SEV Biblia, Chapter 1:11
¶ por lo cual, asimismo oramos siempre por vosotros, que nuestro Dios os tenga por dignos de su llamado, y llene de bondad a cada voluntad, y a toda obra de fe con potencia,
Clarke's Bible Commentary - 2 Thessalonians 1:11
Verse 11. We pray-that our God would count you worthy] It is our earnest prayer that God would make you worthy, axiwsh, afford those continual supplies of grace by his Holy Spirit, without which you cannot adorn your holy vocation; you are called into the Christian Church, and, to be proper members of this Church, you must be members of the mystical body of Christ; and this implies that you should be holy, as he who has called you is holy. Fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness] 1. The goodness of God-his own innate eternal kindness, has led him to call you into this state of salvation. 2. It is the pleasure of that goodness to save you unto eternal life. 3. It is the good pleasure; nothing can please God more than your receiving and retaining his utmost salvation. 4. It is all the good pleasure of his goodness thus to save you; this he has amply proved by sending his Son to die for you, beyond which gift he has none greater. In this, all the good pleasure of his goodness is astonishingly manifested. 5. And if you be faithful to his grace, he will fulfill - completely accomplish, all the good pleasure of his goodness in you; which goodness is to be apprehended and is to work by faith, the power of which must come from him, though the act or exercise of that power must be of yourselves; but the very power to believe affords excitement to the exercise of faith.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 11. Wherefore also we pray always for you , &c.] Not only observe the above things to your comfort, to support you under sufferings, but we add our prayers, and not only now, but always, that you may be among them in whom Christ will be glorified and admired; in order to which we most sincerely pray, that our God would count you worthy of this calling . The Syriac version reads, your calling, as in ( 1 Corinthians 1:26). The Vulgate Latin reads, his own calling, meaning their effectual calling. This is indeed of God, and not of man; and is owing, not to any previous worthiness in man, as appears from the instances of Matthew the publican, Zacchaeus, the Apostle Paul, the Corinthians, and others, but entirely to the free grace of God, who counts them worthy, not for any worthiness there is in them; but vouchsafes, as the word may be rendered, this blessing of grace, their effectual calling, of his own good will and pleasure: but this cannot be meant here, because these persons were partakers of that grace, God had called them to his kingdom and glory; unless the sense of the petition is, that God would cause them to walk worthy of the calling with which they were called, which becoming walk is owing to the grace of God: or else the meaning may be, that God would grant unto them perseverance in the grace, by and to which they were called, that so they might enjoy eternal glory; which though certain, should be prayed for by saints, both for themselves and others: the words may be rendered, that our God would count you worthy of the call; of the call of Christ when he shall be revealed from heaven, and come a second time; for then will he first call the saints out of their graves, as he did Lazarus, and they shall hear his all powerful voice, and come forth to the resurrection of life, the first and better resurrection, which those that have part in will be secure from the second death; this the apostle was desirous of attaining to himself, and prays that God would vouchsafe it to others; of this Job speaks in ( Job 14:15). And next Christ will call the righteous, when raised and set at his right hand, to inherit the kingdom and glory prepared by his Father for them; and happy are those who by the grace of God will be counted worthy of this call or rather by calling here is meant, the ultimate glory itself, which the saints are called unto; this God gives a right unto in the justifying righteousness of his Son, and makes meet for by his own grace; and the thing itself is a free grace gift of his through Jesus Christ. In this sense calling seems to be used in ( Ephesians 4:4) and to this agrees the Ethiopic version here, that God may impart unto you that to which he hath called you; and that is eternal glory, which though certainly and inseparably connected with the effectual calling, may, and should be prayed for: and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness ; not providential, but special goodness; not the good pleasure of his strict justice in the condemning of the wicked, denying his grace to them, and hiding from them the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, which is a part of his good pleasure, even of the good pleasure of his righteousness; but this is the good pleasure of his grace and kindness in Christ Jesus, and intends the whole of his gracious designs towards his people: and to express the free, rich, sovereign grace of God in them, the apostle uses a variety of words, calling them his pleasure, his good pleasure; and, as if this was not enough, the good pleasure of his goodness; and desires that all of it might be fulfilled; it consisting of many things, some of which were fulfilled, and others remained to be fulfilled. It consists of the choice of persons in Christ, and the predestination of them to the adoption of children, which is according to the good pleasure of the will of God; the redemption of them by Christ, in which are displayed the exceeding riches of his grace; the free justification of them by the righteousness of Christ; the full pardon of all their sins, and their adoption into the household of God, and their regeneration, of rich grace, and abundant mercy; all these instances of the good pleasure of divine goodness were fulfilled in these persons; what remained were the carrying on and finishing the work of grace upon their souls, and their enjoyment of the heavenly glory: and for the former, in order to the