2 Thessalonians 2

English Standard Version

The Man of Lawlessness

2 Now concerning ^(A)the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our ^(B)being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers,^[a] ²not to be quickly shaken in mind or ^(C)alarmed, either ^(D)by a spirit or a ^(E)spoken word, or ^(F)a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that ^(G)the day of the Lord has come. ³^(H)Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, ^(I)unless the rebellion comes first, and ^(J)the man of lawlessness^[b] is revealed, ^(K)the son of destruction,^[c] ⁴who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, ^(L)proclaiming himself to be God. ⁵Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? ⁶And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. ⁷For ^(M)the mystery of lawlessness ^(N)is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. ⁸And then ^(O)the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus ^(P)will kill with ^(Q)the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by ^(R)the appearance of his coming. ⁹The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan ^(S)with all power and false signs and wonders, ¹⁰and with all wicked deception for ^(T)those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. ¹¹Therefore ^(U)God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe ^(V)what is false, ¹²in order that all may be condemned ^(W)who did not believe the truth but ^(X)had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Stand Firm

¹³But ^(Y)we ought always to give thanks to God for you, ^(Z)brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you ^(AA)as the firstfruits^[d] ^(AB)to be saved, ^(AC)through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. ¹⁴To this he called you through ^(AD)our gospel, ^(AE)so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁵So then, brothers, ^(AF)stand firm and hold to ^(AG)the traditions that you were taught by us, either ^(AH)by our spoken word or by ^(AI)our letter.

¹⁶Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, ^(AJ)who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good ^(AK)hope through grace, ¹⁷comfort your hearts and ^(AL)establish them in every good work and word.

Footnotes

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 13, 15
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Some manuscripts sin
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Greek the son of perdition (a Hebrew idiom)
2 Thessalonians 2:13 Some manuscripts chose you from the beginning

Isaiah 14

English Standard Version

The Restoration of Jacob

14 ^(A)For the Lord will have compassion on Jacob and will again choose Israel, and ^(B)will set them in their own land, and ^(C)sojourners will join them and will attach themselves to the house of Jacob. ²And ^(D)the peoples will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them in the Lord's land ^(E)as male and female slaves.^[a] ^(F)They will take captive those who were their captors, ^(G)and rule over those who oppressed them.

Israel's Remnant Taunts Babylon

³When the Lord has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made to serve, ⁴you will take up this ^(H)taunt against the king of Babylon:

“How the oppressor has ceased,
    ^(I)the insolent fury^[b] ceased!
⁵The Lord has broken the ^(J)staff of the wicked,
    the ^(K)scepter of rulers,
⁶^(L)that struck the peoples in wrath
    with unceasing blows,
that ruled the nations in anger
    with unrelenting persecution.
⁷The whole earth is at rest and quiet;
    ^(M)they break forth into singing.
⁸^(N)^(O)The cypresses rejoice at you,
    ^(P)the cedars of Lebanon, saying,
‘Since you were laid low,
    no woodcutter comes up against us.’
⁹Sheol beneath is stirred up
    to meet you when you come;
it rouses the shades to greet you,
    all who were leaders of the earth;
it raises from their thrones
    all who were kings of the nations.
¹⁰^(Q)All of them will answer
    and say to you:
‘You too have become as weak as we!
    You have become like us!’
¹¹Your pomp is brought down to Sheol,
    the sound of your harps;
maggots are laid as a bed beneath you,
    and worms are your covers.

¹²“How ^(R)you are fallen from heaven,
    O Day Star, ^(S)son of Dawn!
How you are cut down to the ground,
    you who laid the nations low!
¹³You said in your heart,
    ^(T)‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
    ^(U)I will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
    in the far reaches of the north;^[c]
¹⁴I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
    I will make myself like the Most High.’
¹⁵^(V)But you are brought down to Sheol,
    to the far reaches of the pit.
¹⁶Those who see you will stare at you
    and ponder over you:
‘Is this ^(W)the man who made the earth tremble,
    who shook kingdoms,
¹⁷who made the world like a desert
    and overthrew its cities,
    ^(X)who did not let his prisoners go home?’
¹⁸All the kings of the nations lie in glory,
    each in his own tomb;^[d]
¹⁹but you are cast out, away from your grave,
    like a loathed branch,
^(Y)clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword,
    who go down to the stones of the pit,
    like a dead body trampled underfoot.
²⁰You will not be joined with them in burial,
    because you have destroyed your land,
    you have slain your people.

