Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Thessalonians 5:25
Brethren, pray for us.
25. Brethren, pray for us ] St Paul has just prayed for his readers (1Th 5:23; comp. ch. 1Th 1:2; 1Th 3:10-13); he desires that they in tarn should pray for him. “Some ancient authorities,” very suitably, “read also ” (R. V. margin): pray also for us, i.e. as we do for you.
In 2Th 3:1-2 he repeats this request, in more definite form. Comp. Eph 6:19; Col 4:3-4; Php 1:19; Rom 15:30, “that you strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.” St Paul, in all the strength of his gifts and his office, yet felt his dependence on the prayers of the Church, and realised through this means his fellowship with brethren in Christ however distant.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The Conclusion
1Th 5:25-28
The conclusion of the Epistle is very brief. It contains no reference to the autograph signature, which St Paul in 2Th 3:17 and in subsequent letters is careful to notify. The urgent request “that the Epistle be read to all the brethren,” is its notable feature.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Brethren, pray for us – A request which the apostle often makes; notes on Heb 13:18. He was a man of like passions as others: liable to the same temptations; engaged in an arduous work; often called to meet with opposition, and exposed to peril and want, and he especially needed the prayers of the people of God. A minister, surrounded as he is by temptations, is in great danger if he has not the prayers of his people. Without those prayers, he will be likely to accomplish little in the cause of his Master. His own devotions in the sanctuary will be formal and frigid, and the word which he preaches will be likely to come from a cold and heavy heart, and to fall also on cold and heavy hearts. There is no way in which a people can better advance the cause of piety in their own hearts, than by praying much for their minister.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
1Th 5:25
Brethren, pray for us
Prayer for missionaries
I.
The grounds of this appeal.
1. The character of the men required. Pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest, etc. The work requires fully qualified workers. It must have apostolic, unselfish, unworldly, spiritual, sympathetic, brotherly men. Pray for such. Only God can send them.
2. The work they are called to accomplish–
(1) There are evils to be vanquished before the good can be created–apathy, a dead conscience, helpless dependence on others. On the other hand, the missionary has to create a spirit of hopefulness and of self-help, and the recognition of the Divine claim. He has to secure a quickened conscience to stand trembling in the presence of sin, and yet able to rest immovable in the recollection of free grace and dying love.
(2) There are special difficulties he has to overcome.
(a) He has no human constraints. At home if a man neglects his work his material interest suffers; the salary of the missionary is constant. At home the pastor has his equals; abroad he is supreme. At home we are under constant inspection; the missionary is thousands of miles away from criticism. These constraints are very helpful, however unpalatable; and lacking them the missionary needs our prayers.
(b) He has no human helps of association and sympathy to which we owe so much, of these the missionary often knows nothing. What solitude of mind, heart and sorrow! far from country, kindred, home! All sights and sounds uncongenial.
(c) He meets with frequent and bitter disappointment–rank hypocrisy where conversion seemed sound.
(d) Then there is the climate and its effects. How much we are indebted to our much complained of and variable weather for the strength of our physique. In India the more regular climate seems to dry up all the energies. But this is nothing compared to the vitiating moral atmosphere.
II. The nature of this appeal.
1. What it supposes.
(1) Faith in prayer. Prayer is of the essence of religion, and if prayer be not availing then religion is an illusion and must die. But if it be availing then religion is a practical force and cannot die.
(2) Faith in the gospel, for it is the universal law of Gods service that no man shall take a share in His work without faith. Without it we cannot please Him, secure His Spirit, nor rouse and devote our energies to the conversion of souls. But given faith all things are possible.
(3) Brotherly sympathy. Missionaries are brethren calling on the same Father, steeped in the same temper, going to the same reward.
2. What, if we comply with it, will it bring?
(1) All will be occupied at the same time and in the same work. Some are strong, some weak; some are rich, some poor; some are learned, others ignorant–but all can pray, and this is the grandest privilege and mightiest power of all.
(2) All will be benefitted by it. He who prays, he for whom prayer is offered.
(3) It will be for the Divine honour, Not by might nor by power, etc.
(4) It will appropriate and apply Gods benefits. (J. Aldis.)
