizing thirst, the sorrow of death
V 16: Enclosed by assembly of the wicked	V 16: Pierced hands and feet
V 17: “They stare upon me”	V 17: “All my bones”
V 18: Loss of all possessions, nakedness

Why was it necessary that Jesus undergo such sufferings? Could not sin be covered by something less? These are the questions that come to us when we force ourselves to look closely upon Calvary’s terrible scene. But God had decreed these very agonies of His only-begotten Son to be essential; nothing else would serve the same purpose. Jesus must be “the lamb slain from the foundation of the world”. The measure of the sufferings of Christ is the measure of God’s hatred of sin; our natural estimation of these things must be molded by long meditation and experience, so that God’s mind may be in us. The cross tells us what God thinks of unredeemed man, of how far even sinful flesh removes us from His full communion. Between God and us there is a great gulf fixed, and the cross of Christ is the only bridge.

We contemplate Christ on the cross. Others may have suffered more physical pain, or at least for a longer time. But no man has ever been as sensitive, as intelligent, as loving as Christ: consequently, his mental anguish must have been horrible!

Verse 12: “Strong bulls of Bashan surround me” (RSV): Bashan signifies “fruitful”; this very fertile area east of the Jordan was noted for its excellent herds (Eze 39:18; Amos 4:l). Livestock were sent there for fattening; there the bull attained its full power and vigor (Deu 32:14). These brutes are remarkable for their proud, fierce, and sullen manner; they are fitting symbols of the antagonists of our Lord. Well-clothed and fed, pampered with all luxury, stout and strong, they gazed with contempt upon the poor and naked and weakened frame of Jesus.

Thirty pieces of silver was the legal price of a slave gored by an ox (Exo 21:32). It was also the price of Christ (Mat 27:3), the “slave” of God (Isa 42:1), “gored” by the strong bulls of Bashan.

Verse 13: “They opened wide their mouths” (RSV)…”as a ravening and roaring lion”; Literally, “ravening” means “tearing to pieces”. Compare the figures of speech in Lam 2:15,16; 3:46. The lion’s deceitful crouching, sudden spring, fearful roar, and rending of the prey give another representation of the bestiality of Christ’s enemies:

“My soul is among lions… even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword” (Psa 57:4).

The “tearing to pieces” reminds us of the cruel and inhuman Roman lash, totally different from the Jewish whip. One authority writes:

“The Roman lash was often multi-thonged and inserted with pieces of lead, brass, or pointed bones — so that when wielded with force, it tore away large chunks of flesh, exposing veins, inner muscles, and sinews.”

Strong men often died under the Roman scourge, even before they reached crucifixion. For others, it was called the “halfway death”.

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Crucifixion probably originated in Asia Minor, being adopted by the Persians and Phoenicians who also impaled, speared, stoned, strangled, drowned, burned, or boiled their victims in oil. Crucifixion reached Europe in the third century BC and was adopted by the Romans, who believed it would be a strong deterrent to crime or rebellion. It is significant that this Psalm 22 was composed 700 years before crucifixion made its appearance in the Roman world!

The cross on which Christ was crucified was not, as is often depicted, a single structure. It was in two parts, the upright “stipes” and the horizontal “patibulum” which was hinged on the “stipes” at the time of execution. Christ probably carried the “patibulum” (which would alone have weighed about 100 pounds) to Golgotha.

“For our sins he groaned, he bled,

Beneath the accursed load.”

The “stripes” was already fixed in the ground; permanently erected stakes punctuated the landscape of Roman-occupied Jerusalem.

When Jesus arrived at the scene of execution he was laid on his back upon the crosspiece and nails were driven into his wrists. (The Roman nail was a spike, approximately 11 inches long and 3 inches broad at the head.) Then he was raised to his feet, backed against the stake, and lifted into position. The legs were bent and spikes transfixed the ankles to the stake.

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Verse 14: “I am poured out like water”: “My life-blood is worth no more to these men than so much water; see how casually they pour it out!”

“All my bones are out of joint”: “Bones” may signify “fibers” — in the wider sense of ligaments and muscles and bones. When the beam to which the victim’s hands were nailed was lifted and affixed to the upright stake, the sudden jerking would shake the body with terrific violence. The ligaments would be torn and even separated; the muscles stretched and weakened and cramped. An excruciatingly painful weight would be thrown upon the hands and wrists and shoulders.

“My heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my “bowels”: Now came the ultimate in physical exhaustion; here was the reason that crucifixion was considered the most agonizing form of death possible. The strain on the heart was tremendous, for the enormous traction of the arms fixed the chest in full inspiration (that is, in-breathing). The only way the crucified man could exhale was by taking his weight on his feet, pressing down with his legs to raise the body. Muscular cramps and exhaustion finally made this impossible, and the man died.

Verse 15: “My strength is dried up like a potsherd”: Christ feels himself to be a broken, useless, and scorched vessel of earth — filled with impurities. While the “potsherds” of the earth strive together and with their Maker (Isa 45:9; Pro 26:23), for all men are no better than common earthen pots, this singular “potsherd” strove to the end against his inherent weakness to gain the victory over sin on behalf of his fellows.

“My tongue cleaveth to my jaws”: As a result of loss of blood, exposure, heat, and fever, the sufferer had by now become severely dehydrated. “I thirst”, he cried (John 19:28). Those who have lived through grueling deprivations testify that extreme thirst is the most intolerable of all sufferings. The dryness of Christ’s mouth and lips and tongue was such that his speech was practically unintelligible (v 1).

“Thou hast brought me into the dust of death”: Still, as in the earlier Part of his prayer (vv 3,9,10), Christ fully and firmly acknowledges that his Father and no one else has brought him to these straits, and that his Father is holy and just in doing so.

“The dust of death”: The great counterpart of Psa 22 says of the suffering Messiah:

“He poured out his soul (life-blood) unto death” (Isa 53:12).

Other psalms enhance our understanding of this moment:

“The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish” (116:3, RSV).

(This, from a Psalm that formed part of the traditional Passover ritual — which had been on his lips only the previous night.) And again:

“The terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me” (55:4,5).

Verse 16: “For dogs have compassed me”: In the bulls and lions of vv 12 and 13 we may detect reference to the “mighty ones” of Israel, the secular and religious leaders who held Jesus in contempt and engineered his execution. But here we see reference made to the Gentiles, and commoners at that — the Roman soldiers who mocked and scourged him, and led him at last to his death. The dogs of the ancient world were no better than wolves or jackals, wild canines that ran in packs and defied domestication. Dogs were contemptible and cowardly; they were “fierce” only when their prey was cornered and helpless, ravenous in their appetites, and above all vile and abominable.

“The assembly of the wicked have inclosed me”: The word “edah” means an “appointed meeting”, perhaps the Sanhedrin. Does Christ see the Gentile dogs as only the ignorant instruments of his real enemies on the Great Council of Israel?

“They pierced my hands and my feet”: This is the primary figure of speech, it would, appear, upon which crucifixion is based. The psalmist feels himself to be a helpless victim of a vicious dog pack; they are encircling him, sinking their sharp fangs into his exposed limbs, tearing and rending his flesh while his life-blood flows out like water.

So it is with Christ, but the “fangs” are not teeth; they are iron spikes and the staff of a spear (2Sa 23:7).

“And they shall look upon him whom they have pierced” (Zec 12:10; John 19:37; Rev 1:7). This is true not only of the Jews, but also of all men. We have crucified Christ! Our personal sins were not literally laid upon Christ, causing him to pay the penalty of death as popular theology teaches. Nevertheless, there is a sense, more general perhaps, in which it may be rightly said that we have “pierced” Christ: Had there been no sin in the world, and were we not as we are, there would have been no need for a representative sacrifice. Although the logic of the orthodox “substitution” theory is invalid, nevertheless the guilt must be ours; it is certainly not Christ’s! And we must mourn fervently for our weaknesses that lead us into sin; our need has brought Christ to the cross. What a sobering thought!

Verse 17: “I may tell (count — RSV) all my bones”: The several months and especially the last week before his crucifixion were times of most intense activity. No doubt he had always been very busy, but at the end of his public ministry there was the last great national appeal as he proceeded from Galilee throughout the land, finally arriving at the Holy City. And the last week he probably obtained no rest other than the solace of nightly prayer and communion with his Father. The days were spent warning the city, the nights in solitude as the shadow of the cross loomed even larger.

“My knees are weak through fasting, and my flesh faileth of fatness” (Psa 109:24).

“My heart is smitten, and withered like grass; so that I forget to eat my bread. By reason of the voice of my groaning, my bones cleave to my skin” (Psa 102:4,5).

The man who went to the cross was a man who had already begun his sacrifice. By this time he had no form or beauty that might lead natural men to desire him. The flame of his life flickered low; his zeal for his Father’s “house” had consumed him (Psa 69:9). He had willingly spent all; there was no need to hold any strength in reserve.

His emaciated condition, his extended position upon the cross, and his nakedness all contrived to bring from his tortured lips the pitiful observation — “I may count all my bones!”

This is the sad arena to which we must come if we would enjoy the fellowship of the Father and the Son. The cross is the meeting place. Let the love of Christ constrain us to live no longer for ourselves, but unto him that died for us. Do we relax in our comfortable homes, enjoying as though it were our right all the abundance of God’s blessings? Can divine desires arise within our pampered flesh? Can the mind find unity with God that grovels after earthly gratifications? Are indolence and worldliness and self-pleasing the means of amassing spiritual and eternal riches? Are we “soldiers of Christ” who never fight? Is there a race set before us, and we cannot budge from our reclining chairs to run it? Is there a cross to bear, and we have never even tested its weight? Look here at the dying Lord of all mankind, worn to a shadow in God’s service! Let us consider carefully our ways and our thoughts, before we even dare to suggest that we might be called followers of Christ.

“They (the evil men — vv 13,16) look and stare upon me”: The man whose intelligence and purity must have made him the most modest among men, here becomes a public spectacle, a laughing-stock to thugs and bullies.

Verse 18: They part my garments among them” (John 19:24): Here was the SUM total of Christ’s wealth — his few modest garments, and even these must be rudely stripped from him:

“For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (1Ti 6:7).

This is the second hint (cp v 17) of Christ’s total nakedness — a great shame. Nakedness is a readily-recognized symbol of sin (Rev 3:17; 16:15). Christ was cursed by the Mosaic law in being hanged upon a tree (Deu 21:23) Gal 3:13); the public nakedness to which he was subjected may also be seen as a part of that curse. It is one of the echoes of the early scenes of Genesis to be found in Christ’s death: in many respects, Christ became the “last Adam” to remove the curse brought by the sin of the first.

