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The revelation of the mystery of iniquity:
v. 5. Remember ye not that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
v. 6. And now ye know what withholdeth That he might be revealed in his time.
v. 7. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
v. 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;
v. 9. even him whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
v. 10. and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish, because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved.
v. 11. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie,
v. 12. that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
This was not the first time that the apostle had given the Thessalonian Christians instruction concerning the great apostasy: Do you not remember that, while I was still with you, I told you this? He had made it a point to include this point in his oral instruction, not only once, but habitually. Surely it was merely necessary to remind them of the facts as they had learned them. Therefore also the apostle could continue: And now you know what withholds that he may be revealed in his own time. Before the writing of this letter, the contradicting and contradictory opinions which the Thessalonians heard might have tended to confuse them. But now that they recalled his oral instructions, they knew what he was referring to, they knew the reason for the delay, they knew what restrained Anti-Christ from being revealed before his appointed time. All that Paul had taught them, and a repetition at this time would be unnecessary; they would understand to what Paul was referring.
Just how serious the apostle thought the situation and its possible dangerous developments appears from his next words: For the mystery of lawlessness is active even now, only until he that withholds for the present is out of the way. He speaks of a mystery of lawlessness which was even then working and active; he sees before him the scattered, shapeless mass of ungodliness, which is first to gain form and personality in Anti-Christ. It was at that time still hidden and covered, one could not yet point out specific instances of its terrible power. But it was at work, it was influencing certain persons, for instance, Diotrephes, 3Jn_1:10, and other unruly spirits, 1Jn_2:18. Against a general development and manifestation of power, however, another force was opposing, a force or being that made it impossible for the lawlessness to have free rein until it should be removed. It is probable that Paul is referring to the fact that no bishop could attain to temporal power and honor as long as the Roman emperors could inaugurate persecutions.
When, however, this restriction would be removed, the hidden opposition to Christ, the lawlessness, would break forth: And then the Lawless One will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus shall consume with the breath of His mouth, and He shall make an end of him by the appearing of His coming. "Then," sometime after the removal of the restriction which kept the hidden lawlessness from being put into execution openly. According to the manner of prophecy, events that are centuries apart are spoken of as occurring in quick succession or about the same time. The revealing of Anti-Christ as such took place through the Reformation of Luther. When he brought forth the everlasting Gospel out of the darkness of centuries, it was an easy matter for every Bible Christian to recognize the antichristian character of the Roman papacy and to withdraw from its soul-destroying influence, But the end is not yet; for though Anti-Christ has now been revealed and exposed before all the world, and though the Lord Jesus, through the breath of His mouth, through the sword of the Spirit in the Word, is counteracting the work of Anti-Christ and destroying his work in many instances, the final destruction will come only at the appearance of His coming. When the Lord returns, visibly and with a full revelation of His divine glory, He will put an end to the arrogance of Anti-Christ forever and give him his punishment with all evil-doers.
The reason for this uncompromising attitude is given in the further description: Whose coming is after the working of Satan in all power and signs and lying miracles, and in all deceitfulness of unrighteousness to them that are lost, because they did not accept the love of the truth that they might be saved. Although Anti-Christ has been exposed and his doom is inevitable, he is making the best of his time and of his situation in the Christian Church. Although he has lost his temporal power, he does not think for a moment of giving up his ambition, but his evil advent continues. He has his inspiration from Satan, from whom he also receives the remarkable power which his errors still exert in the world, in signs and wonders which are the product of lie and fraud, as witness the many healings which are credited to relics of saints. With the same cool audacity which has always characterized Anti-Christ, he continues in all deceit of unrighteousness. He has a glittering show of righteousness and holiness; good works, show, and pomp are flaunted before the eyes of the world at all times by the henchmen of Anti-Christ, yet he is full of unrighteousness. Fortunately, however, he has this influence and power only among those that are perishing, because they refused to accept the love of the truth, the simple Gospel-message of salvation, which teaches them the way of salvation. By the grace of God there is many a person that clings to the map of salvation through the merits of Jesus Christ alone, although outwardly under the dominion of the Roman See. But for those that reject the Word of Salvation and actually place their trust in their own merit and in that of the many saints that have been canonized, their destruction with their acknowledged head is a well-merited reward of their disobedience.
Of this St. Paul writes: And for this reason God sends them working of delusion that they should believe the falsehood, that all might be judged who did not believe the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. For this reason, because they would not accept the love of the truth, the Gospel-message of their salvation, God punishes the deliberately disobedient people by giving their minds up to the lie which they preferred. A strength of deception enters their hearts; they become so -firmly convinced that their course is right that they absolutely refuse to turn back to the truth. They believe the lie, put all their faith and trust in falsehood, in conscious, willful, God-defying untruth. A devilish perversion has taken hold of them, making them blind to all sound and true doctrine. The result, therefore, is that all those that will not believe the truth, but find their pleasure in unrighteousness, in a total lack of the righteousness which the Lord demands, will be subject to the condemnation of the Lord. In this way Anti-Christ serves as a tool in God's hands for the punishment of such people as reject the truth of the Gospel, surely an earnest warning in our days when the glamour and the pomp of Rome is unfolded before our eyes more and more.