Tag Archives: second coming

The Rattled Thessalonians


In Second Thessalonians, Chapter 2 (the body and main focus of this letter), Paul addresses some sort of misunderstanding that has disturbed these new Christians. He does not know the source of that confusion, whether it be a prophetic or a written word (verse 2), but he comes right to the point to set them straight. “Do not let anyone deceive you in any way…”

“The epistle attacks those who claimed present experience of events which were in reality still future. This leads Paul to give a vehement warning of Satan and the parousia of the lawless one which will take place before the parousia of Christ.”

—The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, Colin Brown, ed. (1976) s.v. “Present”


Their confusion is about the “when?” of the Parousia (verse 1). The prepositional phrase–”Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him”— is the subject of their befuddlement. This phrase is “a reference to the event described in 1 Thess 4:17, [also 2:19; 3:13] when the people of Christ (whether resurrected or surviving to the Parousia) will be transported to meet him and be eternally with him.”–F. F. Bruce, WBC.

That “coming” (parousia) and “gathering” (episynagoge) are one event as the single article (the) makes plain. “Indeed, they are the two parts of one great event.”–Leon Morris, New International Commentary on the New Testament.

“The noun episynagoge in 2 Thess. 2:1 refers to the ‘gathering together’ of believers to Christ at the Parousia.”–Dictionary of New Testament Theology
What has disturbed these Thessalonian Christians is the question of “when”–the question of timing.
The new “word” they had received from somebody (verse 2) confused some and led others astray–What? “ …the Day of the Lord has already come”??? Now? Later? Already?


Paul makes it crystal clear to them: Before the Parousia (verse 1), in the proper order of these things, FIRST (πρῶτον) must come the rebellion and the man of lawlessness (verse 3).

Justin Martyr clearly understood this in the early 2nd Century: “…the two advents of Christ have been announced, the first, in which he is shown as suffering, without glory, without honor, subject to crucifixion, and the second, in which he shall come from the heavens in glory, when the man of apostasy, who utters arrogant things against the Most High, will boldly attempt to perpetrate unlawful deeds against us Christians.“

Paul laid out that sequence of events. First—the apostasy and the man of lawlessness. Then—“the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him.”


“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” 1 Thess. 2:3

Matthew 24. Jesus: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. “


Addendum

The million dollar Left Behind Industry either ignores this text, or explains away this passage of Scripture by juggling the text out of context and imposing the traditions and imaginations of men upon the Sacred Text (eisegesis), but when we allow God’s word to speak in context (exegesis), this sequence of events is crystal clear here.

One of the historical consequences of false or confused teaching is the tragic effect on everyday believers. Corrie Ten Boom quoted a Chinese bishop on one such heart-rending consequence:

1st Thessalonians Laid out in Context, Here (link).… Give reading in context an HONEST try. Remember the Great Commandment, to love God with all your mind.



Paul, the Parousia & his Epistles

Pastor Robert Jeffress, one of a few good Bible teachers who promote “the Rapture” on Christian radio, made a clear, insightful point of exegesis: Jesus did not speak of the “Rapture.” But rather, of the Second Coming.

[But Pastor Jeffress does think that Paul did– For Jeffress, the “Rapture” being a distinct, separate event from the Second Coming/Advent]

In Matthew 24, Jesus teaches about “the coming [parousia] of the Son of Man” v. 27, that “all the nations…will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

“…He will send his angels with a loud trumpet call and they will gather his elect…”

[His elect that were already gathered at a previous ‘Rapture’ ?!]

In 1 Thessalonians, Paul greets his converts with the praise that they “turned to God from idols to server the living and true God and to wait for his Son from heaven…” (1:10)

These Thessalonians are his hope and joy, to be fulfilled “in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming [parousia].” (2:19)…with the trumpet of God (4:15).”

Paul was clearly drawing on Jesus’ teaching.

F. F. Bruce: “What is called the ‘day of Christ’ in Phil. 2:16 is referred to here as Christ’s Advent [parousia]. This is the earliest occurrence in literature of παρουσία [parousia] in its distinctive Christian sense of the advent of Christ in glory.”

“This Christian sense of παρουσία occurs six times in the Thessalonian letters…” and in 1 Cor. 15:23.

“It occurs four times in… (Matthew’s) discourse (Mat. 24:3, 27, 37, 39).”

“That the Thessalonians had been taught to expect this great event is plain from [1 Thess.] 1:10.” ***

The KEY CONTEXT, of 1 Thessalonians 4:

v.13f But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.  For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming [parousia] of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Chapter 5:  Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night *….whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another…

* “…the night the thief was coming…”–Jesus, Matthew 24

Exposition of 1 Thess. 4, Here (LINK)

Give it an honest reading.

***F. F. Bruce, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, Word Biblical Commentary, 1982. {Rapturists are oblivious to the fact that Evangelical New Testament scholars and reference works do NOT espouse the Rapture. Not in this noted commentary, nor in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, nor The New International Commentary on the New Testament, The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, etc.}

Like those Christians who believe in Purgatory, nothing this side of Heaven is apt to convince Left Behinders to truly take the Bible in context on this subject. What we can do is help keep others from being misled as we share God’s word in context.

