2 Thessalonians 1:9

2Th_1:9

Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord.

The punishment of the wicked

I. Generally. We have here--

1. The estate destruction (1Th_5:3; Mat_7:13; Rom_9:22; Php_3:19), meaning thereby not an abolition of their being but of their well-being. Annihilation would be no loss. It is a destruction--

(1) Of their carnal happiness, their glory, pleasure, gain, wherein they placed their contentment--

(2) Of the true happiness which lies in the favour of God.

2. The duration everlasting (Mat_25:41; Mat_25:46).

3. The reasons--

(1) The majesty of God against whom the sin is committed.

(2) The nature of sin which is a preference of short sensitive good before that which is spiritual and eternal.

(3) The will of the sinner. Their impenitence is endless, so is their punishment.

(4) There is no change of state in the other world (Luk_13:25; Luk_16:26).

II. Particularly.

1. The punishment of loss From the presence of the Lord. Concerning this note--

(1) That all are equal in this. There may be degrees of pain, but all are equally excluded from the Divine presence.

(2) That the punishment of the wicked is the opposite of the reward of the righteous. All our refreshment comes from the Divine presence (Act_3:19).

(3) That it is fitting. They have forsaken God, and now God has forsaken them (Rom_1:28; Job_21:14).

(4) That it is this greatest part of future punishment--

(a) In itself, it is to be deprived of an infinite good (Psa_16:11; Exo_33:15).

(b) In the deep sense of it. Here the wicked are insensible of it.

(c) In its irreparableness.

2. The punishment of sense: From the glory of His power (Rev_6:15-16). This is the greatness of His goodness, and to be deprived of that is to feel the might of His justice.

III. The lessons--

1. To the unconverted. These considerations should--

(1) Rouse them out of their security.

(a) Many disbelieve.

(b) Others think neither one way nor the other (Amo_6:3).

(c) Others do not closely apply what they believe and think.

(2) Check their boldness in sinning against light and conscience.

(3) Cause them to shake off all delays in the business of religion (Mat_3:7; Heb_11:18; Luk_14:32).

2. To the godly--

(1) Bless God for your deliverance through Christ (1Th_2:13; Rom_5:9).

(2) Let your love to Christ be quickened, and grow in His likeness (1Jn_4:17-18).

(3) Be courageous (Luk_12:4-5; Heb_11:35).

(4) Warn your friends in time (Luk_16:1-31).

Banishment from Gods presence

1. Of all the ways in which Scripture describes the future blessedness of the elect none has less attraction for the wicked than that which places it in the full enjoyment of Gods presence. On all occasions direct reference to Him as near is painful.

2. Yet you would think it very strange and hard if whilst every day you were heaping marks of love on a child he regarded you simply as a mere machine operating beneficently because you could not help it. This is the treatment, however, to which men subject their Maker.

3. One main reason of this treatment is the constant flow of good gifts from God whether they make any return or not; and so, having never discerned the invisible God in His works and gifts here, they see no reason why in another world it should not be the same. Where can the bliss be of seeing Gods countenance shine full on the soul, no beam of which has been ever sought or wished for by them here.

4. But when it comes the punishment will be dreadful enough for--

(1) All good things come from God.

(2) But having rejected Him it is but equitable that we should be left to our own resources to find what happiness we may. Banishment from God means--

I. Exclusion from this material world with all its natural sources of pleasure, every particle of which is Gods.

II. Deprivation of all that can satisfy a sinners lusts. Think of the misery of a never satisfied hunger and an always raging thirst. The good creatures of God which were once abused are now beyond the reach.

III. The withdrawal of the godly who are taken to God. No one knows how much the world owes to the intermixture of the righteous with sinners, leavening the corrupting mass and shaming evil into dark corners. But the angels will sever the two, and so precisely that no one true servant of God shall be left in the crowd. There is something unspeakably dreadful in the thought of a society which is one mass of sin.

IV. Love will be extinguished. Very sweet is kindness which God has shed in our hearts as a solace for earthly ills, but there can be no love at all when God is withdrawn, for that means the withdrawal of love as effectually as light at sunset.

V. The Holy Spirit will have departed. Now, ever striving within, that Spirit does now and then give out a spark of goodness, and overrule here and there that utter wickedness which otherwise would prevail. And even in wicked men we see scattered up and down remainders of something better and higher, just as among the ruin of a great building you see here and there a beautiful fragment unbroken, to remind you of what the whole once was; or as you may sometimes see, when the sun is shining, beauty in things ugly, and when the sun is withdrawn the beauty goes. So it will be with the soul in eternity. At present strive as he will man cannot utterly unstamp his soul of the seal of God. But when God removes His presence the spirit of man becomes wholly evil. Conclusion: The sure Word of God teaches us much else about hell; but the teaching of the text should be sufficient to warn us against it. (J. Garbett, M. A.)

Hell, a necessary truth

Assuming the general impression of readers of the New Testament in relation to this doctrine to be correct; that we are there taught that there is a hell, that a human being of certain character may come and must come into a state of everlasting punishment; we are prepared to accept it as truth. The doctrine is as really required as the immense vertebra of some unknown animal require that the undiscovered ribs should be immense and of a certain character. An astronomer observes in a planet a slower or quicker rate of motion at one point of its orbit: he argues that there must be a world beyond it, not yet seen; and Neptune is presently discovered. A hell is the full harvest of self-indulgence, evil, sin. (J. Christen, D. D.)

The reality of perdition

A dying man of large means said: I would give thirty thousand pounds to have it proved to me satisfactorily that there is no hell. Such proof cannot be presented. But suppose you throw overboard most of the testimony on this subject--is there not some slight possibility that there may be such a place? If there should be, and you have no preparation to escape it, what then? A young woman, dying, said to her father: Father, why did you not tell me there was such a place? What place? A hell! He said: Jenny, there is no such place. God is merciful. There will be no future suffering! She said: I know better! I feel it now I I know there is such a place! My feet are slipping into it this moment! I am lost! Why did you not tell me there was such a place? It is the awful, stupendous, consuming, incontrovertible fact of the universe. (T. De Witt Talmage.)

