The Thessalonians are given to understand, both how mindful of them St. Paul was, at all times, in thanksgiving and prayer, and also how well he was persuaded of the truth and sincerity of their faith and conversion to God.
Anno Domini 52.
THE Apostle's design in this Epistle being to furnish the Thessalonian brethren with proofs of the divine original of the gospel, both for establishing themselves, and for convincing unbelievers, he elegantly introduced his subject, by declaring that he gave thanks to God at all times or daily for their faith, and love, and perseverance of hope, knowing, he adds, their election of God, for the enjoyment of all the high privileges of the gospel, although they did not obey the law of Moses, Colossians 4:2-4.—Then, to make the Thessalonians sensible that their faith in the gospel was well founded, he put them in mind of the arguments by which they had been induced to receive the gospel as the word of God.
The first argument which he mentions is, that the gospel had been offered to the Thessalonians, not in word, or preaching only, but in preaching accompanied with great and evidentmiracles, performed in theirpresence; and with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, communicated to them after they believed. And these miracles and supernatural gifts, he affirms, had, through Divine grace, wrought in them much assurance, that is, the strongest persuasion of the truth of the gospel; in which persuasion they were confirmed, by the holy disinterested behaviour of the preachers of the gospel, Colossians 4:5.—But this being a branch of his second argument, the Apostle only mentions it here, referring the morefull consideration of it to chap. 2:—He adds, that the Thessalonians had shewed the strength of their faith by imitating the apostles and the Lord Jesus, in suffering much affliction for the gospel, with joy, Colossians 4:6.—so that they were patterns of faith and fortitude to all the brethren in the provinces of Macedonia and Achaia, Colossians 4:7.—Farther, he affirms, that from them the fame of the gospel had resounded, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place, their faith in one God only was spoken of as a thing very extraordinary, Colossians 4:8.—that their fellow-citizens, who had carried the news of their having changed their religion, into distant countries, had told, at the same time, in what manner the preachers of the new religion had entered and established themselves among the Thessalonians; that they had done it by great and evident miracles; and that the Thessalonians, struck with these miracles, had, through grace, turned from idols, and were become the worshippers of the living and true God, Colossians 4:9.—and looked for the return of his eternal Son from heaven, who, as the preachers of the gospel affirmed, had been raised from the dead, even Jesus, who would deliver them from the wrath which is to come on idolaters and unbelievers, at the day of judgment, Colossians 4:10.—Now, that the Thessalonians looked for the return of Jesus from heaven, and that his heavenly Father had raised him from the dead, and that they expected, at his return, to be delivered by him from the wrath to come on unbelievers, are all fitly mentioned in this place; because their expectation of these things shews what a strong impression the miracles wrought in confirmation of the gospel, had, through grace, made on the minds of the Thessalonians. Moreover, the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, being a demonstration of his character as the Son of God, and of his power and authority as judge of the world, it is an undeniable proof of the divine original of the gospel, and renders the rejection of it infinitely dangerous.
Here then is the first argument, by which the gospel is proved to be a revelation from God. The apostles and evangelists wrought miracles, to shew that they were actually sent of God to publish those great discoveries, to which they have given the name of το ευαγγελιον, the gospel, or good news from God.—Now, on this argument I observe, that the efficacy of miracles to prove a divine commission, when wrought expressly for the purpose, is so plain, that little reasoning is needed to shew it. Persons of ordinary understandings, equally with those whose minds are more improved, will, if not determinately opposed to all the operations of divine love, reason as Nicodemus did, John 3:2. Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest except God be with him. Wherefore, this being a dictate of common sense, the Apostle had no occasion to shew, in the way of close argument, that a teacher who works miracles in confirmation of his doctrine, is commissioned of God. All he had to do, was to make it evident, that his own preaching at Thessalonica had been accompanied with undeniable miracles. To the Thessalonians, however, this was not necessary. They had been eye-witnesses of his miracles, and many, through the power of divine grace accompanying them, had been converted by them: and, after their conversion, they had received from the Apostle the gifts of the Holy Ghost; and, among the rest, the power of working miracles, andof speaking foreign languages: which power, such of them as possessed it, had no doubt often exercised. Nevertheless, to convince those who should live in after ages, that the first preaching of the gospel was accompanied with great and evident miracles, the Apostle has, in this epistle, taken the very best method that could be devised; a method which carries absolute conviction with it. St. Paul, and his fellow-labourers who were united with him in thisEpistle, spake plainly to the Thessalonians in this letter concerning the miracles whichthey wrought in their presence, and the spiritual gifts which they conferred upon them; and affirmed before them all, that these miracles and gifts, accompanied by the grace of God, produced in them the fullest assurance of the divine original of the gospel; and that the Thessalonians shewed the strength of their persuasion, by forsaking the established idolatry, and suffering, with joy, much affliction for the gospel. They farther affirmed, that the miracles which they wrought among them were so public, and so well known, that, when the unbelieving inhabitants of their city went with their merchandize to foreign countries, they not only reported that the Thessalonians had forsaken the worship of the gods, but that they had been persuaded to do so by the miracles which the preachers of the new religion had wrought in their presence, and by the extraordinaryfaculties which these preachers conferred on their disciples. Now who does not see that open appeals of this kind, made to the Thessalonians concerning the miracles which were wrought in their presence, and concerning the impression which these miracles, through grace, made on their minds, and the change produced in their religious sentiments through the influence of that impression, are undeniable proofs that miracles were really wrought at Thessalonica, and spiritual gifts conferred; and that, by the means of these miracles and gifts, the Thessalonians were turned from worshipping idols, to serve the living and true God. For three persons in their right senses, as Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy undoubtedly were, cannot be supposed to have made open appeals of this nature to such numerous societies asthe church of the Thessalonians, and the other churches in which this Epistle was to be read, where every individual must have known whether the matters affirmed were true or false, unless they had been conscious to themselves that they were all strictly true. As little can it be supposed that the Thessalonians and the rest would have received and perused, without the utmost disapprobation, the letter in which these things are affirmed, unless they had known them to be all strictly true. Wherefore, that great and evident miracles were wrought at Thessalonica; that spiritual gifts were conferred on those who believed; and that these miracles and spiritual gifts were means, through grace, of producing among the Thessalonians such a firm persuasion of the truth of the new religion, that many of them forsook their idol gods, embraced the gospel, and worshipped the one true God only; and that this change of religion brought upon them muchaffliction;—areallas certain as that the Thessalonians embraced the gospel, and that this Epistle was written by St. Paul, and sent to Thessalonica.
THESSALONIANS] Thessalonica was in St. Paul's time the capital of Macedonia; St. Paul had preached the gospel there in the year 51.Acts 17. Some few among the Jews received the gospel; but a great multitude of the devout Gentiles became converts to Christ. Hence the majority of the church consisted of native heathens, who had formerly been idolaters. The Jews, ever jealous of the admission of the Gentiles to the same privileges with themselves, raised such a disturbance, that St. Paul and Sylvanus were obliged suddenly to withdraw. They even pursued him to Berea: he left Sylvanus and Timothy there, and went to Athens, ordering them to follow him. Timothy did not long continue at Athens with St. Paul, but was sent back to Thessalonica; and when he returned, found St. Paul at Corinth, where he resided a year and a half; and in the former part of that time this Epistle was probably written; that is, about the year 52.