2:13–14 · The second thanksgiving:The second thanksgiving begins almost identically to 1:3: “But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord” (2:13a). In this verse, Paul draws a sharp contrast between them and the ones who reject the truth and perish (2:10–12). The readers are “loved by the Lord,” the love of God being the foundation of their election (Deut. 4:37; 7:7–8; 10:15; Ps. 47:4; 78:68; Isa. 42:1; Matt. 12:18; Rom. 11:28; Eph. 1:4–5; Col. 3:12; 1 Thess. 1:4). The cause of the thanksgiving is this divine selection: “because God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth” (2:13b). Calling them “firstfruits” alludes to the first portion of a harvest or the firstborn of animals, whic…