Introductory remarks:
"The main object of this chapter is to correct an erroneous impression which had been made on the minds of the Thessalonians respecting the second coming of the Savior, either by his own former letter, or by one forged in his name. They had received the impression that that event was about to take place" (Barnes). "In this epistle the emphasis is going to be on the Great Tribulation Period, but we are also going to find one of the finest passages on the Rapture of the church." "Paul tells them not to believe rumors, no matter how convincing, that the end has come. Before the end there will be a falling away and the man of sin will be revealed and represent himself as God. He is being resisted now and cannot come until the one who resists is taken out of the way. When he comes he will be able to deceive those who didn't accept the truth and God will enable them to be totally deluded. Paul gives thanks that they were chosen from the beginning through their belief in the truth. He says they were called by his preaching to obtain the glory of Christ. He urges them to cling to what they were taught. He tells them Christ and God love them and will comfort them and perfect them" (A Survey of 2 Thessalonians - By Brenda). This chapter may be outlined as follows: The man of lawlessness vv. 1-12: Chosen for salvation vv. 13-17.
The Man of Lawlessness
Verse 1, "Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him."
LGT "Now we beseech you, brethren, touching the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together unto Him."
Paul is referring to the Rapture of the church mentioned in 1 Thess. 4:15-17 and Matt. 24:31: see Mark 13:27. The Lord will return and gather the elect unto Him in the air, this is known as the Rapture of the Church, that is, the taking up of the saints. "As you set a high value on the coming of Christ, when He will gather us to Himself, and will truly perfect that unity of the body which we cherish as yet only in part through means of faith, so I earnestly beseech you by His coming not to be too credulous [gullible], should any one affirm, on whatever pretext, that His day is at hand" (Calvin).
Verse 2, "That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand."
LGT "For you not to be quickly shaken in mind, nor to be troubled, neither by spirit nor by word, nor by epistle as from us, as that the day of the Lord is come."
For you not to be quickly shaken in mind: they were to remain stable amongst all the fanatical speculations regarding the coming of the Lord; Paul tells them to use good judgment by standing firm on sound doctrine, and not to be as the waves of the sea, tossed to and fro. Nor be troubled: do not become disturbed or terrified of His coming. Neither by spirit: "There was someone in the Thessalonian assembly that laid claim to spiritual influence and was uttering false claims regarding the Second Coming. Nor by word: the spoken word, which was falsely attributed to Paul. Nor by epistle as from us: there were pseudo-epistles being circulated that were supposed to be from Paul, but they were as false as the false teachers that brought them. As that the day of the lord is come: The KJV is incorrect in their translation of verb enestaken as "is at hand", for it means literally, "has come." The false teachers were falsely teaching that Christ had come; not that His Parousia was at hand, but that He actually had come. "The apostle could not prevent sayings being put in his name - he could only deny or disclaim them; but he took precautions against the repetition of such literary forgery" (Eadie).
Verse 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."
LGT "Not any one should beguile you in any way: because [it will not be] unless the apostasy shall have come first, and the man of sin shall have been revealed, the son of perdition:"
Not any one should beguile you in any way: the word to beguile means not only making a false impression, but also leading astray (Vincent). Paul says in any way meaning by a false letter, or conversation, or trickery of any sort. Because it will not be: the day of the Lord will not be: unless the apostasy shall have come first: Christ will not come back and judge the earth until there is a worldwide apostasy. The word apostasia means a departure from. The organized church will have completely departed from the faith. Remember, Paul is describing the day of the Lord, and not the rapture of the church here. This worldwide departure of the organized church is described in Revelation 17. "The Laodicean church, which is the seventh and last church described in the Book of Revelation, is in sad condition. I think that is the period we are in right now (although it has not yet reached its peak; for when it does, the true church will be taken up to meet the Lord in the air). When the true believers are gone, it will get even worse. It will finally end in total apostasy" (McGee). These apostates that are left will be so relieved when the true church has been removed, with all their opposition to the liberal political correctness, at the rapture, that they will be deceived by the man of sin into thinking they are entering the millennium, a utopia, where they are unrestrained and unopposed, not realizing they are entering the Great Tribulation. The world has been trying to rid itself of every vestige of God, and when they do, they will believe that they have purified the earth of all those ridiculous unscientific rabble rousing Christians, that have been so unloving and un-permissive of all their programs of Planned Parenthood, that teaches young girls how to murder their babies through abortion, and same sex marriage, giving faggots the same rights as God intended marriage between a man and a woman; it is a relief to rid the world of these Christians. The world could not reach this point of full apostasy with the true church remaining.