They cast lots upon my vesture”: The normal Roman custom was to consider the criminal’s personal effects the property of his executioners; it was part of their wages. The division of his few garments was begun, but at last the four centurions came to the most valuable garment, Christ’s tunic. It was seamless throughout (John 19:23), like the robe of the high priest (Exo 28:31,32) to rend it would be to destroy it. Its seamless unity mirrored his blameless life. They cast lots and Christ’s last possession passed into the hands of a nameless sinner. He now faced death with nothing but his holy character and his indomitable spirit.

It seems fairly certain that, among the extreme trials of crucifixion, Christ experienced the humiliation and shame of nakedness. This is implied in the counting of his bones (v 17) and the parting of his garments (v 18). We read of the women who were there standing “afar off” (Mat 27:55; Mark 15:40), possibly due to their natural modesty at the sight. Nakedness is symbolic in Scripture of the sin-nature (which Christ possessed) and sin itself (of which he was accused). Complete nakedness was not the ordinary custom for executed criminals in the first century, but it is not difficult to imagine Christ’s influential enemies arranging this in order to degrade and “defile” him to the uttermost. Thus, as in other ways, the leaders of Israel unwittingly contributed to the force of the symbolism: Christ as a partaker of the effects of our sins, knowing the bitterness of all that sinful flesh inherits.

The licentious society in which we live comes quite close to idolizing the naked body, but the whole tone of Scripture is in the opposite direction. The priests, for example, were commanded to wear breeches and not robes when they officiated, so that even the sight of a naked leg would not mar their service. Women in the ecclesias were to be modestly covered, and no doubt this was true for legs and breasts as well as heads! In short, flesh is nothing to be proud of; it is far better for our sisters (and brothers) to cover theirs with a fair amount of clothing Instead of a carefully nurtured suntan.

For Christ the shame was not just in the nakedness. As the brutally hot hours wore on, he became increasingly afflicted by bitter sweat, and by the blood that oozed from open wounds. The callous crowds stirred up clouds of choking dust, dust that became caked to his body. (Hymn 168 is certainly in error if read literally. Golgotha was a “green hill” only in the writer’s imagination; or else, prophetically “green” with the hope of eternal life beyond the grave.) In a very real sense Christ lived out the condemnation of Adam: “Unto dust shalt thou return.” Finally, the body’s natural functions could no longer be held in check, and odor and flies would contribute to the agony of his last mortal hours. All the signs of corruption attached themselves, one by one, to this man of sign. In him we see ourselves for what we are — creatures shrouded in corruption and decay. Let us look at ourselves, brethren: “Dying thou shalt die” is more than a Hebrew colloquialism! We are dying every minute of every day, and there is only one cure.

Nakedness is only one of an astounding number of links with the early part of Genesis; in many ways Christ fulfilled the type of the “last Adam”. In providing a way of escape from the Edenic curse, our Saviour fell under that curse in every conceivable way. “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one man shall many be made righteous” (Rom 5:19). Let us survey the cross with a sense of wonder; here the prince of glory died to provide what our richest gains cannot. In the shadow of the cross our pride shrivels to nothingness and contempt.

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Seven times was Christ’s blood shed. Seven is the number of perfection and completeness, and without shedding of Hood there can be no remission of sins. In shedding his blood, seven times Christ became the perfect sacrifice and completed in himself, once and for all, the whole Mosaic system of bloodshed. The seven times are as follows:

The Messiah’s sacrifice	The High Priest’s consecration (Exo 29:20)
1. Head: the crown of thorns	Blood of a ram, upon tip of right ear
2. Back: the Roman scourge
3,4. Hands: the Roman spikes	Blood upon thumb of right hand
5,6. Feet: the spike(s)	Blood upon great toe of right foot
7. Side (after death): the Roman spear	Blood “sprinkled upon the altar round about”

Between the sacrifices of all animals and that of Christ there is another great difference, obvious in the above listing. The animal died as its blood was shed, but Christ was a “living sacrifice” (Rom 12:1,2). Only in the last of the seven instances of bloodshed was he unconscious. Paul tells us that to some degree we must emulate this sacrifice, as our “reasonable” (reasoning, or intelligent) service. Christ’s sacrifice was not a suicide, where with a last knowing breath he cast himself headlong into death. Rather, it was a conscious, drawn-out process, completed in accordance with God’s will. From his head and hands and feet flowed down not only blood, but also sorrow and love. He gave his heart and mind on the cross, not just his body.

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Perhaps it is appropriate here, before proceeding to the last sections, to review by another table the “animals” of Psalm 22:

Verses	“Animal”	Symbolism	Of whom spoken?
6	Worm (toolath)	Lowliness (Job 25:6), or scarlet (v 6)	Christ
13,21	Lion	Royalty (Gen 49:9,10)	Jewish princes and rulers
12	Bull	Sacrifice	Jewish princes
16,20	Dog	Uncleanness (Rev 22;15; Mat 15:26,27)	Gentiles
21	Wild ox	Strength (Num 23:22)	The “strong ones” (both Jews and Gentiles)

Against the lowly “worm” Jesus, the lordly “beasts” of Rome and Jerusalem took counsel together:

Psalm 2	Acts 4:27
V 2: Rulers (Jewish princes)	“Both Herod…
V 2: Kings of the earth (Roman)	…Pontius Pilate…
V 1: “Heathen” (signifying Gentiles)	…the Gentiles…
V 1: “People” (Jews)	The people of Israel…
	…were gathered together.”

And yet, though Gentiles participated in his execution, there seem to be some flashes of Roman insight that may be seen as prophetic of the Gentiles’ subsequent gospel enlightenment. This may be called “The Great Paradox”:

(1) At the time of crucifixion, the Jews become Gentiles…	Rulers: “We have no king but Caesar” (John 19:5).
	People: “Crucify him” (Mar 15:13).
(2) while the Gentiles become Jews!	Ruler: “Pilate wrote a title…” (John 19:19).
	People: “Truly this was the Son of God” (Mat 27:54).

Let us examine ourselves. We are first of all Gentiles after the flesh who have seen the King of the Jews “lifted up”; acknowledging his authority, we have become spiritual Jews. Do we subsequently become “Jews”, who through pride or indifference or lack of faith testify that we really have no king but the “Caesar” of this world? If we are of this latter class, then Paul says of us that, like the mob in the Holy City that fateful morning, we also crucify the Son of God and put him to an open shame (Heb 6:6).

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Verses 19-21: PLEA FOR DELIVERANCE FROM DEATH

In three short intense verses Christ pleads again for that which he has sought from the beginning of the psalm — his Father’s visible favor. In strong crying and tears he multiplies his petitions. In v 21 finally comes the answer to his prayers and the breaking point of the psalm: “Thou hast heard me!” The darkness which has shrouded Golgotha for some time, the coming of which brought forth that desperate cry “My God, my God!”, is now broken by light. His last few moments are ones of exultation, as reflected in the last section of the psalm. Christ faces death triumphantly, knowing he has conquered the final enemy. His work is finished and in his last minutes he catches a bright vision of the glory that will follow (vv 22-31).

Verse 19 is a cry for help as death approaches. It is a repetition of v 11: “Be not far from me, O Yahweh.” God’s presence constitutes the only deliverance that he desires. May our prayers be imitations of this great prayer of our Teacher — in constant importunity, steadfast faith, and assurance of reply. God never yet forsook in need the man that trusted Him indeed.

Verse 20: “Deliver my soul (‘nephesh’) from the sword; my darling from the power (‘paw’) of the dog”: The word “darling” is “yachiyd”, signifying “single” or “only one” (as in Gen 22:2,12,16 — of Isaac; Psa 68:6; Zec 12:10). By implication it signifies the “beloved one”; that which cannot be replaced; or one’s life.

Verse 21: “Save me from the lion’s mouth”: The lion was mentioned also in v 13, a ravening beast, also the symbol of the tribe of Judah. The leaders of Judah had become voracious beasts in their treatment of this man who dared to call their ways in question.

“Thou hast heard me”: This is in direct contrast to vv 1,2. The God who had seemed to forsake him to die in the darkness now at last sheds light upon him for a final time. Prayer moves the hand that moves the world. This phrase initiates the last half of the psalm — filled to overflowing with exceeding great joy, just as the first half was agony and sorrow. Christ looks in vision upon the “seed” to be born out of his sufferings, the fruit of his toil and travail, and he rejoices.

“From the horns of the unicorn”: Either the wild ox (as in RSV) or the rhinoceros. The ox is the Scriptural symbol of great strength (Num 23:22; Job 39:9,10). It is a symbol of death, our strongest enemy. Samson faced the strong lion and slew him and subsequently found honey in the carcass. Christ (the typical “Samson”) faced death “the strong one”; he faced the “horns of the altar” (Psa 118:27) and emerged victorious. Out of the jaws of death came meat for the world. Out of the “strong one” came forth the sweetness of renewed life, eternal life (Jdg 14:14). “Out of weakness” the Saviour “was made strong” (Heb 11:34) — so that true Israel may be delivered from its last and greatest enemy. Thanks be to God for the unspeakable gift of His Son, that even death itself holds no terror for His beloved children.

Verses 22-31: “THE GLORY THAT SHOULD FOLLOW” (1Pe 1:11,12)

The darkness enshrouding Golgotha is lifted, and the last conscious moments of our Saviour’s mortal life are ones of joy. More clearly than ever before can he foresee “the joy set before him”; buoyed up in this way he endures the cross to the very end (Heb 12:2). His words, prophetically recorded by David in this last portion of Psalm 22, indicate that his vision was of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb:

Psalm 22	Revelation 19
V 22: “In the midst of the congregation will I praise Thee”	V 4: “The 24 elders”
V 23: “Ye that fear the Lord, praise Him”	V 5: “Praise our god, all ye servants”
V 25: “In the great congregation”	V 6: “The voice of a great multitude”
V 22: “I will declare Thy name unto my brethren”	V 6: “HALLELUYAH, for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth”
V 26: “The meek shall eat and be satisfied”	Vv 7,9: “The marriage supper of the Lamb”

Verses 22-25: MESSIAH PRAISES GOD

Verse 22: “I will declare Thy name unto my brethren; in the midst of the congregation (‘qahal’ = an assembly called together) will I praise Thee”:

It is a fundamental principle of the Truth that Christ in his death declared the righteousness of God and thereby provided a basis for the forgiveness of man’s sins (Rom 3:23-26). To declare God’s righteousness is to declare His name, because God’s name expresses His will and purpose and character, and our God is a God of love (John 3:16; 1Jo 4:8,16) and salvation. We give thanks that the Holy One, Who dwells afar off in unapproachable light, has come near to man through His Son, declaring His name by the wondrous works of that Son (Psa 75:1).

