2nd Thessalonians 2:1-12
2nd
Thessalonians 2:1-12
Scripture (ESV)
2 Now concerning the coming of
our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you,
brothers, 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a
spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the
day of the Lord has come. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that
day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness
is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself
against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in
the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember
that when I was still with you, I told you these things? 6 And you know
what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For the
mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do
so until he is out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be
revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring
to nothing by the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless
one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders,
10 and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they
refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore God sends them a
strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, 12 in order that
all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in
unrighteousness.
Commentary
In this the second chapter of the
letter we find the central theme of Paul’s message to the Thessalonians. It is
a difficult chapter to comment on because parts of it can be interpreted in
different ways. William Barclay writes in his commentary “This is undoubtedly
one of the most difficult passages in the whole New Testament; and it is so
because it uses terms and thinking in pictures which were perfectly familiar to
those whom Paul was speaking {and writing} but which are utterly strange to us.”1
So I will do my best to approach the text with an open mind explain some
of the interpretive options, but it is essential to state that we are only doing
some educative guessing on parts of the text and that more than one option is
possible. So, we must use the formula: that in essentials unity, non-essentials
liberty, in all thing’s charity.
Vs
1-2. It begins by introducing the
topic of the letter that is the 2nd coming of the Lord. Apparently
some one was preaching to them or writing a letter forging Paul’s saying
that the 2nd coming had already occurred and the Thessalonians
had
been left behind. This
of course was very upsetting, and Paul wanted them to know that they in fact
had not missed out on the coming of the Lord.
Vs 3. Paul begins by laying
out some things that must happen before the Lord’s return. A great rebellion
must come first. It is not said just who would be rebelling or when. As part of
that rebellion the Man of Lawlessness (who is the same person elsewhere in scripture
as the Antichrist) will be revealed.
Vs 4-5. The lawless one will
boast and declare that he is God. The text says he will take a seat in the
temple. It is not clear what temple may be in view here since the Jerusalem
Temple has been destroyed. Perhaps the Jewish people will rebuild a temple
somewhere else in Jerusalem. Apparently, Paul recalls telling the church that
this would happen.
Vs 6. Paul states that the
Thessalonian church already knows what is restraining the rebellion and the man
of lawlessness. We however are left to guess what is restraining these end time
events. Over the years some have said the restrainer was the Roman Empire as
the empire put down any rebellion quickly and with the use of massive deadly
force. Some said the apostles, but they have all passed from the scene. But the
most popular candidate for the restrainer is an angel or spiritual power. Specifically,
Michael the arch angel. St. Augustine famously said in his book The City of
God: “I frankly confess I do not know what he means.” Referring to the
restraining force.
Vs 7. The lawless power is at
work in the world already in Paul’s day and still is at work in the world
today. Deceiving people and sometimes entire nations, into believing the lie
that God is dead. But the deceiver does not yet have full reign on the earth
the restrainer keeps it under control.
Vs 8. This verse is the
climax of the passage. When the restrainer is removed the Lawless One appears
and begins his evil work. In the text no sooner as he is made known Jesus comes
in glory (an epiphany) and slays the enemy with the breath of his mouth. As Psalm
33:6 says “by the word of the Lord the heavens were made and all their hosts by
the breath of his mouth.” The book of Isaiah also uses the term breath
of his mouth several places. The most significant one being (Isaiah 11:1-4)
“The
Righteous Reign of the Branch
11 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and
a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the
Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the
Spirit of counsel and might,
the
Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He
shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or
decide disputes by what his ears hear,
4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and
decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and
with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked2
(Emphasis added)
Note
that there is no battle! The Lord appears and simply destroys the enemy with
the breath (word) of his mouth.
Vs 9-10.
The Antichrist will come with all sorts of signs and wonders. He will be
able to deceive many. Satan will control this one completely. People will be in
awe and wonder at his coming. They will love the lie rather than the truth and
they shall perish because of it.
Vs.
11-12. In those days God himself will cause people to believe the lying
signs and wonders of the Lawless One. God himself will cause them to sin. This
is no doubt an alarming thought. But in Romans 1:18-32 Those people who
stubbornly deny God are given over for destruction. It is important to note
Paul’s wider concern here was to encourage the Thessalonians by revealing that
the persecutions they were now suffering would be made right. And we can have
that same assurance today.3
__________________________________
1Barclay William,
The Daily Study Bible, The Letters to the Philippians, Colossians, and
Thessalonians, Westminster Press, Philadelphia, p. 245
2 Holy
Bible, English Standard Version, Electronic Version, Washington
3
Gupta, Nijay, New Covenant Commentary Series, 1-2 Thessalonians, Cascade Books,
Eugene OR, 2016, p.139
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