Punishment irremediable

The law which binds the earth in its orbital path finds expression in the being of a flower; the being of a flower and the life of a human soul are governed by one and the same law. Given, then, a flower with every capacity for strength, beauty, and sweetness; put it beyond the range of the mighty suns hand of blessing, put it in the outer darkness of a cellar, whence the celestial sheen is excluded, into which no showers can come, and through which no breeze can sweep: the flower will live for a time, even will propagate life; but what life! Its stalk and branches will become poor, weak, spongy, nerveless things; its leaves will grow more yellow and diminutive, its flower less and less like the God-purposed thing it might have been, and its smell will degenerate into a tainting impurity; why? Because by a mysterious chemical communion with the sun, alone could the glory and goodness that were in it be brought to blossom and fruitage. Light, not the mere need of light, quickens strong life and paints the beautiful. The presence of the true, not its felt absence, corrects the false. Communion with the grand, good, strong, and loving, alone can recover and transform. If, therefore, the language of Christ and His apostles will not admit of the interpretation that hell is the theatre of a more effective moral discipline than earth, that future punishment is really disciplinary;--and will the general mind admit the words outer darkness--unquenchable fire--everlasting punishment--place of torment--and depart, ye cursed, capable of the interpretation?--then the doctrine of an irremediable state of punishment in the life to come is in harmony with the law which we recognize in the utter falling off from fruitage, beauty, and trueness of uncultivated plants, and in the fearful degradation and mere animalism into which isolated and neglected tribes of our race have fallen Destruction--death--perish--devour, forever and ever:--do these Scripture terms become more intelligible in the light of this law? (J. Christien, D. D.)

The glory of His power

Not from His power,--this is impossible. Whither can I go from His power? If I ascend up to heaven it is there: if I go down to hell, it is there also. Nay, nay, it is only from the glory of His power. I beseech thee, said Moses, show me Thy glory. And He said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee. Well, then, the glory of God is the goodness of God. So the glory of His power in that day will be the goodness of His power in the revelation of the resources of His almighty will, as seen in the new heaven and the new earth, in the righteousness that shall dwell therein, and in the blessedness of His saints therein. To be banished from the glory of His power is to be given over to the fury of His power. It is not only to forfeit the enjoyment of the resources of His power administering goodness, but it is to come under the rigour of His power, administer ing justice. It is to feel Almightiness taking vengeance on body and soul without limit to, or possible escape from it--vengeance, we are told by One who knew, which is as a worm that never dies, and a fire that never shall be quenched. Oh, one of old did indeed well say, It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God! (C. J. P. Eyro, M. A.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Th 1:9-10. Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction — Not the annihilation, but the perversion and utter ruin of all their powers of body and mind, so that those powers become instruments of torment and sources of misery to them in all possible ways. As there can be no end of their sins, (the same enmity against God continuing,) so neither of their punishment: sin and its punishment running parallel through eternity itself. They must of necessity therefore be cut off from all good, and all possibility of it. From the presence of the Lord — Wherein chiefly consists the salvation and felicity of the righteous. What unspeakable punishment is implied even in falling short of this, supposing that nothing more were implied in the punishment here spoken of! But this phrase, destruction from the presence, or face, of the Lord, as Bishop Hopkins justly observes, expresses not only that they shall be expelled from that joy and glory which reigns in the presence of God and of Christ, but that his presence shall appear active in the infliction of their punishment, so that they shall find his wrath issuing forth like lightning to appal and torment their spirits, while his power glorifies itself in their ruin and misery. When he shall come to be glorified in his saints — For his wonderful glory shall shine forth in them, and he will manifest the greatness of his power in rendering them glorious; and to be admired in all them that believe — With respect to the efforts of his almighty power and love for their complete salvation. Or, they shall be filled with wonder at what is done by Christ for and upon them, so far exceeding their most sanguine expectation. Because our testimony, &c. — As if he had said, I reckon you of this number because of the credit which you gave to our preaching.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1:9 They will be punished for rejecting the message about Christ (1:8). • Eternal destruction (see 1 Thes 5:3; 1 Tim 6:9) is irrevocable. • Separated from the Lord refers to the source of the judgment to come (Isa 2:10, 19, 21).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

2Th 1:9. Ἀπὸ, from) It is a judicial procedure from the Divine presence itself, that will inflict punishment upon them. מפני, from the face. Devils will not be the tormentors; for even in this life bad men are not punished by devils, but rather by good angels: and in Psa 78:49, the phrase, angels of (bringing) evil, may even denote good angels.[4] Exo 12:23; 2Sa 24:16.—ΠΡΟΣΏΠΟΥ, the face) This face will be intolerable to them; they shall not see it, but they shall be made to feel it. Face and glory are generally parallel.—ἰσχύος, of His might) Lay aside your fierceness (haughty confidence of ‘might’) ye wicked men!

[4] “He cast upon them the fierceness of His anger—by sending evil angels among them.” LXX. διʼ ἀγγέλων πονηρῶν.—ED.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Th_1:9. Paul names eternal destruction as the punishment which those ungodly ones will have to endure.

οἵτινες] nimirum qui, refers back to the characteristics of the two classes named in 2Th_1:8, and accordingly recapitulates the reason for δίκην τίσουσιν. See Hermann, ad Soph. Oed. R. 688.

ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου κ.τ.λ.] has received a threefold interpretation. Chrysostom, Oecumenius, Theophylact, Erasmus, Vatablus, Estius, Fromond., and others interpret ἀπό of time: immediately after the appearance of the πρόσωπον τοῦ κυρίου and of the δόξα τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ. The swiftness and facility of the punishment are thereby described, inasmuch as it required Christ merely to become visible. The artificialness of this interpretation is evident. For however often ἀπό denotes the point of commencement of a period, yet the bare ἀπὸ προσώπου cannot possibly be considered as parallel with such constructions as ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου, Rom_1:20; ἀπὸ τῆς πρώτης ἡμέρας, Php_1:5, and the like. At least ἀπʼ ἀποκαλύψεως τοῦ προσώπου or something similar would require to have been written. Add to this that ἀπὸ προσώπου κ.τ.λ., on account of its position at the end of the sentence, cannot have such an emphasis, that the idea of the swiftness and facility of the punishment can be derived from it. ἀπό is understood as a statement of the operating cause by Grotius, Harduin, Benson, Bengel, Moldenhauer, Flatt, Pelt, de Wette, Baumgarten-Crusius, Ewald, and Hofmann: from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power (comp. Act_3:19). Pelt (and so also Castalio, Koppe, Bolten, and others) arbitrarily considers ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου as equivalent to the simple ἀπὸ τοῦ κυρίου; and equally arbitrarily Harduin, Benson, and Moldenhauer (comp. also Hofmann) understand πρόσωπον of a wrathful or gloomy countenance. But there is an essential inconvenience to this second mode of interpretation, inasmuch as by its assumption without the introduction of a new idea there is only a repetition in other words of what has already been said in 2Th_1:7-8 from ἐν τῇ ἀποκαλύψει to διδόντος ἐκδίκησιν; the whole of the 9th verse would only contain αἰώνιον as a new point. Accordingly the third mode of explanation, adopted by Piscator, Ernest Schmid, Beza, Calixt, Koppe, Krause, Schott, Bloomfield, Alford, Bisping, and Riggenbach, is decidedly to be preferred, according to which ἀπό expresses the idea of separation, of severance from something. Comp. 2Th_2:2; Rom_9:3; 2Co_11:3; Gal_5:4. According to Flatt and de Wette, the expression ἰσχύος is opposed to this explanation, which directly points to an operating cause. But τῆς ἰσχύος is to be rendered the genitive of origin, and the δόξα is to be understood, not of the glory of Christ, but of the glory which is to be imparted to believers. The meaning is: apart or separated from the face of the Lord, and apart from the glory which is a creation of His power. By this explanation πρόσωπον receives its full import; to see the face of the Lord is a well-known biblical expression to denote blessedness (comp. Psa_11:7; Psa_17:5; Mat_5:8; Mat_18:10; Heb_12:14; Rev_22:4), whereas distance from it is an expression of misery.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Th 1:9 . The overwhelming manifestation of the divine glory sweeps from before it (pregnant ἀπὸ ) into endless ruin the disobedient (Psa 76:7 ) men who (see Moulton, 91 f.) shall pay the penalty of (see Pro 27:12 , LXX) eternal destruction (the common apocalyptic belief, see Volz, Jüd. Eschat. , 286 f.).

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who--Greek, "persons who," &c.

destruction from the presence of the Lord--driven far from His presence [ALFORD]. The sentence emanating from Him in person, sitting as Judge [BENGEL], and driving them far from Him (Mat 25:41; Rev 6:16; Rev 12:14; compare Pe1 3:12; Isa 2:10, Isa 2:19). "The presence of the Lord" is the source whence the sentence goes forth; "the glory of His power" is the instrument whereby the sentence is carried into execution [EDMUNDS]. But ALFORD better interprets the latter clause (see Th2 1:10), driven "from the manifestation of His power in the glorification of His saints." Cast out from the presence of the Lord is the idea at the root of eternal death, the law of evil left to its unrestricted working, without one counteracting influence of the presence of God, who is the source of all light and holiness (Isa 66:24; Mar 9:44).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 9. Who shall be punished] What this everlasting destruction consists in we cannot tell. It is not annihilation, for their being continues; and as the destruction is everlasting, it is an eternal continuance and presence of substantial evil, and absence of all good; for a part of this punishment consists in being banished from the presence of the Lord-excluded from his approbation, for ever; so that the light of his countenance can be no more enjoyed, as there will be an eternal impossibility of ever being reconciled to him.

The glory of his power] Never to see the face of God throughout eternity is a heart-rending, soul-appalling thought; and to be banished from the glory of his power, that power the glory of which is peculiarly manifested in saving the lost and glorifying the faithful, is what cannot be reflected on without confusion and dismay. But this must be the lot of all who acknowledge not God, and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. Everlasting destruction from the face. He shews, by apposition, what is the nature of the punishment of which he had made mention — destruction without end, and an undying death. The perpetuity of the death is proved from the circumstance, that it has the glory of Christ as its opposite. Now, this is eternal, and has no end. Accordingly, the influence of that death will never cease. From this also the dreadful severity of the punishment may be inferred, inasmuch as it will be great in proportion to the glory and majesty of Christ.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(9) Punished with everlasting destruction specifies the “vengeance” to be taken. But the word “destruction” does not stand absolutely and alone as a synonym for “annihilation.” This passage, in itself, gives us no reason to suppose that the lost will be “destroyed” in the ordinary sense of the word. They are to be “destroyed from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power”—i.e., cut off from it for ever. The “presence”—or, more literally here, ”the face—of the Lord,” as well as “the glory of His power,” is a metaphor from the courts of Oriental kings, where only honoured courtiers are admitted to spend their time in the immediate and familiar presence of the sovereign. Familiar contact with Christ hereafter, which will be accorded to all the saved, was God’s ideal intention for the lost as well, therefore it is a positive “destruction” to be banished from it. But to the Jews, who looked for a Messiah who should keep regal state, the punishment was peculiarly appropriate. The word is used besides in 1Co_5:5; 1Th_5:3; 1Ti_6:9. As for the word rendered “everlasting” (or eternal, for it is the same which is used, e.g., Heb_6:2), it would certainly convey to St. Paul’s readers the notion of incessant duration in time; it is, of course, only an adaptation to human language to speak of time at all in such a case, as we cannot tell what may take the place of time in the next dispensation; however, so far as the actual words go, there is nothing in these passages (Mat_18:8; Mat_25:41; Mat_25:46; Mar_3:29; Heb_6:2; Jud_1:7) to suggest any future alteration in the state of the lost. In this, as in some other doctrines, there seem to be two distinct sets of passages, the logical reconciliation of which in our present state seems almost impossible.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9. who shall be punished with everlasting destruction] Rather, men who will pay the penalty of eternal destruction. In these awful words the Apostle describes the retribution designed for godless men and rejecters of the Gospel. His word for “penalty” (diké, the root of the words righteous and righteousness in Greek) brings to a climax the idea of justice developed in 2Th_1:5-8; see note on “vengeance.” But the clause while defining, qualifies the foregoing; for “who” is equal to such as, who with all like them. The threatening applies to the impious and malignant opposers who were seeking to crush the infant Church. Their sin corresponded to that which our Lord denounced as the sin against the Holy Spirit, the “eternal sin,” the “blasphemy against the Spirit which shall not be forgiven” (Mat_12:31-32; Mar_3:28-29, R. V.).