The prayers of Christian people in relation to ministerial work
It is useless for any man to pray unless he has, even to every human being, this brotherly feeling. True prayer is the outflowing of a kind and loving heart. Ministers need specially the sympathies and prayers of their people on account of–
1. The difficulties of their work.
2. The peculiar trials of their work; and
3. The twofold results of their work.
I. The difficulties of ministerial work. The first difficulty here is to be always in a proper mental mood for mental work. There is–
1. A work of preparation for the pulpit, and–
2. A work of communication in the pulpit. The result in either case depends upon the atmosphere which surrounds the preachers soul–upon the current of his inmost feeling. It is the duty of every Christian minister, however great his mental culture and creative genius, to make special and careful preparation for the pulpit. To keep clear of all disturbing forces, so as, at the proper time to retain the power of fixing the mind upon the subject to be investigated, and to be just then in a state of spiritual repose in the spirit, the state which is the condition of spiritual perception, as the truth is spiritually discerned, requires great grace. The second difficulty is the finding of a variety of subjects–subjects which shall–
(1) Be taken hold of by the preachers own mind.
(2) Be relished by the people; and–
(3) Prove permanently profitable to both.
II. The trials of ministerial work. The first of these trials arises from a deep consciousness of personal weakness and inadequacy for the work. These trials arise from want of success.
III. The two-fold effect of ministerial work, The final result of every human work is solemn. The day of final reckoning is solemn to every one, but yet the issues in that day, of ministerial work here, will be perhaps the most solemn of all solemn things. I have spoken of the ministers need of an interest in your prayers. I have spoken of the cheering influence which an assurance of this will have upon his own spirit, how it will actually give a richer tint to the glorious truths of Gods Holy Book as they will be, from time to time, presented in his discourses. But, as all forces in nature are reciprocal in their action, so does prayer act upon him who prays as well as upon him for whom the prayer is offered. If you wish to be profited by the preaching, pray for the preacher. (Evan Lewis, B. A.)
The force of prayer
What is the prayer for which I ask? It is not the self-willed importunity of him who thinks he shall be heard for his much speaking. It is not the opening to God of thoughts which His love has not anticipated. It is not the pleading of our personal wishes as isolated objects of Divine favour; say, rather, it is the humblest, tenderest, most unquestioning expression of our dependence, the confession of our wants and weaknesses, as we have felt them, the firmest resolution to rest in Gods will, and to make His will our own; the energy of a spiritual communion by which we realize our own well-being in the well-being of others; the endeavour to quicken and chasten and hallow every prompting of duty by the light of heaven. In this sense, brethren, pray for us. Such prayer corresponds–
I. With our Christian fellowship. We are not, we cannot be, alone. In itself the fact is fitted to oppress us with the feeling of our powerlessness. But it can be transfigured. And to pray one for another is to transfigure it. When St. Paul speaks of Christians being in Christ, he has gathered up the gospel in two syllables; he has proclaimed the unfailing bond of fellowship, the adequate provision for effective ministry, the victorious sovereignty of redeeming love.
II. With our present needs.
III. With our Divine assurance. Christianity deals with social problems, not accidentally, but in virtue of its existence. For us the Incarnation is the rule and the motive power. The Resurrection is the sign of Gods purpose for all material and transitory things, the transfiguration of the completeness of human life. The Christian Church is, as we believe, the present organ of a living Spirit. We claim for it, in virtue of the assurance of the Lord, not simply the right of existence or the power of self-defence, but the certainty of conquest. (Bp. Westcott.)
The ministers plea for the peoples prayers
I. Directions. Pray for us.
1. That we may be furnished with all proper gifts and graces for our work.
2. That we may be preserved from the defections of the age.
3. That we may be helped to fulfil our ministry in the best manner.
4. That our ministry may be accepted of God in Christ, and of His people.
5. That we may be made successful in our work.
6. That the usefulness of our lives may be continued.
7. That we may be united with one another, and with the Churches of Christ, in carrying on the work of the Lord.
8. That our own souls may be saved, and that we may give up our accounts with joy in the day of the Lord Jesus.
II. Considerations.
1. Our work is very important.
2. Our difficulties in managing it are many–arising from the work, ourselves, and our hearers.
3. Our strength is small.
4. The residue of the Spirit is with the Lord, and there is room for hope that, by the help of your fervent prayers, it may be brought down upon us.
5. Our prayers and labours for you call for a return of your prayers for us.
6. The answer of your prayers for us will turn to your own benefit, and to the advancement of Christs kingdom and glory. (J. Gouge, D. D.)