Christ stood in the midst of the entire congregation of Israel; his appeal was public and national in its scope. Nothing was done in a comer or a closet. Yet the “trumpet” calling the nation to repentance and life brought only a relative few to answer it. These the Saviour gathered close around him, as a shepherd would his flock, or a mother hen her chicks. To these he further unfolded the glory of the Father’s name manifested in a Son of flesh. At their final feast of fellowship, he prayed:

“I have manifested Thy name unto the men which Thou gavest me out of the world… For I have given unto them the words which Thou gavest me… And I have declared unto them Thy name (in life), and will declare it (in death and resurrection): that the love wherewith Thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them” (John 17:6,8,26).

Christ is not ashamed to call these disciples his brethren, for both sanctifier and sanctified have become one by his act of redemption (Heb 2:11,12). After his resurrection, his first message was one of encouragement to his brethren (John 20:17). Joined together in one body with Christ, his brethren rejoice even now in prospect of glory; but the prospect will become reality in the future age, when the voice of a great multitude will be heard, with Christ at their head, declaring God’s name:

1. “HALLELUYAH, for the…	1. YAHWEH: the Memorial Name
2. “Lord…	2. ADONAI: Lord, ruler
3. “God…	3. ELOHIM: Mighty ones
4. “Omnipotent (Almighty)… reigneth” (Rev 19:6).	4. SABBAOTH (TZ’VAOTH): Hosts, armies

All the names of Deity, fused together, become a message of inexorable purpose, a message of hope: “As surely as I live (can anything be more sure?), the earth shall be filled with My glory”… in the person of a host of mighty, redeemed, righteous Spirit-beings (Num 14:21; Isa 11:9; Hab 2:14). Here will be the Name of God brought to full harvest in the earth.

Verse 23: “You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you sons of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him, all you sons of Israel” (RSV): This alternate rendering is preferable, since the two “fears” in the Authorized Version are different Hebrew words. When the difference is understood, then we may more easily recognize the beautiful and striking progression of the three clauses:

1. Those who fear: The healthy fear of God is the beginning of true wisdom (Pro 9:10). Here is where we must all start; advanced scholars may go on to other lessons, but they must never forget this first principle. Those who fear God are commanded to praise him. If as yet they are still just learning how to serve Him, nevertheless even those with the most rudimentary knowledge can praise God. Children must first be taught to sing praises; then, as they grow older they may endeavor to master other services, even the glorifying of His great name.

2. The seed of Jacob: Jacob was the first name of the patriarch father of the Jews. It was the name he received at birth, when he laid hold on the heel of his elder brother; “Jacob” signifies “he who grasps the heel”. We become like Jacob at our baptism — which is a form of “birth” — when we take hold of the bruised heel of our Elder Brother Jesus (Gen 3:15). Thus the simple praise we gave as children is expanded, hopefully, into a life of discipleship; now by our deeds we glorify God. Like Jacob we may wander far from home and experience trials and weaknesses; we may fail more often than not. But our journey is ever onward; as we go, we learn obedience by the things we suffer; we learn to rely less upon our own strength and cleverness and more upon our Heavenly Father.

3. The seed of Israel: When Jacob finally prevailed with God — in prayer and supplication — he received a new name: “Israel”, “Prince with God”. When the time comes that, like Jacob before us, we are stripped of our pride, when the Lord’s strength is made perfect in our weakness, and his will is our own, then we have become “Israel” and we are ready to be rulers in God’s kingdom. These are commanded to reverence the name of God, to stand in awe of His glorious redemptive work. Gathered round the throne they will do this very thing, singing a new song:

“Thou hast made us unto our God kings and priests… Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth on the throne” (Rev 5:10,13).

Verse 24: Praise God and reverence Him, for He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of His Son (Heb 12:6); neither hath the Father hid His face from the Son who cried unto Him. This is in stark contrast to the men who scorned and mocked Jesus upon the cross (vv 6-8). Even those who had professed discipleship forsook him and fled, hiding their faces from him (Isa 53:3), as did even Peter. His Father alone remained true to Jesus, because in Jesus was His name and His purpose. Just as the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the primordial waters and brought forth light and life, so the Spirit hovered over Jesus on the cross and in the tomb: darkness was made light and death was transformed by that Power into life again. Jesus cried to the Father, and even when his voice was silent in death, his words still echoed in heaven, and the Father heard. Thus was brought to birth the new, or spiritual, creation.

Verse 25: “My praise shall be of Thee in the great congregation” (as in v 22) — During the years of his ministry Christ always used the great feasts for the public proclamation of the gospel embodied in himself. Standing in the courts of Herod’s temple, he was himself the true temple, built by God and not by man (Heb 8:2). In him may be discerned, in one facet or another, the priest and the altar and the ark and the offering. In him all the shadows became substance as he hung on the cross, and the Father’s saving name was written in bold letters for all to read. Those who come unto him, who serve God in the true temple of His Son, will stand at last in the great congregation of spiritual Israel — the new Jerusalem. The “144,000” who constitute the spiritual temple of the multitudinous Christ will assemble upon mount Zion in the literal millennial temple, and their praise will be of God in a new song which mortals cannot learn (Rev 14:1-3).

“I will pay my vows before them that fear him” (as in v 23): The vow implicit in his baptism was fulfilled without fault in his life and then also in his death. Prophetically, he had been baptized into his own death. He was faithful in all things; he deferred not to pay that which he had vowed (Ecc 5:4). He drank to the very dregs the cup of suffering prepared for him.

Spiritually, though not legally, Christ took up the vow of a Nazarite (Num 6); separation from sin and dedication as a priest. Although he did experience death, he fulfilled the Nazarite vow in that death could not defile him. He who was free from sin could not be held in the clutches of death.

Finally, in keeping with the obvious theme of this section, it may be suggested that there is also an allusion here to marriage vows. At his baptism Jesus was proclaimed the Lamb of God, and therefore the one who would be the Bridegroom at the Marriage of the Lamb. That public act was his betrothal or engagement to his prospective bride, the nation of Israel. From that time forward Jesus offered his life as the dowry to buy his wife from her natural father, the old Adam. The dowry was made up in full only by his poured out blood. In his death he performed the vows and sealed the marriage covenant with all believers.

While Christ “slept” — like the first Adam, in a garden — there was taken from his wounded side a woman: the spiritual bride, partaker of his sufferings. Even today God is continuing to fashion this multitudinous bride out of the wounded side of His firstborn. Each constituent passes through a baptismal death, and by faith in the last Adam becomes “bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh”. When the Bridegroom returns to claim this bride, then those who are worthy will become one body and one spirit, glorying in perfect union with their Lord and Master forever.

A. His Visit (2:1-4)

v. 1	“For yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you, that it was not in vain:
v. 2	“but even after that we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know, at Philippi, we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention.
v. 3	“for our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile:
v. 4	“but as we were allowed. of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 1 “For”: This, along with the repetition of “entering in” or “entrance” (“eisodon”), links what follows with 1Th 1:9. In the earlier verse Paul referred to the news he had heard from believers in other places; here he reminds the Thessalonians that they have need of no other witnesses than themselves.

“Not in vain”: “Not a failure” (NIV). The word “kere” literally means “empty.” It is often used of work or effort that is futile, useless, or ineffectual (1Co 15:10,58; Mark 12:3; Luke 20:10). Paul uses a similar word in 1Th 3:5 and Phi 2:16; in contexts which speak of work. Far from being ineffective or useless, Paul’s preaching of the gospel had been “in power” (1Th 1:5), converting many in Thessalonica (Acts 17:4).

There seems to be an allusion here to the words of Isaiah:

“For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited” (Isa 45:18).

This in a context that starkly contrasts the one true God with the vanities of idols:

“I am the Lord, and there is none else”, (cp 1Th 1:9,10).

And, again, from Isaiah:

“For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isa 55:10,11).

v. 2 “Shamefully entreated… at Philippi”: The experiences of Paul and Silas at Philippi, where they were stripped and beaten and imprisoned, would have been well known to the Thessalonian brethren. Paul and Silas had come directly to Thessalonica from Philippi, with their backs still bearing the marks of beating (Acts 16:23). The public degradation the apostles received would have been considered particularly insulting to a Roman citizen such as Paul, who should have been immune from such treatment.

“We were bold in our God”: “We had courage in God.” The word is especially used of speaking out in boldness and openness. It describes the confidence with which a believer may come into the presence of God (Heb 4:16; 10:19; 1Jo 3:21), and the confidence with which he may openly preach the gospel (Acts 9:27; 18:26; Phi 1:20; Eph 6:19).

“The gospel of God”: This does not just mean the gospel or good news about God; it points to God as the Author of the gospel (cp vv 8,9; Rom 1:1; 15:16; 2Co 11:7).

“With much contention”: The confidence Paul derived from his faith in God was very necessary, since contention and conflict dogged his steps. The word “agon” (from which we get the English “agony”) is an athletic and a military word. It is not a token opposition, not a “going through the motions”, but a very real struggle, a life-or-death battle. It is used, for example, in 1Ti 6:12 and 2Ti 4:7 of fighting the good fight of faith, and that is no half-hearted fight. Paul is reminding the Thessalonians that the opposition he had faced had been intense, and his preaching had not been easy. How, in the face of this evidence, could anyone believe that he had only preached for what he could get out of it personally (vv 3.4)?

v. 3 “Deceit”: The Greek “plane” means simply “error” (NIV); there is no idea of deceit attached, unless it be the self-deceit of believing error. The same word is translated “delusion” in 2Th 2:11 and “error” in 1Jo 4:6. Paul’s enemies (in this case they must have been Jews) were saying that Paul simply did not know what he was talking about; his interpretations of the Old Testament scriptures were the words of men, not the words of God (1Th 2:13).

“Uncleanness”: “Akatharsis” literally means “unclean” or “impure.” This word is often associated with sexual sins (Rom 1:24; 2Co 12:21; Gal 5:19; Eph 4:19; 5:3; Col 3:5). But it is difficult to imagine this is one of the charges laid against Paul, since nowhere else is such a thing even hinted at. Two other possibilities:

• “Impure motives” (as NIV translates) — ie, greed, pride, covetousness; or

• Ritual impurities — as in Jewish food laws (cp v 10 — where Paul speaks of living “holily” and “unblameably”).

