Weymouth New Testament in Modern Speech, 2 Thessalonians

Excerpt

Book 53 2 Thessalonians
001:001 Paul, Silas, and Timothy:  To the Church of the Thessalonians
        which is in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
001:002 May grace and peace be granted to you from God our Father
        and the Lord Jesus Christ.
001:003 Unceasing thanks are due from us to God on your behalf, brethren. 
        They are appropriate because your faith is growing greatly,
        and the love of every one of you for all the others
        goes on increasing.
001:004 It so increases that we ourselves make honourable mention
        of you among the Churches of God because of your patience
        and faith amid all your persecutions and amid the afflictions
        which you are enduring.
001:005 For these are a plain token of God’s righteous judgement, which has
        in view your being deemed worthy of admission to God’s Kingdom,
        for the sake of which, indeed, you are sufferers.
001:006 A plain token of God’s righteous judgement, I say, since it
        is a righteous thing for Him to requite with affliction
        those who are now afflicting you;
001:007 and to requite with rest you who are suffering affliction now—­
        rest with us at the re-appearing of the Lord Jesus from Heaven,
        attended by His mighty angels.
001:008 He will come in flames of fire to take vengeance on those
        who have no knowledge of God, and do not obey the Good News
        as to Jesus, our Lord.
001:009 They will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, being banished
        from the presence of the Lord and from His glorious majesty,
001:010 when He comes on that day to be glorified in His people and to
        be wondered at among all who have believed, including you—­
        because you believed the testimony which we brought
        for your acceptance.
001:011 It is with this view also that we continually pray to our God
        for you, asking that He will count you worthy of His call,
        and by His mighty power fully gratify your every desire
        for what is truly good and make your work of faith complete;
001:012 in order that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you,
        and that you may be glorified in Him—­so wonderful is the grace
        of our God and of the Lord Jesus Christ!
002:001 But with respect to the Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our
        being gathered to meet Him, we entreat you, brethren,
002:002 not readily to become unsettled in mind or troubled—­
        either by any pretended spiritual revelation or by any message
        or letter claiming to have been sent by us—­through fancying
        that the day of the Lord is now here.
002:003 Let no one in any way deceive you, for that day cannot come
        without the coming of the apostasy first, and the appearing
        of the man of sin, the son of perdition, who sets himself against,
002:004 and exalts himself above, every so-called `god’ or object of worship,
        and goes the length of taking his seat in the very temple of God,
        giving it out that he himself is God.
002:005 Do you not remember that while I was still with you I used
        to tell you all this?
002:006 And now you know what restrains him, in order that his true
        character may be revealed at his appointed time.
002:007 For lawlessness is already at work in secret; but only until
        the man who is now exercising a restraining influence is removed,
002:008 and then the Lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus
        will sweep away with the tempest of His anger, and utterly
        overwhelm by the awful splendour of His Coming.
002:009 The appearing of the Lawless one will be attended by various
        miracles and tokens and delusive marvels—­for so Satan works—­
002:010 and by every kind of wicked deception for those who are on
        the way to perdition because they did not welcome into their
        hearts the love of the truth, so that they might be saved.
002:011 And for this reason God sends them a misleading influence
        that they may believe the lie;
002:012 in order that all may come under judgement who have refused
        to believe the truth and have taken pleasure in unrighteousness.
002:013 And from us thanks are always due to God on your behalf—­
        brethren whom the Lord loves—­because God from the beginning
        has chosen you for salvation through the Spirit’s sanctifying
        influence and your belief in the truth.
002:014 To this blessing God has called you by our Good News, so that you
        may have a share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
002:015 So then, brethren, stand your ground, and hold fast to the
        teachings which you have received from us, whether by word
        of mouth or by letter.
002:016 And may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself—­and God our Father who has
        loved us and has given us in His grace eternal consolation
        and a bright hope—­
002:017 comfort your hearts and make you stedfast in every good
        work and word.
003:001 Finally, brethren, pray for us, asking that the Lord’s Message
        may be spread rapidly and its glory be displayed, as it was
        displayed among you;
003:002 and that we may be delivered from wrong-headed and wicked men;
        for it is not everybody who has faith.
003:003 But the Lord is faithful, and He will make you stedfast
        and will guard you from the Evil one.
003:004 And we have confidence in the Lord in regard to you that you
        are doing, and will do, what we command.
003:005 And may the Lord guide your hearts into the love of God
        and into the patience of Christ.
003:006 But, by the authority of the Lord, we command you, brethren, to stand
        aloof from every brother whose life is disorderly and not
        in accordance with the teaching which all received from us.
003:007 For you yourselves know that it is your duty to follow our example. 
        There was no disorder in our lives among you,
003:008 nor did we eat any one’s bread without paying for it, but we
        laboured and toiled, working hard night and day in order
        not to be a burden to any of you.
003:009 This was not because we had not a claim upon you, but it arose
        from a desire to set you an example—­for you to imitate us.
003:010 For even when we were with you, we laid down this rule for you: 
        “If a man does not choose to work, neither shall he eat.”
003:011 For we hear that there are some of you who live disorderly
        lives and are mere idle busybodies.
003:012 To persons of that sort our injunction—­and our command
        by the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ—­is that they are
        to work quietly and eat their own honestly-earned bread.
003:013 But you, brethren, must not grow weary in the path of duty;
003:014 and if any one refuses to obey these our written instructions,
        mark that man and hold no communication with him—­
        so that he may be made to feel ashamed.
003:015 And yet do not regard him as an enemy, but caution him
        as a brother.
003:016 And may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace
        in every sense.  The Lord be with you all.
003:017 I Paul add the greeting with my own hand, which is the credential
        in every letter of mine.
003:018 This is my handwriting.  May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
        be with you all.