Analysis of the eschatology in 1 Thess 4:13-5:11 and 2 Thess 1:5-2:12

1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11 and 2 Thessalonians 1:5-2:12 are often placed under the blanket genre of ‘apocalyptic’ but this does an injustice to the multiplicity of allusions and intertextual possibilities the imagery may be suggesting. By comparing 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11 and 2 Thessalonians 1:5-2:12 side by side with their intertexts, this column hopes to shed light on how the eschatology of the second letter appropriates and extends the imagery of the first.

N.T. Wright argues that in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5.11, Paul is drawing on two sources from the Jewish tradition: (i) from the theophany at Sinai and (ii) the apocalypse of Daniel.[1] Because imagery from the ‘original’ theophany is a common element in apocalyptic literature it is arguable that, by default, a theophanic reading is possible for passages of apocalyptic nature. However, because the allusions to the Sinai theophany are embedded so comprehensively throughout 2 Thessalonians and have their own distinguishable function, this column will treat the theophanic genre as a topic in its own right.

2 Thessalonians follows 1 Thessalonians’ allusion to the theophanic parousia. In 1 Thess 4:15-16, Paul describes the climax of the eschaton as th.n parousi,an tou/ kuri,ou  (1 Thess 4:15). The Greek word parousia is primarily translated ‘presence’, as of a person. However, in the Greek and Jewish literary traditions of the Second Temple period the word also had an association with ‘arrival’ or sudden presence of a deity. N.T. Wright argues that Parousia. is used in these traditions particularly when the power of this deity was revealed in divine manifestation or in healing’.[2] In the Jewish tradition Josephus describes the scene in Exodus when YHWH’s presence arrives at the tabernacle in a mist:

evdh,loun th.n parousi,an tou/ qeou/ oi-j Mwush/j e;cairen euvmenou/j paratuco,ntoj.

…and while all the rest of the air was clear, there came strong winds, that raised up heavy showers of rain, which became a mighty tempest. There was also such lightning as was terrible to those who saw it; and thunder, with its thunderbolts, were sent down, and declared God to be there present in a gracious way to such as Moses desired he should be gracious. (Antiq. 3.80)

To describe this phenomenon of YHWH meeting with the Hebrews, Josephus uses the word Parousia.

The Sinai theophany (Exodus 19), when YHWH manifests himself to Moses and to the Hebrews, becomes the archetypal theophany in Jewish apocalyptic and prophetic texts.[3] As well as using the language of ‘presence’, Paul deploys a set of images that also allude to Sinai. ‘The Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God’ (1 Thess 4.16). Along with the clouds (4.17) these images allude to Exod 19.16-20, when YHWH descends on Sinai in smoke, the sound of the trumpet and with a voice like thunder. The spatial movement of Jesus descending from heaven to his people as they in turn are ‘caught up together’ (4.17) is further reminiscent of Moses finishing his meeting with YHWH and descending through the smoke to the Israelites (Exod 19.17, 24.3-4). For any audience familiar with Jewish traditions, the imagery of 1 Thessalonians 4.15-17 is identifiable as alluding to the theophany at Sinai and the beginning of the covenant relationship between God and his people.

2 Thessalonians 1.5-12 appropriates and extends the theophanic imagery. The theme of the presence of the Lord is repeated, using the words parousia (2.1, 8) as well as evpifanei,a| (appearing, 2.8) and avpoka,luyij (revealing, 1.7), along with images of heaven, angels and flaming fire. The puri. flogo,j (flaming fire, 1:8) is a particularly loaded image that, when combined with the image of angels, often alludes to an even earlier example of divine manifestation in the Jewish Exodus narrative, the burning bush (Exod 3:2).[4] The allusions to the ‘original’ theophany are further affirmed when the eschatology appeals to God’s justice (2 Thess 1:7).  The text appeals to the lex talionis – the law of an eye for an eye, as legislated in the Torah (Lev 24:17-22). The eschatology takes the ancient Hebrew law of retaliation and transposes it to ‘the level of divine eschatological retribution’,[5] thus constructing an intertextual link with the Song of Moses, in which God is proclaimed to be the one who will rescue his people and deal out vengeance to their enemies (Deut 32:35-37).

