2 Thessalonians 3
New King James Version
Pray for Us
3 Finally, brethren, (A)pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, 2 and (B)that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; (C)for not all have faith.
3 But (D)the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and (E)guard you from the evil one. 4 And (F)we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you.
5 Now may (G)the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ.
Warning Against Idleness
6 But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, (H)that you withdraw (I)from every brother who walks (J)disorderly and not according to the tradition which [a]he received from us. 7 For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you; 8 nor did we eat anyone’s bread [b]free of charge, but worked with (K)labor and toil night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, 9 not because we do not have (L)authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us.
10 For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. 11 For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are (M)busybodies. 12 Now those who are such we command and [c]exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ (N)that they work in quietness and eat their own bread.
13 But as for you, brethren, (O)do not grow weary in doing good. 14 And if anyone does not obey our word in this [d]epistle, note that person and (P)do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 (Q)Yet do not count him as an enemy, (R)but [e]admonish him as a brother.
Benediction
16 Now may (S)the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all.
17 (T)The salutation of Paul with my own hand, which is a sign in every [f]epistle; so I write.
18 (U)The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Footnotes
- 2 Thessalonians 3:6 NU, M they
- 2 Thessalonians 3:8 Lit. for nothing
- 2 Thessalonians 3:12 encourage
- 2 Thessalonians 3:14 letter
- 2 Thessalonians 3:15 warn
- 2 Thessalonians 3:17 letter
2 Thessalonians 3
Living Bible
3 Finally, dear brothers, as I come to the end of this letter, I ask you to pray for us. Pray first that the Lord’s message will spread rapidly and triumph wherever it goes, winning converts everywhere as it did when it came to you. 2 Pray, too, that we will be saved out of the clutches of evil men, for not everyone loves the Lord. 3 But the Lord is faithful; he will make you strong and guard you from satanic attacks of every kind. 4 And we trust the Lord that you are putting into practice the things we taught you, and that you always will. 5 May the Lord bring you into an ever deeper understanding of the love of God and of the patience that comes from Christ.
6 Now here is a command, dear brothers, given in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ by his authority: Stay away from any Christian who spends his days in laziness and does not follow the ideal of hard work we set up for you. 7 For you well know that you ought to follow our example: you never saw us loafing; 8 we never accepted food from anyone without buying it; we worked hard day and night for the money we needed to live on, in order that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9 It wasn’t that we didn’t have the right to ask you to feed us, but we wanted to show you firsthand how you should work for your living. 10 Even while we were still there with you, we gave you this rule: “He who does not work shall not eat.”
11 Yet we hear that some of you are living in laziness, refusing to work, and wasting your time in gossiping. 12 In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ we appeal to such people—we command them—to quiet down, get to work, and earn their own living. 13 And to the rest of you I say, dear brothers, never be tired of doing right.
14 If anyone refuses to obey what we say in this letter, notice who he is and stay away from him, that he may be ashamed of himself. 15 Don’t think of him as an enemy, but speak to him as you would to a brother who needs to be warned.
16 May the Lord of peace himself give you his peace no matter what happens. The Lord be with you all.
17 Now here is my greeting, which I am writing with my own hand, as I do at the end of all my letters, for proof that it really is from me. This is in my own handwriting. 18 May the blessing of our Lord Jesus Christ be upon you all.
Sincerely, Paul
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.