The Apostles’ Labor and Blameless Conduct (1 Thessalonians 2:9–12)

1 Thess. 2:9. For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil; for working night and day, that we might not burden any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God.

The third characteristic of the Apostles’ manner is complete self-denial. “For you remember…” This provides the reason for what was said before, answering as it were the question: from what is it evident that the Apostles were to the Thessalonians as a mother, ready to transmit their very souls to them, as to beloved ones? From the way we conducted ourselves among you. Remember how we behaved among you, and you will be assured how we loved you and were ready to give you everything.

“Our labor and toil” — κοπον και μοχθον. He did not say: remember our benefactions—but something more impressive: our labor and toil (Theophylact). These two words appear together also in 2 Thess. 3:8 and 2 Cor. 11:27. The latter intensifies the former, and together they express the single thought that the Apostles did not merely touch upon labor lightly but applied themselves to it strenuously, engaging in labor that was memorable (Chrysostom). Yet it is not right to distinguish them so as to refer κοπονto preaching and toil (μοχθον) to the manual trade. Both words encompass both activities.

“Night and day.” This is a common phrase expressing the uninterrupted continuance of something throughout the full day. We say “day and night,” as do the Latins: diu noctuque (for a long time, for a very long time). The same usage is found in Scripture (Lk. 18:7; Acts 9:24; Rev. 20:10). Night is placed first because among the Jews (and Athenians) the day began at sunset and ended at sunset. There is no basis for dividing them, assigning night to the manual trade and day to preaching. The holy Paul preached at night as well (Acts 20:7). By this the holy Apostle merely wishes to say that they were not idle for a single moment, were continuously in labor: at times making tents, at times preaching. Theodoret says: “(The Apostle) showed the extreme intensity of his efforts, not only by pointing to ‘labor and toil,’ but by adding the nighttime hours to the days.”

Working — εργαζεσθαι— the usual expression for bodily labor and especially handwork, the working of hands (1 Cor. 4:12; Eph. 4:28). The holy Paul refers to his trade—tent-making, the making of tents for travelers, soldiers, and gardens (Acts 18:3). The grammatical form shows that the manual work is not the main point in the Apostle’s speech but subordinate; the main point is the preaching.

“That we might not burden any of you”—understood as: with our support. But to the Corinthians the holy Paul wrote: “I robbed other churches, taking wages from them to serve you” (2 Cor. 11:8). One cannot therefore conclude from this that the Thessalonian Christians were poor. The Apostle acted in this way everywhere, out of fear of placing an obstacle to the spread of the Gospel if he required support from those being converted. “See what zeal this is and what care not to scandalize anyone” (Theophylact). “Observe how Paul conducted himself! Being a preacher and Apostle of the universe, and having been counted worthy of such high honor, he worked with his own hands so as not to burden those who were being instructed” (Chrysostom).

“We preached to you” — εις υμαςis similar to υμιν in its general sense, but has its own nuance—not merely that they preached “among them,” but also that the preaching entered into them, or sowed seeds of divine truths within them.

1 Thess. 2:10. You are witnesses, and God, how devoutly and righteously and blamelessly we conducted ourselves toward you who believe.

From this tenth verse the text speaks of how the holy Apostles conducted themselves after the conversion of the Thessalonians. This is indicated by the words: “toward you who believe”—that is, after you had come to faith. Consequently, 1 Thess. 2:11 and 1 Thess. 2:12 tell how and in what the Apostles taught those who had already believed. Everything said up to and including 1 Thess. 2:9 relates to the activity of the Apostles in the conversion of the Thessalonians, while 1 Thess. 2:10, 11, 12 relate to their conduct after the conversion.

“You are witnesses, and God.” He places witnesses at the outset, so as to dispose the listeners more impressively to receive the word without hesitation or doubt, “providing thereby a greater degree of credibility to his words and adding what could most particularly persuade them” (Chrysostom). Since the speech is about to touch not only on the external—visible to all and easily observed and judged by all—but also on the innermost feelings and dispositions, especially in relation to God, the Apostle calls as witnesses not the Thessalonians alone but God as well. Of devotion—that is, piety and the fear of God—God alone can know with certainty. This is why the Apostle says, as it were: I call to witness your conscience and God, who is the witness of my conscience. “You are witnesses of what you saw, and God is the witness of what you could not see” (Oecumenius). “For what is visible is known to men, but what is hidden from men is known to God” (Theodoret).

“Devoutly”—that is, piously, reverently, with the fear of God, always mindful that we are performing God’s work and under the eyes of God, and therefore “without cunning, without deception, without people-pleasing, without ungodly motives” (Oecumenius).

“Righteously”—wronging no one, rendering to each his due, in general conducting oneself in relation to others according to the full breadth of the commandments that govern such conduct.

“Blamelessly,” αμεμπτως — irreproachably, soberly, chastely, temperately, decorously; in general in such a way that no one can complain that we indulged ourselves in anything, that we were not strict with ourselves. It is clear that by the word “blamelessly” the holy Paul points to a lawful, God-pleasing manner of conduct in relation to one’s own self. This interpretation requires no forcing to satisfy the customary division of human duties according to the three specified relationships. Here it may mean the same as “soberly” in Tit. 2:12. But in no way can it be taken as a concept encompassing both of the foregoing—devoutly and righteously—and still less as a determination of the same thing expressed by “righteously,” only from the negative side. For it stands in the sequence with the first two as a distinct part equal to them, and should not be conflated with them.

