The Sending of Timothy (1 Thessalonians 3:1–5)

1 Thess. 3:1. Therefore, when we could no longer endure it, we thought it good to be left in Athens alone.

“Therefore”—denotes a conclusion from the preceding. The Apostle desired to be with the Thessalonians himself, but since there was no possibility of this coming about, he resolves to accomplish the desired communion with them through another trusted person. Or thus: since your standing in faith is so important to me that in it lies my joy and crown of exultation, and since I do not know what condition you are in, I hasten to send word to you—to find out what is happening with you and to you. Not knowing about you became unbearable for me. It had been eased by the hope of being with you soon; but since this proved difficult to accomplish, I could endure it no longer. And the conclusion — 1 Thess. 3:5 — agrees with this: since you are my crown, I sent—so that “our labor should not be in vain.”

“Could no longer endure” — μηκετι στεγοντες. This verb has various meanings. Properly—to cover, hence to shelter, protect, hence to sustain, bear, and endure: one might render it: no longer being able to conceal my desire to see you, no longer having the strength to suppress it in silence. But since from the flow of the discourse it is evident that the Apostle was greatly anxious about the Thessalonians, and then was extremely gladdened when the holy Timothy, upon returning, informed him of the Thessalonians’ steadfastness, it is more pertinent to give here the meaning of “endure, bear.” No longer being able to bear the anxiety caused me by not knowing about your condition, I resolved to send Timothy to you.

“We thought it good”—denotes not only willingness, but a resolution determined by deliberation; we considered it good—and desired it. Chrysostom: “We thought it good—meaning: we resolved.” Theophylact: “We chose, deliberated, preferred.”

“To be left alone.” “These words are testimony of great love for the Thessalonians” (Damascene). To remain alone for so long could not have been pleasant for him, and moreover, in Athens there lay before him great labor that made the assistance of a co-worker necessary. But despite this, he resolved to send Timothy. So greatly was he occupied and troubled by the condition of the Thessalonians.

1 Thess. 3:2. And we sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God and our fellow worker in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith.

Being unable to visit the Thessalonians himself, the holy Paul sends Timothy to them. “Such is the manner of action of this holy Apostle,” remarks Oecumenius, “that when, because of trials and the constraint arising from them, he cannot himself go to some of his disciples, he sends others to them and through their mediation is present with them and converses with them. So he acted regarding the Philippians, so regarding the Corinthians, sending this same Timothy to them and through him conversing with them.”

Since the holy Timothy was likely not personally known to the Thessalonians, and yet was to strengthen and comfort them—to act with authoritative words—the holy Apostle tells them who this messenger is, and thereby suggests that he is capable of taking the place of the Apostle Paul himself, and that they may with confidence and indeed in conscience must listen to him as to the Apostle Paul himself. At the same time he showed that in sending such a messenger he has very serious concern for them, concern that touched on the most important aspects of their life, and thereby obliges them to give their full attention. The holy Chrysostom says that the holy Paul praises Timothy thus—“not to exalt Timothy, but to honor them by sending to them a co-worker and minister of the gospel, saying as it were: drawing him away from other affairs, we sent to you a minister of God and our fellow worker in the gospel of Christ.” (The same in Oecumenius and Theophylact.)

“And we sent Timothy, our brother.” Christians called each other brothers, as those reborn from one Spirit in one font, joined with one Lord, and forming one Church. But the Apostle, calling Timothy thus, wishes to say that he is the closest person to him, that they are bound by sincere love, and that he is to them what the Apostle himself is—a brother to whom the Apostle entrusts everything, whom they too can trust, for his brother is their brother.

“Minister of God.” By this is indicated the special appointment of the holy Timothy by God Himself. A minister of God is an executor of God’s special purposes, one entrusted by God to accomplish something for the glory of God, in the fulfillment of the plans of Providence. Such too was Tychicus—“a faithful minister in the Lord” (Eph. 6:21; Col. 4:7). And Apollos, and even Paul himself—what are they but “ministers—as the Lord gave to each” (1 Cor. 3:5).

“Our fellow worker…” Defines what precisely Timothy’s service to God consists in. He is appointed to be a fellow worker with the holy Paul in the preaching of the Gospel. He is so called also in the Epistle to the Romans (1 Thess. 16:21), where the Apostle calls himself serving “God in his spirit in the gospel of His Son” (Rom. 1:9). He so names also Epaphroditus the Philippian (Phil. 2:25).

“To establish and to encourage”—the purpose of the sending. Both words together encompass all the aspects on which the holy Timothy could and should act. So too Silas and Judas, sent from Jerusalem to Antioch, “with many words encouraged and strengthened the brothers,” after the troubles caused among them by zealots of the Jewish law (Acts 15:32). The task of the holy Timothy was to strengthen still more those who were standing in faith, to inspire the weak and those ready to waver to steadfastness, to comfort those who were grieving because of persecution, so that no one should fall or apostatize. “The Thessalonians had need of strengthening and encouragement, so as not to abandon the faith” (Theophylact).

