But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face,
Paul has been looking back at his work in Thessalonica and at the enemies who fought the message. Now his tone turns tender. One question sits behind the verse. What happens to Christian love when force pulls believers apart?
Torn away by persecution
The separation was not a choice. Paul left the city under pressure, and it happened fast.
Arno Clemens GaebeleinThe apostle had to break off his ministry in Thessalonica suddenly. Persecution had broken out in that city. "The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea" (Acts 17:10). He must have felt that the new converts needed more instruction. He writes about this in the letter.
What Paul says next stands out against that violence.
F. B. HoleAgainst this dark background, how beautiful is the picture that verses 17 to 20 present. The apostle was hurried out of their midst under cover of night. Warm longings toward them filled his heart. As his spiritual children, born through the gospel, he looked on them as his hope, and joy, and crown of rejoicing.
The word behind "torn away"
Paul does not describe this as a trip away. His own word for it is a word for loss.
The Christian's FriendWhat knitting of heart there was between Paul and these converts! How he longed to be with them again, but was hindered by the enemy! To that he had to bow. But his forced absence did not lessen the strength of his love. While it lasted he was, as it were, bereaved of them (aporphanisthentes), though only for a time.
One writer renders the phrase "for a little season." He notes that it is literally "of an hour" (William Kelly).
In presence, not in heart
The distance was real, but it was only physical. What Paul denies is that distance reached his heart.
Hamilton SmithTruly, for a time, circumstances may rob saints of one another's company. They are "separated for a little moment". But, says the apostle, "not in heart." We are linked together with bonds that are as eternal as the love that binds us.
Love that grows more eager, not less
Absence did not cool his affection. It made him try harder to get back.
William KellyHe also lets them know his affectionate desire. Absence did not weaken it; it did the opposite. There is nothing so real on earth as the love of Christ reproduced by the Spirit in the Christian.
A shepherd's heart — and God's use of the gap
Paul's longing is the mark of genuine care for people he had led to Christ. Yet the enforced absence was not wasted.
Leslie M. GrantThe Spirit of God had used Paul's absence for the good of the Thessalonian saints, to strengthen them to stand without his help. Yet his heart was greatly with them, and he had plainly looked for an opportunity to return "with great desire." Here was the heart of a true shepherd. He cared for the state of the flock, yet he was held back from his longing to come to them again.
Where the separated look
Because he could not close the gap on earth, Paul's eyes move forward to the day when it closes for good.
J. N. DarbyCircumstances may hinder the full enjoyment of these divine affections — physical separation, the power of Satan, death itself. But they cannot destroy them. That was the case here. Paul was taken from them in presence, but not in heart. Yet these very circumstances only made him look beyond this scene, to the day when these new affections will have all their full blessedness.
Summary
- Torn — Paul did not drift away from Thessalonica. Persecution drove him out by night, and he felt the young converts still needed teaching.
- Bereaved — he writes as one bereaved of them, yet he limits the loss at once: only for a short time.
- Not in heart — circumstances can take away a believer's company, but never the bond. Those ties last as long as the love behind them.
- Eager — absence made the longing stronger, not weaker. That is the mark of love the Spirit produces, not mere friendliness.
- Forward — Paul could not close the gap on earth, so he looked ahead to the day when these affections have their full blessedness.