2 Thessalonians Series: Preparing for the End Times by Knowing God’s Schedule (2 Thess 2:1-12)

Preparing for the End Times

by Knowing God’s Schedule

Now regarding the arrival of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to be with him, we ask you, brothers and sisters, not to be easily shaken from your composure or disturbed by any kind of spirit or message or letter allegedly from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not arrive until the rebellion comes and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat in God’s temple, displaying himself as God. Surely you recall that I used to tell you these things while I was still with you. And so you know what holds him back, so that he will be revealed in his own time. For the hidden power of lawlessness is already at work. However, the one who holds him back will do so until he is taken out of the way, and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his arrival. The arrival of the lawless one will be by Satan’s working with all kinds of miracles and signs and false wonders, and with every kind of evil deception directed against those who are perishing, because they found no place in their hearts for the truth so as to be saved. Consequently God sends on them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false. And so all of them who have not believed the truth but have delighted in evil will be condemned.

2 Thessalonians 2:1–12 (NET)

How can we be prepared for the end times, including Christ’s coming? Imagine that a person is working at a company and there is a rumor that there will be immediate layoffs. On Friday before the weekend, the boss says he would like to meet with said person first thing Monday morning. Because of the rumor and the meeting with the boss, the person believes he will be laid off. That weekend, he couldn’t rest. He was sharp with his spouse and children. He thought about how to sell the house, how to find a new job, and how he would provide for his children’s tuition. However, when he got to work on Monday, his boss surprised him with a big promotion. That person’s thoughts throughout the entire weekend, the conflict with his family, the lack of sleep, and worries about the future were for nothing. That gives us a practical picture of what was happening in Thessalonica. False teachers had given the Thessalonians misinformation about Christ’s coming and the end times that had needlessly shaken them. Not only was the Thessalonian church being persecuted by outsiders, but they were being shaken by deceptive insiders. In 2 Thessalonians 2:2-3, Paul said this to the Thessalonians:

…not to be easily shaken from your composure or disturbed by any kind of spirit or message or letter allegedly from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. Let no one deceive you in any way.

The word “shaken” in verse 2 was used of an earthquake (cf. Acts 16:26). The word “disturbed” in the same verse is in the present tense, demonstrating their continued anxiety and dismay. They were still being bothered by the teachings and therefore had lost their peace. Apparently, because of the false teaching about the end times, some had even stopped working and were simply waiting on the end. In 2 Thessalonians 3:11-12, Paul said:

For we hear that some among you are living an undisciplined life, not doing their own work but meddling in the work of others. Now such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and so provide their own food to eat.

In disseminating the message, the false teachers were, clearly, very deliberate and comprehensive. Paul referred to the deception potentially coming through several means—a spirit, possibly a prophetic word, a message, probably referring to a sermon, or a letter. Probably, Paul had heard various rumors about how the teaching started. Either way, Paul declared that the teaching was false.

That’s why understanding God’s revealed eschatological timeline is important for Christians. What we believe about the future, by necessity, affects how we live today. God has given us much information about end time events in books like Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah, the Gospels, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 2 Peter, and Revelation. He has given us this teaching, not so we can speculate about the future for selfish or entertainment reasons, but so we can have peace when we have so much chaos happening in our world and also so we can be protected from the abundant false teaching.

What was the eschatological false teaching that shook the Thessalonians so much? Paul says the teaching was “that the day of the Lord is already here” (v. 2). In the Old Testament, the day of the Lord referred to any time that God judged Israel or other nations for their sins; however, those near “day of the Lords” always represented the final day of the Lord when God will judge the world for their sins, which will culminate with Christ’s return. In New Testament language, the day of the Lord includes the tribulation period (seven years) and specifically the final stage of it called the great tribulation (three and a half years), which Christ prophesied about in the Gospels. In Matthew 24:21-24 and 29-31, Christ said this:

For then there will be great suffering [or “tribulation” ESV] unlike anything that has happened from the beginning of the world until now, or ever will happen. And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe him. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect… Immediately after the suffering [or “tribulation” ESV] of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man arriving on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet blast, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Matthew 24:21-24, 29–31

Paul’s teaching in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 seems to correspond with Christ’s Olivet Discourse as Paul focused on the great tribulation (the last three years of the tribulation period), including the revealing of the Antichrist and Christ’s return to judge.

End Time False Teaching

With all that said, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 is one of the most difficult passages to interpret in all of Paul’s literature. Dr. Leon Morris, who wrote a commentary on 2 Thessalonians, said this: “This passage is probably the most obscure and difficult in the whole of the Pauline writings and the many gaps in our knowledge have given rise to extravagant speculations.” The speculations tend to focus on what false teachings had entered the Thessalonian church and also what Paul had already taught them about eschatology in the past. Since Paul had already taught them various things, he didn’t fully reiterate his previous teaching. In verse 5, he said, “Surely you recall that I used to tell you these things while I was still with you.” They knew what he taught, but we don’t, which leads to speculation. Because of this, there are various views on both Paul’s previous teaching and the false teaching in the church.

(1) Some believe that the false teaching that the day of the Lord had already come focused on them being in the great tribulation. Because the Thessalonians were experiencing severe persecution, which Christ promised would increase in severity as we approached the end, including the great tribulation (Matt 24:9-10; cf. Rev 13), the Thessalonians were alarmed by this. It is argued that they were alarmed and disturbed because Paul previously taught them that they would be raptured before the great tribulation, and therefore, they must have missed the rapture. (With this view, the elect that are gathered by the angels at Christ’s coming in Matthew 24:31 refer to believers saved after the rapture, including repentant Jews.) If the Thessalonians had not believed in the pretrib rapture, it is argued that their response to being in the “day of the Lord,” the great tribulation, doesn’t make sense. If they were in it, it meant that Christ would come very soon as Christ promised (Matt 24:29-31), which should have excited them instead of shaken them. In 1 Thessalonians, the second coming was mentioned in every chapter (1:10, 2:19, 3:13, 4:15-16, 5:23). They were living for and hoping in his coming (1 Thess 1:3). Being in the great tribulation and near Christ’s return should not have shaken them, unless they believed that they must have been left behind because Paul taught that the church would be raptured before the tribulation. Again, the speculation is based on what the false teaching was (being in the tribulation) and what Paul had previously taught them (that they would be raptured beforehand). In this view, the coming of Christ in verse 1 focuses on the rapture, and the coming of Christ to bring judgment on the Antichrist in verse 8 focuses on the second coming (which according to this view are separate events).

