The Rebellion of Anti-Christ: (Chap.2):
In this chapter the Christians were shaken instead of established, because they had been told falsely that the Day of the Lord was already present. But Paul explains that certain events must take place before this day of wrath and judgment can come to the world.
Paul’s warning against the false teachers: (2:1-3):
It appeared that they received a forged document spreading the false teaching that Parousia (the day of the Lord has already come). Such a modern version of the belief is found among the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Their (Jehovah Witness) false teaching was that their founder Pastor Charles T. Russell, first taught that the world would end in 1874, and then revised his calculations to 1914, but invisibly. On that day he exchanged an ordinary seat at the Father’s right hand for the throne of his kingdom. So no parousia of Christ is to be expected; it has already taken place which was an utter non-sense.
That’s why Paul begs that “brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed (2:1-2). Further Paul says: the day of the Lord cannot be here already because that day will not come until 2- other things have happened which he calls Great Revolt or the final rebellion against God. Paul says: that the rebellion precede the Parousia. The man of lawlessness must appear and lead the people into rebellion against God.
The Temple Must Be Rebuilt (2:4-5):
Paul says that a world dictator will rise who is called the “man of sin or the son of perdition.” It is not a world system, but a person who will head up a world system. Just like the Christ is the Son of God, he will be the son of perdition. He is also called as “the Antichrist.” This devilish world ruler will unite the nations of Europe in a great federation (the ten horns of Daniel’s image, (Dan. 7). Further he will cooperate with the apostate world church in his rise to power, and then will destroy this religious system when he doesn’t need it anymore (Rev.17)
The program will be like this:
- The church will be Raptured.
- The Antichrist will begin his rise to power in a peaceful way.
- He will unite Europe and make a seven-year covenant with Israel to protect it (Dan. 9). Both the OT and NT predict the return of the Jews to Palestine and the rebuilding of the Jewish temple.
- After 3 ½ years he will break that covenant and invade Israel.
- He will abolish all religion and set himself up to be worshiped (Rev. 13). When the Antichrist sets himself up in the temple, this will mark the “abomination of desolation” (Dan. 11:31; Matt 24:15).
In the book of Daniel, we find the shadow of the “abomination of desolation.” The Syrian King “Antiochus Epiphanes IV, was guilty of appalling desecrations of the temple in Jerusalem. In 169 BC, he presumed to have entered into the Holy of Holies and the following year, he erected an altar to Zeus on the altar of burnt offering, probably placed a statue of Zeus over it and sacrificed a pig on it. This was the ‘abomination that causes desolation’ the reference can be seen in the First Book of the Maccabees (1 Macc. 1:54ff). He became a prototype of Antichrist.
- At the end of the 7- tribulation period (Day of the Lord), Christ will return to earth and destroy the Antichrist and his system.