who opposes and exalts himself above all who are called God or object of worship, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
Truth to Learn
The “man of sin” will be revealed before the Day of the Lord.
Behind the Words
The verb translated “opposes” is antikeimai. This word is made up of anti, meaning “opposite” or “against” and keimai, meaning “to lie outstretched.” Thus, it literally means “to lie against.” Antikeimai means “to be an opposer or an adversary.”
“Exalts himself” is translated from the verb huperairomai, which is composed of huper (or hyper), meaning “above” or “over” and a form of airō, meaning “to lift up.” Hence, it means “to lift above” or “to exalt.” It is expressed as a present passive participle, so it could literally be translated as “the one exalting himself.”
The word translated “called” is legō, which originally meant “to lay something down.” Later, however, it came to mean “to utter definite words,” that is, to speak or to say something. This word has a number of nuances of meaning as it is used in New Testament Greek. Thus it can mean “to verbally lay before, that is, to put forth an idea, to say or speak, or to call something by name,”
Sebasma is the word translated “object of worship.” This word means “something that is venerated or worshipped.”
“Displaying” is from the verb apodeiknumi, which means “to show off” or “to exhibit something.”
Meaning Explained
Paul has just written about the two events that will precede the Day of the Lord, which begins with the Tribulation. The Tribulation is identified in Daniel 9:24-27 as the seventieth week (of years). In Daniel 9:27 he talks about how “the prince who is to come” will establish a seven year covenant (with Israel). In the middle of that week (after three and one-half years), this prince will perform an abominable act which causes desolation. In Matthew chapter twenty-four, Jesus Christ also describes this act as “the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet.”
In today’s verse Paul gives us more information regarding this abominable act. This person, who Paul calls “the man of lawlessness,” is the person referred to by Daniel as “the prince who is to come.” He is also referred to by the Apostle John as “the antichrist” (1 John 2:18, 22; 1 John 4:3; 2 John 1:7). According to Paul, this person will proclaim himself to be God, and he will demonstrate his deity by sitting in the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem, exhibiting himself as God.
This man of sin, whom Paul also calls “the lawless one” in verse eight, is described in Revelation chapter thirteen as “the beast out of the sea.” He will be controlled by Satan (the dragon) and will be worshipped as a god by the people on earth during the second half of Daniel’s seventieth week:
So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?" And he was given a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and he was given authority to continue for forty-two months. (Revelation 13:4-5)
This “man of lawlessness” may very well be alive today, but he has not yet been revealed. Neither has the apostasia occurred yet, so (as Paul has been teaching) the Day of the Lord has not yet come upon us.
Application
World events are rapidly shaping up that point to the fact that the Day of the Lord is close at hand. But it has not yet arrived and we still have time to proclaim the gospel message. It is up to all Christians to proclaim the good news of salvation through the blood of Christ. Are you proclaiming it?
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2016 Will Krause. All rights reserved