1 Thessalonians 2:15 Commentary and Bible Study

Now the apostle will launch into this criticism of the unconverted Jews. Why does he do it? It is very strong. Well, it is necessary for at least two reasons. Those converts among the Thessalonians, they had a very strange and high regard for the sacred people, the Jews. There were many converts among the Jews, but the Jewish people were largely against the gospel, and that was likely to trouble the Thessalonians. Are the Jews not the sacred people with a great history of the one God they believe in? But they are against the teaching of the apostle Paul and the other apostles and the salvation in Christ. So it is necessary for the apostle to show that the Jews were, in fact, seriously at fault and had really turned their backs on their own Scriptures, and rejected their own Messiah. The Greek original is quite striking – they who the Lord killed, namely Jesus. They killed the one who was manifestly, evidently, obviously the Messiah. They had seen his astonishing miracles; they had heard his teaching – ‘Never a man spake like this man’ – yet they killed him in their hatred of a Messiah who talked about the forgiveness of sin.‘And their own prophets.’ People who are keen Bible readers and know the Word of God recoil a little at this because there is not much record in the Old Testament of the Jews killing the prophets, but the Lord Jesus Christ said exactly the same things, and nobody contradicted him. We see the way poor Jeremiah was treated. We see the way Isaiah was ignored. We see what happened to others, not only Elisha but Elijah, so the history is true. The prophets gave clear prophecies of the characteristics of Messiah when he came, where he would be born, how he would live, what he would do. When Christ appeared fulfilling all those prophecies, they ignored those prophecies. They agreed with those who killed the prophets when they closed their eyes to their inspired prophecies.‘And have persecuted us.’ We know that well enough from the history recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. Those words are very powerful. Do not think for a moment that those unbelieving Jews, their clergy, their chief priests, the scribes, and the Pharisees had any standing with God. ‘They pleased not God’ – means they are rejected by him. The Jewish clergy and the people did not see themselves as those who should spread the word to the pagans.