independentparticipialrelativepurposecausecomparativecontentconditionaldashed = verbless / suspended
Flush-left = a main (independent) clause. Each dependent line begins directly beneath the word it attaches to in the line above — the anchor word is dotted-underlined, and lights up when you hover its dependent clause; each tag also names the attachment. A dashed border marks verbless, elliptical, or suspended lines. Where a long sentence's staircase runs wider than the page, the diagram scrolls sideways. (In print, or without JavaScript, lines fall back to stepped indent columns.)
Pray for us — that the word may run 3:1–2
1
Τὸ λοιπὸν προσεύχεσθε, ἀδελφοί, περὶ ἡμῶν,independent — Τὸ λοιπόν the transitional adverbial accusative — the request turns reciprocal: Paul has just prayed for them (2:16–17)
ἵνα ὁ λόγος τοῦ κυρίου τρέχῃ καὶ δοξάζηταιcontent — ἵνα gives the content of the petition, not strict purpose; τρέχῃ the athletic figure (Ps 147:15) — the word speeding unhindered
καθὼς καὶ πρὸς ὑμᾶς,comparative — elliptical comparison — their own reception of the word is the prayer's benchmark
2
καὶ ἵνα ῥυσθῶμεν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀτόπων καὶ πονηρῶν ἀνθρώπων·content — the second petition — ῥύομαι, the deliverance verb of the Lord's Prayer; ἄτοπος, literally 'out of place'
οὐ γὰρ πάντων ἡ πίστις.cause — verbless maxim grounding the petition — a litotes: many refuse the gospel; πίστις sets up the wordplay of v. 3
The faithful Lord — and confidence in him 3:3–5
3
πιστὸς δέ ἐστιν ὁ κύριος,independent — the hinge wordplay — fronted πιστός answers the failed πίστις of v. 2: where people lack faith, the Lord keeps it
ὃς στηρίξει ὑμᾶς καὶ φυλάξει ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ.relative — two predictive futures — στηρίζω as in 2:17; τοῦ πονηροῦ read as personal, the evil one (Matt 6:13), answering the πονηροί of v. 2
4
πεποίθαμεν δὲ ἐν κυρίῳ ἐφ' ὑμᾶς,independent — intensive perfect — settled trust, located ἐν κυρίῳ rather than in the readers themselves; a captatio before the commands
ὅτι ἃ παραγγέλλομεν καὶ ποιεῖτε καὶ ποιήσετε.content — the confidence's content — παραγγέλλω sounds for the first time, anticipating vv. 6, 10, 12
5
Ὁ δὲ κύριος κατευθύναι ὑμῶν τὰς καρδίας εἰς τὴν ἀγάπην τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ εἰς τὴν ὑπομονὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ.independent — volitive optative wish-prayer — both debated genitives read subjectively: God's own love, Christ's own endurance as pattern; the objective readings remain possible
Keep away from the idle — the apostolic example 3:6–10
6
Παραγγέλλομεν δὲ ὑμῖν, ἀδελφοί, ἐν ὀνόματι τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ,independent — the chapter's central charge, weighted by the full solemn name — the command carries the Lord's own authority
στέλλεσθαι ὑμᾶς ἀπὸ παντὸς ἀδελφοῦcontent — the command's content — στέλλομαι, to shorten sail away from; the offender still named ἀδελφός (cf. v. 15)
ἀτάκτως περιπατοῦντος καὶ μὴ κατὰ τὴν παράδοσινparticipial — attributive participle — ἀτάκτως the military word for breaking ranks; in this letter, idleness as insubordination
ἣν παρελάβοσαν παρ' ἡμῶν.relative — on παράδοσιν, the apostolic instruction (cf. 2:15) — παρελάβοσαν, the Hellenistic -οσαν third plural
