KNOW YOUR SCRIPTURE 1 Thessalonians 2:17-20 (DP) 17-20 As for our separation from you — our brothers and sisters — we feel like orphans. Our hearts are with you, wherever we go. We long to see your faces, and nobody more than I myself, Paul. Time and again I have tried to get back to Thessalonica, but Satan hindered me. For what is our joy, what is our hope, what will be our crown at the coming of Christ, if not you? Our joy is you, and you are our glory. Literal 17 [And] we, brothers, being orphaned from you for period of hour, in face not in heart, exceedingly felt eager the face of you to see with great desire. 18 For we wanted to come to you, [namely] I Paul once and twice, but hindered us Satan. 19 [For] what is of us hope or joy or crown of pride [if] not you before the lord of us Jesus at the of him coming? 20 [For] you are the glory of us and the joy. DP Parallel Bible (3-Column) - 1 Thess. 2 Notes on the Scripture Paul’s Strong Affection for the Thessalonian Church Here again, the chapter breaks in the BibleThe chapter and verse numbers, and even the sentences and paragraphs, are not part of the Bible, but were added much later. It was written without breaks. In fact, in the original Greek, there were not even spaces between letters to show where words started and ended! could be better. Paul begins, in verse 17, a new section that runs all the way to the end of Chapter 3. Having described the behavior of the Pauline group when they were in Thessalonica, and the superb response of the people there, Paul now reassures them that he has not lost interest in them. With his constant emphasis on calling them brethren, he extends the metaphor to the separation. One cannot accuse him of understatement in emotional matters! His uninhibited emotionalism might make us pause and take stock of our own conduct, for the degree of his emotionalism seems to reflect his enthusiasm for the Gospel. Most churches today seem tepid and limp by comparison to Pauls muscular and heated rhetoric. If this does not worry us, it should. Think of Christs words, transmitted by John to the church at Laodicea: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. . . . because you are lukewarm . . . I will vomit you out of My mouth.” (Revelation 3:15-16) Paul has not come to them, because Satan has hindered him. He is not making excuses. Satan has power on the earth and power over our bodies; Christ, after all, did not kill himself. Paul was tossed around by Satan over his entire ministry. Although he does not tell us exactly how he has been hindered, we have seen the Tempter acting time and again, trying to stop spread of the Gospel through the agency of sinful men. Remember, after Paul had been run out of Thessalonica, he went to Berea (where he was warmly accepted); but when the people of Thessalonica heard of it, they took a posse to Berea — primarily agitated by angry Jews — to harm him, and he had to flee by ship to Athens (Acts 17:10-15). We might guess that these men are the satanic agents that have, somehow, managed to keep him away from Macedonia. After assuring the church that his absence was not voluntary, Paul shifts tone, away from emotion and into his joy at the spiritual work he has accomplished. Spirit and emotion seem inseparable in Pauls mind. The Thessalonians are not simply his brothers and sisters, but also his pride and joy. We are reminded that every human attribute can be sinful, neutral, or godly; and this includes the great sin, the mother of sin, pride. Pride is so often and so perniciously sinful, we forget that it might ever be a positive trait. Paul takes pride, and pride before Christ at that, in the glorification of God through the conversion of so many Thessalonians. By implication, he teaches us that we may feel pride in good works — but never justification, which will always required the atoning sacrifice of Christ. Notes on the Translation If you read the literal translation, there are a number of Greek idioms to enjoy. “Period of (an) hour” is used to mean a short period of time. “In face not in heart” corresponds to our own idiom, “in body but not in spirit,” indicating an unwilling separation and continued affection despite physical distance. “Once and twice”, the most difficult, is a Semitic loan idiom; “time and again” is a fair enough translation and helps us see the idiom; like the Hebrew/Greek, time and again would literally mean “twice”, but idiomatically indicates a great number of attempts. SOURCE:dailyprayer.us
Posted on: Sun, 16 Nov 2014 07:21:46 +0000
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