2 Thessalonians 2
Bro David Petersen
2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
1 Thessalonians chapter 4 discussed the 2nd coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and how the dead in Christ shall rise first and then living saints will be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air.
“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.” 1 Thess 4:16-17.
This chapter discusses events that lead up to the Lord’s return. Apparently, someone had taught the Thessalonians that the day of Christ could happen at any moment or that it had already come. There may have even been a forged letter circulating that alleged to be from Paul that taught that the Lord’s return was imminent or even that the Thessalonians had missed it.
Shaken in mind in verse 2 means unsettled. A person might lose their composure if they thought that they had missed Christ’s return. Such a thought would be disturbing.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
In verse 3, Paul lists 2 pre-conditions that must occur before the Lord returns:
- A falling away must come.
- That man of sin must be revealed.
The Falling Away
The term "falling away" comes from a Greek word "apostasia". The apostasia is a widespread defection from truth. Literally it means "to stand off from" or "to withdraw or depart". It I carries with its meaning the idea of a revolt. This revolt is against God's truth.
Remarkably, when you get down to the root word for apostasia you will find that it is derived from the word "histemi" which is translated "stand fast" in verse 15 of this chapter and as "stand" in Ephesians chapter 6 where Paul talks about standing against the wiles of the devil.
Except here the word histemi carries the prefix "ap" and becomes "aphistemi" or the opposite of histemi. In other words falling away is the opposite of standing fast. More on that topic when we get to verse 15.
The word apostasia is transalated "depart" in 1 Timothy where Paul writes:
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; 3 Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth." 1 Tim 4:1-3
In Matthew 24:9-13, Jesus warned that in the end times lawlessness would be a prevailing condition and that many people would lose their love for God:
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.
10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
12 And because iniquity <lawlessness> shall abound, the love of many shall wax <grow> cold.
13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
Notice the progression in Matthew 24. Persecution in verse 9 causes many to be offended in verse 10 who then betray and hate one another. This is referring to Christians, not the world. The persecution gives an opportunity for false prophets to deceive many in verse 11. Then lawlessnes cause the love of many to grow cold. So it is persecution that brings on the apostasy.
There are many signs today that the apostasy is already in progress. Many of the mainline denominations have lost their zeal and faith, and are relying more and more upon the wisdom of man. Church is less about spiritual truth, and more about religion – a lukewarm, vanilla, non-intrusive, undemanding religion. For more on this subject please refer to our article on "The Mega Church Menagerie".The Anti Christ
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
There is no temple in Jerusalem today. This verse would indicate that a 3rd temple is yet to be built. It is possible that Anti Christ in the temple pretending to be God is the "Abomination of Desolation" that the prophet Daniel spoke of.
"26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined."
"27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate." Daniel 9:26-27.
Anti Christ is not just opposed to Christ. He himself is a false Christ. In fact, he is the mother of false Christs. As the ultimate false Christ, Anti Christ imitates the true Christ.
One thing that the imitation Christ does is his own ressurection act:
" And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast." Revelation 13:3.
The New American Standard Bible, which is one of the most literal translations renders the verse: " I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast."
5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
The exact sequence of the end time events is not a doctrine that we consider to be a test of Christian fellowship, nor of church fellowship. Opinions vary regarding the exact sequence of events around the rapture and the return of Christ to this earth. We respect the opinions of our brethren and aim to present the various viewpoints fairly so that the reader can form their own opinion. No matter what you believe about the timing of the rapture, the proper course of action is the same for everyone: Watch and be ready.
Key Point |
Verse |
Pre-Tribulation View |
Mid or Post-Tribulation View |
| The Apostasy | 3 | ||
| Anti-Christ | 3 | ||
| Abomination of Desolation | 4 | ||
| The Holy Sprit | 6-7 | ||
| The Day of The Lord | 8 |
13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Stand Fast
15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
The root of the term "stand fast" in verse 15 comes from the Greek word "steko" which is the perfect tense of "histemi". As mentioned earlier, this is the opposite of falling away.
As mentioned earlier, the word is used as a spriritual warfare metaphor in Ephesians chapter 6 where Paul talks about putting on the whole armour of God:
"12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."
"13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand."
"14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;" Eph 6:12-14.
The Lord's churches are engaged in spiritual warfare against Satan and his minions. Of course the weapons of our warfare are spiritual in nature, not carnal. We fight the rulers of the darkness of this world by using the Word of God, not AK-47's and RPG's (rocket propelled grenades). Nevertheless, the metaphor of taking a stand in this spritual sense envisions a battle going on in which a God's warriors do not retreat, but instead hold their ground by taking a stand in the midst of intense fighting. A good literal example of this which serves as a type of foreshadow of spiritual warfare can be seen in the exploits of King David's mighty men.
2 Sam 23:8-12
8 These be the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite that sat in the seat, chief among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite: he lift up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time.
9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away:
10 He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.
11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a piece of ground full of lentiles: and the people fled from the Philistines.
12 But he stood in the midst of the ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines: and the LORD wrought a great victory.
Who is willing to take a stand for Jesus today? We need to be like Eleazar and cleave our hand unto the sword, the Word of God so that it is frozen to it.
It is high time fore the Lord's churches to stop running away from Satan's whordes in retreat like the armies of Israel fled from the Philistines. Shammah was only one person, but he was willing to take a stand; and so the Lord wrought a great victory. If we are willing to take a stand like Shammah, the Lord will work a great victories in our churches. .
16 Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
17 Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.
1 Thessalonians
Chapter 1 |
Chapter 2 |
Chapter 3 |
Chapter 4 |
Chapter 5