1–2 Thessalonians. Nijay K. Gupta
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events are these:
• Things will get much worse before they will get better—expect a great “rebellion” among those who claim to know God (2:3)
• There will be a great enemy that is characterized by disobedience to God (the Lawless One) (2:3–4); he serves under Satan and will deceive others through miracles (2:9–10)
• God has allowed there to be a “restrainer” to hold back the Lawless One (2:6–8)
• Despite how harrowing these happenings will be, the Lord Jesus will destroy the Lawless One effortlessly when he returns (2:8)
There are some similarities between Paul’s teaching here and Jesus’ eschatological discourse in Matthew 24. Jesus explains that deceivers will come (24:4–5), wars and disasters will multiply (24:6–8), persecution will intensify (24:9), apostasy and betrayal will mar the church (24:10), false prophets will mislead (24:11), lawlessness will corrupt love (24:12)—but the one who endures to the end will be saved (24:13).
So also Paul says: We are thankful for you, beloved Thessalonians, because you are the “first-fruits” of Thessalonica, and you have held fast to the truth. Glory will come. Stand firm (2:13–15). Paul narrates the future, not to assuage curiosities, nor even to diffuse panic, but to demonstrate the losing side is going to lose—not because it is weaker per se, but because ultimately it is lawless and wicked. If the Thessalonians have become confused about which side to stand on to survive the coming wrath, Paul offers an important clue—follow the obedient and righteous ones.
(No) Work
A third important issue that Paul handles is that of a group he calls the “idle troublemakers” (3:6–12). Already in 1 Thessalonians he warns the idle (1 Thess 5:14), but in this letter the problem with them seems to have worsened such that his rebuke is stern. It is possible that, in a state of emergency and discernment in the church in light of what seems like apocalyptic signs, some local leaders “dubbed” themselves spiritual leaders (perhaps imitating the authority of Paul). They are rebellious insofar as they undermine the community life by being mere “busybodies”—people who meddle and pontificate, but get nothing done (2 Thess 3:11). They disrupt the productive, daily life of the community and they ignore the teachings Paul passed on to the Thessalonians.
Paul seeks to distance himself and the church from these troublemakers by first pointing out his own habit of working for a living. Paul did not expect the church to feed him, so these idle men should not. Paul toiled day and night, even though he had the “right” to receive material benefits from them (3:9). Still, he wanted to model the principle, “Those unwilling to work will not get to eat” (3:10 NLT). Paul wanted to underscore the value of good, honest work, self-reliability. It is not that people should ignore the needs of others—after all, he wrote in his earlier letter that they should devote themselves to the weak, no doubt feeding them if need be (1 Thess 5:14). The focus here is on those who refuse to work, not those who cannot work.
Ultimately, though, even though some believers were acting in a rebellious manner, Paul makes it a point to say that, though they ought to be “shamed” (3:14), they should not be treated as enemies, but rather as erring brothers (3:15).
Themes of 2 Thessalonians
Many of the themes that appear in 1 Thessalonians also can be found in 2 Thessalonians (e.g., faith/trust, love, salvation), but here we will focus on two key themes particularly distinctive to 2 Thessalonians.
Dignity and Honor71
At some point and for some reason, the Thessalonians were doubting their sense worth and dignity. In the Greco-Roman world, the social value of honor was the most important capital. Paul spends ample time in 2 Thessalonians reminding them that, despite all the goings-on in their community in recent days, they are people of worth and value before God. Paul can give thanks for their faith and love because it is right to do so (1:3). He can boast in them, they are acting with honor before God (1:4). Their suffering is not a sign of shame—quite the contrary. In fact, through this suffering, paradoxically, they are being made worthy of the kingdom of God (1:5). They can look forward, not to rejection and destruction, but rather to glorification when the Messiah returns (1:12; 2:14).
It is all too easy to seek out self-value from society, and when the going gets rough, it’s more comfortable to go with the grain of culture. The Thessalonians struggled with the pressures coming from those around them, unhappy with resistance to their new faith. Paul was trying to enlarge their vision to see how what they are doing—in loving and caring for one another and others despite this opposition—was adding to their future glory and that they would be vindicated and honored in the end.
Justice and Peace
Related to the concern about dignity, Paul also seeks to handle the inevitable question that comes to those who suffer—is God fair (theodicy)? Can God be trusted to do what it right? Why does he keep silent and invisible? What have I done such that he won’t rescue me?
Paul responds to the Thessalonians’ suffering by pointing to a future hope—God will rebalance the world at the right time. While it is difficult to wait for that right time, it is sure and he can be trusted to work it all out.72 Suffering and wrath are not ultimate things, they are penultimate things. I would like to echo here the point Michael Gorman makes in relation to judgment language in the book of Revelation:
Revelation’s visions of judgment symbolize God’s penultimate (next-to-last) rather than ultimate (final) activity in human history. That is, judgment is a means to an end; the goal being eschatological salvation, the creation of a new heaven and new earth in which humanity realizes its true raison d’etre as reconciled peoples flourishing together in the presence of God and the Lamb.73
Much the same could be said of 2 Thessalonians. All the apocalyptic turmoil that Paul prescribes is far from the end-vision of salvation and God’s redeeming justice. Despite what looks like eschatological chaos, the ultimate hope is harmony. Thus, Justice in 2 Thessalonians should be joined by his brother Peace.74 Paul’s ultimate interest in peace (eirēnē) is demonstrated in how he ends this letter: “Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways. The Lord be with all of you.” Peace is not only what will exist in the end, when the apocalyptic dust has settled. Believers can embody and live out lives of peace-making and peace-keeping now.75
Who Wrote 2 Thessalonians?
In the above examination of 2 Thessalonians, we have taken for granted that Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians. However, especially since the early twentieth century, scholars have wondered whether Paul wrote it, or it was written by someone else in his name (i.e., pseudonymous).76 For most of the twentieth century, more and more scholars accepted the arguments for 2 Thessalonians being pseudonymous. The reasons for this are many and vary somewhat from one scholar to the next, but these features tend to be raised when 2 Thessalonians’ authenticity is questioned: copycat, style, historical implausibility, tone, pseudonymous “tells,” and theological differences.77
Against Pauline Authorship
Copycat
A first, and perhaps the most decisive, reason that some scholars believe 2 Thessalonians is pseudonymous is its relationship to 1 Thessalonians, in particular how similar it is.78 Edgar Krentz points to several identical (or nearly-identical) features: identical salutations (1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:1), both have long thanksgivings, both include a second thanksgiving in the middle of the letter (1 Thess 2:13; 2 Thess 2:13), both have letter bodies which close