2 THESSALONIANS 2:6 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
“And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.”
And you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed in his own time — the 'restrainer' (katechōn) prevents the man of lawlessness from appearing; its identity is debated but its function is clear. The apocalypse unfolds on God's schedule, not prematurely.
Church Fathers on 2 Thessalonians 2:6
One may naturally enquire, what is that which withholds, and after that would know, why Paul expresses it so obscurely. What then is it that withholds, that is, hinders him from being revealed? Some indeed say, the grace of the Spirit, but others the Roman empire, to whom I most of all accede. Wherefore? Because if he meant to say the Spirit, he would not have spoken obscurely, but plainly, that even now the grace of the Spirit, that is the gifts, withhold him. And otherwise…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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