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OET (OET-LV) And himself the god of_ the _peace might_sanctify you_all complete, and complete of_you_all the spirit, and the soul, and the body, blamelessly at the coming of_the master of_us, Yaʸsous/(Yəhōshūˊa) chosen_one/messiah, might_have_kept.
OET (OET-RV) May the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your entire spirits, souls, and bodies be kept irreproachable at the returning of our master Yeshua Messiah.
To conclude his letter, Paul prayed that God would make the Thessalonian believers completely pure in all that they believed and did. He assured them that God would enable them to do this.
Now may the God of peace Himself
¶ I pray to God, who gives peace to his people,
Now: The BSB has used the English word Now as an idiomatic way of beginning this verse. Be careful not to translate this literally as a time word, as it is not referring to “the present time.”
the God of peace: This phrase means that God is the source of peace, that is, that God is the one who causes people to be peaceful.
peace: The New Testament speaks about different sorts of peace, for example:
Peace between individuals.
Peace between God and people.
An inward calm.
However, most commentators agree here that Paul was using the Greek word eirēnē as he would have used the Hebrew word šalom. He therefore meant all the blessings, physical and spiritual, that God gives to his people. See the note on 1:1d.
Paul used this phrase in other letters; see Romans 15:33, 16:20; Philippians 4:9. It is also used in Hebrews 13:20. You should translate the phrase in the same way in each of these verses.
Himself: The Greek word autos, Himself, is often used to emphasize something. However, that is not true in this verse. It is just a usual opening for a prayer in Greek that asks God to do something for someone.
sanctify you completely,
that he will make you completely pure.
that he will cause you to be completely pleasing to him.
sanctify: This word means “to make holy/pure.” See the note on “holy” in 3:13b and 4:3a. See also sanctify meaning 1 in the glossary. Paul explained more fully what he meant in 5:23c.
completely: This means that Paul wanted God to sanctify the Thessalonians in every part of their lives.
and may your entire spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
That is, I pray that he will prevent your whole spirit and soul and body from sinning in any way until the day when our(incl) Lord Jesus Christ comes again.
That is, I pray that he will cause every part of you to be completely acceptable to him until our(incl) Lord Jesus Christ comes again.
and may your entire spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: Some commentators suggest that this sentence is the desired result of 5:23b. It is more likely, however, that Paul was expanding what he had said in 5:23b. He wanted the believers at Thessalonica to behave in a righteous manner so that when Christ returned, he would not be able to criticize or accuse them because of anything they had done. However, Paul knew that only God could help them behave like that.
spirit, soul, and body: This is the only place in the New Testament where such a distinction is made. Paul probably used all three to emphasize that a person is a whole being, rather than because he intended to distinguish the three terms. If your language does not make a similar three-way distinction, it may be helpful to distinguish at least between the body and the part of a person that continues to live after the body dies. The important thing in your translation is to show that everything Christians do must be pleasing to God.
blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: Paul was praying that God would enable them to be blameless from the present time until the Lord Jesus returned, so that when Jesus returned, he would judge them as having done nothing for which they deserved to be punished. See the notes on 3:13b and 3:13c.
Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases
δὲ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
Here, the word Now introduces a new section, a blessing from Paul to the Thessalonians. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces a new section, or you could leave Now untranslated. Alternate translation: [Next,]
Note 2 topic: translate-blessing
αὐτὸς & ὁ Θεὸς τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς, καὶ ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τὸ πνεῦμα, καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ, καὶ τὸ σῶμα, ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν, Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τηρηθείη
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
Here Paul is asking God to bless the Thessalonians. You could express this as either a blessing or a prayer, in whichever way is more natural in your language. Alternate translation: [we ask the God of peace himself to sanctify you completely, and we ask that your whole spirit, and soul, and body be kept blamelessly at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / possession
ὁ Θεὸς τῆς εἰρήνης
¬the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
Here Paul uses the possessive form the God of peace, which is a title for God found in the New Testament (see [Romans 15:33](../rom/15/33.md); [16:20](../rom/16/20.md); [Philippians 4:9](../php/04/09.md); [Hebrews 13:20](../heb/13/20.md)). In this context, the phrase the God of peace could refer to: (1) what God does. Alternate translation: [the God who gives peace] (2) who God is. Alternate translation: [the God who is characterized by peace] (3) Both. Alternate translation: [the peaceful God who gives peace]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns
ὁ Θεὸς τῆς εἰρήνης
¬the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of peace, you could express the idea in another way. Make sure that your translation fits the option you chose in the previous note about how God and peace relate. Alternate translation: [the peaceful God] or [the God who makes people peaceful]
Note 5 topic: writing-pronouns
αὐτὸς & ὁ Θεὸς τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
For emphasis, Paul is stating the pronoun “he,” which is already implied in the the phrase the God of peace. If your language can state implied pronouns explicitly for emphasis, you may want to use that construction in your translation. Other languages may have other ways of bringing out this emphasis. The ULT does so by using the intensive pronoun himself. Alternate translation: [may he who is the God of peace sanctify] or [may the God of peace indeed sanctify]
Note 6 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases
καὶ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
Here, the word and could introduce: (1) a second blessing or prayer. Alternate translation: [and also] (2) a more specific explanation of the first blessing or prayer. Alternate translation: [that is,] or [and more specifically,]
Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τὸ πνεῦμα, καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ, καὶ τὸ σῶμα, ἀμέμπτως & τηρηθείη.
complete ˱of˲_you_all (Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. If you need to say who does the action, it is clear from the context that it is God. Alternate translation: [may he keep blamelessly your whole spirit, and soul, and body]
Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τὸ πνεῦμα, καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ, καὶ τὸ σῶμα
complete ˱of˲_you_all (Some words not found in SR-GNT: αὐτός Δέ ὁ Θεός τῆς εἰρήνης ἁγιάσαι ὑμᾶς ὁλοτελεῖς καί ὁλόκληρον ὑμῶν τό πνεῦμα καί ἡ ψυχή καί τό σῶμα ἀμέμπτως ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τηρηθείη)
Here Paul uses the three terms spirit, soul, and body together to refer to the whole person. These three terms could: (1) describe different aspects of the whole person from different perspectives. In this case, the three terms do not define three separate pieces that together make up a person. You could use fewer or more terms to refer to different aspects of the person. Alternate translation: [your whole body and soul] or [your whole life, mind, feelings, and desires] (2) describe three separate pieces that together make up a person. In this case, you should use two terms to refer to two different non-physical parts (spirit and soul) and one term to refer to one physical part (body). Alternate translation: [your whole mind, and life, and flesh]
Note 9 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ἀμέμπτως
blamelessly
Here, the word blamelessly could refer to: (1) the situation in which the spirit, soul, and body are kept. Alternate translation: [in a blameless state] (2) the result of the spirit, soul, and body being kept. Alternate translation: [so that they are blameless]
Note 10 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν, Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ
at the coming ˱of˲_the Lord ˱of˲_us Jesus Christ
Here, the phrase the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ refers to the specific time in the future when Jesus will come back to earth, judge everyone, punish unbelievers, and reward believers. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make this idea more explicit. See how you translated the similar phrase in [4:15](../04/15.md). Alternate translation: [when our Lord Jesus Christ comes back to earth] or [at return of our Lord Jesus Christ to us]
Note 11 topic: figures-of-speech / exclusive
ἡμῶν
˱of˲_us
Here, the word our includes Paul, Silvanus, Timothy, the Thessalonians, and all believers. Your language may require you to mark this form.
5:23 God enables Christians to live a holy life (3:11-13). His sanctifying work extends to the spirit and soul and body, the totality of human life (cp. Matt 10:28; Mark 12:30; 1 Cor 7:34).
OET (OET-LV) And himself the god of_ the _peace might_sanctify you_all complete, and complete of_you_all the spirit, and the soul, and the body, blamelessly at the coming of_the master of_us, Yaʸsous/(Yəhōshūˊa) chosen_one/messiah, might_have_kept.
OET (OET-RV) May the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your entire spirits, souls, and bodies be kept irreproachable at the returning of our master Yeshua Messiah.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.