Parousia. In the NT, parousia, with reference to Christ, refers to Christ’s Second Advent, his Second Coming, “…the coming of Christ at the end-time for the general resurrection, last judgment and the creation of the new heaven and earth.”--The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, s.v. “present” (II:899ff).

N. T. Wright: “Rapture is an American Obsession.” It is not found in the New Testament

There are real consequences to mistaken beliefs. Corrie Ten Boom pointed out one very sad example (the result of American missionaries with their Scofield Bibles):

Amen! I Want to Be Left Behind

I want to be Left Behind

36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.  Matthew 24

[Text highlighted to show the parallels: came…coming…took…taken…]

The flood ‘came’ and ‘took’ them.  “So also” The Son of Man comes and one will be ‘taken’…clear parallels. W. F. Albright, Matthew, AB, notes on v. 31: “…this saying refers to the final judgment.” This section, “looks to a final judgement and triumph when the reign of the Messiah will be finally declared and made open.”

[The other clear parallel between the days of Noah and the days of the coming of the Son of Man: people will be going about their normal business.]

As NICOT, Genesis, notes regarding Noah: “He is saved because he is left behind.”

New Testament scholars see the “taken” as being “to judgment.”  Robert H. Mounce (New International Biblical Commentary), sees this “taken” as parallel with the ‘”taken away” by the flood’ (v. 39). Others think it is ‘left for judgment (e.g. NICNT) [But this seems to be based on some presupposition rather than on the context which seems to be blatantly ignored]. Context makes clear the parallels.  But here is the key point–“The coming of Jesus marks a complete and permanent division” (Leon Morris) “. . . the decisive moment.”

“The sayings emphasize the completely unexpected nature of the Man’s coming” (AB).

THIS is the Parousia, “the coming of the Son of Man,” the Second Advent, the final judgment, (vv. 27, 29-31, 44), not some secret “beam me up Scotty!” fiction. This context leaves “Left Behind” out in the cold. [The enigmatic saying about the vultures receives a variety of educated guesses.  HERE is the best exposition that I have read.] And the context of the primary passage (which is distorted to fit the modern “Rapture” doctrine) also leaves the fiction behind. See the clear context of 1 Thessalonians– https://textsincontext.wordpress.com/2013/05/11/second-coming-rapture-vs-scripture-christian/

“God did not appoint us to wrath”

Left Behind enthusiasts, when told that First Thessalonians does not teach their Left Behind scenario, quickly respond with half of a verse taken from its whole context which they left behind:

“God did not appoint us to wrath”–1 Thessalonians 5:9a.

But here is the context! –This is The Day of the Lord when he comes to bring his wrath on the unbeliever and salvation for his people.

Paul began this letter with the affirmation that we “await His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead–Jesus our deliverer from the coming wrath”–1 Thess. 1:10. This is “the second coming” (NICNT)*…”The Advent (Parousia) of Christ” (F. F. Bruce).** This is “the day of Christ’s revelation in glory, when he comes to vindicate his people and judge the world in righteousness (cf. Acts 17:31)”–Bruce. There lies the ground of our “hope.”

Matthew 24

And here is the context of 1 Thess. 5:9a, quoted at the start, above. “Paul proceeds to speak of salvation negatively and positively. God’s purpose for us is not wrath…On the contrary, he purposed that they should obtain salvation…” (NICNT)

8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of our hope of salvation. 9 For God has not appointed us to suffer wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.…

Rahab let down the red cord and her house was saved in the midst of the judgment on Jericho which fell.

God’s people in Egypt put blood on their doorposts and were saved from the judgment on their neighbors brought by the angel of death.

We have the blood of the Lamb on our doorposts.

Paul ends this section as he began it. Reassuring those Christians that:

“whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.…”

He began, at 1 Thess. 4:13, by addressing a concern of those Christians at Thessalonica:

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope…”

The exposition continues here (link). https://textsincontext.wordpress.com/2013/05/11/second-coming-rapture-vs-scripture-christian/

*New International Commentary on the New Testament, Leon Morris, 1991.

**Word Biblical Commentary, F. F. Bruce, 1982.

The Church Is Mentioned After Revelation Chapter 3, by Bible Church Online

While the Greek word for church, εκκλεσια, ecclesia, is not mentioned after Revelation chapter three, the saints, which are the church, certainly are mentioned after Revelation chapter three. Those saints are mentioned at least fifteen times after Revelation chapter three.

Church, Ecclesia

There is an argument in some circles, that since the word ‘church’ is not mentioned in Revelation after chapter three, the church is absent during that period. This type of argument is known as an argument from silence. That is a rhetorical fallacy that uses the absence of evidence as actual evidence in support of the argument. Article Continues here (link)

See Also 1 Thessalonians 4

2 Thess. Antichrist

Armageddon And the Book of Revelation

bowl-of-wrath

The Seven Bowls of God’s Wrath

Chapter 16: Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.”

…Then I saw three impure spirits…They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.

15 “Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed.”

16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!”

