Chap 2_ 2Thessalonians

ron clark

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Prelude to Thessalonians

I’ve sensed before but it becomes more acute in the studies of Thessalonians.

In going through different commentators and speculations - it doesn’t seem that it is right. It is one thing to try and come up with a well translated understanding of the Bible, but it another thing to try to solve a mystery in the Bible. There are some things which I think if God had wanted to be vague, then it should remain vague.

In the early church and really up to the reformation, teaching and preaching was most of the time in metaphors. Assuming that some of the most highly educated, privileged, sophisticated facilitators were those drawn to religious and what is more mentally invigorating and feeding pride is the discovery of some wonderful new teaching. If you subvert the importance of verses and replace with metaphors then man is in the driver seat of understanding. This was especially easy when the bible was not available for public reading.

In Thessalonians, there are so many different opinions and some shift when you go back a 100 years.

Just read a book sent by a ministry from tv about revelation. This person more or less mocked other ideas about revelations because she had the true, hidden meanings. She quoted some Qanon and refereenced Trump alot and recognized other “anons”. US was going to become stronger and greater, etc.. She had entire chapter plus more about the secret codes in the stellar constellations. To make it worse, there were some of her ideas or translations that made sense.

I think that if an answer is not clear, rathere than drive for a metaphor or an allusion, we should state what is clear. And clearly note that opions are just that. We should walk in truth and spirit- not in an attractive metaphor or new belief. Stand on what we know is truth! It is our protection.

Mark 4:10–11 (HCSB) 10 When He was alone with the Twelve, those who were around Him asked Him about the parables. 11 He answered them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to those outside, everything comes in parables.........Mark 4:13–15 (HCSB) 13 Then He said to them: “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any of the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 These are the ones along the path where the word is sown: when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word sown in them.

OOOOOOOOO 2 Thessalonians 2:1–4 (NIV84) The Man of Lawlessness 2 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, 2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction [ the son of destruction; not the man doomed]]. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.

.....2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by ...prophecy, report or letter. This state was fairly serious. It seems as this subject was not casual speculation, but something that alarmed them and unsettled the church. It was serious and urgent, Paul was writing a second letter fairly soon after the first letter. He is patient and loving with this letter. He doesn’t scold them, he asks them to stand fast, don’t be easily mislead by anything - a prophesy, a report, or even a forged letter. The word of God, the gospel that was taught by Paul does not change. God doesn not change, nor do his words. But man seems to be vulnurable and attracted to the “new” and “exciting”. So some new message comes through an appearing spiritual medium or delivery - even a prophet- what we spoke is true.

Their concern regards a major event. THE END OF THE WORLD. They were afraid that they had missed the day of the Lord - the second coming. This has the underlying insecurity that they were perhaps unworthy, they were too young in the kingdom, they weren’t qualified for some reason.

So they were doubting their salvation, they were doubting what Paul had taught them. It is very serious!

Paul then gives two preconditions that will precede that Day of the Lord.

.... The rebellion - this is more than apostacy within the church but as shown in 10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. It is a general rejection by everyone against Christ. So not only they core source of belief, the church, but also in the all others a rejection. This is more than a time of unbelief or doubt, but actual rejection. ......Matthew Henry: rebellion must occur. The word used here is apostasia, or apostasy. Before the day of the Lord, there will be a great denial, a deliberate turning away by those who profess to belong to Christ. It will be a rebellion. Having once allied themselves with Christ, they will abandon him.

Apostasy has been mentioned in other parts of the bible, but this refers to significant event in the future. some say this is the rapture, others profess that theis is during the 2nd half of 3 1/2 years into the tribulation before Christ’s returen

I think that at this time of rebellion, there will be many who profess faith in Jesus, but actually believe in another Jesus. The weak, false belief will be lend them to being mislead by the new gospel of the anti-Christ. A weak or counterfeit belief can reduce your protection, your stand in true faith. A faith tainted by man’s sinful interpretations or guide makes you more condusive to something that promises “more” or “greater”.