John Eadie describes this falling away:
"It is a spiritual falling away, the opposite of that growth in Christian excellence which the apostle commends them - faith fled, love dead, hope collapsed, and truth forsaken; all spiritual graces and energies fallen out of recognition and existence; God ignored, Christ forgotten, and the Spirit grieved and gone (at the rapture of the church). Such a defection is so sad and fatal that it opens the way for the daring and defiant revelation of the Man of Sin. He seizes the opportunity when all is asleep and fearless because faithless, to found his kingdom, diffuses his falsehood, and fortify his impious pretensions. This man would not be suffered to show himself, would not be permitted to gather strength and hardihood in a healthful and vigilant condition of the church (Luke 21:8). The elements of that apostasy seem to be gathered up at length, and to culminate in a single personality, as its last appalling embodiment."
And the man of sin shall have been revealed, the son of perdition: when the man of sin is revealed he will be loved by the entire world, for he will remove any restraint that has been left, and will be loved by everyone. He would even deceive the very elect, but that will not be possible, for the elect are gone. "When he is revealed the Great Tribulation Period has already begun. Here he is called the man of sin. John calls him the antichrist. John is the only one who uses that term, by the way. The Antichrist has about thirty different titles in the Bible. He is a subject of the Old Testament. He is going to be Satan's man. This is the man who will put the Roman Empire back together again, and he will finally become a world dictator. He is going to deceive the world. He could be in our midst today, but he won't be able to appear in power or reveal who he is until after the Great Tribulation Period begins" (McGee). As corrupt and evil as our president Barrack Hussein Obama is, he is too stupid to be the antichrist, but he could be a forerunner, for he is trying to bring in a one-world government, and he is permissive of all the horrible terrorism in our world. Barrack Hussein Obama is a Muslim sympathizer, if not a full-fledged Muslim. As for his wife, I can't describe without swearing how evil this witch is.
Verse 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, showing himself that he is God."
LGT "Who opposes and exalts himself of all [that is] called God, or object of worship, so as for him in the temple of God to sit down, setting forth himself that he is God."
Who opposes and exalts himself of all that is called God, or object of worship: this antichrist is not Satan but an agent of Satan. This man is the same as described in the last verse. He will demand worship from the entire world. "The Man of Sin exalts himself above and against every one called God. He puts himself into a position higher than that of any God, refuses to worship anything divine, as if he himself possessed a higher divinity." Sounds a great deal like the Pope in the Vatican, eh! So as for him in the temple of God to sit down, setting forth himself that he is God: the Antichrist will demand worship or death. The Revelation describes him as making everyone bear his mark or they won't be able to buy or sell in that day. He will demand allegiance as God, and will demand loyalty from all his subjects, which will be the entire world. "Whatever bears a divine name or claims divine worship, he will put beneath himself in a spirit of overbearing and self-glorifying hostility, and of blasphemous insolence, as if to himself alone homage were due . . .The inference is that the antitheos [Anti-God] thrusts God out of His place, usurps it, and arrogantly and impiously claims the worship due Him . . . In this unparalleled and audacious wickedness, the antagonist and exalter of himself above every one divine in title enters into the shrine of God and there sits down a self-made God" (Eadie). Again, this sure sounds like a description of the Pope.