“Destruction,” as applied to man and his destiny in the N.T., signifies perdition, ruin, the utter loss of blessedness. It is opposed to “salvation” in Heb_10:39; 2Co_2:15, &c.; and “eternal destruction” is the antithesis of eternal life.” There is no sufficient reason for interpreting the destruction of the reprobate as signifying their annihilation, or extinction of being; they will be lost for ever—lost to God and goodness. Nor can we limit the range of the word eternal in its relation to this fearful doom; it removes all limits of time, and is the express opposite of temporary (2Co_4:18). Seventy-two times the Greek original of the adjective is found in the N.T.: forty-four of these examples are repetitions of the phrase “eternal life;” it is arbitrary to suppose that in the opposite combination “eternal” bears a restricted sense. Christ’s judicial words in Mat_25:46 bar all attempts to minimize the penal effect of the sentence of the Last Day; “eternal punishment,” He says, and “eternal life.” Comp. Php_3:19, “whose end is destruction.”

from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power] Better, as in R. V., and without the comma, from the face of the Lord and from the glory of His might. Language borrowed from Isaiah 2, where it occurs thrice repeated, all but identically (Isa_2:10; Isa_2:19; Isa_2:21), in the prophet’s picture of Jehovah’s coming in judgement: “Enter into the rocks and hide yourselves in the earth from the face of the fear of the Lord and from the glory of His might, when He ariseth to shake the earth.” The words of Rev_6:15-16 are based on the same original: “They say to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” The preposition here seems, however, after the word “destruction,” to signify coming from, rather than shrinking from the face of the Lord. The sight of their Judge and His Almightiness, robed in fire and attended by His host of angels, will drive these wretched men, terror-stricken, into ruin. Their destruction proceeds “from the face of the Lord;” in His look the evildoers read their fate. So we can imagine it will be with the murderers of Jesus, and with malicious persecutors of His people. Comp. Psa_34:16; Psa_76:7, “The face of the Lord is against them that do evil:” “Who may stand in Thy sight, when once Thou art angry?”

While the destruction of the persecutors and the deliverance of the persecuted are contrasted in themselves (2Th_1:6-7), they are identified in point of time. For justice will overtake the former—

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction,.... With destruction both of soul and body, though not with the annihilation of either; their gnawing worm of conscience will never die, and the fire of divine wrath will never be quenched; the smoke of their torment will ascend for ever. Sin being committed against an infinite and eternal Being, will be infinite in its duration; nor will it cease to be in the persons punished, who will not be in the least reformed or purged from sin by punishment; which will make the continuance of it just and necessary. And these will be driven

from the presence of the Lord; as the former clause may express the punishment of sense the wicked will feel in their own breasts, this may intend the punishment of loss; or what they will be deprived of, the presence of the Lord, in which the happiness of angels, and of glorified saints lies; and may also signify how sudden and terrible their destruction will be. As soon as the Lord appears, they will perish at his presence like wax before the fire; and so awful will be his appearance, they will flee from it with the utmost terror, and call to the rocks and mountains to hide them from the face of the Lord, and to screen them from his wrath:

and from the glory of his power; or his glorious power, in which he shall come, and which will be exerted, and shown in raising the dead, and gathering all nations before him, in passing sentence on them, and in executing it. For he has power, as to save, so to destroy, as to glorify the bodies and souls of his saints, so to destroy the wicked, both body and soul, in hell; and the glory of his power will be seen in the one, as well as in the other. And now it will be, that tribulation will be rendered to the troublers of the Lord's people.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

Ver. 9. Who shall be punished] Here is the pain of sense, of eternity, of extremity.

From the presence] Here is the pain of loss, which is of the two the greater.

And from the glory of his power] God will set himself to inflict upon the damned such a measure of misery as his power can extend unto.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction; - see the notes on Mat 25:41, Mat 25:46. The word which is here rendered “destruction” (ὄλεθρον olethron), is different from that which occurs in Mat 25:46, and which is there rendered “punishment” - κόλασις kolasis. The word ὄλεθρον olethron - “olethron” - occurs only here and in 1Co 5:5; 1Th 5:3; 1Ti 6:9; in each of which places it is rendered destruction. It does not denote annihilation, but is used in the same sense in which we use the word when we say that a thing is destroyed. Thus, health is destroyed when it fails; property is destroyed when it is burned or sunk in the ocean; a limb is destroyed that is lost in battle; life is destroyed when one dies. In the case before us, the destruction, whatever it be, is:

(1) To be continued forever; and,

(2) Is to be of the nature of punishment.