The other prominent view on the rapture sees the coming of Christ in verse 1 and verse 8 as the same and therefore the rapture is postribulational. When Christ comes after the tribulation period, deceased saints will be resurrected and alive saints will be raptured to meet Christ in the air. (2) Those who take the post-tribulational view commonly believe that the false teachers were saying that Christ had already come and that the saints had already been gathered to the Lord, including the rapture and the resurrection (vs. 1, “the arrival of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to be with him”), but in a spiritual way and that there was no physical second coming or resurrection. This would have shaken the Thessalonians because they were expecting a physical second coming of Christ and a physical rapture/resurrection. Support for this being the false teaching spreading in Thessalonica is the fact that other similar teachings were circulating in the early church. For example, in 2 Timothy 2:17-18, Paul said this about some false teachers:

…and their message will spread its infection like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are in this group. They have strayed from the truth by saying that the resurrection has already occurred, and they are undermining some people’s faith.

Hymenaeus and Philetus were probably teaching that a spiritual resurrection had already happened and that believers should not expect a future physical one. Since the resurrection happens at Christ’s coming, the false teachers probably taught that Christ had already returned spiritually as well (cf. 1 Thess 4:13-18). The false teaching in Corinth was probably similar. They were denying a physical resurrection of Christ and a physical resurrection of believers, probably in lieu of spiritual ones. In response, Paul essentially said if there is no physical resurrection, our faith is in vain (1 Cor 15:14).

A contemporary example of this false teaching is seen in extreme preterism which teaches that Christ came spiritually at the destruction of the Jewish temple in AD 70 and that there will be no future coming. Also, John Stott described another contemporary version of a spiritual coming of Christ that was taught by the founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. He said:

A modern version of the belief that Christ has already come is found among Jehovah’s Witnesses. Their founder, Pastor Charles T. Russell, first taught that the world would end in 1874, and then revised his calculations to 1914. After this year had passed, his successor judge J. F. Rutherford asserted that Christ did in fact come on 1 October 1914, but invisibly.

(3) Some people believe that the false teaching in Thessalonica taught that the day of the Lord was imminent and not present. Second Thessalonians 2:2 in the KJV translates it “the day of Christ is at hand.” Those who take this view say the Thessalonians were taking an unbalanced view of Christ’s imminence—that Christ could come at any moment—and were possibly even date setting. In 1 Thessalonians 5:1-2, Paul said, “Now on the topic of times and seasons, brothers and sisters, you have no need for anything to be written to you. For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come in the same way as a thief in the night.” It’s possible some false teachers were prophesying about the exact timing of Christ’s coming, and therefore, this led some in the church to quit working and providing for themselves and instead leech off others (cf. 2 Thess 3:10-12). Though it is healthy to live as though Christ could come at any moment, an off-balanced view of this could lead to erratic and unwise living like not taking care of responsibilities for today, which was happening in Thessalonica. Though this view is plausible, especially when considering the context of 1 and 2 Thessalonians, the view that the day of the Lord had already occurred or was happening is better supported by the Greek text, which is why most English Bible versions translate 2:2 as “the day of the Lord is already here”(NET), “has come” (ESV), or “has already come” (NIV).

Either way (whether the Thessalonians believed they were in the great tribulation period and missed the rapture, or that Christ had already spiritually come and that there was a spiritual rapture/resurrection, or that the Thessalonians took an unbalanced view of Christ’s imminence, or if the Thessalonians took a combination of these wrong views), the Thessalonians were shaken by this end time false teaching which contradicted Paul’s previous teachings. Because we don’t know exactly what the false teachers said about the day of the Lord and what Paul had already taught them, we should be gentle with our conclusions. With that said, it seems clear that he is referring to events that will begin the great tribulation and precede the second coming of Christ, which correspond with Christ’s teachings on the end times in Matthew 24. As far as the exact timeline of the rapture (pretrib, midtrib, or posttrib), that takes a careful harmonizing of many other texts in the New Testament and not just this one, which is why there are various views.

With that said, in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, Paul gives a preview of the end times, including aspects of the end time timeline which are important for us to understand. If we don’t understand them, we may find ourselves shaken by various worldwide catastrophic events or false teachings about Christ’s coming like the Thessalonians were. Though Christ will come like a thief in the night for the world, which should be scary, that should not be true for believers. In 1 Thessalonians 5:4-5, Paul said, “But you, brothers and sisters, are not in the darkness for the day to overtake you like a thief would. For you all are sons of the light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of the darkness.” Though the world will be shaken by the end time events and especially Christ’s coming, we should not be, because we know the outcome and much of the timeline. As we study Paul’s teaching, it should deliver us from fear of the end times which was hurting and immobilizing the Thessalonians and often hurts believers today. As we look at the chaos in the world and the fact that it will only get worse, we should have comfort because we understand much of the coming events, that God is in control of them, and the ultimate outcome which he sovereignly oversees. The ultimate outcome is that Christ is returning to judge all sin and sinners and bring in perfect righteousness. We can take comfort from that.

Big Question: What is the eschatological timeline that Paul gives in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 and what are some applications for our spiritual lives?

Before the Second Coming of Christ, There Will Be the Great Tribulation, Which Will Begin with the Revealing of the Antichrist and a Great Apostasy (v. 1-5)

Now regarding the arrival of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to be with him, we ask you, brothers and sisters, not to be easily shaken from your composure or disturbed by any kind of spirit or message or letter allegedly from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not arrive until the rebellion comes and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat in God’s temple, displaying himself as God. Surely you recall that I used to tell you these things while I was still with you.

2 Thessalonians 2:1-5

With regard to the timeline of the day of the Lord, including the great tribulation, Paul said it will not occur until two other events happen, the rebellion and the revealing of the man of lawlessness.

Interpretation Question: In 2 Thessalonians 2:3, what does the rebellion and the revealing of the man of lawlessness refer to?

The word “rebellion” can also be translated “apostasy.” It’s a military word that means to “abandon a position.” It’s only used one other time in the New Testament in Acts 21:21 when it refers to abandoning the law of Moses. Acts 21:21 says, “They have been informed about you—that you teach all the Jews now living among the Gentiles to abandon Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs.” Also, in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, it was used three times of rebellion against God (Josh 22:22, 2 Chr 29:19, Jer 2:19). Therefore, in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, Paul is probably using it to refer to a defection from a previously held religious position.

Consequently, before day of the Lord, including the great tribulation, there will be a great worldwide apostasy, a falling away from God and religion in general. This is not referring only to Christians falling away from the faith. That has happened since the beginning and will grow as we get closer to end as Christ prophesied. In Matthew 24:9-13, Christ said this:

Then they will hand you over to be persecuted and will kill you. You will be hated by all the nations because of my name. Then many will be led into sin, and they will betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will appear and deceive many, and because lawlessness will increase so much, the love of many will grow cold. But the person who endures to the end will be saved.

