The Man of Lawlessness Will Be Revealed

2 Now we ask you, brothers, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our assembling to him, ² that you not be easily shaken from your composure, nor be troubled either by a spirit or by a message or by a letter alleged to be from us^[a], to the effect that the day of the Lord has arrived. ³ Do not let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, ⁴ who opposes and who exalts himself over every so-called god or object of worship, so that he sits down in the temple of God, proclaiming that he himself is God.

⁵ Do you not remember that while^[b] we were still with you, we were saying these things to you? ⁶ And you know that which restrains him now, so that he will be revealed in his own time. ⁷ For the mystery of lawlessness is at work already; only the one who now restrains^[c] will do so until he is out of the way,^{[d] 8} and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of his mouth, and wipe out by the appearance of his coming, ⁹ whose coming is in accordance with the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders, ¹⁰ and with every unrighteous deception against those who are perishing, in place of which they did not accept the love of the truth, so that they would be saved. ¹¹ And because of this, God sends them a powerful delusion^[e] so that they will believe the lie, ¹² in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth, but delighted in unrighteousness.