9 For they themselves give the news of how we came among you; and how you were turned from images to God, to the worship of a true and living God,
And this is the purpose of all our work and our fighting, because our hope is in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, and specially of those who have faith.
But at that time, having no knowledge of God, you were servants to those who by right are no gods: But now that you have come to have knowledge of God, or more truly, God has knowledge of you, how is it that you go back again to the poor and feeble first things, desiring to be servants to them again?
Good people, why are you doing these things? We are men with the same feelings as you, and we give you the good news so that you may be turned away from these foolish things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all things in them:
But still the number of the children of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which may not be measured or numbered; and in place of its being said to them, You are not my people, it will be said to them, You are the sons of the living God
For you yourselves, brothers, are conscious that our coming among you was not without effect:
Because our good news came to you, not in word only, but in power, and in the Holy Spirit, so that you were completely certain of it; even as you saw what our behaviour to you was like from our love to you. And you took us and the Lord as your example, after the word had come to you in much trouble, with joy in the Holy Spirit;
And what agreement has the house of God with images? for we are a house of the living God; even as God has said, I will be living among them, and walking with them; and I will be their God, and they will be my people. For which cause, Come out from among them, and be separate, says the Lord, and let no unclean thing come near you; and I will take you for myself,
And in the place where it was said to them, You are not my people, there they will be named the sons of the living God.
And I will keep you safe from the people, and from the Gentiles, to whom I send you, To make their eyes open, turning them from the dark to the light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may have forgiveness of sins and a heritage among those who are made holy by faith in me.
This is what the Lord of armies has said: It will again come about that when peoples and those living in great towns come, And the people of one town go to another and say, Let us certainly go with a request for grace from the Lord, and to give worship to the Lord of armies, then I will go with you. And great peoples and strong nations will come to give worship to the Lord of armies in Jerusalem and to make requests for grace from the Lord. This is what the Lord of armies has said: In those days, ten men from all the languages of the nations will put out their hands and take a grip of the skirt of him who is a Jew, saying, We will go with you, for it has come to our ears that God is with you.
The Lord will let himself be seen by them: for he will make all the gods of the earth feeble; and men will go down before him in worship, everyone from his place, even all the sea-lands of the nations.
O Lord, my strength and my strong tower, my safe place in the day of trouble, the nations will come to you from the ends of the earth, and say, The heritage of our fathers is nothing but deceit, even false things in which there is no profit.
But the Lord is the true God; he is the living God and an eternal king: when he is angry, the earth is shaking with fear, and the nations give way before his wrath.
It may be that the Lord your God will give ear to the words of the Rab-shakeh, whom the king of Assyria, his master, has sent to say evil things against the living God, and will make his words come to nothing: so make your prayer for the rest of the people.
And the high looks of man will be put to shame, and the pride of men will be made low: and only the Lord will be lifted up in that day. And the images will never be seen again. And men will go into cracks of the rocks, and into holes of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out of his place, shaking the earth with his strength. In that day men will put their images of silver and of gold, which they made for worship, in the keeping of the beasts of the dark places; To take cover in the cracks of the rocks, and in the holes of the hills, for fear of the Lord, and before the glory of his power, when he comes out of his place, shaking the earth with his strength.
My soul is dry for need of God, the living God; when may I come and see the face of God?
Your servant has overcome lion and bear: and the fate of this Philistine, who is without circumcision, will be like theirs, seeing that he has put shame on the armies of the living God.
For what man is there in all the earth, who, hearing the voice of the living God as we have, out of the heart of the fire, has been kept from death?
But you have come to the mountain of Zion, to the place of the living God, to the Jerusalem which is in heaven, and to an army of angels which may not be numbered,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 1 Thessalonians 1
Commentary on 1 Thessalonians 1 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 1
After the introduction (v. 1) the apostle begins with a thanksgiving to God for the saving benefits bestowed on them (v. 2-5). And then mentions the sure evidences of the good success of the gospel among them, which was notorious and famous in several other places (v. 6-10).
1Th 1:1
In this introduction we have,
1Th 1:2-5
1Th 1:6-10
In these words we have the evidence of the apostle's success among the Thessalonians, which was notorious and famous in several places. For,