“May ^(Z)the offspring of evildoers
    nevermore be named!
²¹Prepare slaughter for his sons
    ^(AA)because of the guilt of their fathers,
lest they rise and possess the earth,
    and fill the face of the world with cities.”

²²“I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and will cut off from Babylon name and ^(AB)remnant, ^(AC)descendants and posterity,” declares the Lord. ²³“And I will make it a possession of the ^(AD)hedgehog,^[e] and pools of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of hosts.

An Oracle Concerning Assyria

²⁴The Lord of hosts has sworn:
^(AE)“As I have planned,
    so shall it be,
and as I have purposed,
    so shall it stand,
²⁵that ^(AF)I will break the Assyrian in my land,
    and on my mountains trample him underfoot;
and ^(AG)his yoke shall depart from them,
    and ^(AH)his burden from their shoulder.”

²⁶This is the purpose that is purposed
    concerning the whole earth,
and this is ^(AI)the hand that is stretched out
    over all the nations.
²⁷^(AJ)For the Lord of hosts has purposed,
    and who will annul it?
^(AK)His hand is stretched out,
    and who will turn it back?

An Oracle Concerning Philistia

²⁸In the year that ^(AL)King Ahaz died came this ^(AM)oracle:

²⁹Rejoice not, ^(AN)O Philistia, all of you,
    that ^(AO)the rod that struck you is broken,
for from the serpent's root will come forth an adder,
    and its fruit will be a ^(AP)flying fiery serpent.
³⁰And the firstborn of ^(AQ)the poor will graze,
    and ^(AR)the needy lie down in safety;
but I will kill your root with famine,
    and your remnant it will slay.
³¹^(AS)Wail, O ^(AT)gate; cry out, O city;
    melt in fear, ^(AU)O Philistia, all of you!
^(AV)For smoke comes out of the north,
    and there is no straggler in his ranks.

³²What will one answer the messengers of the nation?
^(AW)“The Lord has founded Zion,
and in her the afflicted of his people find refuge.”

Footnotes

Isaiah 14:2 Or servants
Isaiah 14:4 Dead Sea Scroll (compare Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate); the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain
Isaiah 14:13 Or in the remote parts of Zaphon
Isaiah 14:18 Hebrew house
Isaiah 14:23 Possibly porcupine, or owl

Ezekiel 28

English Standard Version

Prophecy Against the Prince of Tyre

28 The word of the Lord came to me: ²^(A)“Son of man, say to ^(B)the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord God:

^(C)“Because your heart is proud,
    and ^(D)you have said, ‘I am a god,
I sit in the seat of the gods,
    in the heart of the seas,’
yet ^(E)you are but a man, and no god,
    ^(F)though you make your heart like the heart of a god—
³^(G)you are indeed wiser ^(H)than ^(I)Daniel;
    no secret is hidden from you;
⁴by your wisdom and your understanding
    ^(J)you have made wealth for yourself,
and have gathered gold and silver
    into your treasuries;
⁵by your great wisdom in your trade
    you have increased your wealth,
    and ^(K)your heart has become proud in your wealth—
⁶therefore thus says the Lord God:
^(L)Because you make your heart
    like the heart of a god,
⁷therefore, behold, I will bring ^(M)foreigners upon you,
    the most ruthless of the nations;
and they shall draw their swords against ^(N)the beauty of your wisdom
    and defile ^(O)your splendor.
⁸^(P)They shall thrust you down into the pit,
    ^(Q)and you shall die the death of the slain
    in the heart of the seas.
⁹^(R)Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’
    in the presence of those who kill you,
though ^(S)you are but a man, and no god,
    in the hands of those who slay you?
¹⁰^(T)You shall die the death of the uncircumcised
    by the hand of foreigners;
    ^(U)for I have spoken, declares the Lord God.”

