Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of 1 Thessalonians
Chapter 4: The Coming of the Lord
First Thessalonians 4 gives two great instructions: how to live now, and what to hope for then. First, holiness: 'this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication,' for 'God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.' Believers are to grow in 'brotherly love,' to 'study to be quiet,' work with their own hands, and 'walk honestly toward them that are without.' Then Paul turns to the church's grief over believers who have died, and gives one of the clearest and most comforting passages in all Scripture on the coming of the Lord: 'if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.' 'For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.' 'Wherefore comfort one another with these words.' This chapter shows us the holy walk and the blessed hope.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of 1 Thessalonians chapter 4. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Paul calls believers to a holy, sanctified life, and then unveils the great hope of the coming of the Lord and the resurrection of those who sleep in Jesus. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Your Sanctification
Called unto holiness, not uncleanness.
Walk Honestly
Brotherly love, quiet work, an honest witness.
Sorrow Not as Others
Hope for them which sleep in Jesus.
The Lord Himself Shall Descend
The dead rise; we are caught up to meet Him.
This Is the Will of God, Your Sanctification (1 Thessalonians 4:1-12)
God's will for His people is holiness: purity of body, growing love, and a quiet, honest life that commends the gospel to those outside.
Called Unto Holiness
"Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more. For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit. But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more; And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing."
Word Study
"sanctification," Greek hagiasmos (ἁγιασμός). The word means the process and state of being made holy, consecration, setting apart to God; it shares its root with hagios, "holy," and hagiazo, "to sanctify." "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification." Many wonder what God's will for their life is; here Paul states one great part of it plainly: your hagiasmos, that you be made holy, set apart from sin and set apart to God. Sanctification has two sides. It is God's work, for He "hath called us... unto holiness" and has "given unto us his holy Spirit" to make it real in us. And it is our pursuit, for we are to "abstain from fornication," to "possess" our body "in sanctification and honour," and not to live "in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God." The word thus binds together purity and belonging: to be sanctified is to be God's, and therefore to keep the body pure, for it now belongs to Him. This is not an optional extra for advanced Christians; it is "the will of God" for every believer. And to reject it is no small thing: "he that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit." Holiness is the will of God, wrought by the Spirit of God, and to spurn it is to spurn God Himself.
Explanation
Paul turns to how they "ought to walk and to please God." First, purity: "this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication," each possessing his vessel "in sanctification and honour," for "God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness." Second, love: "ye are taught of God to love one another," and to abound in it more. Third, a quiet, honest life: "study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands... that ye may walk honestly toward them that are without." Holiness, brotherly love, and diligent, unobtrusive labour together commend the gospel to a watching world.
Gospel Focus
Having prayed for their holiness in chapter 3, Paul now instructs them in it. He does not command coldly but pleads, "we beseech you... and exhort you by the Lord Jesus," urging them to "abound more and more" in a walk that pleases God. And he states God's will with unmistakable clarity: "this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication." In a pagan culture where sexual sin was normal and even religious, Paul calls believers to a radically different life: purity. Each one is to "possess his vessel," his own body, "in sanctification and honour," not driven by "the lust of concupiscence... even as the Gentiles which know not God." Sexual sin also wrongs others, so "no man go beyond and defraud his brother," for "the Lord is the avenger of all such." The reason is the character of the God who called them: "God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness." And the stakes are high: to despise this teaching is to despise "not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit." The same Spirit who makes us holy is grieved by impurity. Then Paul turns to the gentler subject of love. He commends them, for they are already "taught of God to love one another" and do so "toward all the brethren... in all Macedonia," yet urges them to "increase more and more." Love has no ceiling. Finally, he calls them to a quiet, dignified, self-supporting life: "study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands." The aim is twofold, "that ye may walk honestly toward them that are without," commending the gospel to outsiders by a respectable life, "and that ye may have lack of nothing," being self-reliant rather than a burden. So the holy walk is whole-life: pure in body, abounding in love, quiet and industrious in daily work, and honorable before a watching world, because we belong wholly to the God who called us unto holiness.
The Lord Himself Shall Descend from Heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)
Believers do not grieve like those without hope, for the Lord will descend, the dead in Christ will rise, and the living will be caught up to be forever with the Lord.
Caught Up Together to Meet the Lord
"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words."
