II Thessalonians 2:8-12
QUESTION
“And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12)
What are your thoughts on this text, is it speaking of elect or non-elect persons?
ANSWER
At first impression, the strength of this narrative and use of terms like "damned" gives the impression that it is talking about eternal matters. Thus these "wicked" would fall into the category of the non-elect who are bound for hell, irrespective of the temporal events that surround them. I would have had little cause to dispute this view before coming to a better understanding of the depth and breadth of time salvation in the scriptures.
However, the fact that this text is followed by an admonition to "stand fast" in the face of these warnings raises the possibility that God's elect might fall victim to this error. Also, the statement that "they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved" seems inclined to time salvation, in my view. Indeed, the exercise of faith toward revealed truth is the definition of time salvation. It is an evidence of saving grace, not a prerequisite. It follows that the "salvation" in view must be temporal and not eternal. What's more the sending of "strong delusion" as a result of unbelief seems more consistent with the chastisement of God's sons, since the non-elect are already under the strong delusion that arises from their lack of faith.
All that said, I am certain that this passage breeds a great deal of controversy, even among PB elders. I can appreciate why someone might consider this text to be dealing with eternal salvation. If nothing else, I suspect that to be the majority position in Christendom. This observation is more cause for concern than for comfort, IMO.
While God's people may squabble over the meaning of that text and fur may fly as a result, we do well to step back from the particulars of our interpretation and take in the bigger picture.
"Damnation" is bad no matter where it occurs.
God's people experience chastisement for unbelief.
We are admonished to "stand fast."
If the "damnation" is in eternal hell, the elect shall not suffer it.
Nevertheless we will suffer chastisement here for our unbelief.
Thus we should believe and stand fast, irrespective of whether this passage speaks of the certain damnation of the non-elect or the temporal punishment of the elect for unbelief, because we affirmed both of those things before we ever considered this passage.
- Elder Daniel Samons