1 Thessalonians - Chapter 5

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1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you,

“times and dates” -There have always been Christians who tried to fix the time and date of Christ’s return, but apparantly the Thessalonians were not among them. They understood Paul’s teachings that no man would know the time of Christ’s return.

2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.

“The day of the Lord” is the climax of all things—also known as the day of redemption.

“Like a thief in the night” means, although there will be some signs, the coming will be as unexpected as a thief in the night.


3 While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

“destruction” does not mean annihilation here, but exclusion from the Lord’s presence, thus the ruin of life and all its accomplishments.

“suddenly” is used to stress the surprise of unbelievers.

“labor pains” is a great analogy. Although a woman knows approximately when her child is due and that the event is inevitable, she is always taken by surprise when the labor pains actually begin. Also, there is no escape for her. She cannot run away from the pain. Today we could take this analogy a step further and say our salvation is our epidural.

“will NOT escape”: In the Greek text, before translation, Paul uses an emphatic double negative here, a construction he uses only four times in all his writings to stress his point.

4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.

“darkness”—believers no longer live in darkness, nor are they of the darkness. Because we have the light of Christ and the knowledge of his return, we will not be surprised when it happens. The timing may not be known to us, but when those trumpets sound, we will know exactly what is happening.

6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.

“asleep”—nonbelievers are spiritually insensitive. We as believers have a difficult time communicating with them because they are so one dimensional. They can’t understand anything having to do with one’s spirituality. This part of them is ‘asleep’.

“be awake” or “be alert”—keep watch for Christ’s return.

“sober” or “self controlled”—in contrast with vs. 7 which describes someone with no self control and the things they do in darkness.

8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.

“the day”—believers live in the light, using self-control to remain in the light of Christ.

“breastplate” and “helmet”—Paul often uses metaphors of armor for battle when talking about Christians. Here he is saying the ‘equipment’ we need for battling the darkness in the world is love, faith, and hope of salvation.

9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

“appoint”—God’s appointment versus man’s choice is the point made here. God’s wish is for all of mankind to receive salvation, but He gives us the ability to ‘choose’ to suffer wrath instead.

10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.

“awake or asleep”—alive or dead; We know Paul is not using the same meaning here as in verse 6 where he uses awake and asleep to mean ‘awakened to spiritual things’ or ‘spiritually insensitive’ because those who are spiritually insensitive will not “live together with Him”.

“with Him”—to be Christ’s is to have entered a relationship that nothing can destroy.

11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

“build each other up”—strengthen each other by supporting each other in the faith and love of Christ. Paul knows the Thessalonians are already doing this.

12 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you.

“those who work hard among you”—possibly means the church leaders.

13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.

“because of their work”—not just because they are your teachers, but respect them and appreciate them because they work hard for the Lord.

14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

“those who are idle”—as we learned in the last chapter, some of the Thessalonians were so sure Christ was returning soon they gave up their jobs in order to prepare for it, depending on the other Christians to support them. But Paul says they should continue to work to support themselves. He also may be speaking of those who do nothing to help within the church, but rather sit back and allow others to do the work while they “warm the pews” and await the Lord’s return.


“disruptive”—often those who sit idly by and allow others to do the work are also those who complain the most. They think they know how things should be done, but are not willing to to it and grumble about the performance of others.


“the timid, the weak”—these are to be helped, not rejected, by those who are stronger. I believe he’s speaking, not only of those who are physically weak, but also of those who are timid and weak in their faith.


15 Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.

“pays back”—retaliation is NEVER a Christian option. Christians are called to forgive.

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually,

People are naturally happy on some occasions, but a Christian’s joy does not depend on circumstances. It comes from what Christ has done for us and is constant (or should be), as should our prayer be continuous.

18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

No matter what the circumstances, no matter how bad things seem, Christians are to be thankful at all times because of what God has done for us in sending His Son and giving us hope.

19 Do not quench the Spirit.

“Spirit” or “Spirit’s fire”—There is a warmth, a glow, about the Spirit’s presence that makes this language appropriate. The kind of conduct that might ‘put out the Spirit’s fire’ are things such as immorality and laziness. These are the two things Paul stresses most in his letters. There are other things, but these are the ones he addressed that applied most to the Thessalonians.

20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt

As Paul continues, we see he could be warning against a mechanical attitude towards worship which would discourage the expression of the gifts of the Spirit in the local assembly and would serve to smother the Spirit’s fire.

21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil.

Just because someone approves of the scriptures and claims to speak in the name of the Lord doesn’t mean they should be accepted without question. Paul does not say what kind of test to apply, but in the very least, their teachings should agree with Paul’s teachings.

23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is typical of Paul’s prayers.


“your whole spirit, soul and body”—Paul is emphasizing the entire person. We should try to keep not only our bodies pure, but keep our spirits and souls prepared for Christ’s eventual return.



…Side Note: When studying this lesson, I was attempting to discern the difference in “spirit” and “soul.” A feeling came over me—when I thought the word “soul”, I felt a warmth or strength (difficult to describe) throughout my entire body, from head to toe. When I thought the word “spirit”, the warmth or light (a feeling of joy—also difficult to describe) was only felt in my center, in my chest cavity (not only my heart, but my entire chest.)

When I pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit, I don’t hear voices or have any kind of visions. But once in a while something reveals itself in the strangest way.


Back to the lesson…


24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.

Paul has confidence God can be relied upon to complete what He started. He WILL return as promised.

25 Brothers and sisters, pray for us.

We all need prayer constantly, not only when we are in trouble.

26 Greet all God’s people with a holy kiss.

Paul is sending his love to all of them. Today we might say “Give everyone a hug for me.” A kiss between same sexes was a normal greeting of that day—‘holy kiss’ meant kiss of love (more caring than your everyday greeting).

27 I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers and sisters.

“I charge you”—this is very strong language. Paul is not simply requesting, but ORDERING they be sure all the members of the church hear this letter and know of his concern and advice for them. This shows that Paul intended his letters to be used in the churches to help teach, just as we still use them today.

28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Paul always ends his letters with a blessing of grace for his readers.




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Today, Resurrection Day, also known as Easter Sunday, is the day we celebrate Christ's resurrection. It is the day that changed everything for Christians. Without that day, our faith would have no meaning. Jesus Christ conquered death, making it possible for us to follow Him when we cross over from this life into the next. May we all rejoice and be comforted on this most blessed of days.