If one examines each word separately: “to establish”—to strengthen the spirit in its pattern of thought and principles of life, to lend strength to the convictions received by faith and to the resolution to live according to faith’s demands. “To establish, as those who are wavering” (Oecumenius). “Not to propose new teaching to you, but to establish you in the former teaching” (Theodoret). To encourage—to calm the heart that is troubled, ailing, and grieving because of the unpleasantnesses in which the Thessalonians had been placed by reason of accepting the Gospel. On another occasion the Apostle wrote to them: May the Lord “comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word” (in thought and conviction) “and work” (in the principles of life according to faith) (2 Thess. 2:17).

“Concerning your faith”—can be related only to “to encourage.” The heart was in grief and turmoil because of the circumstances brought on by faith. The grief of the heart thereby cast a shadow over faith itself. By giving a God-befitting interpretation of the hardships they had encountered, the holy Timothy could comfort their hearts and thereby restore the radiant face of faith in the consciousness of the believers. “Concerning your faith” will then mean: regarding your faith in these circumstances, called forth by your believing.

1 Thess. 3:3. That no one should be shaken by these tribulations; for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this.

The work of establishing and encouraging by word was directed toward preventing the shaking of faith by the action of tribulations (Oecumenius)—so that no one should waver in these tribulations. The Apostle points to specific, known, and moreover continuing tribulations, referring, of course, to those that were the consequence of preaching the Gospel and of faith in it. Since these tribulations touched both those who had believed and the Apostles, both are meant here. It is very natural that the young Christian community, which had so recently come to know the principles of faith, could be strongly shaken by troubles and oppressions, which struck the heart all the more painfully the more immediately they followed the acceptance of the Gospel and the closer were the other persons who, not having accepted the Gospel, were enjoying life in peace as usual. This is why the Apostle used the word “shaken” — σαινεσθαι— which implies a wavering induced by some lure, or by flattering promises and hopes. He wished to express precisely: that no one, because of tribulations on account of accepted convictions and principles of life, should waver in loyalty to them through the lure of a peaceful life and flattering expectations. The blessed Theophylact writes: “The Apostle here indicates what benefit the strengthening and encouragement from the holy Timothy was meant to bring them. This, he says, is that they should not be thrown into confusion, not lose heart and weaken. For the devil, when he finds a favorable moment for temptation, shakes the unstable by recalling their former peace, so that they might abandon what was the cause of their tribulations.” Their wavering might also be caused by the tribulations of the Apostles: how is it that God’s messengers suffer such attacks and encounter such obstacles?! Even though they work miracles, they are at the same time found weak and utterly humiliated, endure beatings and are imprisoned and put in chains. “Disciples,” says the holy Chrysostom, “are distressed not so much in their own trials as when they see the trials of their teachers, just as a soldier is not so much distressed by his own wounds as when he sees his leader wounded.” (The same in Oecumenius and Theophylact.)

“For you yourselves know,” from the words of the holy Apostle during his stay in Thessalonica, as he himself says immediately after, “that we are appointed to this.” Who is this? All who cling to the Lord by faith, and the Apostles themselves. So it is determined from above; such is God’s plan! So it was, is, and will be, for darkness cannot be on peaceful terms with the light that is brought into its midst by the Gospel and by believers. Chrysostom says: “We are appointed to this”—the Apostle refers this to all Christians. He also declares in another place that “all who wish to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12). And Christ Himself says: “in the world you will have tribulation” (Jn. 16:33). He did not say simply: we endure trials, but “we are appointed to this”—meaning: we were born for this. Oecumenius adds: “For this we have been allotted (κεκληρωμεθα), for this we have been inscribed.” “Let us hear that Christians are appointed to suffer tribulation: for he did not say this only of the Apostles” (Theophylact). And throughout all of Scripture the thought is variously impressed that tribulations are inseparable from the Apostles and from Christians. To the Apostles the Lord said that He sends them “as sheep in the midst of wolves” (Mt. 10:16), that the world will hate them as it hated Him (Jn. 15:18–19), to the point that everyone who kills them will think that he is thereby rendering service to God. The Apostles were conscious of this and expected nothing but hardships and tribulations. This is why they called themselves “doomed to death” (1 Cor. 4:9)—that is, condemned to death—and were well pleased in distresses, in straitnesses, and in tribulations (2 Cor. 12:10). But also for all Christians “through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22)—by this narrow and sorrowful path (Mt. 7:14; Lk. 13:24)—and when they were in trials, they were instructed not to think that something strange was happening to them (1 Pet. 4:12).

Oecumenius very aptly remarks here that by this word the holy Paul gives the Thessalonians consolation not only for the present tribulations but for future ones as well. For if they are appointed to suffer tribulation, there is nothing to wonder at or be troubled by when tribulations come.

1 Thess. 3:4. For indeed, when we were with you, we told you beforehand that we were going to suffer tribulation, even as it happened, and you know.

