The Coming of the Day of the Lord—Lectionary Reflection for Pentecost 25A (1 Thessalonians 5:1-11)

 

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

5 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. ² For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. ³ When they say, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! ⁴ But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; ⁵ for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. ⁶ So, then, let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober, ⁷ for those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. ⁸ But since we belong to the day, let us be sober and put on the breastplate of faith and love and for a helmet the hope of salvation. ⁹ For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁰ who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. ¹¹ Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

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                The end is near, or so it seems. At least when it comes to the church year, this is the penultimate Sunday before the liturgical seasons turn from Year A to Year B. So, it’s appropriate that we have before us a rather apocalyptic text that reminds the readers that they no longer walk in darkness but live in the light. As we have seen, Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonian believers addresses concerns about the coming return of Christ (Parousia) and with it the Day of the Lord. The folks in Thessalonika seem a bit anxious about the future. They don’t want to miss the big event and need some encouragement from their absent founder.

                We’re not sure exactly what Paul had shared with the Thessalonians about the Parousia, but they seem to have believed it was imminent. While Paul does remind them that when Christ returns, it will be like a thief in the night. That is, it could come at any moment and without warning, so be prepared for any eventuality (like a good Scout).

                Our reading continues the conversation initiated in the previous reading (1 Thess 4:13-18). In that passage, Paul seeks to reassure the believers that when the day of the Lord comes, the dead in Christ will rise first and then those who are alive on the Day of the Lord will join them in the clouds. While this passage has been interpreted as the foundation for the concept of a rapture, that is an unlikely interpretation. In any case, with that word that is understood to be a word of encouragement, Paul continues on into what is, for us, chapter 5. He reminds them that they needn’t be concerned about times and seasons, because they know quite well that Christ will return like that thief who comes in the night. That they already know this suggests that this is something that Paul had taught them. Most likely he had taught them this because he wanted them to be ready when Christ returned, which in turn means that Paul believed that Jesus could return at any moment. That the Day of the Lord has been delayed, at least until now, likely would have surprised him.

                Because the Day of the Lord comes without warning, Paul’s advice is to not become complacent. When things look calm, with people feeling peaceful and secure (with the promise of “peace and security” being the watchword of the imperial government), that security can be broken in an instant. Not even the emperor can truly provide the peace and security the empire promised in exchange for submission to the authorities. That is because sudden destruction might come upon them, as labor pains might come to a pregnant woman. Then there is no escape. While the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii, almost without warning, took place more than a decade after Paul wrote this letter, that event would fit Paul’s warning. The 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake struck the San Francisco Bay area without warning, right as Game 3 of the Battle of the Bay World Series between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A’s was about to start. All was calm at Candlestick Park when, at 5:04 PM, the quake struck without warning. It is said that many were spared because they were at home getting ready to watch the game rather than being out on the roads, including the Bay Bridge. That’s what it means for peace and security to be rocked suddenly.

                But there is no need to be anxious because, although the Day of the Lord might be imminent, they were people of light, not darkness. They live in the daytime, so not creatures of the night. The contrast between light and darkness, day and night, is suggestive of a dualism at work. To live in the daylight is to be awake. Night is the time for sleep, not carousing. That is, people tend to get drunk and do inappropriate things under the cover of darkness, but believers are supposed to be sober-minded, committed to doing what is right.  That is, they live in the daylight.

                Paul’s message, seen here, is rooted in Jewish apocalyptic theology. Apocalyptic theology tends to be dualistic, contrasting realms of light and darkness, as Paul does here.  George Parsenios points out that “the hostility between the two realms is most obvious in Paul’s use of the imagery of armor in verse 8. This armor, though, is also the basis of the Thessalonians' escape from judgment because the helmet that arms them is the ‘hope of salvation.’” [Feasting on the Word, p. 305]. The reference to armor is similar to but not as developed as what we find in Ephesians 6:10-17. What Paul does here is encourage sobriety (preparation) by putting on the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation. The reference to armor is similar, but not as developed as that found in Ephesians 6:10-17. The combination of faith, love, and hope found here also mirrors Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 13. What Paul is suggesting here is that the Thessalonians need to prepare themselves to engage in spiritual warfare focused on receiving the hope of salvation. What is interesting here is that Paul does not refer to an offensive weapon as we find in Ephesians 6. Ron Allen and Clark Williamson offer their own warning: “Given the fervor for supporting national wars that sometimes uncritically sweeps through Christian communities, it is worth noting that the breastplate and helmet are to protect the wearer and are not instruments of killing” [Preaching the Letters without Dismissing the Law, p. 101]. Keeping with this warning, taking note of Pauline discussions of spiritual warfare, we need to be careful how we deploy such language since some have taken this rather literally and envision actual war, as in crusades and such [see Matthew Taylor’s The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy (Broadleaf, 2024)].

It is important to remember that Paul wrote this letter to encourage a very young Christian community that was struggling to make sense of their situation in light of Paul’s own apocalyptic teaching. Whatever the timing of the arrival of the Day of the Lord, Paul encourages the people to stay alert and in relationship with Jesus, from whom they receive the gift of salvation. Because they have received the gift of salvation, they will not be subject to God’s judgment and wrath. While we often struggle with discussions of divine wrath, when placed in the context of God’s abundant love, this anger is not necessarily destructive but reconstructive. Ron Allen and Clark Williamson remind us that for apocalyptic theologians, including Paul, the message concerning the Day of the Lord (Day of Judgment) spoke to how “God would set things right for people who had been denied blessing in the present evil age—for example, the poor, the enslaved, those who suffered injustice and violence” [Preaching the Letters, p. 101]. Even if we do not fully embrace the apocalyptic vision we find in Scripture, we must remember that the message of the Gospel involves God’s effort to set things right that are currently broken. Indeed, that is the message of salvation that speaks to both present and future realities. Since I lean toward universal salvation, I must be cognizant of the importance of the biblical message of judgment, such that salvation involves God setting things right that have been broken, both now and in the future (including the postmortem future). The message of divine judgment serves as a reminder that we should not become complacent about the brokenness of this world because the implications of salvation in the present require our engagement.

When it comes to the question of salvation, whether for this life or the next, Paul, as he often does, points our attention to Jesus and the cross. Paul affirms the premise that Christ died for us. Why? “So that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him” (vs. 10). Once again, Paul addresses their central concern: What about those who have died? What is their fate? Whether alive or dead, they ultimately will be with Christ forever. Having said this, Paul calls on the readers to encourage each other, while building each other up. Thankfully, they were already doing this! Might this be said of us as well!

Image Attribution:  Klint, Hilma af, 1862-1944. Altarpiece No. 1, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt University Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://act.library.vanderbilt.edu/artworks/58874 [retrieved November 9, 2026]. Original source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hilma_af_Klint_-_1907_-_Altarpiece_-_No_1_-_Group_X_-_Altarpieces.jpg.