Session 13 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15
2 THESSALONIANS 3:6-15
MEMORY VERSE: 2 THESSALONIANS 3:13
Most of us are not good at waiting. We want to get through the line and get on with our lives. But waiting does not have to be passive, since we can accomplish things even while sitting in traffic. Paul told the church at Thessalonica that they had to wait. They were waiting for Christ to return, and they were to actively live in obedience to God’s commands while they waited. The commands they followed are commands that we too are to follow as we actively wait for His return.
(In PSG, p. 118)
Like in his first letter, Paul praised the Thessalonians for their faithfulness (2 Thess. 1:3-12). He was encouraged by the church’s perseverance and challenged them to remain loyal to the traditions of the gospel they had embraced under his leadership. He urged them to remember what they had learned about the Lord’s return (2:1-12).
Paul also emphasized the importance of prayer, assuring the Thessalonians he was praying for them and asking them to pray for him (2:13–3:5). He saw prayer as key to living an effective Christian life, and he instructed his readers to live out their prayers in the everyday world. This would include avoiding people whose lives contradicted the gospel, particularly those who were idle (3:6-12). Rather than giving in to laziness or complacency, believers are called to work with excellence and to do good with what they earn (3:13). Paul warned the Thessalonians to hold anyone who disagreed with these teachings at a distance—but not so far away that they could not return to the congregation once they repented (3:14-15).
Paul closed his second Epistle to the Thessalonians with a prayer for peace and God’s presence (3:16-18). He reminded his readers that he had written the letter with his own hand, which proved the sincerity of his words and his love.
EXPLORE THE TEXT
6 Now we command you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to keep away from every brother or sister who is idle and does not live according to the tradition received from us. 7 For you yourselves know how you should imitate us: We were not idle among you; 8 we did not eat anyone’s food free of charge; instead, we labored and toiled, working night and day, so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9 It is not that we don’t have the right to support, but we did it to make ourselves an example to you so that you would imitate us.
Paul was almost ready to close his Letter to the Thessalonians but needed to offer a few more instructions. He used the word command to emphasize the importance of this final teaching. He also referred to his brothers and sisters to emphasize his heart for them.
The fact that Paul’s instructions came in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ underscored the weight of his words. His commands were not a matter of personal preference; they were from the Savior Himself. Paul was about to teach on church discipline. In that, he was emphasizing the responsibility of every believer in Thessalonica, because every believer was accountable to Christ.
Paul’s main focus in this context of discipline focused on the one who is idle and does not live according to the teachings of Christ. This Greek word for idle indicates a habit or lifestyle. In addition to laziness, it also includes the idea of creating chaos or disorder. It sometimes was used to describe soldiers who strayed from their ranks. In Paul’s context, it meant failing to live according to the apostles’ teachings. He addressed this matter in his first letter (5:14) but felt the need to revisit his earlier warnings.
While Paul did not explain the details of the idlers’ motivation, one likely scenario related to ongoing misunderstandings about the second coming. The idle believers were so convinced Christ’s return was imminent that they had stopped laboring. They may have been living off the church instead of working. Whatever the specifics, Paul saw this as a lack of faithfulness that was disturbing the congregation, and it required an immediate response.
The apostle warned his readers to avoid such individuals. This word suggests withdrawing or holding oneself away. In the first letter, Paul had challenged the Thessalonians to warn lazy people. Now he was instructing them to avoid them, even if they claimed to be Christ followers. Paul wanted these believers to lovingly show the offenders the seriousness of their sin and guide them toward restoration. Later, Paul approached a situation in the Corinthian church with similar guidance (1 Cor. 5:9-13).
If the Thessalonians needed an example of hard work, they didn’t need to look any farther than the one penning this letter. Paul encouraged them to remember his example, as well as the examples of Timothy and Silas. You yourselves know is an emphatic statement in Greek, calling his readers to recall what they already knew to be true. He challenged the Thessalonians to imitate us, to follow the pattern of life the leaders had established. The reason Paul could speak with such confidence was that he and his companions were not idle in Thessalonica. They had worked hard for the gospel and even outside of their ministry as they raised their own support. No one in Thessalonica—or anywhere else—could accuse Paul and his friends of idleness.
