1 ^(A) From Paul, Silas,^[a] and Timothy.

To the church in Thessalonica, the people of God the Father and of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I pray that God will be kind to you and will bless you with peace!

² We thank God for you and always mention you in our prayers. Each time we pray, ³ we tell God our Father about your faith and loving work and about your firm hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Thessalonians' Faith and Example

⁴ My dear friends, God loves you, and we know he has chosen you to be his people. ⁵ When we told you the good news, it was with the power and assurance that come from the Holy Spirit, and not simply with words. You knew what kind of people we were and how we helped you. ^6 (B) So, when you accepted the message, you followed our example and the example of the Lord. You suffered, but the Holy Spirit made you glad.

⁷ You became an example for all the Lord's followers in Macedonia and Achaia.

Paying Taxes

(Mark 12.13-17; Luke 20.20-26)

¹⁵ The Pharisees got together and planned how they could trick Jesus into saying something wrong. ¹⁶ They sent some of their followers and some of Herod's followers^[a] to say to him, “Teacher, we know that you are honest. You teach the truth about what God wants people to do. And you treat everyone with the same respect, no matter who they are. ¹⁷ Tell us what you think! Should we pay taxes to the Emperor or not?”

¹⁸ Jesus knew their evil thoughts and said, “Why are you trying to test me? You show-offs! ¹⁹ Let me see one of the coins used for paying taxes.” They brought him a silver coin, ²⁰ and he asked, “Whose picture and name are on it?”

²¹ “The Emperor's,” they answered.

Then Jesus told them, “Give the Emperor what belongs to him and give God what belongs to God.” ²² His answer surprised them so much that they walked away.