Verse 5, "Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?"
LGT "Do ye not remember that, yet being with you, I used to tell you these things?"
Paul had made the second coming of Christ a very important part of his teaching ministry. He also assures them that he had not changed his teaching at all, and that they should know that Christ could not have returned yet, for there are several things that must take place first. "If they had only remembered his definite and repeated lessons, they could not have been so perplexed and seduced as to imagine that the day of the Lord had set in; for they would have sustained themselves by the thought that defection must precede it, and the terrible development of the Man of Sin" (Eadie).
Verse 6, "And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time."
LGT "And now that which restrains ye know, for him to be revealed in his own time."
And now ye that which restrains ye know: Paul is referring to the power that is restraining [restricting] the revelation of the Man of Sin, the Antichrist. The Holy Spirit is the only One who could restrain the Antichrist from his takeover of the world. For him to be revealed in his own time: in the time allowed him by God. The Antichrist cannot be revealed until God allows, and that will be when the Holy Spirit leaves this world with the church, because He has indwelt every believer, and when the believers are all Raptured, the Holy Spirit goes with them. Paul had told them about these things on a previous occasion, but it is up to us to determine them from the context. It is quite plain that Paul is speaking about the coming to power of the Man of Sin. God has not only appointed a time for the Antichrist to be revealed, and restraining him from taking over is also in God's hands.
Verse 7, "For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way."
LGT "For the mystery of lawlessness is already working: only [there is] the One who restrains at present until out of [the] midst he be [gone]."
For the mystery of lawlessness is already working: Paul says the secret purpose of lawlessness is already working. "A mystery does not lie in the obscurity of the thing, but in its secrecy. It is not in the thing, but envelops it. Applied to a truth, it signifies a truth once hidden but now revealed or to be revealed, a truth, which without special revelation would be unknown. It is almost universally found in connection with words signifying publication or revelation. The mystery of lawlessness is the mass of lawlessness yet hidden, but which is to reveal itself in the person and power of Antichrist. The position of the word is emphatic, emphasizing the concealed character of the evil power" (Marvin Vincent). Only there is One who restrains at present until out of the midst he be gone: Paul says that when the Restrainer, which is the Holy Spirit, be gone out of the midst, the secret of lawlessness will take full force.
McGee comments on this verse:
"When will the Holy Spirit be taken out? He will be taken out with the church. Won't the Holy Spirit be in the world during the Great Tribulation? Yes. Wasn't He in the world before Pentecost? He surly was. He was present in the days of the Old Testament, but He was on a different mission. And He will be on a different mission after the church is removed. Now the Spirit of God is sealing us until the day of redemption when He will present us and deliver us to the Lord Jesus. If He didn't do that, we would never make it. After He does that, I believe He will come back to the earth to resume His former mission down here. But He will not hinder evil - He will let the Devil have his day for a while. Believe me, I don't want to be on the earth when the Devil has it! It looks bad enough to me as it is today; so I don't want to be here when it is turned over to him."
Verse 8, "And then that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming."
LGT "And then the lawless [one] will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will consume with the breath of His mouth, and bring to naught by the appearing of His coming."
And then the lawless one will be revealed: then when the Restrainer, the Holy Spirit, is taken out of the way, in the Rapture of the church, then and only then will the lawless one be able to spread his blasphemy from one end of the earth to the other.
