As the continuing saga of the so-called pandemic rages on, one question has come up on more than one occasion. Is this the “great delusion”? There are a couple of places in scripture where such is alluded to. The first place is in 2 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians 2:11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
As always the context should be considered.
2 Thessalonians 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
8 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:
9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
As I read this verse 11, the question comes to mind. Whom does the term “them” refer to?
Verse 10 says “…them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.”
Now reading from the top, the first two verses say.
2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him
2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Keep in mind paragraphs as such are all added by men. They carry no Godly authority at all. So if you were to read these two verses as one:
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand
Now it is clear the author is moving from the “coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him” to the day of Christ (kurios – Lord, not christos – Christ)
Let us consider where it says “the day of Christ is at hand”. Here is where the inherent accuracy of God’s Word shines. The word “Christ” in this verse is the Greek word “kurios”. It NOT “christos” that is typically rendered “Christ” as in “Jesus Christ”. Rather, the word “kurios” is usually rendered “lord”. Thus verse 2 should read “the day of the Lord is at hand”. Why bother with just one word? This word – kurios – tells is the topic is a specific period of time in prophecy and scripture. It also tells us what the following verses pertain to.
Now consider 2 Thessalonians 2:3
2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
This is where things get interesting. Note the term “falling away” is the Greek word “apostasia”, rendered in English “apostasy”.
From biblefood.com
The Greek word “Apostasia” is a compound of two Greek words: “Apo” = “to move away”, “stasis” means “standing or state”, or “to stand”.
Literally, from its basic definition, “apostasia” means “to go away from”, or “depart”, or “change state or standing from one state to another”.
Another common interpretation is “a falling away”, a “defection” (Theyer’s and Strongs) or a “revolt” (NAS Exhaustive Concordance). These suggest a basic turning away from the True Word of God. Well, we’ve certainly seen plenty of that already. Let’s not forget the second part of this verse.
2 Thessalonians 2:3 …and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Wait! There’s more!
2 Thessalonians 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
Two separate events are referred to here – this “falling away”, apostasy, and “that man of sin will be revealed”. There is not much detail about this apostasy. Whether one takes it as a “revolt” or a general turning away from God or a “departure” as in the rapture, it does not matter here. The more crucial question we are seeking an answer to is “what about this “strong delusion” in verse 11? We are getting there.
Now… about that delusion. From the scriptures laid out on this page, I think it is safe to say the “strong delusion” in verse 11 of 2 Thessalonians pertains to the events surrounding this “man of perdition”.
2 Thessalonians 2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
It is those who reject Christ who will be received.
In the gospels, Jesus is recorded in both Matthew 24 and Mark 13 speaking of many being deceived. The text of Matthew 24 is below. Mark is quite similar, but by all means, look it up for yourself.
Matthew 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.
2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
25 Behold, I have told you before.
26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
In verses 4 and 5
Matthew 24:4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
In verse six, he indicates the when…
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
He states this in answer to the question about when shall be signs of the end.
Now consider whom Jesus is speaking directly to – his disciples. His disciples were Hebrews – Jews. His ministry was entirely to the nation of Israel. Note this distinction made in the epistle to the Corinthians.
1 Corinthians 10:32 Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:
Three separate groups are identified here: Jews, Gentiles and the church of God. While this is not definitive, this passage certainly indicates “the church of God” as a unique group. What separates us? The new birth, as it was not available until Pentecost.
Since Jesus would not have been speaking to the church of God, aka, the body of Christ, it follows that these things do not pertain directly to those of us Christians living in this age of grace. Thus, the “elect” he speaks of must be Israelites in the end times.
Even for those who might take exception to my logic here, the deception spoken of by Jesus is quite specific. Those who are deceived are not “the elect” and they are being deceived by false prophets and false Christs who show great signs and wonders.
While there are rumblings about false messiahs in the past few years – some held up Barrack Obama as a “messiah” and more recently, some are promoting the idea of praying to Anthony Fauci. While I certainly agree that Fauci should indeed be counted as a false prophet and the idea of BO as a messiah-type is as abominable as one can get, I don’t think we are quite at the point Jesus was speaking of.
The bottom line is, while this virus pandemic is certainly a grand deception, we have not yet entered into the end times. How much longer? I don’t know. From what I can ascertain, the world will move into that period soon after the rapture takes place. Some do not believe there will be a rapture, however my studies over the years indicates that it will indeed occur. Is this wishful thinking? I do not believe so. For one thing, I do not care one way or another. While I yearn to depart and be with my Lord, forging through tribulation times holds a certain appeal of adventure and excitement. Much like war, I am certain the realities of those times will be far more difficult that one’s glorious visions.
In any case, my hope is to live long enough to see Jesus coming and meeting him in the air. While the world seems to be preparing for this to happen, who knows how long it will take?
Long ago, I had a friend who did not believe. His retort was always “What if you’re wrong?”. My response was always along the lines of “I’d rather be wrong being for God than against Him.” Of course the one thing I could not explain to my friend was I just knew I wasn’t wrong! Such knowledge can only come from being born again of the spirit of God.
1 Corinthians 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
13 Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
If you have not accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior then I strongly suggest you do so now. Time grows shorter every day. One of the major reasons I believe in the rapture is through a careful study of Revelation. Reading that, it becomes clear those living in that period are not under grace. This glorious age where anyone can be born again by confessing Jesus as Lord and believe that God raised him from the dead will end. While it will still be possible to be accepted by God, I cannot say how this will happen. What I can say is right now, as of this writing, the words of the Apostle Paul stand clear:
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
1 Thessalonians 1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
Christians were never promised to be free of tribulation.
Romans 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
However “The Great Tribulation” (caps mine, no divine authority) as indicated in the end times is something altogether different. It is the final wake up call for those who reject God, who refuse to believe no matter what. What possible reason would there be for a loving God to subject His children to the horrors detailed in scripture. I can think of only one – we are needed to help those who are will to change their minds. As far as I’m concerned, if this is what God wants for me, I’m in. For the time being I’m happy enough to encourage anyone reading this to accept Jesus as Lord now. Accept deliverance from the wrath to come.