Two of the shortest verses in the Bible are 1 Thess. 5:16 and 17: "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing" (NRSV). Dr. Jeff Peterson argues that that these verses are directed to leaders of the Thessalonian church, along with all of vv. 14-22, and he zeroes in on the Greek adverb translated "without ceasing." Concretely, what was Paul asking the recipients of his letter to do? Dr. Jeff Peterson is Professor of New Testament at Harding School of Theology, Harding University. His publications include (co-editor), Marcan Priority Without Q: Explorations in the Farrer Hypothesis. Check out related programs at Wheaton College:

B.A. in Classical Languages (Greek, Latin, Hebrew): https://bit.ly/3NUCXJ0 M.A. in Biblical Exegesis: https://bit.ly/4diWywK