“Guile”: “Dolos”, elsewhere translated “subtlety” (Mat 26:4; Acts 13:10; 2Co 4:2). We know that this was a favorite charge against Paul:

“I was crafty, you say, and got the better of you by guile (‘dolos’)” (2Co 12:16, RSV).

His enemies were fond of telling his followers that Paul was only after their money (1Th 2:5-9).

v. 4 “As we were allowed of God”: The word basically means “to test”, and is used again at the end of the verse: “God, who tests our hearts.” The sense is that Paul has been tested and approved by God for the work he must do.

“Not as pleasing men”: Paul consistently shows a total disregard for men’s opinions (1Co 4:3; Gal 1:10).

“God which trieth our hearts”: A common Old Testament idea (Psa 7:8,9; 139:23; Jer 11:20; 12:3; 17:10).

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Paul does not say, “having been ill-treated at Philippi, we were more careful in Thessalonica.” Even the most wretched abuse cannot deter Paul and Silas from preaching the word. He reminded them of what they already knew of his troubles at Philippi and Thessalonica. This was to encourage them in the trials they were facing, and to impress them of the necessity for the gospel message to go forward, no matter what the opposition. Paul was not asking the Thessalonians to undergo anything that he was not prepared to endure himself. He had brought the gospel to them in spite of the beatings and imprisonment he suffered in Philippi.

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Paul’s letters contain numerous hints of a Jewish plot to undermine Christianity from within, especially by attacking Paul and his message of justification by faith. Their subtle attacks upon him explain his efforts to establish the basis of his authority and the purity of his motives. In these verses in 1Th 2 we may see some of the charges insinuated against him (vv 3,5,6). And we may notice also the evidence for the circulation of a forged letter purporting to be from Paul (2Th 2:1,2), with evident intention of creating confusion among the believers as to Paul’s teachings and even his honesty. Truly for Paul there were both “perils by mine own countrymen”, and “perils among false brethren” (2Co 11:26).

B. His Behavior (2:5-8)

v. 5	“For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness; God is witness:
v. 6	“nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the apostles of Christ.
v. 7	“but we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children:
v. 8	“So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 5 “Flattering words”: The Greek is, if anything, stronger than the English. We may think of some forms of flattery as being essentially innocent, designed only to encourage the hearer, to make him feel good about himself. But the Greek term (“Kolakeias”) has rather the idea of using fair words to deceive the hearer and gain one’s own ends; it implies using lies and deceit as instruments of policy to bend others to one’s own will. Paul was never guilty of such a vice, but spoke plainly and bluntly (2Co 10:10,11; 12:6).

“Cloke of covetousness”: The Hebrew “beged” (literally, garment) also means, figuratively, treachery or greed. Here is an example of Paul thinking in Hebrew and writing in Greek. As a loose-fitting cloak may conceal a sword, so a plausible pretext — though perhaps even true in itself — may conceal the real, and less worthy, motive for some action.

Covetousness (“pleonexia”) — “greed” in NIV — means “the desire to have more.” In the New Testament it is always used in a bad sense, and is connected with materialism (Luke 12:15; 2Pe 2:3), including the desire for money (2Co 9:5), and with sensuality (Eph 4:19; 5:3). It is on Christ’s lengthy list of the evils that arise in men’s hearts (Mark 7:22). Elsewhere Paul equates this “covetousness” or “greed” with idolatry (Col 3:5), because it exacts self-gratification to the highest position of worship. In 2Co 9:5; 12:17,18 Paul denies the charge of covetousness against himself and the other apostles in reference to the collection of the fund for the poor in Jerusalem.

“God is witness”: Since only God Himself can search the hearts of men, and since covetousness is essentially a sin of the heart, Paul calls on God as witness that he has no such desires (cp Rom 1:9; 2Co 1:23; Phi 1:8).

The phrase is reminiscent of “Galeed”, or “Jegar-sahadutha” (“the heap of witness”), in Gen 31:46-50 — the solemn place which marked the border between the spiritual Jacob and the worldly Laban. So Paul’s renunciation of covetousness is the point of demarcation between those who worship the one true God and those who make idols of their own unworthy desires.

v. 6 “Nor of men sought we glory”: In the sense of “praise” (NIV). To gain a reputation as successful preachers was not the aim of Paul and his associates. They did not look for praise from men (Rom 2:7; 1Co 4:5). They might well receive it, since they deserved it; but Paul’s point is that they did not seek it: their motives were pure.

Note: This verse might be repunctuated, as in the NIV:

“We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else.”

The final phrase of verse 6, then, would be attached to verse 7, thus:

“As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, but we were gentle among you…”

When we might have been burdensome”: They could have expected, by virtue of their positions, to receive financial support (1Co 9:14; Gal 6:6). But Paul was determined to make no use of his right in this matter (more on this in v 9).

“Apostles of Christ”: “Apostles” (“apostoloi” = messenger — in a very high sense, as ambassadors or envoys of the King) was the designation of the original twelve disciples of Christ (Luke 6.13). But others besides these came to be properly called apostles (Rom 16:7; cp 1Co 15:5-7, where “the twelve” are distinct from “all the apostles”). Among such were James the Lord’s brother (Gal 1:19), Barnabas and Paul (Acts 14:14), and Silas (cp 1Th 1:1 with 1Th 2:6). Perhaps even the youthful Timothy can be counted among the number (same references), although almost certainly he had never seen the resurrected Lord, which Paul elsewhere seems to consider essential to apostleship (cp 1Co 15:8,9; Gal 1:15-17).

v. 7 “But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children”: For “gentle” some manuscripts have “babes”, but this seems inappropriate, since Paul goes on immediately to speak of himself as “a mother” also! Furthermore, “gentle” is the perfect contrast with “burdensome” (v 6). The two words (“gentle” and “babes”) are very similar in Greek (“epios” and “nepios”). Since the preceding word in the Greek text ends with this letter “n” it would have been very easy for a scribe to have carried over and repeated that letter at the beginning of the next word.

The word “nurse” describes any woman feeding a baby at her breast; in this case it is the mother herself, since Paul’s phrase is “her own children.” And the word “cherisheth” (“thalpo”) means to keep warm, as a mother bird covering her young with her feathers (Deu 22:6, LXX); it is also used of the love of Christ the husband for the ecclesia his bride (Eph 5:29).

Thus there is presented the lovely picture of a mother suckling her baby at the warmth of her breast. How fascinating to think that Paul the learned Rabbi, the author of Romans and Ephesians, the wise and eloquent teacher of Mars Hill, yet had it in him to think of himself and his converts in this way!

We may compare this maternal metaphor with another such in Gal 4:19, where Paul addresses his little children for whom he suffers birthpangs all over again, “until Christ be formed in you.” And, a bit further afield, there is Moses speaking of himself as receiving direction from God to care for Israel:

“Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?” (Num 11:12).

“Among you”: Is this a conscious recalling of Christ’s words:

“I am among you as he that serveth” (Luke 22:37)?

v. 8 “Being affectionately desirous of you”: “We loved you so much” (NIV). This is a very rare word, found only here in the New Testament; it is used in Job 3:21 (LXX) to mean “longing for.” The conjecture of one exposition is that it is a term of endearment from the nursery, thus carrying forward the imagery of v 7: the cooing and whispering intimacies, the “baby-talk” of a mother with her own infant.

“We were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls”: Still we may follow the imagery of v 7: the mother fondling the baby at her breast, and feeling her own life going out to it in her milk, to nourish it.

This, says Paul, is the only way to convey the gospel message to others: it must be given along with our own hearts and souls. It must be given with passion, with love, with life itself. How else could we attempt to preach the gospel of the God who “spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all” (Rom 8:32)? How else preach the gospel of Christ, “who gave himself for our sins” (Gal 1:4), who “poured out his soul unto death” (Isa 53:12)? In like manner Paul writes of himself:

“if I be offered (‘poured forth’ — mg. as a drink offering) upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all” (Phi 2:17).

And also:

“I will very gladly spend and be spent for you” (2Co 12:15).

ADDITIONAL NOTES

“We were gentle among you,” Paul writes to the Thessalonians. There is infinite tenderness in these words, an overflowing love and encouragement. The apostle, who could stress the necessity at times for the hardness of a soldier, could also counsel his own “son” Timothy that “the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men” (2Ti 2:24). In statements like these Paul stands revealed as a man of intense feeling toward those who looked to him for leadership. The Thessalonians were his special charge, and he had an eternal interest in their welfare, an interest that only intensified when he was forced to be absent from them. They had captured his heart by the devotion they showed in turning from their idols to serve the living and true God. They were his “children” as surely as he was a child of God; he was by turns “mother” (vv 7,8) and “father” (v 11) to them. Their lives were bound up in one another, and no sacrifice was too great for Paul to make on their behalf.

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How difficult it is for some of us to commit ourselves to some types of service to others. Brothers especially can scarcely find in themselves these “maternal” instincts of caring and nurturing, of watchfulness, try as they might. It is important for them especially to ponder at length the example of Paul. Do we seek to be spiritual “nurses” in the church, by tenderly binding up those who are “broken”, by gently encouraging those who are weak? The apostle who could picture himself as a mother suckling a baby would never hesitate to perform any worthwhile task, no matter how menial or how “out-of-character.” And so should we be.

Do we suppose some chores are beneath us, when the real problem is our pride? In the light of the example of Jesus, how could we have any pride? The one girded himself and knelt before his disciples to wash their feet can surely teach us something about humility and service and love:

“So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you” (John 13:12-15).

C. His Example (2:9-12)

v. 9	“For ye remember, brethren, our labor and travail: for laboring night and day, because we would not be chargeable unto any of you, we preached unto you the gospel of God.
v. 10	“Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily and justly and unblameably we behaved ourselves among you that believe:
v. 11	“as ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father doth his children,
v. 12	“that ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 9 “Labor and travail”: The two words also occur together in 2Co 11:27 and 2Th 3:8. The first (“kopos”) (also in 1Th 1:3) is derived from the verb meaning “to strike”, putting emphasis on the ideas of trouble and weariness. The second (“mochthos”) conveys the idea of difficulty (“hardship”: NIV) and even pain. The combination of the two words stresses that Paul’s work was not a mere token performance, done for its impression upon others, but that it involved real effort.

