帖撒罗尼迦前书 4
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
上帝喜悦的生活
4 最后，弟兄姊妹，既然你们领受了我们的教导，知道怎样行才能讨上帝的喜悦，如你们现在所行的，我们靠着主耶稣恳求、劝勉你们要更加努力。 2 你们都知道我们靠着主耶稣传给你们的诫命。 3 上帝的旨意是要你们圣洁，远避淫乱的事， 4 要你们人人都知道持守身体的圣洁和尊贵， 5 不可荒淫纵欲，像那些不认识上帝的外族人一样。 6 你们在这种事上不可越轨，亏负弟兄姊妹。我们曾经对你们说过，并且郑重地警告过你们，主必惩治犯这种罪的人。 7 因为上帝呼召我们不是要我们沾染污秽，而是要我们圣洁。 8 所以，人若拒绝遵行这命令，他不是拒绝人，而是拒绝赐圣灵给你们的上帝。
9 关于弟兄姊妹彼此相爱的事，我就不必多写了，因为你们自己从上帝那里领受了要彼此相爱的教导。 10 你们对马其顿全境的弟兄姊妹已经做到了这一点。不过，我劝各位要再接再厉。 11 你们要立志过安分守己的生活，亲手做工，正如我们以前吩咐你们的。 12 这样，你们可以得到外人的尊敬，不必依赖任何人。
复活的盼望
13 弟兄姊妹，关于安息的信徒[a]，我不愿意你们一无所知，免得你们像那些没有盼望的人一样悲伤。 14 我们既然相信耶稣死了，又复活了，也要相信上帝必把那些安息的信徒和耶稣一同带来。
15 我们把主耶稣的话告诉你们：主再来的那天，我们还活着的人不会比已安息的信徒先见到主。 16 因为主必在号令声、天使长的呼喊声和上帝的号角声中亲自从天降临，已经离世的基督徒必先复活。 17 然后，我们还活着的人要和他们一起被提到云里，在空中与主相会，永远和主在一起。 18 所以你们要用这些话彼此鼓励。
Footnotes
- 4:13 “安息的信徒”希腊文是“睡了的人”，圣经常用“睡了”作为“死了”的委婉说法，参见约翰福音十一章11—14节。
1 Thessalonians 4
Expanded Bible
A Life that Pleases God
4 [L Finally; or Now then; Furthermore] Brothers and sisters, we taught you how to ·live [walk] in a way that will please God, and you are living that way. Now we ask and ·encourage [urge; appeal to] you in the Lord Jesus to ·live that way [excel; abound] even more. 2 [L For] You know what ·we told [instructions/commands we gave] you to do ·by the authority of [L through] the Lord Jesus. 3 ·God wants you to be holy and [or For this is God’s will, your sanctification:] to stay away from sexual sins. 4 He wants each of you to ·learn to control your own body [or take a wife for yourself; or live with your own wife; L gain/possess his own vessel] in a way that is holy and honorable. 5 ·Don’t use your body for sexual sin [L …not in lustful passion] like the ·people [L Gentiles] who do not know God. 6 Also, do not ·wrong [exploit; transgress] or ·cheat [take advantage of] another ·Christian [L brother (or sister)] in this way. The Lord ·will punish people who do those [L is the avenger concerning these] things as we have already told you and ·warned [solemnly testified to] you. 7 [L For] God did not call us to ·a life of sin [L impurity], but to holiness. 8 ·So [Therefore] the person who ·refuses to obey [disregards; rejects; despises] this teaching is not simply ·disobeying [disregarding; rejecting; despising] ·a human being [human authority], but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
9 We do not need to write you about ·having love for your Christian family [L brotherly love], because God has already taught you to love each other. 10 And truly you do love the ·Christians [L brothers (and sisters)] in all of Macedonia [1:7]. Now we encourage you, brothers and sisters, to ·love them [excel; abound; v. 1] even more. 11 ·Do all you can […and to aspire] to live a peaceful life. ·Take care of [Attend to; Mind] your own business, and ·do your own work [L work with your hands] as we have already ·told [instructed; commanded] you. 12 If you do, then you will ·win the respect of [or live a respectable/proper life before] ·unbelievers [L outsiders], and you will not have to depend on others for what you need.
The Lord’s Coming
13 Brothers and sisters, we ·want you to know [do not want you to be uninformed] about those ·Christians who have died [L who sleep; C a euphemism for death] so you will not ·be sad [grieve], as ·others [L the rest] who have no hope. 14 [L For] We believe that Jesus died and that he rose again. ·So, through him, God will raise with Jesus those who have died [or So God will bring with Jesus those who have died/L fallen asleep in him]. 15 What we tell you now is ·the Lord’s own message [L by the word of the Lord]. We who are ·living [still alive] when the Lord comes again will [L certainly; surely] not go before those who have ·already died [L fallen asleep]. 16 The Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud ·command [or shout], ·with [or accompanied by; or preceded by] the voice of the archangel [C a leading or ruling angel; Dan. 10:13; Jude 9], and with the trumpet call of God. And ·those who have died believing [L the dead] in Christ will rise first [1 Cor. 15:51–57]. 17 After that, we who are ·still alive [or alive and are left] will be ·gathered [caught; taken] up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And [L so; in this way] we will be with the Lord forever. 18 So ·encourage [comfort] each other with these words.
1 Thessalonians 4
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
A Life Pleasing to God
4 Finally, brethren, we beseech and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you learned from us how you ought to live and to please God, just as you are doing, you do so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification:[a] that you abstain from immorality;[b] 4 that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust like heathen who do not know God; 6 that no man transgress, and wrong his brother in this matter,[c] because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we solemnly forewarned you. 7 For God has not called us for uncleanness, but in holiness. 8 Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.
9 But concerning love of the brethren you have no need to have any one write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another; 10 and indeed you do love all the brethren throughout Macedo′nia. But we exhort you, brethren, to do so more and more, 11 to aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we charged you;[d] 12 so that you may command the respect of outsiders, and be dependent on nobody.
The Coming of the Lord
13 But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.[e] 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first; 17 then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord.[f] 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
Footnotes
- 4.3 sanctification: With special reference to the practice of purity, specially difficult to those newly converted from paganism.
- 4.3 immorality: i.e., sexual immorality.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 Or defraud his brother in business
- 4.11 The Thessalonians thought that the second Coming of Christ was at hand and tended to ne glect their daily duties. He corrects this misconception.
- 4.13 Paul tells them that those who died before Christ’s second Coming are no worse off than those who will still be alive at his coming.
- 4.17 i.e., we who are alive shall go out to meet him and accompany him back on his return to this earth.
Chinese Contemporary Bible Copyright © 1979, 2005, 2007, 2011 by Biblica® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.