latter, the apostle prays in the next clause, and the work of faith with power ; faith is not only an operative grace, (see Gill on 1 Thessalonians 1:3) and is attended with good works; but it is a work itself, not of man's, for he cannot produce it in himself, nor exercise it of himself; but it is the work of God, of his operation which he works in his people; it has not only God for its object, and therefore the Arabic version reads, the work of faith on him; but it has God for its author: and this now, though it had grown exceedingly in these believers, was not as yet fulfilled or perfect; something was still lacking in it; wherefore the apostle prays that he who was the author would be the finisher of it: and this will be done with power; not of man's, for this work is neither begun, nor carried on, nor will it be finished by the might and power of men; but the same hands which laid the foundation of it, raise it up, carry it on, and give the finishing stroke to it; it is done by the power of God, and so the Arabic and Ethiopic versions read, by his own power: which is greatly displayed in the production of faith at first; for a poor sensible sinner, in a view of all his sins, and the just deserts of them, to venture his soul on Christ alone for salvation; for a man to go out of himself and renounce his own righteousness, and trust to the righteousness of Christ for his justification before God, and acceptance with him, is owing to the exceeding greatness of God's power to them that believe; and the same power is seen in enabling faith to do the things it does; (see Hebrews 11:1) and in encouraging, supporting, and maintaining it under the most difficult circumstances, as in the case of Abraham; and to make it stand fast under the severest persecutions, and at the hour of death, and in the view of an awful eternity, when it receives its full completion.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 11, 12 - Believing thoughts and expectations of the second coming of Chris should lead us to pray to God more, for ourselves and others. If ther is any good in us, it is owing to the good pleasure of his goodness and therefore it is called grace. There are many purposes of grace an good-will in God toward his people, and the apostle prays that God would complete in them the work of faith with power. This is to their doing every other good work. The power of God not only begins, but carries on the work of faith. And this is the great end and design of the grace of our God and Lord Jesus Christ, which is made known to us and wrought in us __________________________________________________________________
Greek Textus Receptus
εις 1519 ο 3739 και 2532 προσευχομεθα 4336 5736 παντοτε 3842 περι 4012 υμων 5216 ινα 2443 υμας 5209 αξιωση 515 5661 της 3588 κλησεως 2821 ο 3588 θεος 2316 ημων 2257 και 2532 πληρωση 4137 5661 πασαν 3956 ευδοκιαν 2107 αγαθωσυνης 19 και 2532 εργον 2041 πιστεως 4102 εν 1722 δυναμει 1411
Vincent's NT Word Studies
11. Wherefore (eiv o). Better, to which end. Comp. Col. i. 29. The end is, "that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, " ver. 5. The same thought is continued in ver. 11.
Count - worthy (axiwsh). Comp. 1 Tim. v. 17; Heb. iii. 3; x. 29. Your calling (thv klhsewv). Including both the act and the end of the Christian calling. Comp. Philip. iii. 14; 1 Thess. ii. 12; Eph. iv. 1.
All the good pleasure of his goodness (pasan eudokian agaqwsunhv). Wrong. Paul does not mean all the goodness which God ts pleased to bestow, but the delight of the Thessalonians in goodness. He prays that God may perfect their pleasure in goodness. So Weizsacker, die Freude an allem Guten. The Rev. desire for eujdokian is infelicitous, and lacks support. Agaqwsunh goodness (P. see on Rom. iii. 19) is never predicated of God in N.T. In LXX, see Neh. ix. 25, 35. Eudokia good pleasure, delight, is a purely Biblical word. As related to one's self, it means contentment, satisfaction: see Sir. xxix. 23; Ps. of Sol. iii. 4; xvi. 12. As related to others, good will, benevolence. Luke x. 21, Eph. i. 5, 9; Philip. i. 15; ii. 13; Ps. of Sol. viii. 39.
Robertson's NT Word Studies
1:11 {To which end} (eis ho). So #Col 1:29. Probably purpose with reference to the contents of verses #5-10. We have had the Thanksgiving (verses #3-10) in a long, complicated, but rich period or sentence. Now he makes a brief Prayer (verses #11-12) that God will fulfil all their hopes and endeavors. Paul and his colleagues can still pray for them though no longer with them (Moffatt). {That} (hina). Common after proseucomai (#Col 4:3; Eph 1:17; Php 1:9) when the content of the prayer blends with the purpose (purport and purpose). {Count you worthy} (humas axiwsei). Causative verb (aorist active subjunctive) like kataxiow in verse #5 with genitive. {Of your calling} (tes klesews). klesis can apply to the beginning as in #1Co 1:26; Ro 11:29, but it can also apply to the final issue as in #Php 3:14; Heb 3:1. Both ideas may be here. It is God's calling of the Thessalonians. {And fulfil every desire of goodness} (kai plerwsei pasan eudokian agaqwsunes). "Whom he counts worthy he first makes worthy" (Lillie). Yes, in purpose, but the wonder and the glory of it all is that God begins to count us worthy in Christ before the process is completed in Christ (#Ro 8:29f.). But God will see it through and so Paul prays to God. eudokia (cf. #Lu 2:14) is more than mere desire, rather good pleasure, God's purpose of goodness, not in ancient Greek, only in LXX and N.T. agaqwsune like a dozen other words in -sune occurs only in late Greek. this word occurs only in LXX, N.T., writings based on them. It is made from agaqos, good, akin to agamai, to admire. May the Thessalonians find delight in goodness, a worthy and pertinent prayer. {Work of faith} (ergon pistews). The same phrase in #1Th 1:3. Paul prays for rich fruition of what he had seen in the beginning. Work marked by faith, springs from faith, sustained by faith. {With power} (en dunamei). In power. Connect with plerwsei (fulfil), God's power (#Ro 1:29; Col 1:4) in Christ (#1Co 1:24) through the Holy Spirit (#1Th 1:5).