2. V3 the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction A better translation found in most other translation is [ the son of destruction; not the man doomed to ]]

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (2 Thessalonians 2:3b–12) ...The apostle speaks of some very great apostasy, not only of some converted Jews or Gentiles, but such as should be very general, though gradual, and should give occasion to the revelation of rise of antichrist, that man of sin.... (2 Thessalonians 2:3b–12) antichrist would take his rise from this general apostasy. The apostle afterwards speaks of the revelation of that wicked one (v. 8), intimating the discovery which should be made of his wickedness, in order to his ruin.....he sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. As God was in the temple of old, and worshipped there, and is in and with his church now, so the antichrist here mentioned is some usurper of God’s authority in the Christian church, who claims divine honours; and to whom can this better apply than to the bishops of Rome

Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (2 Thessalonians 2:3b–12)something that hindered or withheld, or let, until it was taken away.

This is supposed to be the power of the Roman empire, which the apostle did not think fit to mention more plainly at that time; and it is notorious that, while this power continued, it prevented the advances of the bishops of Rome to that height of tyranny to which soon afterwards they arrived. (2.) This mystery of iniquity was gradually to arrive at its height; and so it was in effect that the universal corruption of doctrine and worship in the Romish church came in by degrees, and the usurpation of the bishops of Rome was gradual

I & II Thessalonians, I & II Timothy, Titus, Philemon (2. The Man of Lawlessness (2:3–4))

son of destruction - It was his opinion that the man of lawlessness is to be identified with the line of such Roman emperors as Caligula, Nero, Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian (see his Biblical and Theological Studies, edited by S. C. Craig, Philadelphia, 1952, p. 472). But, as has been indicated, the entire context here in 2 Thess. 2 is eschatological. It has to do with “the end” of the present dispensation. The “man of lawlessness” is the one who will immediately precede Christ’s second coming (verse 3

Eastern religions had the concept of a good vs evil battles, etc.

Thessalonians (7. He Is Not the Chaos-Dragon of the Babylonians nor Is He to Be Identified with the Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphical Perversion of the Term “Belial.”)

7. He is not the Chaos-dragon of the Babylonians nor is he to be identified with the apocryphal and pseudepigraphical perversion of the term “Belial.”To begin with the first, this refers to the Babylonian creation-epic with its story of the struggle between the Chaos-dragon, Tiamat, on the one hand, and the god of light, Marduk, on the other. It has been pointed out again and again, however, that the legendary elements which characterize this wholly mythical and “impossible” tale contrast most strongly with the sober description that is found in the Bible with reference to God’s great opponents, Satan and antichrist. In this connection, moreover, one should ever distinguish between form and contents, between a term and the use which is made of it. To be sure, inspired authors make use at times of the terminology of ancient and current superstition. Thus, the author of the book of Revelation introduces a dragon. But this dragon is not Tiamat, whom Marduk cleaves asunder like a fish, after he has with a javelin cut her heart in pieces. (By the critics reference is also made to such passages as Ps. 74:13; 89:10; Job 41:1, but each passage should be interpreted in the light of its own specific context and background.)Moreover, of late the entire attempt to derive Biblical teachings from Babylonian sources, an attempt which was never very successful and has been refuted more than once, has received another jolt in the discovery of the Ras Shamra tablets. These were found in 1929 at the ancient Phoenician city of Ugarit on the coast of Syria. These tablets present a wealth of information with respect to the Canaanite background of the Old Testament. They contain several variations on the theme of the slaying of a dragon. Hence, now the critics are beginning to revise their views once more, and are saying that, after all, the religion of Israel may have been influenced more directly by that of Canaan than by that of Babylon. One wonders what theory will be advanced next?

Thessalonians (7. He Is Not the Chaos-Dragon of the Babylonians nor Is He to Be Identified with the Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphical Perversion of the Term “Belial.”)

of the great and final prince of wickedness are derived from the book of Daniel:(1) “The man of lawlessness,” cf. Dan. 7:25; 8:25.(2) “the son of perdition,” cf. Dan. 8:26.(3) “the one who opposes,” cf. Dan. 7:25(4) “and exalts himself against everything (that is) called God or worshiped,” cf. Dan. 7:8, 20, 25; 8:4, 10, 11.(5) “so that he seats himself in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God,” cf. Dan. 8:9–14.This is not surprising, for “the little horn” of Dan. 7, the one which came up after the ten horns, is the antichrist, and “the little horn” of Dan. 8, the one which came up out of one of the four notable horns, is Antiochus Epiphanes, antichrist’s most notorious forerunner, the one who desecrated Jerusalem’s temple by erecting a pagan altar over the altar of burnt-offering, and by sacrificing upon it (which was an “appalling horror” in the estimation of every true believer).

