1796 1797 1 THESSALONIANS 2:171 THESSALONIANS 1:10

with words of flattery,1 as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—t

God is witness. 6 u

Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, v though we could have made w demands as x apostles of Christ. 7 But we were y gentle2 among you, z like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. 8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God a but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.

9 For you remember, brothers, b our labor and toil: we c worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. 10 You are witnesses, and d God also, e how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. 11 For you know how, f like a father with his children, 12 we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and g

charged h you to walk in a manner worthy

of God, i who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

13 And j we also thank God constantly3 for this, that when you received k the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it l not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, m which is at work in you believers. 14 For you, brothers, n became imita-tors of o the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For p you suffered the same things from your own countrymen q as they did from the Jews, 15

r who killed both the Lord

Jesus and s the prophets, and drove us out, and displease God and t oppose all mankind 16

u by

hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles that they might be saved—so as always v to fill up the measure of their sins. But w God’s wrath has come upon them at last!4

Paul ’s Longing to See Them Again17 But since we were torn away from you,

brothers, for a short time, x in person not in

of w reception we had among you, and how x

you turned to God y from idols to serve the living and z true God, 10 and a to wait for his Son b from heaven, c whom he raised from the dead, Jesus d who delivers us from e the wrath to come.

Paul ’s Ministry to the Thessalonians

2 For you yourselves know, brothers,1 that our f coming to you g was not in vain. 2 But

though we had already suffered and been

shamefully treated h at Philippi, as you know, i we had boldness in our God j to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much k

conflict. 3 For l our appeal does not spring from m error or n impurity or o any attempt to deceive, 4 but just as we have been approved by God p to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not q to please man, but to please God r

who tests our hearts. 5 s

For we never came

9w ch. 2:1 x See Acts 14:15 y 1!Cor. 12:2; [Gal. 4:8] z See John 17:3 10a See 1!Cor. 1:7 b ch. 4:16;

[2!Thess. 1:10]; See Acts 1:11 c See Acts 2:24 d Col. 1:13 e ch. 2:16; 5:9; Matt. 3:7; Rom. 5:9

Chapter 21f ch. 1:9 g [2!Thess. 1:10]

2h Acts 16:22-24 i See Acts 4:13 j Acts 17:2-9 k Phil. 1:303l [2!Cor. 2:17] m 2!Thess. 2:11 n ch. 4:7 o 2!Cor. 4:24p See Gal. 2:7 q See Gal. 1:10

1!Or brothers and sisters; also verses 9, 14, 17

r Ps. 17:3; See Rom. 8:27 5s See Acts 20:33

5t ver. 10; See Rom. 1:96u [2!Cor. 4:5]; See John 5:41 v 1!Cor. 9:4; 2!Thess. 3:9; [Philem. 8, 9] w [ver. 9; 2!Cor. 11:9] x See 1!Cor. 9:17y 2!Tim. 2:24; [1!Cor. 14:20] z [ver. 11; Isa. 49:23; 60:16]8a See 2!Cor. 12:159b 2!Thess. 3:8; [Phil. 4:16] c See Acts 18:310d ver. 5 e See ch. 1:511f [ver. 7]; See 1!Cor. 4:1412g Eph. 4:17 h See Eph. 4:1

i ch. 5:24; 2!Thess. 2:14; 1!Pet. 5:10; See Rom. 8:2813j See ch. 1:2, 3 k [Rom.

10:17] l [Gal. 4:14]; See Matt. 10:20 m Heb. 4:1214n See ch. 1:6 o See 1!Cor.

7:17 p ch. 3:4; Acts 17:5; 2!Thess. 1:4, 5 q [Heb. 10:33, 34]15r See Luke 24:20 s Jer. 2:30;

Matt. 23:29-34; See Matt. 5:12 t [Esth. 3:8]16u Acts 13:45, 50; 14:2, 19;

17:5, 13; 18:12; 22:21, 22 v See Gen. 15:16 w See ch. 1:1017x 1!Cor. 5:3; Col. 2:5

1!Or with a !attering speech 2!Some manuscripts infants 3!Or without ceasing 4!Or completely, or forever

Mediterranean Sea

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SARMATIA

GALLIA

HISPANIA

AFRICA

EGYPT

ARABIA

ARMENIA

ILLYRIA

BRITTANIA

ITALIA ASIA SYRIA

PARTHIA

GERMANIA

GALATIA

ACHAIA

DACIA

Rome

Carthage Hippo Regius

Colonia Augusta Treverorum

Massalia

Corduba Syracuse Carthago Nova

Cyrene

Gortyna

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Jerusalem Paphos

Ephesus

Iconium Antioch Tarsus

Damascus

Dura- Europos

Babylon Ctesiphon

Nicomedia

Thebes

Thessalonica Philippi

Athens Corinth Puteoli

0 500 1000 km

0 250 500 750 miRoman Empire at its greatest extent (A.D. 117)

Growth of Christianity during the first century

Growth of Christianity during the second century