1:2 We thank God always for all of you as we mention you constantly 1 in our prayers, 1:3 because we recall 2 in the presence of our God and Father 3 your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope 4 in our Lord Jesus Christ. 1:4 We know, 5 brothers and sisters 6 loved by God, that he has chosen you, 7 1:5 in that 8 our gospel did not come to you merely in words, 9 but in power and in the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction (surely you recall the character we displayed when we came among you to help you). 10
1:6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, when you received 11 the message with joy that comes from the Holy Spirit, despite great affliction. 1:7 As a result you became an example 12 to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. 1:8 For from you the message of the Lord 13 has echoed forth not just in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place reports of your faith in God have spread, 14 so that we do not need to say anything.
1 tn Or “mention you in our prayers, because we recall constantly…”
2 tn Grk “making mention…recalling.” The participle ποιούμενοι (poioumenoi) in v. 2 has been translated as temporal, and μνημονεύοντες (mnhmoneuonte") in v. 3 has been translated as causal.
3 tn Or the phrase may connect at the end of the verse: “hope…in the presence of our God and Father.”
4 tn These phrases denote Christian virtues in action: the work produced by faith, labor motivated by love, and endurance that stems from hope in Christ.
5 tn Grk “knowing.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the participle εἰδότες (eidotes) has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence started here in the translation.
6 tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).
7 tn Grk “your election.”
8 tn Or “because.”
9 tn Or “speech,” or “an act of speaking.”
10 tn Grk “just as you know what sort of people we were among you for your sakes.” Verse 5 reflects on the experience of Paul and his fellow preachers; v. 6 begins to describe the Thessalonians’ response.
11 tn Or “after you received.”
12 tc Most
13 tn Or “the word of the Lord.”
sn “The word of the Lord” is a technical expression in OT literature, often referring to a divine prophetic utterance (e.g., Gen 15:1, Isa 1:10, Jonah 1:1). In the NT it occurs 15 times: 3 times as ῥῆμα τοῦ κυρίου (rJhma tou kuriou; Luke 22:61, Acts 11:16, 1 Pet 1:25) and 12 times as λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (logo" tou kuriou; here and in Acts 8:25; 13:44, 48, 49; 15:35, 36; 16:32; 19:10, 20; 1 Thess 4:15; 2 Thess 3:1). As in the OT, this phrase focuses on the prophetic nature and divine origin of what has been said. Here the phrase has been translated “the message of the Lord” because of the focus upon the spread of the gospel evident in the passage.
14 tn Grk “your faith in God has gone out.”