Prayer for ministers
Pray for us–
I. As teachers, that we may be taught of the Holy Spirit, and have more of the mind of Jesus; and that eschewing all false doctrine–the materialistic and the sensuous on the one side; and the rationalistic and the sceptical on the other–we may hold, and teach, and feel, the truth in all its proportions.
II. As preachers and evangelists, that we may never preach ourselves, but Christ only, in all His fulness, without limit: affectionately, earnestly, persuasively, lovingly, savingly: give true bread to our people: speaking as a dying man to dying men; as a redeemed soul to souls for whom Jesus died.
III. As ministers of holy sacraments, the Word, and services of the Church. That her beauty and grace may never be injured by us, and that we may do all holy things with a holy mind; and that God will so honour His own ordinance, that, even at our lips, His Word may go with the greater power; and when there shall be made a true confession, the assurance of absolving grace may reach comfortably even through us, to the yet unquiet conscience; and true sacrifices arise at our hands, from fervent and united hearts; and the whole Church grow up into Him in all things which is the Head.
IV. As men, Brethren, pray for us. Acknowledging and claiming, by that word, a common brotherhood,–lest, perhaps, they might think of him only in his official capacity. Pray for us as men, subject as much–if not more–to the same infirmities that you are; poor, ignorant men, that know nothing as they ought to know it; wanting guidance at every step, and sympathy, and the blood of Jesus to wash both their bodies and their souls. (J. Vaughan, M. A.)
The value of prayer for ministers
John Livingstone, of Scotland, once spent a whole night with a company of his brethren in prayer for Gods blessing, all of them together beseiging the throne; and next day, under his sermon, eight hundred souls were converted. All the world has known how the audience of President Edwards was moved under his terrible sermon on Sinners in the hands of an angry God. But the secret of that sermon is known to but few. Some Christians in the vicinity had become alarmed, lest while God was blessing other places He should in anger pass them by; and so they met on the previous evening and spent the whole night in agonizing prayer. (H. C. Fish, D. D.)
The ministers prayer book
A worthy minister of the gospel, in North America, was pastor of a flourishing Church. He was a popular preacher, but gradually became less to his hearers, and his congregation very much decreased. This was solely attributed to the minister; and matters continuing to get worse, some of his hearers resolved to speak to him on the subject. They did so; and when the good man had heard their complaints, he replied, I am quite sensible of all you say, for I feel it to be true; and the reason of it is, that I have lost my prayer book. They were astonished at hearing this, but he proceeded: Once my preaching was acceptable, many were edified by it, and numbers were added to the Church, which was then in a prosperous state. But we were then a praying people They took the hint. Social prayer was again renewed and punctually attended. Exertions were made to induce those who were without to attend the preaching of the Word. And the result was, that the minister became as popular as ever, and in a short time the Church was again as flourishing as ever. (Clerical Library.)
Prayer helps preaching
There was once in the old days a famous mission preacher; whenever he preached he was accompanied by a little blind boy, his brother. As the great preacher stood on chancel step, or in pulpit, and people wept or trembled at his words, close by would be the blind child, with his sightless eyes turned upward, as though watching his brother. One night, the preacher saw a vision in church, he thought an angel touched him, and pointed to the blind boy. Then he saw a stream of light from heaven shining on the sightless eyes, and he understood now that it was not the eloquence of the preacher, but the prayers of the blind child which wrought such wonderful results. (W. Buxton.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 25. Pray for me.] Even apostles, while acting under an extraordinary mission, and enjoying the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, felt the necessity of the prayers of the faithful. God requires that his people should pray for his ministers; and it is not to be wondered at, if they who pray not for their preachers should receive no benefit from their teaching. How can they expect God to send a message by him, for whom they, who are the most interested, have not prayed? If the grace and Spirit of Christ be not worth the most earnest prayers which a man can offer, they, and the heaven to which they lead, are not worth having.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The apostle a little before had prayed for them, now he begs prayers of them, as he doth of other churches, Rom 15:30; Col 4:3. Ministers and people need each others prayers, and it is a mutual duty they owe to one another. Ministers are obliged by special office, people by common duty, with respect to the success of the gospel in general, 2Th 3:1, and their own edification by their labours. The apostle, as he did not think it below him to call these Thessalonians brethren, so neither to beg their prayers. Those that stand highest in the church may stand in need of the meanest and lowest; the head cannot say to the foot, I have no need of thee. Those that preach not the gospel, may yet promote it by their prayers; yet this gives no warrant to beg the prayers of saints departed, for which we have no precept, promise, or example, as we have for the other; and what is without faith is sin. It is at the best doubtful whether they know our state below, or can hear us when we pray; and certainly God never required us to pray upon such uncertainties, and it cannot be in faith.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