It was the custom and teaching among the Jews that every boy must learn a trade, even those who were destined for scholarly pursuits or those from wealthy families. The rabbis taught that the father who did not teach his son a trade taught him to be a thief. We know from Acts 18:3 that Paul’s occupation was that of “tent-maker” (the word may signify, more generally, a leather-worker).

v. 10 “Ye are witnesses”: Compare vv 1,5,9,11. Paul was forced to bother about the criticisms of others — not for himself personally, but so that his work might not be sabotaged.

“Holily”: The Greek “hosios” expressed an attitude of reverence towards God which affects a person’s conduct.

“Justly”: The Greek “dikaios” (“righteous”: NIV) means to give men what is due to them; to perform one’s duties in a faultless manner. In different contexts this and related words give a far broader meaning — that is, to be justified or made righteous, through the sin-covering atonement of Jesus Christ. Here, though, Paul seems to be speaking of the more simple, straightforward virtue.

“Unblameably”: The Greek is “amemptos”, and refers to conduct which is free from any reasonable accusation. It occurs also in 1Th 3:13; 5:23.

v. 11 “Exhorted”: “Parakaleo” means literally to call by one’s side, and therefore is sometimes translated by “comfort” and “encourage.” In John’s Gospel the noun form “Paraklete” (“the comforter”) is used of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7), sent by Jesus to comfort and strengthen the apostles in his absence. This is the most general word for instruction given to believers (1Th 3:2,7: 4:1,10,18; 5:11,14).

“Comforted”: This uncommon word (“paramuthion”) is similar to the preceding “parakaleo”, and can convey the ideas of admonition and encouragement (1Th 5:14) and most especially consolation (John 11:19,31).

“Charged”: “Marturomenoi”: “testify” (RV), from the root for “to witness”; “urging” (NIV). This word has the sense of making a solemn and emphatic affirmation, or even a demand or command.

“As a father doth his children”: The same apostle who pictured himself as the loving and gentle “mother” (vv 7,8) now sees himself also as the “father” to the Thessalonian believers. Here is outlined, then, the best method for a father to bring up his children: a judicious combination of instruction, comfort, encouragement, consolation, and (not to be neglected!) serious teaching and even stern orders.

v. 12 “His Kingdom and glory”: Perhaps, better, “his glorious kingdom.” The return of Christ and the establishment of God’s kingdom are oft-repeated themes in Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians. Christ’s coming is the rationale for every call to duty and every insistence upon holy living. The Kingdom will be the time and place for the manifestation of the visible radiance of God’s majesty, through those who have been called out of the nations to be bearers of the Divine Glory (Rom 5:2; 8:18; 2Co 4:17; Col 1:12,13).

ADDITIONAL NOTES

The right of the apostles to receive material support from Christian communities is laid down in 1Co 9, but Paul maintained his own high ideal of not seeking such assistance:

“Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar? Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel. But I have used none of these things: neither have I written these things, that it should be so done unto me: for it were better for me to die, than that any man should make my glorying void” (1Co 9:13-15).

Voluntary gifts were another matter, and these Paul accepted thankfully:

“Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated (ie shared) with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only. For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity” (Phi 4:15,16; cp 2Co 11:9).

Such gifts as Paul received were almost certainly not very large (cp 2Co 8:2 “their deep poverty”). Thus Paul was seldom exempt from having to toil “night and day” (1Th 2:9) to support himself (2Th 3:8; 1Co 4:12; 2Co 12:13) and even those who were with him (Acts 20:34). Can there be any more stirring example for us today, to carry on as best we can the work of preaching while still providing for ourselves and our families?

v. 13	“For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.
v. 14	“For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews:
v. 15	“who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men:
v. 16	“forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 13 “For this cause also”: What is “this cause?” In other words, is Paul looking backward or forward? It is possible he is thanking God for the successful preaching of the gospel despite all difficulties, as described in vv 1-12. But it seems more likely that he is looking forward, and thanking God — more to the point — for the Thessalonians’ reception of that preaching as the word of God (vv 13,14). The “also” presents a bit of a problem too. If this is to be understood as a second reason for Paul’s giving thanks to God, it is scarcely distinguishable from the first reason (1Th 1:2-4). Perhaps Paul means “we also give thanks as we know you give thanks…”

“Without ceasing”: “Adialeiptos” (“continually”: NIV) is unique to Paul in the New Testament, and is always used in connection with prayer and thanksgiving. Paul uses this word to describe the incessant sorrow, or pain of heart, he feels for his unbelieving countrymen (Rom 9:2). (This characteristic attitude of Paul towards his Jewish enemies must be remembered especially when reading such a passage as 1Th 2:13-16, where the apostle seems almost vindictive toward these same Jews. The same man can righteously pray continually for the salvation of his fellow countrymen and rejoice in God’s coming judgments against them if they remain unrepentant.) Paul also uses “adialeiptos” in Rom 1:9; 2Ti 1:3; and 1Th 5:17, directly of prayer; and in 1Th 1:3 of his remembrance (in thanksgiving) of the faith and love of these same Thessalonians.

“Ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth the word of God”: “You didn’t just take our word for it; you took it as God’s word!” Paul was accustomed (as many preachers of the Word have been since) to having his message dismissed as man-made, merely something devised by himself:

“But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Gal 1:11,12).

But to the Thessalonians Paul’s words came with power and conviction (1Th 1:5,6), and they knew and believed that God was the source.

“Which effectively worketh also in you that believe”: In this case it is precisely the “word” that works, not God. Or, more accurately, God works through His word. This idea of a word or a message having an active power (an “energizing” influence) of its own, is common in both the Old Testament and the New Testament:

“And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword…” (Isa 49:2).

“For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: so shall My word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isa 55:10,11).

“Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29).

“The sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph 6:17).

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb 4:12).

This personification of the word of God progressed to the final stage in the advent of Jesus, the word of God made flesh (John 1:14). In the New Testament the two ideas, of God’s energizing word in us and of “Christ in us” (Rom 8:10; Eph 3.17; Col 1:27), become practically interchangeable. It is brought about by the spoken and written word of God, believed and acted upon.

The verb “energeo” is used mostly in the New Testament of the direct or indirect influence of God or His Spirit (1Co 12:6,11; Gal 2:8; 3:5; Eph 1:11,20; 3:20; Phi 2;13; Col 1:29), and also of the word of God (here) and the faith it produces (Gal 5:6). The word describes not so much the labor itself as the energizing power by which the labor is done. The believer does not go on “automatic pilot” when God comes into his life; he must still labor himself. But now he finds a new energy, a new strength, from God and His word to enable him to do things he would previously have considered impossible. Thus Paul can write without contradiction:

“… work out your own salvation… for it is God which worketh in you” (Phi 2:12,13).

The labor (“katergazomoi”), the intensive effort is ours (v 12). But the energizing influence (“energeo”), the motivation and the power, comes from God (v 13). God and man have become “laborers together” (1Co 3:9; cp Eph 2:10).

v. 14 “Followers”: “Imitators” (NIV), as in 1Th 1:6. In their endurance of persecution the Thessalonians had become imitators of the Judean ecclesias now being scattered abroad by their enemies (Acts 9:31). This implies more than a passive acceptance of suffering; the believers went forward to meet their sufferings with steadfast faith and courage, and rejoiced in this unique fellowship with their brethren in Israel.

It may be noted, incidentally, how favorably Paul speaks of the ecclesias in and around Jerusalem. This Paul is not the anti-Jewish schismatic that some modern scholars and critics would imply.

“For ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews”: “Countrymen” (Greek “symphyletes”) means those of the same ethnic group, not the same geographical location. This would imply (as discussed elsewhere) that the Thessalonian church was predominantly Gentile (cp 1Th 1:9,10), and furthermore (despite the evidence of Acts 17:5-9) that their persecutors were likewise predominantly Gentile. It would have been thoroughly in character for Jewish enemies of the Truth to take the initiative in opposition, but then to shrewdly stand aside while certain base Gentile elements carried on what they had begun.

v. 15 “Who both killed the Lord Jesus”: Thus Paul reserves his most severe denunciations for the Jews, who were the instigators of the death of Jesus also (John 19:16) although Gentile hands were not altogether clean in the matter (Acts 4:25-28). By “Jews” (v 14) Paul would seem to have in mind (as did John generally in his gospel) the chief priests and rulers and other leaders of Israel. But the other men of Israel, wherever they lived, could scarcely escape all responsibility, as Peter makes plain on the day of Pentecost:

“Ye men of Israel, (‘out of every nation under heaven’ — v 5!)… ye have taken (Jesus), and by wicked hands have crucified and slain (him)” (Acts 2:22,23; cp v 36 also).

Noting the unmistakable bitterness of this passage, we must remind ourselves again that Paul was renowned for his sacrificial desire to see the salvation of his countrymen (Rom 9:1-3; 10:1), regardless of how much he had suffered personally at their hands (2Co 11:24,26).

Perhaps we may appreciate why, at this point especially in his work, Paul could speak so grimly of the Jews. He had been chased out of Damascus (Acts 9:23-25) and Jerusalem (Acts 9:29,30), by his own people not very long after his conversion. His message had been rejected and he had been driven out of Antioch in Pisidia (Acts 13:45,46,50). At Iconium the Jews had poisoned people’s minds against Paul and Barnabas and ultimately forced them out (Acts 14:2,5,6). They had journeyed to Lystra especially to instigate a riot that produced Paul’s stoning and left him as good as dead (Acts 14:19). Jewish opposition had continued to hound him even into Europe, forcing him to leave these very believers in Thessalonica against his will (Acts 17:5,10). Even as Paul writes these words from Corinth, a united attack has been mounted against him by the Jews of the city (Acts 18:6,12,13). Considering the present plight of the Thessalonian believers (1Th 3:3), ultimately traceable to Jewish enemies, it is no wonder that Paul is at this time moved to an uncharacteristic mention of Jewish stubbornness and rebellion, and of their coming punishment.

“And their own prophets”: The killing of Jesus was but the logical conclusion to the killing of those earlier prophets, who by their words and lives had foretold his coming. (So Stephen argued just before his own death — Acts 7:52.) Such a thought was certainly behind the words of Jesus, who mourned over the city:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee” (Mat 23:37).

“… for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem” (Luke 13:33).

And he addressed the Jews again:

“Woe unto you! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and your fathers killed them. Truly ye bear witness that ye allow the deeds of your fathers…” (Luke 11:47,48).

So intent were the religious Jews upon preserving the traditions of their fathers that they fought tooth and nail against anything and anyone in any way different and challenging. This was also what their fathers had done when challenged by the prophets. Such inflexibility of mind renders men incapable of hearing the message of God, of examining themselves, and of repenting. Thus they cling to traditions that have the outward appearance of religion, but never come to grips with the “weightier matters.” The same frame of mind that would slavishly revere dead prophets would just as easily kill contemporary prophets.

