Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians 2 to reassure the Thessalonian believers that they had not missed the rapture and were not in the Tribulation.
The Thessalonian believers, under intense persecution, had come to believe the rapture had already taken place and they had missed it. Paul appeals to them by the coming of the Lord and their gathering together unto Him, and tells them that day will not come until a falling away/departure first and the man of sin is revealed. He sets their minds at ease and gives them points to look for so they would know they had not missed it.
2 Thessalonians 2:1 — This verse identifies the rapture as Christ gathering believers unto Himself, the very event the Thessalonians feared they had missed.
2 Thessalonians 2:2-3 — This passage directly states that the day of Christ will not come until a falling away and the revealing of the man of sin.
2 Thessalonians 2 opens with Paul's appeal: “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him” (2 Thessalonians 2:1). He immediately urges believers not to be “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” (2:2). Paul then gives the sequence: “that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition” (2:3). The passage goes on to describe this man of sin as one “who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God” (2:4), and to remind readers that Paul had told them these things when he was with them (2:5).
Les Feldick explains that Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians 2 because the Thessalonian believers were under intense persecution and pressure, and they honestly thought the rapture had taken place and they had missed it—that they were already in the Tribulation (Clips 1, 2, 6). Paul “had to quickly come back with 2 Thessalonians and reassure them that they hadn’t missed the rapture” (Clip 3). Les emphasizes Paul’s language in verse 1—“the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him”—which sets the rapture apart from the second coming. At the second coming, Christ will not gather believers to Himself; here Paul refers to Christ gathering His own to Himself, and that is the rapture (Clip 3). Paul then tells them “that day shall not come” until there is first a falling away/departure and the man of sin is revealed, so the Antichrist cannot appear before the church is gone (Clips 2, 5). Les also notes that although Paul is not normally associated with prophecy, in this chapter he connects the end of the church age with the Tribulation (Clip 4).
The Thessalonian believers had been under “awful persecution” and pressure (Clip 2, Clip 6). This led them to believe that the rapture had taken place and they had missed it, and that they were in the Tribulation (Clip 1, Clip 2). Paul had to quickly send 2 Thessalonians to reassure them that they had not missed the rapture, and to give them points to look for so they would know they had not missed it (Clip 3). Paul also reminded them that he had already told them these things when he was with them (Clip 7).
In 2 Thessalonians 2:1 Paul speaks of “the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him.” Les Feldick points out that this little group of words sets the rapture completely apart from the second coming. At the second coming, Christ will not be gathering people unto Himself—He is coming to the earth. Here Paul is referring to an act of Christ where He gathers His own to Himself, and that is the rapture (Clip 3).
Paul writes that believers should not be shaken or troubled as if “the day of Christ is at hand” (2 Thessalonians 2:2). Les explains that Paul is identifying this day with the beginning of the Tribulation and the coming of the Antichrist. Paul states in verse 3 that “that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed.” Les teaches that the falling away is also a departure—the departure of the body of Christ. The Antichrist is not going to appear before the church is gone (Clips 2, 5). Les adds that this chapter shows Paul, by the Holy Spirit, connecting the end of the church age with the Tribulation (Clip 4).
The Antichrist Revealed: What 2 Thessalonians Really Says
Welcome to Through the Bible with Les Feldick, a 30-minute walk through the Scriptures teaching in-depth Bible truths that change people's lives. Now, here's your host, Les Feldick. And again, Boy, we got a good crowd in the studio today, and we're just going to go right back and pick up where we stopped in our last program, and we were describing the attributes or the personality of this man that…
The Thessalonians' fear that they missed the rapture
Les explains that the Thessalonian believers, because of persecution and pressure, were afraid the rapture had taken place and they had missed it, so Paul writes to address that fear.
The Antichrist cannot appear before the church is gone
Les shows Paul telling the Thessalonians not to be deceived, for the day of the Lord and the revealing of the man of sin will not come until the departure/falling away first; the Antichrist will not appear before the church is gone.
The gathering together unto Him identifies the rapture
Les shows Paul's phrase 'our gathering together unto Him' distinguishes the rapture from the second coming, because at the second coming Christ does not gather believers to Himself; this reassures the Thessalonians they had not missed the rapture.
Paul connects the church age and the Tribulation
Although Paul is not normally associated with prophecy, Les notes that in 2 Thessalonians 2 the Holy Spirit uses Paul to connect the end of the church age with the Tribulation by describing the Antichrist's coming.
The departure of the body of Christ precedes the man of sin
Les stresses that earlier translations show the man of sin cannot be revealed until there is a departure of the body of Christ, so the church will be gone before the Tribulation's Antichrist appears.
The persecution behind the Thessalonians' confusion
Les sets the context: the Thessalonian believers were under such intense persecution that they honestly thought they were in the Tribulation, which is why Paul addresses their misbelief.
Paul's reminder that he had already taught these things
Les points out Paul reminds the Thessalonians he had told them these end-time things when he was with them, showing he had taught them prophecy even in a short visit.
2 Thessalonians 2:1: Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
Paul's opening appeal identifies the rapture as the gathering of believers to Christ, the event the Thessalonians feared they had missed.
2 Thessalonians 2:2: 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.
Paul urges them not to be unsettled by false claims that the day of Christ had already arrived.
2 Thessalonians 2:3: 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;
Scripture reveals the day will not come until the falling away/departure and revelation of the man of sin.
2 Thessalonians 2:4: Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
This describes the man of sin that Paul introduces in chapter 2.
2 Thessalonians 2:5: Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
Paul reminds the readers that he had previously taught these end-time events, a point Les highlights from the context.
No. Les Feldick teaches that Paul wrote to reassure them they had not missed it. They were under intense persecution and thought they were in the Tribulation, but Paul sets their minds at ease and gives them points to look for so they would know they hadn't missed the rapture (Clips 1, 3).
Les teaches that it is also called a departure—the departure of the body of Christ. Before the man of sin can be revealed, there must be this departure, meaning the church is gone (Clips 2, 5).
No. Les teaches that Paul's phrase 'our gathering together unto Him' describes Christ gathering His own to Himself, whereas at the second coming Christ comes to the earth and does not gather people unto Himself (Clip 3).
Les says Paul, though not normally associated with prophecy, connects the end of the church age with the Tribulation in 2 Thessalonians 2 because this is where the church age ends and the Tribulation begins (Clip 4).
Watch the Teaching: The Antichrist Revealed: What 2 Thessalonians Really Says