25. Some oldest manuscriptsread, “Pray ye also for (literally, ‘concerning‘)us”; make us and our work the subject of your prayers, even aswe have been just praying for you (1Th5:23). Others omit the “also.” The clergy need much theprayers of their flocks. Paul makes the same request in the Epistlesto Romans, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, and inSecond Corinthians; not so in the Epistles to Timothy and Titus,whose intercessions, as his spiritual sons, he was already sure of;nor in the Epistles, I Corinthians, and Galatians, as these Epistlesabound in rebuke.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Brethren, pray for us. Which is added with great beauty and propriety, after the apostle had so earnestly and affectionately prayed for them; and this is directed, not to the pastors of the church only, but to all the members of it, whom the apostle styles “brethren” in a spiritual relation, as he often does; and of whom he requests, that they would pray for him, and the rest of his fellow ministers and labourers in the word, that God would more and more qualify and fit them for their work, assist in private studies and meditations, give them freedom of thought, liberty of expression, and a door of utterance, and follow their ministrations with a divine blessing and success, and deliver them out of the hands of unreasonable men; [See comments on Heb 13:18].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Pray for us ( [] ). He has made his prayer for them. He adds this “human touch” (Frame) and pleads for the prayers of his converts (2Thess 3:1; Col 4:2). Probably also is genuine (B D).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
1) “Brethren, pray” (adelphoi proseuchesthe) Brothers, pray ye” such was the charge of our Lord, Luk 18:11; Mat 6:9-13.
2) “For us” ([Kai] peri hemon) “also (even) concerning us”, Paul and his companion missionaries. As these believed in and practiced praying for others, so should we, for such pleases God and blesses men. 2Th 3:1; Jas 5:16-17.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.1Th. 5:25-28
Closing Words.
I. An important request.Brethren, pray for us (1Th. 5:25). The most gifted saints have need of the prayers of Gods people. The great apostle, much as he prayed for himself, did not himself feel independent of the intercessions of others. His large experience of the power of prayer made him only the more anxious to strengthen his personal interest at the throne of grace. The least gifted saint in other respects may be mighty in prayer. Believers are so bound together as to be dependent on one another, and all on the great Head of the Church. The richest inheritance of the anxious minister are the prayers of his people. A praying Church will never have to complain of an insipid and fruitless ministry.
II. A Christian salutation.Greet all the brethren with an holy kiss (1Th. 5:26). The kiss of charity in those days was a token of friendship and goodwill, something equivalent to the shaking of hands in modern times. In the Syrian Church, before communion, each takes his neighbours right hand, and gives the salutation, Peace! The greeting was a holy kisspure and chaste, such as one Christian may give to another, and not sin. Christianity is the soul of courtesy. Forms may change; but the same spirit of brotherly love and cordial recognition of one another, under whatever diversities of temporal circumstances, should ever characterise those who know the love of a common Saviour, and have entered into the communion of saints (Lillie). Let the love of the heart toward all the brethren be practically manifested in becoming acts of courtesy and goodwill.
III. A solemn direction.I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren (1Th. 5:27). This first epistle to the Thessalonians is, in point of time, the earliest of all the canonical books of the New Testament; and here is a solemn injunction that it be publicly read to all the people. The Romish Church, if she does not deny, very unwillingly allows the reading of Scripture by the laity. What Rome forbids under an anathema, says Bengel, St. Paul enjoins with an adjuration. None should be debarred from reading or hearing the word of God. Women and children are not to be excluded (Deu. 31:12; Jos. 8:34-35). Lois and Eunice knew the Bible, and taught it to the child Timothy. The Berans had free access to the sacred volume, and searched it at their pleasure. The public reading of the Holy Scriptures is an important means of edifying the Church; it is enforced by apostolic authority; it familiarises the mind with the greatest truths; it keeps alive the enthusiasm of the Church for aggressive purposes.
IV. A gracious benediction.The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen (1Th. 5:28). The epistle closes, as it began, with blessing. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is the fountain of all the good that has flowed in upon and enriched the human race. The three great features of that gracepardon, peace, holinessare clearly elucidated in this epistle. The fountain is inexhaustible. Its streams of blessing are ever available for needy, perishing man.
Lessons.