The meaning then must be, that the soul is destroyed as to the great purposes of its being - its enjoyment, dignity, honor, holiness, happiness. It will not be annihilated, but will live and linger on in destruction. It seems difficult to conceive how anyone can profess to hold that this passage is a part of the Word of God, and yet deny the doctrine of future eternal punishment. It would not be possible to state that doctrine in clearer language than this. It is never is in clearer language in any creed or confession of faith, and if it is not true that the wicked will be punished forever, then it must be admitted that it would not have been possible to reveal the doctrine in human language!

From the presence of the Lord - That is, a part of their punishment will consist in being banished from the immediate presence of the Lord. There is a sense in which God is everywhere present, and in that sense he will be in the world where the wicked will dwell, to punish them. But the phrase is also used to denote his more immediate presence; the place where are the symbols of his majesty and glory; the home of the holy and the blessed. It is in that sense that the word is used here, and the idea is, that it will be one of the circumstances contributing to the deeper woe of the place of punishment, that those who dwell there will be banished from that holy abode, and will never be permitted to enter there.

And from the glory of his power - The meaning seems to be, that they will not be able to endure the manifestation of his power and majesty when he shall appear, but will be driven away by it into outer darkness; see 2Th 2:8. The Saviour, in describing his second coming, uses this language: “They shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory;” Mat 24:30. There will be a great exhibition of both. The power will be seen in the convulsions of nature which will precede or attend him; in the resurrection of the dead; and in the bringing of all to judgment: and the glory will be seen in his own person; the dignity and number of his attendants; and the honor that shall then be conferred on him as the final Judge of all mankind. By the manifestation of that power and glory the wicked will be driven away into eternal ruin. They will not be able to stand before it, and though, in common with the righteous, they may see the majesty of the Redeemer in the last day, yet they will be driven away to witness it no more.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Being confounded with the face of the Lord, whom they have rejected, and with the glory of his power and greatness, which will appear in irresistible splendour and majesty.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

This is the vengeance before spoken of; it is here called

destruction, not an annihilation, and cessation of being, but of all well-being: and elsewhere called death, Rom 6:23, and the second death, Rev 20:6, which imports also not all ceasing of life, but all comfort of life. And it is not the body alone, nor the soul alone, but their persons,

who, & c.; and as fire is a great destroyer, so Christ’s coming in flaming fire brings their destruction. And this destruction is

everlasting: the fire that destroys them is never quenched, Mar 9:43,44. As the fire of the altar, which was a fire of mercy, was not to go out, so the fire of Tophet burns for ever, Isa 30:33, which is the fire of justice; and God living for ever, and his justice never satisfied, their destruction is for ever. They sinned in their eternity, and will be punished in God’s eternity. There was a remedy provided in the gospel for men, but rejecting the gospel, and not obeying it, there remains no hope; their destruction is everlasting. And this destruction is called punishment, δικην τισουσιν poenam luent; not the chastisement of a Father, as the temporal affliction of God’s people. It proceeds from vindictive justice; it is taking vengeance. And this punishment is twofold, punishment of loss and sense, and from both together proceed perfect destruction.

From the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; the preposition from in the first expression noting separation, in the second noting efficiency. Others conceive efficiency to be meant in both, their destruction proceeding from the face of Christ frowning on them, frowning them into hell, (which smiling upon others, will bring their salvation), as well as from his glorious power manifested against them to destroy them, Rom 9:22. And yet others interpret the preposition in both places to note separation, both from the face of Christ, which the saints shall behold and rejoice in for ever, and from his glorious power; which will work in some for their complete salvation in the day of his appearing, as it had done before in their first conversion, and sanctification. The destruction of the wicked will be from or by the power of Christ; but by this

glory of power may be meant only that power which will bring glory both to the bodies and souls of the saints, and this the wicked shall have no experience of in that day.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. Who shall be punished—Shall satisfy justice. The verb τισουσιν is in the active voice. It signifies: 1. To honour, to reverence. 2. To honour by making atoning, satisfying compensation. 3. To satisfy judicially, by undergoing (δικην, the noun here) justice. Who shall undergo justice, namely, everlasting destruction; standing in opposition with, as explanatory of, the suffered justice or punishment. Destruction is not annihilation, that is, of the ultimate particles or essence of an object. Its normal meaning, however, is such a separation of the parts or constituents of the individual as to result in the cessation of his organic, individual existence.

From the presence—Beware of understanding the destruction as issuing from his person, or produced by its blazing splendour, or executed by his hand. This is not that mystical descent to the earth, as warrior and destroyer, in Rev_19:11-21, but the judicial coming of Mat_25:31-46, and Rev_20:11. The from, therefore, is identical with that of “depart from me, ye cursed,” etc., Mat_25:41. Banishment from the gracious face of the Redeemer is the doom of the reprobate.