That he is the creation or result of that apostasy, is equally clear. That he is the grand agent in continuing it, is equally manifest. Is the phrase itself one that is properly applicable to him?

Is it proper to speak of the pope of Rome, as he has actually appeared, as “the man of sin?” In reply to this, it might be sufficient to refer to the general character of the papacy, and to its influence in upholding and perpetuating various forms of iniquity in the world. It would be easy to show that there has been no dynasty or system that has contributed so much to uphold and perpetuate sins of various kinds on the earth, as the papacy. No other one has been so extensively and so long the patron of superstition; and there are vices of the grossest character which have all along been fostered by its system of celibacy, indulgences, monasteries, and absolutions. But it would be a better illustration of the meaning of the phrase “man of sin,” as applicable to the pope of Rome, to look at the general character of the popes themselves. Though there may have been some exceptions, yet there never has been a succession of men of so decidedly wicked character, as have occupied the papal throne since the great apostasy commenced. A very few references to the characters of the popes will furnish an illustration of this point. Pope Vagilius waded to the pontifical throne through the blood of his predecessor. Pope Joan—the Roman Catholic writers tell us—a female in disguise, was elected and confirmed pope, as John VIII. Platina says, that “she became with child by some of those that were round about her; that she miscarried, and died on her way from the Lateran to the temple.” Pope Marcellinus sacrificed to idols. Concerning pope Honorius, the council of Constantinople decreed, “We have caused Honorius, the late pope of Old Rome, to be accursed; for that in all things he followed the mind of Sergius the heretic, and confirmed his wicked doctrines.” The council of Basil thus condemned pope Eugenius: “We condemn and depose pope Eugenius, a despiser of the holy canons; a disturber of the peace and unity of the church of God; a notorious offender of the whole universal church; a Simonist; a perjurer; a man incorrigible; a schismatic; a man fallen from the faith, and a wilful heretic.” Pope John II., was publicly charged at Rome with incest. Pope John XIII. usurped the Pontificate, spent his time in hunting, in lasciviousness, and monstrous forms of vice; he fled from the trial to which he was summoned, and was stabbed, being taken in the act of adultery. Pope Sixtus IV. licensed brothels at Rome. Pope Alexander VI. was, as a Roman Catholic historian says, “one of the greatest and most horrible monsters in nature that could scandalize the holy chair. His beastly morals, his immense ambition, his insatiable avarice, his detestable cruelty, his furious lusts, and monstrous incest with his daughter Lucretia, are, at large, described by Guicciardini Ciaconius, and other authentic papal historians.” Of the popes, Platina, a Roman Catholic, says: “The chair of Saint Peter was usurped, rather than possessed, by monsters of wickedness, ambition, and bribery. They left no wickedness unpractised;” see the New Englander, April, 1844

So there will be a man and a condition that will reinforce each other that will exist before the 2nd coming.

Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 2347.

....V 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God…

He claims he is not equal to but claims that “he “ is God. Basically saying that Jehovah, Jesus Christ, the Trinity is a false god. He is to be worshipped and he publicly proclaims this.

He does this in the loation of the “temple” - some say this is a literal temple others that it is symbolic

1.By the temple of God the apostle could not well mean the temple of Jerusalem; because that, he knew, would be destroyed within a few years. After the death of Christ the temple of Jerusalem is never called by the apostles the temple of God; and if at any time they make mention of the house or temple of God, they mean the Church in general, or every particular believer. Whoever will consult 1 Cor. 3:16, 17; 2 Cor. 6:16; 1 Tim. 3:15; Rev. 3:12; will want no examples to prove that, under the Gospel dispensation, the temple of God is the Church of Christ;

2. the temple mount

3. a rebuild of the destroyed Temple in Jerusalem

Adam Clarke, The Holy Bible with a Commentary and Critical Notes, New Edition., vol. 6 (Bellingham, WA: Faithlife Corporation, 2014), 569.

OOOOOOOOOO 2 Thessalonians 2:5–10 (NIV84) 5 Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? 6 And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, 10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.