1. Prayer is an ever-present duty.
2. Christianity hallows all the true courtesies of life.
3. The word of God should be constantly read and studied.
4. The best blessings issue from the inexhaustible grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
1Th. 5:25. Pray for Us.
I. We greatly need your prayers.Our state, like yours, is a state of probation. We have uncommon wants. We have a strict account to give.
II. We request your prayers.
1. You can pray.
2. God will hear you.
III. We may reasonably expect that you will pray for us.
1. We pray for you.
2. We are labouring for your advantage.
IV. We are warranted to expect it from your own professions.
1. You profess a high degree, not only of respect, but of love to your preachers.
2. Some of you can scarcely give us any other proof of it.
V. It will be to your advantage to pray for us.
1. It will prepare your minds for hearing us.
2. This will make us useful to you.
VI. Your prayers will make us more useful to others.
1Th. 5:27. The Public Reading of the Scriptures.
I. To debar the Lords people from acquainting themselves with Scripture is a great sin.Scripture should be translated into the native tongue of every nation where Christ has a Church, that people may read it, hear it, and be acquainted with it. They ought diligently to improve all helps to acquaint them with the mind of God revealed in Scripture, and look upon their doing so as a duty of greatest importance and weight.
II. Ministers and Church guides should see that the people of their charge be acquainted with Scripture.Should invite them to read it in secret and in their families, and use their influence that children of both sexes be trained up at schools to read the Lords words distinctly in their own native language.
III. Scripture should be publicly read to Gods people assembled together for His worship.Even though not immediately expounded and applied, the reading of Gods word allows it to speak for itself and impress its own divine authority.Fergusson.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Text (1Th. 5:25-26)
25 Brethren, pray for us. 26 Salute all the brethren with a holy kiss.
Translation and Paraphrase
25.
Brethren, (please) pray (also) for us (continuously).
26.
Greet all the brothers (your fellow-Christians) with an holy kiss.
Notes (1Th. 5:25-26)
1.
How very often Paul requested the prayers of his Christian brethren: See Eph. 6:19; Rom. 15:30; Col. 4:3; Col. 4:18; 2Th. 3:1-2; 2Co. 1:8-11; Heb. 13:18. If an inspired apostle such as Paul needed the prayers of his brethren, how much more your preacher needs your prayers.
2.
In 1Th. 5:26 Paul lays upon us the duty of knowing and greeting all of our Christian brethren. They should be very dear to us. The people we associate with on Sunday ought to mean much more to us than the people with whom we mingle during the week. It is good to see churches where the members greet and talk freely to one another.
3.
The kiss was a common greeting in the East in Bible times, and still is in places. Jesus criticized his host on one occasion by saying, Thou gavest me no kiss. Luk. 7:45. This was assumed to be part of a sincere welcome into a home.
This kiss was given on the cheek, the forehead, the beard, the hands, the feet, but not (in Palestine) the lips. There is reason to believe that, as a rule, men only thus greeted men, and women. It was so enjoined in the Apostolic Constitutions (third century).
4.
The holy kiss is also mentioned in 1Co. 16:20; 2Co. 13:12; 1Pe. 5:14.
5.
After checking all the references to kissing in the Bible (and they are numerous), it appears to us that people in Bible times just did NOT go around kissing everyone they met. It was something rather special. There were kisses of greeting, farewell, worship, respect, and kisses of affection between people very close (such as Ruth and Naomi), and kisses of pretended affection (Judas kissing Jesus, for example).
6.
That unrestrained kissing was not the universal custom in Bible times is indicated by the fact that King Davids son, Absalom, attracted a lot of attention to himself by kissing any man who came near to him (along with giving out flattery). If kissing had been extremely common, Absaloms actions would not have attracted the notice they did. 2Sa. 15:5-6.
7.
We read of the father kissing the prodigal son (Luk. 15:20), Paul and the Ephesian elders weeping and kissing in farewell (Act. 20:37),Aaron greeting Moses with a kiss (Exo. 4:27), etc. By far the majority of cases of kissing involved those of the same sex. (This was not always the case, however, as Jacob kissed Rachel before he even introduced himself. However, she was a relative, and he knew it even before she did! Gen. 29:11.)
8.
Erotic kissing is never referred to in the Bible, except possibly in Son. 1:2, and in that place the couple were unquestionably married.
9.
