1 Thessalonians 2:7

1 Thessalonians 2:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But we were gentle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her children:
• New International Version (NIV)Instead, we were like young children among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children,
• English Standard Version (ESV)But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children.

Context of 1 Thessalonians 2:7

5For as you well know, we never came with words of flattery nor with a pretext for greed—God is our witness— 6nor did we seek glory and honor from people, neither from you nor from anyone else, though as apostles of Christ we had the power to assert our authority. But we behaved gently when we were among you, like a devoted mother tenderly caring for her own children. 8Having such a deep affection for you, we were delighted to share with you not only God’s good news but also our own lives, because you had become so very dear to us. 9For you remember, believers, our labor and hardship. We worked night and day [practicing our trade] in order not to be a [financial] burden to any of you while we proclaimed the gospel of God to you.

1 Thessalonians 2:7 word by word

δυνάμενοι ἐν βάρει εἶναι ὡς Χριστοῦ ἀπόστολοι· ἀλλ᾽ ἐγενήθημεν νήπιοι ἐν μέσῳ ὑμῶν, ὡς ἐὰν τροφὸς θάλπῃ τὰ ἑαυτῆς τέκνα,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·μέσοςmesos · midstG3319
• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Butἀλλάalla · butG235
• we wereγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• gentleἤπιοςēpios · gentleG2261
• amongἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• youσύsu · youG4771
• evenἄνan · ifG302
• asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
• a nurseτροφόςtrophos · nursing motherG5162
• cherishethθάλπωthalpō · to care forG2282
• herἑαυτοῦheautou · themselfG1438
• childrenτέκνονteknon · childG5043

Cross-references for 1 Thessalonians 2:7

• Genesis 33:13But Jacob replied, “You know, my lord, that the children are frail and need gentle care, and the nursing flocks and herds [with young] are of concern to me; for if the men should drive them hard for a single day, all the flocks will die.
• Isaiah 40:11He will protect His flock like a shepherd, He will gather the lambs in His arm, He will carry them in His bosom; He will gently and carefully lead those nursing their young.
• Ezekiel 34:14I will feed them in a good pasture, and their grazing ground will be on the mountain heights of Israel. There they will lie down on good grazing ground and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.
• Matthew 11:29Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me [following Me as My disciple], for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest (renewal, blessed quiet) for your souls.
• John 21:15So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.”
• 1 Corinthians 2:3I came to you in [a state of] weakness and fear and great trembling.
• 1 Corinthians 9:22To the weak I became [as the] weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means [in any and every way] save some [by leading them to faith in Jesus Christ].
• 2 Corinthians 10:1Now I, Paul, urge you by the gentleness and graciousness of Christ—I who am meek [so they say] when with you face to face, but bold [outspoken and fearless] toward you when absent!
• 2 Corinthians 13:4For even though He was crucified in weakness [yielding Himself], yet He lives [resurrected] by the power of God [His Father]. For we too are weak in Him [as He was humanly weak], yet we are alive and well [in fellowship] with Him because of the power of God directed toward you.
• Galatians 5:22But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
• 2 Timothy 2:24The servant of the Lord must not participate in quarrels, but must be kind to everyone [even-tempered, preserving peace, and he must be], skilled in teaching, patient and tolerant when wronged.
• James 3:17But the wisdom from above is first pure [morally and spiritually undefiled], then peace-loving [courteous, considerate], gentle, reasonable [and willing to listen], full of compassion and good fruits. It is unwavering, without [self-righteous] hypocrisy [and self-serving guile].
• 1 Thessalonians 2:11For you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you just as a father does [in dealing with] his own children, [guiding you]
• Numbers 11:12Was it I who conceived all these people? Was it I who brought them forth, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your arms as a nurse carries the nursing infant, to the land which You swore to their fathers’?
• Isaiah 49:23Kings will be your attendants, And their princesses your nurses. They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth And lick the dust of your feet; And you shall know [with an understanding based on personal experience] that I am the Lord; For they shall not be put to shame who wait and hope expectantly for Me.
• Isaiah 66:13As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; And you will be comforted in Jerusalem.”

Commentaries on 1 Thessalonians 2:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7But we were gentle among you - Far from assuming the authority which we had, we acted towards you as a tender nurse or parent does to a delicate child. We fed, counselled, cherished, and bore with you; we taught you to walk, preserved you from stumbling, and led you in a right path. Instead of , gentle, many MSS., and several versions and fathers, have , young children. But this never can be considered the original reading, the scope of the place being…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7But we were gentle among you - Instead of using authority, we used only the most kind and gentle methods to win you and to promote your peace and order. The word here rendered “nurse,” may mean any one who nurses a child, whether a mother or another person. It seems here to refer to a mother (compare 1 Thessalonians 2:11), and the idea is, that the apostle felt for them the affectionate solicitude which a mother does for the child at her breast.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-12Verses 7-12 Mildness and tenderness greatly recommend religion, and are most conformable to God's gracious dealing with sinners, in and by the gospel. This is the way to win people. We should not only be faithful to our calling as Christians, but in our particular callings and relations. Our great gospel privilege is, that God has called us to his kingdom and glory. The great gospel duty is, that we walk worthy of God. We should live as becomes those…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7we were gentle among you: Some manuscripts say we were like infants. Paul and his associates did not use their authority as apostles to make demands (see Matthew 20:25–28).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. we were--Greek, "we were made" by God's grace. gentle--Greek, "mild in bearing with the faults of others" [Tittmann]; one, too, who is gentle (though firm) in reproving the erroneous opinions of others (2Ti 2:24). Some of the oldest manuscripts read, "we became little children" (compare Mt 18:3, 4). Others support the English Version reading, which forms a better antithesis to 1Th 2:6, 7, and harmonizes better with what follows; for he would hardly, in…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Thessalonians 2:7

• Gentleness
• Love
• Meekness
• Minister, Christian
• Nurse
• Preaching

In the dictionaries

• Affectionately
• Bold
• Chargeable
• Cherish
• Desire
• Joy
• Gentleness
• Nurse; Nursing
• Paul, the Apostle
• Thessalonians, the First Epistle of Paul to the

Commentaries on 1 Thessalonians 2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings