Read or listen The Second Epistle to the Thessalonians online (ESV, Bible Gateway)

Introduction

The Second Epistle to the Thessalonians deals with the return of Christ, as does The First Epistle to the Thessalonians. Could Paul have written two such similar letters to the same church? Some scholars believe that Second Thessalonians is a letter written by one of Paul’s students on behalf of his teacher, and that it was written only after Paul’s death. Some scholars believe that the letter was dictated by Paul. Which should we believe?

Before we delve into the authorship problem of Second Thessalonians in more detail, it is worth considering the significance of the person of the writers for the authority of the books of the Bible. So what makes the books of the Bible the Word of God?

The author of many books of the Bible is not mentioned in the book itself, but the books are associated with specific individuals based on Christian or Jewish tradition: for example, the books of Samuel in the Old Testament and the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and John in the New Testament. The Bible also contains books of unknown authorship: the books of Kings and Chronicles in the Old Testament and the Epistle to the Hebrews in the New Testament. Thus, the authority of the books of the Bible does not depend on the human author of the book, but on the fact that the book contains God’s message to us.

I think a bigger question mark should be placed after the theories that claim that the author mentioned in the Bible itself did not write that book. This also applies to the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians, because the letter begins: "Paul, Silvanus and Timothy, greetings to the church in Thessalonica..." When one says that the Gospel of Luke was not written by the doctor Luke, one goes against Christian tradition. But when one says that Paul did not write the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians, one goes against the words of the Bible itself.

When one examines the arguments that Paul did not write Second Thessalonians, one comes across contradictory statements. Some say that the letters resemble each other too much, even word for word, in certain passages. On the other hand, it is claimed that the style of the letters differs too much from one another.

Martin Dibelius has said that if we did not have the First Epistle to the Thessalonians, no one would doubt the authenticity of the Second Epistle to the Thessalonians. By this he suggests that the only real problem is that in First Thessalonians Paul speaks of the imminent return of Christ, and in Second he warns against overly eager expectation.

This problem can be solved in other ways than by denying that Paul wrote the Second Thessalonians. Couldn't the question be that as a result of the first letter, excesses occurred in the Thessalonian church: some began to wait for Christ "full-time" and no longer wanted to work? I myself lean towards this position. We could say that it was a question of different perspectives. Paul thought that the shortness of time meant a special call to share the gospel. The "slackers" thought that everything was already over, there was nothing left to do but wait.

Paul wrote the letter soon, perhaps only a few months after First Thessalonians, that is, in the year 50 or 51 AD. The place of writing was Corinth.

Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, quotes Second Thessalonians in his letter to the church in Philippi around the year 110 AD. The letter is also surprisingly frequently quoted in early Christian writings.

The main theme of the letter is the return of Christ. It is mentioned a total of 318 times in the New Testament. That is more often than any other doctrine. It is therefore not an insignificant side issue, but a central and inalienable part of the Christian faith.