What other scriptures highlight persecution of God's prophets and apostles? Setting the Scene in Thessalonica 1 Thessalonians 2:15 recalls those “who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets and drove us out.” The verse ties the suffering of first-century missionaries to a long line of hostility toward God’s messengers. Scripture records that pattern from Genesis to Revelation. Old Testament Voices Silenced by Violence • 1 Kings 19:10 — Elijah laments, “The Israelites have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword.” • Nehemiah 9:26 — “They flung Your law behind their backs and killed Your prophets who had admonished them.” • 2 Chronicles 24:20-22 — Zechariah son of Jehoiada is stoned in the temple court “by order of the king.” • Jeremiah 26:20-23 — Uriah prophesies, flees, is extradited, and “King Jehoiakim… had him put to the sword.” These passages show a repeated refusal to hear correction, ending in lethal force against the very people sent to rescue Israel spiritually. Jesus’ Grief over a Murderous History • Matthew 23:37 — “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you…” • Acts 7:52 — Stephen asks, “Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One.” Christ and the first martyr both underline the same storyline Paul notes in 1 Thessalonians 2:15. The Early Church under Fire • Acts 5:40 — The Sanhedrin “had them flogged” and ordered the apostles not to speak in Jesus’ name. • Acts 12:1-2 — Herod “had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.” • Revelation 2:13 — Antipas, the Lord’s “faithful witness,” is killed where “Satan dwells.” Persecution shifts from prophets to apostles, yet the hostility remains unchanged. Paul’s Catalog of Suffering • 1 Corinthians 4:9-13 — “God has displayed us… like men condemned to die.” He recounts hunger, reviling, and persecution. • 2 Corinthians 11:23-27 — Five floggings, three beatings with rods, one stoning, plus imprisonments, shipwrecks, dangers, hunger, and cold. Paul’s own life embodies the pattern he describes to the Thessalonians. Timeless Encouragement when Hostility Rises • John 15:20 — “If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well.” • 2 Timothy 3:12 — “Indeed, all who desire to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” • Hebrews 11:35-38 — Saints “were stoned… sawn in two… destitute, oppressed, and mistreated. The world was not worthy of them.” These texts remind believers that suffering for Christ is neither strange nor futile; it links us with a faithful cloud of witnesses stretching back through every age. |
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