1 Thessalonians 2:17

“But we, brethren, being bereaved of you for. short season, in presence not in heart, endeavored the more exceedingly to see your face with great desire”

“But we”: In contrast to their enemies. “Bereaved”: “Literally, ‘being orphaned from you'” (Robertson p. 23). “The separation was like that between parents and children” (Vincent p. 30). Against the charge that Paul did not care about them, Paul notes that their departure had been forced, they had been ‘torn away' from the Thessalonians. “It had given Paul no pleasure to leave the city. He had not gone voluntarily” (Stott p. 61). Here we see how much Paul loved these Christians. He departure was forced and painful. He felt like. child orphaned of its parents or. parent who had just lost his or her children. Fields notes, “We love the churches where we have served. But probably most preachers do not have the intensity of love and yearning for them that Paul had” (p. 79).

“For. short season”: It had been. short time between his forced departure and this letter. McGarvey thinks the "short season" was around six months. “In presence not in heart”: “In person, not in spirit” (Wey). Out of sight, but not out of mind. The accusation was probably being made, that Paul had forgotten about them. “Endeavored the more exceedingly to see your face with great desire”: “Endeavored all the more with intense longing to see you face to face” (Wey). “The verb endeavored implies not merely longing to do something but positive attempts to achieve it” (Marshall p. 85). “Must probably also be viewed as. refutation of the slander that the missionaries did not really care for those whom they had ‘duped'; that they would know better than to try to return to them” (Hendriksen p. 75). “It means that Paul did not delay, nor did he put forth. token effort only. Rather, he had used all his might and used it speedily in his endeavor to come to them almost. fierce passion” (Morris p. 94).