To illustrate his point, Paul reminded his readers about how the missionaries had acted. They did not eat anyone’s food free of charge. Paul and his friends did not look for handouts of any kind, whether it was food or any other necessity. Instead, they labored and toiled, working night and day. Between their ministry work and their secular work, they put in long hours to avoid being a burden.
This work ethic was important to Paul because it eliminated any accusation that he was ministering for money. Some religious leaders try to build a bigger following because it means a bigger paycheck. Paul was focused on serving people and trusting God to provide for his needs. In his first letter, the apostle contrasted being a burden with showing maternal care (1 Thess. 2:7-8). He was more interested in nurturing the Thessalonians than receiving their money—even though it meant he would have to work harder than anyone else.
As Paul talked about his own work, he made it clear that he could have received payment with a clear conscience. He noted that his role as an apostle and his labor as a minister gave him the right to support. Any compensation he received would have been appropriate. Paul did not deny other legitimate teachers the benefits of support. He simply chose to forego such payments himself.
As Paul had already mentioned, the missionaries’ primary concern was to make ourselves an example that the Thessalonians could imitate. Again, the Thessalonians were young Christians living in a difficult context. They needed godly role models to show them how to practice their faith each day. Paul provided a model of what it meant to avoid idleness.
10 In fact, when we were with you, this is what we commanded you: “If anyone isn’t willing to work, he should not eat.”
Throughout his letters to the Thessalonians, Paul pointed back to things he had already shared. Here, he reminded his readers that in addition to his example he had also taught them basic principles regarding work when we were with you. In Thessalonica, the missionaries may have sensed that a misunderstanding of work could grow into a bigger problem. In fact, the Greek wording indicates that this was not a one-time instruction but an ongoing education.
The main point Paul made was that someone who isn’t willing to work … should not eat. Paul’s wording draws a distinction between individuals who could not work and those who would not work. He knew that some of his readers were not able to provide for their own needs. Those individuals should fall under the umbrella of the church’s benevolence. However, anyone who refused to work simply because of apathy or laziness deserved no such provision.
Such a distinction had a long history among God’s people. In fact, some commentators believe Paul’s take was based on ancient Jewish wisdom. In addition, the traditions taught by the Jewish rabbis took a similar approach. The Didache, an early Christian writing from the second century, also included provisions for dealing with those who needed help—and those who refused to help themselves. The church has always been encouraged to lean toward charity but not toward idleness.
Paul’s focus was not punishment but motivation. He wanted to provide an incentive for those who had fallen into an idleness trap. Like every form of church discipline, the goal is to restore the straying brother or sister, even if some pain and discomfort are required. Years later, Paul would remind Timothy, who had served with him in Thessalonica, that anyone who refused to provide for his family was “worse than an unbeliever” (1 Tim. 5:8).
11 For we hear that there are some among you who are idle. They are not busy but busybodies.
We hear implies that the incidents of idleness were taking root in Thessalonica. While Paul was getting many positive updates, he also was receiving regular reports of people being idle, living without purpose or personal discipline. They were meddling instead of working. Again, these were not people unable to work. These were people who intentionally chose to avoid work—and tried to live off the church’s resources instead.
Paul used a play on words here. Apparently, they considered themselves busy but actually were busybodies. Generally, the Greek word distinguishes between an active, productive lifestyle and one that contributes nothing of benefit. It could be translated “doing no business, but being busy bodies.” These idlers were doing nothing to improve their own situations, much less being a blessing to others.
Paul used another wordplay. The Greek language includes a word that can be translated “walking among you” and stands in contrast to the term for working. In other words, Paul saw a clear contradiction in walking without working. Those who “walked” in the path of Christ needed to demonstrate their faith by working in a productive manner. While the apostle understood the dangers of idleness for an individual, he also knew how it could damage the church’s work in Thessalonica. Not only would idle people drain resources that could be used for effective ministry, but they also could create tensions that would threaten the congregation’s unity.
(In PSG, p. 123)
12 Now we command and exhort such people by the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and provide for themselves.
