THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE IN 2 THESS. 2

THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE IN 2 THESS. 2

2Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the COMING of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the DAY OF CHRIST is at hand.
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:

I hold strongly to the pre-trib rapture position. Yet, I know there are some God-fearing Christians that disagree with this view. Perhaps I can provide these saints with another way of looking at 2Thessalonians 2. I do believe a pre-trib rapture is taught in 2nd Thessalonians 2. But a post or mid-tribber will point out that the “coming” of Christ in chapter 2, in context, is the Second Coming to destroy the Antichrist. This fact can hardly be denied. The previous chapter ends with the following passage:

2 Thessalonians 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
10 When he shall COME to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in THAT DAY.

Then, 2 Thessalonians 2:8 goes on to describe the “coming” of Christ to destroy Antichrist. Furthermore, we only have to notice what Paul states MUST take place BEFORE this “coming” of Christ:

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the COMING of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that THE DAY of Christ is at hand.
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;

Two things will take place before this “day of Christ” arrives of which Paul is writing. There will first come a falling away from the faith. This “falling away” is a falling away of true Christians. SOME Christians will depart from the faith by giving heed to seducing spirits (1 Timothy 4). MANY more Christians will depart by simply giving heed to seducing preachers and teachers who will scratch their itching ears (2 Timothy 4:3-4). This great falling away must take place before the “day of Christ.” Also, Paul plainly states that the Antichrist must arise BEFORE this “day of Christ” can come. This would make sense when we realize that by the “day of Christ” Paul means His final coming to destroy the Antichrist and set up the Millennial Kingdom. This will not take place until many Tribulation saints depart from the faith (the stage is currently being set for this by the present carnality and apostasy among Christians). And then, later in the Tribulation period, the Antichrist will come to power, to be destroyed by Jesus.

I believe Paul is writing to keep the Thessalonians “premillennial.” The Millennial Kingdom is the subject at hand:

2 Thessalonians 1:5 Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the KINGDOM OF GOD, for which ye also suffer:
11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:

2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him…

Some people teach that we are already in the “Kingdom” and that the “First Resurrection” is past already. This is “amillennialism.” They say the “day of Christ” began at the Cross, or at Pentecost, or at the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Augustine and Origen would later fall into various forms of this error. But there were already some who “fell for it” in Paul’s day (2 Timothy 2:17,18). Rome would later capitalize on this error and create a mammoth political-religious machine that would kill Bible-believing Christians. I therefore have no problem with the view that states that the “coming” of Christ in 2 Thessalonians 2:1 is the final coming of Christ to set up the Millennial Kingdom. The “gathering together” might be the final gathering together of ALL the saints who will reign in the Millennial Kingdom (which would include the Tribulation martyrs). However, this last point is debatable.

Where, then, is the PRE-TRIB rapture in 2 Thessalonians 2? It is found in verse 7:

2 Thessalonians 2:7 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:

I know this is a common argument. But I differ slightly with the common, pre-trib view of this passage. I do not believe that the “he” is the Holy Spirit. The “he” is not the Roman Empire (i.e. Reese). Nor is it the Jewish State (i.e. Warfield). The “he” is used for any “he” (that is, any person) who is “letting.” To “let” means to hinder, obstruct or oppose. He (i.e. that is, anyone who is hindering and opposing iniquity) will do so until he is taken out of the way (i.e. translated, like Enoch). The “he” is therefore a generic, Christian “he,” and it only applies to Holy Spirit indirectly, since it is by the Spirit’s power that Christians “hinder” the spread of sin and falsehood. However, if we will speak indirectly, the “he” could just as easily apply to Jesus Christ Himself, since it is by His power that Christians resist sin (Rom.13:14). Regardless, the “he” directly refers to the Christian who hinders and opposes sin, and the ultimate source of his power is not mentioned in this verse. The Holy Spirit will be present during the Tribulation period (Rev.11:11). And there will be believers in the Tribulation period (Rev.12:11). The “he” is therefore any “he” that is currently opposing evil in the manner of which Paul is speaking. This would therefore be a Christian who is preaching out in boldness, like Enoch:

Jude 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,

Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

The proof for this view is found in the manner in which Paul has used the same type of phraseology elsewhere:

Galatians 6:8 For HE THAT SOWETH to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption…

Hebrews 11:6 …for HE THAT COMETH to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

1 Thessalonians 4:8 HE therefore THAT DESPISETH, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.

Colossians 3:25 But HE THAT DOETH WRONG shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.

2 Corinthians 10:17 But HE THAT GLORIETH, let him glory in the Lord.

1 Corinthians 14:4 HE THAT SPEAKETH in an unknown tongue…

1 Corinthians 11:29 For HE THAT EATETH and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.

This type of phrasing is almost everywhere in the Scriptures. Who are the “he’s” in the above verses? ANY “he’s” (or she’s) that are performing the actions of which the verses speak! Why would not “He who now letteth” mean the same as “He that soweth,” “He that eateth,” “He that speaketh,” “He that glorieth,” “He that doeth wrong,” etc.? No one ever writes long articles debating who the “he” is in regard to any of the above verses. [Perhaps this is due to the fact that these words are more familiar than the word "let."]

In 2 Thessalonians 2, there is no further mention of anyone who could qualify as the “he.” Therefore, the “he” is a generic “he” that applies to any Christians performing the action. The “taken out of the way” refers to the translating of believers, as taught in other Scriptures:

Luke 21:36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to ESCAPE all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

Revelation 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will KEEP THEE FROM the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.

If every watching, contending, sin-opposing, sin-hating saint was removed, would there not come upon the world the worst moral vacuum in all of history? The world would certainly be prepared for the rise of Antichrist and all the other evil personages of the Tribulation period.

[Note: Of course, it goes without saying that the American Revised Version and the NIV have made it almost impossible for the view advocated in this article to be discovered. They read, "there is ONE that restraineth now, until he be taken out of the way." What if Paul would have said this in Gal.6:8, "There is ONE that soweth to his flesh." Certainly, there would be tons of articles trying to find the "mystery Sower" in Gal.6! The New King James Version gets very cute. It CAPITALIZES the "he" and forces upon the reader the view that it is in only the Holy Spirit (and not His work in the watching and ready saints). This therefore takes away the stimulus to oppose, hinder, resist and be found watching (Luke 21:36).]

-Joey Faust, The Kingdom Alert, #103 (2-24-01)