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1 Thessalonians 1 · a question people ask

"We always give thanks to God for all of you" (1:2). Who is the we?

In the text

The chapter doesn't say, and these notes don't either. The letter opens with three names, "Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy" (1:1), and goes on as we: "We always give thanks to God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers" (1:2). It doesn't say who the we are, and these notes name no one in it. Later in the letter its I names itself once: "indeed, I, Paul, once and again" (2:18).

The verses

“Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the assembly of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We always give thanks to God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers,”
1 Thessalonians 1:1-2 · World English Bible
“because we wanted to come to you—indeed, I, Paul, once and again—but Satan hindered us.”
1 Thessalonians 2:18 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of 1 Thessalonians 1

1 Thessalonians 1: An example to all who believe

1 Thessalonians 1 says the readers "became imitators of us and of the Lord" (1:6), and then "an example to all who believe" (1:7), and "from you the word of the Lord has been declared" (1:8). Behind declared is a verb the New Testament has only here; Strong's gives its sense as "resound (be generally reported)".

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Last reviewed October 8, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions