New Testament
The Second Letter to the Thessalonians
The Second Letter to the Thessalonians is the fourteenth of the 27 books of the New Testament: 3 chapters and 46 verses.
About 2 Thessalonians
About 2 Thessalonians · Letter to a community
Second Thessalonians addresses a church rattled by claims that the day of the Lord had already come, with some members so sure of the end that they had stopped working. It comes down under Paul's name, with scholars divided over whether he or an early disciple wrote it. It was written to restore calm about the end times — certain signs must come first, and panic is not a Christian posture — and to restore common sense about the present: quiet work, steady hands, and no bread for those who refuse to labor.
| Testament | New Testament — book 14 of 27, 60 of 73 in the Bible |
|---|---|
| Canon | Protocanonical (in every Christian canon) |
| Chapters | 3 |
| Verses | 46, as Bless numbers them |
| Latin | Clementine Vulgate, 2 of 3 chapters |
| Bp. Challoner | Summaries of all 3 chapters · 6 notes |
| Catechism | 7 paragraphs cite it |
Chapter by chapter
All 3 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.
2 Thessalonians 1
12 versesHe gives thanks to God for their faith and constancy and prays for their advancement in all good.
2 Thessalonians 2
16 versesThe day of the Lord is not to come till the man of sin be revealed. The apostle's traditions are to be observed.
2 Thessalonians 3
18 versesHe begs their prayers and warns them against idleness.
Bp. Richard Challoner · chapter summaries
Coming up
Read at Mass.
From October 29, 2026 to October 28, 2027, 2 Thessalonians is read at the principal Mass on 4 days in the US calendar. The next 8 readings:
| Date | Celebration | Reading | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | See 2 Thessalonians 2:14 | |
| computed | Monday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | See 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | Cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | Wednesday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | See 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, Virgin | Alleluia | See 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | Second Sunday in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | St. Maximilian Kolbe, Priest and Martyr | Alleluia | See 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | St. Augustine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church | First Reading | 2 Thessalonians 1:1-5, 11-12 |
| computed | Passion of St. John the Baptist | First Reading | 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3a, 14-17 |
| computed | Wednesday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time | First Reading | 2 Thessalonians 3:6-10, 16-18 |
| computed | Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time | Second Reading | 2 Thessalonians 1:11—2:2 |
| computed | Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time | Second Reading | 2 Thessalonians 2:16—3:5 |
| computed | Saturday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time | Alleluia | See 2 Thessalonians 2:14 |
| computed | Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time | Second Reading | 2 Thessalonians 3:7-12 |
No more readings are listed here; the liturgical calendar has every date through December 31, 2028.
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.