And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ.
And may your hearts be guided by the Lord into the love of God and quiet waiting for Christ.
And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ.
And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ.
The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God - The love of God is the grand motive and principle of obedience; this must occupy your hearts: the heart is irregular in all its workings; God alone, by his Spirit, can direct it into his love, and keep it right; κατευθυναι, give a proper direction to all its passions, and keep them in order, regularity and purity.
The patience of Christ - Such patience, under all your sufferings and persecutions, as Christ manifested under his. He bore meekly the contradiction of sinners against himself; and when he was reviled, he reviled not again.
And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God - So direct your hearts that you may love God. "And into the patient waiting for Christ." Margin, "patience of Christ." The marginal reading is in accordance with the Greek, and seems best to express the apostle's meaning. The prayer of the apostle was, that they might have the love of God in their hearts, and "the patience of Christ;" that is, the same patience which Christ evinced in his trials. They were then suffering affliction and persecution. They needed patience, that they might endure their trials in a proper manner. It was natural for the apostle to refer them to the Saviour, the great example of patience, and to pray that they might have the same which he had. That it does not mean that they were to wait patiently for the appearing of Christ, as our translation seems to imply, is quite clear, because the apostle had just been showing them that he would not appear until after a long series of events had occurred.
3:5 Now the Lord - The Spirit, whose proper work this is.Direct - Lead you straight forward. Into the patience of Christ - Of which he set you a pattern.