vv. 7–9 — the ground: the example they saw, the right waived to make a τύπος
7
αὐτοὶ γὰρ οἴδατεcause — γάρ grounds the command in their own firsthand knowledge
πῶς δεῖ μιμεῖσθαι ἡμᾶς,content — indirect question — the imitation motif of the Thessalonian letters (1 Thess 1:6)
ὅτι οὐκ ἠτακτήσαμεν ἐν ὑμῖνcause — the imitation's ground — ἀτακτέω, cognate with ἀτάκτως (v. 6): the apostles did not break ranks
8
οὐδὲ δωρεὰν ἄρτον ἐφάγομεν παρά τινος,cause — coordinate with v. 7b — δωρεάν, gratis; ἄρτον φαγεῖν, bread as livelihood, anticipating v. 12
ἀλλ' ἐν κόπῳ καὶ μόχθῳ νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας ἐργαζόμενοιparticipial — the positive counter — κόπος καὶ μόχθος as in 1 Thess 2:9; the participle carries the sentence's weight
πρὸς τὸ μὴ ἐπιβαρῆσαί τινα ὑμῶν·purpose — πρὸς τό + infinitive — the labor's aim: no one's upkeep imposed on the church
9
οὐχ ὅτι οὐκ ἔχομεν ἐξουσίαν,cause — the corrective — the apostolic right to support (1 Cor 9:4–18) is owned even while waived
ἀλλ' ἵνα ἑαυτοὺς τύπον δῶμεν ὑμῖνpurpose — the real motive, set at equal depth against οὐχ ὅτι — τύπος, the impress to be copied
εἰς τὸ μιμεῖσθαι ἡμᾶς.purpose — εἰς τό + infinitive — the modelling's goal, μιμεῖσθαι closing the ring with v. 7
v. 10 — the rule already given in person
10
καὶ γὰρ ὅτε ἦμεν πρὸς ὑμᾶς, τοῦτο παρηγγέλλομεν ὑμῖν,cause — second γάρ-ground — customary imperfect, a standing charge; cataphoric τοῦτο points to the quoted rule
ὅτι εἴ τις οὐ θέλει ἐργάζεσθαιconditional — the protasis leans on the imperative below; recitative ὅτι opens the quotation; οὐ θέλει — unwillingness, not inability, is censured
μηδὲ ἐσθιέτω.content — the quoted apodosis under παρηγγέλλομεν — a maxim, perhaps proverbial: no willing work, no bread at the community's expense
The idle addressed — the faithful encouraged 3:11–13
11
ἀκούομεν γάρ τινας περιπατοῦντας ἐν ὑμῖν ἀτάκτως,independent — the occasion — a current report; περιπατοῦντας in indirect discourse after ἀκούομεν: the case of v. 6 is now actual
μηδὲν ἐργαζομένους ἀλλὰ περιεργαζομένους·participial — the famous pun kept on one line — not ἐργαζόμενοι but περιεργαζόμενοι: not working but working around others' business
12
τοῖς δὲ τοιούτοις παραγγέλλομεν καὶ παρακαλοῦμεν ἐν κυρίῳ Ἰησοῦ Χριστῷ,independent — authority paired with appeal — the offenders addressed directly but as family, ἐν κυρίῳ as in v. 6
ἵνα μετὰ ἡσυχίας ἐργαζόμενοι τὸν ἑαυτῶν ἄρτον ἐσθίωσιν.content — the remedy — ἡσυχία against the meddling of v. 11; τὸν ἑαυτῶν ἄρτον answering the unearned bread of v. 8
13
Ὑμεῖς δέ, ἀδελφοί, μὴ ἐγκακήσητε καλοποιοῦντες.independent — emphatic Ὑμεῖς turns to the faithful majority — ἐγκακέω, do not begin to flag; others' abuse must not sour well-doing
If anyone disobeys — mark, withdraw, admonish 3:14–15
14
εἰ δέ τις οὐχ ὑπακούει τῷ λόγῳ ἡμῶν διὰ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς,conditional — forward-leaning protasis — the letter itself (cf. v. 17) now bears the apostolic word
τοῦτον σημειοῦσθε,independent — the apodosis — σημειόω, mark for the congregation's attention (from σημεῖον, cf. v. 17)
μὴ συναναμίγνυσθαι αὐτῷ,content — epexegetic infinitive spelling out the marking (cf. 1 Cor 5:9, 11) — read with σημειοῦσθε, not as a free imperatival infinitive
