Finally then, brethren, we beseech and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that, as ye received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, even as ye do walk,— that ye abound more and more.
For ye know what {Greek: charges.}charge we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye abstain from fornication;
that each one of you know how to possess himself of his own vessel in sanctification and honor,
not in the passion of lust, even as the Gentiles who know not God;
that no man {Or, overreach}transgress, and wrong his brother in the matter: because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as also we {Or, told you plainly}forewarned you and testified.
For God called us not for uncleanness, but in sanctification.
Therefore he that rejecteth, rejecteth not man, but God, who giveth his Holy Spirit unto you.
But concerning love of the brethren ye have no need that one write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another;
for indeed ye do it toward all the brethren that are in all Macedonia. But we exhort you, brethren, that ye abound more and more;
and that ye {Greek: be ambitious. See Romans 15:20 margin.}study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your hands, even as we charged you;
that ye may walk becomingly toward them that are without, and may have need of nothing.
But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning them that fall asleep; that ye sorrow not, even as the rest, who have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also that are fallen asleep {Greek: through. Or, will God through Jesus}in Jesus will God bring with him.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that are alive, that are left unto the {Or, presence}coming of the Lord, shall in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first;
then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore {Or, exhort chapter 5:11.}comfort one another with these words.
Querverweise zu 1. Thessalonicher 4,13 1Thes 4,13
And I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you (and was hindered hitherto), that I might have some fruit {Or, among}in you also, even as {Or, among}in the rest of the Gentiles.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that are alive, that are left unto the {Or, presence}coming of the Lord, shall in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep.
And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down to Sheol to my son mourning. And his father wept for him.
that ye were at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
For I would not, brethren, have you ignorant, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
who died for us, that, whether we {Or, watch}wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am Jehovah.
{Or, For}But as for me I know that my {Or, vindicator Hebrew: goel.}Redeemer liveth,And at last he will stand up upon the {Hebrew: dust.}earth:
{Or, And after my skin hath been thus destroyed, Yet from my flesh shall I see God}And after my skin, even this body, is destroyed,Then without my flesh shall I see God;
Whom I, even I, shall see, {Or, for myself}on my side,And mine eyes shall behold, and not as a stranger.My {Hebrew: reins.}heart is consumed within me.
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted {Hebrews: sinners.}offenders.
Ye are the children of Jehovah your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.
The wicked is thrust down in his {Or, calamity}evil-doing;But the righteous hath a refuge in his death.
For we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning our affliction which befell us in Asia, that we were weighed down exceedingly, beyond our power, insomuch that we despaired even of life:
And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.
For thou art a holy people unto Jehovah thy God, and Jehovah hath chosen thee to be a people for his own possession, {Or, out of}above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth.
Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.
But forget not this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting {Or, abhorrence}contempt.
But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; and David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead.
{Or, If in this life only we have hoped in Christ &c.}If we have only hoped in Christ in this life, we are of all men most pitiable.
and the tombs were opened; and many bodies of the saints that had fallen asleep were raised;
Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel; and he came into the house of Jehovah, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat.
And all were weeping, and bewailing her: but he said, Weep not; for she is not dead, but sleepeth.
And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!
And they laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead.
and he said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: Jehovah gave, and Jehovah hath taken away; blessed be the name of Jehovah.
These things spake he: and after this he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus is fallen asleep; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
The disciples therefore said unto him, Lord, if he is fallen asleep, he will {Greek: be saved.}recover.
Now Jesus had spoken of his death: but they thought that he spake of taking rest in sleep.
Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet thou shalt neither mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
Sigh, {Hebrew: be silent.}but not aloud, make no mourning for the dead; bind thy headtire upon thee, and put thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
So I spake unto the people in the morning; and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
For David, after he had {Or, served his own generation by the counsel of God, fell asleep Or, served his own generation, fell asleep by the counsel of God}in his own generation served the counsel of God, fell asleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:
And devout men buried Stephen, and made great lamentation over him.
then he appeared to above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain until now, but some are fallen asleep;
Then they also that are fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
and saying, Where is the promise of his {Greek: presence.}coming? for, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.