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2Th_2:16-17. The apostle rises from his evangelical activity (2Th_2:15) up to Christ, the Lord and Ruler of the Christian church, and concludes with the mention of God, who is the final reason and contriver of the Christian salvation. The unusual (2Co_13:13) naming of Christ first and of God second, is sufficiently explained from the fact that Christ is the Mediator between God and man.
On the union of the two nominatives, Christ and God, with a verb in the singular, see on 1Th_3:11.
ὁ ἀγαπήσας ἡμᾶς καὶ δοὺς παράκλ . κ . τ . λ .] a fittingly-selected characteristic, in order to mark the confidence with which Paul expects the hearing of his supplications.
ὁ ἀγαπήσας ἡμᾶς καὶ δούς ] refers exclusively to ὁ Θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ ἡμῶν . Baumgarten-Crusius incorrectly refers only the second participle to God, and the first to Christ. But the participle aorist ἀγαπήσας must not be weakened into “qui nos amat et quovis tempore amavit” (so Schott, after Flatt and Pelt), but refers to the divine proof of love already belonging to the past,—accomplished, i.e. to the fact by which the love of God to mankind is κατʼ ἐξοχήν proved,—to the mission of His Son in order to rescue sinners from destruction.
καὶ δούς ] and has thereby communicated to us.
παράκλησιν ] comfort. This is called eternal,[69] not, perhaps, on account of the blessings of eternal life which Christians have to expect (Chrysostom, Estius, Vorstius, Grotius, Fromond., and others), but because Christians have become the sons of God, and as such are filled with indestructible confidence that all things, even the severest affliction which may befall them, infallibly serves for their good, because God has so ordained, and that nothing in the world will be able to separate them from the love of God in Christ; comp. Rom_8:28; Rom_8:38 f. The opposite of this eternal consolation is the fleeting and deceptive consolation of the world (Olshausen). παράκλησις accordingly refers to the present. On the other hand (2Th_2:13-14), ἐλπὶς ἀγαθή refers to the blessedness and glory to be expected in the future.
ἐν χάριτι ] in grace, i.e. by means of a gracious appointment, belongs not to ἐλπίδα , but to the participles. The opposite is man’s own merit.
παρακαλέσαι ] may comfort or calm, refers particularly to the disquiet of the readers in reference to the advent (2Th_2:2).
καὶ στηρίξαι ] sc. ὑμᾶς (see critical remarks), which is in itself evident from the preceding ὑμῶν .
ἐν παντὶ ἔργῳ καὶ λόγῳ ἀγαθῷ ] in every good work and word. Grotius incorrectly takes it in the sense of εἰς πᾶν ἔργον καὶ πάντα λόγον ἀγαθόν . But, with Chrysostom, Calvin, Turretin, Bolten, Flatt, and others, to limit λόγος to teaching is erroneous, on account of the universal παντί and its being placed along with ἔργῳ . The apostle rather wishes an establishment in every good thing, whether manifested in works or in words.
[69] The feminine form αἰωνία is found only here in the N. T. and in Heb_9:12.