1

12 That ye may walk decently towards them who are without, and may have need of nothing.

be

12 That your behaviour may comely in the sight of the heathen, who might speak evil of the gospel, if ye become idle. Also that being able to supply your own wants, ye may have need of nothing from others.

of the Gospel, whereby God declared him his Son, the Governor and

13 I will next speak of Christ's resurrection, and of his return from heaven to raise the dead; because these things not only afford consolation to them who have lost their relations, but demonstrate the divine original of the gospel. Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning them who die, that ye may not be afflicted with excessive grief, even as the heathen who have no hope of seeing their dead friends again.

14 For, if we believe that Jesus was put to death for calling himself

the Thessalonians, by fortelling and proving Christ's return to the earth, to raise the dead, and carry the righteous with him into heaven.

3. Who have no hope. Many of the heathens entertained a belief of a fu ture state, and even some confused notion of the resurrection of the body. But their belief and hope of these things, being derived from nothing but an obscure tradition, the origin of which they could not trace; and from their own wishes, unsupported by any demonstrative reasoning, could scarcely be called either belief or hope; and had very little influence on their conduct. None of them had any knowledge or hope of Christ's coming from heaven to raise the righteous with glorious, immortal, incorruptible bodies, and to carry them away to an heavenly country. Neither had they any conception of the employments and enjoyments of that country. St. Paul's discourse, therefore, concerning these grand events, must have given much consolation to the Thessalonians, under the death of their relations, as it assured them, that if they died in Christ, they should all meet again, and spend an endless life in complete happiness, never more to part. In this light, death is only a temporary separation of friends, which is neither to be dreaded nor regretted.-Concerning our knowing one another at the resurrection, see chap. ii. 20. note.

Ver. 14.-1. So also them who sleep (dia) in Jesus. Some commentators, translating the preposition d by the word for, think the apostle is speaking of them who suffered death for the sake of Christ. But as all the righteous are to be brought into heaven with Christ, and as ver. 16. the expression is, dead (w) in Christ, I am of opinion that ♪ is rightly translated by the preposition in; and that the apostle is speaking of the faithful in general. Others, by them who sleep in Jesus, understand them who die united to Christ, as members of his body. But this makes no difference in the

sense.

2. Will God bring with him. The apostle does not mean, that them who sleep in Jesus will God bring with him from heaven to the earth to be judg ed. Their souls only could be so brought, even on the supposition that they had been in heaven, from the time of their death to the coming of Christ. But he is speaking of the whole person of the righteous, their body as well as their soul. And therefore the sense of the passage is, that God will bring the righteous, not from heaven, but into heaven, with Jesus. Accordingly God is said, Heb. ii. 10. to bring many sons into glory; and Jesus himself hath declared this to be one of the purposes of his own return to the earth; John xiv. 3. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. Thus understood, ver. 14. contains a general view or proposition of the subject, of which the apostle is going to treat. Perhaps the expression, bring with Jesus, may mean also, bring with Jesus out of the grave into heaven. For we are said to be raised together with Christ. Yet as the word (ağrı, ducet) bring or lead, is applicable only to living persons, I prefer the former interpretation.-See 1 Cor. xv. 13. note, where the resurrection of the dead, is shewed to be a necessary consequence of Christ's resurrection.

Ver. 15.-1. We the living, who remain at the coming of the Lord. This and some of the apostle's other expressions, led the Thessalonians to fancy, that he imagined he should be alive at the coming of Christ; consequently, that the day of judgment was to happen in that age. The same imagination several learned moderns have ascribed, not to Paul alone, but to all the apostles; because in their epistles, they speak of the coming of Christ as then at

again; so also, them who sleep (d) in Jesus,' (ch. i. 1. note 2.) will God bring with him.2

15 (Τετο γαρ, 91, λεγοMey.) Besides this wẹ affirm to you, by the command of the Lord, that we the living, who remain1 (s) at the coming of the Lord, shall not anticipate? them who are asleep.

the Son of God, and rose again from the dead, to demonstrate the truth of these assertions; so also we must believe, that them who have died in subjection to Jesus, will God at the last day bring with him into heaven. 15 Besides, to shew you in what manner the righteous are to be brought into heaven with Christ, this I affirm to you, by the commandment of the Lord Jesus, that such righteous persons as are living, and remaining on earth, at the coming of the Lord, shall not anticipate them whọ have died in subjection to Jesus, by receiving their glorified body before them;

hand. But in attributing this error to the apostles, these commentators have forgotten that Paul, in particular, wrote his second epistle to the Thessalonians, expressly to assure them, that the day of Christ was not at hand, but at a great distance: Forgotten likewise, what the apostle hath affirmed concerning this passage, that it was written by the command of the Lord: So that if he has erred in this, or in any particular, his inspiration must have been a delusion. Besides, we have no reason to think that Paul imagined, he would be alive at the coming of Christ to judge the world. For with respect to ver. 15. We the living, who remain at the coming of the Lord : and 1 Cor. xv. 51. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, it is evident that whatever force may be in these expressions, to prove that Paul thought he was to be one of the living at Christ's coming to judgment, the expression found, 2 Cor. iv. 14. He who raised up Jesus, shall raise us up also by Jesus, and shall present us with you, must be of equal force to prove, that Paul thought he should be of the number of the dead, who are to be raised by Jesus at his coming. The truth is, such expressions as these, are not to be understood of the writers themselves. They are mere figures of speech, used by the best authors, to draw their readers' attention, or to soften some harsh or disagreeable sentiment; without intending to represent themselves, either as of the number, or of the character of the persons with whom they class themselves. Thus Paul, Galat. i. 23. to shew that he was now connected with the disciples of Christ, reckons himself among the number of those whom he had formerly persecuted. They had heard only that he who persecuted us, &c. Psalm lxvi. 6. He turned the sea into dry land; they went through the flood on foot; there did we rejoice in him. In like manner Hosea, speaking of Jacob, says, chap. xii. 4. He found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us. This figure, in the mouth of Christ's

