Part Fifty – Examination of 1 & 2 Thessalonians Ethiopian Tewahedo Orthodox and King James

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Synopsis

In Part Fifty of our continuing examination of the Ethiopian Tewahedo Orthodox Bible alongside the 1611 King James Bible, we examine 1 and 2 Thessalonians together. These two letters contain some of Paul’s most important teachings about the return of Jesus, the resurrection of the dead, believers being caught up to meet Him, the Day of the Lord, coming wrath, the falling away, the man of sin, the restrainer, and strong delusion.

But before placing any end-times system over Paul’s words, we are going to compare the texts themselves. What does the Ethiopian Bible Restoration Project translation actually say, and what does the 1611 King James actually say? Where the wording differs, does it represent a genuine difference, a different emphasis, or simply English that has changed meaning since 1611?

Our investigation will take us through the famous description of the Lord descending from heaven, the dead in Christ rising first, and the living being “caught up together with them.” Then we will follow Paul’s language into the Day of the Lord and finally into 2 Thessalonians, where he speaks of “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,” “our gathering together unto Him,” the falling away, the man of sin, the mystery of iniquity, the restrainer, and the destruction of the lawless one.

Only after comparing these passages will we put Paul’s statements together and ask the larger question: What does Paul actually say happens before Jesus returns?

The purpose is not to prove a prophecy system we already believe. It is to see whether these two biblical witnesses tell the same story—and whether differences in their wording change how that story can be understood.

Monologue

Welcome back to Cause Before Symptom, where we don’t chase symptoms—we test the cause against Scripture. Tonight we continue our examination of the Ethiopian Tewahedo Orthodox Bible alongside the 1611 King James Bible, and this time we’re going to examine two letters together: First and Second Thessalonians.

These letters are important because Christians have built entire end-times timelines around them. The rapture. The resurrection. The Day of the Lord. The tribulation. The falling away. The man of sin. The restrainer. Strong delusion. Paul discusses nearly all of these things in just a few chapters, and sometimes a single word has been used to support an entire doctrine.

That is exactly why I don’t want to begin tonight with a prophecy chart. I don’t want to start by assuming pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation, post-tribulation, or anything else. I want to do what we’ve been doing throughout this series. Put the Ethiopian translation beside the 1611 King James and see what the texts actually say.

Sometimes we’re going to discover that they say essentially the same thing. That matters. Sometimes we’re going to find wording that looks different only because English has changed during the four centuries since the King James was published. That matters too. But if we find a genuine difference, especially one involving the return of Jesus, we’re going to stop and examine it.

First Thessalonians tells us that believers are waiting for God’s Son from heaven, the One who delivers them from the wrath to come. Later Paul tells them that Jesus will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God. The dead in Christ rise first. Then the believers who are alive are caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.

But Paul keeps talking.

He moves directly into the Day of the Lord. He talks about a thief in the night, people saying “peace and safety,” sudden destruction, believers being children of light, and God’s people not being appointed to wrath. Those connections are important, but we’re not going to decide what they mean until we’ve compared the wording.

Then we enter Second Thessalonians, and the language becomes even more interesting. Paul speaks about Jesus being revealed from heaven with His mighty angels. Then he speaks about “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” and “our gathering together unto Him.” He warns about deception, a falling away, the revealing of the man of sin, the mystery of iniquity, something or someone restraining it, Satanic signs and wonders, strong delusion, and finally the destruction of the lawless one when Christ comes.

This is where translation becomes extremely important.

Does the Ethiopian text describe these events exactly as the 1611 King James does? Does “falling away” carry the same meaning? What does the older King James expression “he who now letteth” actually mean? Does one witness say the Day of Christ while another says the Day of the Lord? How does each describe our gathering to Jesus? And if there is a difference, does it actually change the sequence Paul gives us?

Those are the questions we’re investigating.

And we’re going to be careful not to manufacture differences where none exist. This isn’t about trying to prove that one Bible is wrong and another Bible is right. It is about listening carefully to two biblical witnesses and asking whether the words Christians have been reading have shaped the way we understand Paul’s prophecy.

By the end, I want to be able to remove the labels completely and simply lay Paul’s statements in front of us. Jesus comes. The dead rise. Believers are gathered. The Day of the Lord comes. There is a falling away. The man of sin is revealed. Something restrains him. Deception spreads. Christ destroys the lawless one at His coming.

But what is the order?

And more importantly, is that order actually Paul’s—or is some of it an order Christians were taught later?

Tonight we’re going to find out the same way we’ve approached the rest of this examination. Ethiopian translation on one side. The actual 1611 King James on the other.

Then we read.

Then we compare.

And only after that do we decide what the words mean.

Part 1 – 1 Thessalonians 1:1–2:16 – “Delivered From the Wrath to Come”

When we place the Ethiopian translation beside the 1611 King James in the opening of First Thessalonians, the first thing that stands out is how closely the two witnesses travel together. Paul remembers their “work of faith,” “labor of love,” and “patience of hope.” The Ethiopian translation uses “Holy Spirit,” where the King James has the older expression “Holy Ghost,” but there is no meaningful theological difference here. Likewise, the Ethiopian says the Thessalonians became “examples” to believers in Macedonia and Achaia, while the King James uses the older word “ensamples.” Again, the meaning is essentially the same. 

Then we reach the first passage that matters enormously for the rest of this investigation. First Thessalonians 1:9–10 says in the Ethiopian translation that they “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” and were waiting for His Son from heaven, Jesus, “who delivered us from the wrath to come.” The 1611 King James preserves essentially the same statement: they turned from idols to the living and true God and waited for His Son from heaven, Jesus, “which delivered us from the wrath to come.” 

That is important because there is no Ethiopian-versus-King-James disagreement to build a doctrine upon here. Both witnesses connect Christian expectation with Jesus coming from heaven, and both connect Jesus with deliverance from coming wrath. The King James “which delivered us” sounds strange today because modern English normally uses “who” for a person. The Ethiopian translation naturally says “who delivered us.” That is modernization, not a different theology.

Chapter 2 gives us another good example of why we have to distinguish translation differences from changes in English. The Ethiopian says Paul spoke not to please men but God, “who tests our hearts.” The King James says God “which trieth our hearts.” The Ethiopian says Paul did not use flattering words or “a cloak of covetousness,” while the King James spells the same expression “a cloke of covetousness.” The Ethiopian says Paul did not want to be “burdensome”; the King James later describes Paul laboring so that he would not be “chargeable.” These sound different to modern ears, but the underlying picture remains remarkably consistent: Paul’s ministry was not built upon manipulation, greed, praise, or financial exploitation. 

The agreement continues in verses 13 and 14. The 1611 King James says the Thessalonians received Paul’s message not as “the word of men,” but as “the word of God,” which “effectually worketh” in believers. It then says they suffered from their own countrymen just as the churches in Judea had suffered. The Ethiopian translation likewise says they received what they heard not as the word of men but as the true word of God, “which effectually works also in you that believe,” and it preserves the same connection with the suffering churches in Judea. Here again, “worketh” becoming “works” is simply English changing over time.