Because of increasing antagonism and persecution towards saints, false teaching, and widespread sin, many saints will fall away from Christ as we get closer to the end. The difficult circumstances will test if their faith is real and only those who persevere in the faith are truly saved. Certainly, that is happening today, as the culture around us becomes more sinful and antagonistic to Christianity, many Christians are falling away. However, in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, Paul was not referring to this general trend towards apostasy that will continue to increase in the church, but a major event that leads to the apostasy of not only Christians but people of any faith. He was referring to a very specific event, which is clearly seen by his use of an article, “the rebellion” or “the apostasy.” What is this event? Since Paul describes the “revealing of the man of lawlessness” right after mentioning “the rebellion,” the two are clearly connected.

The Antichrist

Who is the “man of lawlessness?” There are many names used of this man in Scripture. In Daniel 7:8, he is called the “little horn.” In Daniel 9:26, he is called the “prince who is to come.” In Daniel 11:36, he is called the king who does as he pleases. In Zechariah 11:15-17, he is called the “foolish shepherd.” In Revelation 13, he is called “the beast.” However, he is best known as the “Antichrist.” First John 2:18 says, “Children, it is the last hour, and just as you heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have appeared. We know from this that it is the last hour.” Also, 1 John 4:3 says, “but every spirit that refuses to confess Jesus, that spirit is not from God, and this is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming, and now is already in the world.” The prefix “anti” means “against” or “instead of,” and that is exactly what the Antichrist will be. He will seek to persecute anybody who worships Christ, but will also seek to be like him, including being worshiped. Second Thessalonians 2:3-4 says, “…the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat in God’s temple, displaying himself as God.” Also, Daniel 11:36-37 prophesied this:

Then the king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every deity, and he will utter presumptuous things against the God of gods. He will succeed until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must occur. He will not respect the gods of his fathers—not even the god loved by women. He will not respect any god; he will elevate himself above them all.

Interpretation Question: Why does Paul call the Antichrist the man of lawlessness and the son of destruction (v. 3)?

When Paul calls the Antichrist the man of lawlessness, it means that he will break God’s moral laws, as revealed in our conscience, our innate sense of right and wrong, and Scripture. He also will, no doubt, break civil laws. He will be an anarchist, creating rebellion against God, government, faith, and customs. He will, no doubt, trumpet self, self-love, and self-realization over God, family, society, nation, and the world—leading to chaos. Previously, Paul taught how the love of self would lead to terrible times during the last days. In 2 Timothy 3:1-5, he said:

But understand this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, savage, opposed to what is good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, loving pleasure rather than loving God. They will maintain the outward appearance of religion but will have repudiated its power. So avoid people like these.

No doubt, these will all be true of the Antichrist. He will personify all of these in the last days. People will have a leader who reflects the worst in themselves. Again, Christ described this as a general characteristic of the end times which will cause many to turn away from the faith. In Matthew 24:12, he said, “and because lawlessness will increase so much, the love of many will grow cold.”

In 2 Thessalonians 2:7, after describing the Antichrist as lawless, Paul said this about the times he wrote this in, which reflect our times: “For the hidden power of lawlessness is already at work.” Though the lawless one has not yet been revealed, the principle of lawlessness is already at work in our nations, cultures, and families. People have turned against scientific laws: People can choose their gender, ethnicity, and even species. Whatever a person wants to be, he or she can be! Who cares what biology says? People break moral laws, which God has written on our conscience and has been established in laws since the beginning of time. Men marry men and women can marry women. Parents murder their unborn children on the altar of convenience. People assist the old and infirmed with killing themselves (euthanasia), as long as they approve. The power of lawlessness is already at work among us. One of the chief philosophies taught in the education system today is relativism. This is the belief that what is true for one person and what is true for another can be different based on culture, society, historical context, and/or preference. There are no absolutes. If the drink is Coke, but somebody says it’s Sprite, it’s Sprite for that person and Coke for somebody else. There are no absolute realities, which opens the door for further lawlessness. The power of lawlessness is already at work and spreading, which will open the door for the ultimate lawless one, as we approach the end.

What does Paul mean by calling the Antichrist the “son of destruction”? The phrase is written in a common Hebraism which could mean several things. To be the “son of” something means to demonstrate the characteristics of that something, like a child does a father. To be a “son of peace” means that a person is forgiving, merciful, and prone to work for peace. Therefore, the “son of destruction” means the Antichrist will cause destruction and reflect it in everything he does. He will destroy faith, decency, and order, and murder countless people. He will create chaos until Christ comes to judge and bring his destruction. That’s why he is the “son of destruction.” He will cause destruction until he is destroyed. The phrase is used only one other time in the New Testament about Judas, who denied Christ. In John 17:12, Christ called him the “son of destruction” (ESV), meaning he was destined for it because he would partner with others in trying to destroy Christ.

As mentioned, the Antichrist will not only be against God and Christ but will also try to replace them (“anti” meaning “against” or “instead of”). In verse 4, Paul said, “He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat in God’s temple, displaying himself as God.” This will be the moment when the Antichrist is revealed and the great apostasy happens. It will signal the beginning of the great tribulation as Christ warned. Matthew 24:15-21 says:

“So when you see the abomination of desolation—spoken about by Daniel the prophet—standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains. The one on the roof must not come down to take anything out of his house, and the one in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great suffering [or “great tribulation” ESV] unlike anything that has happened from the beginning of the world until now, or ever will happen.

That event will be the revealing of the Antichrist, the beginning of the great apostasy, and the beginning of the great tribulation, which will last three and a half years.

The Antichrist will be on the earth before this, and it’s possible some will recognize him by his previous prophesied works. Daniel 9:27 describes how he will create a peace treaty with Israel which will stop the ongoing war and desolation there. It says:

He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. But in the middle of that week he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt. On the wing of abominations will come one who destroys, until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.

Revelation 13:3 says this about him, “One of the beast’s heads appeared to have been killed, but the lethal wound had been healed. And the whole world followed the beast in amazement.” Since the Antichrist is a cheap, imitation of the true Christ, this may refer to some type of assassination attempt and resurrection which will cause the world to stand in awe of him. With both of these significant events, some who study Scripture will no doubt recognize him, but his clear revealing will happen when he places himself in the “holy place” according to Christ (Matt 24:15) and “God’s temple” according to Paul in Jerusalem and declares that he is God (2 Thess 2:4). That’s why Christ says that those in Judea should flee when they see the “abomination that causes desolation —spoken about by Daniel the prophet—standing in the holy place” (Matt 24:15). This event will lead to the massive persecution of all who do not worship the Antichrist and the great apostasy which will signal that the day of the Lord has begun, the great tribulation, which is the second half of the entire tribulation.

