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5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I
write unto you.
5:2 For yourselves know
perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh
as a thief in the night.
5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction
cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall
not escape.
5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should
overtake you as a thief.
5:5 Ye are all the
children of light, and the children of the day: we
are not of the night, nor of darkness.
5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be
sober.
5:7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken
are drunken in the night.
5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the
breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of
salvation.
5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain
salvation by
our Lord Jesus Christ, 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or
sleep, we should live together with him.
5:11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another,
even as also ye do.
5:12 And we beseech you,
brethren, to know them which labour among
you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; 5:13 And to
esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace
among yourselves.
5:14 Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort
the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.
5:15 See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow
that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
5:16 Rejoice evermore.
5:17 Pray without ceasing.
5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in
Christ
Jesus concerning you.
5:19 Quench not the Spirit.
5:20 Despise not
prophesyings.
5:21
Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil.
5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God
your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
5:24 Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
5:25 Brethren, pray for us.
5:26 Greet all the brethren with an
holy kiss.
5:27 I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the
holy brethren.
5:28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
Amen.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
back to:
1 Thessalonians
Book: 1 Thessalonians
Chapter: 5
Overview:
The
Apostle exhorts to be always ready for the coming of
Christ to
Judgment, which will be with suddenness and surprise.
(1-11) He directs to several particular duties.
(12-22) And
concludes with
Prayer, greetings, and a blessing.
(23-28)
1-5 It is needless or useless to ask about the particular time
of
Christ's coming.
Christ did not reveal this to the apostles.
There are times and
Seasons for us to work in, and these are our
duty and interest to know and observe; but as to the time when
we must give up our account, we know it not, nor is it needful
that we should. The
Coming of Christ will be a great surprise to
men. Our
Lord himself said
So. As the
Hour of
Death is the same
to each person that the
Judgment will be to mankind in general,
So the same remarks answer for both.
Christ's coming will be
terrible to the ungodly. Their
Destruction will overtake them
while they
Dream of happiness, and please themselves with vain
amusements. There will be
No means to escape the terror or the
Punishment of that
Day. This
Day will be a happy
Day to the
righteous. They are not in
Darkness; they are the children of
the
Light. It is the happy condition of all true Christians. But
how many are speaking peace and safety to themselves, over whose
heads utter
Destruction is hovering! Let us endeavour to awaken
ourselves and each other, and
Guard against our spiritual
enemies.
6-11 Most of mankind do not consider the things of another
world at all, because they are asleep; or they do not consider
them aright, because they sleep and
Dream. Our moderation as to
all earthly things should be known to all men. Shall Christians,
who have the
Light of the blessed
Gospel shining in their faces,
be careless about their souls, and unmindful of another world?
We need the spiritual
Armour, or the three
Christian graces,
Faith,
Love, and
Hope.
Faith; if we believe that the
Eye of
God
is always upon us, that there is another world to prepare for,
we shall see reason to watch and be sober. True and fervent
Love
to
God, and the things of
God, will keep us watchful and sober.
If we have
Hope of
Salvation, let us take heed of any thing that
would shake our trust in the
Lord. We have ground
On which to
build unshaken
Hope, when we consider, that
Salvation is
By our
Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, to atone for our sins and to
Ransom our souls. We should join in
Prayer and praise one with
another. We should set a good
Example one before another, and
this is the best means to answer the
End of society. Thus we
shall learn how to live to Him, with whom we
Hope to live for
ever.
12-15 The ministers of the
Gospel are described
By the work of
their office, which is to serve and honour the
Lord. It is their
duty not only to give good counsel, but also to warn the flock
of dangers, and reprove for whatever may be amiss. The people
should honour and
Love their ministers, because their business
is the welfare of men's souls. And the people should be at peace
among themselves, doing all they can to
Guard against any
differences. But
Love of peace must not make us wink at
Sin. The
fearful and sorrowful spirits, should be encouraged, and a kind
Word may do much good. We must
Bear and forbear. We must be
long-suffering, and keep down
Anger, and this to all men.
Whatever
Man do to us, we must do good to others.
16-22 We are to rejoice in
Creature-comforts, as if we rejoiced
not, and must not expect to live many years, and rejoice in them
all; but if we do rejoice in
God, we may do that evermore. A
truly religious
Life is a
Life of constant joy. And we should
rejoice more, if we prayed more.
Prayer will help forward all
lawful business, and every good work. If we pray without
ceasing, we shall not want matter for thanksgiving in every
thing. We shall see cause to give thanks for sparing and
preventing, for common and uncommon, past and present, temporal
and spiritual mercies. Not only for prosperous and pleasing, but
also for afflicting providences, for chastisements and
corrections; for
God designs all for our good, though we at
present see not how they tend to it. Quench not the
Spirit.
Christians are said to be baptized with the
Holy Ghost and with
Fire. He worketh as
Fire,
By enlightening, enlivening, and
purifying the souls of men. As
Fire is
Put out
By taking away
Fuel, and as it is quenched
By pouring water, or putting a great
Deal of
Earth upon it;
So we must be careful not to quench the
Holy
Spirit,
By indulging
Carnal lusts and affections, minding
only earthly things. Believers often hinder their growth in
Grace,
By not giving themselves up to the spiritual affections
raised in their hearts
By the Holy
Spirit.
By prophesyings, here
understand the preaching of the
Word, the interpreting and
applying the Scriptures. We must not despise preaching, though
it is
Plain, and we are told
No more than what we knew before.
We must search the Scriptures. And proving all things must be to
Hold Fast that which is good. We should abstain from
Sin, and
whatever looks like
Sin, leads to it, and borders upon it. He
who is not shy of the appearances of
Sin, who shuns not the
occasions of it, and who avoids not the temptations and
approaches to it, will not long keep from doing
Sin.
23-28 The
Apostle prays that they might be sanctified more
perfectly, for the best are sanctified but in part while in this
world; therefore we should pray for, and press toward, complete
Holiness. And as we must fall, if
God did not carry
On his good
work in the soul, we should pray to
God to perfect his work,
till we are presented faultless before the
Throne of his
Glory.
We should pray for one another; and brethren should thus express
brotherly
Love. This epistle was to be read to all the brethren.
Not only are the common people allowed to read the Scriptures,
but it is their duty, and what they should be persuaded to do.
The
Word of God should not be kept in an unknown tongue, but
transplanted, that as all men are concerned to know the
Scriptures,
So they all may be able to read them. The Scriptures
should be read in all public congregations, for the benefit of
the unlearned especially. We need
No more to make us happy, than
to know the
Grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ. He is an
ever-flowing and an over-flowing
Fountain of
Grace to supply all
our wants.