5. Ὁδὲκύριοςκατευθύναικτλ.] Ὁκύριος can only be the Lord Jesus as in vv. 1, 3, 4, any reference to the Holy Spirit (as Basil de Spiritu sancto c. 21 and most of the Gk. commentators) being outruled if only on the ground that ὁκύριος is never so employed in the N.T. (not even in 2 Corinthians 3:18). For κατευθύνω see 1 Thessalonians 3:11 note: its metaphorical use is further illustrated by Aristeas 18 κατευθύνειτὰςπράξειςκαὶτὰςἐπιβολὰςὁκυριεύωνἁπάντωνθεός. εἰςτ. ἀγάπηντ. θεοῦκ. εἰςτ. ὑπομονὴντ. χριστοῦ] The close parallelism of the two clauses makes it natural (as in 2:13) to understand the genitives in the same way, and as the subjective interpretation of the second clause is rendered almost necessary by the regular meaning of ὑπομονήν in the N.T., ‘ constancy,’ ‘ endurance’ (1 Thessalonians 1:3 note) not ‘ patient waiting’ (ἀναμονήν cf. 1 Thessalonians 1:10), we are similarly led to think of τ. ἁγαπὴντ. θεοῦ as the love which is God’ s special characteristic, and which He has displayed towards us; cf. Romans 5:5; Romans 8:39, 2 Corinthians 13:13, Ephesians 2:4, and see Abbott Joh.Gr. p. 84. The use of the art. before χριστοῦ is significant as emphasizing the connexion of the ‘ patience’ spoken of not merely with the earthly trials of the Saviour, but with these trials as the inevitable lot of the suffering servant of Jehovah. Cf. for the general thought Hebrews 12:1 f., Revelation 3:10, and see Ign. Romans 10:3 ἔρρωσθεεἰςτέλοςἐνὑπομονῇἸησοῦΧριστοῦ, where however Lft. (ad loc.) inclines to the meaning ‘ patient waiting for Christ.’