Interpretation Question: What temple will the Antichrist declare that he is God in?

There is controversy over what Paul and Christ referred to as “the temple” (2 Thess 2:4) or the “holy place” (Matt 24:15). Some believe this is simply a metaphor for the church since the church is called God’s temple (1 Cor 3:16-17). For them, this means that he will infiltrate and capture Christendom, as apostate believers follow him. Others see this as simply a metaphor for placing himself in the seat of God, the place of worship, calling for all to worship him. However, with that said, since the early church, people have believed that the temple referred specifically to a rebuilt, third Jewish temple in Jerusalem. Irenaeus, an early church Father, writing in the late second century, said this:

But when this Antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world, he will reign for three years and six months, and sit in the temple at Jerusalem; and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man and those who follow him into the lake of fire; but bringing in for the righteous the times of the kingdom.

The Third Jewish Temple (Dan 9:24-27)

The reason the early church and many Bible students since then believe it refers to a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem is because Daniel prophesied this in Daniel 9:24-27 (NIV), calling it the “abomination that causes desolation” (Dan 9:27) and Christ affirmed it in Matthew 24:15. Daniel 9:24-27 is often called “God’s Prophetic Time Clock” and “The Backbone of Bible Prophecy.” It says this:

“Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place. “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”

We’ll consider this prophecy in depth. As background, Daniel was praying about the future of Israel (Dan 9:1-3) when the angel, Gabriel, appeared and shared with Daniel about Israel’s near and distant future, including the coming of the messiah, the second Jewish temple (cf. “sanctuary” in verse 26) which at the time of Daniel’s writing did not exist because the first was destroyed by Babylon, and finally a third Jewish temple which we are currently waiting on after the prophesied destruction of the rebuilt one in 70 AD (Dan 9:27). Verse 25 (NIV) says:

Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble.

The angel’s reference to “sevens” could mean seven days or years. Years makes the most sense because the context deals with Israel’s long-term future, including the coming of the messiah, and also because Daniel already had been thinking in terms of years (Israel’s seventy years of exile, Daniel 9:2). The angel Gabriel told Daniel that it would be seven sevens (49) plus sixty-two sevens (434) until the messiah comes. Altogether, that equals 483 years (49 + 434 = 483). From the issuance of the decree to rebuild Jerusalem given by Artaxerxes in 444 BC, as detailed in Nehemiah 2, until the coming of the messiah, it would be 483 years. When one takes into account that the Jewish calendar was 360 days and not 365 as ours is today, 483 years later would be 33 AD—right around the time of Christ’s death. Some have calculated that the exact date was Palm Sunday, when Christ entered Jerusalem on a donkey as Israel’s messiah. After the 483 years, the messiah would be killed and “a people” would destroy Jerusalem and the temple (which happened in AD 70). In verse 26, Daniel not only prophecied the destruction of the second Jewish temple but also prophesied about a ruler who would come, referring to the Antichrist, who will eventually take his seat in the third Jewish temple, as described in verse 27. Verses 26-27 say,

After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”

Since Rome destroyed the temple, we know that the Antichrist will come from the nations which were part of Rome, which are in Europe (possibly the EU). After the destruction of the second Jewish temple, Daniel prophesied that war and desolations have been decreed for Israel until the final 7 years of the prophecy. That is the history of Israel from AD 70 until a final peace treaty that the Antichrist will make with Israel and the nations warring with her. There is a gap after the first 483 years, which has now lasted over 2000 years. In that gap, Christ came and was killed, the Jewish temple was destroyed by Rome, and Israel has stayed in a state of desolation and war. However, after the gap, there will be one final seven-year period—the 70th week of Daniel, often called the tribulation period.

Before proceeding further with the last part of the prophecy and the third Jewish temple which will be rebuilt, we must ask the question, “Are prophetic gaps normal in Scripture?” Yes, they are. There is one in Isaiah 9:6. It says: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.” The child being born and the son being given was fulfilled in Christ’s first coming; however, the government resting on his shoulders won’t happen until his second coming. In the first coming, Christ was a prophet, priest, and sacrifice for the sins of the world. In the second coming, he will be a king who judges and rules the earth. Again, there is a prophetic gap of almost 2000 years, so far.

Now, let’s consider the final seven years of Daniel’s prophecy, which describes the tribulation period and specifically the Antichrist and his abomination in the temple. Daniel 9:27 (NIV) says:

He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.

The “he” Daniel refers to is the Antichrist. He will make a seven-year covenant with Israel. Since the context is “war will continue to the end and desolations have been decreed” (9:26), this probably refers to some type of peace treaty. But in the middle of the seven years, the Antichrist will break that treaty by putting an end to the Jewish sacrificial and offering system, which will be restarted after the temple is rebuilt. He will also set up an abomination at the temple until he experiences divine judgment, which Daniel prophesied and so did Christ and Paul (Matt 24:15, 2 Thess 2:8). The future Antichrist resembles the Syrian King, Antiochus, who did similar things to Israel during the intertestamental period, including putting an idol of Zeus in the temple, as prophesied in Daniel 11:21-35. Again, Christ refers to the abomination, which will be set up in the temple in Matthew 24:15-16, “So when you see the abomination of desolation—spoken about by Daniel the prophet—standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains.” This is when the Antichrist will unleash an assault specifically on the Jewish people, Christians, and any who hold to faith (cf. Rev 13). He will command that all will worship him. Because people will do so out of genuine worship of the Antichrist or fear of his wrath, this will cause the rebellion or apostasy that Paul referred to in 2 Thessalonians 2:3.

With that said, the building of the third Jewish temple is one of the great, unfulfilled prophecies in the Bible. Currently, the Muslim place of worship, the Dome on the Rock, is located where the second temple previously stood.

Is there currently any movement on the rebuilding of the temple? In AD 70 after being conquered by Rome, Israel was exiled from their land for over 1800 years; however, in 1948, after World War II, they were granted their land after all the travesties that happened to them before and during the war. Obviously, before Israel regained their land in 1948, there was no talk of rebuilding the temple. However, there is now a growing enthusiasm for its construction. Consider the results of this Jewish poll from 2009:

Ynet News reported the startling findings of a poll taken on July 30, 2009. The poll asked respondents whether they wanted to see the temple rebuilt. “Sixty-four percent responded favorably, while 36% said no. … The Temple was destroyed 1,942 years ago, and almost two-thirds of the population want to see it rebuilt, including 47% of seculars.”

