--- title: "1 Thessalonians: Summary & All 5 Chapters · Bless" url: https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/ description: "The First Letter to the Thessalonians, a letter to a community in 5 chapters. Bp. Challoner’s summary of all 5 chapters, and the full text free." --- New Testament # The First Letter to the Thessalonians The First Letter to the Thessalonians is the thirteenth of the 27 books of the New Testament: 5 chapters and 88 verses. [Start reading: 1 Thessalonians 1](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/1/) [1](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/1/) [2](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/2/) [3](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/3/) [4](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/4/) [5](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/) ## About 1 Thessalonians About 1 Thessalonians · Letter to a community First Thessalonians is very likely the oldest book of the New Testament, written by Paul only months after he founded the church in Thessalonica and was driven out of the city. He writes with obvious relief at good news of their perseverance, encourages them under harassment, and answers their grief over members who had died before the Lord's return: the dead in Christ will rise first. It was written to steady brand-new believers in hope, and its counsel — pray without ceasing, give thanks in everything — has never aged. *1 Thessalonians in Bless* | | | |---|---| | Testament | New Testament — book 13 of 27, 59 of 73 in the Bible | | Canon | Protocanonical (in every Christian canon) | | Chapters | 5 | | Verses | 88, as Bless numbers them | | Latin | Clementine Vulgate, 4 of 5 chapters | | Bp. Challoner | Summaries of all 5 chapters · 2 notes | | Catechism | 21 paragraphs cite it | Chapter by chapter ## All 5 chapters, *in brief.* Bishop Richard Challoner’s summary of each chapter, from his revision of the Douay-Rheims (1749–52). Open a chapter for the full text. 1. ### [1 Thessalonians 1](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/1/) 10 verses He gives thanks for the grace bestowed on the Thessalonians. 2. ### [1 Thessalonians 2](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/2/) 20 verses The sincerity of the apostle's preaching the gospel to them and of their receiving it. 3. ### [1 Thessalonians 3](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/3/) 13 verses The apostle's concern and love for the Thessalonians. 4. ### [1 Thessalonians 4](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/4/) 18 verses He exhorts them to purity and mutual charity. He treats of the resurrection of the dead. 5. ### [1 Thessalonians 5](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/) 28 verses The day of the Lord shall come when least expected. Exhortations to several duties. Bp. Richard Challoner · chapter summaries In the comments ## What the saints *said.* 4 quotations from 3 saints linked to passages of 1 Thessalonians in Bless. Each names the work it comes from. [St. Thérèse of Lisieux](https://blessbible.app/saints/st-therese-of-lisieux/) · on [1 Thessalonians 4:3](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/4/#v3) On this theme > Holiness consists simply in doing God's will, and being just what God wants us to be. Story of a Soul, ch. 9, 1897 [St. Thérèse of Lisieux](https://blessbible.app/saints/st-therese-of-lisieux/) · on [1 Thessalonians 5:17](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/#v17) On this theme > For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trial as well as joy. Story of a Soul, ch. 11, 1897 [St. Alphonsus Liguori](https://blessbible.app/saints/st-alphonsus-liguori/) · on [1 Thessalonians 5:17](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/#v17) On this theme > He who prays is certainly saved; he who does not pray is certainly lost. Prayer, the Great Means of Salvation, I.1, 1759 [St. Elizabeth Ann Seton](https://blessbible.app/saints/st-elizabeth-ann-seton/) · on [1 Thessalonians 5:17](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/#v17) On this theme > We must pray without ceasing, in every occurrence and employment of our lives, that prayer which is rather a habit of lifting up the heart to God as in a constant communication with Him. Letters, c. 1810 Coming up ## Read at *Mass.* From October 29, 2026 to October 28, 2027, 1 Thessalonians is read at the principal Mass on 14 days in the US calendar. The next 8 readings: | Date | Celebration | Reading | Citation | |---|---|---|---| | [Sun, Nov 8, 2026](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2026/11/08/) | Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time | Second Reading | [1 Thessalonians 4:13-18](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/4/) | | [Wed, Nov 11, 2026](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2026/11/11/) | St. Martin of Tours, Bishop | Alleluia | [1 Thessalonians 5:18](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/) | | [Sun, Nov 15, 2026](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2026/11/15/) | Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time | Second Reading | [1 Thessalonians 5:1-6](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/) | | [Sun, Dec 13, 2026](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2026/12/13/) | Third Sunday of Advent | Second Reading | [1 Thessalonians 5:16-24](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/5/) | | [Tue, Jan 12, 2027](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2027/01/12/) | Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | [1 Thessalonians 2:13](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/2/) | | [Thu, May 20, 2027](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2027/05/20/) | Thursday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | [1 Thessalonians 2:13](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/2/) | | [Fri, Aug 13, 2027](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2027/08/13/) computed | Friday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | [See 1 Thessalonians 2:13](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/2/) | | [Mon, Aug 23, 2027](https://blessbible.app/calendar/2027/08/23/) computed | Monday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time | First Reading | [1 Thessalonians 1:1-5, 8b-10](https://blessbible.app/bible/1-thessalonians/1/) | Citations as published in the USCCB liturgical calendar (principal Mass, first option). Dates after May 31, 2027 are computed by Bless from the US Lectionary cycle — confirm with your parish. [Previous book The Letter to the Colossians](https://blessbible.app/bible/colossians/) [Next book The Second Letter to the Thessalonians](https://blessbible.app/bible/2-thessalonians/)