1 Paul, Silasa a and Timothy,b

To the church of the Thessaloniansc in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

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

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 We ought always to thank God for you,e brothers and sisters,b and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing.f 4 Therefore, among God’s churches we boastg about your perseverance and faithh in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.i

5 All this is evidencej that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthyk of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just:l He will pay back trouble to those who trouble youm 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heavenn in blazing fireo with his powerful angels.p 8 He will punishq those who do not know Godr and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.s 9 They will be punished with everlasting destructiont and shut out from the presence of the Lordu and from the glory of his mightv 10 on the dayw he comes to be glorifiedx in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.y

11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you,z that our God may make you worthya of his calling,b and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodnessc and your every deed prompted by faith.d 12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you,e and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.c

The Man of Lawlessness

2 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christf and our being gathered to him,g we ask you, brothers and sisters, 2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by the teaching allegedly from us—whether by a prophecy or by word of mouth or by letterh—asserting that the day of the Lordi has already come.j 3 Don’t let anyone deceive youk in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellionl occurs and the man of lawlessnessa is revealed,m the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called Godn or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.o

5 Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things?p 6 And now you know what is holding him back,q so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it backr will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed,s whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his moutht and destroy by the splendor of his coming.u 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satanv works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wondersw that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing.x They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.y 11 For this reason God sends themz a powerful delusiona so that they will believe the lieb 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.c

Stand Firm

13 But we ought always to thank God for you,d brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruitsb e to be savedf through the sanctifying work of the Spiritg and through belief in the truth. 14 He called youh to this through our gospel,i that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firmj and hold fast to the teachingsc we passed on to you,k whether by word of mouth or by letter.

16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father,l who loved usm and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, 17 encouragen your hearts and strengtheno you in every good deed and word.

Request for Prayer

3 As for other matters, brothers and sisters,p pray for usq that the message of the Lordr may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you.s 2 And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people,t for not everyone has faith. 3 But the Lord is faithful,u and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.v 4 We have confidencew in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. 5 May the Lord direct your heartsx into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.

Warning Against Idleness

6 In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,y we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away fromz every believer who is idle and disruptivea and does not live according to the teachinga you received from us.b 7 For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example.c We were not idle when we were with you, 8 nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we workedd night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9 We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help,e but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you to imitate.f 10 For even when we were with you,g we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to workh shall not eat.”

11 We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies.i 12 Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christj to settle down and earn the food they eat.k 13 And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.l

14 Take special note of anyone who does not obey our instruction in this letter. Do not associate with them,m in order that they may feel ashamed.n 15 Yet do not regard them as an enemy, but warn them as you would a fellow believer.o

Final Greetings

16 Now may the Lord of peacep himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.q

17 I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand,r which is the distinguishing mark in all my letters. This is how I write.

18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.s

1 Timothy

As Paul neared the end of his life, he chose young men such as Timothy to carry on his work. His two letters to Timothy form a leadership manual for the young pastor, giving Timothy instructions for leading the church and warning him of false teachers. Paul also provided Timothy with personal instructions on how to be a man of God.

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of Goda our Saviorb and of Christ Jesus our hope,c

2 To Timothyd my true sone in the faith:

Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.f

Timothy Charged to Oppose False Teachers

3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia,g stay there in Ephesush so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrinesi any longer 4 or to devote themselves to mythsj and endless genealogies.k Such things promote controversial speculationsl rather than advancing God’s work—which is by faith. 5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heartm and a good consciencen and a sincere faith.o 6 Some have departed from these and have turned to meaningless talk. 7 They want to be teachersp of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.q

8 We know that the law is goodr if one uses it properly. 9 We also know that the law is made not for the righteouss but for lawbreakers and rebels,t the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrineu 11 that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.v

The Lord’s Grace to Paul

12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength,w that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.x 13 Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutory and a violent man, I was shown mercyz because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.a 14 The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly,b along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.c

15 Here is a trustworthy sayingd that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinnerse—of whom I am the worst. 16 But for that very reason I was shown mercyf so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patienceg as an example for those who would believeh in him and receive eternal life.i 17 Now to the Kingj eternal, immortal,k invisible,l the only God,m be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.n

The Charge to Timothy Renewed

18 Timothy, my son,o I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you,p so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well,q 19 holding on to faith and a good conscience,r which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith.s 20 Among them are Hymenaeust and Alexander,u whom I have handed over to Satanv to be taught not to blaspheme.