A Lament over the King of Tyre

¹¹Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me: ¹²^(V)“Son of man, ^(W)raise a lamentation over ^(X)the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord God:

“You were the signet of perfection,^[a]
    ^(Y)full of wisdom and ^(Z)perfect in beauty.
¹³You were in ^(AA)Eden, the garden of God;
    ^(AB)every precious stone was your covering,
^(AC)sardius, topaz, and diamond,
    beryl, onyx, and jasper,
sapphire,^[b] ^(AD)emerald, and carbuncle;
    and crafted in gold were your settings
    and your engravings.^[c]
^(AE)On the day that you were created
    they were prepared.
¹⁴You were an anointed ^(AF)guardian cherub.
    I placed you;^[d] you were on ^(AG)the holy mountain of God;
    in the midst of the stones of fire you walked.
¹⁵You were blameless in your ways
    ^(AH)from the day you were created,
    till unrighteousness was found in you.
¹⁶In the abundance of ^(AI)your trade
    you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned;
so I cast you as a profane thing from ^(AJ)the mountain of God,
    and I destroyed you,^[e] ^(AK)O guardian cherub,
    from the midst of the stones of fire.
¹⁷^(AL)Your heart was proud because of ^(AM)your beauty;
    you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor.
I cast you to the ground;
    I exposed you before kings,
    to feast their eyes on you.
¹⁸By the multitude of your iniquities,
    in the unrighteousness of your trade
    you profaned your sanctuaries;
so ^(AN)I brought fire out from your midst;
    it consumed you,
and I turned you to ashes on the earth
    ^(AO)in the sight of all who saw you.
¹⁹All who know you among the peoples
    are appalled at you;
^(AP)you have come to a dreadful end
    and shall be no more forever.”

Prophecy Against Sidon

²⁰The word of the Lord came to me: ²¹^(AQ)“Son of man, ^(AR)set your face toward ^(AS)Sidon, and ^(AT)prophesy against her ²²and say, Thus says the Lord God:

“Behold, ^(AU)I am against you, O Sidon,
    and ^(AV)I will manifest my glory in your midst.
And ^(AW)they shall know that I am the Lord
    ^(AX)when I execute judgments in her
    and ^(AY)manifest my holiness in her;
²³for I will send ^(AZ)pestilence into her,
    and blood into her streets;
and the slain shall fall in her midst,
    by the sword that is against her on every side.
Then they will know that I am the Lord.

²⁴“And for the house of Israel ^(BA)there shall be no more a brier to prick or ^(BB)a thorn to hurt them among all their neighbors ^(BC)who have treated them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the Lord God.

Israel Gathered in Security

²⁵“Thus says the Lord God: ^(BD)When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and ^(BE)manifest my holiness in them in the sight of the nations, ^(BF)then they shall dwell in their own land that I gave to my servant Jacob. ²⁶^(BG)And they shall dwell securely in it, and they shall build houses and plant vineyards. They shall dwell securely, ^(BH)when I execute judgments upon all their neighbors ^(BI)who have treated them with contempt. ^(BJ)Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.”

Footnotes

Ezekiel 28:12 The meaning of the Hebrew phrase is uncertain
Ezekiel 28:13 Or lapis lazuli
Ezekiel 28:13 The meaning of the Hebrew phrase is uncertain
Ezekiel 28:14 The meaning of the Hebrew phrase is uncertain
Ezekiel 28:16 Or banished you

Daniel 8

English Standard Version

Daniel's Vision of the Ram and the Goat

8 In the third year of the reign of ^(A)King Belshazzar a vision appeared to me, Daniel, ^(B)after that which appeared to me ^(C)at the first. ²And I saw in the vision; and when I saw, I was in ^(D)Susa the citadel, which is in the province of ^(E)Elam. And ^(F)I saw in the vision, ^(G)and I was at the ^(H)Ulai canal. ³I raised my eyes and saw, and behold, ^(I)a ram standing on the bank of the canal. It had two horns, and both horns were high, but one was higher than the other, and the higher one came up last. ⁴I saw ^(J)the ram charging westward and northward and southward. No ^(K)beast ^(L)could stand before him, ^(M)and there was no one who could rescue from his power. ^(N)He did as he pleased and ^(O)became great.