Revelation in Context

The ‘Battle of Armageddon’ is one of the most misrepresented verses in the Bible by memory verse Christians who harden their hearts against reading God’s word in context.

  • Seven is the number of completeness. This completes God’s wrath at the end of time, just as seven days completed God’s creation.

  • It follows Christ’s Return. “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war….And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations” Rev. 19
  • “The gathering of the kings at Armageddon takes up the picture of  Ezek. 38-39…This is the final eschatological battle…The enemies of the people of God will be destroyed by fire from heaven…” –New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology
  • ‘It is clearly the eschatological “battle of on the great day of
    God Almighty    ” (vs. 14). –Geo. Eldon Ladd, Revelation
  • An eschatological battle, not a human battle. The armies are destroyed by “the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth” 19:21
  • “The ultimate reality is the Lord’s return. This is the event which is the focus of the expectation of the saints.” –Ladd

rider-on-white-horse

Contrast with Off-The-Wall Interpretation of Ray Comfort

“While no respected biblical scholars have named the nations [in Rev. 16:16] they do agree that certain nations will come together against Israel in one climatic end-time battle called Armageddon.”

If any scholar has made such an interpretation, it is not Bible scholarship, but eisegesis—reading his own preconceived notions into the text (think Left Behind).

Christ’s Coming: 1 Thessalonians vs. ‘Left Behind’

2ndcoming-01

First Thessalonians 4: The Coming of the Lord

13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming* of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words. (English Standard Version)

Thessalonians is one of the earliest books of the New Testament. (Some think the earliest. F.F. Bruce suggested the possibility that Galatians preceded it. But overall, James was probably the first.) Understandably, these new Christians in this new church had questions and misunderstandings that needed answers.

KEY Context: As v. 15  shows, (with reference to those who are still alive) this section answers questions about “the coming* of the Lord,”  parousia* in Greek. I.e. the Second Advent–SEE Footnote. It begins in v. 13, the key verse of the context,  with Paul addressing their concern about fellow Christians who have already died. Were these who had died now at some disadvantage? What hope did those who still live have for them when Christ returns?

Verse 14 points to Jesus’ death and resurrection, the central theme of Christian hope concerning those who have died.

See 1 Corinthians 15 where Paul addresses the question of the resurrection. Christ’s resurrection was the first fruits, and the resurrection of Christians is the final harvest, v.23 “at His coming (parousia)” when “we shall all be changed—in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet” (verse 52).

[Hard to believe but ‘Left Behinders’  just cannot read or say “...LAST trumpet” No ears to hear; no eyes to see.]

Verse 15 gives the key point of this passage (addressing the concerns of the Thessalonians) that, when Christ returns,  the living Christians have no advantage over those who have died.

Verse 16 describes, in familiar terms (for us who have the NT), Christ’s return (parousia). This is no secret event.

This Coming is described in the same terms as other passages about the Lord’s coming:

“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God….in the clouds…”

Acts 1 “…a cloud took him out of their sight….’This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.'”

Dan 7  “…with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man”

Rev 1 “…Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him…”

Mark 13 “…then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven…”

1 Corinthians 15 “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. “

Verse 17 pictures the “we” who are still alive as following those who have died “to meet the Lord in the air…”

To meet [apantasin] the Lord… “When a dignitary paid an official visit (parousia) to a city in Hellenistic times, the action of the leading citizens in going out to meet him and escort him back on the final stage of his journey [to that city] was called the apantesis” (F.F. Bruce,I &2 Thessalonians, WBC).  R.C. Sproul vivdly describes this historical usage by Paul–starting at 10:20 mark, here. 

See N.T. Wright speak of this, here.

Verse 18  (This is no Gnostic revelation of some new doctrine of a secret ‘rapture’.) The whole point of this passage is to encourage each other in the hope given to us regarding death through Christ’s death and resurrection.

second-coming-icon-detail01sm

*Parousia. In the NT, parousia, with reference to Christ, refers exclusively to Christ’s Second Advent, his Second Coming, “…the coming of Christ at the end-time for the general resurrection, last judgment and the creation of the new heaven and earth.”--The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, s.v. “present” (II:899ff).

See two other posts: 1) NT Prof. Ben Witherington on origins of ‘rapture theory’ and 2) on the text of Mat. 24, “…taken and the other left”–the opposite of ‘rapture’ teaching. Here –-Amen. I Want to be Left Behind. 

And here is a third faithful witness to true Bible teaching,  this warning Corrie Ten Boom(link) gave against false teaching:  “There are some among us teaching there will be no tribulation, that the Christians will be able to escape all this. These are the false teachers that Jesus was warning us to expect in the latter days.” 

On 2 Thess. See https://textsincontext.wordpress.com/2023/01/20/the-protestants-purgatory/

Here is the new Prequel to these articles. Be sure to read it.

https://textsincontext.wordpress.com/2023/03/15/on-i-thessalonians-not-leaving-context-behind/

[CORRIE TEN BOOM Letter, Link: Warning of ‘Rapture’ Teaching]

N. T. Wright: “Rapture is an American Obsession.” It is not found in the New Testament