Then we reach the difficult ending of the passage. The Ethiopian translation says of those opposing the preaching to the Gentiles that they were filling up their sins, “for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.” The 1611 King James preserves the same striking wording: “for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.” There is no meaningful translation difference to rescue us from the severity of Paul’s statement. Whatever interpretation we eventually give it, both witnesses preserve it.

And notice what has now happened inside only two chapters. In chapter 1 Paul speaks of “the wrath to come,” from which Jesus delivers His people. In chapter 2 he speaks of wrath that “is come upon them to the uttermost.” The future return of Jesus, salvation, judgment, persecution, and wrath are already appearing together before Paul ever reaches the famous “caught up” passage in chapter 4.

So our first comparison gives us an important baseline. The Ethiopian translation modernizes several expressions, but through 1 Thessalonians 1:1–2:16 it does not substantially change Paul’s message from the 1611 King James. Most importantly for where this investigation is headed, both witnesses preserve the same expectation: Jesus is coming from heaven, and Jesus delivers His people from the wrath to come.

Part 2 – 1 Thessalonians 2:17–3:13 – “At the Coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ”

As we move into the end of chapter 2, the Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James continue to track each other very closely. Paul says he had been separated from the Thessalonians “in presence, not in heart,” and both witnesses preserve his strong desire to see them again. Both also say that Satan hindered Paul from returning. There is no meaningful textual difference here, only modernization of spelling and grammar. 

Then we reach 1 Thessalonians 2:19, and this is where the prophetic language begins to sharpen. The Ethiopian translation asks, “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?” The 1611 King James says essentially the same thing: “Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?” 

So again, there is no meaningful disagreement. Both texts use the language of Christ’s “coming,” and both place the believers in His presence at that coming. That matters because this is the first place in the letter where Paul connects the Thessalonians themselves with the future arrival of Jesus. We should carry that wording forward exactly as it stands, because Paul is going to use the same theme again and again.

Chapter 3 then turns back to suffering. The Ethiopian translation says Timothy was sent to establish and comfort them in their faith so that no one would be moved by their afflictions. Paul reminds them that they had already been told they would suffer tribulation. The King James preserves the same message, saying that believers should not be “moved by these afflictions,” because they knew they were “appointed thereunto,” and that Paul had warned them beforehand that they would “suffer tribulation.” 

That wording is worth noticing. Neither witness presents suffering as evidence that something has gone wrong with the Christian life. Paul had already told them to expect it. The Ethiopian modernizes “thereunto” and other older expressions, but the substance remains the same.

A small but interesting difference appears in verse 6. The Ethiopian translation says Timothy brought “good tidings of your faith and love.” The King James says “good tidings of your faith and charity.” This is the same kind of difference we saw elsewhere in Paul’s letters. “Charity” in the King James does not mean organized giving in the modern sense. It is the older English word used for Christian love. The Ethiopian translation simply gives the modern reader the word “love.”

That becomes important when we reach verses 11 through 13. Both witnesses say that Paul wants the Lord to make the believers increase and abound in love toward one another and toward all people. The Ethiopian then says this is so that God may “establish your hearts unblamable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.” 

The 1611 King James reads almost identically, except for its older English: “To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.” “Stablish” is simply the older form of “establish.” Again, there is no theological difference between the two witnesses.

But the phrase “with all His saints” is going to matter later.

At this point, we should resist the temptation to decide exactly who those saints are. Paul has not explained that yet in this passage. Both texts simply tell us that Jesus comes “with all His saints.” Later, in chapter 4, Paul will describe the dead in Christ rising and living believers being caught up together with them. Then in Second Thessalonians he will describe Jesus being revealed from heaven with His mighty angels. We need to compare all of those passages before deciding how they fit together.

So Part 2 gives us another strong finding. The Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James are still essentially telling the same story. Christ is coming. Believers will be in His presence. He comes “with all His saints.” And Paul’s concern is not merely that Christians know prophecy, but that their hearts are established “unblamable in holiness” when that coming occurs. 

Part 3 – 1 Thessalonians 4:1–12 – “This Is the Will of God: Your Sanctification”

As we enter chapter 4, Paul moves from the coming of Jesus into the way believers are supposed to live while waiting for Him. The Ethiopian translation says that the Thessalonians had already received instruction about how they “ought to walk and to please God,” and Paul urges them to “abound more and more.” The 1611 King James preserves the same wording almost exactly, except for its older pronouns and grammar. There is no theological difference here. 

Then we reach verse 3: “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that you should abstain from fornication.” The Ethiopian translation and the King James are essentially identical here. Both use the word “sanctification,” and both directly connect holiness with sexual conduct. 

Verse 4 is especially interesting because many modern Bible translations interpret Paul’s language for the reader. The Ethiopian translation says, “That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor.” The 1611 King James says the same thing: “That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour.” 

That means our Ethiopian witness does not replace “vessel” with “body,” “wife,” or some other interpretation. It preserves the same unusual expression found in the King James. That is important. Whatever Paul means by “his vessel,” neither of these two translations tries to settle the question for us. Both leave the metaphor intact.

Verse 5 continues with another expression that sounds strange to modern ears. The Ethiopian translation says, “Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God.” The 1611 King James says precisely the same thing. “Concupiscence” is an older word for intense or uncontrolled sexual desire. Here the Ethiopian translation has actually retained an older English term rather than modernizing it. So this is not a difference between the witnesses at all.

Verse 6 continues the warning: “That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter.” Both texts again preserve essentially identical wording, followed by the statement that “the Lord is the avenger of all such.” Paul therefore does not describe sexual sin merely as a private problem between a person and God. His wording includes the possibility of wronging or defrauding another person.

Then Paul gives the reason: “For God has not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” The King James reads, “For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” The only difference is “has” versus “hath.” 

Verse 8 gives us another modernization. The Ethiopian says that the one who “despises” this instruction does not despise man but God, “who has also given unto us His Holy Spirit.” The King James says “despiseth” and likewise ends with God giving “his holy Spirit.” Again, same message, older versus newer English.

Paul then turns to brotherly love. The Ethiopian says believers are “taught of God to love one another,” and the 1611 King James preserves the same phrase. That movement is important. Paul has just spoken about holiness, sexual restraint, and not defrauding another person, and then he moves immediately into love. Holiness is not presented as isolation from people. It affects how people are treated.

Finally, verses 11 and 12 give practical instructions. The King James tells believers to “study to be quiet,” do their own business, work with their own hands, and “walk honestly toward them that are without.” The Ethiopian translation preserves the same teaching in essentially the same wording. There is no hidden alternate command appearing in the Ethiopian witness.

So Part 3 gives us another significant finding precisely because there is so little disagreement. Both witnesses preserve “sanctification.” Both preserve “possess his vessel.” Both preserve “concupiscence.” Both connect holiness with not defrauding another person, and both end with love, quiet living, work, and honorable conduct toward outsiders.

