Correcting Wrong Thoughts on the Second Coming (2 Thessalonians 2:1–2)

A conviction had spread among the Thessalonians that the Day of the Lord was already at hand. Some spoke of this in a prophetic spirit, others appealed to a word they claimed to have heard from the Apostle; there were even those who pointed to an epistle supposedly written by St. Paul, in which the same idea was confirmed. Hearing this, the Thessalonians did not trouble to verify what they had heard against what they had personally received from the Apostle himself, but as soon as they heard it, they believed it and were thrown into confusion: some from fear, others from joy at the prospect of soon beholding the Lord and being gathered to Him. The Apostle now writes to them that they should not have allowed themselves to be so unsettled for any reason, vv. 1-2—knowing in advance that the coming of the Lord must be preceded by the appearing of Antichrist, together with the attendant circumstances, as had been told them personally by the Apostle during his time with them, vv. 3-5. You know, and hold fast to this knowledge, that there is something that restrains the appearing of Antichrist. When that which restrains is removed, then Antichrist will appear, and after him the Lord, to slay him with the breath of His mouth and to destroy all his work, vv. 6-8.

Such is the order of world events, by God’s foreordained purpose, by the plan of His providence for the human race. Here is visible both the inner, hidden law governing them and the ultimate end toward which everything moves.

By this, the mistaken thoughts of the Thessalonians were fully corrected, and their agitation ought to have been calmed. But St. Paul judged it wise to resolve yet one more related question, which could naturally arise in connection with the prophecy concerning the appearing of Antichrist, and might again disturb the brotherhood now being set at ease—namely: if this Antichrist is to be such a fighter against God, will he not pose some danger to us as well, to our very faith and our hope? Might he not destroy us too? The Apostle answers this possible question: have no anxiety. The man of lawlessness will indeed come armed, by the working of Satan, with everything that can deceive; but he will truly deceive and draw away only those who “received not the love of the truth” (2 Thess. 2:10). In these, God will permit the spirit of delusion to work, and they will believe the lie, vv. 8-12. But you who have believed and have come to love the truth have nothing to fear. You are chosen for salvation and for the obtaining of the glory of the Lord, because you believed and were sanctified by the grace of the Holy Spirit, vv. 13-14. Only remain faithful to the teaching delivered to you by us, which the Lord will also grant you, vv. 15-17.

St. Chrysostom says that St. Paul here touches upon “great mysteries.” When beginning his discussion of the Second Coming of the Lord in the first epistle, the Apostle wrote: “this we say to you by the word of the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:15). Here, though he does not say this, everything he says is not his own personal view but is without doubt a divine revelation. The Apostle writes in the prophetic spirit. In the apostolic writings, inspired by the Spirit of God, one is permitted to see the authors’ own personal opinions and counsel only when they themselves say so; when they do not say so, everything they have said must be recognized as divinely inspired truths. Such also is this passage of the holy Apostle Paul. This observation is prompted by certain Western heterodox commentators.

All the thoughts indicated in the brief survey of this chapter set out above may be gathered under the following headings: a) the correction of mistaken thoughts about the Second Coming of the Lord and the revelation concerning Antichrist, vv. 1-8; b) a depiction of the machinations of Antichrist and an indication of whom he will deceive, vv. 9-12; c) the bright lot of believers, insofar as they remain faithful to the faith.

a) The Correction of Mistaken Thoughts about the Second Coming of the Lord and the Revelation concerning Antichrist (2 Thess. 2:1-8)

2 Thess. 2:1, 2. Now we beseech you, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, that you be not quickly shaken in mind, nor be alarmed, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of the Lord is already present.

“We beseech.” He beseeches, yet through this beseeching a reproach is visible. Everything had been explained in detail; yet then came extraneous words, and all was forgotten, they were instantly carried away. The Apostle now says: we ask you not to permit this of yourselves, as a forbearing teacher might ask a student who has proved himself inattentive. The Greek ερωτωμεν suggests such a tone of speech: as though asking, implying: why was this allowed to happen?

“Concerning the coming of the Lord… and our gathering together to Him.” “Concerning”—with respect to the coming… and the gathering… “The coming of the Lord”—in St. Paul, this always means His personal arrival from heaven to bring His gracious kingdom to completion in the kingdom of glory and to pronounce judgment upon those who have resisted the truth. “Our gathering together to Him”—the same here as in the first epistle—when all the faithful and holy ones will be caught up on the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:17). “To Him”—the Greek επ᾿, to Him, around Him. He is the center; all who are His will be disposed around Him, each in his own rank, and will form a single whole, living by the One Lord, all-blessed and all-radiant. Such a consoling and luminous picture the holy Apostle sets before the minds of the Thessalonians at the outset, on account of what he was about to say concerning the dark figure of Antichrist and his deeds, so that these latter things might not disturb them, and also in order to impress upon them that they ought not to be concerned about the moment of the Lord’s appearing, but about becoming worthy to meet Him in the air—a point he had impressed upon them at the end of the preceding chapter.

“Not quickly.” Not immediately upon hearing a word, not at once, not without reflection. They had already permitted themselves to fall into agitation. Therefore the Apostle’s meaning is: why was this permitted? He covertly expresses his reproach to them, that as soon as they heard, without examining who was speaking or whether what was said was true, they fell into confusion.

“To be shaken in mind”—to be dislodged from one’s standpoint or foundation of mind, to lose one’s reason, to be at a loss. The Greek word is used of agitations caused by fear, joy, or grief. — “Nor be alarmed”—from the Greek, to be frightened by a sudden crash. Having believed that the Lord was about to appear at any moment, they fell into a panic, as though struck by thunder, not knowing what to begin or where to turn.

“Neither by spirit.” He means not the spirit of falsehood, but that spirit which manifested itself in members of the Church—the spirit of prophecy, or of revelation and discernment of the mysteries of God. So all the holy Fathers: Chrysostom, Theodoret, Damascene, Oecumenius, Theophylact. In the assemblies of Christians, a spirit would come upon certain individuals—they would rise and begin to speak with inspiration. Such speech bore chiefly upon the edification of the Church in faith and love; but it could also embrace the past and discern the future. There were persons especially distinguished for their discernment of the future. When St. Paul said of himself that the Spirit in every church was saying that bonds and afflictions awaited him (Acts 20:23), he meant this prophetic spirit that manifested itself in the churches of that time, owing to the purity of faith and life of the first believers. Whether anyone at Thessalonica actually spoke in this spirit about the approaching Day of the Lord, one cannot say with certainty. Perhaps no one spoke thus at all, and St. Paul, merely anticipating such a case, says: even if someone were to speak to you in the prophetic spirit, do not believe it—so as to cut off every possibility of delusion. So St. Chrysostom: “Even if someone possessing the spirit of prophecy were to say this to you, do not believe it. For when I was with you, I explained to you everything pertaining to this matter, so you ought not to change your views regarding what you were definitively taught.” From the fact that an epistle supposedly written by the Apostle and a word supposedly spoken by him were actually adduced to confirm the idea of the approaching Day of the Lord, one might with some probability conclude that assertions were actually made about such promptings of the prophetic spirit as well. But the evident fact that while “word” and “epistle” here are presented as belonging to St. Paul, the expression “by spirit” in no way can refer to him—this considerably weakens that probability, obliging one to see a distinct nuance even in the meaning of that expression. The Apostle wished to express something like this: not only when (falsely) someone adduces a supposed word of mine or a supposed epistle of mine should you not believe, but if any person known among you as a prophet were actually to teach in that manner, do not receive his words. This is similar in meaning to the Apostle’s words to the Galatians: “though an angel from heaven” (Gal. 1:8). If anyone chooses to accept that the Thessalonians actually heard promptings from those who spoke in the prophetic spirit, one must then understand it as: “as though” in the prophetic spirit, not truly in the prophetic spirit—for the genuine spirit of prophecy does not lie. St. Damascene writes: “Let no one alarm you, not even one who seems to speak by the spirit of revelation.” — Theodoret puts it more sharply: “If they present themselves as diviners and prophets, we do not bid you believe them.” And this could have happened without any particular malicious intent. Meditating on the fact that the Day of the Lord will not come with outward observation, and having resolved, in accordance with the Lord’s word, to wait for His appearing at every hour, a person might pass to the conclusion that things are in fact already as such: the Day is at hand—and then, becoming animated by this thought, might speak a word to that effect in the assembly. Such a person might seem to be speaking in the Spirit, while in fact speaking from himself. Not every inspired utterance comes from the Spirit. In order that believers might not be exposed to the danger of error on this account, the Church possessed the gift of discerning spirits.

“Neither by word,” nor “by letter.” “Word”—here, some hold, means a word of the Lord Himself, handed down by tradition, or His word as written in the Gospels (Mt. 24; Mk. 13; Lk. 21). But it is evident that by “word” here one must understand a word proceeding from the Apostle Paul, just as the letter—but words and letters falsely attributed to him, as the words “as from us” make clear. The Apostle presents his own word and letter below, in verse 15, as the sole source of divine revelation for the Thessalonians. And now, in connection with the false notions about the approaching Day of the Lord, some were saying: the Apostle himself said so; others: it is so written in his letter. Or one said: I heard it; and another: here, look—there is even a letter. The word “sent” does not appear in the Greek text; only “as from us” stands there. Which is why nearly all commentators apply this phrase not to the letter alone, but also to the “word.” Some relate it even to “spirit” as well, but this muddles and obscures the sense.

“As that… is already present”—from the Greek: as though it had already come—“the day” of the Lord, the last day, the day of the final decision of the lot of all and each. In this lies the entire error of the Thessalonians’ views. To await the Lord’s coming is always obligatory, by the commandment of the Lord Himself; but to determine the moment of His coming is not permissible, because no one except God can know it. The Thessalonians had determined it, and thereby sinned, arrogating to themselves a divine prerogative. The Apostle admonishes them, saying as it were: it is not possible to decide thus, and you must not do so, whoever may urge you to it. It is not evident that there were any malicious spreaders of falsehood; otherwise the Apostle’s word would have been both stronger and more specific. The idea could have spread as if by accident. Someone in the assembly said: the Lord is coming at any moment! Another confirmed: yes, and the Apostle seemed to say so too; a third added: yes, and so it is written in the letter—or: there is even a letter about it. And the rumor spread everywhere and threw everyone into confusion. Yet no one thought to examine the matter. The Apostle’s words about the suddenness of the Lord’s appearing seemed to justify the conclusion that it was imminent, right at the doors! Oecumenius notes that they were agitated out of ignorance and timidity.