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1 Thessalonians 5:4 – Spiritual Darkness?

Posted on June 13, 2016 by Will

But you, brothers, are not in darkness, so that this Day should seize you as a thief.

Truth to Learn

Christians do not live in darkness.

Behind the Words

The word “but” is translated from the Greek particle de, which we looked at in verse one. It indicates transition or conversion, serving to introduce a new topic.

Humeis is the word translated “you.” It is the second person plural pronoun (“you,” plural).

“Darkness” is from skotos, which is from the same root as skia, meaning “shade or a shadow.” It means “obscurity or darkness.” It can refer to either literal darkness of spiritual darkness as it does here.

The Greek word translated “sieze” is katalambanō. This word is made up of kata, meaning “down,” but used here as an intensifier and the verb lambanō, meaning “to take.” Katalambanō means “to lay hold of or seize with eagerness or suddenness.” It is expressed here in the aorist tense and subjunctive mood, indicating a single act that has the possibility or probability of happening.

The word translated “thief” is the noun kleptēs, which is derived from the verb kleptō, meaning “to steal.” Thus, kleptēs refers to someone who steals things, a thief.

Meaning Explained

The Apostle Paul has just talked about how the Tribulation will arrive as a “thief in the night,” taking by surprise those who are living on the earth at that time; however, he starts off the current verse with “but.” This shows that what he is about to talk about is contrasted with what was just said. He says, “but you … are not in darkness,” meaning that we won’t be surprised by the Day of the Lord. The ones who will experience the Day of the Lord are in darkness, they are spiritually blind. He will tell us in the next verse that we are sons (children) of light; we have been enlightened by the gospel message. Because we are children of light, we will be removed from the earth before that day comes.

People who believe in a mid-tribulation or post-tribulation rapture have to do some fancy footwork in order to explain away what this verse is really saying. Since they confuse the rapture with the Day of the Lord (the tribulation), they try to say that we will be aware of the coming of the tribulation and God will preserve or protect us in it. This doesn’t explain, however, what Paul said at the end of the previous verse, “they shall in no way escape sudden destruction.” Somehow, these people completely miss the message that is given to “the overcomers” (Christians) in Revelation chapter three:

Because you kept the word of my perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (Revelation 3:10)

The word translated “from” in this verse is ek, which literally means “out of.” We, the overcomers, will be kept “out of” the hour, the time of the tribulation. We will not be preserved “in” it; we will be kept “out of” it. This is clear evidence that we Christians will be taken out of the world before the tribulation.

Application

The world is in darkness because it rejects the gospel message. Because they are in darkness, the Day of the Lord will come like a thief and they will in no way escape. However, that day will not overtake us Christians because we are not in darkness and we will be taken out to eternally live in the light.

In God's service, for His glory,

1 Thessalonians 5:2 – Noisily Versus Quietly

Posted on August 23, 2012 by Will

For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.

Truth to Learn

The Day of the Lord will come quietly, the rapture noisily.

Behind the Words

“Know” is translated from the verb eidō, which refers to “seeing with perception and comprehension.” Thus, it takes on the meaning of “knowing” or “understanding.” In English someone might explain something and then say, “Do you see what I’m saying?” In such a case, they are not asking about vision but about understanding. This is the sense that eidō has in today’s verse.

The word translated “perfectly” is akribōs, which means “accurately” or “exactly.” It is not an expression about perfection, but of accuracy.

Hēmera is the word translated “day.” It can refer to a complete twenty-four hour period or, as in today’s verse, it can refer to the timeframe of a specific event.

The word “as” is from the Greek word houtō, meaning “in this way” or “in this manner.”

The word “thief” is from kleptēs. This is derived from the verb kleptō (from which we get our English word kleptomaniac, meaning someone who has an obsession with stealing things). Kleptē refers to someone who steals things, that is, “a thief.”

“Night” is translated from nux, which refers to the time period from sundown to sunrise.

Meaning Explained

In today’s verse we see a couple more reasons why the rapture (the Day of Jesus Christ) and the Day of the Lord are two distinctly different events. When Paul introduced the topic of the rapture back in 1 Thessalonians 4:13, he said “I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren,” meaning that they were ignorant of the facts surrounding the rapture. In yesterday’s verse he said, “you have no need that I should write to you,” and in today’s verse he completes that thought. The reason that they didn’t need additional information is because, “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.”

Apparently, Paul had previously taught the Christians in Thessalonica the facts about the Day of the Lord. Since they had accurate knowledge about the Day of the Lord and were ignorant concerning the rapture, they must be two different things. One of the possible reasons for this is that the Old Testament has numerous references to the Day of the Lord, but there are no references to the rapture. Since the Old Testament is the only Scripture the Thessalonians had, they could only have learned about the Day of the Lord from it.

The other thing to note is how these two events occur. The rapture occurs with a loud proclamation and a trumpet blast. The Day of the Lord, on the other hand, comes like a thief in the night. A thief doesn’t announce himself and he doesn’t make a lot of noise; he comes quietly and secretly. In other words, the rapture will come with lots of noise, but the Day of the Lord will come quietly, like a thief.

