1 Thessalonians 3:13 - Printer Friendly

ESV: so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

NIV: 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.

NASB: so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.

CSB: May he make your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. Amen.

NLT: May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen.

KJV: 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.

NKJV: so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.

Paul strongly desired that God would establish the Thessalonian believers' hearts blameless in holiness at the return of Jesus with all His saints. Paul did not pray that they would be sinless but blameless—free of all valid accusations. No one can attain sinlessness in this life. The apostle John said, "If we say we have not sinned, we make [God] a liar, and his word is not in us" (1 John 1:10). Even the apostle Paul, who led a holy life, recognized that he was a sinner. In 1 Timothy 1:15, after writing that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, Paul added, "of whom I am the foremost." He did not say he had been a sinner. He said, "I am the foremost sinner." All human beings are sinners. They are either lost sinners or saved sinners.

Who are the saints that will return with Jesus? They must be departed Christians, whose bodies are in the grave. When they return with Jesus, they will receive resurrected bodies. Paul discusses this event in the next chapter.

First Thessalonians 3:11–13 concludes this chapter with Paul's prayer for himself and for his readers. He asks God and the Lord Jesus to guide him and his coworkers to the Thessalonians. He also prays that the Lord would cause the Thessalonians' love to overflow to one another and to others. He assures his readers that his love overflowed to them. He strongly desires that God will strengthen his readers' faith so they will be fully separated unto him without any valid accusation when Jesus returns. Paul adds, ''with all his saints.'' When Jesus comes in the air to catch away his church, the souls of departed Christians will accompany Him to receive their resurrected, glorified bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

In chapter 3, Paul completes his discussion of the current state of the church in Thessalonica. After sending Timothy, Paul has received confirmation that the believers there are standing firm in their faith. Their devotion to the gospel is surviving, despite the persecutions which Paul predicted would arise. Paul once again thanks the Thessalonians for their faithfulness and prays for their continual growth.

Chapter 3 concludes Paul's comments about the condition of the Thessalonian church. These began in chapter 1 and were given more details in chapters 2 and 3. Here, Paul expresses his joy that the Thessalonians are enduring persecution faithfully, and he prays that they will continue to grow. In the following chapters, Paul will address some of the concerns plaguing the Thessalonians, including worries about the end times.

The apostle Paul's second missionary journey included a visit to the prominent Greek city of Thessalonica. This stood alongside a major land route and boasted a busy seaport. A number of individuals believed Paul's message (Acts 17:1–4), but an angry mob forced Paul to leave the city after his brief stay. Later, while in Athens, Paul received a glowing report: the believers at Thessalonica were growing spiritually and serving God fervently. However, they had questions about the Lord's return, including what happens to a believer who dies before that day. And, as all churches do, they had some areas in which they were falling short. In Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians, written about AD 51, he addresses these developments. Paul expresses gratitude for the Thessalonian believers' spiritual progress, and frequently makes references to Christ's impending return.

Accessed 5/2/2024 4:40:20 AM