Biblion Bible Commentary
Read the introduction to 2 Thessalonians · About this commentary
Admonish Him as a Brother
2 Thessalonians 3:13-15
13 But you, brothers, don’t be weary in doing what is right. · WEB
Discipline is bounded on both sides — the church must not grow cynical about doing good, and must not treat the disciplined man as an enemy.
But you, brothers, don't be weary in doing what is right. The warning is aimed at the congregation rather than the offenders, and it anticipates a real hazard: a church that has been imposed upon grows tired of generosity in general. Paul gives the same caution to the Galatians in almost the same words Galatians 6:9.
Verse 14 sets the procedure. If anyone does not obey the word of this letter, note that man and keep no company with him — and the purpose is stated rather than left to be assumed: to the end that he may be ashamed. Shame here is the desired effect on a person who is expected to feel it, which already assumes he is not lost.
Verse 15 then draws the boundary that governs everything: do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother. The sentence prevents the previous one from hardening into exclusion. He is still to be spoken to, and still to be spoken to as family. Discipline that stops talking has stopped being discipline and become something else.
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