1 Thessalonians 5:26 Commentary: A Holy Kiss

In the first-century Mediterranean world, a kiss on the cheek was a standard greeting among family and close friends. Jewish culture used it as a sign of peace and reconciliation (see Luke 7:45, Acts 20:37). Greek and Roman societies also practiced the kiss in both public and private settings. The early Christian church adopted this gesture but infused it with new meaning: it became a symbol of the spiritual kinship believers shared in Christ.

The kiss found a natural home in Christian worship. Justin Martyr, writing in the mid-second century, describes it as part of the liturgy before the Eucharist. By the time of Tertullian, it was called the osculum pacis (kiss of peace) and was omitted on Good Friday due to Judas’s betrayal. Early church councils regulated the practice to prevent abuse, men kissed men, women kissed women, to protect against suspicion and guard holiness.

In the epistle itself, verse 26 sits within Paul’s closing remarks. He has just asked for prayer (v. 25), then commands a public greeting that would be enacted as the letter was read aloud. Verse 27 solemnly charges that the letter be read to all the holy brothers, so the kiss likely followed that reading, a visible seal of the fellowship Paul had written to strengthen. The imperative “greet all the brothers” uses the aorist tense, pointing to a single, concrete action at that moment. The preposition en (“with a holy kiss”) denotes the instrument of greeting. This is not an abstract idea; it is embodied love.

The cultural form of the kiss changed over time and place. In the Western church it gradually faded by the Middle Ages, replaced by a handshake or bow. Eastern Orthodox and Oriental churches still use the kiss of peace during the Divine Liturgy. Paul’s command thus raises a question for every generation: how do we embody the same holy affection when our culture no longer shares that gesture?

The consulted sources note no significant textual variants in the Greek manuscripts for 1 Thessalonians 5:26. Adam Clarke mentions that the Coptic version reads “greet one another” instead of “all the brothers,” but this reading is not supported by the major Greek manuscripts cited by Griesbach and Wetstein. The standard Greek text is stable: aspasasthe tous adelphous pantas en philemati hagiō.

In the early church, the holy kiss was a regular part of worship. Justin Martyr described it in the second century as occurring after prayers and before the Eucharist. Tertullian called it the “sign of peace” and noted it was omitted on Good Friday. The practice spread throughout the Eastern churches, where it remains today at Easter and in the Divine Liturgy. In the medieval Western church, the kiss gradually disappeared, replaced by a gesture of peace or a handshake. Reformation commentators like Calvin and Matthew Henry treated it as a cultural expression of brotherly love, not a binding ceremony. Modern Western churches generally do not practice the literal kiss, but many have adopted a “passing of the peace” that echoes the same spirit. The verse continues to challenge Christians to ask how they can embody sincere, holy affection for one another in a way that their culture will understand.

Three-point outline

1. The command is inclusive. Paul says “all the brothers.” No exceptions, no factions. The greeting was to cross every social and personal boundary within the church.
2. The touch is holy. The kiss is hagios, set apart, pure, distinct from worldly or sensual affection. It belongs to the family of God.
3. The gesture points beyond itself. The physical kiss expressed spiritual reality: unity in Christ. It was a sign of the love that binds the body together.

Five-point outline

1. Context matters. The kiss was a normal greeting in the first-century East. Paul did not invent it; he sanctified it.
2. Paul takes the initiative. He does not say “kiss one another” (as in Romans 16:16, 1 Corinthians 16:20). He says “greet all the brothers”, the elders or readers were to extend his greeting through a kiss, making it personal.
3. Holiness guards against abuse. Early church rules separated men and women during the kiss. The adjective “holy” protects the gesture from becoming a pretext.
4. No brother is left out. “All” includes the weak, the marginal, the difficult. The kiss was a low-barrier way to include everyone.
5. The command remains; the form can adapt. The principle is mutual affection expressed in a culturally appropriate, sexually pure, and genuinely warm way.

Illustration hooks

• A handshake can be hollow. Many churchgoers shake hands every Sunday without actually knowing each other. Paul’s command invites us to upgrade the greeting from a bare form to a real exchange of love.
• Cultural calibrations. In some countries, a kiss on both cheeks is routine. In others, a hug or a pat on the back is the norm. The challenge is to find our culture’s equivalent and fill it with the same holiness.
• The wedding toast principle. A toast is a public sign of honor. The kiss was a public sign of belonging. When we greet one another warmly, we are toasting each other as family.

Questions your congregation is asking

• Do we have to kiss each other literally? If not, what replaces it?
• How do I show holy affection without making someone uncomfortable?
• Why does the Bible spend time on a greeting? Is this really that important?

Paul’s closing instruction seems simple: greet with a holy kiss. But behind it lies a deep conviction, the church is a family, and family touches. This short discussion helps your group think about how we express love in ways that are both genuine and appropriate.

Discussion questions

1. Read 1 Thessalonians 5:26 aloud. What stands out to you about this verse?
2. What do we learn from the cross-references (Romans 16:16, 1 Corinthians 16:20, 1 Peter 5:14) about how the early church greeted each other?
3. Why do you think Paul adds the word “holy” to the kiss? What difference does that adjective make?
4. In verse 27 he charges them to read the letter to all the brothers. How does the kiss connect to the reading of Scripture?
5. If the physical kiss is no longer our custom, what are modern equivalents that carry the same warmth and holiness?
6. How can a simple greeting become a genuine expression of Christian love rather than a routine?
7. Think of one person in your church family you find hard to greet warmly. What would it look like to extend Paul’s command to them this week?