2 Our Christian friends, we must explain something now about the time when our Lord Jesus Christ will return. That is the time when he will bring us all together to be with him. 2 Please do not become easily confused about this. Do not let yourselves become afraid because of false messages about the Lord's return. Some people are telling you that the great day of the Lord's return has already happened. [ a ] Some of these people say that God's Spirit has shown them a message like that. Other people might say that the message came from us. Or they might say that we wrote it in a letter. [ b ]
3 Do not let anyone deceive you like that in any way. That day will not happen until certain other things have happened. Before that day, there will be a time when many people will turn against God. Also, the man who is completely against God will appear. [ c ] God will surely destroy him in the end. 4 This man will be God's great enemy. He will say that he is greater than everything that people call their gods. He will say that he is greater than everything that people worship. As a result, he will even go into the temple. He will sit down there like a king. He will tell everyone that he himself is God.
5 I told you these things when I was with you. I am sure that you remember that.
6 Something makes it impossible for this man to come now. And you know what it is. But this man will appear at the proper time. 7 His power is already working secretly to turn people against God. But there is someone who makes it impossible for him to work freely. That person will continue to make it impossible, until God takes that person away. 8 Then the man who is against God will appear. But the Lord Jesus will come, and he will kill that man. Jesus will blow him away with breath from his mouth. When Jesus appears with great power, that enemy of God will be there no longer! [ d ]
9 When the enemy of God appears, he will be doing Satan's work. Satan will give him the power to do great things and miracles that are false. 10 He will do all kinds of bad things that deceive people. The people that he deceives are people that God will destroy. Those people believe false things because they have refused to accept God's true message. If they had loved that true message, God would have saved them. 11 For this reason, God causes their minds to accept something that is wrong. They believe a false message. 12 As a result, God will punish all of them. They have refused to believe what is true. Instead, they have enjoyed doing very bad things.
13 We always thank God for you, our Christian friends that the Lord loves. We ought to thank God, because he has chosen to save you. God chose you to belong to him, as some of the first people that he would save. You believed God's true message. And God's Spirit makes you separate from things that are bad. 14 We told you God's good news. That is how God called you to come to him. He saved you so that you would join with our Lord Jesus Christ in heaven.
15 Because of that, our Christian friends, you must continue to trust Christ. Continue to believe the true things that we taught you. Those are the things that we told you when we were with you. We also wrote about them in our letter to you.
16 We ask our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, our Father, to help you. God has shown that he loves us very much. He has helped us to be brave and strong for all time. We continue to hope for the good things that will come. Yes, God has been very kind to us! 17 We pray that he will continue to help you and make you strong. Then you will always be able to do good things and to say good things.
2 Brothers and sisters, we have something to say about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We want to talk to you about that time when we will meet together with him. 2 Don’t let yourselves be easily upset or worried if you hear that the day of the Lord has already come. Someone might say that this idea came from us—in something the Spirit told us, or in something we said, or in a letter we wrote. 3 Don’t be fooled by anything they might say. That day of the Lord will not come until the turning away from God happens. And that day will not come until the Man of Evil appears, the one who belongs to hell. [ a ] 4 He will stand against and put himself above everything that people worship or think is worthy of worship. He will even go into God’s Temple [ b ] and sit there, claiming that he is God.
5 I told you before that all these things would happen. Remember? 6 And you know what is stopping that Man of Evil now. He is being stopped now so that he will appear at the right time. 7 The secret power of evil is already working in the world now. But there is one who is stopping that secret power of evil. And he will continue to stop it until he is taken out of the way. 8 Then that Man of Evil will appear. But the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath that comes from his mouth. The Lord will come in a way that everyone will see, and that will be the end of the Man of Evil.
9 When that Man of Evil comes, it will be the work of Satan. He will come with great power, and he will do all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders. 10 The Man of Evil will use every kind of evil to fool those who are lost. They are lost because they refused to love the truth and be saved. 11 So God will send them something powerful that leads them away from the truth and causes them to believe a lie. 12 They will all be condemned because they did not believe the truth and because they enjoyed doing evil.