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 also draws from other theophanic tropes.  Just as the parousia of Jesus (1 Thess 4:15-17, 2 Thess 1:7-8) alludes to the original manifestation of God at Sinai, so the sign schema leading up to the parousia closely resembles the events associated with Exodus 19, namely the Golden Calf.

In the same way that Moses returns from Sinai to find that the Israelites have constructed an idol to worship (Exod 32:7-8), so the parousia of 2 Thessalonians will not happen without a great ‘apostasy’ or ‘rebellion’ (2 Thess 2:3). In the same way that the Israelites declare the false statement: “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” (Exod 32:4), so will people be deluded at the time preceding the parousia and not ‘receive the love of the truth’ (2 Thess 2:10). And as God is portrayed in 2 Thess 2:10 as ‘send[ing] upon them a deluding influence’ as a precursor to judgement,[6] similarly in the Sinai narrative Moses smashes the idol to powder and forces Israelites to consume it (Exod 2:20), followed by violent judgement (Exod 32:26-27).

The second literary source that Wright and others see Paul drawing on in 1 Thess4:13-17 is Daniel 7, the characteristic text of the apocalyptic genre.[7]  The imagery of believers being caught up in the clouds to be with Jesus is a re-imagining of Daniel’s ‘son of man’ figure rising on the clouds (Dan 7:13). Wright argues that Dan 7:13 “is now reapplied by Paul to the Christians who are presently suffering persecution.”[8] However, T. F. Glasson argues against such association, claiming that the imagery of the heavenly descent cannot come from Dan 7:13, as the ‘son of man’ is a deeply symbolic figure, rather than the literal single figure of 1 Thess 4:16. He also argues that 1 Thess 4:13-17 is portraying a heavenly descent whilst Dan 7:13 depicts the reverse, a heavenly ascent. Glasson’s criticism is legitimate if Paul is interpreted as borrowing the ‘son of man’ image for his depiction of Jesus. However, it is arguable that, it is the image of the ascending believers in 1 Thess 4:16 that alludes to Daniel’s son of man figure as an echo of the pattern of Jesus’ own ascension after his resurrection (Acts 1:9).

By drawing on Danielic imagery, 1 Thess 4:13-5:11 can be compared with other Jewish literature available in the first century, namely, some of the sectarian writings from the Qumran community as well as theodicies such as 1 Enoch, 2 Baruch and 4 Ezra.[9] In particular, when Paul addresses the Thessalonians with the titles ui`oi. fwto,j (‘sons of light’, 1 Thess 5:5) and ui`oi. h`me,raj (‘sons of day’, 1 Thess 5:5), he employs similar terminology to some of the sectarian writings found at Qumran which use the phrases ‘sons of light’ self-reflectively and ‘sons of darkness’ for outsiders.[10] These titles are given an eschatological dimension in ‘The War Scroll’, which depicts a future war between the ‘sons of light’ and the ‘sons of darkness’.

Like 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians uses apocalyptic imagery but to a far greater extent. 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10 depicts the conditions of the parousia of Jesus, echoing many of the elements from Daniel 7’s vision of end times. The persecution of the people of God in 1:4, 6 (Dan 7:21, 25), the judgement against the godless in 1:6, 8 (Dan 7:26, 12:2), and the fiery and angelic presence in 1:7 (Dan 7:9, 11), portray a scenario similar to Daniel’s vision where God takes decisive action.[11]

The central part of the letter, 2 Thess 2:1-10, introduces an array of images which, like recognisable characters from a drama, have roles to play in the lead up to the parousia of Jesus. As with 1 Thessalonians, these characters resemble familiar figures from Daniel 7, 11 and 12. The apostasy appears in Dan 11:32,[12] the mystery in Dan 7:16, the man of lawlessness in Dan 8:24-25, 9:26-7, 11:31-39[13] and his destruction in Dan 7:11. Traditionally, the man of lawlessness has received a great deal of attention as an early component in the formation of the antichrist tradition. J. R. Harrison has more recently examined the figure. The figure (2 Thess 2:4) appears to be modelled on Dan 8:24-25, 9:26-7, 11:31-39, and is generally interpreted as Antiochus Epiphanes who provoked the Maccabean revolt of 166-160 BC.[14] The Psalms of Solomon, Josephus and Philo also show that later historical figures such as Pompey (63 BC) and Emperor Gaius Caligula (37-41 BC) were viewed in the light of Antiochus Epiphanes, either because of their besieging of Jerusalem or their attempts to assert their own authority on the Jewish Temple.[15]

