5. ‘ We have spoken of your heroic faith under persecution, and we gladly dwell upon it, because in itself it affords a proof of what awaits you in the day of God’ s final judgment, and will then result in your being found worthy of the heavenly Kingdom, for which you are now suffering.’ 5. ἔνδειγμακτλ.] ‘ a plain token of the righteous judgment of God’ (Beza quae res indicium est iusti iudicii Dei). Ἔνδειγμα (ἅπ. λεγ. N.T.) in accordance with its passive form denotes strictly a result that has been reached, ‘ a thing proved,’ but as frequently in similar cases where the abstract gives place to the concrete can hardly be distinguished from ἔνδειξις the actual proof by an appeal to facts, cf. Romans 3:25 f., 2 Corinthians 8:24, and especially the closely parallel passage Philippians 1:28 μὴπτυρόμενοιἐνμηδενὶ ... ἥτιςἐστὶναὐτοῖςἔνδειξιςἀπωλείας. As regards construction, the analogy of this last passage has led to the treating of ἔνδειγμα as a nominative, some such ellipsis as ὅἐστιν being supplied (Blass p. 293). But it is more in keeping with class. usage to regard such noun-phrases as accusatives, in apposition to the whole idea of the foregoing sentence (cf. Romans 8:3; Romans 12:1, 1 Timothy 2:6, and see further Kühner3 § 406, 6, Riddell The Apology of Plato (1877) p. 122). In the present instance, therefore, the meaning is that the heroic faith of the Thessalonians under persecution is in itself a ‘ proof,’ a ‘ sign’ of what God’ s final judgment in their case will be. For δικαίαςκρίσεως, a phrase not found elsewhere in the Pauline Epp. cf. Romans 2:5 δικαιοκρισίας which, however, denotes ‘ not so much the character of the judgment as the character of the Judge’ (SH. p. 56), and for the whole thought see Romans 8:18 ff., 2 Corinthians 4:16 ff. As a literary parallel Garrod aptly cites the lines from Browning’ s ‘ Abt Vogler’— And what is our failure here but a triumph’ s evidence For the fulness of the days? And as still better illustrating the confident appeal to the supreme judgment by which all present sufferings will be set in their true light, Dante’ s great lines (Purg. 10:109– 111) may be recalled— Non attender la forma del martire: Pensa la succession; pensa che, a peggio, Oltre la gran sentenza non può ire. εἰςτὸκαταξιωθῆναικτλ.] Cf. the common Rabbinic expression ‘ To be worthy of the future aeon’ (Dalman Worte p. 97, E. Tr. p. 119). Καταξιόω, like the simple ἀξιόω (v. 11), denotes not ‘ make’ but ‘ count worthy,’ and is found elsewhere in the N.T. only in Luke 20:35 οἱδὲκαταξιωθέντεςτοῦαἰῶνοςἐκείνουτυχεῖν, Acts 5:41 ὅτικατηξιώθησανὑπὲρτοῦὀνόματοςἀτιμασθῆναι. In the LXX. it is confined to Maccabees4; cf. Aristeas 175 τοὺςδὲἥκονταςτιμῆςκαταξιῶνμείζονος. It is frequent in Polybius (e.g. 1:23. 3, 4:86. 8); see also C.I.A. 3. 690, 9 f. ἀνατροφῆςτῆςαὐτῆςκαταξιωφείς. For εἰςτό with inf., and for the meaning of τ. βασιλ. τ. θεοῦ see the notes on 1 Thessalonians 2:12. ὑπὲρἧςκαὶπάσχετε] cf. Romans 8:17, 2 Corinthians 1:7, Philippians 3:10, and Dante Purg. 19:76 f.— O eletti di Dio, li cui soffriri E giustizia e speranza fan men duri.