2 Thessalonians 2

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (NKJV) 1 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, 10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. This section of scripture has a lot of spiritual nuggets and of course I can’t cover each and every one – who could? Let’s take a look at just a few. The mysterious unknown letter Paul reassures his readers that any teaching that Christians are now in the Tribulation period is clearly not from him. In verse 6, he reminds them that he had already covered these subjects while he was there – would that we had that transcript! 2:1, 2 The Thessalonians had been taught by someone other than Paul that the persecution they were experiencing was a part of the Tribulation judgment and that there was no rapture for which they should hope. Paul denies this. A letter to the Thessalonians from someone claiming to be Paul had been the occasion for some to decide that “the day of Christ” had already arrived. This would have been a denial of the prophetic outline Paul presented in the first epistle. Paul cautions that the Thessalonians are not to be troubled by this inaccurate notion. The words “had come” (enestēgken, Gk.) could be rendered “is present,” “is now present,” or “stands near.” The tense of the verb implies that “the day of Christ” has drawn near and now stands near as an abiding result. For this reason some expositors suggest that this phrase supports belief in the imminent return of Christ. Believer’s Study Bible Don’t be troubled

Paul urges the Thessalonians not to be troubled – this is an interesting Greek word used only here and two other places – all of which refer to a state of anxiety that has to do with future things or being troubled that the Day of the Lord is upon them. G2360 - troubled Θροεω throeō Thayer Definition: 1) to cry aloud, make a noise by outcry 1a) in the NT, to trouble, frighten 1b) to be troubled in mind, to be frightened, alarmed

(Mat 24:6 NASB+) "You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened2360, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. (Mar 13:7 NASB+) "When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened2360; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end. (2Th 2:2 NASB+) that you not be quickly shaken from your composure or be disturbed2360 either by a spirit or a message or a letter as if from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.

The gathering together vs. the Day of the Lord It would wise to study Dr Perry Stone’s work on the harvest cycles of Israel – basically, there were three – the first fruits, the main harvest and then the gleaning of the four corners. This relates to the rapture, the Second Coming and the gathering from the four corners of the earth. The expression the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him seems to refer unmistakably to the Rapture. That is the time when we will be gathered to meet Him in the air. 2:2 It should be clear that the Rapture is not the same as the Day of the Lord. The Thessalonians were not worried that the Lord had come; they knew that He had not. But they were worried that the Day of the Lord had begun. The intense persecution they were enduring made them think they were in the Tribulation, the first phase of the Day of the Lord. Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments The Apostasy The Apostasy is generally understood to be a reference to a mutiny or separation of one party from another. The root of the word is “divorce” or to be separate from each other. It would be to say this refers to not only the spiritual distance between parties but to the physical separation. I find it interesting that early translations of the English bible use the word departing to translate apostasy. 2Th 2:3 Geneva

(3) Let no man deceiue you by any meanes: for that day shall not come, except there come a departing first, and that that man of sinne be disclosed, euen the sonne of perdition, G646 - apostasy αποστασια apostasia ap-os-tas-ee'-ah Feminine of the same as G647; defection from truth (properly the state), (“apostasy”): - falling away, forsake.

The word rendered “falling away” (αποστασια apostasia, apostasy), is of so general a character, that it may be applied to any departure from the faith as it was received in the time of the apostles. It occurs in the New Testament only here and in Act_21:21, where it is rendered “to forsake” - “thou teachest all the Jews which are among us to forsake Moses” - apostasy from Moses - αποστασιαν απο Μωυσεως apostasian apo Mō useō s. The word means a departing from, or a defection; see the verb used in 1Ti_4:1, “Some shall depart from the faith” - αποστησονται apostē sontai; compare the notes on that passage; see also Heb_3:12; Luk_8:13; Act_5:37. The reference here is evidently to some general falling away, or to some great religious apostasy that was to occur, and which would be under one head, leader, or dynasty, and which would involve many in the same departure from the faith, and in the same destruction. The use of the article here, “the apostasy” (Greek), Erasmus remarks, “signifies that great and beforepredicted apostasy.” It is evidently emphatic, showing that there had been a reference to this before, or that they understood well that there was to be such an apostasy. Paul says 2Th_2:5, that when he was with them, he had told them of these things. The writers in the New Testament often speak of such a defection under the name of Antichrist; see Rev_13:14; 1Jo_2:18, 1Jo_2:22; 1Jo_4:3; 2Jo_1:7. Barnes

