New Testament · Paul's Letters
Stand firm, the Day has not already come; meanwhile, do not grow weary of doing good.
A follow-up to a church that had taken the first letter too far. Some were now convinced the day of the Lord had already come, apparently on the strength of a letter claiming to be from Paul, which is why he signs this one in his own hand and points out the handwriting. His correction is that certain things must happen first, including the appearance of a figure he calls the man of lawlessness, a passage that has generated an enormous amount of interpretation and about which he is maddeningly allusive, reminding them he told them in person. The practical fallout is addressed bluntly: some had stopped working while waiting, and are told that anyone unwilling to work should not eat.
If you remember one thing
The practical answer to end-times excitement: keep working, keep doing good, and do not be shaken by every rumor.
“But you, brothers, do not be weary in doing what is right.”
2 Thessalonians 3:13
2 Thessalonians 2:6-7
What is restraining, and who. Paul says he told them in person, which leaves every later reader guessing, and the guesses are many.
Named here rather than skipped. Where Christians read a passage differently, we say so instead of choosing for you.
Everyone here has a write-up, drawn from the same records that explain the names while you read the text.
A Pharisee trained under Gamaliel who persecuted the church until he was stopped on the road to Damascus. He then spent thirty years planting churches across the Roman world and writing the letters that make up roughly a third of the New Testament. He was a Roman citizen by birth, which is why he could appeal to Caesar.
A quiz for 2 Thessalonians is on the workbench. In the meantime, the games for the judges, the kings, and the prophets are open.