Like 1 Thess 4:13-5:11, 2 Thess 1:5-2:12 shares many motifs with contemporary apocalyptic literature.[16] Ernest Best surveys the common motif of great evil preceding the end in apocalyptic literature.[17] Similarly, God’s divine judgement,[18] the revealing of the Messiah figure,[19] the persecution of believers,[20] and future rest for the faithful are common features.[21]  The condition of mystery surrounding eschatological matters is typical language of apocalyptic writings, and especially of sectarian groups such as of those at Qumran. As well as having historical applications, the man of lawlessness has also been associated with the Jewish myth of the binding of the Satan which Best argues is a common eschatological theme in apocalyptic writings.

As well using apocalyptic imagery, 1 and 2 Thessalonians also rely heavily on imagery from Jewish prophetic literature such as Isaiah. In 1 Thess 4:13-5:8 this link with prophecy is revealed by the phrase, ‘by the word of the Lord’ (4:15). The ‘word of the Lord’ is a common motif in prophetic literature throughout the Hebrew Bible and the appropriation of this language reveals the genre of the subsequent verses. Imagery such as ‘the day of the Lord’ (Isa 2:11; 13:6), ‘the shout’ (Isa 42:13), ‘the heavenly descent’ (Isa 31:4; 43:13; 64:.1), ‘judgement’ and ‘resurrection’ (Isa 26:21), the metaphor of ‘labour pains’ (Isa 13:8; 26:17), the ‘gathering together’ of God’s people (Isa 27:12), all allude to the prophetic imagery of when God intervenes in history.

2 Thessalonians also takes imagery from Isaiah but with an increased use of imagery of judgement, echoing Isaiah 66. This is immediately recognised in the threefold emphasis on retribution in 2 Thess 1:5-12.[22] Like 1 Thessalonians, the theophany of 2 Thessalonians 1:7-8 hearkens back to Isaiah’s depictions of the parousia of the Lord with its revealing from the heaven (Isa 66:15-18), association of fire with manifestation (Isa 64:1-2) and judgement (Isa 29:6; 30:27; 66:15-18), God deluding people (Isa 6:10-13), the casting of enemies away from the divine presence (Isa 2:10), and the glory of the Lord amongst his people (Isa 2:3; 24:23, 66:18-20). Particularly significant is the ‘breath’ of the Lord that defeats the ‘lawless one’ (2 Thess 2:8) as it alludes to prophecies about the Messiah (Isa 11:4) as well as to prophecies about YHWH (Isa 30:27).

A key variation that both 1 and 2 Thessalonians make is the replacement of the figure of YHWH with the figure of Jesus. Instead of ‘the day of the Lord’ being the day that YHWH intervenes in the world, as described in the prophets, the day of the Lord in 1 Thess 5:2 and 2 Thess 2:2 is attributed to Jesus.[23] By combining the prophecies of the ‘day of the Lord’ (Isa 2:11; 66:15-18) with the prophecies of the Messiah (Isaiah 11) the ‘day of the Lord’ becomes the day of the Messiah.’[24] Wright argues that the writer of the letters to the Thessalonians  “is still working within the controlling Jewish stories now retold around Jesus.” L. J. Kreitzer supports this evaluation: ‘It has long been recognised that [the] shift from God at the centre of such eschatological hope to Christ at the centre is partly dependent upon the adaptation of certain eschatological texts from the Old Testament.’[25] This is a significant element of Paul’s Christology as well as his eschatology, that Jesus has taken over the eschatological role traditionally ascribed to God, on God’s behalf.