“Let no one deceive you by any means;
for that Day will not come
unless the falling away comes first, and the
man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called
God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing
himself that he is God.” (vv.3-4)
Here our
text speaks of the antichrist, the opponent of
Christ. And yet the antichrist is not Satan (1 Peter 5:8, Revelation 12:10),
but is expressly distinguished from him (v.9), as the instrument of Satan. Just
as Satan entered into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of perdition, so he
will take possession of the man of sin, to accomplish his will.
The
Antichrist will oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God, both the
false gods of the heathen, and the true and living God (Daniel 11:36), and
demand to be worshiped as God in the temple of God. This blasphemous arrogance,
the abomination of desolation, will begin the second 3 ½ year period of the
Tribulation. The Antichrist, as intimidating as he may be, will be destroyed by
the brightness of Christ at His second coming (v.8).
May God
help us not to be deceived or taken in by so-called “signs and wonders” of
false teachers (v.9), but stay connected to His Word in order to see the truth.
The Truth
“He shall
speak pompous words against the
Most High, Shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to
change times and law. Then the saints
shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time.” (Daniel
7:25)