John Eadie well describes the Antichrist:
"The Man of Sin will assume - lawlessness, as described in verse 4 - not heathenism, nor polytheism, but the audacious and profligate [decadent] setting aside of all rule, the casting off of all divine supremacy, and the establishment of an autonomy [self-government], his arrogant and godless self-will being the only law. What has been so long working as a mystery [verse 7] and growing in lawless energy, and which in the interval has been kept back by a stronger hand from open manifestation, shall at length assume a personal shape, and appear as a man verifying his title as the Lawless one; not an outlaw or one beyond law, but one above law, subject to no rule save his own as the highest power - God disowned and His legislation superseded, not by atheism, or by dull negative anarchy, but by wild and virulent [powerfully dangerous] antitheism [anti-God], enthroned in blasphemous and God-defying outrage. As Christ glorified all divine law in His obedience unto death and was the righteous one, the servant of Jehovah, so this counterpart - not a pseudo-Christ, but truly Antichrist - flings all divine law off and away, and stands out as the Lawless one and as a God-personating usurper."
Whom the Lord Jesus will consume with the breath of His mouth: by the spirit of His mouth is meant "breath", when Christ will breathe out destruction on all wickedness, it will consume the work of Satan on this earth. Christ created the universe in seven days with the breath of His mouth, that is, He spoke all things into existence. And at the end of the Tribulation Period, He will destroy the works of the Antichrist with the breath of His mouth. And bring to naught by the appearing of His coming: by Christ's appearing, and with the word, breath of His mouth, he will annihilate all the works of the Antichrist. "The mere appearing of His presence, Parousia, suffices to destroy His adversaries" (Vincent). The appearing of the glorified Christ will be as though light was turned on in a darkened room; His splendor will blind the eyes of all wicked men, and Christ will consume lawlessness with the breath of his mouth; it was predicted by Isaiah, "With the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked" (Isa. 11:4). "Christ's second coming has two phases. He calls for His church to meet Him in the air (1 Thessalonians), and then He comes down to earth to establish His kingdom. At that time the Antichrist shall be consumed and destroyed with the brightness of his coming."
Verse 9, "Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders."
LGT "Whose coming is according to [the] working of Satan in every power and signs and wonders of falsehood."
Whose working: the Antichrist's working out the mystery of iniquity described as: is according to the working of Satan: Satan has been working against God in secret since his fall from heaven. In every power and signs and wonders of falsehood: the Antichrist is empowered by Satan, and is able to imitate the miracles of Christ, only for corrupt reasons. Christ performed miracles to the end that the world might be saved, while the Antichrist will perform miracles and wondrous signs for the destruction of the world. The wonders that the Antichrist will perform will be to the end of almost leading astray the very elect of God. "Signs means tokens. They have the purpose of appealing to the understanding. This man will have signs, which will appeal to the scientific, and the religious world. I am amazed how even today people are taken in by the phoniest kinds of things. Someone has asked me, 'Why do you think that happens?' I believe the answer can be expressed like this, 'Those who do not stand for something will fall for anything.' People who are not rooted and grounded in the Word of God will fall for all kinds of signs" (McGee). All these miracles and wondrous signs are imitations of God, such as the ones performed by the Pharaoh's magicians in Egypt (Exo. 7). Christ performed miracles and they were genuine proving His deity, while the Antichrist's miracles are imitations, they will deceive the masses because the masses are under his spell; they are children of Satan.
Verse 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."
LGT "And in every deceit of unrighteousness for them that are perishing, because the love of the truth they received not, for them to be saved."
And in every deceit of unrighteousness: the Antichrist will have at his disposal every deceit energized by Satan, every despicable trick imaginable, to deceive and lead the world towards corruption. For them that are perishing: the unbeliever will not only perish in the future hell, but they are perishing now without Christ, and estranged from God. "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36). "The reference is to men of corrupt minds and lives, over whom this system would have power; countenancing them in their depravity, and fitting them still farther for destruction. The idea is, that these acts would have especial reference to men who would be lost at any rate, and who would be sustained in their wickedness by this false and delusive system" (Barnes). The deceit of the Man of Sin will only reach the willing unbeliever for it could not phase the elect; besides, the ones who are saved during this time will be secured by God's love and grace. The rest of the church has already been raptured, and are safe for evermore. Because the love of the truth they received not: believed not the gospel of grace, instead, accepted the lie of Satan, and wanted to be deceived. For them to be saved: this is the purpose of the gospel of grace had they accepted it; but they love the darkness of this world, rather than the Light of the glorious gospel, that it might shine unto them.
