Many evangelical “Christians” would present II Thess. 2:1-12 as proof that a charismatic individual is soon to appear who will perform miracles, utter prophecies he can fulfill, establish his headquarters in Jerusalem and proclaim himself to be God. His power, however, will not be of God but of “Satan.” He will be the “Antichrist.”
While the foregoing is not a sound interpretation of this passage, what is meant and should we look for a latter-day “Antichrist?”
The context
In writing to the Thessalonians, Paul had a delicate job. On the one hand, he wanted to encourage their great anticipation of the near return of Christ, for any of them could die at any time (which would make their next waking moment the resurrection). On the other hand, he had to balance the views of some who feared that the Lord had come and they had missed him. “We ask you, brothers, 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” (II Thess. 2:2 NIV).
He reassured the latter by telling them Christ would not come, “except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed” (v.3). He maintained the enthusiasm of all by giving no indication of how many years would pass before the coming of the Lord, “for the mystery
of iniquity doth already work whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming” (vs. 7-8). They were thus assured they had not missed the return and yet were given no reason to relax their discipleship for they were not told that some 1900 years would elapse before Christ would come.
“The mystery of iniquity”
“Mystery” is from the Greek mysterion and implies secretive information available to initiates of a particular group, “it is given to you (the disciples) to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them (the unbelievers) it is not given” (Matt. 13:11 and cf. Rom. 16:25; I Cor. 2:1, etc., where mysterion occurs each time, indicating it is something that can be understood but not by everyone). In II Thess. 2:7, Paul is speaking of a movement in the ecclesias that many were not aware of. It would subtly grow until it became fully revealed and then its initiates would actually dominate the Christian movement.
“Iniquity” in v.7 is from anomia, a word which occurs in v.3, “sin,” and v.8, “Wicked” as well as verse 7. The consistent use of anomia leaves no doubt as to the character of the “man of sin,” or more correctly, the “man of lawlessness.” Anomia means “without law,” coming from a, the Greek negative prefix, and nomos, the word for law. This “man of sin” knows no law, is not subject to law, and has rebelled against the law of God, revoking in his own mind its power over him. The apostate system developed into exactly this manner of thinking by substituting the authority of church councils for the Word of God.
Already at work
Paul makes several references to this developing apostasy. On his final visit to the Ephesian elders he implored them to, “watch and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears…of your own selves shall men arise speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them” (Acts 20:28-31). In the word “perverse,” Paul uses a derivative of the Greek diastrepho, which means to twist, confuse or distort (Kittel’s Lexicon and Strong’s). In several of the epistles, Paul refers to the frequent twisting of his words by those attempting to undermine his authority and his message in order to establish their own following.
“I beseech you brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them” (Rom. 16:12).
“0 foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth…” (3:1).
To the Philippians he noted despondently, “For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ” (Phil 3:18,19).
Peter was also aware of the coming problems for he says: “There shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies…many shall follow their pernicious ways” (II Peter 2:1,1).
By the time the apostle John wrote, he could say, “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come, even now are there many Antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us” (I John 2:18,19). It was the last hour -before the coming of the man of lawlessness.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One