From the glory of his power—That glory which is manifested in the exertion and exhibition of his power in raising the dead, judging the world, and bestowing eternal life on all his saints. Far removed alike from his smiling face and his glorious manifestation of power, the reprobate’s doom is in distance and darkness.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Who; namely, the unbelieving Gentiles and Jews. Shall be punished; literally, shall pay the penalty; shall suffer punishment (R.V). With everlasting destruction; or rather, even everlasting destruction; the words being in apposition. "Destruction" here denotes ruin, death; the word is only used in Paul"s Epistles (1Co_5:8; 1Th_5:3; 1Ti_6:9) The Greek word translated "everlasting," from dogmatic reasons, has given rise to much controversy. Here it appears to denote eternal eternity to come. The eternal punishment of the wicked seems here asserted; a terrible declaration, which the mind shudders to contemplate. The observation of Olshausen is worthy of attention: "This is the only passage in Paul"s Epistles in which everlasting damnation is openly declared, whereas not a few occur in which a bringing back of all the lost ones is apparently assumed as possible;" but he adds, "For the supposition that Paul did indeed in the earliest of his Epistles still teach everlasting damnation, but gave it up in later times, there exists no sufficient foundation, because the bringing back again is nowhere freely and openly declared." From the presence (or, face) of the Lord. This clause has received a threefold interpretation. Some (De Wette, Hofmann) take the preposition "from" in a causal sense, denoting the efficient cause of the punishment of the wicked that they will be as it were blasted by the face of the Lord. Others (Chrysostom, Theophylact) take it in a temporal sense, denoting the swiftness of the punishment of the wicked that their punishment will rise directly on the appearance of Christ (Lunemann, Alford). And others take it in a local sense, denoting banishment or separation that the wicked will be expelled from that joy and glory which reign in the presence of Christ; they shall be banished away from the presence of the Lord. This last interpretation seems to be the correct meaning; it gives to the proposition its full force. And from the glory of his power; not a Hebraism for "his mighty glory" (Jowett), but from that glory which has its origin in his power the wicked will be banished from the manifestation of his power in the glorification of his saints. The punishment of the wicked on its negative side is here stated. As the presence of the glorified Jesus will constitute the happiness of heaven, so banishment from his presence will constitute the misery of hell, because the soul is then cut off from the source of all good and of all holiness.

Vers. 9, 10.

The coming of Christ for judgment.

1. Its reality. The difference between his first and second coming. Then he came to save the world, now he shall come to judge the world. Then he came as Son of man, now he shall come as Son of God.

2. Its purpose. He shall come to award punishment to his enemies; they shall be forever banished from his presence, the Source of all happiness, the Author of all holiness. He shall come for the salvation of his people to conquer all their enemies, to rescue their bodies from the grave, to acknowledge them as his before an assembled universe, and to receive them into the abodes of eternal happiness.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

From the glory of his power - Tremble, ye stout-hearted. Everlasting destruction - As there can be no end of their sins, (the same enmity against God continuing,) so neither of their punishment; sin and its punishment running parallel throughout eternity itself. They must of necessity, therefore, be cut off from all good, and all possibility of it. From the presence of the Lord - Wherein chiefly consists the salvation of the righteous. What unspeakable punishment is implied even in falling short of this, supposing that nothing more were implied in his taking vengeance!

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Observe here, The tremendous dreadfulness of that wrath and vengeance which at the great day will be inflicted on the ignorant and disobedient part of mankind; to denote the greatness of it, it is called destruction, not as if it were an abolishing of their nature, and utter extinction of their being, as the destruction of beasts is; but a loss of their happiness and well-being, as the destruction of the fallen angels was; and to set forth the duration of it, it is called everlasting destruction, a dying life, and a living death; their debt will never be paid, they will never come out of prison; they will be always satisfying, but never able fully to satisfy, divine justice.

And observe farther, As their punishment of sense is here described, so we have their punishment of loss declared: they shall be banished from the presence of the Lord, that is, for ever excluded from the sight of his blessed face, and the enjoyment of his gracious presence: the presence of his favour they shall never find, the presence of his fury they shall ever feel.

Lord, how is thy presence here on earth, life, light, and joy, to thine own people: how much more will it be so in heaven! But how terrible and dreadful will thy presence be to the wicked at the great day, even everlasting destruction! Lord, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear, when thou appearest! Thy very presence shall punish and torment them, and thy glorious power drive them away to the place of torment prepared for them. They shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; that is, destruction shall come forth immeniately from the presence and glorious power of Christ upon them, and that without any measure of mitigation; the sentence denounced will be instantly executed, and the sinner that is banished from Christ’s presence shall be everlastingly tormented by his power.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

who shall suffer punishment, even eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might ,

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

9. Who shall be punished. Those who obey not the gospel shall be punished. The punishment is eternal destruction. This does not mean annihilation, but an eternal banishment from the presence of the Lord. In Matt. 25:41, the doom of the wicked is, “Depart from me.” The saints are “ever with the Lord;” the wicked are driven forever from his presence.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

They will be punished

Here "They" refers to the people who do not obey the gospel. This can be stated in active form. AT: "The Lord will punish them" (See: Active or Passive)

when he comes on that day

Here "that day" is the day when Jesus will return to the world.

to be glorified by his people and to be marveled at by all those who believed

This can be stated in active form. AT: "when his people will glorify him and all those who believed will stand in awe of him" (See: Active or Passive)

translationWords

suffer

punish

eternity

lord

glory

power

glory

amazed

believe

testimony

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

9. οἵτινες δίκην τίσουσιν ὄλεθρον αἰώνιον, who shall pay a just penalty, even eternal destruction. Ὅστις, generic and qualitative, implying a reason in stating the fact—“qui (quum ita sint) poenam pendent.” Δίκη means first right, legality, in the abstract; then a suit for right, an action at law; then the right determined or exacted, penalty, &c. It connotes justice in the penalty, punishment determined by a lawful process; whereas κόλασις (Mat 25:46; Act 4:21; 2Pe 2:9; 1Jn 4:18) denotes chastisement of the wrong-doer, remedial or otherwise; and τιμωρία (Heb 10:29), satisfaction demanded by the injury. Punishment is δίκη from the point of view of the dispassionate judge; κόλασις from that of the criminal; τιμωρία from that of the injured party. Act 28:4 and Jud 1:7 (δίκην πυρὸς αἰωνίου) furnish the only other N.T. examples of a word exceedingly common in Greek. Τίνω is also a judicial term, a N.T. hap. legomenon; ἀπο-τίνω is preferred, with finesse, in Phm 1:19.

St Paul uses the term ὄλεθρος respecting the σάρξ of a gross sinner in 1Co 5:5; in 1Ti 6:9, along with ἀπώλεια (the commoner word, marked by the intensive ἀπο-), of the “destruction and perdition into” which riches “plunge” those resolved at all costs on having them. Here, and in 1Th 5:3, ὄλεθρος signifies the ruin falling on the ungodly at Christ’s coming.