Word Study
"caught up," Greek harpazo (ἁρπάζω). The word means to seize, to snatch away suddenly, to carry off with force and swiftness; it is used of a wolf snatching a sheep and of the Spirit catching Philip away (Acts 8:39). "Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air." From the Latin translation of this verb, rapturo, comes the familiar word "rapture." The picture is of a sudden, powerful, irresistible snatching upward: when the Lord descends, the living saints will be seized from the earth in an instant and swept up into the clouds. There is nothing slow or gradual about it; harpazo is a swift catching away by the power of God. And it is "together with them", together with the resurrected dead in Christ, who rise "first," so that the whole family of God, those who sleep and those who remain, are gathered at once "to meet the Lord in the air." The word underscores both the suddenness of that day and the mighty grace of it: we do not climb up to God by our own effort; we are caught up by His power to meet our descending Lord. And the result is the sweetest phrase of all: "and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
Explanation
Paul answers a grief in the young church — what of believers who have died? He would not have them "sorrow... as others which have no hope." For if Jesus died and rose, "them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." Then the great promise: "the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout... and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive... shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." Christian grief is real but not hopeless; death is sleep, reunion is certain, and the parting is temporary. "Comfort one another with these words."
Gospel Focus
Some in the young church had died, and the rest were grieving, unsure what would become of them at the Lord's coming. Paul writes to turn their sorrow into hope. "I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope." Notice: Paul does not forbid grief, but a hopeless grief. Believers who die are only "asleep," and death for the Christian is a sleep from which there is a glorious waking. The ground of the hope is the gospel itself: "if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." Because Jesus truly died and truly rose, those who die in Him will rise as He did; His resurrection guarantees theirs. Then Paul unfolds the order of that day "by the word of the Lord." The living will "not prevent," not go before or get ahead of, those who have died; the dead are not at a disadvantage. "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven." Not an angel, not a messenger, but the Lord Himself, the Lord Jesus, who is God our Saviour, comes down "with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God." At His coming, "the dead in Christ shall rise first," their bodies raised in glory. "Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air." The whole church, raised and living alike, is snatched up to meet their descending Lord. And the goal of it all, the heart of heaven, is stated in seven words: "and so shall we ever be with the Lord." Not the clouds, not the escape from death, but the unending presence of the Lord Jesus is the hope. This is why Paul ends not with speculation but with comfort: "wherefore comfort one another with these words." The doctrine of the Lord's coming is not given to feed curiosity but to console the grieving and steady the living, for our Lord Himself is coming, our dead will rise, and we shall be with Him forever.
Chapter 4 in Review
First Thessalonians 4 joins the holy walk to the blessed hope. God's will is stated plainly: "this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication," for "God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness." Believers are to grow in "brotherly love," "study to be quiet," work with their hands, and "walk honestly toward them that are without." Then Paul comforts those grieving over believers who have died: "if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him." "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout... and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words."
For the Apostolic reader this chapter sets two pillars of the faith side by side: holiness now and hope for then. It answers the question so many ask, "What is God's will for my life?", with the clear word "your sanctification": that we belong wholly to God, keeping the body pure by the same Spirit He has given us. And it gives the church its great comfort against death. The one who comes is "the Lord himself," the Lord Jesus who is God, descending in power; our dead do not perish but "sleep in Jesus" and will rise first; and the living will be "caught up" in an instant to meet Him. The crown of it all is not merely escape from death but everlasting nearness: "so shall we ever be with the Lord." So we pursue holiness as God's will, we grieve with hope and not despair, we live ready, and we comfort one another with the certain promise of our Lord's return.
- "This is the will of God, even your sanctification" (4:3).
- "God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness" (4:7).
- Believers who die are "asleep" and "sleep in Jesus"; we sorrow with hope (4:13-14).
- "The Lord himself shall descend from heaven... and the dead in Christ shall rise first" (4:16).
- The living "shall be caught up together with them... to meet the Lord in the air" (4:17).
- The heart of the hope: "so shall we ever be with the Lord" (4:17).
Questions for Reflection
- Have you embraced sanctification as "the will of God" for your life?
- Do you possess your body "in sanctification and honour," belonging wholly to God?
- Does the death of believers move you to grieve with hope, not "as others which have no hope"?
- Are you living ready to "meet the Lord in the air" and be forever with Him?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Sanctification as God's will; purity of the body: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:18-20; Hebrews 12:14. Brotherly love and a quiet, honest life: 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12; John 13:34-35; 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12. Hope for those asleep; Jesus died and rose: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14; 1 Corinthians 15:20-23; John 11:25. The coming of the Lord and the resurrection: 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; John 14:3; Acts 1:11. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Sanctification is the will of God; purity of the body: 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; 1 Corinthians 6:18-20.
- Brotherly love; the quiet, honest, working life: 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12; 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12.
- Sorrow not without hope; Jesus died and rose again: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14; 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.
- The Lord descends; the dead rise; caught up to meet Him: 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-52.