That means when we move next into the famous resurrection and “caught up” passage, we should remember Paul’s sequence. His teaching about the coming of Jesus is surrounded by instructions about holiness, love, self-control, and how believers treat other people. The prophecy is not separated from the life Christians are supposed to live while waiting for it.

Part 4 – 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 – “Caught Up Together With Them”

Now we come to the passage that has probably shaped more modern end-times teaching than anything else in First Thessalonians. This is where the method becomes especially important. Before calling this the rapture, before deciding when it happens, and before fitting it into a prophecy chart, we need to see what the Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James actually say.

Verse 13 begins with those who have died. The Ethiopian translation says Paul does not want believers to be ignorant “concerning them which are asleep,” so that they do not sorrow like people who have no hope. The 1611 King James preserves the same wording: “concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” There is no meaningful difference here. Both witnesses describe dead believers with the language of sleep.

Verse 14 becomes more interesting. The Ethiopian says, “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him.” The King James says essentially the same thing: those who “sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” That phrase needs to remain in our investigation because Paul first says God will bring them with Jesus, and then only a few verses later says the dead in Christ will rise first. We should not explain that tension away yet. Both texts preserve it.

Verse 15 contains one of the clearest examples so far of old English creating confusion for a modern reader. The Ethiopian translation says that those who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord “shall not precede them which are asleep.” The King James says they “shall not prevent them which are asleep.” 

Today, “prevent” means to stop something from happening. That is not what the King James means here. In older English, “prevent” could mean to go before or precede. The Ethiopian translation makes the meaning immediately clear: living believers do not go ahead of those who have already died. So this looks like a difference when read with modern eyes, but it is actually the same statement expressed in two stages of English.

Then Paul gives the sequence. Both witnesses say the Lord Himself descends from heaven. Both say there is a shout. Both mention the voice of the archangel. Both mention the trumpet, or “trump,” of God. And both say “the dead in Christ shall rise first.” There is no alternate sequence in the Ethiopian text. The dead in Christ rise first.

Then comes verse 17. The Ethiopian translation reads, “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” The 1611 King James gives virtually the same sentence: the living “shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” 

That is a major finding. The phrase “caught up” is not something found in one witness but missing from the other. Both contain it. Both say the living and the resurrected dead are caught up together. Both say this happens in the clouds. Both say they meet the Lord in the air. And both conclude that they will then always be with the Lord.

Notice also what the passage does not say. In these verses, neither witness uses the word “rapture.” Neither says Jesus secretly appears. Neither says believers are taken to heaven for seven years. Neither says this event happens before the Day of the Lord. Those conclusions may or may not be argued from other passages, but they are not stated here. What this passage explicitly gives us is a descent of Jesus, a shout, an archangel’s voice, God’s trumpet, resurrection of the dead in Christ, and then the gathering of the living with them.

And verse 18 tells us why Paul gave the teaching in the first place: “Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” Both witnesses preserve that conclusion. 

So after comparing the Ethiopian translation with the 1611 King James, the central wording is remarkably stable. The major apparent difference is “precede” versus the old King James “prevent,” and once the older meaning is understood, even that disappears. Jesus descends. The dead in Christ rise first. The living are caught up together with them. They meet the Lord in the air.

The next question is unavoidable: what happens immediately after Paul says this? Chapter 5 begins with “the times and the seasons” and the Day of the Lord. That is where the sequence becomes even more important.

Part 5 – 1 Thessalonians 5:1–28 – “The Day of the Lord”

Now Paul moves directly from believers being caught up to meet the Lord into “the times and the seasons.” The Ethiopian translation says, “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.” The 1611 King James says the same thing with older grammar: “the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” 

That transition matters. Paul does not insert a new subject heading explaining that he has now moved to an entirely different event. He simply continues from chapter 4 into the Day of the Lord. That does not by itself settle the timing of everything, but it means we should be very cautious about separating these passages more than Paul himself does.

Verse 3 is also virtually identical. The Ethiopian says, “For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction comes upon them.” The King James reads, “Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them.” Again, the difference is only modernized English.

Then Paul makes a distinction. The Ethiopian says believers are not in darkness “that that day should overtake you as a thief.” They are “children of light” and “children of the day.” The King James preserves the same wording. The Day comes like a thief, but Paul does not say it must surprise believers. His contrast is between darkness and light, sleeping and watching.

That leads to verses 6 through 8. Both witnesses tell believers to watch and be sober. Both use the image of the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation. There is no meaningful translation difference here.

Then comes another crucial statement: “For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” That is the Ethiopian translation. The King James says, “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.” 

That matches what we already saw in chapter 1, where both witnesses said Jesus delivers believers from “the wrath to come.” Now Paul says believers are not appointed to wrath. Once again, there is no disagreement between the Ethiopian and King James texts. The question we will eventually have to answer is what Paul means by that wrath and how it relates to the events around Christ’s coming.

Paul then turns back to Christian conduct. The Ethiopian tells believers to comfort one another, build one another up, respect those who labor among them, live at peace, warn the unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, and be patient toward all people. It also says not to repay evil for evil. The 1611 King James preserves the same sequence. 

Then we reach several short commands that are famous in the King James: “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks.” Both witnesses preserve them. Both also say, “Quench not the Spirit,” “Despise not prophesyings,” and “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” 

Verse 22 deserves special care. The Ethiopian translation says, “Abstain from all appearance of evil,” and the King James says exactly the same thing. Modern readers can hear “appearance” as meaning something that merely looks evil. But older English can use “appearance” more broadly for a form or manifestation. So we should not automatically turn Paul’s words into a command to avoid anything that someone might possibly think looks bad. Both texts preserve the same phrase, so the issue is interpretation of older wording rather than a difference between the two witnesses.

Finally, verse 23 brings us back to Christ’s return. The Ethiopian says Paul’s prayer is that their whole “spirit and soul and body” be preserved blameless “unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The King James gives the same wording. 

So by the end of First Thessalonians, the Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James are still telling almost exactly the same story. Jesus comes from heaven. The dead in Christ rise. The living are caught up with them. The Day of the Lord follows in Paul’s discussion. Believers are told to watch, remain sober, and remember that they are not appointed to wrath. And throughout the entire prophecy discussion, Paul keeps returning to holiness, love, patience, discernment, and how Christians treat one another.

Now we move into Second Thessalonians, where Paul returns to the coming of Jesus—but this time he adds judgment, angels, flaming fire, the falling away, the man of sin, and our gathering together unto Christ.

Part 6 – 2 Thessalonians 1:1–12 – “The Lord Jesus Revealed From Heaven”

As we enter Second Thessalonians, Paul does not abandon the themes of the first letter. He begins again with faith, love, persecution, endurance, and the return of Jesus. The Ethiopian translation says their faith “grows exceedingly” and that the “love of every one of you all toward each other abounds.” The 1611 King James says their faith “groweth exceedingly” and that the “charity” of every believer toward the others “aboundeth.” Once again, “love” and “charity” are not different doctrines. “Charity” is simply the older King James word for love.

