For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.

Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming;

For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false,

Finally, brethren, pray for us that the word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be glorified, just as it did also with you;

and that we will be rescued from perverse and evil men; for not all have faith.

But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.

We have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you are doing and will continue to do what we command.

If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he will be put to shame.

Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme.

But women will be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.

(but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?),

and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil.

And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,

In pointing out these things to the brethren, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following.

Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all.

Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.

Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning.

All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against.

which He will bring about at the proper time—He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, according to the promise of life in Christ Jesus,

The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

It is a trustworthy statement:
For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him;

If we endure, we will also reign with Him;
If we deny Him, He also will deny us;

But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness,

and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,

Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.

For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,

But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes’s and Jambres’s folly was also.

Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,

and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.

in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.

The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.

to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.

sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us.

not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.

This is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these things I want you to speak confidently, so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds. These things are good and profitable for men.

Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful.

but without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your goodness would not be, in effect, by compulsion but of your own free will.

I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand, I will repay it (not to mention to you that you owe to me even your own self as well).

Having confidence in your obedience, I write to you, since I know that you will do even more than what I say.

At the same time also prepare me a lodging, for I hope that through your prayers I will be given to you.

For to which of the angels did He ever say,
“You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You”? And again,“I will be a Father to Him
And He shall be a Son to Me”?

They will perish, but You remain;
And they all will become old like a garment,

And like a mantle You will roll them up;
Like a garment they will also be changed.
But You are the same,
And Your years will not come to an end.”

Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?

how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard,

God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.

saying,
“I will proclaim Your name to My brethren,
In the midst of the congregation I will sing Your praise.”

And again,
“I will put My trust in Him.”And again,“Behold, I and the children whom God has given Me.”

But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience.

And this we will do, if God permits.

so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

saying, “I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you.”

(for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him,
“The Lord has sworn
And will not change His mind,
‘You are a priest forever’”);

For finding fault with them, He says,
“Behold, days are coming, says the Lord,
When I will effect a new covenant
With the house of Israel and with the house of Judah;

“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
After those days, says the Lord:
I will put My laws into their minds,
And I will write them on their hearts.
And I will be their God,
And they shall be My people.

“And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen,
And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’
For all will know Me,
From the least to the greatest of them.

“For I will be merciful to their iniquities,
And I will remember their sins no more.”

how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.

“Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come
(In the scroll of the book it is written of Me)
To do Your will, O God.’”

then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second.

By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

“This is the covenant that I will make with them
After those days, says the Lord:
I will put My laws upon their heart,
And on their mind I will write them,”
He then says,

“And their sins and their lawless deeds
I will remember no more.”

but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.

How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?

For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”

For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.

For yet in a very little while,
He who is coming will come, and will not delay.

And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,

For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.

For they could not bear the command, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it will be stoned.”

See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven.

And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.”

Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.

Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

so that we confidently say,
“The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.
What will man do to me?”

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.

equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Take notice that our brother Timothy has been released, with whom, if he comes soon, I will see you.

But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,

and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away.

For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away.

Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.

But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.