2 Thessalonians 2
1 We ask you, Family, about the arrival of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering to hima 2 for you not to be shaken hastily from your way of thinking or to be frightened, neither by a spirit-breathb nor by something spoken nor by a letter received as if from us implying that the Lord’s Day is already here. 3 May no one deceive you by any methodc since it has not come unless the defection has happened first and the Person of Torahlessnessd has been revealed, the heir of destruction,e 4 the one who is against and elevates themselves over everything referred to as a god or an object of devotion, going so far as to seat themselves in the temple of Godf to display themselves there as evidence that they are a god. 5 Don’t you remember that I told you these things while I was still with you? 6 And now you have come to understand what is holding them back until they are revealed at the proper moment. 7 The unrecognizedg Torahlessness is already being enacted. The one holding it backh only does so for now until theyi get out of the way.j 8 Then the Torahless one will be revealed—whom the Lord will do away with through the breath of his mouth and counteract them with the remarkable displayk of his arrival— 9 whose arrival corresponds with the work of the Adversary with every powerful act and dramatic demonstrationl and impressive but deceptive featm 10 and with every unjust deceptionn done by those who are being destroyed because they did not accept love of trutho for them to be liberated. 11 Because of this, God sends opportunities for actionsp that lead away from the Pathq for them to do to be faithful to the lie 12 so that all those who are not faithful to the truth but rather think injustice seems good would be given a verdict.
13 We owe it to God to express gratituder for you all the time, Family loved by the Lord, because God appointed you from the beginning for liberation associated with being designated as sacred through the Life-breath and faithfulness to the truth 14 to which he called you, in fact, through our triumphant message to obtain our Lord Jesus Christ’s renown. 15 Therefore, Family, stand firm and hold on to the teachings we passed down to you, whether by speech or through our letter. 16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and our Father God, who loved us and generously gave agelong encouragement and joyful hope, 17 encourage and make your hearts secure with every beneficial thing you do or say.
FOOTNOTES:
a The Greek is episunagoge epi auton. The Greek sunagoge means gathering together generally, and a Jewish religious gathering or the place where that gathering occurs (synagogue) specifically. The prefix epi- indicates that the gathering will be at a particular place, and the epi auton indicates that ‘the Lord Jesus Christ’ is the designated location for gathering, wherever he is located at the time.
b Perhaps, ‘whisper’? Matthew 12 also uses this Greek word pneuma in a way that seems to be about harmful attitudes and speech but is also personified as something that can wander and plan. Whether the audience should interpret this as something with a conscious will or as the breath that flows as someone speaks dubious words is unclear.
c Very literally, ‘in connection with any manner.’ It’s not about the subject matter but the method of conveying the deceptive information, referring to the previous verse in which three possible methods were listed.
d In the Greek Bible, nomos literally means ‘law’ but should nearly always be understood to refer to Torah, the five books of Moses with an emphasis on the portions of teaching and direction provided by Moses.
e See Deuteronomy 28-30. Literally, it means ‘son of destruction,’ perhaps being used to describe one who has aligned themselves with destruction, promoting it, similar to the use of ‘Sons of Liberty’ during the American Revolution to refer to a group of people dedicated to promoting liberty.
f References to Isaiah 14:13-14, Daniel 11:36, and Ezekiel 28:2-9.
g This is the same word translated in other places as mystery. However, it has a wider meaning of anything not perceived.
h “What is holding back” in verse 6 is neuter, but ‘the one holding back’ in verse 7 is masculine. It’s difficult to know whether to translate it with a pronoun for a person/being or ‘it’ for a phenomenon/event/impersonal force.
i ‘They’ is being used as a neuter singular pronoun since the identity of the one holding back is not identified explicitly, though many theories exist. No pronoun is actually present in the Greek; it is being included for clarity in translation, but it is risky since it may be better as ‘he’ or ‘it.’
j Literally, ‘out from the middle.’ Some take this to mean something like ‘out of the middle of the road,’ removing the obstruction, which seems most likely from context, but others take it to mean something like ‘out from the middle of you/the world’ and removing something or someone from being present with the church or the whole population. Which way the translator’s interpretation leans determines how it gets translated into English.
k The Greek word translated as ‘remarkable display’ is epiphaneia, where the word ‘epiphany’ comes from. It refers to a notable or memorable event that discloses, reveals, or displays something. It is something that draws attention.
l Or ‘sign,’ meaning a distinguishing mark or token to identify someone or as evidence of their importance or authority
m Or ‘deceptive wonder’ or ‘false omen’
n Or ‘deceptive injustice.’ Though many translations use the word ‘evil’ or ‘wicked,’ it is adikia, ‘injustice.’
o ‘Love,’ agape, is not about an attraction to something but a commitment to pursue its benefit, to nurture it, support it, help it thrive.
p Literally, ‘actions’ or ‘works’ or ‘efforts.’ The word ‘opportunities’ is present as an interpretive clarification, that from the context it seems they are choosing this Path on their own, not being forced by a divine puppet master.
q More literally, ‘misleading’ but the context shows it is less about them misunderstanding about how the way they live deviates from God’s ways.
r Or ‘giving thanks’