Paul then speaks directly about persecution. The Ethiopian says he boasts about their patience and faith “in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure.” It calls this a “manifest token of the righteous judgment of God,” connected with being counted worthy of the kingdom for which they suffer. The King James preserves the same wording almost exactly. 

Then the passage changes tone. Paul says it is righteous for God to “recompense tribulation to them that trouble you.” The Ethiopian and the King James both preserve that statement. That sets up the description of Christ’s return.

Verse 7 says that those who are troubled will receive rest “when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels.” The King James says the same thing: Jesus is “revealed from heaven with his mighty angels.” That wording is important because this is not a hidden or private scene. Paul describes revelation from heaven accompanied by mighty angels.

Verse 8 becomes even more severe. Both witnesses say Jesus comes “in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” There is no Ethiopian wording here that softens the judgment language. Both preserve it directly.

Verse 9 is equally strong. The Ethiopian says these people “shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power.” The 1611 King James gives the same wording. Whatever theological conclusions someone eventually draws from “everlasting destruction,” the translation comparison itself gives us no disagreement to exploit. Both witnesses say it.

Then verse 10 tells us what happens on the other side of that judgment. The Ethiopian says Christ comes “to be glorified in His saints, and to be admired in all them that believe.” The King James says the same thing with older capitalization and grammar. 

That gives us another important connection to First Thessalonians. In the first letter, Jesus comes “with all His saints.” Here He comes to be “glorified in His saints.” The wording is not identical, but the same group remains central to His appearing. The return of Christ is not described only as punishment. It is also the moment when He is glorified in those who belong to Him.

Paul closes the chapter by praying that God would count them worthy of their calling and fulfill “the work of faith with power.” The Ethiopian says that the name of Jesus may be glorified “in you, and you in Him.” The King James says the same thing, only with “ye” and “fulfil.” Again, modernization rather than a different message.

So Part 6 gives us another strong comparison. The Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James both describe Jesus being revealed from heaven with mighty angels. Both preserve flaming fire, vengeance, judgment, everlasting destruction, the glory of His power, and Christ being glorified in His saints.

That matters because Paul is now about to explain “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” and “our gathering together unto Him.” The next chapter will ask whether that gathering can happen before the falling away and the revelation of the man of sin. That is where the translation comparison becomes especially critical.

Part 7 – 2 Thessalonians 2:1–4 – “Our Gathering Together Unto Him”

Now we arrive at one of the most important passages in the entire investigation, because Paul finally places several ideas in the same sentence. He speaks about the coming of Jesus, the gathering of believers to Him, the Day of Christ, the falling away, and the revealing of the man of sin. Rather than beginning with a rapture timeline, we need to follow the wording exactly.

The Ethiopian translation begins, “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him.” The 1611 King James says, “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him.” There is essentially no difference. Both witnesses place Christ’s coming and “our gathering together unto Him” beside one another.

That wording deserves attention because Paul does not introduce one event called the coming and then, several chapters later, introduce an unrelated gathering. He mentions them together. We should still be careful about claiming more than the verse says, but whatever interpretation is eventually adopted has to account for Paul’s own pairing: “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” and “our gathering together unto Him.”

Verse 2 then gives us a finding I specifically wanted to verify rather than assume. The Ethiopian translation says believers should not be shaken or troubled by spirit, word, or a letter supposedly from Paul, “as that the day of Christ is at hand.” The actual 1611 King James also reads “the day of Christ is at hand.” 

So between these two witnesses, there is no “Day of Christ” versus “Day of the Lord” disagreement. They both say “day of Christ.” That is an important correction to something we had flagged for investigation. Whatever differences may exist in other manuscript traditions or modern translations, the two texts we are examining agree here.

Then Paul gives the warning: “Let no man deceive you by any means.” The Ethiopian continues, “for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.” The 1611 King James gives the same sequence: “for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.” 

Here the comparison becomes extremely important because neither witness says merely that a falling away will someday occur. Both contain the word “first.” Paul connects the Day of Christ with identifiable developments that precede it: the falling away and the revealing of the man of sin.

The expression “falling away” is also preserved in both texts. The Ethiopian translation does not replace it with another term such as rebellion, apostasy, or departure. The 1611 King James says “falling away,” and the Ethiopian translation says “falling away.” So for this investigation, there is no translation difference to build an argument upon.

The same is true of “man of sin.” Some modern English Bibles use expressions such as “man of lawlessness,” but that is not what either of our two witnesses says. The Ethiopian translation reads “that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition,” and the 1611 King James gives the same wording. 

Verse 4 then tells us what this figure does. The Ethiopian says he “opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped,” and that “he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” The King James says he “opposeth and exalteth himself” and “as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” The differences are purely modernized English: opposes/opposeth, sits/sitteth, showing/shewing.

Now put only the statements we have actually verified together. Paul speaks about the coming of Jesus and “our gathering together unto Him.” He warns believers not to be deceived concerning the Day of Christ. He then says that day will not come until a falling away occurs and the man of sin is revealed.

That does not yet answer every rapture question, because we still have to examine the restrainer and what happens when the lawless one is revealed. But it creates a serious problem for any timeline that simply removes Paul’s gathering from the surrounding passage without explanation. The gathering is mentioned in verse 1. The Day of Christ is mentioned in verse 2. The falling away and man of sin appear in verse 3.

Most importantly for our comparison, the Ethiopian translation does not give us a different sequence from the 1611 King James. At this critical point, the two witnesses are remarkably aligned.

And now Paul tells us that something is holding this man back. The Ethiopian calls it something that “restrains.” The King James uses one of the most misunderstood words in this entire letter: “letteth.” That is where we go next.

Part 8 – 2 Thessalonians 2:4–12 – “The Mystery of Iniquity and the Restrainer”

Paul has just told us that the man of sin will be revealed before the Day of Christ. Now he describes what this figure does and introduces one of the most debated mysteries in the New Testament: something—or someone—is restraining him. This is also one of the places where the Ethiopian translation makes the older King James much easier to understand.

Verse 4 describes the man of sin as one who “opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped.” The Ethiopian says that “he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” The 1611 King James says the same thing in older English: he “opposeth and exalteth himself,” “sitteth in the temple of God,” and “sheweth himself that he is God.” There is no meaningful textual difference here.

Then Paul reminds the Thessalonians that he had already taught them these things personally. Verse 6 in the Ethiopian translation says, “And now you know what restrains, that he might be revealed in his time.” Verse 7 continues, “For the mystery of iniquity is already working: only He who now restrains will continue to do so, until He is taken out of the way.” 

Now compare that with the King James. Verse 6 says, “And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.” Verse 7 then says, “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.” 

This is one of the clearest places where four hundred years of changing English can completely confuse a modern reader. Today, “let” usually means allow. In the older English of the King James, “let” could mean the exact opposite: hinder, hold back, or restrain. So “he who now letteth” does not mean someone allowing the man of sin to appear. It means someone restraining him.

