1 Thessalonians

Living to Please God

1Finally, brothers, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus to live in a way that is pleasing to God, just as you have received from us. This is how you already live, so you should do so all the more.

2For you know the instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.

3For it is God’s will that you should be holy: You must abstain from sexual immorality;

4each of you must know how to control his own bodyin holiness and honor,

5not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God;

6and no one should ever violate or exploit his brother in this regard,because the Lord will avenge all such acts, as we have already told you and solemnly warned you.

7For God has not called us to impurity, but to holiness.

8Anyone, then, who rejects this command does not reject man but God, the very One who gives you His Holy Spirit.

9Now about brotherly love, you do not need anyone to write to you, because you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.

10And you are indeed showing this love to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to excel more and more

11and to aspire to live quietly, to attend to your own matters, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you.

12Then you will behave properly toward outsiders, without being dependent on anyone.

The Return of the Lord

13Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death,so that you will not grieve like the rest, who are without hope.

14For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, we also believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him.

15By the word of the Lord, we declare to you that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who have fallen asleep.

16For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise.

17After that, we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord.

18Therefore encourage one another with these words.

1For the rest therefore, brethren, we pray and beseech you in the Lord Jesus, that as you have received from us, how you ought to walk, and to please God, so also you would walk, that you may abound the more.

2For you know what precepts I have given to you by the Lord Jesus.

3For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that you should abstain from fornication;

4That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour:

5Not in the passion of lust, like the Gentiles that know not God:

6And that no man overreach, nor circumvent his brother in business: because the Lord is the avenger of all these things, as we have told you before, and have testified.

7For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto sanctification.

8Therefore, he that despiseth these things, despiseth not man, but God, who also hath given his holy Spirit in us.

9But as touching the charity of brotherhood, we have no need to write to you: for yourselves have learned of God to love one another.

10For indeed you do it towards all the brethren in all Macedonia. But we entreat you, brethren, that you abound more:

11And that you use your endeavour to be quiet, and that you do your own business, and work with your own hands, as we commanded you: and that you walk honestly towards them that are without; and that you want nothing of any man’s.

12And we will not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning them that are asleep, that you be not sorrowful, even as others who have no hope.

13For if we believe that Jesus died, and rose again; even so them who have slept through Jesus, will God bring with him.

14For this we say unto you in the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them who have slept.

15For the Lord himself shall come down from heaven with commandment, and with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God: and the dead who are in Christ, shall rise first.

16Then we who are alive, who are left, shall be taken up together with them in the clouds to meet Christ, into the air, and so shall we be always with the Lord.

17Wherefore, comfort ye one another with these words.

18本翻譯不包含這段文字。