New: Plus articles on faith, family and the Bible. Read them →

Join

New Testament

2 Thessalonians

3 chapters

Start reading: 2 Thessalonians 1

About this book

Second Thessalonians is a short follow-up to Paul's first letter, written to a church that was suffering for its faith and had grown unsettled about the return of Christ. Some believers feared they had already missed it, and others had stopped working, expecting the end at any moment. Paul begins by thanking God for their growing faith and love under pressure, and assures them that God sees their suffering and will set things right when Jesus is revealed. He then corrects the confusion, explaining that certain events must come first and urging them not to be shaken by rumors or by letters claiming to be from him. Christians read the details of that passage in different ways, but the point is steadiness rather than speculation. Paul closes by telling them to stand firm, to keep the teaching they received, and to keep working quietly and earning their own bread, while praying for one another and for the spread of the gospel.

Author
The apostle Paul, writing with Silas and Timothy; a minority of scholars doubt this, but most accept Pauline authorship.
Date
About AD 51, written from Corinth a few months after the first letter.
Audience
The church in Thessalonica, a Macedonian port city, facing persecution and confusion about the Lord's return.

Themes

Perseverance under sufferingGod's justiceNot being shaken about the Lord's returnHonest daily workPrayer for one another

Outline

  1. 1:1–1:4Greeting and thanks for their endurance
  2. 1:5–1:12God's justice and Paul's prayer
  3. 2:1–2:12Correcting confusion about the Lord's day
  4. 2:13–2:17Chosen and called to stand firm
  5. 3:1–3:5Request for prayer and trust in the Lord
  6. 3:6–3:18Against idleness, and final blessing

Key verses

2 Thessalonians 1:3-42 Thessalonians 2:152 Thessalonians 3:13

Chapters of 2 Thessalonians

  1. 12 Thessalonians 1Paul thanks God that the Thessalonians' faith is growing and their love increasing, and he boasts of their perseverance in persecution to other churches.
  2. 22 Thessalonians 2Some had claimed that the day of the Lord had already come, unsettling the church.
  3. 32 Thessalonians 3Paul asks for prayer that the message would spread and that he would be delivered from evil people, and he expresses confidence that the Lord is faithful to strengthen and protect them.
All books