The Ethiopian translation makes that meaning explicit by using “restrains.” In other words, this is not really a disagreement between the two witnesses. The Ethiopian translation is expressing in modern language what the King James’s older English means.

There is, however, an interesting detail we should not push beyond the evidence. The Ethiopian translation capitalizes “He” in the phrase “He who now restrains,” while the King James text before us uses lowercase “he.” That capitalization can suggest that the Ethiopian translators understood the restrainer as a divine person, possibly the Holy Spirit. But capitalization is an editorial and translation choice. Paul does not identify the restrainer by name in these verses, so we should not declare the mystery solved simply because one English rendering capitalizes the pronoun.

What we can say confidently is that both texts describe a restraint that operates until a particular time. The “mystery of iniquity” is already working, but the Wicked one is not fully revealed while the restraint remains.

Then verse 8 gives the next event. The Ethiopian says, “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming.” The King James gives essentially the same wording: the Lord consumes the Wicked “with the spirit of his mouth” and destroys him “with the brightness of his coming.” 

Notice again how important the word “coming” has become. Paul began this chapter with “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” and “our gathering together unto Him.” Now he says the lawless figure is destroyed by the brightness of Christ’s coming. The same chapter is holding the gathering, the falling away, the revealing of the man of sin, the restraint, and Christ’s victorious coming within one continuous argument.

Verses 9 and 10 then describe the counterfeit power behind the Wicked one. Both witnesses say his coming is “after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,” accompanied by “all deceivableness of unrighteousness” among those who perish because they did not receive “the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” Once again, there is no significant translation disagreement.

Then comes one of the strongest warnings in the passage. The Ethiopian says, “And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie.” It continues that judgment falls on those who “believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” The Ethiopian witness therefore preserves the familiar expression “strong delusion” exactly as Christians know it from the King James tradition.

What stands out after comparing these verses is not a hidden Ethiopian end-times system. It is how closely the two witnesses agree while the Ethiopian translation removes a dangerous English misunderstanding. “He who now letteth” does not mean “he who now allows.” It means the one who restrains.

So the sequence continues to become clearer. The mystery of iniquity is already operating. Something restrains its full revelation. The restraint is eventually removed. The Wicked one is revealed. Satanic power, signs, wonders, deception, and strong delusion accompany him. Then Jesus destroys him with the brightness of His coming.

And Paul has already connected that coming with “our gathering together unto Him.” That connection is becoming harder to ignore.

Part 9 – 2 Thessalonians 2:13–3:18 – “Stand Fast and Hold”

After warning about deception, the man of sin, the mystery of iniquity, and strong delusion, Paul turns back to the believers themselves. The Ethiopian translation says God has “from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” The 1611 King James says the same thing with older grammar: God “hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” 

Then verse 15 gives the response Paul wants from them. The Ethiopian says, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which you have been taught, whether by word or our epistle.” The King James reads, “stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” There is no translation difference here. Both witnesses use the word “traditions,” but the context defines what Paul means: teaching the Thessalonians had received directly from the apostles, orally or by letter.

The chapter closes with “everlasting consolation and good hope through grace.” The Ethiopian then says God will “establish you in every good word and work,” while the King James uses the older “stablish you.” Again, the meaning is the same.

Chapter 3 begins with an interesting wording difference. The Ethiopian asks that “the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified.” The King James says that the word of the Lord may “have free course, and be glorified.” These expressions communicate the same basic idea—Paul wants the gospel to move freely and rapidly—but this is more than a simple ye/you modernization. The Ethiopian wording gives us the image of God’s word running swiftly, while the King James expresses it as having free course.

Verse 5 gives another small difference worth noticing. The Ethiopian says, “the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ.” The King James reads, “into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.” Here the English wording is genuinely different in emphasis. The Ethiopian points toward Christ’s patience or endurance, while the King James explicitly presents patient waiting for Christ. We should note the distinction without forcing a larger doctrine from one phrase.

Paul then turns to disorder within the church. The Ethiopian commands believers to withdraw from every brother who “walks disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received from us.” The King James says the same with “walketh disorderly.” Paul is not talking about someone who merely disagrees over a minor issue. The following verses show that the disorder involves refusing to work while interfering in other people’s affairs.

Paul points to his own example. The Ethiopian says he and his companions did not eat anyone’s bread for nothing, but “worked with labor and travail night and day” so they would not become a burden. The King James says they “wrought with labour and travail night and day,” that they might not be “chargeable” to anyone. These are mostly modernization differences.

Verse 10 contains the famous command, and both witnesses preserve it: “if any would not work, neither should he eat.” The next verse explains Paul’s concern. Some were “working not at all, but are busybodies.” The issue is not inability to work. Paul specifically describes people refusing productive responsibility while becoming involved in other people’s business.

The Ethiopian tells such people to “with quietness” work and eat their own bread. It then tells everyone else, “be not weary in well doing.” The King James gives the same wording. So even while Paul corrects idleness, he does not tell generous believers to stop doing good.

Then comes an important balance in discipline. The Ethiopian says that if someone refuses Paul’s instruction, believers should “mark that man, and have no company with him,” but then immediately says, “Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.” The King James says “note that man” rather than “mark that man,” but gives the same command not to treat him as an enemy. Correction is meant to restore, not to turn a brother into an enemy.

Paul closes with peace and grace. The Ethiopian says, “The Lord of peace Himself give you peace always by all means,” and ends with “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” The King James closes almost identically. 

So as Second Thessalonians ends, the Ethiopian and 1611 King James remain strikingly close. The largest wording difference in this section is “the patience of Christ” versus “patient waiting for Christ,” while most other changes simply modernize the English. And Paul’s final response to all the prophecy he has just given is not fear or obsession. It is to stand fast, hold to the teaching, work faithfully, refuse disorder, continue doing good, correct people as brothers rather than enemies, and remain rooted in the love and peace of God.

Part 10 – Overall Comparison – “What Does Paul Actually Say Happens Before Jesus Returns?”

Now that we have examined First and Second Thessalonians side by side, we can finally put Paul’s statements together without beginning from a denominational timeline. The most important finding is that the Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James do not give us two competing end-times stories. In the key passages we examined, they are remarkably close. Most differences are older English versus modern English, with only a few places where the wording shifts enough to affect emphasis.

First Thessalonians begins by telling believers to wait for God’s Son from heaven, Jesus, “who delivered us from the wrath to come.” Later Paul says believers are not appointed to wrath but to obtain salvation through Jesus Christ. The Ethiopian witness preserves the same basic message. So before we ever reach the famous “caught up” passage, Paul has already connected Christ’s return with future wrath and the deliverance of His people.

Then comes First Thessalonians 4. Both witnesses say that Jesus descends from heaven with a shout, the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God. Both say the dead in Christ rise first. Then the living who remain are “caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” The Ethiopian changes the King James “prevent” into “precede,” but that simply makes the older meaning clearer. The sequence itself does not change.