In this verse Paul did not say that we had to kiss every time we met or said Good-bye. Neither was he instituting a new church custom or ordinance. Since kissing was a form of greeting common in the world of that time, he could not have meant to institute a new practice, but he is here purifying an old one, insisting that the greeting be holy. This instruction applies to all our greetings, whether they be by handshake, embrace, or occasionally a holy kiss. We see people here in America sometimes greet those who are very dear to them with an embrace or kiss. If such is the custom, let it be a holy kiss, and do not try to interpret Pauls words to mean that we ought to kiss all our brethren every time we meet them.
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(25) Pray for us.Taken in conjunction with what follows, this probably is a petition for remembrance in the great public service.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
25. Pray for us The literal Greek is, remarkably, pray concerning, about us. Let us and our affairs be the subject you pray about.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Final Greeting.
‘Brothers, pray for us.’
In the midst of his trials and the need of the world Paul was very much aware of how he and his companions needed prayer. Being full of the Holy Spirit and specially chosen men of God did not mean that they did not need such prayers, although not so much for themselves as for their ministry.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Closing Remarks – In 1Th 5:25-28 Paul makes his closing remarks with a benediction (1Th 5:23-24) and final greetings (1Th 5:25-28).
1Th 5:26 Comments – Comments – The Oriental custom of greeting with a kiss was practiced within the Jewish culture and the early Church. [80] Paul’s charge to salute, or greet, the brethren with a holy kiss is also found in the closing remarks of three other Pauline epistles as well as 1 Peter, where it is called a “kiss of love.”
[80] James D. G. Dunn, Romans 1-8, in Word Biblical Commentary: 58 Volumes on CD-Rom, vol. 38A (Dallas, Texas: Word, Incorporated, 2002), in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004), comments on Romans 16:16.
Rom 16:16, “Salute one another with an holy kiss. The churches of Christ salute you.”
1Co 16:20, “All the brethren greet you. Greet ye one another with an holy kiss.”
2Co 13:12, “Greet one another with an holy kiss.”
1Th 5:26, “Greet all the brethren with an holy kiss.”
1Pe 5:14, “Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen.”
1Th 5:27 I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren.
1Th 5:27
Act 15:1-2, “And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.”
In addition to the recognition of the Old Testament, the apostles realized that they had been given the authority to reveal the new covenant with as high authority as they held the Jewish Old Testament. According to 2Co 3:1-11, they were appointed ministers of this new covenant.
The major requirement for all of the New Testament writings to be considered “divinely inspired Scripture” was apostolic authority. These twenty-seven books had to have been either written by one of the twelve apostles, or either been imposed by these apostles upon the churches as an “instrument” of the Church, to be read and obeyed by all. Thus, we see the Gospels and Paul’s epistles being read in gatherings alongside the Old Testament Scriptures, and being elevated to equal authority as other sacred Scripture.
Therefore, Paul’s qualifications as a minister of the new covenant was elevated to a level higher than others due to the fact that God had given him the calling of writing much of the New Testament. Paul realized that his writings were on an equal level of authority as the Old Testament Scriptures.
Therefore, Paul held the authority to speak on the level of authority that Christ Jesus spoke while on this earth.
Scripture References – Note similar Scriptures that indicate how the New Testament writings became elevated by apostolic authority to become equal to the Old Testament Scriptures:
1Co 14:37, “If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.”
2Co 3:6, “Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.”
Col 4:16, “And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.”
1Th 4:2, “For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.”
2Th 2:15, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.”
1Ti 5:18, “For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.”
1Pe 1:12, “Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.”
2Pe 3:16, “As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.”
Rev 1:3, “Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.”
1Th 5:28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
1Th 5:28
Mat 10:13, “And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.”
This practice of speaking blessings upon God’s children may have its roots in the Priestly blessing of Num 6:22-27, where God instructed Moses to have the priests speak a blessing upon the children of Israel. Now Paul closes his epistle to the Thessalonians by restating the blessing that he opened his epistle with in 1Th 1:1.
Comments (2) – In 1Th 5:28 Paul basically commends them into the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ, in much the same way that he did in the book of Acts. We find this statement at the end of all of Paul’s epistles.
Act 14:23, “And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.”
Act 20:32, “And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.”
1Th 5:28 “Amen” Comments – In the Textus Receptus the word “Amen” is attached to the end of all thirteen of Paul’s epistles, as well as to the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, and to the General Epistles of Hebrews , 1 and 2 Peter , 1 and 2 John, and to the book of Revelation. However, because “Amen” is not supported in more ancient manuscripts many scholars believe that this word is a later liturgical addition. For example, these Pauline benedictions could have been used by the early churches with the added “Amen.”
