And use every kind of wicked deceit is literally “and with all deceit of wickedness.” As with all kinds of false miracles in verse 9, two questions arise: (1) Does “all” mean every kind of or “the highest degree of”? Most translators prefer the first solution, but Moffatt has “full deceitfulness of evil,” Phillips “evil’s undiluted power to deceive,” and New English Bible “all the deception that sinfulness can impose….” (2) Such expressions as “deceit of wickedness” are a common way of saying wicked deceit in Hebrew and biblical Greek, but a few translations take the expression to mean “deceit which comes from wickedness” (cf. Knox “his wickedness will deceive,” also New English Bible). Deceit is by definition wicked, so the second solution tends to give a stronger translation. Wicked translates a word close in meaning to “lawlessness” in verse 3 and 7, so Good News Translation is right, especially in a common language translation, to use wicked for both of them.
Use every kind of … deceit must be expressed in some languages as “will deceive in every way.” In some languages wicked deceit might be misleading since it could suggest that certain kinds of deceit are not wicked. The attributive wicked simply reinforces the meaning of deceit but does not restrict it in the sense of a particular kind of deceit. It may therefore be necessary in some languages to say “in a wicked way he will deceive people in every manner,” or even “he will be wicked and deceive people in every way.”
On “those who are perishing,” see the notes on 2.1-12. Traduction œcuménique de la Bible‘s “those who are losing themselves” is too weak. In some contexts the Greek verb may be translated “lose,” but the meaning always includes the element of something being destroyed, rather than that of someone losing his way or something being mislaid. (Compare in English “we lost fifty men in the battle.”) The idea of a continuous process of perishing is rather difficult to express in some languages, even in English. Many translations use expressions such as “doomed to perish” to link the present and the future (Moffatt Barclay cf. Knox Jerusalem Bible Translator’s New Testament). [They] will perish is not repeated in the original; Good News Translation repeats it in order to break a long sentence into smaller parts. Something of the inevitability and certainty of perishing may be expressed in some languages as “those who will surely perish,” or “those who will certainly be destroyed.” In some instances perish may be rendered as “end up as nothing,” but this should not be used as a means of suggesting a doctrine of ultimate annihilation.
Welcome is the word which Paul used in 1 Thess. 1.6 and 2.13 to describe the way in which the Thessalonians had responded to the preaching of the Christian message. The present verse must be understood in a similar way, not as referring to “the love of truth” in any general philosophical sense. The truth (note the definite article) is the Christian message, which is related to salvation. The exact relation may be either (1) one of purpose (“they welcomed the truth in order to be saved”), or (2) one of result (“they welcomed the truth, and thus were saved”). Most translations choose (2), for example, Revised Standard Version “because they refused to love the truth and so be saved,” Jerusalem Bible “they would not grasp the love of the truth which could have saved them.” New English Bible Biblia Dios Habla Hoy agree with Good News Translation in choosing (1). New English Bible has “they did not open their minds to love of the truth, so as to find salvation.” A similar problem was discussed in the notes on 1 Thess. 2.16, and another will arise in verse 11 of the chapter now under discussion. Paul’s main emphasis is probably on the effect of the truth, rather than on the motives for which people do or do not welcome it.
In this type of context did not welcome may often be translated as “were not happy to hear,” “did not listen with glad hearts,” or “did not accept the words into their hearts.”
Love the truth must often be translated by a term which is quite different from one that would express love for a person. For example, love the truth may be rendered as “value highly the truth,” or “regard the truth as very important.” In some languages one may express this idea idiomatically by saying “put the truth in their hearts.” It may, however, be very difficult in some languages to speak of truth as an object. One may speak of “a true message” or “a true words,” but even then it may be necessary to indicate the content of the true words. In such a case one may need to say, for example, “the true words about our Lord,” or “the true message about the Lord Jesus.”
Though so as to be saved may be interpreted by some people as implying only purpose, it is often understood by English speakers as suggesting result as well. It may even be linked with welcome and love the truth as means, for example, “and in this way be saved.” If the passive expression to be saved must be made active with the agent expressed, it may be important to restructure the final clause as “so that God could save them” or “… would save them.”
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to the Thessalonians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1976. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .