en_tn/1th/02/17.md

brothers

This means fellow Christians, including both men and women.

short hour

This phrase is a metaphoric hyperbole for a short time. The actual time was months, not hours. Alternate translation: "short time" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metaphor and rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-hyperbole)

in person not in heart

Here "heart" represents thoughts and emotions. Though Paul and those traveling with him were not present physically in Thessalonica, they continued to care and think about the believers there. Alternate translation: "in person, but we continued to think about you" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-metonymy)

to see your faces

Here "face" represents the entire person. Alternate translation: "to see you" or "to be with you" (See: rc://en/ta/man/jit/figs-synecdoche)