As αἰώνιος, affecting the man for ever, this ὄλεθρος exceeds any πρόσκαιρος, or “temporal ruin,” that might befall in this fleeting visible world (see the antithesis in 2Co 4:18). The phrase ὄλεθρος αἰώνιος is found in 4Ma 10:15, where the “eternal destruction” inflicted on a heathen tyrant is contrasted with “the happy death” of a martyr. St Paul does not contemplate under ὄλεθρος the annihilation of the reprobate; the sinner of 1Co 5:1-5 was not to suffer “destruction of the flesh” in such a way that his “saved spirit” would be bodiless in its future state. Nor does αἰώνιος suggest any periodic limitation (age-long destruction); it lifts the ὄλεθρος out of time-conditions; like the κόλασις αἰώνιος of Mat 25:46, this ὄλεθρος αἰώνιος is the antithesis of ζωὴ αἰώνιος.

ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, from the face of the Lord and from the glory of His strength. Ἀπό is ambiguous in its connexion with ὄλεθρος: (a) If the sense be determined by Isa 2:10, &c. (cf. Rev 6:15 f.), from which this double phrase is manifestly borrowed, then ἀπό is local and pregnant in use, representing the ruin as consisting in “being driven from,” or in “exclusion from, the face of the Lord,” &c. (cf. 2Th 2:2, below, and note); but the verb of Isaiah (LXX), viz. κρύπτεσθε, “hide yourselves,” connotes motion from as ὄλεθρος does not. The preposition loses its contextual force by its severance from the original context; the idea of separation is not obviously relevant here. (b) Others give to ἀπό a temporal sense, “from (the time of) the Lord’s appearance” (cf. Rom 1:20): this is easier grammatically, but does not suit πρόσωπον and is pointless in sense. (c) The preposition is most appropriate in the causal, semi-local significance it bears in 2Th 1:2 and so often—“proceeding from the face of the Lord and from the glory of His strength”—thus recalling in a striking figure, and with impressive repetition, the διδόντος ἐκδίκησιν of 2Th 1:8; cf. Act 3:20, καιροὶ ἀναψύξεως ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου. The aptness of τῇς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ is evident on this construction. “The strength” of the Judge, glorious in itself, by supplying executive force to His decisions doubles the terror that His “face” wears for the condemned; cf. Joh 19:37, Rev 6:16. To the enemies of Christ, by whom He was “crucified in weakness,” His return as Judge in glorious strength must be inexpressibly dreadful (cf. Mat 26:64). Ἰσχύς is strength resident in a person; δύναμις, power relevant to its use. For the (hostile)“face of the Lord,” cf. Psa 34:16; Psa 76:7: “Who may stand in Thy sight, when once Thou art angry?” Estius remarks: “Si enim daemones praesentiam Christi versantis in terris non sustinebant, quanto minus praesentiam ejus cum tanta majestate venientis ad judicium impii sustinere poterunt!”

The “affliction” of the persecutors and the “relief” of the persecuted, contrasted in themselves (2Th 1:6 f.), are identified in their occasion; for justice will overtake the former—

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9. οἵτινες δίκην κτλ. “Men who shall pay the penalty of eternal destruction from the presence of the Lord Jesus and from the glory of his strength.” With οἵτινε, designating a class, τοῖς μὴ εἰδόδι … Ἰησου (v. 8) is resumed; similarly with δίκην τίσουσι, the διδόντος ἐκδίκησι (v. 8) is resumed. An advance over v. 8 is, however, made in that the penalty is announced as an eternal banishment from Christ.

ὄλεθρον αἰώνιο. This phrase, in apposition with δίκη, occurs elsewhere in the Gk. Bib. only 4 Mac. 10:15 (A); it is equivalent (see I 5:3) to ἀπώλεια αἰώνιο or αἰῶνο in Ps. Sol. 2:35 (cf. Eth. En. 84:5). The destruction resulting from the supernatural conflict or as here from a forensic judgment involves for Paul not the annihilation of the wicked (for they exist after death even if they are not raised from the dead) but their separation from Christ, as the defining clause with ἀπο intimates. In the light of αἰώνιος, ὄλεθρο might mean the definitive supernatural act belonging to the age to come; but in view of ἀπό κτλ., it must rather refer to the destruction whose consequences are age-long, that is, to Paul and to the N. T. in general, “eternal” (Mar 3:29, Mat 25:46; cf. Dan 12:2). Beyond the statement of the fact of an eternal banishment and separation, Paul does not go; he says nothing of πῦρ αἰώνιο (Jud 1:7, Mat 18:8, Mat 25:41).

ἀπὸ προσώπου κυρίον κτλ. The banishment from Christ is expressed in language drawn from the refrain of Isa 2:10, Isa 2:19, Isa 2:21: ἀπὸ προσώπου τοῦ φόβου τοῦ κυρίου καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτου. In citing this passage, however, Paul omits τοῦ φόβο, leaving προσώπο (see I 2:17) to be explained as “face,” “presence,” and ἀπο as a preposition after an implied verb of separation. Then in the second member of the virtually synonymous parallelism, “face” becomes “glory,” the halo of majesty which lightens the face of the Lord; and “the Lord” becomes “his strength,” the fons et origo of the glory (ἰσχύο being a genitive of origin). Thus, with a concentration upon the essential, the θλίψι of v. 6 is defined as an eternal separation from the glorious presence of Christ, this penalty being the direct opposite of the reward of the believer (v. 10), namely, as I 4:17 states that reward, πάντοτε σὺν κυρίῳ.

