From this point onward Paul’s thought moves steadily toward the main theme of this letter: the last days and the final judgment. However, these events are not wholly in the future; what has been happening to the Thessalonians, and the way in which they have reacted, are directly related to the coming climax of history and the final victory of Christ. The exact relation between present and future events raises not only theological problems but problems of translation. These are not made any easier by the fact that, although many of the expressions Paul uses in this passage have a future meaning, it is not until verse 9 that he uses a verb in the future tense.
In this passage, Paul uses his favorite device of repeating the same ideas in increasing detail, so as to emphasize them and produce an emotive climax.
1. The activity of God is closely linked with that of Christ. In verse 7 the passive statement “the Lord Jesus is revealed” is equivalent to “God reveals the Lord Jesus,” and it should be so translated in languages where the passive voice is rarely used or does not exists.
2. Similarly, the translator may need to make it clear that the implied agent of “that you may be made worthy” in verse 5 is God; that “to be glorified” in verse 10 implies that “his saints” will glorify Christ (cf. Good News Translation to receive glory from all his people, and v. 12, the name of our Lord Jesus will receive glory from you); and that “was believed” in verse 10 means that the Thessalonian Christians believed the message.
3. The verbs which are underlined in the diagram are the only ones whose tense is explicit in the original. Nevertheless, it is clear that Paul is drawing a double contrast between present and future, and between the Thessalonian Christians and their persecutors. The Christians suffer now, but they will share the kingdom in the future. The persecutors cause suffering now, but they will themselves suffer in the future. The translator should try where possible to bring out, in the form as well as the content of his translation, this complex network of contrasts.
4. The main emphasis falls, towards the end of the passage (vv. 8-9), on the punishment of the persecutors. Indeed, the power of evil is a recurring theme in the letter as a whole.
The first group of problems for the translator concerns the relation of verse 5a to verses 4 and 5b. Within this group, the first difficulty, and perhaps the easiest to solve, is one of punctuation, since the oldest Greek manuscripts have no punctuation marks. The UBS Greek text puts a comma at the end of verse 5, and although individual commentators have at times suggested a different punctuation (see the general commentaries), translations generally agree with Good News Translation in taking the comma as the equivalent of a major pause. By far the most natural procedure is to begin a new sentence at this point.
The first part of verse 5 is rather abrupt: literally, “proof” (better, “evidence”; the exact meaning will be discussed later) “of the righteous judgment of God.” What is this “proof”? Some translators find it in something which Paul has mentioned earlier: either (1) the persecutions (e.g. Moffatt “they are proof positive of God’s equity”); or (2) the Thessalonians’ endurance and faith (e.g. Phillips 1st ed. “these qualities show…”; but compare 2nd ed. “[God] intends to use your suffering to prove you worthy of his kingdom”); or the Thessalonians themselves (e.g. Translator’s New Testament “you are a clear example…”); or (3) the whole of what Paul has just been discussing (e.g. Jerusalem Bible “it all shows that God’s judgment is just”). Other translators find the “proof” in something Paul mentions later. Knox, for example, translates “it will be a proof of the just award God makes, when he finds you worthy of a place in his kingdom.” A third group of translations do not make it clear whether the word “proof” is related to something in verse 4 or something later in verse 5. It is difficult to be certain whether Revised Standard Version‘s “this is evidence” and Good News Translation‘s all of this proves are intended to look backward or forward. In fact, the Greek text may be interpreted as pointing in both directions.
Jerusalem Bible‘s solution (cf. Barclay and [less explicitly] King James Version Bible en français courant Bible de Jérusalem La Sainte Bible: Nouvelle version Segond révisée Le Nouveau Testament. Version Synodale Zürcher Bibel) seems the most satisfactory, that is, a general backward-looking reference to the situation Paul has just been describing. How this situation constitutes evidence or proof of God’s righteous judgment is a question which takes us to the frontier between translation and exegesis. One possibility is: When people of such faith as the Thessalonians have to endure such fierce and undeserved persecutions, it is a clear sign that God must soon intervene in judgment, to reward the believers (cf. v. 5b) and to punish those responsible for the persecution (cf. v. 6). This interpretation fits well with the wider context (see also vv. 7-8). (Best’s interpretation, “Paul says: ‘I have boasted about you; this is a sign that God will count you worthy then’ ” [p. 255], seems somewhat forced in that it gives rather too great prominence to Paul’s “boasting.”)
If we followed such an interpretation as that suggested above, it would be difficult to accept the translation “proof.” The only place this particular word is used in the whole of the Greek scriptures is here, though it is related in form and meaning to a word used in Philippians 1.28, where Good News Translation translates “will prove.” The difficulty is that “proof” (especially if used with a verb in the present tense, such as “this is proof,” or the verb proves, as in Good News Translation) seems to refer to something which is already clear for everyone to see; but the context shows that this is not the case. The persecutions and the Thessalonians’ persistent faith belong to the present; but it is the main point of the entire letter to show that the final judgment does not belong to the present. On the other hand, such translations as “this is a sign” or “this shows” are regarded by some as being too weak; there are other expressions which Paul could have used if this were all he meant. Best’s “sure sign” (cf. Rigaux) and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “thereby already now God’s righteous judgment shows itself” combine effectively, though in different ways, the present and future elements of Paul’s message at this point.
