and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus the one delivering us from the coming wrath.
Truth to Learn
Jesus Christ is coming back very soon.
Behind the Words
“Wait” is translated from the Greek verb anamenō, which is made up of ana, used as an emphatic and menō, meaning “to remain.” Thus, anamenō means “to wait for expectantly with patience and confidence.” It is expressed as a present tense infinitive, indicating continuous action. We could translate this as “keep on waiting.”
The verb ”raised” is egeirō, which means “to awaken from sleep” or “to raise up from a bed.” It is used metaphorically to mean “to raise up from the dead.”
The words “the dead” are translated from ek nekrōn. The word ek means “out” or “out of” and nekrōn means “of the dead ones” or “from the dead ones.” Hence, this says that Jesus was not simply brought back to life, but that He was raised up from among the dead ones.
“Delivering” is translated from rhuomai which literally means “to draw to one’s self;” that is, to rescue. The picture is that of drawing someone out of a rushing river. It is expressed as a participle so it could be translated as “rescuing us” or “delivering us.”
The second occurrence of the word “from” is translated from the Greek preposition ek, meaning “from” or “out of.” It is significant that he will deliver us “out of” the wrath, not simply protecting us in the midst of the wrath. This implies that we will not be present when the wrath occurs. This is evidence that the rapture will occur before God pours out His wrath.
The words “coming” are from erchomai, which means “to come” or “to go.” As used here it refers to “the wrath that is currently coming” or “the wrath that is on its way.”
Orgē is the Greek word translated “wrath.” It is a reference to the outpouring of action as a result of violent passion or of a vengeful mind.
Meaning Explained
In yesterday’s verse we learned that Paul refers to the Thessalonian Christians as having turned to God from idols. As we mentioned, the church there was probably made up principally of converted Greek pagans rather than converted Jews. Not only did they turn away from their idols, they turned toward God and actively served Him with devotion.
In today’s verse we learn something else about these converted pagans: they were awaiting the return of our Lord. The implication is that they were expecting Him to return at any moment. Obviously, Paul had preached to them that not only had Jesus Christ been resurrected from the dead, but he was going to return to our physical world in physical form. In fact, the return of the Lord is a major theme that runs throughout this entire letter.
Another thing we learn here is that the Thessalonian Christians had been taught that God is going to pour out His wrath on sinful mankind. They also knew that God’s wrath would not be poured out on them because of their faith in the Savior. Salvation through Jesus Christ means more than simply a free ticket into heaven, it also means that we will avoid the vengeful judgment that God has reserved for those who reject Him.
Application
Are you living your life for God? Are you looking forward with eager expectation to the return of Jesus Christ? That eager expectation should be one of the things driving us to serve Him with complete devotion. Remember, He’s coming soon. It could even be today!
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2016 Will Krause. All rights reserved