The Jewish Annotated New Testament (283 page)

8
:
Vengeance
, reminiscent of Jewish texts, often sectarian, forecasting God’s destruction of opponents and even nonmembers;
Jub
. 21.21–24; 1QS 10.20; 4Q511 1–8; CD 8.1–19;
2 Bar
. 54.14–22.
Those who do not know God … those who do not obey the gospel
, perhaps two groups of opponents: pagans (both Christians and Jews said they
do not know God
; Jer 10.25; Gal 4.8; 1 Thess 4.5) and Jews (who know but
do not obey
Christian teaching; Rom 10.16–21). No accusations of hostility from Jews (or Jewish-Christians) appear in 2 Thessalonians, but do elsewhere: Mt 10.23; Acts 13.50; 2 Cor 11.24; 1 Thess 2.14–16;
Mart. Pol
. 12–13; Justin,
Apol
. 1. 31.

1.11
–12: Prayer. 11
:
Worthy of his call
, Jewish election language; Deut 7.6; 26.17; Isa 41.9;
Jub
. 2.9; 15.30–31; Rom 9.6–7; 11.29; Eph 1.18; 1 Pet 2.9; cf. 2.13. The author recalls the believers’ (past) chosenness by God in order to demand (future) good works and faith. Jewish texts link election with demands for Torah-obedience; Josh 24.22; Ps 105.45;
Pss. Sol
. 9–11;
Jub
. 2.17–22;
m. Avot
3.18, on the demand that Israel, as the beloved of God, not forsake the Torah.

12
:
Name
, possibly referring to Isa 66.5 [LXX], and substituting Jesus’ name for God’s.

2.1
–12: The day of the Lord.
The central argument, dispelling belief in the imminence of the end; cf. 1 Thess 5.1–3.

1
–3
: The author fears his authority is threatened by misrepresentation of his views (a forged letter) or others’ teachings.

1
:
Coming
, see 2.8; Mt 24.3; 1 Cor 15.23; 1 Thess 3.13.

2
:
Spirit … word … letter
, the reference seems to be to information given by any means: a message from Paul or another, a reading during worship, or a message (prophecy) given to a member of the community by spiritual means.
Day of the Lord
, an expression from the Hebrew prophets; Isa 13.6; Joel 2.1; Am 5.18.

3
:
Rebellion
, better, “apostasy”: religious transgression will occur first; Ezek 38–39; Joel 2–3;
Jub
. 23.14–23;
4 Ezra
14.14–16;
b. Sanh
. 97b, on scenarios of future wars and upheaval; cf. Mk 13.7–27. It is symbolized by the coming of an unidentified
lawless one
;
Pss. Sol
. 17.11; 1QM 13.2–5;
Sib. Or
. 3.63–74. This may be a false teacher or a Roman emperor claiming divine status.

4
: He insolently challenges God and
exalts himself
. This figure is modeled on foreign oppressors of Israel like Antiochus IV (second century BCE) and Pompey (first century BCE); Dan 11.24–45;
Pss. Sol
. 2.1–2; 17.11. Just as they violated the Jerusalem Temple, he will sit
in the temple
, an image presumably shocking not just to Jews but even to Gentile converts who did not participate in Temple worship. The emphasis in the statement, therefore, falls on the phrase
declaring himself to be God
(as Roman emperors did).

6
–7
: Readers may know the unidentified restrainer’s identity (
what is now restraining him
). Confusingly, the text uses both neutral (
what
) and masculine (
who
) participles. The scenario is clearer:
already
there is
lawlessness
, and restraint on it will soon be
removed
.
Only until … removed
, presumably not applied to
already at work
but rather to the
mystery
or implied hiddenness of the “lawless one” that will end when
he
[is]
revealed
. Unlike the undoubtedly authentic Pauline epistles, “law” here does not refer to the commands of the Torah but to apostasy and false teachings (cf. Rom 10.4–5; Gal 2.16). Present suffering foreshadows future turmoil.

8
:
Jesus’
triumph, described in Jewish images of victory (
breath
that “consumes” [see translators’ note
e
—the same verb is translated “consume” in Lk 9.54; Gal 5.15]) by God or a Davidic messiah; Isa 11.4;
Pss. Sol
. 17.24;
1 En
. 62.2;
4 Ezra
13.10; cf. Rev 19.11–21.

9
–12
: The author returns to the present.
Satan
, though subordinate to God, is blamed for the
deception
of the believers; Zech 3.1–2; Job 1.6–2.7; 1 Chr 21.1;
b. B. Bat
. 16a, on God’s being deceived—seemingly “against his better judgment”—by Satan. In the Bible, God also sometimes deceives people; 1 Kings 22.23 (false prophets); Isa 6.10 (Israel); cf. Rom 11.7–8.

