1 Thessalonians 1-3

New Century Version

1 From Paul, Silas, and Timothy.

To the church in Thessalonica, the church in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

Grace and peace to you.

The Faith of the Thessalonians

² We always thank God for all of you and mention you when we pray. ³ We continually recall before God our Father the things you have done because of your faith and the work you have done because of your love. And we thank him that you continue to be strong because of your hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴ Brothers and sisters, God loves you, and we know he has chosen you, ⁵ because the Good News we brought to you came not only with words, but with power, with the Holy Spirit, and with sure knowledge that it is true. Also you know how we lived when we were with you in order to help you. ⁶ And you became like us and like the Lord. You suffered much, but still you accepted the teaching with the joy that comes from the Holy Spirit. ⁷ So you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and Southern Greece. ⁸ And the Lord’s teaching spread from you not only into Macedonia and Southern Greece, but now your faith in God has become known everywhere. So we do not need to say anything about it. ⁹ People everywhere are telling about the way you accepted us when we were there with you. They tell how you stopped worshiping idols and began serving the living and true God. ¹⁰ And you wait for God’s Son, whom God raised from the dead, to come from heaven. He is Jesus, who saves us from God’s angry judgment that is sure to come.

Paul’s Work in Thessalonica

2 Brothers and sisters, you know our visit to you was not a failure. ² Before we came to you, we suffered in Philippi. People there insulted us, as you know, and many people were against us. But our God helped us to be brave and to tell you his Good News. ³ Our appeal does not come from lies or wrong reasons, nor were we trying to trick you. ⁴ But we speak the Good News because God tested us and trusted us to do it. When we speak, we are not trying to please people, but God, who tests our hearts. ⁵ You know that we never tried to influence you by saying nice things about you. We were not trying to get your money; we had no selfishness to hide from you. God knows that this is true. ⁶ We were not looking for human praise, from you or anyone else, ⁷ even though as apostles of Christ we could have used our authority over you.

But we were very gentle with you,^[a] like a mother caring for her little children. ⁸ Because we loved you, we were happy to share not only God’s Good News with you, but even our own lives. You had become so dear to us! ⁹ Brothers and sisters, I know you remember our hard work and difficulties. We worked night and day so we would not burden any of you while we preached God’s Good News to you.

¹⁰ When we were with you, we lived in a holy and honest way, without fault. You know this is true, and so does God. ¹¹ You know that we treated each of you as a father treats his own children. ¹² We encouraged you, we urged you, and we insisted that you live good lives for God, who calls you to his glorious kingdom.

¹³ Also, we always thank God because when you heard his message from us, you accepted it as the word of God, not the words of humans. And it really is God’s message which works in you who believe. ¹⁴ Brothers and sisters, your experiences have been like those of God’s churches in Christ that are in Judea.^[b] You suffered from the people of your own country, as they suffered from the Jews ¹⁵ who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and forced us to leave that country. They do not please God and are against all people. ¹⁶ They try to stop us from teaching those who are not Jews so they may be saved. By doing this, they are increasing their sins to the limit. The anger of God has come to them at last.

Paul Wants to Visit Them Again

¹⁷ Brothers and sisters, though we were separated from you for a short time, our thoughts were still with you. We wanted very much to see you and tried hard to do so. ¹⁸ We wanted to come to you. I, Paul, tried to come more than once, but Satan stopped us. ¹⁹ You are our hope, our joy, and the crown we will take pride in when our Lord Jesus Christ comes. ²⁰ Truly you are our glory and our joy.

3 When we could not wait any longer, we decided it was best to stay in Athens alone ² and send Timothy to you. Timothy, our brother, works with us for God and helps us tell people the Good News about Christ. We sent him to strengthen and encourage you in your faith ³ so none of you would be upset by these troubles. You yourselves know that we must face these troubles. ⁴ Even when we were with you, we told you we all would have to suffer, and you know it has happened. ⁵ Because of this, when I could wait no longer, I sent Timothy to you so I could learn about your faith. I was afraid the devil had tempted you, and perhaps our hard work would have been wasted.

⁶ But Timothy now has come back to us from you and has brought us good news about your faith and love. He told us that you always remember us in a good way and that you want to see us just as much as we want to see you. ⁷ So, brothers and sisters, while we have much trouble and suffering, we are encouraged about you because of your faith. ⁸ Our life is really full if you stand strong in the Lord. ⁹ We have so much joy before our God because of you. We cannot thank him enough for all the joy we feel. ¹⁰ Night and day we continue praying with all our heart that we can see you again and give you all the things you need to make your faith strong.

¹¹ Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus prepare the way for us to come to you. ¹² May the Lord make your love grow more and multiply for each other and for all people so that you will love others as we love you. ¹³ May your hearts be made strong so that you will be holy and without fault before our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.