| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God; | 1Finally then, brothers and sisters, we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received instruction from us about how you must live and please God (as you are in fact living) that you do so more and more. |
| 2for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. | 2For you know what commands we gave you through the Lord Jesus. |
| 3For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; | 3For this is God's will: that you become holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality, |
| 4that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, | 4that each of you know how to possess his own body in holiness and honor, |
| 5not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; | 5not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God. |
| 6that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. | 6In this matter no one should violate the rights of his brother or take advantage of him, because the Lord is the avenger in all these cases, as we also told you earlier and warned you solemnly. |
| 7For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. | 7For God did not call us to impurity but in holiness. |
| 8Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit. | 8Consequently the one who rejects this is not rejecting human authority but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you. |
| 9But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another; | 9Now on the topic of brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another. |
| 10and indeed you do so toward all the brethren who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brethren, that you increase more and more; | 10And indeed you are practicing it toward all the brothers and sisters in all of Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, |
| 11that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, | 11to aspire to lead a quiet life, to attend to your own business, and to work with your hands, as we commanded you. |
| 12that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing. | 12In this way you will live a decent life before outsiders and not be in need. |
| 13But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. | 13Now we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest who have no hope. |
| 14For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. | 14For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also we believe that God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep as Christians. |
| 15For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. | 15For we tell you this by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will surely not go ahead of those who have fallen asleep. |
| 16For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. | 16For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. |
| 17Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. | 17Then we who are alive, who are left, will be suddenly caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. |
| 18Therefore comfort one another with these words. | 18Therefore encourage one another with these words. |
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