1 Thessalonians 4

1 A few more things: Brothers and sisters, we plead with you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to behave in ways that please God, just as we instructed you. Of course you're already doing this, just do it more and more!

Further, friends, we beg and urge you in the name of our Lord Jesus to carry out more fully than ever – as indeed you are already doing – all that you have heard from us as to what your daily life must be, if it is to please God.

2 You remember the instructions we gave you on behalf of the Lord Jesus.

For you have not forgotten the directions that we gave you on the authority of our Lord Jesus.

3 What God wants is for you to live holy lives. So stay away from sexual immorality

For this is God’s purpose – that you should be pure; abstaining from all immorality;

4 in order that each of you may control yourselves in a way that is holy and respectful,

each of you learning to gain control over your own body, in a way that is holy and honourable,

5 not indulging passionate lust like the heathen who have no knowledge of God.

and not for the mere gratification of your passions, like the Gentiles who know nothing of God;

6 Don't cheat or take advantage of another Christian in these matters, for the Lord is the one who executes justice in all such things, as we've already clearly explained to you, and warned you about.

none of you overreaching or taking advantage of their fellow follower of the Lord in such matters. The Lord takes vengeance on all who do such things, as we have already warned you and solemnly declared.

7 For God did not call us to live impure lives, but holy lives.

For God does not call us to an impure life, but demands holiness.

8 So anyone who rejects this position isn't just rejecting what a human being is saying; they are rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Therefore the person who disregards this warning disregards, not people, but God who gives you his Holy Spirit.

9 We certainly don't need to write and tell you to love fellow believers, because God teaches you to love one another—

As to love for each other there is no need to write to you; for you have yourselves been taught by God to love one another;

10 and in fact you are demonstrating this love to all the believers throughout Macedonia. Even so we want to encourage you, brothers and sisters, to love more and more.

and indeed you do act in this spirit towards all his people throughout Macedonia. Yet, friends, we beg you to do even more.

11 Try to live a quiet life, minding your own business, doing your own work, as we've already explained to you,

Make it your ambition to live quietly, and to attend to your own business, and to work with your hands, as we directed you;

12 so that your way of life may be respected by non-Christians and you won't have to rely on anyone to provide what you need.

so that your conduct may win respect from those outside the church, and that you may not want for anything.

13 We don't want you to be confused about what happens when people die, brothers and sisters, so that you won't grieve like others who don't have any hope.

We don’t want you to be ignorant, friends, about those who have passed to their rest. We don’t want you to grieve like other people who have no hope.

14 Since we're convinced that Jesus died and rose again, we're also sure that God will bring with Jesus those who have died trusting in him.

For, as we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also we believe that God will bring, with Jesus, those who through him have passed to their rest.

15 What we're telling you comes from the Lord: those of us who are alive and still here when the Lord comes certainly won't precede those who have died.

This we tell you on the authority of the Lord – that those of us who are still living at the coming of the Lord will not anticipate those who have passed to their rest.

16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the cry of the archangel, and with the sound of God's trumpet, and those who have died in Christ will rise first.

For, with a loud summons, with the shout of an archangel, and with the trumpet-call of God, the Lord himself will come down from heaven.

17 Then those of us who are alive and still here will be carried up together with them into the clouds, and we shall meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever!

Then those who died in union with Christ will rise first; and afterwards we who are still living will be caught up in the clouds, with them, to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be for ever with the Lord.

18 So encourage one another with these words.

Therefore, comfort one another with what I have told you.