ἵνα ἐντραπῇ·purpose — the withdrawal's aim — ἐντρέπω, a remedial shame meant to turn him, not destroy him
15
καὶ μὴ ὡς ἐχθρὸν ἡγεῖσθε,independent — the discipline fenced — καί with adversative force; the category ἐχθρός explicitly refused
ἀλλὰ νουθετεῖτε ὡς ἀδελφόν.independent — νουθετέω, corrective counsel — the offender remains ἀδελφός (v. 6), the goal his recovery
Peace, the autograph, and grace 3:16–18
16
Αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ κύριος τῆς εἰρήνης δῴη ὑμῖν τὴν εἰρήνην διὰ παντὸς ἐν παντὶ τρόπῳ.independent — wish-prayer with the rare optative δῴη — 'the Lord of peace' beside 'the God of peace' (1 Thess 5:23); peace for a church strained by discipline
ὁ κύριος μετὰ πάντων ὑμῶν.independent — verbless benediction (cf. Ruth 2:4) — πάντων embracing even the disciplined
17
Ὁ ἀσπασμὸς τῇ ἐμῇ χειρὶ Παύλου,independent — the pen taken from the amanuensis (cf. 1 Cor 16:21; Gal 6:11) — pointed where a forged letter had been feared (2:2)
ὅ ἐστιν σημεῖον ἐν πάσῃ ἐπιστολῇ·relative — ὅ neuter, of the autograph practice itself — the authenticating σημεῖον of genuine Pauline mail
οὕτως γράφω.independent — the hand exhibited — 'this is what my script looks like'
18
ἡ χάρις τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μετὰ πάντων ὑμῶν.independent — the grace-benediction, again μετὰ πάντων — no one left outside its reach
Analysis. The chapter is a command-frame: παραγγέλλω sounds four times (vv. 4, 6, 10, 12), and the layout sets its directive heads flush left — Παραγγέλλομεν δὲ ὑμῖν (v. 6), τοῖς δὲ τοιούτοις παραγγέλλομεν καὶ παρακαλοῦμεν (v. 12), τοῦτον σημειοῦσθε (v. 14). It opens reciprocally: προσεύχεσθε carries two ἵνα-columns read as the content of the petition rather than strict purpose (the word running and being glorified, the writers rescued), the second grounded by the dashed verbless maxim οὐ γὰρ πάντων ἡ πίστις — out of which v. 3 springs the wordplay the shape makes visible, faithless people answered by πιστὸς δὲ ὁ κύριος, with ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ taken as the personal evil one (Matt 6:13), not neuter 'evil.' In v. 5 both debated genitives are read subjectively: God's own love, Christ's own endurance as pattern. The core is the single deep chain of vv. 6–9: the command in the Lord's name descends through στέλλεσθαι to the disorderly brother and his flouted παράδοσις, and the γάρ-ground of v. 7 runs through οἴδατε and μιμεῖσθαι down five levels to the purpose of the night-and-day labor — v. 9's οὐχ ὅτι / ἀλλ' ἵνα pair hanging at equal depth under ἐφάγομεν, owning the apostolic right to support (1 Cor 9) even as it is waived to make a τύπος. Verse 10's remembered rule keeps the recitative ὅτι with the protasis, which leans forward on the bare quoted apodosis μηδὲ ἐσθιέτω under παρηγγέλλομεν; v. 11 leaves the pun intact on one line, μηδὲν ἐργαζομένους ἀλλὰ περιεργαζομένους. In v. 14 μὴ συναναμίγνυσθαι is read as epexegetic of σημειοῦσθε rather than a free imperatival infinitive, ἵνα ἐντραπῇ marking the shame as remedial, and v. 15's two flush-left imperatives fence the discipline — not an enemy, still a brother. The close stacks four flush-left benedictory lines, three of them dashed and verbless; ὅ in v. 17 is taken of the autograph practice itself, the σημεῖον in every letter against the forged word feared in 2:2.