Because the majority wants the temple rebuilt, there are government leaders vigorously pushing for it. Also, there are groups in Israel, such as the Temple Mount Faithful, who have made calls to Rome, requesting the Pope to return vessels and treasures stolen by the Romans when they destroyed the second temple in 70 AD. The hope is that these would be used in the third temple.

Nobody knows when the third temple will be built, but with the majority of the Jews desiring it and government officials pushing for it, it may happen soon. Then the sacrificial system will resume, which the coming Antichrist will terminate in the middle of the peace treaty and begin to persecute not only Jews and Christians but all religious people (Dan 9:27, 1 Thess 2:3-4, Rev 13:12-17).

The Unholy Trinity: Satan, the Antichrist, & the False Prophet

Revelation 13:12-17 describes some of the details of this. The Antichrist will have another person, often called the second beast or false prophet, who will do miracles on the Antichrist’s behalf to make the entire world worship him and those who don’t will be killed or not be allowed to buy and sell things.

He [the false prophet] exercised all the ruling authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and those who inhabit it worship the first beast, the one whose lethal wound had been healed. He performed momentous signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people and, by the signs he was permitted to perform on behalf of the beast, he deceived those who live on the earth. He told those who live on the earth to make an image to the beast who had been wounded by the sword, but still lived. The second beast was empowered to give life to the image of the first beast so that it could speak, and could cause all those who did not worship the image of the beast to be killed. He also caused everyone (small and great, rich and poor, free and slave) to obtain a mark on their right hand or on their forehead. Thus no one was allowed to buy or sell things unless he bore the mark of the beast—that is, his name or his number.

This will cause the great apostasy. Currently, Satan is fine with others worshiping false gods, the materialism of the world, or even themselves. However, one day, he will call all to worship him directly by worshiping the Antichrist whom he will empower. In Revelation 13, Satan is called the dragon, the first beast refers to the Antichrist, and the second beast refers to the false prophet. Since Satan is not a creator but an imitator, many have seen in these three an unholy trinity, a caricature of the true God. Our God is Father, Son, and Spirit. Through the Spirit, the apostles worked miracles and preached the gospel so people would accept Christ and worship God. However, in the end times, Satan will unleash his Antichrist and false prophet who will also perform miracles so all will ultimately worship him. The Antichrist will also require people to accept some type of mark in order to buy and sell in society. Those who do not will be killed or shut out of society, which will lead many to apostasize.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12, Paul referred to the miracles of Satan, the Antichrist, and the false prophet which would deceive many, when he said:

The arrival of the lawless one will be by Satan’s working with all kinds of miracles and signs and false wonders, and with every kind of evil deception directed against those who are perishing, because they found no place in their hearts for the truth so as to be saved. Consequently God sends on them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false. And so all of them who have not believed the truth but have delighted in evil will be condemned.

In verse 9, “miracles” refers to the supernatural power behind the Antichrist’s works, “signs” refer to how they point people to worship the Antichrist as god, and “wonders” refers to the sense of awe people will have when seeing them. When Paul calls them “false wonders” (v. 9), this doesn’t mean that the miracles will be fake. Satan has real power. It just means the miracles will be meant to deceive people into following the Antichrist. As previously considered, Revelation 13:12-15 describes how the false prophet will cause fire to come from heaven and also cause an image of the Antichrist to speak. Revelation 13:3 says this specifically about the Antichrist: “One of the beast’s heads appeared to have been killed, but the lethal wound had been healed. And the whole world followed the beast in amazement.” As mentioned, this possibly refers to his death and resurrection as one of his major miracles. In Matthew 24:24, Christ warned about this, when he said, “For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”

God Allows the Worldwide Deception

When 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12 says, “God sends on them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false. And so all of them who have not believed the truth but have delighted in evil will be condemned,” this simply means God will allow people to be deceived by these lying miracles because they previously rejected God, his way of salvation, and chose to live in sin. In Romans 1:28, Paul described something similar happening in the ancient world and the world today: “And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what should not be done.” God desires all people to be saved and come to the truth (2 Pet 3:9); however, when people reject the truth and practice sin, as a judgment, many times, God will allow them to receive the full consequence of their rejection, which includes a hardened heart, practicing more sin, a propensity to be more deceived, and eventually eternal judgment. One commentator described God’s deluding the lost this way: “‘[He] subjects them to the power of the error they chose. God uses their choice of evil as the instrument to punish their sin’ (Hiebert, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 344).” God will do exactly this in the end times to people who rejected him and the gospel to instead practice sin. Consequently, the majority of people will be deceived into following the Antichrist. This reminds us that there is a common slippery path to sin. Again, when a person starts to love sin, he must decide to reject the truth—that the sin is wrong and he (and others) will be judged by God for it. When he rejects truth, God often will harden the person’s heart by allowing him to continue in those sinful thoughts and practices. A hardened heart and conscience loses sensitivity to sin and therefore is more prone to further deception, including more harmful ones. Finally, this pathway leads to eternal judgment, which Satan, the Antichrist, and his demons will also experience. There is a broad path that most are on and a narrow path that only few find (Matt 7:13-14). The only way to be protected from the broad path is to love the truth found in God and his Word and to love righteousness instead of evil. With that said, many who take the pretribulation rapture view believe that only those who did not have an opportunity to hear the gospel before the rapture will have the opportunity to be saved during the tribulation period. For those who heard the gospel and rejected it, God will give them a delusion to believe the lies of the Antichrist and receive his eternal end.

In addition, it must be recognized that since God sends a delusion to those who reject the truth (v. 11-12), this means that God sovereignly controls the entire tribulation period, including the evil happening during it. God will use the Antichrist and people’s rejection of the truth to bring his judgment. This is also described in Revelation by God causing world leaders to follow the Antichrist’s evil decisions. Revelation 17:17 says, “For God has put into their minds to carry out his purpose by making a decision to give their royal power to the beast until the words of God are fulfilled.” God will be in total control of the great tribulation, using it to bring judgment on the lost who rejected him.

With that said, God’s sending of a delusion to those who rejected him does not mean people will not get saved during the tribulation. Many will. In Revelation 7:4, John describes 144,000 Jews who will get saved during the tribulation and become bold witnesses for Christ (cf. Joel 2:28). He also describes a great multitude, apart from the 144,000, who apparently will get saved during the tribulation. Revelation 7:14 says, “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb!”

The Great Prostitute: The Ecumenical Church

To add to the Antichrist’s narrative and specifically his persecution of the religious which causes the great apostasy, apparently, he will come to leadership at the beginning of the seven-year tribulation period, in part, through the support of religious people. In Revelation 17, we see a great prostitute riding a beast. Revelation 17:3-5 says,

So he carried me away in the Spirit to a wilderness, and there I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.” The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. The name written on her forehead was a mystery: babylon the great the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth.

In Rome, it was common for prostitutes to wear a headband with their name on it to help identify them to potential suitors. It’s the same for the prostitute in Revelation. What does this prostitute who rides the Antichrist symbolize? Prostitution throughout Scripture was often used to symbolize idolatry and worshiping other gods instead of the true God to whom people should be married and committed (Hosea 1:2, cf. Jam 4:4). The great prostitute seems to represent the ecumenical church, or pluralistic religion, where all views are accepted, including apostate Christendom. The fact that the Antichrist is being ridden by the prostitute shows that he initially supported her. Like political leaders today who often use the religious vote to get into office by pandering to their views, even though they truly don’t subscribe to them, so will the Antichrist. However, in Revelation 17, though initially showing the prostitute riding the beast, no doubt to get her desires accomplished in government, the Antichrist will ultimately turn on the prostitute and kill her. Revelation 17:16 says, “The ten horns that you saw, and the beast—these will hate the prostitute and make her desolate and naked. They will consume her flesh and burn her up with fire.” The Antichrist will persecute the ecumenical church, which has no true faith, and demand that all worship him. Again, this will cause the great apostasy, and it will signal the beginning of the great tribulation, the day of the Lord.

Application Question: What has been your experience in studying eschatology and what is your general view on the timeline? Why is the study of eschatology so difficult and often avoided? What are the views of the false teaching in Thessalonica and which seems more probable to you? In what ways have you seen or experienced general apostatsy in the church and how should we respond to this growing reality? In what ways have we seen many antichrists throughout history and how do these prepare us for the coming Antichrist (1 John 2:18)? What aspect of the great tribulation stood out most and why (cf. the Antichrist, the false prophet, the great prostitute, the peace treaty with Israel, the rebuilt Jewish temple, the apostasy, etc.)? How should we understand God’s sovereignty in handing people over to a reprobate mind and delusions currently and in the end times according to Scripture (Rom 1:28, 2 Thess 2:11-12, Ex 7:3, Matt 13:12)? Is this fair? How should we apply this reality about God and the human condition to our lives? Since the general state of the end time religion will be apostate (void of God) as pictured in the great prostitute in Revelation 17:3-5, how should we view and respond to the ecumenical movement and pluralism? When should we work with others who have theological differences within in Christianity and other faiths and when should we not work with them (if ever)?

Until the Great Tribulation, God, through the Restrainer, Is Hindering Satan’s Full, Destructive Plans (v. 6-7)

While describing the apostasy that the Antichrist will begin, Paul describes how something is holding Satan and the Antichrist’s work from coming to fruition. In 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7, Paul says: “And so you know what holds him back, so that he will be revealed in his own time. For the hidden power of lawlessness is already at work. However, the one who holds him back will do so until he is taken out of the way.” In verse 6, Paul calls the restrainer a “what,” but in verse 7, he calls the restrainer a “who” and a “he.” This means the restrainer is something (like a force) and someone (a person). A person is holding Satan back from executing his full, wicked plan. When telling them this, Paul referred back to his oral teaching which he gave the Thessalonians while he was with them months to a year or so prior. In verse 5, Paul said: “Surely you recall that I used to tell you these things while I was still with you.” Because Paul doesn’t tell us who the restrainer is, there has historically been great speculation over it. Since God is sovereign, he is ultimately the one allowing things to work according to his schedule; however, God seems to be using the restrainer to do it.

Interpretation Question: Who is the restrainer?

As mentioned, since Paul doesn’t tell us who the restrainer is, there are various views. (1) Some have said the restrainer is the preaching of the gospel. Matthew 24:14 says, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole inhabited earth as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.” After the Bible is translated for every nation and people group and the work of missions is completed around the world, then the final end time sequence will begin. The spread of the gospel is the restrainer, some would say. However, the spread of the gospel does not seem to fit with the fact the restrainer is called a who and a he, a person. (2) Others have tried to say that human government is keeping back the Antichrist and the final end time sequence. Romans 13:1 says, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except by God’s appointment, and the authorities that exist have been instituted by God.” In addition in Romans 13:4, the government is said to be, “God’s servant to administer punishment on the person who does wrong.” Certainly, God uses government, even corrupt governments, to restrain sin around the world. Any form of government is better than complete anarchy, where all people do what is right in their own eyes. However, the government being the restrainer suffers from the same problem as the first view, that the spread of the gospel is the restrainer. Neither the spread of the gospel nor human government fit with Paul’s use of the pronouns “who” and “he.”

(3) Another view of the restrainer is that the restrainer is the archangel, Michael, who is seen fighting demonic principalities throughout Scripture. In Daniel 10:13 and 20-21, he is seen fighting against the princes of Persia and Greece, who seemed to be demonic forces influencing those ancient goverments and fighting with the angel, Gabriel, who came to Babylon to minister to Daniel. The texts say:

However, the prince of the kingdom of Persia was opposing me for twenty-one days. But Michael, one of the leading princes, came to help me, because I was left there with the kings of Persia … He said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Now I am about to return to engage in battle with the prince of Persia. When I go, the prince of Greece is coming. However, I will first tell you what is written in a dependable book. (There is no one who strengthens me against these princes, except Michael your prince.

Also, in Revelation 12:7-8, he and other elect angels are seen defeating Satan and his demons and casting them out of heaven during the tribulation period.

Then war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But the dragon was not strong enough to prevail, so there was no longer any place left in heaven for him and his angels.

However, though there is merit to this view, other Scriptures make it clear that Michael has no power over the devil himself, which seems to exclude him from being the restrainer. Jude 1:9 says: “But even when Michael the archangel was arguing with the devil and debating with him concerning Moses’ body, he did not dare to bring a slanderous judgment, but said, ‘May the Lord rebuke you!’”

(4) Some have said the church is the restrainer. In Ephesians 6:10-13, when Paul shared about the armor of God that believers should wear, he taught how believers wrestle with powers and principalities. Certainly, believers have a restraining influence on the devil and society. However, believers have never been able to consistently restrain even human evil, either in their lives, churches, or nations. They certainly are not the ultimate ones to restrain Satan’s work in the world.

