In 2 Thessalonians, the apostle Paul addressed End-time events, including the Rapture of the Church. It is amazing to me that Paul addressed End-time events with the Thessalonians, because he was with them for only a short period of time. Clearly, he must have believed that understanding of these events was important enough to include in the foundational teachings he shared with those new believers. Today, some Christians think this subject is not important, but if Paul found the End Times and the Rapture important enough that he used part of his short time with the Thessalonian believers to establish these truths in them, then surely, we should treat these topics with importance as well.

Today, I want to take time to discuss an important figure of the end times: the Antichrist.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:7, Paul talks about someone who will restrain the Antichrist, saying, “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.” The word “only” here is the Greek word meaning alone, only, or no one else, and the word “now” is the Greek word that means now, just now, at this moment, or in the immediate present. The meaning of these two words explicitly tells us that there is only one restraining force at this very moment that is holding back the mystery of iniquity from being fully activated on the earth, only one thing stopping the Antichrist from being revealed and taking control of everything.

Paul used the word “let” in 2 Thessalonians 2:7 to describe the action of this restraining force. This old English word, “let” or “letteth,” is translated from the same Greek word we find in verse 6 of this passage, though it is there translated “withholdeth,” and it means to hold down, to hold back, to prevent, to suppress, to restrain, or to hinder. In both cases, the word depicts the restraining force that is stalling and postponing this evil End-time leader and the unprecedented wickedness that will accompany him.

In this chapter, Paul indicates that this restrainer has been doing this job for some time, but he also indicates that it “will let” — in other words, it will continue to be a restraining force in the foreseeable future. This means that this restraining force was active at the time Paul was writing, and it will continue to be active all the way to the end of the age. Paul declares that there has been and will continue to be a supernatural restrainer holding back and preventing the forces of evil from fully taking control.

Paul states that due to the work of the restrainer, the Antichrist will not be revealed “…until he [the restrainer] be taken out of the way.” The word “until” is the Greek word which means until that precise moment, and the words “be taken” describe a surprising event or something that happens suddenly or unexpectedly and totally takes one off guard. Together, these words show that the restrainer will disappear or be removed, and that disappearance will be abrupt.

In short, Paul is saying that a day will come when the hindering force that has continuously delayed the worldwide domination of evil and lawlessness will be removed from the earth. It will be as though this force is suddenly lifted out of the middle of everything, and at that moment, the evil forces that have long been suppressed will no longer be held back. They will be free, and their wicked plans, purposes, and desires will be abruptly energized. These events will come quickly and with no hesitation once the restrainer is out of the picture.

Paul indicates that whoever or whatever this restrainer is, its presence can currently be found in the midst of everything, in every facet of society, and only when it is removed, “…then shall that Wicked be revealed… (2 Thessalonians 2:8). The word “then” is a translation of the Greek word which means at that precise moment, and it describes the things that will immediately take place once the restrainer has disappeared. The moment that this great restraining force disappears is the precise moment when the curtain that has concealed the Antichrist will be pulled back, and he will be revealed to the world.

Putting all these images together, the Renner Interpretive Version (RIV) of 2 Thessalonians 2:7 reads as follows:

These secretive, surreptitious dark events have been covertly in the making for a long time, yet the world at large doesn’t realize that a secret plan is being executed right under their own noses. The only thing that has kept this plan from being already consummated is the restraining force that has been holding it all back until now. But one day this force will be removed from the picture — and when that happens, these iniquitous events will quickly transpire. The removal of this restraining force will signal the moment when the Lawless One will finally make his grand appearance to the world.

Paul was very clear on this fact: the manifestation of the Antichrist and every dark thing that he will bring to the world will only become known after the restrainer has been removed from the scene. As long as this restraining force is still present on the earth, it will be used by God to “withholdeth” (2 Thessalonians 2:6), or hold back, the appearance of the Antichrist and the full onslaught of evil that will accompany him at the end of the age.

Who Could It Be?

With all this discussion of it, it is only natural to ask who or what this restraining force is that is right now holding back the manifestation of the Antichrist. Throughout history, there have been many opinions about who or what the great restrainer is. I won’t take time here to discuss all of the common and mainstream schools of thought regarding the subject, but if you are interested, you can order a copy of my book, The Rapture, The Antichrist and the Tribulation, where I am able to go into much greater detail about it.

Of all the possibilities that have ever been presented, there is only one that logically fits the identity of the great restrainer that is currently holding back the advent of the Antichrist and the evil that will accompany him. The indication that the great restrainer is currently involved in every facet of society gives us a huge clue, because out of all the mainstream theories, there is only one of which this is true: the Church. There are believers in the business world, the athletic world, the arts, education, the government, the medical field, and in every sphere of life, all over the world.

We know that there will be apostasy in Church at the end of the age, but there will also be those who are spiritually vibrant and vigorous. That remnant of spiritually alive believers who have endured and still live at the time of the Lord’s coming — their very presence — will be a restraining force in the earth to hold back the onslaught of evil that will be finally released once the Church is raptured.

The Church is riddled with defects, but it is nonetheless the Body of Christ in the earth, and that means it holds the power of God. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus said, “…I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Jesus Himself is saying that the collective Church can prevail even against the gates of Hell, and as long as that power is on the earth, it will be a force that holds back, suppresses, and hinders the onslaught of evil, but when the Church is removed to Heaven in the twinkling of an eye, the evil forces that are being held at bay will suddenly surge forward into the world.

We need to be prepared, friends. Right now, as the collective Church, we are acting as the great restrainer of the Antichrist, the Lawless one, and all the evil that will come with his manifestation, and we must stay spiritually alive so that we can continue to restrain him right up until the moment that God calls us directly to Him.