2 Thessalonians 2:12Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

“That they may be condemned.” He did not say, “that they may receive punishment,” since punishment awaited them even apart from this. Rather, he says, “that they may be condemned,” that is, condemned at that fearful tribunal, so that they may be without answer. “But those,” he says, “who loved unrighteousness.” Antichrist will come for the destruction of mankind, to inflict wrongs upon men. Indeed, what will he not do at that time? He will bring everything into tumult and confusion, both by his commands and by fear. He will be terrible in every respect: in his authority, his cruelty, and his lawless commands. But do not fear. He will have power, says the Apostle, only over those who are perishing. And Elijah will then come to support the believers.

He did not say, “that they may receive punishment,” for even if Antichrist had not come, the unbelievers would have had to be punished. Rather, he says, “that they may be condemned,” so that they may be without answer. Will they say, “We did not believe in Christ because His disciples proclaimed Him as God, while we heard that there is one God, from whom are all things”? If so, how did you believe Antichrist, who presents himself as god? Christ referred everything to the Father, but this one does the opposite. But they will say, “We saw signs.” Yet many great miracles were also done by Christ. Moreover, the prophets foretold that Christ is the Savior, while that one is the son of lawlessness and perdition. Therefore they will be condemned, because, having abandoned the truth, they took pleasure in unrighteousness. That is, it pleased them, and they willingly gave themselves to the deceiver, who uses every injustice against men and is himself unrighteousness embodied.

Because they did not believe the truth in order to be saved, they believe deception in order to perish. The crucifiers do not perish at His coming so that they might prevent Him from coming. They were subject to perdition before His coming, because they blasphemed and mocked Him who came for the salvation of the world. Therefore they will be subjected to condemnation and curse because they crucified the one and received the other. The lawless one is sent to them not to force them violently to believe in him, but so that they may undergo destruction if they voluntarily sympathize with him and believe in him. Then they are condemned for this guilt: they left the true power, the true miracle, and became adherents of false signs. They left Him to whose coming all the prophets bear witness. They will quickly turn to the one whom Moses nowhere mentioned and about whom no prophet wrote.

The Apostle teaches that the Spirit sanctifies. He says this: "But we must always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth." Therefore the Father sanctifies, the Son also sanctifies, and the Spirit sanctifies. But the sanctification is one, for there is one baptism and one grace of the mystery.

By “the love of the truth” the Apostle named the Lord, as the One who truly and sincerely loved us. The Master Himself also said this to the Jews: “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive” (Jn 5:43). Therefore the Jews especially are left with no excuse. They did not wish to believe the Lord, considering Him opposed to God, yet they will believe Antichrist. Although the Lord did not openly call Himself God, but said that He was sent by the Father, received a commandment from Him, and does what is pleasing to God and the Father, Antichrist will do the opposite. He will call himself the God of all. Yet the Jews await him and will believe when he comes.

"God has chosen you from the beginning," ap' arches. Some manuscripts read aparchen. The first reading is supported by many ancient copies, by almost all the Fathers and translations, and points to election from the ages (Eph 3:9; Col 1:26). The second is accepted by the Vulgate and means the election of the firstfruits, the primacy of the new Israel (Jas 1:18; Rom 16:5?; 1 Cor 16:15). The purpose of election is clearly defined: salvation. For this, sanctification by the Spirit is given on God's part, while faith in the truth is required on man's part.

But truth is not always clear and comprehensible. Why then is there judgment for unbelief in it? Because unbelief comes from the moral corruption of the heart. Through this corruption the heart loses the very sense of truth and therefore rushes toward unrighteousness. This unrighteousness is in no way clearer or more probable than revealed truth. Yet it flatters coarse human instincts, and therefore the impious rush toward it. It is noteworthy that the Apostle does not say of those who did not believe the truth that they believed unrighteousness as though by mistake. Rather, he says precisely that they loved unrighteousness. That is why it seemed probable to them and drew them to itself.

God’s permission that men be subjected to the working of error corresponds to the human disposition. Seeing the incorrigible unbelief of those in error and their unyielding devotion to unrighteousness, God allows them to become certain of falsehood as though it were truth. The holy Apostle, as it were, expresses a desire for this, so that the impious may be clearly revealed. This happened before, when those persuaded by the prophets and Apostles did not believe them. As though seeing they did not see, and hearing they did not hear, and therefore they did not heed the divine teaching. This hardness will be still greater at the coming of Antichrist. It will give him the possibility of drawing to himself a great multitude of apostates from the faith, already inwardly prepared for this.

The activity of this lawless one, or man of sin, will be exceedingly destructive for mankind. Satan will give him power, just as God the Father gave authority to Christ. The miracles accompanying his coming will have this satanic power (ενέργειαν) as their source. The Apostle does not say whether Antichrist himself will perform these miracles or someone else. In any case, these miracles will be miracles of falsehood. That is, they will be real miracles, not deception and not tricks. But they will be performed with the aim of deceiving men concerning the true faith. As miracles performed not for mankind’s benefit but for its harm, they may also be called false, since they do not correspond to their idea.

“That they may receive judgment,” that is, be justly subjected to condemnation. God will permit this, their evil moral and religious constitution will be disclosed, and they will ripen for judgment. Falsehood exposes itself, and those who follow falsehood expose themselves. They will be without answer at the judgment for this very reason. They believed an obviously destructive falsehood and did not believe an obviously saving truth. “All who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in unrighteousness.” From the Greek, this means all these unbelievers and the others who did not receive the Gospel truth in their hearts with living faith. They did not order their life, feelings, and dispositions according to its demand.