(5) The final and best candidate for the restrainer is the Holy Spirit who is shown to have a restraining ministry over sin in other parts of Scripture. He, no doubt, uses the preached gospel, the administration of righteous government, and even angels to restrain Satan and sin throughout the world, amongst other things. Tony Evans said this about the Spirit’s restraining ministry:

The Holy Spirit's restraint of sin is like the atmosphere around us. It's helping to sustain this world as we know and experience it. The only reason sin isn't as bad as it could be worldwide is because of the Spirit's restraint.

How do we see the Spirit’s restraining ministry taught in other Scriptures? Apparently, the Spirit was performing some type of restraining ministry right before God judged the earth through the worldwide flood. Because of the world’s great sins, in Genesis 6:3 (NIV), God said: “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” The word for “contend” in the Hebrew also means to “shield” or “protect.” Essentially, God had for years been protecting humanity from sin and its consequences through the Spirit. But, because of their continual rebellion, God handed them over to their sin and rebellion—allowing them to reap the consequences of their defiance by unleashing the flood.

If this view is correct, in the same way God used the Spirit to restrain sin before the first major judgment of the entire world, he uses the Spirit to do the same until the final judgment of the world before Christ returns. The Holy Spirit is currently restraining Satan’s full, destructive plan for the earth, but one day the Spirit will be taken out of the way to allow Satan’s evil plan to happen. The phrase “taken out of the way” in 2 Thessalonians 2:7 must be noticed. The Holy Spirit will not be “taken away” in the sense of totally removed but “out of the way” in the sense of stepping aside to allow Satan, the Antichrist, and sin to take their full course.

How is the Holy Spirit restraining sin throughout the world currently? No doubt, he does this through many ways. In Romans 1:28-32, Paul said this:

And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what should not be done. They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, contrivers of all sorts of evil, disobedient to parents, senseless, covenant-breakers, heartless, ruthless. Although they fully know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.

Essentially, because of the world’s continual rebellion, God hands them over to depraved thinking (v. 28), leading to worse sin and its consequences. By implication, this introduces another way the Holy Spirit restrains sin: he restrains it through humanity’s God-given conscience. Romans 2:14-15 describes how the conscience bears witness to the law God wrote on our hearts by accusing or defending us. The conscience is meant to be a moral guide in humanity that affirms us when we do right and condemns us when we do wrong. When God hands us over to our evil desires, our mind and conscience cease to work properly, and we start to approve even great evils. People start to declare that right is wrong and wrong is right, as their hearts become hardened. As in Genesis 6:3, God’s Spirit will not contend with people forever; eventually, he will allow them to have what their evil hearts want, including reaping the consequences of those evil desires.

What are some other ways the Holy Spirit restrains sin? We mentioned many of these already. God restrains sin through:

• the conscience,

• the teaching, studying, and practicing of God’s Word, as he convicts believers and unbelievers of sin (2 Tim 3:16-17),

• government authorities, as they discipline wrongdoers and reward the righteous (Rom 13:1-7),

• families, as they discipline and raise children according to godly guidelines (Eph 6:4),

• direct intervention, as God, through the Spirit sets boundaries on Satan’s work, as God did in the story of Job (Job 1:12, 2:6),

• God’s army of angels, as they contend with powers and principalities on behalf of God and his saints,

• the godly witness of the church (Matt 5:13-16).

In the end times, all of these areas will be less effective, as the Spirit’s ministry is removed to some extent (2 Thess 2:3-7).

Removed through the Rapture of the Church?

With that said, many who accept either the pretribulation or the midtribulation rapture believe the Spirit will be removed through rapturing the church either right before the seven-year tribulation or right before the middle of the tribulation. Why do they believe this? In John 16:7-11, Christ said this about the Holy Spirit’s coming to indwell the disciples in a new way:

But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong concerning sin and righteousness and judgment—concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

How would the Holy Spirit convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment at his coming? He would do it through dwelling in members of the church and enabling them to be salt and light to the world. Again, in John 16:7 Christ said, “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you.” Since the Spirit couldn’t come unless Christ left, for many, it seems logical that right before Christ returns to the earth, the Spirit will again leave. He will be present in the same way he was in the Old Testament. No doubt, he will still be restraining sin, but not in the same manner that he is currently doing through Christ’s disciples, the church. It is for this reason that some believe this refers to the rapture of the church happening sometime before Christ returns. After Christ ascended to heaven, the Spirit came to indwell the church and minister through them by restraining sin and promoting righteousness. Before Christ returns, (it is argued) that the Holy Spirit will return to the Father with believers (yet still be present and ministering, but in an Old Covenant way). It is because the Spirit will be present that some will still be saved during the tribulation. Then, after a period of Satan’s wrath on the earth through the Antichrist, Christ will return with his saints to judge the earth.

Whether one believes in a pre, mid, or posttribulational rapture, it seems best to identify the restrainer as the Holy Spirit. In the same way that he restrained sin before God judged the world through the flood, he is restraining sin now until God allows Satan and the Antichrist to do their work in the last half of the tribulation period.

What’s the final part of God’s schedule for the end times, according to 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12?

Application Question: What view of the restrainer do you think has the most merit and why? Since the Holy Spirit has a restraining ministry in Scripture, how should we practically apply his ministry to our lives? What view of the rapture to Christ have you been trained in (pretrib, midtrib, posttrib) and what do your currently believe and why?

At the Second Coming of Christ, Satan and the Antichrist Will Be Effortlessly Defeated (v. 8)

In verse 8, Paul said: “and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his arrival.” Though the most evil and powerful ruler to ever live, the Antichrist will not be able to stand before Christ at his second coming for even a moment. Simply through Christ’s breathing, or speaking, he will be conquered. His defeat will be like a human blowing a dust particle. Likewise, the text says the Antichrist will be defeated simply by the “manifestation of” Christ’s arrival. His appearance is all that is needed to “destroy” and “wipe out” the enemy. The word “destroy” in verse 8 does not mean the Antichrist will be annihilated. The word means “‘to make idle’ and thus ‘to render null and void.’” Revelation 19 and 20 describe how Christ will defeat the Antichrist and false prophet. In Revelation 19:20-21, it says:

Now the beast was seized, and along with him the false prophet who had performed the signs on his behalf—signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. Both of them were thrown alive into the lake of fire burning with sulfur. The others were killed by the sword that extended from the mouth of the one who rode the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves with their flesh.

