1 Thessalonians 2

1. 2:1-2 What had Paul and his companions endured prior to coming to Thessalonica? What was their attitude when they arrived?
   Class Answers: They had suffered and been shamefully mistreated in Philippi (Acts 16:11-40). Still, they were courageous in preaching the gospel to the Thessalonians. Hendriksen’s explanation of “our coming to you was not in vain” (NRSV): Our message was not empty. When we came to you, our hands were not empty. We came to give, not to take. Shogren: “not without good results.”
2. 2:3-6a The appeal (urging) they made was not from error (deceit) or impure motives (uncleanness). (v. 3)
   They were not trying to trick them (or use cunning). (3)
   They spoke as men approved (tested) by God and entrusted with the gospel. (4)
   They were not trying to please mortals (men) but God (who tests our hearts). (4)
   They never used flattery, nor did they cover up greed (put on a mask). (5)
   They were not looking for praise from men. (6) (Quotes from NIV.)
   Note the use of antithesis: Not this, but that. In this list, Paul exposes the characteristics of false teachers: their motives are not pure, they use deception and flattery to persuade people, they are motivated by the praise of men, not the approval of God.
3. 2:6b-9 In what ways did the evangelists show their affection and love for the Thessalonians?
   Class Answers: 1) Though as apostles they could have made demands, they didn’t ask for praise; 2) they were gentle, as a nurse with her children; 3) they shared not only the gospel but themselves; 4) they worked night and day so they wouldn’t be a burden to the Thessalonians.
   Note on the word “apostles”: Though not of the Twelve, Silas (2:7), Barnabas (Acts 14:14), Andronicus and Junia (Romans 16:7), and James (Galatians 1:19), are referred to as apostles in the literal meaning of “messengers from God.“
   Note on the word “gentle”: According to Shogren, there’s a textual variant in the Greek word usually translated gentle. He chooses to translate this phrase, “we were as children.”
4. 2:10 What did the Thessalonians (and God) witness about their behavior?
   Class Answers: They were pure, upright, and blameless in conduct.
5. 2:11-12 What did the Christians know about how the evangelists dealt with them?
   Class Answers: They dealt with each of them as a father with his children: urging, encouraging, and pleading (imploring) for them to lead a life worthy of God – worthy of the death of Christ, being holy as God is holy. Hendriksen: “in harmony with their relationship to God.”
   Note: In verse 7, they were “gentle, like a nurse caring for her children.” In verse 11 and 12, they were more like fathers “admonishing” their children.
6. 2:13 Who was the source of the word they preached? What does the word do for those who believe?
   Class Answers: God. The word works in believers. See also Romans 1:16 and Philippians 2:13.
7. 2:14 What did the Thessalonian Christians have in common with their brothers and sisters in Judea?
   Class Answers: They suffered the same things from their compatriots that the Christians in Judea suffered from the Jews. See Acts 4:1-4; Acts 5:26; Acts 8:1; 1 Peter 4:4; and Jesus’ prediction that this would happen, in Matthew 10:16-25. Of this, Shogren writes, “When Jews or Gentiles receive Christ, they find themselves cut off from their former people and persecuted by them.”
8. 2:15-16 List the accusations Paul makes against the Jews.
   Class Answers: 1) They killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets (Matthew 23:37; Acts 7:52,53. 2) They drove out the apostles (Acts 17:5-9; Acts 9:29-30. 3) They displease God and hinder the Gentiles from hearing the gospel. 4) They constantly fill up the measure of their sins, or “always heap up their sins to the limit” (NIV). Hendriksen: God’s wrath had come; the woes would come later (1 Thessalonians 1:10). 
9. 2:17-18 What had hindered Paul from seeing the Thessalonians as he wished to?
   Class Answers: Satan blocked their way. Hendriksen: How? We do not know. But Satan exerts powerful influence over the affairs of men (Job 1:6-12; Daniel 10), and (from the class), God allows him this power for reasons we can’t always comprehend. It’s possible that Paul would not have written this impassioned letter to the Thessalonians if he had been able to see them in person.
10. 2:19-20 How were the Thessalonians Paul’s hope, joy, or crown?
    Class Answers: Because of their faith, they would receive their reward. They were children of faith who had exceeded Paul’s expectations. Their walking with the Lord is a reward of his walking with the Lord. A crown is a prize to boast about.
11. 2:19 What does Paul write about the coming of Jesus?
    Class Answers: Paul will be rejoicing when Jesus comes again. Shogren: “At Jesus’ coming, the Thessalonian converts will redound [contribute greatly] to the team’s credit.”