Verse 11, "And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie."
LGT "And on account of this God sends them a working of error, for them to believe what [is] false."
And on account of this: the fact that the unbeliever loves darkness rather than light, and that he will not accept the gospel of grace. God sends them a working of error: the rightful judicial judgment of God is that 'He turns the wicked over to the evil they have deliberately chosen' (Milligan). For them to believe what is false: this deceit has already been described; they exchange the truth for a lie (Rom. 1:25). God never interferes with man's free will, but he does give them what they want. "If men have no love of the truth, and no desire to be saved, it is not improper that they should be allowed to manifest this. How it happened that they had no love of the truth is a different question, to which the remarks of the apostle do not appertain. They prefer this system of error and delusion to the simple and pure gospel [of grace], by which they might have been saved" (Barnes). "The lie of the Antichrist is that Jesus Christ is not the Lord that He is not who He says He is. He will tell people that they are really smart in not becoming religious nuts that believe in Jesus. He'll have some good explanation for the departure of the saints from the earth at the Rapture and will congratulate the people on having waited to build a kingdom on earth with him. The people will believe him and will believe that Antichrist will bring them the Millennium. They will not realize that they are entering into the Great Tribulation. That is the lie, and people will believe it because they believed not the truth" (McGee).
John Eadie remarks:
"The willful and persistent rejection of the truth God punishes with judicial blindness, so that the power of discernment is blunted, and error comes to be accepted as truth - nay, perversity becomes sometimes so morbid that men bring on them the woe pronounced against such as 'call evil good and good evil; that put darkness for light and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter' (Isa. 5:20). Sin often receives its chastisement in a deeper load of sin; is punished by the sinner's sinking into worse enormities. Indifference to the truth gets its divine recompense in its facile [simplistic] seduction into gross and grosser error."
Verse 12, "That they all might be damned who believe not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
LGT "In order that all the ones who believe not the truth may be judged, but delighted in unrighteousness."
In order that the ones who believe not the truth: the truth of the free gospel of grace. The word of God and the Word of God alone is all that can save a soul. May be judged: if they reject the Word of God, they reject God, and leave themselves to be judged by Him; Christ has paid the price for all sinners, so only those who believe not this truth, and refuse to accept Christ will go to the eternal lake of fire. But delighted in unrighteousness: the unbeliever deliberately and delightfully exposed themselves to the big lie, that Christ is not the Son of God, and that He did not pay for their sins.
Chosen for Salvation
Verse 13, "But we are bound to give thanks always 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."
LGT "But we are obligated to give thanks to God always concerning you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of [the] Spirit and belief of [the] truth."
But we are obligated to give thanks to God always concerning you, brethren beloved by the Lord: Paul felt that it was his moral obligation before God to remember the Thessalonian believers, because they were God's beloved children, and thus his brothers and sisters in Christ; they were all part of the family of God, and Paul had a special obligation to them as their founder and spiritual father. Because God chose you from the beginning unto salvation: just as God chose Israel to be His chosen people, but not all were Israel who were called Israel; only those who were obedient to the Lord, and came his way were true Israel. We all were called unto salvation, but only those who respond to the call are truly saved, "for God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). In sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth: the word sanctification means "set apart unto God." Our sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts after we accept Christ as our Savior, and it happens instantaneously. "The Spirit brings home the truth to the heart, and the heart under His blessing consciously and cordially accepts it - Himself the agent, and His truth the organ of our sanctification." This is God's divine plan for all believers that we should be set apart for His glory.
Verse 14, "Whereunto he called you by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."