The classic distinction between ὅ and ὅστι (found in every letter of Paul except I and Phile.) is apparently observed by Paul (Bl 50:1); hence quippe qui, “men who” (Ell., Lft., Mill.; also SH. on Rom 1:25).—δίκ, a classic word, rare in N. T. (Jud 1:7, Act 28:4) but common in Lxx, means either “justice” (Sap. 1:8), “suit at law” (Job 29:16) or “punishment” (Sap. 18:11, 2 Mac. 8:11, 13, 4 Mac. 6:28, 9:32). τίνει is found elsewhere in Gk. Bib. only Pro 20:22, Pro 20:24:22, 44, Pro 20:27:12 (τίει); the phrase τίνειν δίκη is classic, but is not found elsewhere in Gk. Bib.; it is equivalent to τίνειν ζημία (Pro 27:12), or ζημιοῦ (1Co 3:15); cf. ἐκδικεῖν δίκη (Lev 26:25, Eze 25:12); ἀποδιδόνα or ἀνταποδιδόναι δίκη (Deu 32:41, Deu 32:43).—With the phrase ὄλεθρος αἰώνιο (see Vincent, ad loc.) is to be compared ζωὴ αἰώνιο (Rom 2:7, Rom 5:21, Rom 6:22 f. Gal 6:3), destruction being the opposite of life. The adjective or its equivalent αἰῶνο is common in the Lxx (e. g. Sir. 15:6, 17:12, 45:15; Ps. Sol. 2:35); its meaning is to be determined not from Greek etymology but from the usage of עולם, that is, long duration whether looking forward or backward, to futurity or antiquity (BDB). The exact duration intended depends upon the writer; in Eth. En. 10:11 the ζωὴ αἰώνιο is five hundred years; in Daniel as in the N. T. the age to come is of unlimited duration; hence αἰώνιο “belonging to the age” means to Paul “eternal” and “everlasting.” A reads ὀλέθριο (cf. 3 Reg. 21:42 Sap. 18:15). On the duration of punishment in Jewish literature, see Bousset, Relig2 320, Volz, Eschat 286 ff., and Kennedy, Last Things, 316; on αἰώ, see Dalman, Worte Jesu, I, 120 ff.—That ἀπο is local, as in Gal 5:4, Rom 9:3, 2Co 11:3, is generally admitted (Piscator, Riggenbach, Lün., Ell., Lft., Born, Vincent, Mill., Dob. et al.). Grammatically possible, however, is (1) the causal sense of ἀπο, frequent in Lxx, but infrequent in N. T. (Bl 40:3), “at the presence of,” the thought being that the very face of the Lord causes destruction. In this interpretation, no hint is given that destruction consists in eternal separation. “It is sufficient that God comes and is seen and all are involved in punishment and penalty” (Chrys. apud Ell.). (2) The ἀπο may indicate source,—“the eternal destruction which proceeds from the face,” etc. (cf. Act 3:19; so apparently Grot., Schmiedel, Find., Wohl.). (3) Possible also grammatically but “pointless in sense” (Find.) is the explanation of ἀπο as temporal, “from the time of the revelation of the Lord” (see Lillie for names). Much simpler is it to take ἀπο of separation. That Paul says not ἀπο but ἀπὸ προσώπο (only here in Paul; cf. Act 5:41, Act 7:45, Rev 6:16, Rev 12:14, Rev 20:11) κυρίο is due to the influence of Isa 2:10.—On δόξ, see I 2:6; on ἰσχύ (Eph 1:19, Eph 6:10), rare in N. T. but common in Lxx, see especially 1Ch 16:28, Psa 146:5.—DGF omit του before κυρίο—In his references to the destruction of the wicked (vv. 6 a, 8-9), Paul refrains from details, contenting himself with the fact of eternal separation. Furthermore, since ἐν πυρὶ φλογό describes not the means of punishment but the manner of the Christophany, it is probable that “his angels of power” are not the angels of punishment (Eth. En. 62:11 f.) but the attendant retinue of angels who accord to Christ glory and admiration by reason of his saving work manifested in the saints and believers who stand before the βῆμα Χριστου (v. 10).

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Shall be punished [δικην τισουσιν] . The verb (N. T. o.) means to pay or render. Lit. shall pay penalty.

Everlasting destruction [ολεθρον αιωνιον] . The phrase nowhere else in N. T. In LXX, 4 Macc. 10 15. Rev. properly, eternal destruction. It is to be carefully noted that eternal and everlasting are not synonymous. See additional note at the end of this chapter.

From the presence [απο προσωπου] . Or face. Apo from has simply the sense of separation. Not from the time of the Lord 's appearing, nor by reason of the glory of his presence. Proswpon is variously translated in A. V. Mostly face : also presence, Act 3:13, 19; Act 5:41 : person, Mt 22:16; Luk 20:21; Gal 2:6 : appearance, 2Co 5:12; 2Co 10:1; fashion, Jas 1:11. The formula ajpo proswpou or tou proswpou occurs Act 3:19; Act 5:41; Act 7:45; Rev 6:16; Rev 12:14; Rev 20:11. In LXX, Gen 3:8; Gen 4:14, 16; Exo 14:25, and frequently.

Glory of his power [δοξης της ισχυος αυτου] . For glory see on 1Th 2:12. Iscuv power, not often in Paul. It is indwelling power put forth or embodied, either aggressively or as an obstacle to resistance : physical power organized or working under individual direction. An army and a fortress are both ijscurov. The power inhering in the magistrate, which is put forth in laws or judicial decisions, is ijscuv, and makes the edicts ijscura valid and hard to resist. Dunamiv is the indwelling power which comes to manifestation in ijscuv The precise phrase used here does not appear elsewhere in N. T. In LXX, Isa 2:10, 19, 21. The power [δυναμις] and glory of God are associated in Mt 24:30; Mr 13:26; Luk 21:27; Rev 4:11; Rev 19:1. Comp. kratov thv doxhv aujtou strength of his glory, Col 1:11.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.