2nd Thessalonians 2:13
2nd Thessalonians 2:13-14 (see also 1st Thessalonians 5:9)
But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Calvinists frequently cite this passage as a proof-text for Unconditional Election, and rarely point out the back-drop of what is going on in the context. Here is how Calvinists typically proof-text it:
John Calvin comments: “Paul here treats election in no other sense and for no other end than elsewhere, when he gives thanks to God for having from the beginning elected the Thessalonians to salvation (II Thes 2:13), thus distinguishing a small part from an ungodly magnitude.” (Concerning the Eternal Predestination of God, p.159, emphasis mine)
Calvin adds: “Rather let thanks be always rendered to God, as Paul advises, who has chosen them from the beginning of the world to salvation in sanctification of the Spirit and belief in the truth (II Thes. 2:13).” (Concerning the Eternal Predestination of God, p.105, emphasis mine)
Calvinist, William MacDonald, comments: “From the beginning. This has two possible readings. First, it may mean that God’s choice was made before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). Second, the expression may also be read ‘as first fruits,’ indicating that the Thessalonians, saved so early in the Christian dispensation, were chosen by God to be among the first of a great harvest of redeemed souls.” (Believer’s Bible Commentary, p.2056, emphasis mine)
John Calvin comments on a First-Fruits interpretation: “Let us, however, retain the more generally accepted reading, viz. that the Thessalonians have been chosen from the beginning. Some interpret this to mean that they had been among the first to be called. But this is foreign to Paul’s meaning, and is inappropriate to the context. He is not simply delivering from fear a few individuals who were brought to Christ at the very beginning of the Gospel; this consolation has reference to all whom God has chosen without exception. In saying from the beginning, therefore, he means that there is no danger that Satan should reverse their salvation, which is based on the eternal election of God, however chaotic an upheaval there should be. ‘However universal the disorder which Satan may cause in the world, your salvation was assured before the creation of the world.’ This, then, is the true haven of our security, that God, who has chosen us of old, will rescue us from all the distresses that threaten us. We are elected to salvation; we shall therefore be safe from destruction. But since it is not our business to penetrate into the secret counsel of God, there to seek the assurance of our salvation, he designates the signs or tokens of our election, which should give us sufficient confidence in it.” (Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries: Romans and Thessalonians, p.409, emphasis mine)
Calvinist, James White, comments: “The text shows that the work of the Spirit and our faith in God’s truth are the result of that eternal choice.” (Debating Calvinism, p.110, emphasis mine)
John Calvin comments on v.14: “Whereunto he called you. He repeats the same point, though in slightly different words. The sons of God are called to a belief in the truth and to this alone.” (Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries: Romans and Thessalonians, p.410, emphasis mine)
The back-drop is that the Thessalonians mistakenly thought that they were in the Tribulation (2nd Thessalonians 2:1-10), and Paul clarifies that that was not the case, and states that first, the Hinderer must be removed, which some infer as either being Christians or the Holy Spirit, but the point is that they were not in the Tribulation, and moreover, that it was not the purpose of the Tribulation to test the Church, but to test the world that had rejected the Gospel, and warmly received the “deluding influence” instead. (2nd Thessalonians 2:11)
James McCarthy sums it up this way: “It was part of God’s original plan to deliver the body of Christ from end time evil and the great tribulation.” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Did God Choose Whom He Would Save?)
The perfect verse to go along with this is 1st Thessalonians 5:9, which states: “For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
From the context, it is apparent that it was deliverance from the wrath to come, which God had not destined Christians.
James McCarthy explains: “From the things about which Paul has been speaking: ‘the day of the Lord’ (2 Thessalonians 2:2), ‘the apostasy’ (2 Thessalonians 2:3), ‘the son of destruction’ (2 Thessalonians 2:3), ‘the mystery of lawlessness’ (2 Thessalonians 2:7), ‘the activity of Satan’ (2 Thessalonians 2:9), ‘the deception of wickedness’ (2 Thessalonians 2:10), and the ‘deluding influence’ (2 Thessalonians 2:11). God has chosen to deliver the church from these things.” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Did God Choose Whom He Would Save?)
James McCarthy explains: “‘From the beginning.’ (2 Thessalonians 2:13) It was part of God’s original plan to deliver the body of Christ from end time evil and the great tribulation.” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Did God Choose Whom He Would Save?)
James McCarthy explains: “The Christian readers of Paul’s letter, the ‘you’ of 2 Thessalonians 2:13, also referred to in that verse as Paul’s ‘brethren.’” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Did God Choose Whom He Would Save?)
I agree, and I infer that the “you” of 2nd Thessalonians 2:13 is the same “us” of 1st Thessalonians 5:9 that God has similarly not destined for wrath, which would signify Paul’s brethren.
James McCarthy explains: “Because they are ‘beloved by the Lord’ (2 Thessalonians 2:13). As the redeemed in Christ, the Father loves them even as He loves His Son. Jesus told His disciples, ‘The Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from the Father’ (John 16:27). For this reason, the promise of 2 Thessalonians 2:13 is applicable to all true Christians, to all who are ‘beloved by the Lord.’” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Did God Choose Whom He Would Save?)
James McCarthy explains: “He will accomplish their deliverance ‘through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth’ (2 Thessalonians 2:13). Believers must yield their lives to the sanctifying ministry of the Holy Spirit and trust the truths and promises of God’s Word. Through these means, God will deliver them from evil. This would be true of Paul’s targeted readers—the Thessalonian Christians, who were already facing considerable evil—and true of all Christians after them, especially those living in the last days.” (2 Thessalonians 2:13, Did God Choose Whom He Would Save?)
Question: “Salvation” from what? From what will God save the Thessalonian Christians?
Question: When did God choose to save the church from these things?
Question: Whom has God chosen to save from the evil of the end times?
Question: Why has God chosen to save the Thessalonian Christians from the evil of the end times?
Question: How will God save Christians from the evil of the End Times?