LGT "Whereunto He called you by our Glad Tidings, to [the] inheriting of [the] glory of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Whereunto He called you: their election becomes complete by the call. God's election is to something and not from something. God has elected every believer to be joint heirs with Jesus Christ, and every one of His divine riches of grace. By our glad tidings: their election and calling becomes a reality by their accepting the gospel of grace Paul had preached to them. To the inheriting of the glory our Lord Jesus Christ: those who are saved by becoming one with Christ inherit a share of the glory that is Christ's. The only way a believer is able to appreciate this heritage is by studying the Word of God. This inheritance that is ours in Christ is part of what we have been elected to. "We see that verse 13 & 14 have given us the full spectrum of salvation: we have been saved, we are being saved, we shall be saved. It is all the work of God" (McGee).
Verse 15, "Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle."
LGT "So then, brethren, stand firm, and hold fast the doctrines which ye were taught, whether by word or by epistle."
So then, brethren: having been called to the election of saints, and being partakers with Christ in his glory, and all the divine riches of grace; this is the practical conclusion. Stand firm, and hold fast the doctrines which ye were taught: the Word of God is the only way in which a believer is able to become stable and stand fast in the Word. Daily Bible study is the only sure method of being productive in the hands of the Holy Spirit. Whether by word or by epistle: whether they learned it directly from Paul and other grace teachers directly or by his epistles. These are not mere traditions of men, but inspired doctrines given by the Holy Spirit, and that is why I translated paradoseis doctrines.
Verse 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."
LGT "But our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and our God [and] Father, who loved us, and gave [us] eternal encouragement and good hope in grace."
But the Lord Jesus Christ Himself: Paul usually states the Father first; but here he puts Christ on equal status with the Father, clearly bringing out Christ's deity, and that the riches comes from God because of Christ. And God our Father: the Father is able to love us because of Christ's sacrifice, bringing us into His family making us adopted sons and daughters. God the Father is the ultimate source of all the divine riches of grace, and it is because of Christ that we are able to receive these riches of grace. Who loved us: "the aorist tense "loved" [agapasas] refers to a past act, and is no doubt the love manifested in the mission of the only begotten Son (John 3:16:1John 4:10: Eph. 2:4)". The wonderful perfect love of the Father is the source of all spiritual blessings. And gave us eternal encouragement and good hope in grace: I believe the most encouraging thing the Father gave us in Christ is the assurance that we are His children, and the eternal hope of spending eternity with God as our Father, and Christ our beloved big Brother. "God love us, and in the act of love gave us, when the gift of His love came into the world and died" (Eadie). Now that we are part of God's family, we have His word as our consolation, and the more we study His Word, the more assurance we will receive, and the more comfort and consolation we will experience. God is the Author of grace, and the Son made it possible for God to make us recipients of all of its riches. "The gift of God in its combined aspect of consolation and hope takes effect in His grace that grace being opposed to necessity on His part, and to any merit on ours."
Verse 17, "Comfort your hearts, and establish you in every good work."
LGT "May He encourage your hearts, and may He establish [you] in every good word and work."
May He encourage your hearts: Paul prays that the Thessalonians, who were facing many fiery trials from without, that they might be comforted through the Word. And may He establish you in every good word and work: all good works are fruits of the Holy Spirit, and as they study the Word of God, the Holy Spirit will establish them and make them stand firm in the Lord; in every thing they do or say the Holy Spirit will strengthen them. "Not only will the Word of God comfort us, but it will also edify us [build us up in the Lord]. Establish you means we are to be rooted and grounded in the Word of God so that we are not carried away by every wind of doctrine [false doctrine]. Our minds and hearts will be centered on Him. That will keep us from going out after every fad of the day and reading every new book that comes off the press [such as that Purpose Driven Life drivel]. Nor will we be running to little study courses here and there to be built up for the moment. We need to be established in the faith" (McGee). It is the Word of God, and the Word of God alone that will equip us to be used by the Holy Spirit. Pray to the Father, study His Word, and yield to the Holy Spirit, and we will be established.
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