2 Thessalonians — Chapter 3
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1Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may spread quickly and be held in honor, just as it was with you.
2And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men; for not everyone holds to the faith.
3But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.
4And we have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do what we command.
5May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.
6Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from any brother who leads an undisciplined life that is not in keeping with the tradition you received from us.
7For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not undisciplined among you,
8nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. Instead, in labor and toil, we worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you.
9Not that we lack this right, but we wanted to offer ourselves as an example for you to imitate.
10For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”
11For we hear that some of you are leading undisciplined lives, accomplishing nothing, but being busybodies.
12We command and urge such people by our Lord Jesus Christ to begin working quietly to earn their own living.
13But as for you, brothers, do not grow weary in well-doing.
14Take note of anyone who does not obey the instructions we have given in this letter. Do not associate with him, so that he may be ashamed.
15Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
16Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.
17This greeting is in my own hand—Paul. This is my mark in every letter; it is the way I write.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you.
1Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even as it is with you:
2And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.
3But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil.
4And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command you.
5And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
6Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.
7For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you;
8Neither did we eat any man’s bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you:
9Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us.
10For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.
11For we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly, working not at all, but are busybodies.
12Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.
13But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.
14And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.
15Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
16Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.
17The salutation of Paul with mine own hand, which is the token in every epistle: so I write.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
1Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run and be glorified, even as also [it is] with you;
2and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and evil men; for all have not faith.
3But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and guard you from the evil [one].
4And we have confidence in the Lord touching you, that ye both do and will do the things which we command.
5And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ.
6Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which they received of us.
7For yourselves know how ye ought to imitate us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you;
8neither did we eat bread for nought at any man`s hand, but in labor and travail, working night and day, that we might not burden any of you:
9not because we have not the right, but to make ourselves and ensample unto you, that ye should imitate us.
10For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, If any will not work, neither let him eat.
11For we hear of some that walk among you disorderly, that work not at all, but are busybodies.
12Now them that are such we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.
13But ye, brethren, be not weary in well-doing.
14And if any man obeyeth not our word by this epistle, note that man, that ye have no company with him, to the end that he may be ashamed.
15And [yet] count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
16Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways. The Lord be with you all.
17The salutation of me Paul with mine own hand, which is the token in every epistle: so I write.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
1Finally, pray for us, brothers and sisters, that the Lord’s message may spread quickly and be honored as in fact it was among you,
2and that we may be delivered from perverse and evil people. For not all have faith.
3But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.
4And we are confident about you in the Lord that you are both doing—and will do—what we are commanding.
5Now may the Lord direct your hearts toward the love of God and the endurance of Christ.
6But we command you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from any brother who lives an undisciplined life and not according to the tradition they received from us.
7For you know yourselves how you must imitate us, because we did not behave without discipline among you,
8and we did not eat anyone’s food without paying. Instead, in toil and drudgery we worked night and day in order not to burden any of you.
9It was not because we do not have that right, but to give ourselves as an example for you to imitate.
10For even when we were with you, we used to give you this command: “If anyone is not willing to work, neither should he eat.”
11For we hear that some among you are living an undisciplined life, not doing their own work but meddling in the work of others.
12Now such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and so provide their own food to eat.
13But you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary in doing what is right.
14But if anyone does not obey our message through this letter, take note of him and do not associate closely with him, so that he may be ashamed.
15Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
16Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with you all.
17I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand, which is how I write in every letter.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
1Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified, even as also with you;
2and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and evil men; for not all have faith.
3But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you, and guard you from the evil one.
4We have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you both do and will do the things we command.
5May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love, and into the perseverance of Christ.
6Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw yourselves from every brother who walks in rebellion, and not after the tradition which they received from us.
7For you know how you ought to imitate us. For we didn’t behave ourselves rebelliously among you,
8neither did we eat bread from anyone’s hand without paying for it, but in labor and travail worked night and day, that we might not burden any of you;
9not because we don’t have the right, but to make ourselves an example to you, that you should imitate us.
10For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: “If anyone will not work, don’t let him eat.”
11For we hear of some who walk among you in rebellion, who don’t work at all, but are busybodies.
12Now those who are that way, we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.
13But you, brothers, don’t be weary in doing what is right.
14If any man doesn’t obey our word in this letter, note that man, that you have no company with him, to the end that he may be ashamed.
15Don’t count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
16Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways. The Lord be with you all.
17The greeting of me, Paul, with my own hand, which is the sign in every letter: this is how I write.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
Summary
Paul asks the church to pray that the Lord's message would spread rapidly and that he and his companions would be delivered from wicked and evil people (vv. 1-2). He expresses confidence that the Lord will strengthen and protect them, and prays that their hearts would be directed into God's love and Christ's perseverance (vv. 3-5). Paul commands the church, in the name of the Lord Jesus, to keep away from believers who are idle and refuse to follow the teaching they received from him, reminding them that he and his companions worked to support themselves rather than take anyone's bread without paying for it, so that anyone unwilling to work should not eat (vv. 6-10). He instructs the idle to settle down and earn their own living, and tells the church not to grow weary in doing good, but to warn the disorderly as a fellow believer rather than an enemy (vv. 11-15). He closes with a prayer for peace and his own greeting in his own handwriting (vv. 16-18).
Authorship & Background
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik covers Paul's prayer request, God's faithfulness, the problem of idleness, Paul's work ethic example, and church discipline.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org 'If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat' in its setting.
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of 2 Thessalonians -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Prayer for the Gospel's Advance (vv.1-2) — Paul asks the church to pray that the message about Christ would spread quickly and that he would be protected from hostile people. Who or what are you actively praying for the gospel to reach right now?
- The Lord's Faithfulness (v.3) — Even while raising concerns about others' faithlessness, Paul reminds the church that God will strengthen and guard them. What situation right now calls for you to lean on His faithfulness rather than your own?
- Work as a Command, Not a Suggestion (v.10) — Paul lays down a blunt rule: those unwilling to work shouldn't expect to be fed by others. Does your work ethic reflect gratitude and responsibility, or have you let someone else carry a load that's yours?
- Busy, or a Busybody? (v.11) — Paul calls out people who avoid their own responsibilities while meddling in everyone else's. Is your energy going toward productive work, or toward other people's business?
- Correcting Like a Brother (v.15) — Paul instructs the church to warn the disobedient without treating them as enemies. When you have to confront someone, does it come across as rejection, or as genuine care for their restoration?