II Thessalonians 2:1-17
I am intrigued by “the restrainer”. In verse 6 Paul tells the Thessalonians that they know who or what the restrainer is: And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. So evidently Paul made it clear when he was with them in person as to who or what that restrainer might be. In my comments from last year in the link below I mention that my Study Bible had suggested the restrainer’s identity as “the Roman state with its emperor, Paul’s missionary work, the Jewish state, the principle of law and government embodied in the state, the Holy Spirit or the restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit through the church, or others.” As I continue to read verses 7b and 8a I convince myself that the restrainer is not the Holy Spirit: Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed… To me the Holy Spirit will never be out of the way. Jesus had said “I will be with you always,even until the end of the world.”(Matthew 28:20) Whether Jesus Himself or God the Holy Spirit, He will never be out of the way. So something or someone in Paul’s time is restraining sin and unrighteousness, but will in time fall by the wayside, thereby revealing the “lawless one”. Could it be our God-given moral standards – which seem to be collapsing in our own time? Watch today’s television and movies, where American society seems to get its guidance as to how to behave. I truly fear for our kids and grandkids and the world of their future. The coming of that “lawless one” could be soon: And then the lawless one will be revealed… (v. 8a) Come Lord Jesus, come!
See also: April 12 / II Thess. 2:1-17