Whereas in 1 Thessalonians 4 the purpose was reassurance with reference to deceased Christians, in this it is rather an admonition to be ready for the event when it occurs ( 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11). This chapter continues, significantly, the teaching on the Second Advent, but with a difference of purpose. This is a further reason why they should live in a way that pleases God and encourages fellow Christians (9-11). Union with Christ means that they will escape God’s wrath and enjoy salvation in its fulness. They must be self-controlled in their behaviour, strong in faith and love, and confident in their salvation (8). Just as soldiers must always be prepared for any eventuality, so Christians must always be prepared for Christ’s return. Therefore, Christians of the ‘day’ should not act like non-Christians of the ‘night’, otherwise they will be both surprised and ashamed when Christ returns (4-7). The life of the Christian is likened to a bright day of watchfulness and self-control. The life of the non-Christian is likened to a dark night of moral laziness and ill-discipline. His return will smash the non-Christian’s sense of security with a destruction that none will escape (5:1-3). His intervention in the affairs of the world will be as sudden as birth pains. Paul had already told the Thessalonians that no one knows when Christ will return. In the notes on Acts 1:6 Acts 1:7, it has already been shown that the χρονους η καιρους, times or seasons, (the very same terms which are used here,) refer to the destruction of the Jewish commonwealth and we may fairly presume that they have the same meaning in this place. And it appears most probable that it is of the former event chiefly that he speaks here, as it was certainly of the latter that he treated in the conclusion of the preceding chapter. It is very likely therefore, that the apostle, like our Lord, couples these two grand events-the destruction of Jerusalem and the final judgment. And it is remarkable that the apostle answers, here, to these anticipated questions as our Lord did, in the above case, to the direct question of his disciples and he seems to refer in these words, Of the times and the seasons ye have no need that I write unto you, for yourselves know that the day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night, to what our Lord said, Matthew 24:44 Matthew 25:13 and the apostle takes it for granted that they were acquainted with our Lord's prediction on the subject: For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. But of the times and the seasons - It is natural to suppose, after what he had said in the conclusion of the preceding chapter concerning the coming of Christ, the raising of the dead, and rendering those immortal who should then be found alive, without obliging them to pass through the empire of death, that the Thessalonians would feel an innocent curiosity to know, as the disciples did concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, when those things should take place, and what should be the signs of those times, and of the coming of the Son of man.
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