by Darrel Cline (darrelcline biblical-thinking.org)
Chapter # 1 Paragraph # 1 Study # 1 December 13, 2023 Broadlands, Louisiana (Download Audio)
I. The Introduction.
A. According to the current general biblical scholarship, this book was the second of Paul's letters, following Galatians, written about A.D. 51, though there is some debate because of a difference of opinion as to where the Galatian letter was sent.
1. As the second of Paul's letters, the fact that he addressed some of the particulars of "the coming of the Son from heaven" (1:10) is significant.
a. In 4:13 Paul introduced his teaching regarding what we know as "The Rapture" with the words, "...we do not want you to be uninformed..."(NASB77): this signals a "block of Truth" that, so far, had not been widely disseminated, though Paul did write in 2 Thessalonians 2:5, "...Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things?" (NASB77).
1) The "these things" are details that reveal certain facts concerning the coming of the Son from heaven, including certain truths about a "departure" and the "revelation of the man of lawlessness" as issues that affect the coming of "the Day of The Lord".
2) Apparently, though, the "these things" did not include the information in 4:13-18 because of Paul's words in 4:13.
3) The omission of the material in 4:13-18 is likely caused by the fact that according to Luke's record in Acts, Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy were only in Thessalonica long enough for Paul to debate and preach Jesus in the synagogue for threeSabbaths (Acts 17:1-9).
b. In 1 Corinthians 15:51 Paul told the Corinthians (written about A.D. 56), with whom he had ministered about 18months (Acts 18:11), "...Behold, I tell you a mystery..."
1) This "mystery" is the concept of The Rapture.
2) This statement indicates that, though he spoke of "the coming of The Day of the Lord" in the three/four weeks he spent in Thessalonica, he did not get around to this "mystery" in the 18 months he spent in Corinth.
B. In any case, the general thrust of the Thessalonian letters has to do with the "hope" that believers are to live under.
