19. ‘ Nor is this longing on our part to be wondered at. If any deserve to be called our hope or joy or crown of holy boasting at the time when our Lord Himself appears, it is surely you. Yes indeed! you are our glory and our joy.’ 19. τίςγὰρἡμῶνἐλπίςκτλ.] The warmth of the Apostles’ feelings towards their converts now finds expression in one of the few rhetorical passages in the Ep. (Intr. p. 57): cf. Philippians 4:1. With ἡμῶνἐλπίς cf. Liv. 28:39 ‘ Scipionem … spem omnem salutemque nostrum’ (cited by Wetstein). The phrase στέφ. καυχήσεως (ἀγαλλιάσεως A, Tert. exultationis) is borrowed from the LXX. (cf. Proverbs 16:31, Ezekiel 16:12; Ezekiel 23:42, where it translates the Heb. ςΒθΖψΖϊϊΜΔτΐΰΖψΖϊ, and in accordance with the general Bibl. use of στέφανος is to be understood of the ‘ wreath’ or ‘ garland of victory’ which their converts would prove to the Apostles at the Lord’ s appearing: cf. for the thought 2 Corinthians 1:14, Philippians 2:16. The distinction between στέφανος ‘ crown of victory’ and διάδημα ‘ crown of royalty’ must not however be pressed too far (as Trench Syn. § 23.), for στέφανος is not infrequently used in the latter sense, see Mayor’ s note on James 1:12, and add the use of στέφανος to denote the ‘ crown-tax’ for the present made to the king on his accession or some other important occasion (cf. 1Ma 10:29, and see Wilcken Ostraka 1. p. 295 ff.). In this latter connexion an instructive parallel to the passage before us is afforded by P.Petr. 2:39(e), 2:18 (3./b.c.) where if we adopt Wilcken’ s emendation (ut s. p. 275) and read ἄλλου (scil. στεφάνου) παρουσίας, the reference is to an additional ‘ crown’ given at the king’ s παρουσία or visit (cf. Add. Note F). For παράληψιςτοῦστεφάνου to denote entering on the priestly office see B.C.H. 11. p. 375, and for the general use of the term to denote a ‘ reward’ for services performed see P.Cairo 5, 5 (2./b.c.) where a certain Peteuris offers a στέφανονχαλκοῦ (τάλαντα) πέντε to the man who secures his freedom; cf. P.Grenf. 1. 41, 3 (2./b.c.), P.Par. 42, 12 (2./b.c.), and see Archiv 2. p. 579.The figure may also be illustrated from Jewish sources by Pirqe Aboth 4:9, ‘ R. Ηadoq said, Make them [thy disciples] not a crown, to glory in them’ (Taylor, Sayings of the Jewish Fathers2, p. 68).ηοὐχὶκαὶὑμεῖς] a rhetorical parenthesis interjected into the main sentence to draw special attention to the position of the Thessalonians. Chrys.: οὐγὰρεἶπεν, ὑμεῖς, ἀλλά, “καὶὑμεῖς”, μετὰτῶνἄλλων. For the unusual use of the disjunctive particle ἤ (wanting in ΰ*) see Blass p. 266.ἔμπροσθεντοῦκυρίουκτλ.] The first definite reference to the Parousia of the Lord Jesus which plays so large a part in these Epp., cf. 3:13, 4:15, 5:23, 2 Thessalonians 2:1; 2 Thessalonians 2:8; Intr. p. 69.For the meaning of παρουσία see Add. Note F, and for ἐν not merely ‘ at the time of,’ but ‘ involved in,’ ‘ as the result of,’ cf. 1 Corinthians 15:23 (with Alford’ s note).