1 Thessalonians 1:3

1:3 because we recall ¹  in the presence of our God and Father ²  your work of faith and labor of love and endurance of hope ³  in our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 2:9

2:9 For you recall, brothers and sisters, ⁴  our toil and drudgery: By working night and day so as not to impose a burden on any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God.

1 Thessalonians 2:1

Paul’s Ministry in Thessalonica

2:1 For you yourselves know, brothers and sisters, ⁵  about our coming to you – it has not proven to be purposeless. ⁶ 

Colossians 1:2

1:2 to the saints, the faithful ⁷  brothers and sisters ⁸  in Christ, at Colossae. Grace and peace to you ⁹  from God our Father! ¹⁰ 

Colossians 4:18

4:18 I, Paul, write this greeting by my own hand. ¹¹  Remember my chains. ¹²  Grace be with you. ¹³ 

Colossians 4:2

Exhortation to Pray for the Success of Paul’s Mission

4:2 Be devoted to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving.

Colossians 1:3

Paul’s Thanksgiving and Prayer for the Church

1:3 We always ¹⁴  give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,

Hebrews 13:3

13:3 Remember those in prison as though you were in prison with them, ¹⁵  and those ill-treated as though you too felt their torment. ¹⁶ 

Hebrews 13:7

13:7 Remember your leaders, who spoke God’s message to you; reflect on the outcome of their lives and imitate their faith.

¹ 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.

² tn Or the phrase may connect at the end of the verse: “hope…in the presence of our God and Father.”

³ 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.

⁴ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

⁵ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

⁶ tn Grk “has not become empty.” Paul is defending himself against the charge that he lacked earnestness and personal concern for them, but appeared in their city out of greed or egotism. In his defense he appeals to what they recall of his ministry and what has become of it since he left, all of which demonstrates his God-given earnestness and effectiveness.

⁷ tn Grk “and faithful.” The construction in Greek (as well as Paul’s style) suggests that the saints are identical to the faithful; hence, the καί (kai) is best left untranslated (cf. Eph 1:1). See ExSyn 281-82.

⁸ 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).

⁹ tn Or “Grace to you and peace.”

¹⁰ tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (א A C F G I [P] 075 Ï it bo), read “and the Lord Jesus Christ” at the end of this verse, no doubt to conform the wording to the typical Pauline salutation. However, excellent and early witnesses (B D K L Ψ 33 81 1175 1505 1739 1881 al sa) lack this phrase. Since the omission is inexplicable as arising from the longer reading (otherwise, these mss would surely have deleted the phrase in the rest of the corpus Paulinum), it is surely authentic.

¹¹ tn Grk “the greeting by my hand, of Paul.”

¹² tn Or “my imprisonment.”

¹³ tc Most witnesses, including a few important ones (א² D Ψ 075 0278 Ï lat sy), conclude this letter with ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”). Such a conclusion is routinely added by scribes to NT books because a few of these books originally had such an ending (cf. Rom 16:27; Gal 6:18; Jude 25). A majority of Greek witnesses have the concluding ἀμήν in every NT book except Acts, James, and 3 John (and even in these books, ἀμήν is found in some witnesses). It is thus a predictable variant. Further, the external evidence for the omission is quite compelling (א* A B C F G 048 6 33 81 1739* 1881 sa). The strongly preferred reading is therefore the omission of ἀμήν.

¹⁴ tn The adverb πάντοτε (pantote) is understood to modify the indicative εὐχαριστοῦμεν (eucaristoumen) because it precedes περὶ ὑμῶν (peri Jumwn) which probably modifies the indicative and not the participle προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi). But see 1:9 where the same expression occurs and περὶ ὑμῶν modifies the participle “praying” (προσευχόμενοι).

¹⁵ tn Grk “as being imprisoned together.”

¹⁶ tn Or “since you too are vulnerable”; Grk “you also being in the body.”