16 For the Lord himself 16 ότι αυτος ὁ Κύριος, εν

shall descend from heaven with a shout,with the voice

of the archangel, and with

κελευσματι, εν φωνη αρχαγ γελου, και εν σαλπιγγι Θεου

disciples, has a singular propriety; because all of them, making but one collective body, of which Christ is the head, and which is united by the mutual love of all the members, individuals may consider every thing hap pening to the members of this body, as happening to themselves. Wherefore, as Doddridge observes, it was very unjust in Orobio, and I add, in Mr. Gibbon, to represent this as an artifice of the apostle, to invite people to Christianity, by the expectation of being taken up alive to heaven in a very little time. Limb. Coll. page 75.

2. (Ou un pacaμev.) Shall not anticipate: So the word should be translated here. For, qavav, signifies to get before another in a race, or journey.

Ver. 16.-1. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven. KarabnosTai ar' sgavs, does not imply that the Lord Jesus is to fix his tribunal on the earth; but that he will descend so as to fix his seat in the air, at such a distance from the earth that every eye shall see him, and every ear hear his voice, when he passes the awful sentence, by which their state shall be unchangeably fixed. This conjecture is confirmed by ver. 17. where we are told, that after the judgment, the righteous shall be caught up in clouds, to join the Lord in the air.

2. With a shout. Еy xevoμTI. This word denotes the shout, which the whole soldiers of an army make at their first onset, to encourage one another in the attack; or which rowers utter, to cheer one another in their labour. It is, therefore, used with great propriety, to express the loud acclamation which the whole angelical hosts will utter, to express their joy at the advent of Christ, to raise the dead, and judge the world.

3. With the voice of an archangel. The archangel here spoken of, is he who will preside over that innumerable company of angels, who are to at*tend Christ when he comes to judge the world.-Before Christ's first appearance on earth, John Baptist was sent to cry, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. In like manner, before his second appearance as judge, an archangel will proclaim his advent, and call the living to prepare for the judgment.

4. And with the trumpet of God. This circumstance is mentioned likewise, 1 Cor. xv. 52. See note 1. there. According to the Hebrew idiom, the trumpet of God signifies a great trumpet.

5. And the dead in Christ shall rise first. If the dead in Christ are those who have suffered death for Christ, as some commentators suppose, the apostle's doctrine in this passage will be the same with John's doctrine, Rev. xx. 4, 5. But as the meaning of that passage is not yet fixed, I prefer the opinion of those who by the dead in Christ, understand them who have died in subjection to Christ, see chap. i. 1. note.— In this passage the apostle teaches, that the dead in Christ shall be raised

16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven,1 (E) with a shout, with the voice of an archan

2

16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout of the attending angels, Mat. xvi. 27. expressive of their joy at his coming,

before the living are changed. For we are told expressly, ver. 15. that the living who remain at the coming of Christ, shall not anticipate them who are asleep in Jesus. He teaches likewise, if I am not mistaken, that the dead in Christ shall be raised, before any of the wicked are raised; and that they shall arise with glorious immortal and incorruptible bodies; while the wicked shall be raised with bodies mortal and corruptible, like those in which they died; consequently, that no change is to be made in the bodies of the wicked, who are found alive at the coming of Christ. At least these things seem to be taught, 1 Cor. xv. 22. As by Adam all die, so also by Christ all shall be made alive. 23. But every one in his proper band. The righteous all in one band, and the wicked in another. And ver. 48. As the earthy man Adam was, such also the earthy or wicked men SHALL BE At the resurrection they shall be earthy and mortal like Adam, (so I translate and interpret the passage, on account of what is affirmed in the following verse 49); and as the heavenly man Christ is, such also the heavenly men, the righteous shall be at the resurrection. They shall be heavenly and immortal, like Christ. 49. For as we heavenly men have borne the image of the earthy man, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly; which I think implies that the earthy men, the wicked, are not to bear the image of the heavenly. See 1 Cor. xv. 48. note.

But, because to many, who cannot lay aside their early prejudices, it may appear an opinion not sufficiently supported by the texts I have quoted, that the wicked shall be raised from the dead with fleshly, mortal, corruptible bodies, like those in which they died; and that no change is to pass on the bodies of such of them as are found alive on the earth at Christ's coming, farther proofs, perhaps, will be thought necessary to establish these points. I, therefore, lay before the reader the following considerations for that purpose, and hope they will be attended to by him with due candour.

1. It is no where said in scripture, nor insinuated, that the wicked shall be raised with glorious, immortal, and incorruptible bodies. On the contrary, all the passages, in which incorruptible and immortal bodies are promised, or spoken of, evidently relate to the righteous alone. Thus, when the apostle Paul, speaking of Christ, says, Philip. iii. 21. Who will refashion our bumbled body, that it may become of like form with his glorious body, it is the body of those only, whose conversation is in heaven, ver. 20. which shall be thus refashioned.-In like manner, what is written of the resurrection of the dead, and of the glory, spirituality, and incorruptibility of their bodies, and of the changing of the living, 1 Cor. xv. 42.—44. is not to be understood of the wicked, but of them who are Christ's at his coming, ver. 23.