“Toward you who believe”—that is, after you had received the Gospel and come to faith. According to the holy Chrysostom, the Apostle Paul speaks here of his conduct among the Thessalonians, defines the character of his behavior among them, and says: devoutly, righteously, and blamelessly we conducted ourselves—or held ourselves—before you who believe. These are the characteristic features in which the image of their conduct was to have imprinted itself on the souls of the Thessalonians—how radiant, pure, and attractive it was to their eyes, illumined by faith.

1 Thess. 2:11–12. As you know, how we exhorted each one of you as a father does his own children, and comforted and charged you to walk worthy of God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

First of all the grammatical structure of the passage must be established. “As you know, that…”—because, or inasmuch as you know, each one… “exhorting and comforting” and the rest. The governing verb is lacking for these participles: “exhorting” and the rest. To supply it, some supplement the text with the addition of ηγαπησαμεν or εφιλησαμεν, so that it would read: because you know how we, as a father with his children, loved each one of you, imploring and so forth. This addition is entirely arbitrary! Others supply more directly the word ημεν — so that it would read: you know, how each one… we were imploring, or implored. Agreeing that this is permissible, still others say that no such supplement is necessary, since a similar verb already occurs above—namely at the end of 1 Thess. 2:10: “toward you who believe” — εγενηθημεν. The Apostle was mentally repeating it here and did not write it out again, so as not to overshadow “exhorting” and the rest, in which, together with “walk worthy of God,” all the force of the discourse lies. Those who have believed must live according to faith. Since this life is not only interior but must also find external expression, and since the former external customs—pagan in many respects, even in substantial ones—did not accord with the Gospel, the Apostles, having converted the Thessalonians, occupied themselves with ordering the life of the new Christians in their domestic and civic existence, in addition to the religious, which is the heart of the matter.

“Each one of you…” The holy Chrysostom: “He passed over no one, neither small nor great, neither rich nor poor—everyone who had need, without distinction.” Evidently there was occasion to speak with each one of the newly converted, and with some perhaps much was talked over and explained before he understood and agreed to order his life according to the spirit of the new life. Each person may have had circumstances of daily life requiring clarification on how to act in them in a Gospel-like manner.

“As a father does his children”—points to the source of such tireless care in fatherly love for them. Earlier, when the Apostle spoke of their conversion, when they were only just being born to the spiritual life, he compared himself to a mother; but now, when they have been reborn and need to be raised and led toward perfection, he compares himself to a father. In the correction of morals it was necessary to display not only the tenderness of maternal feeling, but also the firmness of paternal will and authority, the experience and wisdom by which fathers are usually distinguished and to which mothers are not quite equal.

“Exhorting you and comforting you and charging you.” If one considers primarily the persons toward whom all these verbal actions are directed, they should be understood as different rhetorical methods aimed at ordering the life of the Thessalonians. The Apostle wishes to say, as it were: we exhausted all means of persuasion to dispose you to walk worthy of God. In that case: “exhorting” — παρακαλουντες— will mean: we persuaded, urged, acted on the mind; “comforting” — παραμυθουμενοι— we stirred sympathy, disposed them to love the new manner of life as God-pleasing and salvific, acting on feeling and heart. “Charging,” μαρτυρομενοι — with testimonies of Scripture, with the words of the living God, we bound and adjured them, bringing the will to inspired resolution for a new way of life with readiness for all manner of sacrifice for its sake. But if one considers the object of these actions—to walk worthy of God—one may see in each of them a reference to particular aspects of that walking worthy of God. In that case: exhorting — παρακαλουντες— will mean: we implored and persuaded them to receive the faith and keep it; comforting — παραμυθουμενοι— we comforted them in the tribulations that were present and encouraged them to meet courageously those that were to come; charging — μαρτυρομενοι— in the name of God we bound and adjured them to live according to the Gospel.

“To walk worthy of God”—or worthy of the gospel (Phil. 1:27; cf. Rom. 16:2; 3 Jn. 6), or worthy of the calling (Eph. 4:1); in general in all pleasing of God and every good work (Col. 1:10), as befits those who have received new life (1 Pet. 1:23; Rom. 6:11 and following) and the children of light (Eph. 5:8). This is the chief concern and goal for those who have come to believe in the Lord. Faith does not accomplish everything. It gives entry into the kingdom of Christ—the Church. One who has entered has the chief obligation: to walk as befits the sons of the kingdom. To this, as is evident, the Apostles paid careful attention.

“Who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.” The kingdom and glory will be revealed at the resurrection (Rom. 8:17), but the Thessalonians are already designated as called into them, for the goal of the whole economy of salvation—of all the means of grace—is there. Through faith and grace they are designated for the inheritance of the eternal kingdom and glory; or in other words: they are called into the kingdom of grace, that they may inherit the kingdom of glory, if the conditions for receiving this inheritance are preserved—all of which are encompassed in the single phrase “to walk worthy of God.” They are called into the kingdom—to be under royal authority, that they may afterwards share in the reign. Those who are unconditionally submissive to the will of the Lord here will reign with Him there. In the future the glory of human nature restored will be revealed. But just as here it is purified by the power of God, so there it will be glorified by the glory of God: in all things the glory of God will shine. It is into this glory that believing Christians are called.

This section too concludes with a turning of attention to the future life, just as the first did (1 Thess. 1:10)! So strongly was the Apostle occupied with that thought, and so powerful a support for the Christian character in Christians did he see in it.