2Thessalonians  ◦   Chapter 1

1 Greetings from Paul, Silas and Timothy,

To those in Thessalonica who — having partaken of the Remedy — are united with God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

2 God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ send their goodwill and peace to you.

3 We owe our thanks to God for healing your hearts and minds. We see that your trust and confidence in him is growing stronger every day, and your love for each other is constantly increasing.4 We are so proud of you! Everywhere we go we tell God's people that you don't give up but trust God and keep advancing despite trials and persecution.

5 All this proves that God's diagnosis is right and that his treatment plan works. As a result, you will be found fit for God's kingdom of love despite your current sufferings.6 God always does what is merciful, loving and right: those who refuse the Remedy and cause harm, he will give up to reap the torment they have chosen–the destruction that comes from unremedied selfishness–7 but he will free us from our afflictions. This will happen when the Lord Jesus appears in the sky in the full brilliance of his unveiled fiery glory, surrounded by his powerful angels.8 Truth and love will burn free, and those who have rejected the Remedy procured by Jesus will experience the punishment that unremedied selfishness and sin bring: they will be unfit to tolerate the intensity of absolute truth and pure love of God’s presence; the anguish of facing the reality of their true selves and of all they have done will overwhelm them;9 they will be punished with eternal separation from the glorious presence of God–separation from their source of life that unremedied sin and selfishness bring–and sink into everlasting non-existence.10 This will happen on the day Christ returns to be glorified in his people when he restores to his original ideal those who have taken the Remedy. This includes you, because you have believed us and have taken the Remedy.

11 Understanding this reality, we keep your case before God: that he will restore you fully–making you fit to live in his presence–and that he will fill all your ideas and efforts in spreading the Remedy with his power so that his kingdom will be promoted successfully.12 We ask God to do this so that his character may be radiant through you, and you will be radiant in him — all in exact accordance with the healing work of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.