ΣΕΥΗΡΙΑΝΟΥ. Καὶ ἡ μὲν πίστις ἐγείρει πρὸς καμάτους, ἡ δὲ ἀγάπη ἐπιμένειν ποιεῖ τοῖς πόνοις. “ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς ἡμῶν,” ἵνα εἴπῃ ὅτι ἀρέσκοντες τῷ Θεῷ ταῦτα ποιεῖτε, ὥστε φανῆναι Θεοῦ ἀρέσκειαν τὴν ἐπὶ τὸν Χριστὸν πίστιν καὶ τὴν περὶ αὐτὸν διάθεσιν. Καὶ τῆς ὑπομονῆς, φησίν. Οὐ γὰρ πρὸς ἕνα χρόνον ὁ διωγμὸς ἐκεῖνος, ἀλλὰ διὰ παντός. Ταῦτα τοίνυν, φησὶ, πάντα ἀπὸ πίστεως ποιεῖτε καὶ ἐλπίδος. Ὥστε οὐ τὴν ἀνδρείαν αὐτῶν μόνον ἐδήλου τὰ γινόμενα, ἀλλ᾽ὅτι καὶ μετὰ πληροφορίας ἐπίστευον τοῖς ἀποκειμένοις ἐπάθλοις· διὰ γὰρ τοῦτο συνεχώρει ὁ Θεὸς εὐθέως γίνεσθαι διωγμοὺς, ἵνα μή τις εἴπῃ ὅτι ἁπλῶς καὶ κολακείᾳ τὸ κήρυγμα συνίστατο, καὶ ἵνα τὸ θερμὸν αὐτῶν δειχθῇ, καὶ ὅτι οὐ πεισμονὴ ἀνθρωπίνη, ἀλλὰ Θεοῦ δύναμις ἦν, ἡ τὰς τῶν πιστευόντων ψυχὰς πείθουσα, ὥστε καὶ πρὸς θανάτους μυρίους παρεσκευάσθαι· ὅπερ οὐκ ἂν ἦν, εἰ μὴ εὐθέως κατὰ β´θος τὸ κήρυγμα πεπήγει, καὶ ἕστηκεν ἀκλινές.

Εἰδότες, ἀδελφοὶ ἠγαπημένοι ὑπὸ Θεοῦ, τὴν ἐκλογὴν ὑμῶν, ὅτι τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἡμῶν οὐκ ἐγενήθη εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐν λόγῳ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν δυνάμει, καὶ Πνεύματι Ἁγίῳ, καὶ ἐν πληροφορίᾳ πολλῇ, καθὼς οἴδατε οἴδατε οἷοι ἐγενήθημεν ἐν ὑμῖν δι᾽ ὑμᾶς.

Ἐνταῦθα καὶ τῶν αὐτοῦ κατορθωμάτω ἅπτεται, ἀλλ᾽ἐπεσκιασμένως, βούλεται γὰρ πρότερον τοῖς ἐκείνων ἐγκωμίοις ὑπεξελθεῖν· τοῦτο δὲ λέγει, ἤδειν μὲν ὅτι μεγάλων ἦτε ἀνδρῶν, ὅτι ἐκλεκτῶν· διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ἡμεῖς πάντα ὑπομένομεν δι᾽ ὑμᾶς· τὸ γὰρ “οἷον ἐγενήθημεν ἐν ὑμῖν” τοῦτό ἐστι δηλοῦντος, ὅτι μετὰ πολλῆς προθυμίας ἕτοιμοι τὰς ψυχὰς ἐκδοῦναι δι᾽ ὑμᾶς· καὶ τούτου δὲ οὐχ ἡμῖν χάρις, ἀλλὰ ὑμῖν, ὅτι ἐκλεκτοὶ ἦτε, ὅτι τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἡμῶν οὐκ ἐγενήθη εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐν λόγῳ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν δυνάμει, φησίν· οὐκ εἴπομεν, φησὶ, μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ θαύματα ἐπεδειξάμεθα, οὐδὲ ἐποιήσαμεν μὲν σημεῖα, οὐχ ὑπέστημεν δὲ πειρασμοὺς, ἀλλὰ διὰ πάντων ἤλθομεν, βεβαιοῦντες ὑμᾶς εἰς τὰ αὐτὰ κατορθώματα· “καὶ ὑμεῖς” φησὶ, “μιμηταὶ ἡμῶν ἐγενήθητε, καὶ τοῦ Κυρίου, δεξάμενοι τὸν λόγον ἐν θλίψει πολλῇ μετὰ χαρᾶς Πνεύματος Ἁγίου.”

SEVERIAN. While faith raises up toils, love persists in hard work. “Before our God and Father,” so that he might say you did these pleasing things for God, so your faith in Christ and disposition to him might be revealed as obedience to God. And he writes about “of steadfastness.” For that persecution, which the Thessalonians have experience, is not for a time but will endure always. Then he says these things, “you do all things form faith and hope.” Therefore these things made clear not only their courage but also that they were believing with confidence in the prices set aside. For, because of this, God immediately allowed persecution to take place, so that no one would be able to say that the message arose simply and with flattery, and so that their passion might be revealed and that it was not from human persuasion, but it was from the power of God, which persuades the souls of those who believe, so that they might be prepared for a thousand deaths. This might not be the case if the preaching had not been immediately fixed according to depth and established as unswerving.

Knowing, brothers beloved by God, that God has chosen you because our gospel was not among you in word only, but also with power, and with the Holy Spirit and with full confidence, just as you know how we were among you for your own benefit.

            Here he touches on his own uprightness, but only subtly, for first he desires to send forth their praises. And he says this, that I know you are great men because you are chosen. Therefore, we endure all these things for you. For this quote “what sort of people we became among you” is Paul makes it known that he, Silas, and Timothy were, with great eagerness, prepared to give up their lives on behalf of the Thessalonians. And concerning this he does not say grace to us, but to you, because you are chosen, “because the gospel was not among you in word, but with power,” he says. We do not say, he says, “only, but also we performed wonders, nor we did signs, nor did we submit ourselves to trials, but we came in every manner encouraging you in the same virtuous things. ” “And you,” he says, “became imitators of us, and of the Lord, by receiving the word in much affliction with the joy of the Holy Spirit.”