1 Finally, then, brothers,*4:1 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 10, 13 we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you *Phil. 4:9;Col. 2:6received from us *See Eph. 4:1how you ought to walk and *See Col. 1:10to please God, just as you are doing, that you *See ch. 3:12do so more and more. 2 For *[1 Cor. 11:2]you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, *Rom. 6:19,22;1 Cor. 1:30;2 Thess. 2:13;1 Tim. 2:15;Heb. 12:14;1 Pet. 1:2your sanctification:*4:3 Or your holiness*See 1 Cor. 6:18that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own *1 Pet. 3:7;[2 Cor. 4:7] body*4:4 Or how to take a wife for himself; Greek how to possess his own vessel in holiness and *[Rom. 1:24]honor, 5 not in *See Rom. 1:26the passion of lust *Eph. 4:17like the Gentiles *Ps. 79:6;Jer. 9:3;10:25;See Gal. 4:8who do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and *1 Cor. 6:8wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is *Rom. 13:4;[Rom. 12:19;Heb. 13:4]an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For *ver. 3;See 1 Pet. 1:15God has not called us for *ch. 2:3impurity, but in holiness. 8 Therefore *[ch. 2:13]; See Luke 10:16whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, *1 John 3:24;4:13who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

9 Now concerning *See Heb. 13:1brotherly love *ch. 5:1you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been *John 6:45;[1 John 2:27] taught by God *See John 13:34to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what *ch. 1:7you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to *See ch. 3:12do this more and more, 11 and to aspire *Prov. 17:14;20:3;25:8;2 Thess. 3:12to live quietly, and *2 Thess. 3:11;1 Pet. 4:15to mind your own affairs, and *[Acts 18:3]; See Eph. 4:28to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may *Rom. 13:13;[Col. 4:5] walk properly before *See Mark 4:11outsiders and be dependent on no one.

13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, *[Lev. 19:28;Deut. 14:1;2 Sam. 12:20-23;Mark 5:39] that you may not grieve as others do *Eph. 2:12who have no hope. 14 For *1 Cor. 15:13;[2 Cor. 4:14;Rev. 1:18] since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him *1 Cor. 15:18those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you *See 1 Kgs. 13:17by a word from the Lord,*4:15 Or by the word of the Lord that *1 Cor. 15:51we who are alive, who are left until *See ch. 2:19the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For *See Matt. 16:27the Lord himself will descend *2 Thess. 1:7from heaven *[Joel 2:11] with a cry of command, with the voice of *Jude 9an archangel, and *Matt. 24:31;1 Cor. 15:52with the sound of the trumpet of God. And *1 Cor. 15:23;[2 Thess. 2:1;Rev. 14:13]the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be *See 2 Cor. 12:2caught up together with them *[Dan. 7:13;Acts 1:9;Rev. 11:12] in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so *See John 12:26we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.