For from you the message of the Lord ¹  has echoed forth not just in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place reports of your faith in God have spread, ²  so that we do not need to say anything.

We ¹  sent Timothy, our brother and fellow worker for God ²  in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen you and encourage you about your faith,

Now may the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your spirit and soul and body be kept entirely blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

so that no one would be shaken by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this.

For God did not destine us for wrath ¹  but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

He died ¹  for us so that whether we are alert or asleep ²  we will come to life together with him.

And so ¹  we too constantly thank God that when you received God’s message that you heard from us, ²  you accepted it not as a human message, ³  but as it truly is, God’s message, which is at work among you who believe.

From Paul ¹  and Silvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians ²  in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace and peace to you! ³ 

For who is our hope or joy or crown to boast of ¹  before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not of course you?

Now may God our Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you.

In this matter no one should violate the rights of his brother or take advantage of him, ¹  because the Lord is the avenger in all these cases, ²  as we also told you earlier and warned you solemnly.

Consequently the one who rejects this is not rejecting human authority ¹  but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Then we who are alive, who are left, ¹  will be suddenly caught up ²  together ³  with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord.

Now when ¹  they are saying, “There is peace and security,” ²  then sudden destruction comes on them, like labor pains ³  on a pregnant woman, and they will surely not escape.

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.

so that your hearts are strengthened in holiness to be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. ¹ 

For we tell you this by the word of the Lord, ¹  that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will surely not go ahead of those who have fallen asleep.