⁴ Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.^(A)

The Man of Lawlessness

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)

³ Don’t let anyone deceive you^(A) in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion^(B) occurs and the man of lawlessness^[a] is revealed,^(C) the man doomed to destruction. ⁴ He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God^(D) or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.^(E)

⁵ Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things?^{(F) 6} And now you know what is holding him back,^(G) 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^(H) will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. ⁸ And then the lawless one will be revealed,^(I) whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth^(J) and destroy by the splendor of his coming.^{(K) 9} The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan^(L) works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders^(M) that serve the lie, ¹⁰ and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing.^(N) They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.^(O)

Warnings Against Denying the Son

¹⁸ Dear children, this is the last hour;^(A) and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming,^(B) even now many antichrists have come.^(C) This is how we know it is the last hour.

²² Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son.^(A)

³ but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist,^(A) which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.^(B)

⁷ I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ^(A) as coming in the flesh,^(B) have gone out into the world.^(C) Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.^(D)

¹⁰ And the devil, who deceived them,^(A) was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur,^(B) where the beast^(C) and the false prophet^(D) had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.^(E)

¹⁴ Then death^(A) and Hades^(B) were thrown into the lake of fire.^(C) The lake of fire is the second death.^(D)