13 Brothers and sisters, you are people the Lord loves. And we always thank God for you. That’s what we should do, because God chose you to be some of the first people [ c ] to be saved. You are saved by the Spirit making you holy and by your faith in the truth. 14 God chose you to have that salvation. He chose you by using the Good News that we told you. You were chosen so that you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So, brothers and sisters, stand strong and continue to believe the teachings we gave you when we were there and by letter.
16-17 We pray that the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father will comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say. God loved us and gave us through his grace a wonderful hope and comfort that has no end.
2 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
16 Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
17 Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.
2 Now we ask you, ( A ) brothers and sisters , regarding the [ a ] ( B ) coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our ( C ) gathering together to Him, 2 that you not be quickly shaken from your [ b ] composure or be disturbed either by a ( D ) spirit, or a [ c ] ( E ) message, or a ( F ) letter as if from us, to the effect that ( G ) the day of the Lord ( H ) has come. 3 ( I ) No one is to deceive you in any way! For it will not come unless the [ d ] ( J ) apostasy comes first, and the ( K ) man of lawlessness is revealed, the ( L ) son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above [ e ] ( M ) every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, ( N ) displaying himself as being God. 5 Do you not remember that ( O ) while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? 6 And you know ( P ) what restrains him now, so that he will be revealed in his time. 7 For ( Q ) the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only [ f ] ( R ) He who now restrains will do so until [ g ] He is [ h ] removed. 8 Then that lawless one ( S ) will be revealed, whom the Lord will eliminate ( T ) with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the ( U ) appearance of His [ i ] coming; 9 that is , the one whose [ j ] coming is in accord with the activity of ( V ) Satan, with all power and false [ k ] ( W ) signs and wonders, 10 and with [ l ] all the deception of wickedness for ( X ) those who perish, because they did not accept the love of ( Y ) the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason ( Z ) God [ m ] will send upon them [ n ] a ( AA ) deluding influence so that they will believe [ o ] what is false, 12 in order that they all may be [ p ] judged who ( AB ) did not believe the truth, but [ q ] ( AC ) took pleasure in wickedness.
13 ( AD ) But we should always give thanks to God for you, ( AE ) brothers and sisters beloved by the Lord, because ( AF ) God has chosen you [ r ] from the beginning ( AG ) for salvation [ s ] ( AH ) through sanctification [ t ] by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 14 It was for this He ( AI ) called you through ( AJ ) our gospel, [ u ] that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So then, brothers and sisters , ( AK ) stand firm and ( AL ) hold on to the traditions which you were taught, whether ( AM ) by word of mouth or ( AN ) by letter [ v ] from us.
16 ( AO ) Now may our Lord Jesus Christ ( AP ) Himself and God our Father, who has ( AQ ) loved us and given us eternal comfort and ( AR ) good hope by grace, 17 ( AS ) comfort and ( AT ) strengthen your hearts in every good work and word.
2 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ ( A ) and our being gathered to him, ( B ) we ask you, brothers and sisters, 2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by the teaching allegedly from us—whether by a prophecy or by word of mouth or by letter ( C ) —asserting that the day of the Lord ( D ) has already come. ( E ) 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you ( F ) in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion ( G ) occurs and the man of lawlessness [ a ] is revealed, ( H ) the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God ( I ) or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. ( J )
5 Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? ( K ) 6 And now you know what is holding him back, ( L ) so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back ( M ) will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, ( N ) whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth ( O ) and destroy by the splendor of his coming. ( P ) 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan ( Q ) works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders ( R ) that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. ( S ) They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. ( T ) 11 For this reason God sends them ( U ) a powerful delusion ( V ) so that they will believe the lie ( W ) 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness. ( X )
13 But we ought always to thank God for you, ( Y ) brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits [ b ] ( Z ) to be saved ( AA ) through the sanctifying work of the Spirit ( AB ) and through belief in the truth. 14 He called you ( AC ) to this through our gospel, ( AD ) that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15 So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm ( AE ) and hold fast to the teachings [ c ] we passed on to you, ( AF ) whether by word of mouth or by letter.
16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, ( AG ) who loved us ( AH ) and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, 17 encourage ( AI ) your hearts and strengthen ( AJ ) you in every good deed and word.
