1 Thessalonians 4

1 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.

And last of all, the prayer which we make to you from our heart and in the name of the Lord Jesus, is this: that as we made clear to you what sort of behaviour is pleasing to God, as in fact you are doing now, so you will go on in these ways, but more and more.

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

Because you have in mind the orders we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

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

For the purpose of God for you is this: that you may be holy, and may keep yourselves from the desires of the flesh;

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

So that every one of you may keep his body holy and in honour;

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

Not in the passion of evil desires, like the Gentiles, who have no knowledge of God;

6 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.

And that no man may make attempts to get the better of his brother in business: for the Lord is the judge in all these things, as we said to you before and gave witness.

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

Because it is God's purpose that our way of life may be not unclean but holy.

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

Whoever, then, goes against this word, goes against not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

9 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;

But about loving the brothers, there is no need for me to say anything to you in this letter: for you have the teaching of God that love for one another is right and necessary;

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

And, truly, you are lovers of all the brothers in Macedonia; but it is our desire that your love may be increased still more;

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

And that you may take pride in being quiet and doing your business, working with your hands as we gave you orders;

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

That you may be respected by those who are outside, and may have need of nothing.

13 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.

But it is our desire, brothers, that you may be certain about those who are sleeping; so that you may have no need for sorrow, as others have who are without hope.

14 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.

For if we have faith that Jesus underwent death and came back again, even so those who are sleeping will come again with him by God's power.

15 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.

For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are still living at the coming of the Lord, will not go before those who are sleeping.

16 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.

Because the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a word of authority, with the voice of the chief angel, with the sound of a horn: and the dead in Christ will come to life first;

17 Then those who died in union with Christ will rise first; and afterward 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.

Then we who are still living will be taken up together with them into the clouds to see the Lord in the air: and so will we be for ever with the Lord.

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

So then, give comfort to one another with these words.