Sanctification and Love
9 Now as to the love of the brothers and sisters, you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another; 10 for indeed you practice it toward all the brothers and sisters who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to excel even more, 11 and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we instructed you, 12 so that you will [h]behave properly toward outsiders and [i]not be in any need.
Those Who Died in Christ
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who [j]are asleep, so that you will not grieve as indeed the rest of mankind do, who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose from the dead, so also God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep [k]through Jesus. 15 For we say this to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive [l]and remain until the coming of the Lord will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a [m]shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who 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. 18 Therefore, [n]comfort one another with these words.
Footnotes
- 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Or conduct yourselves
- 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Or conduct yourselves
- 1 Thessalonians 4:2 Lit through the Lord
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4 Or acquire
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4 I.e., body; or wife
- 1 Thessalonians 4:5 Lit passion of lust
- 1 Thessalonians 4:7 I.e., moral corruption
- 1 Thessalonians 4:12 Lit walk
- 1 Thessalonians 4:12 Lit have need of nothing
- 1 Thessalonians 4:13 I.e., have died
- 1 Thessalonians 4:14 I.e., as believers
- 1 Thessalonians 4:15 Lit who
- 1 Thessalonians 4:16 Or cry of command
- 1 Thessalonians 4:18 Or encourage