Goes (γόης) originally referred to a wailing sorcerer or magician (from goao, to wail — since spells involved incantations). By NT times it referred to a charlatan, fraud, or imposter. It appears once in the New Testament (2 Timothy 3:13): 'evil men and imposters [goetes] will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.'
Paul's use of goes in 2 Timothy 3:13 places false teachers in a category with ancient sorcerers and fraudsters. He had already mentioned Jannes and Jambres (3:8) — the magicians who opposed Moses in Egypt — making goes a continuation of that theme. The warning is sobering: these imposters are not only deceiving others but are themselves deceived. Deception is self-perpetuating: the one who manipulates others eventually loses his own grip on truth. The antidote Paul gives is Scripture: 'All Scripture is God-breathed...' (3:16) — the authoritative truth that exposes the fraud.