1 O ur Lord Jesus Christ is coming again. We will be gathered together to meet Him. But we ask you, Christian brothers,

But relative to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and our gathering together to Him, we beg you, brethren,

2 d o not be troubled in mind or worried by the talk you hear. Some say that the Lord has already come. People may say that I wrote this in a letter or that a spirit told them.

Not to allow your minds to be quickly unsettled or disturbed or kept excited or alarmed, whether it be by some revelation of Spirit or by word or by letter from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has arrived and is here.

3 D o not let anyone fool you. For the Lord will not come again until many people turn away from God. Then the leader of those who break the law will come. He is the man of sin.

Let no one deceive or beguile you in any way, for that day will not come except the apostasy comes first '> falling away of those who have professed to be Christians has come], and the man of lawlessness (sin) is revealed, who is the son of doom (of perdition),

4 H e works against and puts himself above every kind of god that is worshiped. He will take his seat in the house of God and say that he himself is God.

Who opposes and exalts himself so proudly and insolently against and over all that is called God or that is worshiped, taking his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming that he himself is God.

5 D o you not remember that while I was with you, I told you this?

Do you not recollect that when I was still with you, I told you these things?

6 Y ou know the power that is keeping the man of sin back now. The man of sin will come only when his time is ready.

And now you know what is restraining him; it is so that he may be manifested (revealed) in his own time.

7 F or the secret power of breaking the law is already at work in the world. But that secret power can only do so much until the One Who keeps back the man of sin is taken out of the way.

For the mystery of lawlessness (that hidden principle of rebellion against constituted authority) is already at work in the world, restrained only until he who restrains is taken out of the way.

8 T hen this man of sin will come. The Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath of His mouth. The coming of Christ will put an end to him.

And then the lawless one (the antichrist) will be revealed and the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of His mouth and bring him to an end by His appearing at His coming.

9 S atan will use this man of sin. He will have Satan’s power. He will do strange things and many powerful works that will be false.

The coming is through the activity and working of Satan and will be attended by great power and with all sorts of miracles and signs and delusive marvels— lying wonders—

10 T hose who are lost in sin will be fooled by the things he can do. They are lost in sin because they did not love the truth that would save them.

And by unlimited seduction to evil and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing (going to perdition) because they did not welcome the Truth but refused to love it that they might be saved.

11 F or this reason, God will allow them to follow false teaching so they will believe a lie.

Therefore God sends upon them a misleading influence, a working of error and a strong delusion to make them believe what is false,

12 T hey will all be guilty as they stand before God because they wanted to do what was wrong. You Belong to Those Who Believe the Truth

In order that all may be judged and condemned who did not believe in the Truth, but took pleasure in unrighteousness.

13 C hristian brothers, the Lord loves you. We always thank God for you. It is because God has chosen you from the beginning to save you from the punishment of sin. He chose to make you holy by the Holy Spirit and to give you faith to believe the truth.

But we, brethren beloved by the Lord, ought and are obligated to give thanks always to God for you, because God chose you from the beginning as His firstfruits (first converts) for salvation through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and belief in (adherence to, trust in, and reliance on) the Truth.

14 I t was by our preaching the Good News that you were chosen. He chose you to share the shining-greatness of our Lord Jesus Christ.

to this end that He called you through our Gospel, so that you may obtain and share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah).

15 S o then, Christian brothers, keep a strong hold on what we have taught you by what we have said and by what we have written.

So then, brethren, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions and instructions which you were taught by us, whether by our word of mouth or by letter.

16 O ur Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father loves us. Through His loving-favor He gives us comfort and hope that lasts forever.

Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, Who loved us and gave us everlasting consolation and encouragement and well-founded hope through grace (unmerited favor),

17 M ay He give your hearts comfort and strength to say and do every good thing.

Comfort and encourage your hearts and strengthen them in every good work and word.