1 Thessalonians 2
Worldwide English (New Testament)
2 My brothers, you yourselves know that our visit to you was not for nothing.
2 The people at the city of Philippi treated us very badly. As you know, we had much trouble. But God helped us, and we did not fear to tell you God's good news. But many things were against us and tried to stop us.
3 Our message was not a lie. What we told you was not wrong. And we did not try to fool you.
4 But God chose us to tell people the good news. And so we do not speak to please men, but to please God. He is the one who knows what is in our hearts.
5 We never said nice things about people that were not true. You know this. We never talked to get something out of it for ourselves. God knows this.
6 And we did not ask you or anybody else to help us or to praise us. Of course, we are apostles of Christ, and we had the right to do so.
7 But we were kind when we were with you. We were like a woman taking care of her own children.
8 Because we loved you, we were glad to give you God's good news. We were also glad to give you our lives, because we loved you very much.
9 My brothers, you remember how hard we worked. We worked night and day so that we would not trouble any of you. And we told you God's good news.
10 We lived in a holy and right way among you Christians. We did nothing wrong to you. You know this yourselves and God knows it too.
11 You know how we talked to each of you as a father talks to his children. We comforted, helped, and taught you.
12 We told you to live to please God. He called you to his own kingdom and greatness.
13 And here is another reason why we always thank God all the time. When you heard God's word from us, you did not say, `That is men's word.' But you said, `That is God's word.' And it really is God's word. The word is working in you Christians.
14 My brothers, you were like the churches of God in Judea which belong to Christ Jesus. The people of your own country troubled you in the same way that the Jews troubled them.
15 The Jewish leaders killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets. And they drove us out of their country. They do not please God and they are against all other people.
16 They try to stop us from talking to those people who are not Jews. They do not want them to be saved. So they are always doing wrong things. And now at last, God has become very angry with them. have been away from you for a short time in body, but not in heart. We wanted very much to see you face to face, and we tried hard to come.
17 We wanted to come to you. Twice, I, Paul, wanted to come. But Satan stopped us.
18 What is our hope when our Lord Jesus comes? What will make us happy and proud then? It is you people!
19 You are ones of whom we are proud. You make us happy.
1 Thessalonians 2
Good News Translation
Paul's Work in Thessalonica
2 Our friends, you yourselves know that our visit to you was not a failure. 2 (A)You know how we had already been mistreated and insulted in Philippi before we came to you in Thessalonica. And even though there was much opposition, our God gave us courage to tell you the Good News that comes from him. 3 Our appeal to you is not based on error or impure motives, nor do we try to trick anyone. 4 Instead, we always speak as God wants us to, because he has judged us worthy to be entrusted with the Good News. We do not try to please people, but to please God, who tests our motives. 5 You know very well that we did not come to you with flattering talk, nor did we use words to cover up greed—God is our witness! 6 We did not try to get praise from anyone, either from you or from others, 7 even though as apostles of Christ we could have made demands on you. But we were gentle when we were with you, like a mother[a] taking care of her children. 8 Because of our love for you we were ready to share with you not only the Good News from God but even our own lives. You were so dear to us! 9 Surely you remember, our friends, how we worked and toiled! We worked day and night so that we would not be any trouble to you as we preached to you the Good News from God.
10 You are our witnesses, and so is God, that our conduct toward you who believe was pure, right, and without fault. 11 You know that we treated each one of you just as parents treat their own children. 12 We encouraged you, we comforted you, and we kept urging you to live the kind of life that pleases God, who calls you to share in his own Kingdom and glory.
13 And there is another reason why we always give thanks to God. When we brought you God's message, you heard it and accepted it, not as a message from human beings but as God's message, which indeed it is. For God is at work in you who believe. 14 (B)Our friends, the same things happened to you that happened to the churches of God in Judea, to the people there who belong to Christ Jesus. You suffered the same persecutions from your own people that they suffered from the Jews, 15 (C)who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and persecuted us. How displeasing they are to God! How hostile they are to everyone! 16 They even tried to stop us from preaching to the Gentiles the message that would bring them salvation. In this way they have brought to completion all the sins they have always committed. And now God's anger has at last come down on them!
Paul's Desire to Visit Them Again
17 As for us, friends, when we were separated from you for a little while—not in our thoughts, of course, but only in body—how we missed you and how hard we tried to see you again! 18 We wanted to return to you. I myself tried to go back more than once, but Satan would not let us. 19 After all, it is you—you, no less than others!—who are our hope, our joy, and our reason for boasting of our victory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes. 20 Indeed, you are our pride and our joy!
Footnotes
- 1 Thessalonians 2:7 we were gentle when we were with you, like a mother; some manuscripts have we were like children when we were with you; we were like a mother.
© 1969, 1971, 1996, 1998 by SOON Educational Publications
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
