1 Thessalonians 4:3-5

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5

[3] For  the will  of God,  sanctification,  from  fornication:  [4] That every one  should know  how to possess  his  vessel  in  sanctification  and  honour;  [5] Not  in  the lust  of concupiscence,  even  as  the Gentiles  which  know  not  God: 

What does 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The will of God for the Christian is clear. Positively it is sanctification, namely, a life set apart from sin unto God. Negatively it involves abstinence (self-denial) from all kinds of sexual behavior that is outside the prescribed will of God including adultery, premarital sex, homosexuality, etc. Rather than participating in these acts the believer should learn how to control his or her body and its passions in sanctification and with honor. We should not behave lustfully like Gentiles who do not have special revelation of God and His will. The Greeks practiced sexual immorality commonly and even incorporated it into their religious practices.
"Pagan religion did not demand sexual purity of its devotees, the gods and goddesses being grossly immoral. Priestesses were in the temples for the service of the men who came." [1]
"Long ago Demosthenes had written: "We keep prostitutes for pleasure; we keep mistresses for the day to day needs of the body; we keep wives for the begetting of children and for the faithful guardianship of our homes." So long as a man supported his wife and family there was no shame whatsoever in extra-marital relationships." [2]
"Chastity is not the whole of sanctification, but it is an important element in it ..." [3]
Another less probable interpretation of "possess his own vessel" ( 1 Thessalonians 4:4) sees the vessel as the wife of the addressee. [4] This view takes ktasthai ("possess") as "acquire," its normal meaning, and skeuos ("vessel") as "wife." The use of skeuos, "vessel," to describe one"s body is more common in Greek writings, and its use to describe a woman or wife is more common in Jewish writings. Elsewhere Paul never used skeuos to describe a wife but gune, "woman." [5] He used skeuos of one"s own body elsewhere ( Romans 9:22-23; 2 Corinthians 4:7; cf. 1 Samuel 21:5). Ktasthai can refer to one"s treatment of himself as well as his wife.