The Restrainer There are other theories of who or what the restrainer is but none of them make any sense at all except that it is the Holy Spirit indwelling the church – a picture of this church age. The Holy Spirit indwelling the church and the individual believer seems to fit the description of the restrainer more completely and accurately than any of the others. Just as the restrainer is spoken of as Something and Someone in this chapter, so the Spirit is spoken of in John 14:26, 15:26, 16:8, 13, 14 as both neuter (the Holy Spirit) and masculine (He). As early as Genesis 6:3, the Holy Spirit is spoken of in connection with the restraint of evil. Then later He is seen in this same role in Isaiah 59:19b, John 16:7– 11, and 1 John 4:4. Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments G2722 - restrains Κατεχω katechō kat-ekh'-o From G2596 and G2192; to hold down (fast), in various applications (literally or figuratively): have, hold (fast), keep (in memory), let, X make toward, possess, retain, seize on, stay, take, withhold. Notice that whoever this Restrainer is – He was in their midst and then was removed. G3319 – out of the way

Μεσος mesos mes'-os From G3326; middle (as adjective or [neuter] noun): - among, X before them, between, + forth, mid [-day, -night], midst, way.

But here an objection is raised. How can the Holy Spirit be removed from the world? As one of the Persons of the Godhead, isn’t He omnipresent, that is, everywhere at all times? How then can He leave the world? Of course, the Holy Spirit is omnipresent. He is always in all places at one and the same time. And yet there was a distinct sense in which He came to the earth on the Day of Pentecost. Jesus had repeatedly promised that He and the Father would send the Spirit (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7. How then did the Spirit come? He came as the permanent Indweller of the church and of every believer. Until Pentecost the Spirit had been with believers, but since Pentecost He has dwelt in them (John 14:17). Until Pentecost the Spirit was known to depart from believers—hence David’s prayer, “Do not take your Holy Spirit from me” (Ps. 51:11b). After Pentecost the Spirit remains forever in believers of the Church Age (John 14:16). The Holy Spirit will, we believe, leave the world in the same sense in which He came at Pentecost—that is, as the abiding Indweller of the church and of each believer. He will still be in the world, convicting people of sin and leading them to saving faith in Christ. His removal at the Rapture does not mean that no one will be saved during the Tribulation. Of course they will. But these people will not be members of the church, but rather the subjects of Christ’s glorious kingdom. Believer's Bible Commentary : Old and New Testaments The Antichrist The man of lawlessness, the son of perdition, all are terms referring to the Antichrist. We won’t cover all the details of who he might be or his origin here. Of note though is his power of deception. The greek words are “plane energeia “ (2Th 2:11 NASB+) For this3778 reason1223 God2316 will send3992 upon them a deluding4106 influence1753b so1519 that they will believe4100 what5579 is false5579,

G4106 - deluding πλανη planē ; fem. of G4108; a wandering: - deceitful (1), deception (1), deluding (1), error (7). G1753b - influence ενεργεια energeia; from G1756; operative power: - activity (1), exertion (1), influence (1), working (4). To me, this indicates more than just our common idea of deception – but rather a force at work – a special unleashing of demonic influence. With the Restrainer removed and such deception unleashed on the world – it’s a wonder any would be saved. The world stage is set for the unveiling of this man of sin – thank God we won’t be here to see it.