Likewise, Revelation 20:10, which happens after the second coming and Christ’s thousand-year rule on the earth, says: “And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet are too, and they will be tormented there day and night forever and ever.” Satan, the Antichrist, and the false prophet will not be annihilated but defeated and tormented in the lake of fire throughout eternity, along with all who do not accept Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Application Question: Some people believe that unbelievers, Satan, and the Antichrist will be annihilated instead of eternally punished. Why do some people believe that? Why have Christians traditionally believed in eternal punishment (cf. Rev 20:10, Matt 25:26)? Why is it important to distinguish between the two (annihilation and eternal destruction)? How might these two views affect unbelievers who hear them differently?

Applications on Studying the End Times

Application Question: What are some applications that we can take from considering the eschatological timetable in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12?

As we consider some practical applications, we must reflect on 2 Thessalonians 2:5, when Paul said to the Thessalonians, “Surely you recall that I used to tell you these things while I was still with you.” “You recall” is in the imperfect tense, meaning a past action that was repeated. Though Paul was only with the Thessalonians for a few weeks or months, he repeatedly taught them about eschatology. This means that though they were new Christians, he believed that understanding the end times was foundational for their faith. Today, many Christians find the study of eschatology irrelevant to their lives and unnecessarily divisive, and therefore neglect the study of it and struggle to sit through teachings on it. Though complex and at times controversial, we must diligently study and reflect on the future, as taught by Scripture, because it affects how we live today. This is why Paul repeatedly taught it to the new believers in Thessalonica. This is especially important, as we get closer to the end and things get worse and worse and lawlessness becomes normative and even praised. These are just signs that our deliverance and our Savior’s kingdom is coming soon. Here are a couple of quick applications for why we should study the end times.

• We should study the end times to give us hope. God does not promise us the absence of trials but hope in our trials because we know the outcome of them. Romans 5:3-4 says, “Not only this, but we also rejoice in sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance, character, and character, hope.” With our daily troubles, Scripture tells us they create perseverance, character, and hope in us. Likewise, as things get worse and worse in our world while we trend towards the end, it should inspire us to hope in God who sovereignly controls events and people for the good and helps us ultimately hope in Christ who will return to bring justice and righteousness to the earth. In fact, Titus 2:13 (NIV) says this: “while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” Christ’s second coming is simply called our blessed hope or happy hope. Is Christ’s coming our blessed, happy hope? Does it give us joy in a world that gets darker and darker? As we look around at the growing lawlessness and sin in our societies, our hope must be in our sovereign God and coming Savior.

• We should study the end times to help us grow in holiness. Christ is returning for a chaste bride. Ephesians 5:25-27 says,

Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her to sanctify her by cleansing her with the washing of the water by the word, so that he may present the church to himself as glorious—not having a stain or wrinkle, or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.

Since that’s why Christ died for us and currently works in us, we should zealously work to be holy, seeking to get rid of sin and grow in righteousness. Are we pursuing holiness, as we await our Lord’s coming? First John 3:2-3 says this:

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

• We should study the end times to motivate us to serve. When Christ returns, he will reward those who faithfully used their gifts and served him. In the Parable of the Minas and the Parable of the Talents (Luke 19:11-27, Matt 25:14-30), God praised and rewarded those who were faithful workers. In Matthew 25:21, Christ responded to the faithful servant: “Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.” However, with the unfaithful servant, Christ cursed and judged him (Matt 25:26-30). In fact, after Paul taught on the second coming, the resurrection of the dead, and the rapture, Paul said this in 1 Corinthians 15:58, “So then, dear brothers and sisters, be firm. Do not be moved! Always be outstanding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” Studying the end times should not simply motivate us to patiently wait but motivate us to faithfully serve while we wait. Are we faithfully serving?

• We should study the end times to motivate us to evangelize. In the end times, only those who put their faith in Christ will be saved. All will be judged during the tribulation period and ultimately by Christ at his return. Today is the day of grace. Tomorrow is, ultimately, the day of judgment. While it is today, we must preach the gospel, even to those who will despise us when we do so. Who knows? By our faithfulness to share God’s Word, he may save some and use them to win many others to Christ. Romans 10:14-15 says,

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

As we await our coming Lord, may God give us blessed feet that run to share the good news with others. Lord, help us be faithful!

• We should study the end times to motivate us to pray. First Peter 4:7 says, “For the culmination of all things is near. So be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of prayer.” God brings his kingdom through the prayers of his saints: he saves the lost, guides our leaders in righteousness, and uses us and his church to build his kingdom. When Christ gave us a pattern for daily prayer in Matthew 6:9-10, he taught us to begin our prayers by focusing on God’s glory and coming kingdom. He taught us to pray, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We should pray for Bible studies, prayer meetings, revivals, and churches to be started throughout the world so more people can truly know and worship God. We should pray for people to submit to God’s will, including our government leadership, neighbors, co-workers, families, and nonbelievers as they accept and follow Christ through studying his Word. We should pray for Christ to bring his kingdom on the earth and to make all wrong things, right. The end of all things is near; therefore, we should pray more, not less. Lord, give us grace.

Application Question: Why are there so many differences in various views of eschatology? How should we handle differences with others in eschatology? Is it important to develop our eschatology? Why or why not? And if so, how can we deepen our understanding of eschatology? How will you practically apply this study?

Conclusion

As we conclude, in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, the Thessalonians were anxious and worried because they had received false information about the end times. Their thoughts about the future were affecting how they lived each day. Apparently, because of the false teaching about the end times (whatever exactly that teaching was), some had even stopped working and were simply waiting on the end, according to 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12. What we believe about the future affects how we live today, including being consumed by fear and anxiety and demotivated to serve or having God’s joy and peace and being motivated to serve. Therefore, Paul reiterated his previous teachings about the end times so they would have peace, protection, motivation, and direction.

When Paul described the end times in minute form in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12, he taught the Thessalonians (and us):

1. Before the Second Coming of Christ, There Will Be the Great Tribulation, Which Will Begin with the Revealing of the Antichrist and a Great Apostasy (v. 1-5)

2. Until the Great Tribulation, God, through the Restrainer, Is Hindering Satan’s Full, Destructive Plans (v. 6-7)

3. At the Second Coming of Christ, Satan and the Antichrist Will Be Effortlessly Defeated (v. 8)

Amen! Lord, come! Lord, come!

Application Question: What aspect of 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 and our study, including the eschatological timetable, stood out most and why?

Prayer Prompts

• Pray for God to deliver our nation and the nations from lawlessness, and that God would restore both a knowledge and fear of God to all people.

• Pray for God to empower and embolden his saints to preach God’s Word and share the gospel so many can be miraculously saved.

• Pray for God to bring a great revival through a work of the Holy Spirit in our families, churches, businesses, schools, and governments—that people would repent and come to know Christ.

• Pray for God to send his Son, so he can bring eternal justice and righteousness. Lord, come! Lord, come!