2 Thessalonians 2:3 (KJV)

Passage

Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Nearby Context

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

2 Thessalonians 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

2 Thessalonians 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

2 Thessalonians 2:5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "deceive", "means", "shall", "come", "except", "falling", and "away". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "deceive" and "means", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "That ye be not soon shaken in..." into verse 4's "Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all...", so "deceive" and "means" belong inside that flow. In 2 Thessalonians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "deceive" and "means" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.