Greeting

1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,

To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

^2 (A)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

God’s Final Judgment and Glory

³ We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, ⁴ so that ^(B)we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God ^(C)for your patience and faith ^(D)in all your persecutions and ^[a]tribulations that you endure, ⁵ which is ^(E)manifest^[b] evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, ^(F)for which you also suffer; ^6 (G)since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with ^[c]tribulation those who trouble you, ⁷ and to give you who are troubled ^(H)rest with us when ^(I)the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, ⁸ in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. ^9 (J)These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and ^(K)from the glory of His power, ¹⁰ when He comes, in that Day, ^(L)to be ^(M)glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who ^[d]believe, because our testimony among you was believed.

¹¹ Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would ^(N)count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and ^(O)the work of faith with power, ^12 (P)that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Great Apostasy

2 Now, brethren, ^(Q)concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ ^(R)and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, ^2 (S)not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of ^[e]Christ had come. ³ Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come ^(T)unless the falling away comes first, and ^(U)the man of ^[f]sin is revealed, ^(V)the son of perdition, ⁴ who opposes and ^(W)exalts himself ^(X)above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits ^[g]as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

⁵ Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? ⁶ And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. ⁷ For ^(Y)the ^[h]mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only ^[i]He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. ⁸ And then the lawless one will be revealed, ^(Z)whom the Lord will consume ^(AA)with the breath of His mouth and destroy ^(AB)with the brightness of His coming. ⁹ The coming of the lawless one is ^(AC)according to the working of Satan, with all power, ^(AD)signs, and lying wonders, ¹⁰ and with all unrighteous deception among ^(AE)those who perish, because they did not receive ^(AF)the love of the truth, that they might be saved. ¹¹ And ^(AG)for this reason God will send them strong delusion, ^(AH)that they should believe the lie, ¹² that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but ^(AI)had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Stand Fast

¹³ But we are ^[j]bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God ^(AJ)from the beginning ^(AK)chose you for salvation ^(AL)through ^[k]sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, ¹⁴ to which He called you by our gospel, for ^(AM)the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁵ Therefore, brethren, ^(AN)stand fast and hold ^(AO)the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our ^[l]epistle.

¹⁶ Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God and Father, ^(AP)who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and ^(AQ)good hope by grace, ¹⁷ comfort your hearts ^(AR)and ^[m]establish you in every good word and work.