“And have persecuted us”: Literally, “and also drove us out” (NIV), perhaps with special reference to the recent expulsion of Paul and his friends from Thessalonica (Acts 17:5-10) and then from Berea (vv 13,14).

“They please not God, and are contrary to all men”: An exclamation: “How much they displease God! How contrary they are to all men!” The word “contrary” (“enantios”) is commonly applied to the winds (Acts 27:4; Mark 6:48; Matt 14:24). It is used of the Jews as though their hatred of Jesus and his followers was an unreasoning force of nature.

v. 16 “Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved… In their effort to keep us from speaking…” (NIV).

Some translations add this to v 15, thus explaining how the Jews showed themselves contrary or hostile to all men. This opposition was very much in the spirit of the Pharisees, of whom Jesus said “ye shut up the Kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in” (Mat 23:13).

“To fill up their sins alway”: Their cup of guilt was already well on the way to being filled, and their present conduct was continually raising the level toward the brim. This vivid figure of speech is found throughout Scripture. In the days of Abraham the promised inheritance of the land was held back for 400 years because “the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full” (Gen 15:16; cp Dan 8:23). But now, worse by far than those brutal, sensual Canaanites, these Jewish adversaries of their own God and their Lord Jesus are determined to fill up the measures of their iniquity in a tenth of the time:

“Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers… that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth… Verily I say unto you. All these things shall come upon this generation” (Mat 23:32,35,36).

In Biblical symbolism, the cup of sin when at last full (with the blood of God’s people? — Rev 6:11; 17:6) becomes a cup of punishment, from which the sinner must drink (Isa 51:17; Jer 25:15-28: 51:7; Eze 23: 31-34; Rev 14:10; 16:19; 17:4; 18:6).

“For the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost”: The “wrath” is another allusion to Matthew’s Gospel (of which 1Th has many), ie, the words of John the Baptist to the Pharisees and Sadducees:

“O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Mat 3:7).

If the wrath is yet future when Paul writes (cp 1Th 1:10), why does he speak of it as happening in the past: “the wrath has come upon” (NIV)? There are two other Biblical instances of this same form of this verb (“phano epi” — has come upon); in both of these (Mat 12.28; Luke 11:20) Jesus speaks of the coming of the Kingdom of God. In one sense, as Jesus expressed it, the “Kingdom” had come: he had brought it near in his person. In another sense, the Kingdom has not come even yet. And so it is equally true of the wrath of God: it is near and certain for those who do not repent, but it has not yet come upon them in actual fact.

Is this whole phrase a quotation of 2Ch 36:16?:

“… but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.”

“To the uttermost”: “Eis telos”: either “at last” (NIV) or “fully” (NIV margin).

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Verses 14 and 15 are perhaps one of the most severe condemnations uttered by Paul in all his letters, and it has been suggested by some that it might be an interpolation. Although these verses may seem harsh, it cannot be doubted that Paul had ample justification for speaking as he did. No one suffered more at the hands of the Jews in the preaching of the gospel but no one showed greater determination to take the gospel far and wide whatever the opposition might be.

He warns the Thessalonians of the great lengths to which the Jews will go to stop the spread of the new faith (v 16). But nothing could prevent the message going forth to the Gentiles, as Paul and Barnabas had told the Jews at Antioch:

“For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, That thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth” (Acts 13:47).

That the apostles were true to this commandment from Christ is borne out in the simple statement of Luke:

“And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region” (v 49).

Nevertheless their persecutors continued on their wicked way:

“But the Jews stirred up the devout and honorable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts” (v 50).

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Verse 13 is a marvelous verse. All that a man needs to do is to accept the Bible, truly, as the word of God, and it will assuredly get to work in him and on him, effectively!

The attitude which a man chooses to adopt toward the word of God therefore determines his eternal destiny. Man is a free agent either to obey or to ignore the word of God. But God is not mocked, and the treatment that a man accords to His word is the basis of His treatment of him:

“But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, Or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth? Seeing thou hatest instruction, and easiest my words behind thee” (Psa 50:16,17).

“He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day” (John 12:48).

God works effectively through His word; that word, believed and acted upon, can change lives and save men, all to His glory. The word of God is the word of “faith” (Rom 10:8), “grace” (Acts 20:32), “truth” (2Ti 2:15; James 1:18), “life” (Phi 2:16), “righteousness” (Heb 5:13), “reconciliation” (2Co 5:19), “promise” (Rom 9:9), “power” (Heb 1:3), and “salvation” (Acts 13:26).

The word of God can provide all that is essential to salvation. It enlightens (Psa 119:130), converts (Psa 19:7), convinces (2Ti 3:16), and teaches (Psa 119:99; 2Ti 3:16). It makes alive (Psa 119:99; John 15:3), washes (Eph 5:26), sanctifies (John 17:17), and dwells (Col 3:16). It prospers (Isa 55:11), bears fruit (Mat 13:23), exhorts (Heb 13:22), and builds up (Acts 20:32). It guides (Psa 119:105), strengthens against sin (Psa 119:11), and endures (1Pe 1:23). It corrects (2Ti 3:16) and judges (John 12:48). Truly then it “works effectually “in those who believe (1Th 2:13). All things considered, is there then any necessity for believers to experience wonder-working Holy Spirit power in order to be saved?

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We have noticed already some contacts between this section of 1 Thessalonians and the words of Jesus against the Scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23. We now bring all these together:

It seems plain that Paul had this very discourse of Jesus in mind as he wrote. It is at least possible that Saul the young “Pharisee of the Pharisees” had been present in Jerusalem more than once to hear the words and see the deeds of Jesus of Nazareth, and to hear such words of condemnation directed against himself as well as others. So here, perhaps, we have Paul’s vivid memory of that unforgettable experience which set him on the road toward repentance and true faith in Christ, which he reached at last several years later on the road to Damascus.

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The Thessalonians’ sufferings under persecution lasted a long time, and so did their steadfastness. Some six years later Paul could still speak of the Macedonian believers (which would certainly have included Thessalonica) as enduring “a great trial of affliction” and yet continuing to prove the reality of their faith by “the riches of their liberality” (2Co 8:1,2). The “deep poverty” of which he spoke could well have been the result of mob violence and looting, or systematic boycott by the believers’ enemies. Elsewhere in the New Testament another group of believers is reminded how, in earlier days, they “took joyfully the spoiling of (their) goods” as well as numerous other “reproaches and afflictions” (Heb 10:32-34). Nevertheless the words of Paul would be wonderfully appropriate to their circumstances:

“For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us afar more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2Co 4:17).

A. Paul’s Desire to Return (2:17-20)

v. 17	“But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavored the more abundantly to see your face with great desire.
v. 18	“Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.
v. 19	“For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?
v. 20	“For ye are our glory and joy.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 17 “Being taken from you”: “Aporphanizo” (used only here in the New Testament) is literally to be “torn away from” (NIV). This graphic word (from which comes the English “orphan”) combines the two aspects of physical separation and mental anguish. Paul’s intense affection for the Thessalonians is manifested in an amazing mixture of metaphors: in this one chapter he is, by turns, “mother” (vv 7,8) and “father” (v 11) and now even an orphaned child!

“For a short time”: Paul’s concern for his friends was so great that only a very short time elapsed before he was making serious efforts to return to them.

“In presence, not in heart”: He hastens to explain that, though absent physically, he was still with them in heart and mind and spirit. As Moffatt puts it, “out of sight, not out of mind.”

“Endeavored the more abundantly to see your face with great desire”: “Out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you” (NIV). Practically every word in this phrase is a superlative.

There is nothing of a “token” effort in Paul’s love. He does not just “try” — he struggles earnestly to see them! He does not just “desire” — he greatly longs to be with them! (The word is “epithumia” — a fierce passion, commonly translated “lust” and used in an evil sense.)

v. 18 “Once and again”: Literally, “again and again” (NIV). Not necessarily twice only, but perhaps several times Paul had made plans to return to them.

“Satan”: The agent that hinders Paul from returning he calls “Satan”, the “adversary.” One commentator writes of this verse: “It cannot be positively affirmed that Paul here means anything more than a personification of all that is opposed to God — the hostility of wicked men, etc.” And, plainly, that is the Satan/”adversary” that Paul has in mind: the Jewish and Gentile opposition to him in Thessalonica (Acts 17:5-10), which had perhaps gone so far as to put a price on his head. It was not so much that Paul was afraid for his own safety — the man who could write 2Co 11:23-29 was used to taking risks. The concern was predominantly for the Thessalonians themselves (maybe especially Jason?): their trials were severe already; Paul’s presence in the city might so intensify their persecutors’ anger against them that their lives would become absolutely unbearable. And of this Paul could not bear to think, he loved them so much.

v. 19: The NIV translation reorganizes the phrases of this verse into a much more understandable pattern:

“For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you?”

The “crown” is “stephanos”, the chaplet or coronal wreath awarded to the victor in the Olympic Games. The only “crown” in which Paul will glory or boast on the Day of Judgement will be the faithful of Thessalonica (and other cities — cp Phi 4:1), whom he has brought to the gospel and nurtured along the Way. This thought is similar to that expressed by Paul in 1Co 3:14:

“If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.”

The “stephanos” is used in Scripture as a symbol of victory in the fight or race of life. To obtain that crown requires personal discipline (1Co 9:25), and respect for laws set down (2Ti 2:5). The “stephanos” is a wreath of “evergreens” in the truest sense; unlike the Olympic crown it will never fade away (1Pe 5:4). It relates to the future reward (2Ti 4:8; James 1:12); but it can be snatched away (Rev 3:11).

“Coming”: The letters to the Thessalonians are particularly about the “parousia” — “coming” or “presence” of Christ (see again the Introduction). References to the “parousia” occur seven times in the two letters (1Th 2:19; 3:13; 4:15; 5:23; 2Th 2:1,8,9).

v. 20 “Glory”: “Doxa”, often translated “praise.” This would seem to be basically equivalent to the “crown of rejoicing” in v 19.

“Joy”: Compare 1:6.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians add much to our knowledge of this ecclesia and of Paul’s relations with it. They also present us with an aspect of the apostle’s character which is not revealed in the concise record given in Acts. Far from Paul forgetting the Thessalonians in the strenuous work in which he was engaged, his thoughts turned constantly to these new converts, and his heart yearned to see them again. His failures, time and again, to visit them only increased his longing for them.

