Ὁ, ΤΕ τῇ, τ. b Cf. 1 Cor i. 3, etc.
ἔων ἐν Θεῷ ὶ ἡμώ i Κυρίῳ Ἰησοῦ Χριστῷ" νικέων ἐν Θεῷ πατρὶ ἡμών καὶ Κυρίῳ ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστῷ
"ΠΑΥΛΟΣ καὶ Σιλουανὸς καὶ Τιμόθεος τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ Θεσσαλο-
2. χάρις ὑμῖν
Clem. καὶ "εἰρήνη ἢ ἀπὸ Θεοῦ πατρὸς ! καὶ Κυρίου ᾿Ιησοῦ ἢ Χριστοῦ. Rom. ο 5 a 35 , na a Aiden. να 3 4 XXXVviii. 3. “ εὐχαριστεῖν “ ὀφείλομεν TH Θεῷ πάντοτε περὶ ὑμών, ἀδελφοί, ο ΙΘᾷ Β 5 ΘΑ (καθὼς ἃ ἄξιόν ἐστιν) ὅτι " ὑπεραυξάνει ἡ πίστις ὑμών καὶ f πλεονάζει iii. 16, iv. is τι. ἡ " ἀγάπη ἑνὸς ἑκάστου πάντων ὑμών εἰς ἀλλήλους " 4. ὥστε αὐτοὺς πα ος ΘΕ με Ὁ δ. ce ας a 9 nA κ᾽ , a εκ Cor. xvi. ἡμᾶς ἐν ὑμῖν ᾿ ἐγκαυχᾶσθαι ἐν ταῖς " ἐκκλησίαις τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὑπὲρ ἃ κ᾿ a A > ~ a a a Phil. i.7. τῆς ὑπομονῆς ὑμῶν καὶ πίστεως ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς διωγμοῖς ὑμῶν καὶ e Only here in Ν.Τ. f 2 Pet. i. 8. In answer to prayer of I. iii. 12, iv. 9-10. h As well a ο. (1. 1.8); ὥστε with inf. as in I. 1. 7. i See 2 Cor. ix. 2. k i.e. of Achaia, etc. Cf. 1
10m. ἡμῶν after πατρος with BDP, 17, 49, 71, d, e, Theoph., Pelag. (Al., Lachm., WH, Findlay, Milligan, etc.), as a scribal addition from νετ. 1.
ΟΗΑΡΤΕΚ I.—Vv. 1-8. The address (1. τ, 2) is followed first by a thanksgiving (3- 10) which passes into a prophetic piece of consolation, and then by a brief prayer (11, 12).
Ver. 3. περὶ ὑμῶν: Your thankless situation (4 f.) only throws into more brilliant relief your personal character and bearing under adverse circumstances. ὅτι is best represented by our colloquial “Ὁ because,’? which includes both the causal and the objective senses of the word; what forms matter for thanks- giving is naturally the reason for thanks- giving. ἀγάπη κ.τ.λ., a period of strain tires mutual gentleness (see on Rev. ii. 4) as well as patience towards God (ver. 4), since irritation and lack of unselfish con- sideration for others (cf. iii. 6 f.) may be as readily produced by a time of tension and severe anxiety as an impatient temper of faith. Paul is glad and grate- tul that suffering was drawing his friends together and binding them more closely to their Lord, instead of stunting the growth of their faith and drying up the flow of their mutual charity. Praise comes as usual before blame. Paul is proud of his friends, because suffering has not spoiled their characters, as suffer-
ing, especially when due to oppression and injustice, is too apt to 4ο.---ὀφείλομεν (so Cic. ad. Fam., xiv. 2, gratiasque egi, ut debui; Barn. v. 3, vii. 1), the phrase is unexampled in Paul, but not unnatural (cf. Rom. xv. 1, etc.) ; με form of duty is -one which all thoughts naturally take in his mind” (Jowett). Ver. 4. The single article groups ὑπομονὴ and πίστις as a single concep- tion = faith in its special aspect of patient endurance (cf. on Rev. xiii. το), faithful tenacity of purpose. M. Geb- hardt,in his L’Italie Mystique (pp. 318f.), observes that ‘‘ the final word of Uante’s belief, of that ‘religion of the heart’ which he mentions in the Convito, is given in the 24th canto of the Paradiso. He comes back to the very simple symbol of Paul, faith, hope and love; for him as for the apostle faith is at bottom simply hope.” Faith is more than that to Paul, but sometimes hardly mo:e. The Thessa- lonians are not to fear that they are hold- ing a forlorn outpost. Neither man nor God overlooks their courage (τ΄. Plato’ s Theaet., xxv., ἀνδρικῶς ὑπομεῖναι καὶ μὴ ἀνάνδρως φεύγειν). Their founders and friends at a distance are watching with pride their resolute faith ; while in God’s