Thessalonians 1-2: Verse by Verse With Bible Study FellowshipНамуна

The Day of the Lord – God’s Wrath in Just Judgment on Evil

Paul abruptly moves on from prayer to the point of his letter. He writes to correct their fears and false teaching about the day of the Lord. 

The day of the Lord is a phrase used in the Old and New Testaments. The phrase relates to final events in this world. It focuses on God’s intervention in human history to deliver judgment against evil.1

Evil:

• offends God’s holiness.
• denies His honor.
• rejects God for sin.
• disguises sin as freedom.
• empowers sin to produce guilt, shame and death.

God’s wrath is His righteous hatred of evil and sin. He will defeat and remove evil. In the Bible, God’s wrath is judicial action against all who sin against Him.2 God is holy; people are not. God’s wrath is not an emotional outburst or seething revenge. He does not “get even.” God’s wrath is good and perfectly just for every enemy of His purity, holiness and love.

All people share Adam and Eve’s sin in our natures. All deserve God’s wrath in just response to our sin. Therefore, God’s wrath is humanity’s greatest problem. However, God also provided humanity’s greatest solution. Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Son of Man, lived a sinless life and bore God’s wrath on the cross in our place. His person and work offer salvation and rescue. The blood of Jesus Christ shields all who trust in His atoning sacrifice.3

Zechariah linked the coming day of the Lord to the Messiah’s physical descent from heaven to earth with His saints. He will arrive on the Mount of Olives to rule and reign.4 

Peter quoted the prophet Joel on Pentecost to say the day of the Lord was near since the Holy Spirit is now sent to believers.5 This sermon points out the day of the Lord involves both wrath for unbelievers and blessing for believers. 

Paul and other New Testament writers anticipated the Lord’s return. They told disciples to depend on God’s promised blessings and to warn those who refused God’s command to obey the gospel.

Paul says believers must cling to God’s Word. The day of the Lord comes after certain events take place. Paul reminds them of his previous teaching about three of these key events. Jesus directly taught His disciples about the troubles to come before the end, the same kind the Thessalonians were experiencing. Matthew 24:8 records Jesus’ conclusion, “All these are the beginning of birth pains.”

Matthew recorded Jesus’ answer to when He will return, “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36). There is no wisdom in date setting. However, believers in every generation are to humbly and diligently study all that Scripture teaches. Then, we can be convinced of the biblical foundations of our viewpoints. We will recognize the signs and remain alert for Jesus’ imminent return. Particular interpretations about the events surrounding the day of the Lord most often relate to certain beliefs about the “rapture” and other end-times events.6

Event #1: Rebellion Occurs

The Greek word translated as rebellion in the NIV is translated elsewhere as apostasy or falling away. This singular “rebellion” is a future widespread defiance of God. Pockets of such rebellion occur at times as we observe religious people, even ones claiming to be Christians, become “lovers of themselves” who have “a form of godliness but denying its power.”7 

The full manifestation of such “rebellion” occurs before the day of the Lord. So, when false teachers told the Thessalonians that Christ had secretly come, they were teaching that the full rebellion and other events preceding His coming had also occurred. They were also teaching a secret return instead of the reunion Paul had described. No wonder the Thessalonians were confused and frightened.

Event #2: The Restrainer is Removed

Paul reminds the Thessalonians what he had taught them. The Antichrist will only be revealed after his restrainer, the one “holding him back,” is “taken out of the way.” But what does Paul mean? Apparently, the Thessalonians understood this allusion to Paul’s prior teaching. Yet, it is not clear to anyone else. 

Various interpretations exist as to the identity of this “restrainer.” All of the options restated below can or do act to restrain evil by promoting good, truth and justice. Faithful believers since the Thessalonians’ day have most commonly suggested the “what” (verse 6) or “the one” (verse 7) that restrains could be:

• governmental authorities.
• gospel preaching.
• God’s providence.
• angelic forces.
• the body of Christ on earth indwelt by the Holy Spirit.

Event #3: The Man of Lawlessness Appears

The revelation of the man of lawlessness (Antichrist) also precedes the day of the Lord. God’s inspired words reveal this evil man’s character and actions in relationship to his followers.

The Antichrist’s person and actions: Old and New Testament prophecies say many antichrists foreshadow the embodiment of evil in this final world tyrant.8 The Antichrist is more than a man with evil ideas. Satan empowers him to counterfeit Christ. The Antichrist’s deception will delude people to confuse evil and good.9 John uses the same words, “signs and wonders” in verse 9 that he uses elsewhere to speak of Christ’s miraculous works in the gospels. He will abuse his miraculous powers to boast of authority. He will demand that people worship him as God.

The Antichrist’s followers: God creates every person for worship. So, all who stand in rebellion against the true God in fact worship and serve false gods. In verses 9-12, Paul explains how God’s just judgment relates to the coming Antichrist. 

When the Antichrist is revealed, unbelievers will be deceived and follow him. They will embrace Satan’s power which imitates that of Jesus Christ. Their actions prove their reality and destiny. They have their own faith – a belief that they will conquer God. They refuse to love the truth. They will ultimately and forever receive their hearts’ true delight – wickedness.

Believers from Paul’s day up until today see shadows of this approaching evil in tension with its restraint by what is good. Do you recognize the modern-day antichrists? Secular humanism, false religions, agnosticism and philosophies centered on self-indulgent pleasures (hedonism) are sweeping the world. Other antichrists call themselves Christians. They sound like Christians, but they redefine key words. They reject one or more essential truths of God-given faith. These people do not worship the Jesus of the Bible. They need God’s mercy through His gospel.

Questions

Q1. What will happen before Christ returns to earth?

INSIGHTS: Rebellion will occur, the restrainer (holding back the antichrist) will be removed, then the man of lawlessness (the antichrist) will be revealed.

Q2. Which characteristics of the man of lawlessness and his followers are seen in our world today?

INSIGHTS: Possible answers include: he claims to know true life, but is doomed to destruction; he opposes God and God’s ways, and exalts himself above God and demands to be honored and served as god; his evil is great, but will be restrained by God until the proper time. 

Q3. How did the Thessalonians respond to false teaching, and which actions would you like to follow to avoid deception?

INSIGHTS: They knew enough to become unsettled and alarmed by people who deliberately refused biblical truths about the person and work of Christ. They had failed to remember Paul’s teaching, so they reached out for help right away. They were humble and ready to follow Paul’s advice. Truth needs to be repeated, or it is forgotten. Believing the truth is part of standing firm in the faith.

Related Verses 

1 Day of the Lord: Joel 2:31; 3:14; Amos 5:18; Zephaniah 1:14

2 God’s wrath: Luke 21:22-24; Romans 1:18-20; 2:5-6; Revelation 6:16

3 Atoning sacrifice: Romans 5:9; 8:1; Ephesians 2:3-5; 1 Thessalonians 1:10

4 Lord’s return: Zechariah 14:1-4

5 Day of Pentecost: Acts 2:16-21

6 Rapture: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

7 Last days: 2 Timothy 3:1-9

8 Antichrist: Daniel 7:7-8, 20-26; 9:26; 11:36-43; Matthew 24:24; 1 John 2:18; Revelation 17:13, 17

9 Confuse evil and good: Proverbs 17:15; Isaiah 5:20; Amos 5:7; Malachi 2:17; Romans 1:32