Application

Christians, keep your ears open, listening for the shout and the trumpet blast. You’ll be gone when the Day of the Lord comes.

In God's service, for His glory,

2 Peter 3:10 – Fission Judgment

Posted on June 25, 2009 by admin

2 Peter 3:10

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

Truth to Learn

God’s judgment day will be cataclysmic and final.

Behind the Words

The word translated “elements” is the word stoicheia, which means “fundamental or elemental things.” Hence, the term “elements” is an excellent translation of it, referring to the atomic elements of which the entire universe is made.

The word translated “will be destroyed” is a form of luō, meaning “to let loose” or “to release.”

“Laid bare” is translated from katakaiō, a compound word made up of kata, meaning “down” and kaiō, meaning “to burn.” Hence, this word means “to completely consume by fire.”

Meaning Explained

Peter has just told us that the reason that God has delayed His judgment of the unrighteous. It is because He is holding His wrath in check waiting for any who will believe and accept His offer of eternal life. God is not desirous that any should perish, but he has determined that He will “drop the hammer” someday and then the unbelievers will receive the judgment which is due them.

That Day of Judgment is referred to as “the day of the Lord.” Actually, it is not a single 24 hour day; it is a period of time in which God executes His judgment against the wickedness of mankind. There are numerous references to the day of the Lord in the Bible. Here are a few of them: Jeremiah 46:10; Acts 2:20; 1Thessalonians 5:2.

So, is this a reference to the rapture of the church? No! The rapture comes with a trumpet blast and a loud shout. The day of the Lord comes like a thief, by surprise and stealth, when no one expects it. And nearly every reference to the day of the Lord in the Bible identifies it as a day of God’s wrath and vengeance. Even in today’s verse, Peter describes it as a day when cataclysmic things will occur.

One of the most fascinating statements in the entire Bible is found in today’s verse. It says that, “the elements will be let loose with fire.” One of the things that scientists have never figured out is how the positively charged protons at the center of all atoms remain together, since like charges repel each other. Yet, these like charges are actually so tightly bound together that when they are finally separated, it produces a tremendous release of energy in the form of intense heat (nuclear fission). The explanation that scientists give for this tremendous force holding the protons together is “cosmic glue.”

Peter says that these elements will “be let loose.” Notice what this means. God is suddenly going to release every proton from its place, which will produce a roar and fire the likes of which has never been witnessed. “. . .and the earth and everything in it will be completely consumed by fire.”

Application

When all material things have been destroyed, only our works, which we have done either for ourselves or for God, will be left for God to judge. What kind of works are you doing? Are they for you or for God?

In God’s service, for His glory,

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1 Peter 4:15 – Improper Suffering

Posted on February 25, 2009 by admin

1 Peter 4:15

But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters.

Truth to Learn

Suffering for righteousness is pleasing to God. Suffering for wrongdoing is not pleasing to anyone.

Behind the Words

“Evildoer” comes from the Greek word kakopoios, which is a compound of kakos, meaning “bad or evil” and poieō, meaning “to make or to do.” So, kakopoios means one who does bad things.

The expression “a busybody in other people’s matters” comes from the single Greek word allotrioepiskapos. This, again, is a compound word that combines allotrios, meaning “those things which belong to someone else” and episkiopos, meaning “an overseer.” Hence, this word means “someone who is overseeing someone else’s matters” or “someone who sticks their nose in other people’s business.”

Meaning Explained

After a number of verses intended to comfort us in our times of trial and suffering, Peter now interjects a solemn warning lest we think that any type of suffering is glorifying to God.

Peter mentions four types of actions for which suffering does not bring glory to God. Two of them are specific crimes and the other two are more general in nature. The first two things he identifies are murder and theft. Certainly none of us would seriously consider murder as a reasonable action because it is so horrific and final. Stealing, on the other hand, is a different matter. We tend to categorize stealing two ways: intentionally taking something that doesn’t rightfully belong to us and “borrowing” or using something that isn’t ours but that the rightful owner will never miss or doesn’t need if we don’t return it. If the matter were truth telling we would call this latter one a “white lie,” so I’ll refer to it here as a “white theft.” Unfortunately for us, in God’s book there is no difference between a white theft and any other kind. If we get caught in the act and suffer for it we do not bring glory to God.

The other two things that Peter mentions for which we should never suffer are being an evil-doer and being a meddler. Evildoer is pretty broad in scope and includes all those things that we do that aren’t pleasing to God. Lest we try to split hairs here, Peter is not saying that we shouldn’t get caught, but that we shouldn’t do these types of things. If we don’t do these things, we won’t have to suffer for them.

The fourth thing that Peter tells us not to suffer for is “a busybody in other people’s matters.” I’m sure we all know or have known someone like that. This should never be the case with a Christian. After all, we have enough to do just to keep our own sin nature in check without looking into or trying to fix anyone else’s problems.

So, to put today’s verse in perspective, let me summarize what Peter is telling us. If we suffer for righteousness sake, we are blessed and we bring glory to God, but it does not glorify God when we suffer for our sins.

Application

I know that some of you are suffering right now as the result of a number of different issues. Remember, that’s pleasing to God – as long as it’s for doing what is right!

In God’s service, for His glory,

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