As in so many directions, Paul shows us here the way we should follow him. He not only preached the gospel and brought men and women into it; but, having done that, he cherished them, encouraged them, and loved them. These two works are equally necessary in our day as they were in Paul’s. Let us both preach the Word with zeal and courage, and do all in our power to strengthen and establish new converts by our loving care and encouragement. If we do this, then, like Paul, we may anticipate that lovely laurel wreath of victory: the eternal fellowship with our “children” in the Kingdom.

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A brief summary of some “Satan” passages:

An angel of God	= “Satan” (Num 22:22,32).
Human adversaries	= “Satan” (1Sa 29;4; 2Sa 19:22; 1Ki 5:4; 11:14,23,25; Psa 38:20; 71:13; 109:4,6,20,29.
Peter	= “Satan” (Mat 16:23; Mark 8:33).
The “world”	= “Satan” (1Co 5:5; 1Ti 1:20).
The Roman (or Jewish?) power, as an adversary to the gospel	= “Satan” (Rev 2:9,13)

The combination of Jewish-Roman opposition to Christianity, what Paul calls “Satan” in 1Th 2:18, is alluded to again and described in much greater detail in 2Th 2:3-12 written, (or so it would seem) very shortly after the first letter. It seems evident that Paul had first in mind a system already in existence (2Th 2:7), as Acts 17:1-9 abundantly indicates.

B. Timothy’s Mission (3:1-5)

v. 1	“Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone;
v. 2	“and sent Timotheus, our brother, and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith:
v. 3	“that no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto.
v. 4	“For verily, when we were with you, we told you before that we should suffer tribulation; even as it came to pass, and ye know.
v. 5	“For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you, and our labor be in vain.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 1 “When we could no longer forbear”: The verb “stego” (also in v 5) originally meant to remain watertight — as a house or a ship that does not leak. Then of course it came to mean “to contain” or “to endure”, as in 1Co 9:12: “But (we) suffer (‘endure’) all things”, and 1Co 13:7 — love “endureth all things.” When Paul could no longer endure having no news of the Thessalonians, the “roof caved in” and he decided he must send Timothy to them.

“We thought it good to be left at Athens alone”: “We” would include Silas and Timothy. It is possible Silas had already gone on some other mission, or that he left at this time — since both Silas and Timothy rejoin Paul later at Corinth (Acts 18:5). Now, with these departures, “we” becomes “I” (cp 1Th 2:18 — “I Paul”); Paul was left truly alone to preach in Athens. The city was the intellectual capital of the world, its inhabitants for the most part educated and cultured. But to Paul it was the most barren wilderness. The small results of his efforts there (Acts 17:34) prove what a forbidding place it was for Paul. For the good of the Thessalonians (and for his own ultimate peace of mind) he realized it was necessary to send Timothy to them, but this verse gives us a glimpse of what it cost him.

v. 2 “Timotheus”: see notes, 1:1.

“Minister”: “Diakonos.” The word literally means servant, and a lowly servant at that — one who waits on tables. In the New Testament the word refers to many variations of service. It is used of the following:

1. The angels who ministered to Jesus (Mat 4:11);
2. Jesus himself (Luke 22:22; Rom 15:8);

3. Timothy, at a time when he would surely have been an “elder-bishop” as well (1Ti 4:6);

4. The other apostles (Acts 1:25; 6:4);
5. A sister (Rom 16:11);

6. All the followers of Jesus (John 12:26; Eph 6:21);
7. A special class of servants within the church (1Ti 3:8-13).

“Fellow-laborers”: Literally, as 1Co 3:9, this is “fellow-worker with God.” There is some question about the text at this point, and some commentators object to the idea that man can be a companion in work with God. Why being a fellow-laborer with God should be objectionable is rather difficult to see.

There are many reasons, it would seem, why we should be fellow-workers with God. Primary among these is that we, along with Christ, must work, to repair the breach between God and man — following the example of Christ himself:

“My Father worketh hitherto, and I work” (John 5:17).

Labor is needed on our part, as well as God’s and His Son’s. Also, and more to the point, in preaching and in strengthening the believers, we must work with God — because there is no one else to do it. These activities are “off-limits” to the direct physical efforts of either Christ or his angels. “Fellow-laborers with God” indeed! If we do not do this work, then who will?

Since Timothy was a mere lad at this time (cp 1Ti 4:12 — where about twelve years later he is still a “youth”), Paul speaks so highly of him so as to encourage the Thessalonians to respect his presence and his mission.

“To establish you”: The verb “sterizo” means, in the classical sense, to put a buttress or support so as to strengthen a building. It appears in Exo 17:12, LXX, of Aaron and Hur “staying up” the arms of Moses. It is used primarily by Paul of the work of “strengthening” or confirming new believers (Acts 14:22; 15:32,41; 18:23; Rom 1:11), although he well recognized that the Father and the Son were the ultimate workers in this matter (1Th 3:13; 2Th 2:16,17; 3:13; Rom 16:25-27). So “fellow-workers with God” is, after all, a very Scriptural concept.

“To comfort you”: “Parakaleo” (cp 1Th 2:11).

v. 3 “That no man should be moved”: “Saineo” (only here in New Testament) is used of a dog wagging its tail. Here it means to be tempted (cp v 5) from one’s duty by an alluring bait — in other words, to be coaxed or wheedled away from the faith by the “kind” words of former friends: “Why can’t we be friends again? Give up these weird ideas of yours — it can’t be worth it! Look at all the problems it’s causing you!”

Perhaps in our more relaxed atmosphere we tend to forget how hard the way was, and correspondingly how insidiously easy would have been the choice of surrender. In the first century all it would have meant in many cases was to burn a handful of incense to Caesar — a mere “nominal” gesture. Time and again lenient judges pleaded with the early Christians to do so, but in most cases their pleadings were met with absolute refusal. How would we have fared under the same circumstances?

“by these afflictions”: Literally, “in the midst of these afflictions.” Compare notes on “affliction” in 1Th 1:6.

“We are appointed thereto”: The word “keimai” is very suggestive. It actually applies to a sentry posted by his officer (“set for the defense of the gospel”: Phi 1:17 — Phi 1:16 in NIV), or a “city set on a hill” (Mat 5:14). The idea is of remaining steadfast and doing one’s duty; bearing up under afflictions is part of that duty, as the New Testament abundantly testifies:

“yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2Ti 3:12).

v .4 “We told you before:” Paul is not telling them anything strange and new. Even in his short stay with them, he had emphasized this lesson — knowing, no doubt, how much they would need it.

v. 5 “For this cause”: Because of the tribulations I know you to be experiencing, I was desperate to know how you were faring.

“When I could no longer forbear”: Same word as in v 1.

“I sent to know your faith”: He wanted to learn how well they were holding on to their faith. For Paul, faith was the fundamental activity and characteristic of a believer, out of which grew everything else. He knew that there were possibilities of defection, and he wanted to be sure that their faith was still real and active to sustain them.

“… lest by some means the tempter have tempted you”: The Greek reads literally “how the tempter did not tempt you,” neatly implying their steadfastness. The words “tempter” and “temptation” are both from the same root, signifying to test or try. The “tempter” must be the same as the “Satan” of 1Th 2:18 — the Jewish and Gentile opposition to the new Thessalonian believers. As Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness immediately after his baptism to meet the “tempter” (Mat 4:3 — the only other verse where the noun occurs), so these new believers were experiencing severe temptations very soon after their baptisms. Sometimes some of the severest trials can come upon those who are newly baptized, as soon as the newness of their conversion begins to wear off, and especially if problems impinge upon them from the world outside. This entire verse is very similar to the idea expressed by Paul when writing to the Corinthians:

“For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things… lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices” (2Co 2:9,11).

“And our labor be in vain”: If the Thessalonians’ faith collapsed, then truly Paul’s work would become meaningless (cp 1Th 1:5; 2:1) and he would have no “crown” to wear (1Th 2:19). The phrase “in vain” is found only in Paul’s writings. The idea of laboring in vain is found also in 1Co 15:58, associated with the thought of no resurrection; and in Phi 2:16, in a form very similar to this verse. In Gal 2:2 Paul submits his gospel before the leaders of the Jerusalem ecclesia, “lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain”; in 2Co 6:1 he warns the Corinthian believers against receiving the grace of God in vain.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

There is a distinct parallel between Paul’s actions here and those of Jesus under somewhat similar conditions, as we read in John 16:

“It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove (convince) the world of sin, and of righteousness…” (vv 7,8).

The Lord, being taken away from his disciples for a little while (v 7), sent the Holy Spirit or “Comforter” to his “orphaned” followers (14:18, mg.) Thus by this means he helped to make up for his absence from their midst. In like manner Paul, forced to be away from the Thessalonians for a little while (1Th 2:17), sent Timothy to be the “comforter” (3:2, same word) of the “orphaned” (2:17) ecclesia. In such a wonderful way the apostle imitated his Master in showing love and consideration for his flock.

C. Timothy’s Encouraging Report (3:6-10)

v. 6	“But now when Timotheus came from you unto us, and brought us good tidings of your faith and charity, and that ye have good remembrance of us always, desiring greatly to see us, as we also to see you:
v. 7	“Therefore, brethren, we were comforted over you in all our affliction and distress by your faith:
v. 8	“For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord.
v. 9	“For what thanks can we render to God again for you, for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes before our God;
v. 10	“night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith?”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 6 “But now when Timotheus came from you unto us, and brought us good tidings of your faith and charity, and that ye have good remembrance of us always, desiring greatly to see us, as we also to see you”: Notice that Timothy brought good news of their faith and love — but not necessarily of their hope! Does Paul hint here at the deficiencies which he decides to make good in 1Th 4:13-14? At this point they had just arrived (Acts 18:5; Pro 25:25) with the good news (literally, the “gospel”, as in v 2) that all is well, and that the believers in Thessalonica are holding fast the faith as they were taught (1Th 1:3). Out of great relief Paul now begins to write this letter (cp his feelings: 2Co 7:4-6). Paul expresses a great deal of personal satisfaction here. First, it was a good sign that the Thessalonians held the apostles in affectionate remembrance and longed to see them again (cp 1Th 2:17). They could hardly have had such intense longing if they had been inclined to give way under the temptations they were experiencing. Secondly, it proved to Paul that they held no ill will against him for indirectly bringing this tribulation upon them, in introducing the gospel to them. Thirdly, they were anxious to see him again, notwithstanding the wave of increased persecution which no doubt would ensue if he were to return to Thessalonica. This also would cheer him greatly.

v. 7 “Therefore, brethren, we were comforted over you in all our affliction and distress by your faith”: Since leaving Thessalonica, Paul had been rejected at Berea (Acts 17:13,14) and Athens (Acts 17:32,33) and had met with many difficulties at Corinth: hunger, thirst, nakedness, revilings, and persecutions (1Co 4:11-13; 9:12). All this had left him “pressed in the spirit” (Acts 18:5), and living in “weakness (malaria, or some other illness?) and in fear, and in much trembling” (1Co 2:3). It is possible even that malaria (or some other physical infirmity) was as much the “Satan” that hindered Paul’s return to Thessalonica (1Th 2:18) as was the persecution that awaited him there.

v. 8 “For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord”: Until the wonderful news of vv 6,7, Paul was a dying man (perhaps even literally so). But now he has found a new lease of life. Like John, he could experience no greater joy than to learn that his “children” continued to walk in the Truth (3Jo 1:4).

v. 9 “For what thanks can we render to God?”: The sustained thanksgiving introduced in 1Th 1:2-10 and resumed in 1Th 2:13 is concluded in 3:9 with a rhetorical question. It is as if Paul is implying, “This gift (of good news about you) is so marvelous that I can never repay God for it!” (cp the question of Psa 116:12: “What shall I render unto the LORD for all His benefits toward me?”).

