2 Thessalonians 2:9

9 The Wicked One will come with the power of Satan and perform all kinds of false miracles and wonders, 1

2 Thessalonians 2:9 Meaning and Commentary

2 Thessalonians 2:9

Even him whose coming is after the working of Satan
That is, as a deceiver, a liar, and a murderer; for such was the working of Satan with our first parents; he seduced Eve, not only by subtlety, but by lying; he abode not in the truth, is the father of lies, and a murderer from the beginning: and such is the working of antichrist his firstborn; he comes in a deceitful way, under a profession of Christ, and a pretension of faith in him, and love to him; but speaks lies in hypocrisy, for such are his doctrines and tenets; and is not only a murderer of the bodies of the saints, but of the souls of men; which are the wares the whore of Babylon deals in:

with all power;
not omnipotence, for that is peculiar to God, and is not in Satan nor in antichrist, though the latter assumes to himself all power in heaven and in earth, and claims a jurisdiction both temporal and spiritual over men; but rather this means great power, or all kind of power of doing miracles, as follows:

and signs, and lying wonders;
that is, such signs and miracles as are not real, but reigned, only in appearance, not in truth, like those that were done by the magicians of Egypt; and these were done to countenance lies, and to induce persons to believe them; and how many miracles and lying wonders the church of Rome pretends to, everybody knows.

2 Thessalonians 2:9 In-Context

7 The Mysterious Wickedness is already at work, but what is going to happen will not happen until the one who holds it back is taken out of the way.
8 Then the Wicked One will be revealed, but when the Lord Jesus comes, he will kill him with the breath from his mouth and destroy him with his dazzling presence.
9 The Wicked One will come with the power of Satan and perform all kinds of false miracles and wonders,
10 and use every kind of wicked deceit on those who will perish. They will perish because they did not welcome and love the truth so as to be saved.
11 And so God sends the power of error to work in them so that they believe what is false.

Cross References 1

  • 1. 2.9Matthew 24.24.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.