Throughout this passage Paul makes repeated use of two groups of related words: (1) “persecutions” (v. 4), “suffering” and “suffer” (v. 6): “suffering” in verse 5 is related in meaning but not in form; (2) “righteous” (v. 5), “right” (v. 6), and “punish” (v. 8). The function of these repetitions is to maintain the momentum, and thereby the emotive level, of this long Greek sentence. In translation, it will not always be possible to reproduce this effect, but any loss can usually be compensated for in other ways. For example, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “Gottes gerechtes Gericht” (“God’s just judgment”) contains alliteration and other echoes which are not present in the original.
One of the difficulties with a literal rendering of “proof” is that it suggests merely some kind of verbal demonstration. Paul evidently has much more in mind. Perhaps the closest equivalent would be “clear evidence.” If one is to relate this to the persecution and suffering which the Thessalonians have endured, one may say “the fact that you have suffered so much shows clearly” or “… assures us.” This may then be followed by a verbal form of God’s judgment is just as “that God will judge justly.”
Judgment is the act of judging rather than the verdict which the judge gives. The distinction is not always significant, but in this case it is, since Paul is mainly thinking of the events which will precede and accompany the end. God’s judgment is just may be rendered in some languages as “God will judge people as he should,” “… as they should be judged,” or “on the basis of what they truly deserve.”
As a result translates a Greek construction which may indicate result (as in Good News Translation cf. Bible en français courant and Rigaux), purpose (as in Jerusalem Bible “the purpose of it is,” cf. Moffatt Barclay Traduction œcuménique de la Bible etc.), or some vaguer connection (as in Translator’s New Testament “and in the end you will be counted worthy,” cf. Bible de Jérusalem Best etc.). It is impossible to be certain, and in any case purpose and result, especially with God as the subject, are almost indistinguishable in many biblical contexts. It may be convenient to begin a new sentence at this point and to treat verse 5b as a fuller statement of what Paul has already said in verse 5a. This is typical of Paul’s style. The translation would then run: “all this is a sure sign of God’s righteous judgment. The result will be….”
It is important that one indicate clearly that as a result refers to what the Thessalonians had experienced. This relation is best expressed in some languages simply as cause, for example, “Because of what you have experienced, you will become worthy of God’s Kingdom.”
The verb translated will become worthy may have this meaning, but its literal, as well as its more common meaning, is “will be counted worthy.” The passive is a common indirect way of referring to God, and Knox makes this explicit: “when he finds you worthy of a place in his kingdom”; cf. Moffatt “he means to make you worthy of it” and Phillips. If some such translation as “count worthy” (cf. Translator’s New Testament) or “find worthy” (Knox) is chosen, it will be necessary to avoid any suggestion of a legal fiction by which God would treat as worthy those who really were not. Some translators render worthy simply as “good enough for.” But this introduces an element which is really foreign to the context. A more appropriate equivalent would be “deserving of” or “deserving the recompense of.”
On his Kingdom, see the notes on 1 Thess. 2.12. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates this phrase as “God’s new world”; Good News Translation Bible en français courant Biblia Dios Habla Hoy Translator’s New Testament Traduction œcuménique de la Bible add glossary notes. In a number of languages his Kingdom must be expressed in terms of God’s rulership; that is to say, “worthy of God ruling over you,” “deserving to have God as your king,” or “… as your ruler”. Though some persons might insist that this reference to God’s Kingdom does have temporal and spatial qualifications, the focus here seems to be essentially upon the believer’s relation to God—not simply upon some time or place in which God will eventually rule completely.
For which you are suffering. In Greek as in English, for is a word which covers a wide area of meaning. Here, the most likely meaning is not “on behalf of” but “because of.” It is particularly important to avoid the implication that the suffering of the Thessalonian believers would advance the Kingdom in some manner. Rather, it was because of their faithfulness to God as the king of their lives that they were suffering. One must also avoid the implication that the Thessalonians were suffering for the sake of getting into the Kingdom as though their suffering had as a goal their becoming good enough to be admitted into God’s Kingdom.
The Greek is literally “for which you also are suffering.” Good News Translation and many other translations omit the word “also.” Some kind of comparison is intended. There are two main possibilities: (1) Paul is comparing the Thessalonians suffering with that of others, including himself and his companions. This would fit in well with the words and to us as well (literally “with us”) in verse 7. However, Paul does not refer anywhere else in this chapter to his own sufferings. (2) The word “also” may simply link two statements about the kingdom: (a) “God reigns, and he will judge you worthy to share in his reign” (v. 5a), and (b) “it is because of his reign, because you acknowledge God as king, that you are suffering now” (v. 5b). Bible de Jérusalem (cf. Rigaux Best) understands “also” in the first way: “the kingdom of God for which you also are suffering”; but Jerusalem Bible, its English counterpart, implicitly takes “also” in the second way: “it is for the sake of this” (i.e. the kingdom) “that you are suffering now” (cf. Knox Bijbel in Gewone Taal). If the word “also” is omitted, as in Good News Translation, the second meaning tends to be implied. Some translations are ambiguous, but ambiguity should be avoided if possible. You are suffering, as already indicated in Diagram 1, is a real present tense. Knox‘s translation, “for which you are prepared to suffer,” has no basis in the Greek.
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .