|
Author
|
Topic: Rethinking that man of sin - long
|
epouraniois
unregistered
|
posted
Rethinking that man of sin - by no means an exposition, but definately a closer look.
2Th 2:
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [will let,] until he be taken out of the way.
8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.
First we must note that this is an Acts period epistle, and why is this important? Because Acts is the great historical record of God dealing with His people Israel, therefore noting this places Israel in her proper place. That place is God working out His plan with that nation in His longsuffering and mercy. Think of that great nation China, oh what a history, but we never hear of them because they didn't come across the tiny nation called Israel. Likewise, this isn't written for the hope of gentile nations even though God would use them for a short while in His purpose of dealing with His chosen channel Israel at that time.
Now Paul is telling these people that two events must come first, must occur prior to the coming of Christ. Now this word 'coming' is parousia, and isn't so much the action of getting from one place to another, but rather the personal presence once one has arrived. They expected the arrival of Christ at any time. They were and are to see Him make this arrival at the same place they had seen Him depart.
The next thing we need to get in our mind is this word apostasy. This word means rebellion, a deliberate falling away from the truth. Apostasy is not by those who don't know the truth, but those who have known it, but have slipped away from the word. Believers who once knew the truth but chose to believe what sounds good to them, as it is written of the latter days, teachers will teach people whatever they want to hear, for they will have ears that are itching, lovers of self more than the word of God. This particularly has to do with the teachers making a conscious decision, although it is up to everyone of us to hold fast the form of sound words.
The next thing that must happen before the coming of Christ is that the man of sin must be revealed. We learn in Ephesians that Satan is the prince of the power of the air. Let us look at the expected coming of the Lord quickly:
1Th 4:
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
This is Israel's hope. This is an earthly hope. It is not the heavenly calling of the church. The angel told the apostles Christ would come as they had seen Him depart at Acts beginning. The archangel here is of course Michael, who stands for the people of Israel. This will be the time of Jacob's trouble.
There will be a catching up into the spiritual body to meet the great cloud of witnesses, and in another place, with 10,000's of His saints. Now if the people see the saints coming with Christ when they are caught up, then they aren't already in heaven returning to earth with Christ,they will witness Christ's coming with His saints. These simultaneous events will happen instantly, yet they are separate. One is Christ returning with His personal presence, the other is the catching up (being transformed into that spiritual body) to Him at His return to that place where He left Mt. Zion. These are definitely two events. So there will be a catching up and a return to the earth. This will happen we read, in the twinkling of an eye. The change will occur so fast no one will even be able to think about it. It will just be.
The dead shall rise first.
Now we are not fixing dates here, but we are interested in the events which must precede the Lord's return, and Paul had expounded and instructed them personally before, so they understand this with these words alone, whereas we must study precept upon precept, line upon line, spiritual with spiritual, rightly dividing the word of truth.
2Th 2:3
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition.
Again, there must first be an apostasy, and the revealing of that man of sin, and until these two things happen, the apostle says, the Lord's coming won't happen. Deception seems to be the hallmark of the end of this age, not the world, the age.
And not only that, but the great tribulation must come first, for in Mathew 24 the Lord said it wasn't until after the man of sin be revealed that they see the sign of the son of man in the heaven.
For those in the end times, there is only one thing keeping them from being deceived, and that is to stay close to what is written, holding fast to the given context, noting the sound words indicative of the purposed reason for writing each epistle, then we shall be sure we stand on firm bedrock of Scripture. Sometimes I tremble at the strong work of the devil has on fellow Christians, with all deceivableness of signs and lying wonders, and when he arrives, Christ makes it clear that miracles are not the sign of the day of the Lord. When teachings are taken out of their given order, oh what an easy target many will make for Satan.
2Th 2:5
Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? So there is really no excuse for falling into this awful deception. The Holy Spirit has made certain we have been given the full truth, but it is up to us to stand on solid ground. I think we can feel that we have come to that place of 2Timothy 4 calls the last days when perilous times will come...turn away from the truth, having itching ears for those who will tell them things that will please them. They won't want truth, all they will want is what tickles their fancy.
I think we are ready to take on this most difficult verse. This man of lawlessness must come first. He is going to oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God, showing himself to be God:
v4. 'so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God' -- This is our first problem, all we do know that at the present time, at the temple site is occupied by the mosk of Omar (sp). One thing they have learned is to not succumb to idolatry, the captivity at Babylon seems to have cured them of that, so I doubt they will worship in that temple.
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
They knew, but we don't, so we've got to be careful here. 'now ye know what withholdeth that he (that man of sin) might be revealed in his time (in his particular season)
7 For the mystery (the secret) of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.
So this man of sin is what is being talked about. 'Let', we don't use it today. It is 'Old English', he who now hinders (is the closest we can get it) will let, until he be taken out of the way. You will notice that 'will let' is in italics, meaning it was not in the manuscripts, and we don't need it. The word 'withhold' and the word 'let' is one and the same used differently in both verses, presenting a further difficulty. The word means 'To Hold Fast' in v6:
Now ye know what holds him fast that he might be revealed in his set time. Something is holding this man of sin fast. And he cannot be revealed while this thing is holding him fast. What is it that is holding this man of sin fast? It doesn't matter what we think is holding him fast, we can think up all kind of ideas. What we need is the word of God to direct our paths, and fortunately we are told:
Rev 11:7
And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
Now this word 'bottomless pit' is the word 'abyss' and here is this monster who is likened to a wild beast. And he comes out of some place called the bottomless pit, or the abyss. Chapter 17:
8 The beast that thou sawest was (he existed in the past), and (he) is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition.
So twice this monster is said to come up out of some place called the abyss, and that friends is what is holding him fast, holding him back. So Paul told them they knew what was holding him back, he told them. But we must compare Scripture with Scripture in order to know what God has revealed to them. But when the right time comes this place called the abyss is opened and out he comes!
The abyss give us another problem, but there is one place we may look, and that is the early verses of Genesis chapter one, verse two, 'the deep' is the same word, the abyss in the Greek version of the OT, in beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and darkness was upon the face of the abyss. And this has something to do with judgment, and water was on the face of the deep, the abyss.
Somehow the abyss seems to be connected with the ocean and with waters, and we have clear statements of those under the earth who are going to bow to Christ in that day:
Phi 2:10
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.
We don't know anything about the things under the earth, but it may be located with or under the ocean in some way, which is as far as I am at the time present willing to take this subject of the waters.
So we have some place that's called the abyss and in the set season when Satan is ready he comes up out of it with his man, knowing he has but a little time he won't be making any mistakes this time, he will set up his kingdom and the world will believe him to be God. He will even call down fire from heaven the way the Lord had done in the OT. We don't know the set season, for if we had seen Nero on the throne, we of said oh that monster. That was the season the apostle Paul had to deal with at that time. Or even recently, in our own time, people thinking Mussolini was the anti-Christ, &c &c. Many have come, have gained a certain amount of control, but this man will bring in a world government, and being the prince of the power of the air, who can make war with him who has control over the air? But you can bet that when this man is revealed, he will counterfeit the Lord, work miracles and wonders so powerful that if it were possible the very elect of God would be deceived.
As a footnote, this means they won't be raptured away. They are told to watch so they aren't deceived, for when he comes, it will be “as travail upon a woman with child (it will happen suddenly and they will be overtaken by this man of sin); and they (those deceived) shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness (but they had been but Pagan idolaters, in darkness), that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.”
Now that's that first verse, onto v7. 'For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [will let,] until he be taken out of the way'.
he who now withholds until he be taken out of the way, but you see there is a rule in grammar, I don't know if you remember it from school, and I know grammar is looked upon as being very boring and dry – but sometimes it is necessary, it helps us to understand doctrine. When a verb is transitive it must have an object!! Does that ring a bell with you? If a verb is transitive it must have an object. Now this verb in Greek is transitive, so you must give it an object, he is holding fast to some thing:
He who holds? He is holding fast to something, what? What is the object? We've been told what's holding the monster fast, but there is something else, Satan himself is holding fast to something. Where is he now? I think Ephesians has told us, he is the prince of the power of the air. That's what he's holding fast to, the aerial regions. Revelation chapter 12 says there is war in heaven and he will be cast out to the earth. So he is holding fast to the power of the air till he is cast down to the earth.
Translation, 2 verses:
Now you know what holds him fast, the abyss, only, there is one who holds fast, who is Satan, until he be removed out of the way, and THEN shall that wicked one be revealed. Now that is the order of Revelation 12, wherewith chapter 13 brings us up the monster. There is war in heaven, Satan is cast to the earth, he brings his man in and plays his trump card. Evidently all that, Paul had taught them during his personal visits, so it was only necessary for him to just summarize when to us it seems a terribly difficult passage, which it is of course. Very difficult indeed.
2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
BUT YOU WILL NOTICE
he is only destroyed by the coming of Christ, showing again that Christ does not come before these two events, the rebellion against truth - and the man of sin be revealed. If I were to suppose, I might suppose that, remember the beast that was, and is not, yet is? I might suppose that this man might travesty the Lord's virgin birth (genomes), the Lord's death and resurrection (crucified) showing himself to be God?
Power, signs, and wonders, have you noticed, the very words used in Hebrews chapter two verse three of the truth? CONFIRMING WITH!!!
It has been almost 2000 years and Christ has not 'soon come'. Israel rendered herself unusable, and they have been that way ever since, awaiting the time when God once again takes up His outworking with them.
Yes, Israel's hope during the Acts period was the soon coming of the promised Christ, all they had to do was see their mistakes, have the after-mind to seek forgiveness and turn toward Him, but they did not. Now they get a repeat performance by that man of sin to convince them to call on the name of the Lord. It needs be that it get so very bad before she will so cry out, nothing less than a time of trouble like never has been and never shall be again!
Paul wrote 7 more epistles after those of the Acts where he never never never even once mentions the church hope is to expect the coming of the Lord, the parousia of the Lord. As the church body, we have a sure hope just as they have, but it has to do with appearing with Christ when He appears, to blaze forth in brightness when He blazes forth in brightness with Him,for now He is not manifest, He is hid in God (Col 3:3).
The world won't think that man of sin is a monster, they will just see a marvelous wonderful being, coming to help bring peace and safety, but it will be a lie, he is against God against Christ, and against you – anti Christ.
And for people who will simply wait for the Lord to show them truth, well friends, it will not come. Truth only comes from digging and staying in the Holy Words of God with belief in them. There is no such thing as Pauline doctrine. At the start of 1 Thess. we find that they are doing well in that they believe. What do they believe? The apostle sent to them from the Lord who speaks the Lord's words.
We only have two choices beloved, truth or lies, darkness or light, Christ or anti-Christ. If anyone waits for truth, they only receive a lie, for truth must be searched out prayerfully. And when something bad happens, we shouldn't ask ourselves why me, no no, we should see that it is the Lord testing our faith in Him, to see if we really have faith in Him or if we are just faking, just wishing to hear that which makes us feel good. Tribulation is a time for the Lord to prove He will never leave us. Do we have that kind of faith? We can leave Him, and when we do, we cannot tell the Lord is there.
IP: Logged | 
|
|
|
Printer-friendly view of this topic
