<p>3:7 <i>For yourselves know how you ought to imitate us. For we ourselves did not behave disorderly among you</i>- As suggested on :6, the &quot;tradition&quot; received may have simply been in Paul's example, which the Lord intended his converts to imitate. The idea of consciously modelling, of having some characters as your heroes, your inspiration towards a closer following of God, was very much in Paul's thinking; and it would have been especially appropriate to an illiterate church who didn't have access to the completed New Testament and had been likely cast out of the synagogue where the Old Testament scrolls were located. This is why Paul realized that he was to be their example of Christian walk, and encourages them to follow his example. He several times uses the word 'mimicking', Greek <i>mimicos</i>, normally translated &quot;follow&quot; in the AV. This Greek word is used almost exclusively by Paul. &quot;You became <i>followers</i> of us and of the Lord.... you know how ye ought to <i>follow</i> us... an example unto you to <i>follow</i> us&quot; (1 Thess. 1:6; 2 Thess. 3:7,9; the implication could be that that in the gap between 1 and 2 Thessalonians, they stopped following Paul as they initially did straight after his conversion of them).</p>