1 N ow, brothers, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together to him, we ask you

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

2 n ot to be quickly shaken in your mind, nor yet be troubled, either by spirit, or by word, or by letter as from us, saying that the day of Christ had come.

do 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.

3 L et no one deceive you in any way. For it will not be, unless the departure comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of destruction,

Do 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.

4 h e who opposes and exalts himself against all that is called God or that is worshiped; so that he sits as God in the temple of God, setting himself up as God.

He 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.

5 D on’t you remember that, when I was still with you, I told you these things?

Do you not remember that while I was with you, I told you this?

6 N ow you know what is restraining him, to the end that he may be revealed in his own season.

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

7 F or the mystery of lawlessness already works. Only there is one who restrains now, until he is taken out of the way.

For 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.

8 T hen the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will kill with the breath of his mouth, and destroy by the manifestation of his coming;

Then 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.

9 e ven he whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

Satan 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.

10 a nd with all deception of wickedness for those who are being lost, because they didn’t receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

Those 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.

11 B ecause of this, God sends them a working of error, that they should believe a lie;

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

12 t hat they all might be judged who didn’t believe the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

They 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

13 B ut we are bound to always give thanks to God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief in the truth;

Christian 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.

14 t o which he called you through our Good News, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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

15 S o then, brothers, stand firm, and hold the traditions which you were taught by us, whether by word, or by letter.

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

16 N ow our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace,

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

17 c omfort your hearts and establish you in every good work and word.

May He give your hearts comfort and strength to say and do every good thing.