1 Thessalonians 5:26

Greet. Gr. aspazomai, “to salute,” “to greet” (Matt. 5:47; Mark 9:15; Rom. 16:3, 6; etc.).

All the brethren. Some of the members were weak, but Paul, from the depth of his brotherly love, wishes all to be included in his greeting.

Holy kiss. In the East, especially, the kiss was a common mode of expressing love and friendship in greeting (see Luke 7:45; Acts 20:37). The “holy kiss,” or “kiss of charity” (1 Peter 5:14), was a symbol of Christian affection. It seems to have become a custom with early Christians to exchange this greeting at the time of the Lord’s Supper (Justin Martyr First Apology 65). Later writings indicate that it was not the custom to give this “holy kiss” to one of the opposite sex (Apostolic Constitutions ii. 57; viii. 11).