Creating drama was not the lifestyle Paul expected from the Thessalonians. Instead, he challenged them to adopt a better way. He used two words that reveal his words were not mere suggestions: command and exhort. Command relates to an order or instruction and hints at Paul’s apostolic authority. Meanwhile, exhort implies urging or encouraging and can be seen as a plea from a concerned friend and leader. Combined with the force of these twin challenges, Paul said this teaching came by the Lord. Again, he was not giving a personal opinion. He was revealing divine truth that deserved the highest priority.
This admonition concerning work included two aspects. The first was to work quietly. Paul used the same word for work as he did for “busy” in verse 11. Therefore, he was emphasizing a productive life. The errant Thessalonians should mind their own business. (See 1 Thess. 4:10-11.) Instead of instigating chaos, they should settle down and demonstrate the satisfaction and contentment that comes from honest labor.
The second command was to provide for themselves. Rather than wasting the church’s resources, they should earn their own way. This is similar to Paul’s encouragement to the believers in Ephesus who had once made their way by stealing (Eph. 4:28). The remedy, Paul said, was to work honestly and earn enough to meet their own needs. As a bonus, they would also have enough to be generous. Taken together, the commands provide the perfect remedy for the idleness that was plaguing Thessalonica.
13 But as for you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary in doing good.
Some in the Thessalonian congregation needed to break free from idleness and get to work. Paul had addressed that need and was ready to focus on the rest of the flock. The phrase as for you indicates a contrast to the idlers. Paul was turning his attention to brothers and sisters who had remained faithful and were working hard for the church.
Specifically, Paul urged them to not grow weary in doing good. The Greek word used here can relate to both physical and emotional exhaustion. Most likely, Paul was leaning toward the latter. He was calling the Thessalonians to avoid discouragement.
Effectively sharing the gospel and making disciples in a Gentile community was no easy task. It required hard work and perseverance. As such, it might have been tempting to slack off, especially when seeing how the idle people were exploiting those who were working. Paul’s words here also may have included a subtle reminder that no work for Christ goes unrewarded. God would see the Thessalonians’ persistence and reward them in His timing. Good works had nothing to do with their salvation. Their relationship with God was secure because of the finished work of Christ, not their own efforts. But good works were a sign of that relationship and could be helpful in presenting the truth of the gospel to a skeptical world.
14 If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take note of that person; don’t associate with him, so that he may be ashamed. 15 Yet don’t consider him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
Paul knew some still would pursue their own desires. Therefore, he told the Thessalonians to take note of anyone who does not obey our instruction. Those who rejected his teachings would damage their fellowship with God and with others. What’s more, they put the unity and ministry of the church at risk. The Thessalonians could not afford to turn a blind eye toward their behavior.
What’s more, the Thessalonians should refuse to associate with such people. Essentially, Paul told his readers to stay away from them. Making church discipline work would require the participation of every member in good standing. Most likely, the offenders would be called out in a public meeting of the church and then would be alienated by the entire church.
This does not refer to an excommunication, but it does represent a change in fellowship. The church is comprised of those who follow the teachings of Christ. Anyone who refused to follow that lifestyle would have no place in the church until they repented of their sin. Just as the one who refused to work should not eat, the one who refused to embrace Christ should not be in the church.
As with all church discipline, Paul’s goal was restoration. He pointed out that such an action should make the idlers feel ashamed. This word indicates an act of turning one’s thoughts around. That change of mind would create a change of heart that would put them back on solid ground with Christ and His people.
To emphasize this point, Paul directed his readers to avoid treating any believer as an enemy. This refers to treating someone hatefully. Instead, they should lovingly warn him as a brother. Since the connection with Christ is never lost, the eternal bond between Christians is never lost. Paul underscored that these were not heretics trying to destroy the church. They were family members who needed restoration, love, and healing.
(In PSG, p. 125)
Sanctification
Growth in grace should continue throughout the regenerate person’s life. (See Col. 2:6-7; 2 Pet. 3:18.)
Examine passages that inform a doctrine.
Paul was clear that believers who refused to work should not expect to eat (2 Thess. 3:10). Our understanding of work is based on Genesis 1–3. Review these three chapters and reflect on the work done. How did God model work in the days of creation? When did God first direct humanity to work? What tasks did He give Adam and Eve? How is work related to the curse in Genesis 3? How is that connection often misunderstood?