The word “render” conveys the idea of giving somebody what is due to him (Rom 12:19; 2Th 1:6).

v. 10 “Exceedingly”: “Hyper-ekperissou”, a quite unusual word that means to overflow abundantly: in this case, “super-abundantly!” Thessalonica was famous for its hot springs which continually overflowed; the city had once been called after them: “Therma” (see Introduction). Paul was fond of using this figure in varying degrees; he was like a hot spring, bubbling over with warmth and love — and so he wanted his converts to be. (The same or similar words occur in v 12; 1Th 4:1,10; Eph 3:20; Rom 5:21; and 2Co 7:4.)

“And might perfect that which is lacking in your faith”: “And make good the deficiencies in your faith.” “Katartizo” is a verb signifying “to render fit or complete”; it occurs thirteen times in the New Testament. It is used of mending nets (Mat 4:21; Mark 1:19); of reconciling disputes (1Co 1:10), of preparing a person for a work (Heb 10:5); of restoring a sinner to fellowship (Gal 6:1); and of completing the instruction and character of a believer (as here; Luke 6:40; Eph 4:12; 2Co 13:11; Heb 13:21; 1 Pet 5:10). The perfecting of believers is therefore the fitting or equipping of them, not for “show”, but for service.

It is possible that, in his absence, some of Paul’s converts had gone astray in their understanding of certain doctrines, and that this fact was revealed to him by Timothy in addition to the more joyful news (see note, v 6). It might as reasonably be assumed that Paul knew of some of these deficiencies even before Timothy came to him, deficiencies in their faith due to the little time he had to devote to them originally. (In that case, we have at least an indication that new converts were not expected to know absolutely everything before baptism!) Certainly among these problems were matters concerning the resurrection and the return of Christ. Paul’s words here serve as a gentle reminder to the Thessalonians of their continuing need for further spiritual growth — a fact which he did not deny or try to “sweep under the carpet.” His words also tactfully prepare them for the remaining part of his letter.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

There can be no question that Paul loved these people more than life itself. He prays for them continually, and desires more than anything to be with them. They have suffered together, and out of that shared experience of adversity they have developed an unshakeable bond of fellowship (1Th 1:6). Surely this is the “fellowship of his sufferings” to which Paul refers in Phi 3:10.

Although Paul is constantly moving about to preach in new areas, he never abandons the ecclesias he has established. Paul at Athens and at Corinth still feels obligated to the believers in Galatia and Thessalonica. All of his ministry is marked by such concern: although he is heavily involved in the concerns of the Gentile ecclesias of Europe, he nevertheless works hard at taking up an offering for the material needs of the Judaean brethren. Paul’s faith is a global faith, an international faith that ignores (or breaks down, if necessary) the cultural and ethnic barriers that exist in the Roman Empire.

Paul’s strategy takes risks with the newly established ecclesias. It leans heavily upon faith in and prayer to the Father through the Son, and that the Holy Spirit they control can work in ways unrecognized by men to strengthen and comfort believers. Paul cannot be everywhere and do everything himself; with a reasonable view of his own limitations, he instructs and trains (and then trusts!) his assistants in the work — young men like Timothy and Titus. This benevolent responsible attitude allows them in turn to grow to their full potential, and become more useful “fellow-laborers with God.”

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“Life” (ie, v 8) and “death” take on new symbolic meanings for the believer. In his struggles against sin and human adversaries he expects to “die daily” (1Co 15:31) — for he bears about in his body “the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest” in that body (2Co 4:10-12). The believer is a continually changing compound of the old man, who is (or should be) dying, and the new man, who is continually being born or “created” (Eph 4:22-24; Col 3:8-10). And even as the physical body is wasting away day by day, so the inner man is being renewed (2Co 4:16).

The business of serving Christ intensifies the daily experiences of life. Literally everything about one’s life is now seen to hold the potential of affecting eternity. Thus we see Paul cast down and afflicted because of thoughts of problems of other people many miles away. And we then find him, in a moment, overjoyed at the good report about them. “Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not?” So it must be small “deaths” and small “resurrections” each day — for one who takes upon himself the care of all the ecclesias (2Co 11:28,29). Is this a difficult way of life? Most assuredly. But can there be any other way for a true follower of Christ?

D. Paul’s First Prayer for the Thessalonians (3:11-13)

v. 11	“Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you.
v. 12	“And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you:
v. 13	“to the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.”

NOTES ON TEXT

v. 11 “Direct”: “To make straight” — a word that appears also in 2Th 3:5 and Luke 1:79. Paul prays that God and Christ may remove all hindrances (as in 1Th 2:18) to open the way for Paul to return to Thessalonica. As Paul was directed to them in the first place (Acts 16:6-10), so he prays, and confidently expects, to be directed again:

“The steps of a good man are ordered (‘made straight:’ same word in LXX) by the Lord: And he delighteth in His way” (Psa 37:23).

Though he may not fully understand, still he relies upon the unseen constraints, the “ways of providence”:

“Ponder the path of thy feet, And let all thy ways be established (‘made straight’ — same word again)” (Pro 4:26).

v. 12 “Increase and abound”: The two words are practically synonymous; thus they reinforce one another, ie, “greatly abound” or “abound more and more.” “Increase” (“pleonazo”) is used of grace (Rom 6:1); the manna (2Co 8:15) and love (here). “Abound” is the word we saw also in v 10, which conveys the delightful impression of a bubbling, overflowing spring.

“Love one toward another”: “Agape”, the self-sacrificing love that is distinctly Christian. It is the pre-eminent “fruit of the Spirit” (Gal 5:22), out of which all other aspects of Christ-like character arise. God’s sacrificial love is seen in the gift of His Son (John 3:16; Rom 8:22; 1Jo 4:9,10), which sets the pattern for all subsequent acts of love to which His children are directed (1Th 4:9). In the same way that Christ loved us, so we the believers must love one another (John 13:34). Only by their acts of love, and only in their participation in the “agape”/”love feast” of fellowship, may they show others that they belong to Christ (v 35). There is nothing more important, for love is the fulfilling of the law (Rom 13:8).

“And toward all men”: This aspect of love is perhaps one that is most easily overlooked. The love of God is basic to our lives in the Truth. His love for us is so immense and far-reaching that it seems almost “natural” for us to love Him in return. Loving our Christian brothers and sisters, as members of the same divine family, is but the next logical step, for we are all bound together in the most wonderful fellowship. However, having come this far, something inside us seems to balk at the next step… “toward all men.” Perhaps our failure here is that our perceptions of God and His work and His love are just too limited. The God who loved us when we were yet “sinners” (Rom 5:8) — and loved us so much that He gave up His Son in death — surely expects us to love all men in the same way. The God who bestows the blessings of sunshine and rain on just and unjust alike is teaching us to love even our enemies and those who despitefully use us (Mat 5:44,45).

Jesus, in perhaps the greatest and most sublime of his parables, warns us against a narrow conception of one’s “neighbor” (Luke 10:25-37). “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” is the second commandment, like unto the first, and like the first unlimited in its scope (Mat 19:19; 22:39; Mark 12:31; Gal 6:10).

“Even as we do toward you”: Paul refers to his own example, an indication that this verse is not only a prayer but also an exhortation. That Paul and his companions could present themselves as examples of overflowing love may seem embarrassingly bold, but it is not uncommon in his letters (1:6; 2Th 3:7-9; Acts 20:35; 1Co 4:16; 11:1; Phi 3:17; 4:9). While we would not wish to emulate Paul in what might easily appear to be — for us! — unwarranted “boasting”, still it is useful for us all to remember how the examples of our own personal lives either support or detract from the message we preach.

v. 13 “To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness”: A man can never hope to stand “holy and unblameable and unreprovable” before God (Col 1:21-23) by means of his own efforts, no matter how dedicated he may be. But he may be “established” or “presented” (Col 1:22; Jude 1:24; Eph 5:25-27) blameless by Christ, if he “continues” (again, Col 1:22) or “abides” (1Jo 2:28) in him. The emphasis must not be on strenuous endeavor, but on thankful loyalty. Good works are a reasonable expectation from those who have been gratefully redeemed, who have already received the means through God’s grace of standing blameless in His sight (Eph 2:9,10); but good works will never be the means themselves for that standing — that can be only by “grace” (Eph 2:7,8)!

In the love and mercy of God, as revealed through Christ, we may have confidence to stand unblameable before God (1Jo 2:28; 3:20,23; 4:17); but never can we place such confidence in our own works — no matter how numerous and how commendable!

“Coming”: “Parousia” again (cp 1Th 2:19)

“With all his saints”: “All his holy ones” (NIV). We may tend too much to equate “saints” in KJV with believers only, whereas the word literally means “holy ones” and can refer to the angels. Numerous passages, both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, refer to the angels of God as the “holy ones”, or other similar designations. While some of the passages appended here may be ambiguous, it is a good principle of interpretation to be aware of the two possibilities in almost every Theophany-type passage where “hagios” or its equivalent occurs. To fail to do this is to invite unnecessary misunderstandings and complications: Deu 33:2; Psa 68:17; 89:5; Dan 4:13; 7:10; 8:13; Zec 14:5; Mat 25:31; Mark 8:38; Luke 9:26; 2Th 1:10; Jude 1:14.