16 forbidding us to speak to the nations that they may be saved, that they may fill up their sins always: but wrath has come upon them to the uttermost.
And he said to me, Go, for *I* will send thee to the nations afar off. And they heard him until this word, and lifted up their voice, saying, Away with such a one as that from the earth, for it was not fit he should live.
And when the seven days were nearly completed, the Jews from Asia, having seen him in the temple, set all the crowd in a tumult, and laid hands upon him, crying, Israelites, help! this is the man who teaches all everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place, and has brought Greeks too into the temple, and profaned this holy place. For they had before seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple. And the whole city was moved, and there was a concourse of the people; and having laid hold on Paul they drew him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. And as they were seeking to kill him, a representation came to the chiliarch of the band that the whole of Jerusalem was in a tumult;
Go to now, ye rich, weep, howling over your miseries that [are] coming upon [you]. Your wealth is become rotten, and your garments moth-eaten. Your gold and silver is eaten away, and their canker shall be for a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as fire. Ye have heaped up treasure in [the] last days. Behold, the wages of your labourers, who have harvested your fields, wrongfully kept back by you, cry, and the cries of those that have reaped are entered into the ears of [the] Lord of sabaoth. Ye have lived luxuriously on the earth and indulged yourselves; ye have nourished your hearts [as] in a day of slaughter; ye have condemned, ye have killed the just; he does not resist you.
but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and heat of fire about to devour the adversaries. Any one that has disregarded Moses' law dies without mercy on [the testimony of] two or three witnesses: of how much worse punishment, think ye, shall he be judged worthy who has trodden under foot the Son of God, and esteemed the blood of the covenant, whereby he has been sanctified, common, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him that said, To me [belongs] vengeance; *I* will recompense, saith the Lord: and again, The Lord shall judge his people.
For every one whosoever, who shall call on the name of the Lord, shall be saved. How then shall they call upon him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe on him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without one who preaches? and how shall they preach unless they have been sent? according as it is written, How beautiful the feet of them that announce glad tidings of peace, of them that announce glad tidings of good things!
for then shall there be great tribulation, such as has not been from [the] beginning of [the] world until now, nor ever shall be; and if those days had not been cut short, no flesh had been saved; but on account of the elect those days shall be cut short.
And I will shew wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be changed to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and terrible day of Jehovah come.
And I said, What is it? And he said, This is the ephah that goeth forth. And he said, This is their resemblance in all the land. And behold, there was lifted up a round plate of lead; and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah. And he said, This is Wickedness: and he cast her into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.
But seeing many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, Offspring of vipers, who has forewarned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce therefore fruit worthy of repentance. And do not think to say within yourselves, We have Abraham for [our] father; for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children to Abraham. And already the axe is applied to the root of the trees; every tree therefore not producing good fruit is cut down and cast into the fire.
They say to him, He will miserably destroy those evil [men], and let out the vineyard to other husbandmen, who shall render him the fruits in their seasons. Jesus says to them, Have ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which they that builded rejected, this has become the corner-stone: this is of [the] Lord, and it is wonderful in our eyes? Therefore I say to you, that the kingdom of God shall be taken from you and shall be given to a nation producing the fruits of it. And he that falls on this stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it shall grind him to powder.
And the rest, laying hold of his bondmen, ill-treated and slew [them]. And [when] the king [heard of it he] was wroth, and having sent his forces, destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
that the blood of all the prophets which has been poured out from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zacharias, who perished between the altar and the house; yea, I say to you, it shall be required of this generation.
saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, even at least in this thy day, the things that are for thy peace: but now they are hid from thine eyes; for days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall make a palisaded mound about thee, and shall close thee around, and keep thee in on every side, and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children in thee; and shall not leave in thee a stone upon a stone: because thou knewest not the season of thy visitation.
But when ye see Jerusalem encompassed with armies, then know that its desolation is drawn nigh. Then let those who are in Judaea flee to the mountains, and those who are in the midst of it depart out, and those who are in the country not enter into it; for these are days of avenging, that all the things that are written may be accomplished. But woe to them that are with child and to them who give suck in those days, for there shall be great distress upon the land and wrath upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of [the] nations until [the] times of [the] nations be fulfilled.
If then God has given them the same gift as also to us when we had believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who indeed was *I* to be able to forbid God? And when they heard these things they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then indeed God has to the nations also granted repentance to life.
But the Jews having been stirred up to jealousy, and taken to [themselves] certain wicked men of the lowest rabble, and having got a crowd together, set the city in confusion; and having beset the house of Jason sought to bring them out to the people; and not having found them, dragged Jason and certain brethren before the politarchs, crying out, These [men] that have set the world in tumult, are come here also,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 1 Thessalonians 2
Commentary on 1 Thessalonians 2 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 2
In this chapter the apostle puts the Thessalonians in mind of the manner of his preaching among them (v. 1-6). Then of the manner of his conversation among them (v. 7-12). Afterwards of the success of his ministry, with the effects both on himself and on them (v. 13-16), and then apologizes for his absence (v. 17-20).
1Th 2:1-6
Here we have an account of Paul's manner of preaching, and his comfortable reflection upon his entrance in among the Thessalonians. As he had the testimony of his own conscience witnessing to his integrity, so he could appeal to the Thessalonians how faithful he, and Silas, and Timotheus, his helpers in the work of the Lord, had discharged their office: You yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you. Note, It is a great comfort to a minister to have his own conscience and the consciences of others witnessing for him that he set out well, with good designs and from good principles; and that his preaching was not in vain, or, as some read it, was not fain. The apostle here comforts himself either in the success of his ministry, that it was not fruitless or in vain (according to our translation), or as others think, reflecting upon the sincerity of his preaching, that it was not vain and empty, or deceitful and treacherous. The subject-matter of the apostle's preaching was not vain and idle speculations about useless niceties and foolish questions, but sound and solid truth, such as was most likely to profit his hearers. A good example this is, to be imitated by all the ministers of the gospel. Much less was the apostle's preaching vain or deceitful. He could say to these Thessalonians what he told the Corinthians (2 Co. 4:2): We have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully. He had no sinister or worldly design in his preaching, which he puts them in mind to have been,
1Th 2:7-12
In these words the apostle reminds the Thessalonians of the manner of his conversation among them. And,
1Th 2:13-16
Here observe,
1Th 2:17-20
In these words the apostle apologizes for his absence. Here observe,
The apostle here puts the Thessalonians in mind that though he could not come to them as yet, and though he should never be able to come to them, yet our Lord Jesus Christ will come, nothing shall hinder this. And further, when he shall come, all must appear in his presence, or before him. Ministers and people must all appear before him, and faithful people will be the glory and joy of faithful ministers in that great and glorious day.