1 Thessalonians 5:23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly… The momentous warning of ver. 19 perhaps led to this prayer that the temple in which that holy flame was burning might be preserved in its integrity and blamelessness. "Whole" does not mean the three associated together, but that each may be preserved in its completeness. The prayer is threefold. I. THAT THEY MAY BE SANCTIFIED BY THE GOD OF PEACE. 1. Sanctification is the condition of outward and inward peace. 2. This sanctification is to be complete "wholly" in their collective powers and constituents. II. THAT EACH CONSTITUENT MAY BE PRESERVED TO OUR LORD'S COMING. Each part of the man and the whole man is immortal. III. THAT EACH SO PRESERVED MAY BE ENTIRE and complete, not mutilated or disintegrated by sin. 1. That the body may retain its yet uneffaced image of God, and its unimpaired aptitude to be a living sacrifice to its Maker. 2. The appetitive soul, its purer hopes and nobler aspirations. 3. The spirit, its everblessed associate the Holy Spirit of God. (Bp. Ellicott.) Parallel Verses KJV: And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. |
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