WHO WAS THE MAN OF LAWLESSNESS?

“Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the Man of Lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.” (2 Thessalonians 2:3)

Who was the Man of Lawlessness/Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8? Let’s first note the context:

1. The “mystery of lawlessness” was already at work when Paul was writing this letter (2 Thessalonians 2:7).

2. The Man of Lawlessness would take his seat in the temple (2 Thessalonians 2:4).

3. Paul promised his readers that God would soon grant THEM (his first century readers) relief from persecution (2 Thessalonians 1:4, 7)

If Paul was a true prophet, these things happened while at least some of his readers were still alive. So, we should be looking for a first-century culprit―before the destruction of the temple in AD 70.

Most Christians fail to appreciate the upheaval among the Jews inside the walls of Jerusalem prior to and during the Roman siege in AD 66-70. A group called the Zealots, a Jewish rebel terrorist group, perpetrated a civil war to incite the Jewish leadership to fight the Romans. Another rebel faction, the Idumeans (i.e., Edomites, an outside group with some Jewish heritage) aided the Zealots for a time. If it weren’t for these murderous rebels, the Jews might well have maintained peace with Rome.

Ananus ben Ananus (“ben” means “son of”), leader of the moderate faction and the high priest in 63 AD, wanted peace. But the Zealots were belligerent. In AD 68, the Idumeans assassinated Ananus and another former Jewish high priest (Joshua-Jesus ben Gamala). (Of note, Ananus was the leader who ordered the execution of James, the brother of Jesus, in AD 62.) Thousands more were murdered by the various rebel forces.

There were seeds of the rebellion brewing even while Paul was writing to the Thessalonians in the early-to-mid 50s AD. Hezekiah the Zealot was already stirring the pot in AD 47.

The Man of Lawlessness could be any of four Zealot leaders. One possibility is John Levi of Gischala. As one of three Zealot leaders, he desecrated the temple in about AD 68, including emptying vessels of sacred wine and oil used in temple rituals and melted down many sacred utensils, etc. However, there were other factions of Zealots under different leadership who could qualify.

Eleazar ben Simon (another radical who was unable to establish unity with John of Gischala). Eleazar made the temple his central command post for the entire first half of the Jewish-Roman War, and oversaw many lawless acts in the temple.

Simon ben Gioras was leader of yet another murderous Jewish rebel group that initially opposed the Zealots, but as the Roman attack became more serious, he aligned with the Zealots against the Romans. Each of the previous three commanded their own separate regiment of soldiers.

Eleazar ben Ananus (“captain of the temple”) was another name that has been mentioned. He was the brother of Caiaphas. This fellow apparently was responsible for convincing the priests to discontinue the practice of accepting offerings on behalf of aliens, namely the Roman rulers. This challenged the Roman authorities and signaled the revolt against Rome. He also led the Idumeans for a time.

Others have suggested that Nero was The Man of Lawlessness. Nero was the Roman emperor from AD 54-68.

The rebels even burned the stores of food, attempting to starve their moderate Jewish opponents into submission to fight the Romans, creating great hardship for the Jews. This civil war was ultimately devastating to the Jews and their stand against the Romans.

But wait! Wasn’t this supposed to happen at Jesus’ Parousia―at the Day of the Lord (2 Thessalonians 2:1-2, 8)? Well, notice in 2 Thessalonians 2:2 that many Christians thought that the Day of the Lord HAD ALREADY HAPPENED. They obviously had a different idea about what the Day of the Lord was than many modern Christians. They did not think it meant the end of the world.

The Day of the Lord is used throughout the Old Testament about God’s judgments on various nations (Isaiah 13:9; Jeremiah 46:10; Lamentations 2:22; Ezekiel 30:2-4; Amos 5:18-22; etc.). Paul’s imminent first-century Day of the Lord was the coming judgment against apostate Old Covenant Israel for her sins and failure to accept Jesus as Messiah (Matthew 23:29-24:2). This happened in AD 70 when Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple reduced to rubble. The gospels make it clear that the Day of the Lord would come upon the Jews (Matthew 3:11-12; 8:12; 10:23; 16:27-28; 21:33-46; 22:7; 23:34-24:2; Luke 19:41-44; 21:20-24 etc.)

Did Jesus really “come” in AD 70? Well, He certainly promised that his Parousia (effective divine presence) would be while some in the first century were still alive (Matthew 10:23; 16:27-28; 24:29-34; 26:64; John 21:22; Revelation 1:1-3; 22:6-20). If you can accept that Jesus came IN JUDGMENT in AD 70, then all of the passages above fit perfectly. You don’t have to make excuses for Jesus, Paul, or the other writers of the New Testament. The relief from persecution by the Jews promised by Paul to the Thessalonian Christians in the first century happened when the Roman army decimated the Old Covenant order and the Jewish ability to persecute Christians. This is precisely how God extracted his judgment in the Old Testament―sending an opposing army to conquer the offenders.

Who was the antichrist, you ask? Some people think that the Man of Lawlessness, the Sea Beast of Revelation, and the Antichrist are the same person. But that is reading something into the text that is not there.

WHO (or WHAT) IS THE ANTICHRIST?

The antichrist is mentioned in only one place in the Bible—1 John 2 and 4, and 2 John 7. To the surprise of some Christians, it is not found in Revelation.

In his first epistle, John refers to multiple antichrists which had ALREADY COME. This reference may mean anyone who had opposed Christ. But THE antichrist—or at least his spirit—was ALREADY IN THE WORLD. Since John insisted that THEY were ALREADY in the LAST HOUR (1 John 2:18), the imminency of the message precludes a yet-future fulfillment. To say that a bogeyman antichrist is still in our future is simply not biblical. It is best to simply rely on John’s description of the antichrist without adding a lot of unbiblical assumptions. John’s antichrist is:

1. false believers who went out from the church (1 John 2:19)
2. anyone who “denies Jesus is the Christ” (1 John 2:22)
3. anyone who “denies the Father and the Son” (1 John 2:23)
4. “every spirit that does not confess Jesus” (1 John 4:3)

(This is an excerpt from my book CHRISTIAN HOPE THROUGH FULFILLED PROPHECY.)

See my articles about Bible prophecy, including Who is The Beast of Revelation here:

https://prophecyquestions.com/2016/02/01/articles-by-charles-meek/

You ask, “Where is Jesus today?” In heaven, of course.

WHAT IS A COMING OF GOD?

Searching the Scriptures over many years to understand eschatology, I have become persuaded that there is a major point most modern Christians miss about Bible prophecy. Jesus said that He would COME on “clouds of heaven with power and great glory,” with angels and trumpets, and with cosmic disturbances of the created order (Matthew 24:29-34; etc.). I dare say that not one Christian in a 100 understands the Old Testament context of these statements. Frankly, what most Christians understand about prophecy they have picked up in the echo chamber without having ever checked it against God’s Word.

If Jesus was to “come” FROM HEAVEN as the DIVINE SON OF GOD, AFTER HIS ASCENSION and GLORIFICATION, how would it look? How would the original audience have understood these prophecies? Wouldn’t they associate Jesus’ “Second Coming” in some way with the COMINGS OF YAHWEH in the Old Testament? The Second Coming passages in the New Testament are often about Jesus’ soon JUDGMENT, i.e. WRATH, upon the apostate Jews living in his day (Matthew 3:7-9; 19:28; 21:33-45; 22:1-14; 23:29-39; 26:63-66; 21:1-24, 29-33; 1 Thessalonians 2:14-16; Revelation 6:12-17; etc.). This was to punish the Jews for their sins and failure to accept Him as Messiah. Note that Jesus judges like the Father per John 5:21-27.

Would Jesus have to be physically present on earth to effect his divine judgment? The Greek noun most often used for Jesus “Second Coming” is Parousia. It is used sixteen times in the New Testament about Jesus’ “return.” It literally means “presence.” It does not demand a literal physical-bodily appearance. It can correctly be understood to be Jesus’ EFFECTUAL DIVINE PRESENCE. Now think about this: Isn’t Jesus present with us even now, effecting change and judging the world?

The language of “coming on a glory cloud” in the Old Testament is idiomatic apocalyptic phraseology about Yahweh’s “COMINGS— often IN JUDGMENT against his enemies. You simply cannot understand New Testament eschatology unless you grasp this context.

I list below two categories of pertinent Old Testament activities of God. Notice how clouds are often described as God’s figurative abode and mode of travel. Also notice how the Bible uses metaphoric language of cosmic and earthly disturbances to describe intrusions of God on earth. This is called “Hebraic apocalyptic language.” It is poetic/metaphoric language, that is non-literal language to explain literal events. People did not literally see Yahweh, but saw the EFFECTS of his presence in various ways. To get a full concept of a divine coming, please take the time to study these passages before commenting on this post:

1. COMINGS IN JUDGMENT. Scholars agree that most of these judgments have already occurred. In parentheses are the targets of God’s righteous judgment. 2 Samuel 22:8-15 (David’s enemies); Psalm 18:7-15 (David’s enemies); 50:3 (God’s people); 68:1-8 (God’s enemies); 96:9-13 (God’s enemies); 97:2-5 (God’s enemies); 98:9 (the world); Isaiah 13:6-13 (Babylon); 19:1-22 (Egypt); 24:1-23 (covenant breakers of Jerusalem); 26:21 (sinners); 29:3-6 (Jerusalem); 34:1-17 (Edom); 66:15-22 (the great judgment); Jeremiah 4:1-28 (Judah and Jerusalem); Ezekiel 30:3-19 (Egypt); 32:7-8 (Egypt/Pharaoh); Hosea 8:1-14 (Israel); Joel 2:1-16, 31 (against Israel, ref. Acts 2); 3:15-16 (the nations); Amos 5:16-25 (Israel); 8:1-9 (Israel); Micah 1:2-16 (Israel and Judah); Nahum 1:2-6 (Nineveh); Zephaniah 1:2-18 (Judah, Jerusalem, and Judah’s enemies); Zechariah 14:2-11 (Jerusalem).

2. COMING/COMING DOWN—not necessarily in judgment, but to display his glory or to effect change in other ways. Genesis 11:5-8; 18:21; Exodus 3:8; 19:9-11; 34:5; Leviticus 16:2; Numbers 11:16-25; Deuteronomy 4:11-14; 5:22; 33:2; 2 Chronicles 5:13-14; Psalm 104:3; 144:5-7; Isaiah 30:26; 31:4; 35:1-10; 40:3-10; 60:19-20; 64:1-3; Ezekiel 1:28; Daniel 7:13; Zechariah 1:16; 9:14.

Now, compare the language to the New Testament: Matthew 24:30; 26:64; Acts 1:9-11; 2 Peter 3:7-12; Hebrews 12:22-29; Revelation 1:7; 6:12-17. Given that there are over 100 passages in the New Testament that say that Jesus would “come/return” while some of those living in the first century were still alive (Matthew 10:23; 16:27-28; 23:29-39; 24:34; Revelation 1:1-3; 22:6-20; etc.), does this study give you a different perspective of “coming on clouds?”

While it is a minority view today, many Christians down through the ages have not understood passages about Jesus’ Parousia be a future literal physical-bodily appearance. Rather, they have understood it as a “coming in judgment” in AD 70.

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