Immediately afterward Paul begins discussing “the times and the seasons” and says the Day of the Lord comes like a thief in the night. He speaks of “peace and safety,” sudden destruction, believers being children of light, watching, remaining sober, and not being appointed to wrath. The text does not insert a seven-year interval between the gathering and the Day of the Lord. That does not prove by itself that no interval exists, but neither witness states one here.

Second Thessalonians then adds more detail. Jesus is “revealed from heaven with His mighty angels,” in flaming fire, bringing judgment, and coming to be glorified in His saints. The 1611 King James gives the same picture. This again sounds like an open revelation of Christ rather than a scene described as secret or hidden.

Then we reach the passage that gives us the strongest chronological language. Paul writes about “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him.” He immediately warns believers not to be deceived concerning “the day of Christ,” because “that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed.” The 1611 King James says the same thing. 

That word “first” matters. Paul does not merely say that falling away and the man of sin exist somewhere in prophecy. He places them before the day he is discussing. Both witnesses preserve that structure.

Paul then explains that the mystery of iniquity is already working, but something restrains it. The Ethiopian uses “restrains,” while the King James uses the older “withholdeth” and “letteth.” This is one of the clearest places where the Ethiopian wording helps a modern reader. The King James “letteth” does not mean allows. It means restrains or hinders.

After the restraint is removed, the Wicked one is revealed. Then Paul says the Lord destroys him “with the brightness of His coming.” Both witnesses preserve that statement. That means the same chapter contains Christ’s coming, our gathering to Him, the falling away, the man of sin, the restrainer, Satanic signs and lying wonders, strong delusion, and finally the destruction of the Wicked one at Christ’s coming.

So what does Paul actually say happens before Jesus returns? The safest answer from these texts is this: there is a falling away, the man of sin is revealed, the mystery of iniquity reaches a fuller expression after the restraint is removed, deception and Satanic signs accompany it, and Christ ultimately destroys the Wicked one at His coming. Paul also connects that coming with “our gathering together unto Him.”

What we do not find in either witness is a verse saying believers are secretly removed before the falling away. We do not find a verse here saying the gathering happens seven years before Christ’s visible return. We do not find Paul separating the “coming” of Christ in verse 1 from the “coming” that destroys the Wicked one in verse 8 by explicitly describing them as different arrivals. Those distinctions may be argued through larger theological systems, but they are not stated in these Thessalonian passages themselves.

And that may be the most important finding of Part Fifty. The Ethiopian translation does not overturn the King James end-times language. In most places, it confirms it while making several older English expressions easier to understand. The real challenge comes not from one translation defeating the other, but from reading Paul’s words without placing a prophecy chart over them first.

When the two witnesses are allowed to speak together, Paul’s emphasis is consistent: remain awake, remain holy, love one another, endure persecution, refuse deception, stand fast in the truth, and wait for Jesus Christ. The prophecy is not given to create panic. It is given so believers will recognize deception, endure what comes, and remain faithful until the Lord appears.

Conclusion – “Comfort One Another With These Words”

After placing First and Second Thessalonians side by side in the Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James, the clearest conclusion is that these two witnesses are telling essentially the same prophetic story. The Ethiopian text modernizes many older English expressions, and in a few places it shifts the emphasis slightly, but it does not produce a radically different sequence of events.

Both witnesses tell us that Jesus comes from heaven. Both tell us that the dead in Christ rise first. Both tell us that living believers are caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air. Both move from that gathering into the Day of the Lord, both say believers are not appointed to wrath, and both connect Christ’s return with watchfulness, sobriety, holiness, endurance, and hope.

Second Thessalonians then adds the details that Christians cannot simply ignore. Paul speaks about the coming of Jesus and “our gathering together unto Him.” He warns believers not to be deceived. He says there will first be a falling away and the revealing of the man of sin. He describes the mystery of iniquity already working, a restraining power holding something back, Satanic signs and lying wonders, strong delusion, and finally the destruction of the Wicked one by the brightness of Christ’s coming.

One of the most useful discoveries in this comparison was how much trouble can be caused simply by old English. The King James statement that “he who now letteth will let” sounds to a modern reader as if someone is allowing something to happen. The Ethiopian translation makes the older meaning clear by saying that this figure restrains. The underlying idea is not permission. It is restraint.

The same happened earlier when the King James said the living would not “prevent” those who are asleep. Today that sounds like stopping them. But the Ethiopian translation uses “precede,” revealing the older English meaning. The living will not go before the dead. The dead in Christ rise first.

Those examples are important because they show why this investigation matters. Sometimes what looks like a theological difference is not a theological difference at all. It is simply four hundred years of language change. If we misunderstand the vocabulary, we can build doctrines upon meanings that the translators themselves never intended.

At the same time, the comparison did not give us permission to force every end-times doctrine into these letters. Neither witness explicitly says that believers are secretly removed seven years before the visible return of Christ. Neither passage says that the gathering of believers and the later coming of Christ are two separate arrivals. Neither text tells us to insert a gap between them. Those conclusions may be defended through larger prophetic systems, but Thessalonians itself does not plainly state them.

What Paul plainly states is much simpler. Jesus is coming. The dead will rise. Believers will be gathered to Him. The Day of the Lord will come. Deception will increase. There will be a falling away. The man of sin will be revealed. The mystery of iniquity will reach its appointed time. The Wicked one will be destroyed by Christ at His coming.

And yet Paul’s purpose was never merely to satisfy curiosity about prophecy. Again and again he brings the reader back to how Christians should live while waiting. Be holy. Love one another. Work quietly. Do not repay evil with evil. Test everything. Hold fast to what is good. Do not be deceived. Stand fast. Do not grow weary in doing good. Treat a wandering brother as a brother rather than an enemy.

That may be the most important lesson of Thessalonians. Paul does not give prophecy so Christians can obsess over dates while ignoring the condition of their hearts. He gives prophecy so they will remain faithful when deception comes.

And the final tone of First Thessalonians tells us how Paul wanted these teachings received: “comfort one another with these words.” The return of Jesus was never supposed to terrify the believer who belongs to Him. It was supposed to produce hope, endurance, holiness, discernment, and the confidence that no matter how dark the mystery of iniquity becomes, it does not win.

Jesus does.

Bibliography

• The Ethiopian Bible Restoration Project. The Ethiopian Bible: Geʽez to English. 2025. Ethiopian Bible Restoration Project.
• The Holy Bible, Containing the Old Testament and the New: Newly Translated out of the Original Tongues. London: Robert Barker, 1611. King James Version.
• Bruce, F. F. 1 & 2 Thessalonians. Word Biblical Commentary 45. Waco, TX: Word Books, 1982.
• Fee, Gordon D. The First and Second Letters to the Thessalonians. New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
• Green, Gene L. The Letters to the Thessalonians. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2002.
• Malherbe, Abraham J. The Letters to the Thessalonians: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary. Anchor Bible 32B. New York: Doubleday, 2000.
• Marshall, I. Howard. 1 and 2 Thessalonians. New Century Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1983.
• Morris, Leon. The First and Second Epistles to the Thessalonians. Revised ed. New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991.
• Wanamaker, Charles A. The Epistles to the Thessalonians: A Commentary on the Greek Text. New International Greek Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1990.
• Weima, Jeffrey A. D. 1–2 Thessalonians. Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2014.