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
1Th 5:25 . Comp. Rom 15:30 ; Eph 6:19 ; Col 4:3 ; 2Th 3:1 .
] for us , namely, that our apostolic work may be successful.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
1Th 5:25-27 . Concluding exhortations of the Epistle.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
V
Conclusion of the Epistle with Salutation and Benediction
1Th 5:25-28.
25, 26, 27Brethren, pray for us. Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss. I charge [adjure]59 you by the Lord, that this [the, ] epistle be read unto all the holy60 brethren. 28The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.61
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
1. (1Th 5:25.) Brethren, pray for us ( , B. D.1, is unsuitable [Lachmann inserts the in brackets.J. L.]). The closing words are concise and hearty. First, he solicits intercession in behalf of his apostolic calling; this he frequently does, laying stress upon it, and humbly suing for it (2Th 3:1; Rom 15:30; Col 4:3; Eph 6:18-19; Phm 1:22).62 Bengel notes that in the Epistle to the Galatians and in the First to the Corinthians he does not do so, because he was there compelled to admonish his readers with fatherly severity.63
2. (1Th 5:26.) Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss; , a love-token (Rom 16:16; 1Co 16:20; 2Co 13:12); (1Pe 5:14); in the Latin Fathers, and first Tertullian, osculum pacis [signaculum pacis.J. L.], also simply pax. The kiss, a general mark of salutation, especially in the East, was here to be hallowed as an expression of brotherly love, and of the common joy in the Lord. It had its place especially after prayer, and before taking the Holy Supper, &c. According to Tertullian it was omitted on Good Friday (on account of the kiss of Judas). Later ecclesiastical rules (with a view particularly to cutting off every pretext for heathen calumnies) insisted that only men should kiss men, and women women. The custom remained till the middle ages, and it still prevails in the East at Easter (comp. Augusti, Handbuch der chr. Archol., II. p., 718 sqq.). Because in the other Pauline passages it is said: , but here: , De Wette and Lnemann infer that the Epistle, received and read in public by the presidents, requires them, first of all, to salute and kiss all the brethren in the Apostles name. Ewald even asserts that 1Th 5:25-27, beginning so abruptly, were plainly added by Paul in his own hand for the authentication of the letter, according to 2Th 3:17 (in pursuance of the untenable hypothesis, that our First Epistle was rather the Second); and that these words, accordingly, were intended first for the presidents; Timothy having probably informed him that our Second Epistle (which was rather the First) had not been duly read in public before the assembled church. But even the appeal to 3Jn 1:9 has no power to lift all this out of the category of utterly groundless hypotheses. In opposition to it Hofmann properly reminds us, that the invitation in 1Th 5:25 is addressed to all the Thessalonians, and therefore also the next 1Th 5:26; hence: Deliver my salutation (in connection with the holy kiss) to all the brethrenthis the Thessalonians did collectively, when on hearing these words they kissed one another.
3. (1Th 5:27.) I adjure you, &c.; or has also a different construction from
Footnotes:
[59]1Th 5:27.A. B. D.1 E. , [found nowhere else]; Sin. and most others, which is, indeed, more common in the New Testament [Mar 5:7; Act 19:13;the only other instances], and therefore, perhaps, in the present instance merely a correction. [Lachmann, Tischendorf, Alford, Ellicott edit .Nearly all versions and commentaries give the full force of the Greek verb, as E. V. does in the other instances, and here in the margin.J. L.]
[60]1Th 5:27. is wanting in B. D. E. F. G. and in Sin. prim manu; but is found in A. K. L., Sin. secund manu, and in most of the versions. De Wette is probably right in holding, that it was omitted as being unusual and apparently superfluous, rather than it was added; it is found also at Heb 3:1. [It is omitted by Lachmann, Tischendorf, Alford. Riggenbach brackets it in his version.J. L.]
[61]1Th 5:28. at the close is wanting in B. D.1 F. G.; most of the authorities have it, and so Sin. [The critical editors generally omit it; Riggenbach brackets.J. L.]
[62][Comp. 2Co 1:11; Php 1:19; Heb 13:18.J. L.]
[63][Bengel also remarks that this request is wanting likewise in the Epistles to Timothy and Titus, either because Paul addressed them as his sons, or because he could already count on having their intercession.J. L.]
Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange
25 Brethren, pray for us.
Ver. 25. Brethren, pray for us ] The best may need the prayers of the meanest. God will have us beholden herein one to another, 1Co 12:21-22 . How earnest is that great apostle in begging prayers,Rom 15:30Rom 15:30 . Pray for me, I say, pray for me, I say (quoth father Latimer), for I am sometimes so fearful that I could creep into a mouse hole; sometimes God doth visit me again with his comfort. (Acts and Mon.)
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
25 28 .] CONCLUSION.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
25 .] Cf. Rom 15:30 ; Eph 6:19 ; Col 4:3 ; 2Th 3:1 .
is not so definite as pray concerning us make us the subject of your prayers our person our circumstances our apostolic work. Ellic. however remarks, that this distinction is precarious; and hardly appreciable.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
1Th 5:25-27 . Closing words of counsel and prayer.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 1Th 5:25
25Brethren, pray for us.
1Th 5:25 “pray for us” Paul felt a need for prayer (cf. Rom 15:30; Eph 6:18-19; Col 4:3-4; Php 1:19). Prayer somehow releases the power of God for effective ministry. The sovereign God has chosen to limit Himself in some areas to the prayers of His children (cf. Jas 4:2). What a responsibility this puts on each one of us as Christians. See SPECIAL TOPIC: INTERCESSORY PRAYER at 1Th 1:2.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
for. Greek. peri. App-104.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
25-28.] CONCLUSION.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
1Th 5:25. , for us) as we for you, 1Th 5:23. [Paul begs the same thing in the second epistle to the Thessalonians, also in the epistle to the Romans, Ephesian, Colossians, and Philemon, and in passing, in the second epistle to the Corinthians, as well as to the Philippians. He does not make this request in the epistle to Timothy and Titus, because he either addressed them as sons or was sure of their spontaneous intercessions. He did not indeed ask this of the Corinthians in his first epistle, nor of the Galatians; for he required to rebuke them in the exercise of his paternal authority.-V. g.]
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
1Th 5:25
Brethren, pray for us.-We learn how Paul esteemed prayer by the constancy with which he prayed for others; how earnest he was in asking the prayers of Christians in his own behalf. If an inspired apostle like Paul felt the constant need of the prayers of others, that he might be able to stand, be steadfast in the truth, and be bold to teach the whole will of God to man, how much more do Christians of today need the help and strength that comes through the prayers of others in their behalf!
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Rom 15:30, 2Co 1:11, Eph 6:18-20, Phi 1:19, Col 4:3, 2Th 3:1-3, Phm 1:22, Heb 13:18, Heb 13:19
Reciprocal: Gen 20:17 – General Exo 17:12 – stayed up his hands Eph 6:19 – for Jam 5:16 – pray
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Th 5:25. It is interesting that the apostle Paul felt the need for the prayers of the brethren, although he was an inspired man. That was because inspiration was not any special protection against misconduct in one’s personal life; it guaranteed only that he would not make any mistake in his teaching. An inspired man could go wrong in his life, even though he had done his duty in his teaching (1Co 9:27).
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
1Th 5:25. Pray for us. The frequency with which Paul asks the prayers of the churches is worthy of remark (Eph 6:19; Col 4:3; and note on a Thess. 1Th 3:1).
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Observe, who it is that begs prayer, a great apostle, St. Paul himself; and who it is he begs prayer from, the brethren, Christians, and fellow members of the church at Thessalonica. Those that are most eminent for gifts and graces, are greatly desirous of the saints’ prayers; particularly the ministers of the gospel, as they stand most in need of, so are they most importunate for this spiritual alms, which they crave as earnestly as ever beggar did bread at a rich man’s gate. See 2Th 3:1.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Brethren, pray for us. [It was Paul’s habit to ask for the prayers of those to whom he wrote (Rom 15:30; 2Co 1:11; Eph 6:19; Col 4:3; 2Th 3:1). Compare Heb 13:18 .
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
5:25 {15} Brethren, pray for us.
(15) The last part of the epistle, in which with most authoritative charge he commends both himself and this epistle to them.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
IV. CONCLUSION 5:25-28
Paul added this final postscript to encourage three more loving actions and to stress one basic attitude.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
Paul believed that intercessory prayer would move God to do things that He would not do otherwise (cf. Jas 4:2).
"The ministry of prayer is the most important service that the Church of Christ can engage in." [Note: D. Edmond Hiebert, Working with God: Scriptural Studies in Intercession, p. 44.]