2 Thessalonians 1 - Paraphrase

The following is a personal paraphrase meant to illustrate how a student of the Bible might put the scriptures into their own words in order to better understand the text. As such, some liberties are taken in wording.

Paul, Silas, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We would be remiss if we did not continually give the appropriate thanks to God for you brothers, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing.

For this reason, we boast about you in the other churches of God. We boast about you because your faith is remaining steadfast in the midst of persecutions and afflictions.

The fact that you are suffering for the kingdom of God is evidence of God’s righteous judgment since when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, you will be counted worthy of the kingdom, while he will count it a matter of justice to repay with affliction those who are afflicting you. God will inflict vengeance upon them, while granting relief to you.

These who do not know God, and who have not obeyed the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, cast out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified among his saints, and to be an object of wonder to all who have believed – which includes you, since you believed our testimony.

We always pray for you towards the end that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may bring to fruition your every determination to do good and your every work prompted by faith, by his power. So that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.