Endnotes

1. 1 Thessalonians 1:1–3. Paul opens the letter by identifying the Thessalonian church with God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and remembering their “work of faith,” “labor of love,” and “patience of hope.”
2. 1 Thessalonians 1:5. Both biblical witnesses describe the gospel as coming not merely in words but “in power,” in the Holy Spirit/Holy Ghost, and with assurance.
3. 1 Thessalonians 1:6–7. The Ethiopian translation uses “examples,” while the 1611 King James uses the older “ensamples.” The meaning is substantially the same.
4. 1 Thessalonians 1:9. Paul describes the Thessalonians as having turned from idols to serve “the living and true God.”
5. 1 Thessalonians 1:10. Both witnesses describe believers as waiting for God’s Son from heaven and identify Jesus as the One who delivers them “from the wrath to come.”
6. 1 Thessalonians 2:1–2. Paul recalls that his ministry among the Thessalonians was not in vain despite suffering and opposition.
7. 1 Thessalonians 2:3. Both witnesses deny that Paul’s exhortation originated in deceit, uncleanness, or guile.
8. 1 Thessalonians 2:4. The Ethiopian translation says God “tests our hearts,” while the King James says God “trieth our hearts.” This is primarily modernization of English.
9. 1 Thessalonians 2:5. Both witnesses use the image of a “cloak” or “cloke” of covetousness.
10. 1 Thessalonians 2:6–8. Paul contrasts seeking human glory with the tenderness of a nurse caring for her children.
11. 1 Thessalonians 2:9. Paul reminds the Thessalonians that he labored night and day rather than becoming financially burdensome to them.
12. 1 Thessalonians 2:10–12. Paul describes his conduct as holy, just, and blameless and urges believers to walk worthy of God.
13. 1 Thessalonians 2:13. Both witnesses say that the Thessalonians received the message not merely as the word of men but as the word of God working in believers.
14. 1 Thessalonians 2:14–16. Paul places the suffering of the Thessalonians beside the suffering experienced by the churches in Judea.
15. 1 Thessalonians 2:16. Both witnesses preserve the statement that “the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.”
16. 1 Thessalonians 2:17–18. Paul describes his separation from the Thessalonians as physical rather than emotional and says Satan hindered his attempts to return.
17. 1 Thessalonians 2:19. Paul calls the Thessalonian believers his hope, joy, and crown of rejoicing “in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming.”
18. 1 Thessalonians 2:20. Paul concludes this thought simply: “you are our glory and joy.”
19. 1 Thessalonians 3:1–2. Timothy is sent to establish and encourage the Thessalonians concerning their faith.
20. 1 Thessalonians 3:3–4. Paul reminds them that believers should not be moved by afflictions and that he had warned them beforehand about tribulation.
21. 1 Thessalonians 3:5. Paul’s concern is that the tempter might have undermined their faith and made his labor among them fruitless.
22. 1 Thessalonians 3:6. The Ethiopian translation uses “faith and love,” while the 1611 King James reads “faith and charity.” In older English, “charity” commonly carries the meaning of Christian love.
23. 1 Thessalonians 3:7–8. Paul says their faith comforted him in his own affliction and distress.
24. 1 Thessalonians 3:10. Paul prays that he might return and supply what remains lacking in their faith.
25. 1 Thessalonians 3:12. Paul prays that their love will increase and abound toward one another and toward all people.
26. 1 Thessalonians 3:13. Both witnesses connect hearts established in holiness with “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.”
27. 1 Thessalonians 4:1–2. Paul urges believers to continue growing in the manner of life they had been taught.
28. 1 Thessalonians 4:3. Both witnesses state plainly, “this is the will of God, even your sanctification,” followed by the command to abstain from fornication.
29. 1 Thessalonians 4:4. Both preserve the expression “possess his vessel in sanctification and honor.” The immediate text does not itself stop to define “vessel.”
30. 1 Thessalonians 4:5. “Concupiscence” is older English referring to powerful or improper desire, particularly lust.
31. 1 Thessalonians 4:6. Both witnesses warn against defrauding a brother and describe the Lord as the avenger of such conduct.
32. 1 Thessalonians 4:7. God’s calling is contrasted with uncleanness: believers are called “unto holiness.”
33. 1 Thessalonians 4:8. Rejecting this instruction is presented not merely as rejecting a human teacher but as despising God, who gives His Holy Spirit.
34. 1 Thessalonians 4:9–10. Paul says the Thessalonians are “taught of God to love one another” but nevertheless urges them to increase in love.
35. 1 Thessalonians 4:11. Both witnesses contain Paul’s memorable instruction to “study to be quiet,” attend to one’s own affairs, and work with one’s hands.
36. 1 Thessalonians 4:12. Such conduct allows believers to walk honorably toward outsiders and avoid unnecessary dependence.
37. 1 Thessalonians 4:13. Paul’s teaching about the dead begins with his desire that Christians not grieve as those who have no hope.
38. 1 Thessalonians 4:14. Christian resurrection hope is explicitly grounded in the death and resurrection of Jesus.
39. 1 Thessalonians 4:15. The Ethiopian translation says the living “shall not precede” those who sleep, while the King James says they “shall not prevent” them.
40. In seventeenth-century English, “prevent” could mean to go before or precede. Consequently, the King James wording of 1 Thessalonians 4:15 does not mean that living believers stop the dead from rising.
41. 1 Thessalonians 4:16. Both witnesses describe the Lord Himself descending from heaven with a shout, the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God.
42. 1 Thessalonians 4:16. Both witnesses then state that “the dead in Christ shall rise first.”
43. 1 Thessalonians 4:17. After the resurrection of the dead in Christ, the believers who are alive and remain are “caught up together with them in the clouds.”
44. 1 Thessalonians 4:17. The destination stated in the verse is “to meet the Lord in the air,” after which believers will always be with the Lord.
45. Neither of the two English witnesses examined uses the noun “rapture” in 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18. The investigation therefore concentrated on Paul’s actual expression “caught up.”
46. 1 Thessalonians 4:18. Paul’s stated pastoral purpose is comfort: “comfort one another with these words.”
47. 1 Thessalonians 5:1. Paul moves immediately from the resurrection and gathering discussion into “the times and the seasons.”
48. 1 Thessalonians 5:2. Both witnesses state that “the day of the Lord” comes like “a thief in the night.”
49. 1 Thessalonians 5:3. Paul describes people saying “Peace and safety” immediately before sudden destruction comes upon them.
50. 1 Thessalonians 5:4. Paul tells believers that they are not in darkness so that the day should overtake them as a thief.
51. 1 Thessalonians 5:5–6. Believers are called children of light and children of the day and are therefore commanded to watch and remain sober.
52. 1 Thessalonians 5:8. Paul’s imagery includes the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation.
53. 1 Thessalonians 5:9. Both witnesses say God has not appointed believers “to wrath,” but to obtain salvation through Jesus Christ.
54. First Thessalonians therefore contains two prominent references to wrath: Jesus delivers believers from “the wrath to come” in 1:10, and believers are “not appointed…to wrath” in 5:9.
55. 1 Thessalonians 5:11. Paul again returns to encouragement and mutual edification.