⁵As I was considering, behold, a ^(P)male goat came from the west across the face of the whole earth, without touching the ground. And the goat had ^(Q)a conspicuous horn between his eyes. ⁶He came to ^(R)the ram with the two horns, which I had seen standing on the bank of the canal, ^(S)and he ran at him in his powerful wrath. ⁷I saw him come close to the ram, ^(T)and he was enraged against him and struck the ram and broke his two horns. ^(U)And the ram had no power to stand before him, but he ^(V)cast him down to the ground and trampled on him. And there was no one who could rescue the ram from his power. ⁸Then ^(W)the goat ^(X)became exceedingly great, but when he was strong, the great horn was broken, and instead of it there came up four ^(Y)conspicuous horns toward ^(Z)the four winds of heaven.

⁹Out of one of them came ^(AA)a little horn, which grew exceedingly great toward ^(AB)the south, toward the east, and toward ^(AC)the glorious land. ¹⁰^(AD)It grew great, ^(AE)even to the host of heaven. And some of the host ^(AF)and some^[a] of ^(AG)the stars it threw down to the ground and ^(AH)trampled on them. ¹¹^(AI)It became great, even as great as ^(AJ)the Prince of the host. ^(AK)And the regular burnt offering was taken away from him, and the place of his sanctuary was overthrown. ¹²And a host will be given over to it together with the regular burnt offering because of transgression,^[b] and it will throw truth to the ground, and ^(AL)it will act and prosper. ¹³Then I heard ^(AM)a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the one who spoke, ^(AN)“For how long is the vision concerning the regular burnt offering, ^(AO)the transgression that makes desolate, and the giving over of the sanctuary and host to be trampled underfoot?” ¹⁴And he said to me,^[c] “For 2,300 ^(AP)evenings and mornings. Then the sanctuary shall be restored to its rightful state.”

The Interpretation of the Vision

¹⁵When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I ^(AQ)sought to understand it. And behold, there stood before me one having ^(AR)the appearance of a man. ¹⁶^(AS)And I heard a man's voice ^(AT)between the banks of the ^(AU)Ulai, and it called, ^(AV)“Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.” ¹⁷So he came near where I stood. And when he came, ^(AW)I was frightened ^(AX)and fell on my face. But he said to me, “Understand, ^(AY)O son of man, that the vision is for ^(AZ)the time of the end.”

¹⁸And when he had spoken to me, ^(BA)I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground. But ^(BB)he touched me and made me stand up. ¹⁹He said, “Behold, I will make known to you what shall be at the latter end of ^(BC)the indignation, for it refers to ^(BD)the appointed time of the end. ²⁰As for ^(BE)the ram that you saw with the two horns, these are the kings of ^(BF)Media and Persia. ²¹And ^(BG)the goat^[d] is the king of Greece. And ^(BH)the great horn between his eyes is ^(BI)the first king. ²²^(BJ)As for the horn that was broken, in place of which four others arose, four kingdoms shall arise from his^[e] nation, ^(BK)but not with his power. ²³And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise. ²⁴His power shall be great—^(BL)but not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction ^(BM)and shall succeed in what he does, ^(BN)and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. ²⁵^(BO)By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind ^(BP)he shall become great. ^(BQ)Without warning he shall destroy many. And he ^(BR)shall even rise up against the Prince of princes, and he shall be broken—but ^(BS)by no human hand. ²⁶The vision of ^(BT)the evenings and the mornings that has been told ^(BU)is true, but ^(BV)seal up the vision, ^(BW)for it refers to many days from now.”

²⁷And ^(BX)I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days. Then I rose and went about the king's business, but I was appalled by the vision ^(BY)and did not understand it.