2 Thessalonians 3:5-15

5 And the Lord make your hearts upright in the charity of God and in the hope of the Christ.

6 Now we charge you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walks out of order, and not after the doctrine which ye received of us.

7 For you know in what manner you ought to imitate us, for we did not walk disorderly among you,

8 neither did we eat any man’s bread for nought, but working with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you,

9 Not because we did not have authority, but to give you an example that you might imitate us.

10 For even when we were with you, this we declared unto you, that if anyone desires not to work neither should he eat.

11 For we hear that there are some who walk among you out of order, not working at all, but are busybodies.

12 Now those that are such, we charge and exhort in our Lord Jesus Christ, that working with quietness, they eat their bread.

13 But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing.

14 And if anyone does not hearken unto our word by this epistle, note that one and do not join with him, that he may be ashamed.

15 Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.

2 Thessalonians 3:5-15 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 2 THESSALONIANS 3

In this chapter the apostle requests of the Thessalonians, that they would pray for him, and other Gospel ministers; and he puts up prayers for them, gives them rules about dealing with disorderly persons, and concludes the epistle with his usual salutation. The request to pray for ministers is in 2Th 3:1 the petitions to be made for them are, that their ministry might be succeeded, and their persons preserved and delivered from evil minded men, destitute of faith in Christ, 2Th 3:1-2 and, for the consolation of the saints, observes the faithfulness of God engaged in their behalf to establish them in the faith they had, and to preserve them from everything and person that is evil, 2Th 3:3 and expresses his confidence in them with respect to their walk and conversation, 2Th 3:4 and then prays for them that their hearts might be directed into the love of God, and patience of Christ, 2Th 3:5. And next follows an order to withdraw from every disorderly walker, particularly idle and slothful persons, 2Th 3:6 and from such a lazy idle life the apostle dissuades by his own example, who behaved not disorderly, nor ate the bread of others, but wrought with his own hands, though he had a right to a maintenance without it, but did this to set an example to them, 2Th 3:7-9. He puts them in mind of a precept of his when among them, that such who would not work should not eat, 2Th 3:10 and the order he now gave, and the precept he reminds them of, were not without reason; seeing there were disorderly idle persons, and busy bodies, among them, whom the apostle exhorts and beseeches, in the name of Christ, to be industrious, and eat their own bread, as the fruit of their labours, 2Th 3:11,12 and as for the other members of the church, he exhorts them to diligence and constancy in well doing, and to mark those that were incorrigible, and have no conversation with them, yet dealing with them not as enemies, but admonishing them as brethren, 2Th 3:13-15. And closes all with prayers, that the Lord would give them peace, and grant his presence to them, and with his usual salutation, written with his own hand, as a token of this being a genuine epistle of his, and by which every epistle of his might be known, 2Th 3:16-18.