56. 1 Thessalonians 5:14–15. Christians are told to warn the unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, remain patient, and refuse to repay evil for evil.
57. 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18. “Rejoice evermore,” “Pray without ceasing,” and giving thanks in everything form part of Paul’s closing instructions.
58. 1 Thessalonians 5:19–21. Paul commands believers not to quench the Spirit or despise prophecy, while simultaneously telling them to “prove all things” and hold fast to what is good.
59. 1 Thessalonians 5:22. Both witnesses read “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” This therefore was not treated in the investigation as a difference between the Ethiopian translation and the King James.
60. The older sense of “appearance” can extend beyond merely looking suspicious and can refer to a form, manifestation, or kind. Context should therefore govern interpretation rather than the modern colloquial expression “avoid anything that looks bad.”
61. 1 Thessalonians 5:23. Paul prays that the believers’ whole “spirit and soul and body” will be preserved blameless unto the coming of Jesus Christ.
62. 2 Thessalonians 1:3. The Ethiopian translation reads “love,” while the King James reads “charity.” As elsewhere, this is principally an English-language difference rather than a competing theological idea.
63. 2 Thessalonians 1:4–5. Paul interprets perseverance through persecution and tribulation within the framework of God’s righteous judgment and kingdom.
64. 2 Thessalonians 1:6. Both witnesses describe it as righteous for God to recompense tribulation to those troubling His people.
65. 2 Thessalonians 1:7. Both texts say relief comes “when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels.”
66. 2 Thessalonians 1:8. The revelation of Jesus is accompanied by “flaming fire” and judgment upon those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel.
67. 2 Thessalonians 1:9. Both witnesses preserve the severe expression “everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power.”
68. 2 Thessalonians 1:10. Christ comes to be glorified “in His saints” and admired in those who believe.
69. 2 Thessalonians 2:1. Paul places “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” beside “our gathering together unto Him.”
70. 2 Thessalonians 2:2. A particularly important finding in this investigation was that both witnesses examined read “the day of Christ.” There is no Ethiopian-versus-1611-King-James disagreement on that phrase in these editions.
71. 2 Thessalonians 2:3. Both witnesses warn, “Let no man deceive you by any means.”
72. 2 Thessalonians 2:3. Both say “that day shall not come” except there first comes “a falling away” and the man of sin is revealed.
73. 2 Thessalonians 2:3. Both witnesses use the expression “falling away.” The investigation therefore did not substitute “rapture,” “departure,” or another interpretation for the wording actually present in the two texts.
74. 2 Thessalonians 2:3. Both witnesses examined also use “man of sin” and “son of perdition.”
75. 2 Thessalonians 2:4. The man of sin opposes and exalts himself above what is called God or worshiped and sits in the temple of God, presenting himself as God.
76. 2 Thessalonians 2:6. The Ethiopian translation uses the direct modern expression “what restrains,” while the King James uses “what withholdeth.”
77. 2 Thessalonians 2:7. The Ethiopian translation says, “He who now restrains,” while the King James uses the historically important phrase “he who now letteth.”
78. In older English, “let” could mean hinder or restrain. Reading the King James “letteth” according to the dominant modern meaning of “allow” would therefore reverse Paul’s intended idea.
79. The Ethiopian translation capitalizes “He” when describing the restrainer. Capitalization can influence how a reader identifies this figure, but capitalization alone does not establish the restrainer’s identity.
80. 2 Thessalonians 2:7. Both witnesses say the “mystery of iniquity” is already at work before the final revelation of the Wicked one.
81. 2 Thessalonians 2:8. Once the Wicked one is revealed, the Lord consumes him with “the spirit of His mouth” and destroys him “with the brightness of His coming.”
82. 2 Thessalonians 2:9. The Wicked one’s coming is associated with the working of Satan, power, signs, and “lying wonders.”
83. 2 Thessalonians 2:10. The deception operates among those who perish because they did not receive “the love of the truth, that they might be saved.”
84. 2 Thessalonians 2:11–12. Both witnesses preserve “strong delusion,” believing a lie, rejection of truth, and pleasure in unrighteousness.
85. 2 Thessalonians 2:13–14. After the warning about deception, Paul turns to believers as those chosen to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.
86. 2 Thessalonians 2:15. Both witnesses command believers to “stand fast” and “hold the traditions” they had been taught by apostolic word or epistle.
87. 2 Thessalonians 2:16–17. Paul speaks of everlasting consolation, good hope through grace, and being established in every good word and work.
88. 2 Thessalonians 3:1. The Ethiopian translation asks that the word of the Lord “may run swiftly and be glorified,” whereas the King James asks that it “may have free course, and be glorified.” The imagery differs somewhat, although both communicate the unhindered advance of the gospel.
89. 2 Thessalonians 3:3. Both witnesses emphasize the Lord’s faithfulness to establish believers and keep them from evil.
90. 2 Thessalonians 3:5. The Ethiopian translation reads “the patience of Christ,” while the King James reads “the patient waiting for Christ.” This was one of the more noticeable wording differences in the closing portion of the letter.
91. 2 Thessalonians 3:6. Both witnesses instruct Christians to withdraw from a brother who walks disorderly rather than according to the apostolic instruction he received.
92. 2 Thessalonians 3:7–9. Paul offers his own labor as an example, reminding the Thessalonians that he worked rather than unnecessarily becoming a financial burden.
93. 2 Thessalonians 3:10. Both witnesses preserve Paul’s command that “if any would not work, neither should he eat.”
94. 2 Thessalonians 3:11–12. The surrounding context identifies the problem as people who refuse to work while becoming busybodies. Paul tells them to work quietly and eat their own bread.
95. 2 Thessalonians 3:13. Paul balances this correction with the command, “be not weary in well doing.”
96. 2 Thessalonians 3:14. The Ethiopian translation says to “mark that man,” while the King James says to “note that man” if he refuses the instruction of the epistle.
97. 2 Thessalonians 3:15. Church discipline is immediately qualified: “count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.”
98. 2 Thessalonians 3:16. Paul closes by invoking the Lord of peace and asking that He give believers peace “always by all means.”
99. Across the major prophetic passages examined, the Ethiopian translation and the 1611 King James preserve the same central elements: Christ’s coming, resurrection of the dead in Christ, gathering of living believers, the Day of the Lord/Day of Christ language in its respective passages, falling away, revelation of the man of sin, restraint, deception, and Christ’s ultimate victory.
100. The comparison therefore does not establish a radically different Ethiopian end-times system. Its greatest value in these letters is often clarification: modern wording such as “precede” and “restrains” makes older King James expressions such as “prevent” and “letteth” understandable to a modern audience while preserving the larger prophetic structure of Paul’s letters.

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