2 Thessalonians– Chapter Three XVIII

by Ed Urzi

“Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all” (2 Thessalonians 3:16).

As we approach the close of this letter to the Thessalonian church, Paul the Apostle will begin his final remarks by sharing his prayerful desire for the members of their fellowship: “Now may the Lord of peace Himself grant you His peace at all times and in every way [that peace and spiritual well-being that comes to those who walk with Him, regardless of life’s circumstances]. The Lord be with you all” (AMP).

The importance of this prayer request should not be overlooked, for peace is an essential (yet often elusive) quality. Unfortunately, we never seem to be far from a headline, a phone call, or other piece of information that serves to remind us that this world is far from peaceful. Even “peace” itself may be something that is easy to say but difficult to define.

The concept of “peace” is generally associated with a sense of contentment and/or well being. This may be reflected in the absence of external hostilities ranging from personal disagreements all the way to armed warfare. The same is true for internal conflicts like anxiety or insecurity. Therefore, a person who is free from internal or external discord is someone who is likely to be “at peace.”

We should also recognize that peace is not necessarily synonymous with the idea of “happiness.” You see, happiness is usually derived from the acquisition of something we desire. The problem is that “things” cannot bring lasting peace, for the source of genuine peace is not something but Someone– God Himself. Since peace is a quality that is associated with the Spirit of God (see Galatians 5:22), we should look to Him to find lasting peace in a constantly changing world.

One source expands upon this idea with several additional insights…

“This is the only New Testament occurrence of the appellation ‘Lord of peace.’ However, God is called ‘the God of peace’ several times (Romans 15:33; Philippians 4:9; I Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 13:20). He is the one who both creates peace and sustains it in the believer’s soul. He is not only ‘the Lord of peace,’ but also ‘the Prince of Peace’ (Isaiah 9:6), ‘the God of peace’ (Romans 16:20); the Author of peace (I Corinthians 14:33), and ‘the King of peace’ (Hebrews 7:2). In fact, ‘He is our peace’ (Ephesians 2:14) and someday ‘shall speak peace unto the heathen’ (Zechariah 9:10) and see that of ‘peace there shall be no end’ (Isaiah 9:7).” (1)

(1) Institute for Creation Research, New Defender’s Study Bible Notes 2 Thessalonians 3:16 https://www.icr.org/bible/2Th/3/16/