10. ἀπάτῃ] ‘ deceit,’ ‘ deceitful power,’ in accordance with the regular N.T. use of the word, e.g. ἀπάτητ. πλούτου (Mark 4:19), τ. ἁμαρτίας (Hebrews 3:13); cf. 4Ma 18:8 λυμεὼνἀπάτηςὄφις. If in 2 Peter 2:13 we can read ἀπάταις (but see Bigg ad loc.) we seem to have an ex. of the word in its Hellenistic sense of ‘ pastime,’ ‘ pleasure’ ; cf. Polyb. 2:56, 2:12 and see Deissmann Hellenisierung p. 165 n.5. Moeris: Ἀπάτη, ἡπλάνηπαρʼ Ἀττικοῖς ... ἡτέρψιςπαρʼ Ἕλλησιν. ἀδικίας] ‘ unrighteousness,’ ‘ wrongdoing’ of every kind, cf. Romans 1:18; Romans 2:8 where, as here and in v. 12, it is opposed to ἀλήθεια, and Plato Gorg. 477 c where it is coupled with σύμπασαψυχῆςπονηρία. By its union with ἀπάτη, ἀδικία is evidently thought of here as an active, aggressive power which, however, can influence only τ. ἀπολλυμένοις, the use of the ‘ perfective’ verb marking out those so described as having already ideally reached a state of ἀπώλεια; cf. 1 Corinthians 1:18, and see Moulton Prolegg p. 114 f. ἀνθʼ ὧν] ‘ in requital that,’ ‘ for the reason that’— a class. phrase occurring several times in the LXX., but in the N.T. only here and in Luke (Gosp.3, Acts 1): cf. ἀντὶτούτου Ephesians 5:31. τῆςἀληθείας] may be understood of truth generally as contrasted with τὸψεῦδος (v. 11), but is better limited to ‘ the truth’ κατʼ ἐξοχήν, the truth of the Gospel, in accordance with its use elsewhere with the art. (2 Corinthians 4:2; 2 Corinthians 13:8, Ephesians 4:24), while the insertion of τ. ἀγάπην shows that those spoken of had not only not ‘ welcomed’ (ἐδέξαντο, 1 Thessalonians 2:13 note) this truth, but had no liking for it, no desire to possess it. According to Westcott (on 1 John 2:5) this is the only instance in the N.T. where the gen. after ἀγάπη ‘ marks the object of love’ ; Abbott Joh. Gr. p. 84) adds Luke 11:42 παρέρχεσθετὴνκρίσινκαὶτὴνἀγάπηντοῦθεοῦ ‘ [just] judgment and love toward God.’