10
:
Truth
, not a generic term, it refers specifically to the “traditions” they were taught; 2.15.
Saved
, recalls the rewards in 1.5,7,9.

2.13
–17: Second thanksgiving.
Parallels 1 Thess 2.13, though not necessarily evidence that either letter is composite.

13
:
First fruits
, if correct (see translators’ note
b
), believers are likened to a Temple offering (Jer 2.3) affirming God’s faithfulness to biblical promises; Rom 8.23; 1 Cor 15.20.
Sanctification
, “making holy” or being set apart
by the Spirit
as a worthy offering.

15
: Summarizing his response to all threats—of persecution, confusion, and dissension—the author demands that readers accept his
traditions
; 3.4; 1 Thess 3.8. On faithfulness to tradition, see Deut 5.32–33; Josephus,
Ag. Ap
. 2.22;
m. Avot
3.17.

16
–17
: See 1 Thess 3.2,11–13.

3.1
–5: Prayer and encouragement. 1
:
Spread rapidly and be glorified
, reflects Christian missionary impulse: successful preaching leads to glorification of God; Mt 5.16; Acts 13.48; Rom 15.9.

3
:
The evil one
may be Satan in 2.9.

5
:
Direct your hearts
, Jewish language of religious intention; Ps 10.17; 1 Chr 29.18;
m. Men
. 13.11;
b. Ber
. 17a: regardless of one’s level of learning, what is most important is that “one directs one’s heart to heaven.”

3.6
–13: Denunciation of idleness. 6
:
Living in idleness
, perhaps because they believed the end had arrived, though the connection to 2.2 is not explicit; 1 Thess 4.11.
Name
, see 3.12; 1 Cor 5.4; Eph 4.17; 1 Thess 4.1.

6
(also 10,12)
:
Command
, stern language, demonstrating the seriousness of the threat.

7, 9
:
Imitate
, 1 Cor 4.16; 11.1; Phil 3.17;
b. Ber
. 62a, on imitating the actions of the rabbis in all areas of life.

8
:
Toil and labor
, Jews and Christians praised labor; Prov 10.4; 1 Thess 2.9; 5.12–14;
Did
. 12.4–5;
Mek. Ex
. 20.9;
m. Avot
2.2 praises combining Torah study and labor, though not all rabbis worked. Some were wealthy, and others were paid a fee for teaching or expected to be supported by the community; cf. Sir 38.24. Idleness may have been unseemly in the eyes of non-Christian neighbors, though some pagans disdained labor, at least by the learned; 1 Thess 4.12.

9
:
Right
, see 1 Cor 9.4–15.

3.14
–15: Warning the disobedient. 14–15
: Readers should
have nothing to do with them
, perhaps ejecting them from communal meals; 3.10; Mt 18.17; 1 Cor 5.3; 2 Jn 1.10; 1QS 6–8. However, they are not to
regard them as enemies
. This appears contradictory, and no specific policies are offered, though the emphasis is on faithfulness to tradition, not rules for membership. Compare the example of Rabbi Eliezer, who was shunned by his colleagues after a legal dispute;
b. B. Metz
. 59b.

3.16
–18: Closing.
Parallels 1 Thess 5.23–28. See a similar blessing, Num 6.24–26.

17
:
Own hand
, see 1 Cor 16.21; Col 4.18. The strong claim here may reflect the fear in 2.2.

1.1
–2: Opening greeting.
Paul
, teacher and mentor, writes to his disciple and co-worker,
Timothy
, to encourage him in his work.
God our Savior
, presumably through
Christ
[“mashia
ḥ
”].
Jesus our hope
, “savior” or “deliverer” (Gk “sotēr,” Heb “yisha‘,” e.g., Ps 24.5 [LXX 23.5]) is a divine title.
Loyal child
, a term of endearment (as also 2 Tim 1.2), not a designation of kinship.
Grace
, Gk “charis,” “favor, thanks”;
mercy
, Gk “eleos,” in LXX for Heb “
ḥ
esed” (e.g., Ps 85.10 [Heb 85.11; LXX 84.11]), “lovingkindness”;
peace
, Gk “eirēnē,” in LXX for Heb “shalom.” The salutation combines Greek and Hebrew (Jewish) greetings.
God the Father
, occasionally used in the Hebrew Bible (e.g., Ps 68.5; Jer 3.4). In Christian usage increasingly it meant the believers’ union with Jesus as God’s (adoptive) children, e.g., Rom 8.15.

1.3
–11: Countering false teaching.
The author argues for a consistent doctrine, supported by his own authority, in distinction to the teachings of rival Christians.