....V7 power of lawlessness is already at work;

.....V7 the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way.There are many candidates set forth by scholars as to who this “one” is who restrains Satan and his forces. Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: I Thessalonians to Philemon, ed. Robert Frew (London: Blackie & Son, 1884–1885), 81–82.Thessalonians (7. He Is Not the Chaos-Dragon of the Babylonians nor Is He to Be Identified with the Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphical Perversion of the Term “Belial.”) William Hendriksen

identifying the restrainer. On this point, however, the Thessalonians were ahead of us in their knowledge of eschatology. They knew. We do not. Augustine in his day frankly confessed that even with the best efforts he was not able to discover what the apostle meant (Concerning the City of God. XX. xix).Some interpretations are wrong even on the surface (such as, “Paul,” “God,” “the Holy Spirit”). God or the Holy Spirit are not “taken out of the way” (which, in spite of objections that have been advanced, is probably a good English equivalent of the Greek idiom ἐκ μέσου γίνεσθαι); cf. also Col. 2:14.Of all the theories advanced so far the one which seems to have most in its favor is that according to which the restrainer is “the power of well-ordered human rule,” “the principle of legality as opposed to that of lawlessness” (see Ellicott’s Commentary on this passage). According to this view Paul intends to say that as long as law and order still obtain, the man of lawlessness is unable to appear upon the scene of history with his program of unprecedented unrighteousness, blasphemy, and persecution. In favor of this view note the following.

Other commentators speculated and some were very sure of who it is/was:

Some say it is obviously an emperor because Paul had been protedted through Roman law and that Paul says “now” you know. So now means the restrainer is now at work

it is Michael

It is Paul

It is one which seems to have most in its favor is that according to which the restrainer is “the power of well-ordered human rule,” “the principle of legality as opposed to that of lawlessness”

it is Satan - getting ready for the right time to make his last battle

it is the church

The most logical course would be to determine who could possibly hold such power as to restrain the powers of Satan. No mere man could. His limits of time and power would make that impossible. So the “one” must also be superhuman. This places God at the forefront of possibilities. Yet, God does not abandon the world when the Antichrist is revealed. So the most reasonable explanation as to who holds back the boiling powers of evil is the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is now in the world in special ministry: to “convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment” (John 16:8). This is a work which he does on his own. In addition, the Spirit dwells in the spirit of every believer. As such, the church and those individuals in it are also a restraining force of God in the world. The Holy Spirit works on his own, but he also works through the believer and the church to hold back Satan until his proper time. Knute Larson, I & II Thessalonians, I & II Timothy, Titus, Philemon, vol. 9, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 107–108.

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible Chapter 2

hindrance; “he who now letteth,” to the person in whom that hindrance is summed up. Romanism, as a forerunner of Antichrist, was thus kept in check by the Roman emperor (the then representative of the coercive power) until Constantine, having removed the seat of empire to Constantinople, the Roman bishop by degrees first raised himself to precedency, then to primacy, and then to sole empire above the secular power. The historical fact from which Paul starts in his prediction was probably the emperor Claudius’ expulsion of the Jews, the representative of the anti-Christian adversary in Paul’s day, from Rome, thus “withholding” them in some degree in their attacks on Christianity; this suggested the principle holding good to the end of time

one who holds back The phrase means properly, something that holds back, or restrains. The word here is in the neuter gender, “What withholdeth.” In the following verse it is in the masculine gender, ὁ κατέχων,—“he that letteth,” or withholdeth; and the reference would seem to be to some agency or state of things under the control of an individual, or of some civil power, that then operated as a restraint on the natural tendency of things. Of this, the apostle says, they had had full information; but we can only conjecture what it was

Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: I Thessalonians to Philemon, ed. Robert Frew (London: Blackie & Son, 1884–1885), 85.

....Genesis 6:2–3 (NIV84) . 3 Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with man forever, for he is mortal; his days will be a hundred and twenty years.”

OOOOOOOOO 2 Thessalonians 2:11–12 (NIV84) 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.

OOOOOOOOO 2 Thessalonians 2:13–15 (NIV84) Stand Firm 13 But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. 14 He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.

OOOOOOOOO 2 Thessalonians 2:16–17 (NIV84) 16 May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.