He indicates how the Thessalonians know of the inevitability of tribulations. The Apostle had told them of this beforehand. And he told them of it so that they would not be troubled when tribulations came. The Apostles did not entice with flattering earthly hopes but disclosed the work of faith in all its nakedness, with all its unpleasant consequences, so that if anyone believed, he believed by conviction in the truth of the Gospel alone and not by any lure. When he says further “even as it happened”—all occurred exactly as we predicted—by vindicating the accuracy of the prediction of the consequences of believing, he also sets faith itself in a supernatural light and thereby strengthens conviction in its truth. “They should not be troubled by tribulations,” says the holy Chrysostom, “because nothing unusual and unexpected has happened to us in this. And this was sufficient for their encouragement. Do you see, even Christ said to His disciples: ‘And now I have told you before it comes to pass, that when it does come to pass, you may believe’ (Jn. 14:29). For it is greatly consoling to disciples when they hear from their teachers what will happen to them. Just as a sick person, if he hears beforehand from the physician what will happen to him, is not too troubled, but if something happens to him unexpectedly, so that even the physician is at a loss and the illness exceeds his skill, then the sick person grieves and is troubled: so it is here.”

“We would suffer tribulation”—all of us: both you who believed and we who proclaimed faith to you. What consolation for the Thessalonians, when the Apostle calls their tribulations his own as well, apart from those he himself was enduring!

1 Thess. 3:5. For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, lest somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain.

“For this reason”—because of such calamities and tribulations that have overtaken us. “Even I”—presupposes another. Who else? Some say it is the Thessalonians; others say it is the Christians surrounding the Apostle; still others say the holy Paul spoke this way simply to single himself out, as in verse 1 Thess. 2:18. If this way of explaining is used, the first supposition is the closest. The Apostle says, as it were: I told you beforehand that we would suffer tribulation; the tribulations immediately followed, as you know. They separated us, and thereby further increased their weight. You were certainly anxious about me—what was happening with me and where I was. No less was I anxious about you—and, bearing it no longer, I sent, and so forth. But it will be more direct if we accept this translation: “for this reason,” in these circumstances, “even I sent” to you.

“Being unable to bear it, I sent.” “He does this from an abundance of love; for those who love, from ardent zeal, fear even for what is safe. Although he said: ‘we are appointed to this,’ the excessive multitude of evils frightened me. He did not say: having noticed something bad in you, I sent—but ‘I could no longer bear it’—which specifically proceeds from love. In tribulations we set aside the remembrance of all, but he so feared and trembled for his children that even Timothy—who was his consolation, his companion and co-worker—he sent to them” (Chrysostom).

“To learn about your faith”—the state of faith—whether you are firm, whether you have yielded to temptation, whether you are standing firm. “Since I could no longer endure the thought that was troubling me, I sent, wishing to ascertain whether any harm had befallen you from the trials and whether the labor we took up for your sake had been wasted” (Theodoret).

“Lest somehow the tempter had tempted you.” Anyone who by his corrupt words might have shaken the recent convictions of the Thessalonians and drawn them away from faith in the Lord could be called a tempter. But in the Apostle’s thought it is evidently Satan who is meant here—whom he already mentioned in 1 Thess. 2:18. Acting in the sons of disobedience (Eph. 2:2), he is the tempter κατ’ εξοχην (Mt. 4:3, 10; 1 Cor. 7:5). The Apostle knew that the Thessalonians suffered after his departure, or were subject to external temptation; but he did not know what effect these tribulations had on the hearts of the Thessalonians. It was about this he wished to know: had Satan shaken them? Tribulations and persecutions of themselves are not temptations. They are part of the order of things and serve for good. Out of them, or on occasion of them, Satan contrives temptations when, approaching the heart, he implants doubts and shakes faith. “Do you see that being troubled in tribulation is the work of the devil and his cunning? He calls wavering the temptation from the devil. He alone is truly tempted who is already wavering, who has already received the bewitchment of the devil” (Chrysostom).

“And our labor would be in vain.” If it turns out that he has tempted—that is, shaken—then all our labor expended on you is for nothing, wasted. Properly speaking, the labor of the Apostles, even without success, could not be wasted when everything possible was done. But the Apostle is looking not at rewards from God but at his own intentions in apostolic labors. He does not labor merely for the sake of laboring, but always with the fruit of labor in view—the glory of the Gospel and of faith in the Lord—so that when this does not come about, he counts the labor as no labor; it is all the same as if he had not labored—for such labor, in his view, one can expect nothing from the Lord either. Earlier he said: you are joy and crown—implying: if you stand in faith. The Apostle here touches on the Thessalonians’ love for him, having experienced his fatherly solicitude. Love makes good a common thing, and the loss of one calls forth the sympathy and assistance of others. It is on this that the Apostle strikes, by mentioning the futility of his labor. In this he gives a motive for standing firm in faith, saying, as it were: you would not resolve to offend me by depriving my labor for you of its fruit. Theophylact writes: “If they had gone astray—what is that to you, Paul? Your labor will not remain without full reward from God.” The holy Chrysostom paraphrases more fully: “For if they had even gone astray, it would not be through your fault or your negligence. But in that case, he says, because of the strong brotherly love, I would have counted my labor lost.”