1 O r sappi questo: che negli ultimi giorni verranno tempi difficili,

You must understand that in the last days there will come times of much trouble.

2 p erché gli uomini saranno amanti di se stessi, avidi di denaro, vanagloriosi superbi, bestemmiatori, disubbidienti ai genitori, ingrati, scellerati,

People will love themselves and money. They will have pride and tell of all the things they have done. They will speak against God. Children and young people will not obey their parents. People will not be thankful and they will not be holy.

3 s enza affetto, implacabili, calunniatori, intemperanti, crudeli, senza amore per il bene,

They will not love each other. No one can get along with them. They will tell lies about others. They will not be able to keep from doing things they know they should not do. They will be wild and want to beat and hurt those who are good.

4 t raditori, temerari, orgogliosi, amanti dei piaceri invece che amanti di Dio,

They will not stay true to their friends. They will act without thinking. They will think too much of themselves. They will love fun instead of loving God.

5 a venti l'apparenza della pietà, ma avendone rinnegato la potenza; da costoro allontanati.

They will do things to make it look as if they are Christians. But they will not receive the power that is for a Christian. Keep away from such people.

6 N el numero di questi infatti vi sono quelli che s'introducono nelle case e seducono donnicciole cariche di peccati, dominate da varie passioni,

These are the kind of people who go from house to house. They talk to foolish women who are loaded down with sins and all kinds of sinful desires.

7 l e quali imparano sempre, ma senza mai pervenire ad una piena conoscenza della verità.

Such women are always listening to new teaching. But they are never able to understand the truth.

8 O ra come Ianne e Iambre, si opposero a Mosé, cosí anche costoro si oppongono alla verità; uomini corrotti di mente e riprovati quanto alla fede.

Jannes and Jambres fought against Moses. So do these teachers fight against the truth today. Their minds think only of sinful things. They have turned against the Christian teaching.

9 C ostoro però non andranno molto avanti, perché la loro stoltezza sarà manifestata a tutti, come avvenne anche per quella di quei tali.

They will not get very far. Their foolish teaching will be seen by everyone. That was the way it was with the two who worked against Moses. Teach the Truth

10 M a tu hai seguito da vicino il mio ammaestramento, la mia condotta, i miei consigli, la mia fede, la mia pazienza, il mio amore, la mia perseveranza,

But you know what I teach and how I live. You know what I want to do. You know about my faith and my love. You know how long I am willing to wait for something. You know how I keep on working for God even when it is hard for me.

11 l e mie persecuzioni, le mie sofferenze, che mi sono accadute ad Antiochia, a Iconio e a Listra, tu sai quali persecuzioni ho sostenuto, ma il Signore mi ha liberato da tutte.

You know about all the troubles and hard times I have had. You have seen how I suffered in the cities of Antioch and Iconium and Lystra. Yet the Lord brought me out of all those troubles.

12 I nfatti tutti quelli che vogliono vivere piamente in Cristo Gesú saranno perseguitati,

Yes! All who want to live a God-like life who belong to Christ Jesus will suffer from others.

13 m a i malvagi e gli imbroglioni andranno di male in peggio, seducendo ed essendo sedotti.

Sinful men and false teachers will go from bad to worse. They will lead others the wrong way and will be led the wrong way themselves.

14 T u però persevera nelle cose che hai imparato e nelle quali sei stato confermato, sapendo da chi le hai imparate,

But as for you, hold on to what you have learned and know to be true. Remember where you learned them.

15 e che sin da bambino hai conosciuto le sacre Scritture, le quali ti possono rendere savio a salvezza, per mezzo della fede che è in Cristo Gesú.

You have known the Holy Writings since you were a child. They are able to give you wisdom that leads to being saved from the punishment of sin by putting your trust in Christ Jesus.

16 T utta la Scrittura è divinamente ispirata e utile a insegnare, a convincere, a correggere e a istruire nella giustizia,

All the Holy Writings are God-given and are made alive by Him. Man is helped when he is taught God’s Word. It shows what is wrong. It changes the way of a man’s life. It shows him how to be right with God.

17 a ffinché l'uomo di Dio sia completo, pienamente fornito per ogni buona opera.

It gives the man who belongs to God everything he needs to work well for Him.