The Jewishness of St. Paul

We will read 2 Thessalonians this week. Scholars generally agree that St. Paul wrote this epistle in 52 A.D. in Corinth. This was the MO (Mode of Operation) of St. Paul. He travelled along the communication network of the Empire. He built up churches along the way but he did not stay. He would assign his coworkers to consolidate what he had begun. When these local churches needed any help, they would appeal to the Apostle for support. Therefore, Paul would either write to them or visit them in person. This epistle is one of the earliest Pauline epistles. It shows that Paul's thoughts were evolving. In his early years after conversion, he was still pretty much a Pharisee, very knowledgeable about the Torah, the first 5 books of the Bible. So, when he 'quoted' Torah passages,  he simply translated them into Greek in his own words. As for the other books, such as Psalm, he would copy from the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Scripture in 200 B.C. Moreover, his theology was very Jewish at this stage. This is shown very clearly in chapter one.
Paul begins with his usual manners of greeting. First of all, he praised the Thessalonians for their unfailing faith and steadfast love. These were not theological abstractions but painful experiences under persecution. It was admirable of the Thessalonian Christians to endure sufferings and still retained their faith.
Therefore we ourselves boast of you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions which you are enduring (2 Thessalonians 1:4).
Then came Paul, the Pharisee.
since indeed God deems it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you (2 Thessalonians 1:6).
Instead of praying for those who persecuted them (e.g. Matthew 5:44), St. Paul encouraged them that God would revenge for them. This agreed much with many psalms which call on God to vindicate the author. His God was still a wrathful God of justice, unlike the Christian God of mercy. Even in his more mature writings where he encouraged the believers not to take revenge in their own hand but leave it to God, to treat their enemies kindly because in so doing, they were heaping burning coals on the heads of their enemies (Romans 12:19-20). The motive was still vengeance on the enemy and not kindness to the neighbour.
After all, the Christian ideal is an ideal. The Jewish attitude is more down to earth. They are more concerned with justice. For them, God is more righteous than being merciful. With this mentality, difficult life is more bearable because God would fight for you, would vindicate your innocence. Seeing our persecutors persecuted would soothe our injured heart and boost our crestfallen spirit.
They shall suffer the punishment of eternal destruction and exclusion from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might (2 Thessalonians 1:9).

My dear Advocate, You are the Spirit of Truth and Love. Remove our hearts of stone and enkindle a loving heart in us so that we are able to unite even with enemies just like brothers. Amen.