1 Thessalonians 5:20-The Thessalonians Must Continue to Not Treat Prophecies with Contempt

1 Thessalonians 5:20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt. (NET)

The apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 5:20 solemnly issues the third and final prohibition that appears in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-21 (cf. 1 Thess. 5:15, 19).

This prohibition here in verse 20 requires that each member of the Thessalonian Christian continue to make it their habit of not treating prophecies with contempt.

The present imperative conjugation of this verb exoutheneō and the negative particle me has the force of a general precept and makes no comment about whether the action is going on or not.

Therefore, they are expressing the idea that the Thessalonians must continue making it their habit of not treating prophecies with contempt.

The clear implication is that they were not treating prophecies with contempt.

This interpretation is supported by the contents of First Thessalonians which affirm the Thessalonians were remaining faithful to Paul’s apostolic teaching, i.e. the gospel.

For example, Paul affirms in 1 Thessalonians 1:7-8 that the Thessalonians’ faithful to the gospel in spite of severe persecution was serving to encourage the Christians in the Roman province of Achaia and Macedonia.

He also affirms in 1 Thessalonians 2:13-16 that the gospel was working mightily in their lives. Paul affirms again in 1 Thessalonians 2:17-3:10 that the Thessalonians’ were faithful to the gospel.

He affirms in 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 that the Thessalonians were experiencing their sanctification.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12, he affirms that they were practicing the love of God when interacting with each other and those in the non-Christian community.

As was the case in Romans 12:6, 1 Corinthians 12:10, 13:2, 8, 14:6, 22, 1 Timothy 1:18, and 4:14, the noun prophēteia, “prophecies” refers to the content of the prophecies which New Testament prophets communicated to the church during the pre-canon period of the church age.

Thus, it refers to the exercise of the temporary or discontinued spiritual gift of prophecy.

The gift of prophecy during the church age is no longer existent since it existed during the pre-canon period of the church age to fill the void until the New Testament canon had been completed.

Whatever a prophet communicated to the church had to be verified by Scripture in the sense that it must agree with the revelation communicated to it by the apostles and the Lord Himself.

The Holy Spirit would confirm or deny if such a prophetic utterance was from God or not (cf. 1 Cor. 12:10; 1 John 4:1-6).

In fact, in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 Paul commands the Thessalonians to examine all things, i.e. these prophecies and by doing so they would avoid getting involved in evil (cf. 1 Thess. 5:22).

In this verse, he also asserts that they were to hold fast to what is good, namely Paul’s apostolic teaching which was communicated to them by himself, Silvanus and Timothy.

Paul teaches in 1 Corinthians 14:22 that prophecy was not for the non-Christian but for the Christian.

He also teaches in 1 Corinthians 14:3 that the primary purpose of prophecy was for strengthening the Christian community as well as encouraging and comforting them and not simply to predict the future.

The question arises as to why Paul felt the need to issue this prohibition in 1 Thessalonians 5:20 since there is no indication whatsoever in the contents of First Thessalonians that the Thessalonians were treating prophecies with contempt.

Thus, this prohibition like the one in 1 Thessalonians 5:19 is preventative maintenance but why?

One possible explanation is that in the Gentile pagan culture from which the Thessalonians came from, prophetic utterances were questioned and rejected by some like Cicero.

However, I believe the best explanation is that unregenerate Gentiles in the Graeco-Roman culture were immersed in idolatry which contained the practice of prophetic utterances.

Remember Paul asserts in 1 Thessalonians 1:10 that the Thessalonians turned to God from idols.

Some religious cults—such as the cult of the Greek god Dionysus—practiced a form of pagan prophecy that involved ecstatic behavior.

Undoubtedly, after forsaking this idolatry, some of the Thessalonian believers might feel uncomfortable with someone among them exercising the gift of prophecy.

Thus, the need to prohibit them from treating prophecies with contempt.

The apostle Paul in Romans 12:6 speaks of the temporal spiritual gift of prophecy during the pre-canon period of the church age.

Romans 12:6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith. (NASB95)

“Prophecy” is the accusative feminine singular form of the noun prophēteia, which refers to the exercise of the temporary or discontinued spiritual gift of being a prophet.

This gift is no longer existent since it existed during the pre-canon period of the church age to fill the void until the New Testament canon had been completed.

The word is used for this spiritual gift in 1 Corinthians 12:10, 13:2 and 14:22.

The gift of prophecy is referred to by the word prophetes, “prophet” in Ephesians 2:20, 3:5 and 4:11.

“According to the proportion of his faith” indicates that the content of what the Christian with the spiritual gift of prophesy communicated to the Christian community was to be in agreement with Christian faith, i.e. the Word of God.

In other words it could never contradict the Word of God or the revelation already universally received by the Christian church in the first century through the apostles.

Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 14:29-33 that the church was to pass judgment on the message of the prophet.

Of course, they were to do so by comparing the prophetic message with their Old Testament Scriptures and the revelation already received universally by the Christian church and this would determine if the prophet’s message was from God.

The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit inside the Corinthian believers would bear witness to the prophet’s message if it was from God or not.

In the first century, apostolic church an inspired prophet could be identified by those who had the gift of distinguishing of spirits (1 Corinthians 12:10).

In 1 John 4:1-6, the apostle John teaches that the believer can discern the false teachers from Satan’s cosmic system by their viewpoint or attitude towards the Person of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:10 speaks of the gift of prophecy.

1 Corinthians 12:8 For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. (NASB95)

“Distinguishing of spirits” is the ability to distinguish between true and false sources of supernatural revelation when it was being given in oral form and was essential before the canon of Scripture was completed for there were those who claimed to bring revelation from God who were not true prophets.

1 Corinthians 12:28 and Ephesians 4:11 list the gift of prophecy as one of four major communication gifts for the benefit of the church’s edification.

1 Corinthians 12:28 And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not workers of miracles, are they? 30 All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they? 31 But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way. (NASB95)

Notice that Paul ranks the gift of apostleship as being first in importance and this is followed by the gift of prophecy and then the gift of teaching.

The reason why Paul teaches that these three communication gifts have greater priority than the other gifts is because the exercise of these three communication gifts equips the saints for the work of service and builds up the body of Christ spiritually according to his teaching in Ephesians 4:11-12.

In other words, the exercise of these three communication gifts enables the other gifts in the body of Christ to function.

Ephesians 4:11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers. (NASB95)

Now, one cannot say that the other gifts such as helps, mercy, giving and the others are not important because these three communication gifts receive their value because of the existence of these other gifts.

Again, all the gifts need each other to function properly in the body of Christ as Paul teaches in First Corinthians 12.