Timothy's Visit
1Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone; 2And sent Timotheus, our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith: 3That no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto. 4For verily, when we were with you, we told you before that we should suffer tribulation; even as it came to pass, and ye know. 5For 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 labour be in vain.
Timothy's Encouraging Report
6But 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: 7Therefore, brethren, we were comforted over you in all our affliction and distress by your faith: 8For now we live, if ye stand fast in the Lord. 9For what thanks can we render to God again for you, for all the joy wherewith we joy for your sakes before our God; 10Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith?
11Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. 12And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: 13To 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.
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
Timothy’s Visit
1 Therefore, when we couldn’t stand it any longer, we thought it good to be left behind at Athens alone, 2 and sent Timothy, our brother and God’s servant in the Good News of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith; 3 that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you know that we are appointed to this task. 4 For most certainly, when we were with you, we told you beforehand that we are to suffer affliction, even as it happened, and you know. 5 For this cause I also, when I couldn’t stand it any longer, sent that I might know your faith, for fear that by any means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor would have been in vain.
Timothy’s Encouraging Report
6 But when Timothy came just now to us from you, and brought us glad news of your faith and love, and that you have good memories of us always, longing to see us, even as we also long to see you; 7 for this cause, brothers, we were comforted over you in all our distress and affliction through your faith. 8 For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord. 9 For what thanksgiving can we render again to God for you, for all the joy with which we rejoice for your sakes before our God; 10 night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face, and may perfect that which is lacking in your faith?
11 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you; 12 and the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we also do toward you, 13 to the end he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
Timothy’s Visit
1 So when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left on our own in Athens. 2 We sent Timothy, our brother and fellow worker for God a in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, 3 so that none of you would be shaken by these trials. For you know that we are destined for this. 4 Indeed, when we were with you, we kept warning you that we would suffer persecution; and as you know, it has come to pass. 5 For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith, for fear that the tempter had somehow tempted you and caused our labor to be in vain.
Timothy’s Encouraging Report
6 But just now, Timothy has returned from his visit with the good news about your faith, your love, and the fond memories you have preserved, longing to see us just as we long to see you. 7 For this reason, brothers, in all our distress and persecution, we have been reassured about you, because of your faith. 8 For now we can go on living, as long as you are standing firm in the Lord.
9 How can we adequately thank God for you in return for our great joy over you in His presence? 10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking from your faith.
11 Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you. 12 And may the Lord cause you to increase and overflow with love for one another and for everyone else, just as our love for you overflows, 13 so that He may establish your hearts in blamelessness and holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints. Amen.
Footnotes:
2 a Or our brother and God’s fellow worker ; NE, WH, BYZ, and TR our brother and minister of God
Timothy's Visit
1Wherefore no longer forbearing, we thought good to be left in Athens alone, 2and did send Timotheus -- our brother, and a ministrant of God, and our fellow-workman in the good news of the Christ -- to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith, 3that no one be moved in these tribulations, for yourselves have known that for this we are set, 4for even when we were with you, we said to you beforehand, that we are about to suffer tribulation, as also it did come to pass, and ye have known it; 5because of this also, I, no longer forbearing, did send to know your faith, lest he who is tempting did tempt you, and in vain might be our labour.
Timothy's Encouraging Report
6And now Timotheus having come unto us from you, and having declared good news to us of your faith and love, and that ye have a good remembrance of us always, desiring much to see us, as we also to see you, 7because of this we were comforted, brethren, over you, in all our tribulation and necessity, through your faith, 8because now we live, if ye may stand fast in the Lord; 9for what thanks are we able to recompense to God for you, for all the joy with which we do joy because of you in the presence of our God? 10night and day exceedingly beseeching, that we might see your face, and perfect the things lacking in your faith.
11And our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you, 12and you the Lord cause to increase and to abound in the love to one another, and to all, even as we also to you, 13to the establishing your hearts blameless in sanctification before our God and Father, in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.
Paul’s Concern for the Thessalonians
¹ So when we could no longer bear it, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens. ² We sent Timothy, our brother and co-worker in God’s service in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, ³ so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. For you know quite well that we are destined for them. ⁴ In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know. ⁵ For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter had tempted you and that our labors might have been in vain.
Timothy’s Encouraging Report
⁶ But now, Timothy has just returned, bringing us good news about your faith and love! He tells us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we long to see you. ⁷ Therefore, brothers and sisters, in all our distress and persecution, we were encouraged about you because of your faith. ⁸ For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord! ⁹ How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? ¹⁰ Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.
Paul’s Prayer for the Thessalonians
¹¹ Now may our God and Father Himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. ¹² May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. ¹³ May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all His holy ones.
Footnotes:
1.“Unsettled by these trials” (verse 3) uses the Greek word sainesthai, meaning “to be shaken” or “moved.” Paul encourages the Thessalonians not to be disturbed or discouraged by the trials they face, knowing that such challenges are part of the Christian life.
2.“We are destined for them” (verse 3) emphasizes the inevitability of suffering for Christ. The Greek phrase keimetha eis touto literally means “we are laid out for this,” implying that trials are part of God’s plan for believers.
3.“The tempter” (verse 5) refers to Satan, who seeks to draw people away from their faith. Paul expresses concern that the persecution the Thessalonians endured might have provided an opportunity for Satan to weaken their trust in God.
4.“Just returned” (verse 6) indicates the urgency and excitement of Timothy’s report. The Greek word arti means “just now,” conveying that the news was fresh and immediately shared with Paul.
5.“We really live” (verse 8) is a strong expression of Paul’s emotional relief and joy upon hearing about the Thessalonians’ faith. The phrase suggests that Paul felt revived and strengthened in his own spirit by the news.
6.“Supply what is lacking in your faith” (verse 10) suggests that while the Thessalonians had a strong faith, Paul desired to help them grow even more. The Greek verb katartizo means “to complete” or “to perfect,” implying that Paul sought to deepen their spiritual maturity.
7.“Blameless and holy” (verse 13) refers to the transformation that believers experience through the sanctifying work of Christ. The Greek word hagios (holy) signifies being set apart for God, while amemptos (blameless) points to being morally pure and without fault in God’s eyes.
