2 Thessalonians 2:11

Contextual Overview

³Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. ³ Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. ³ Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, ³Let no one in any way deceive you, for it has not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, ³Don't let anyone pull the wool over your eyes. Jesus won't come riding back until the devil's son has been revealed, the one destined for destruction by God. ³ Give no belief to false words: because there will first be a falling away from the faith, and the revelation of the man of sin, the son of destruction, ³ Let not any one deceive you in any manner, because [it will not be] unless the apostasy have first come, and the man of sin have been revealed, the son of perdition; ³ Don't let anyone deceive you in any way. For that day will not come unless the apostasy comes first and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction. ³ Let no one deceive you in any way. For it will not be, unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of destruction, ³ Let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not come, unless the falling away come first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition,

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

for: Psalms 81:11, Psalms 81:12, Psalms 109:17, Isaiah 29:9-14, John 12:39-43, Romans 1:21-25, Romans 1:28

God: 1 Kings 22:18-22, 2 Chronicles 18:18-22, Isaiah 6:9, Isaiah 6:10, Ezekiel 14:9

that: Isaiah 44:20, Isaiah 66:4, Jeremiah 27:10, Ezekiel 21:29, Matthew 24:5, Matthew 24:11, 1 Timothy 4:1

Reciprocal: Genesis 20:6 - sinning Genesis 39:19 - heard Exodus 10:20 - General Leviticus 13:29 - General Deuteronomy 13:3 - proveth Judges 9:23 - God 1 Samuel 18:10 - and he prophesied 2 Samuel 24:1 - moved 2 Chronicles 18:19 - Who shall entice Psalms 69:27 - Add Isaiah 19:14 - hath mingled Isaiah 30:28 - causing Isaiah 63:17 - why Ezekiel 12:2 - which Ezekiel 13:6 - made Ezekiel 20:39 - Go ye Hosea 5:4 - They will not frame their doings Hosea 10:2 - Their heart is divided Micah 2:11 - he shall Matthew 13:15 - their eyes Acts 19:35 - and of 2 Timothy 3:13 - being

Cross-References

Genesis 10:7
The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteka. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
The sons of Cush were Seba and Havilah and Sabtah and Raamah and Sabteca; and the sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
The sons of Cush were Seba and Havilah and Sabtah and Raamah and Sabteca; and the sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
And the children of Chus: Seba, and Hauilah, and Sabthah, and Raamah, and Sabtheca.

Genesis 10:7
Cush's sons were Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. Raamah's sons were Sheba and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
The sons of Cush: Seba, Hav'ilah, Sabtah, Ra'amah, and Sab'teca. The sons of Ra'amah: Sheba and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
Forsothe the sones of Thus weren Saba, and Euila, and Sabatha, and Regma, and Sabatacha. The sones of Regma weren Saba, and Dadan.

Genesis 10:7
And the sonnes of Cush, Seba, and Hauilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and the sonnes of Raamah: Sheba, and Dedan.

Genesis 10:7
And the sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtechah: and the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion,.... Or "efficacy of error", which God may be said to send; and the Alexandrian copy reads, "does send"; because it is not a bare permission but a voluntary one; or it is his will that error should be that truth may be tried, and be illustrated by its contrary, and shine the more through the force of opposition to it; and that those which are on the side of it might be made manifest, as well as that the rejecters of the Gospel might be punished; for the efficacy of error is not to be considered as a sin, of which God cannot be the author, but as a punishment for sin, and to which men are given up, and fall under the power of, because they receive not the love of the truth, which is the reason here given: and this comes to pass partly through God's denying his grace, or withholding that light and knowledge, by which error may be discovered and detected; and by taking from men the knowledge and conscience of things they had, see Romans 1:28. So that they call evil good, and good evil, and do not appear to have the common sense and reason of mankind, at least do not act according to it; and by giving them up to judicial blindness and hardness of heart, and to the god of this world, to blind their minds; and without this it is not to be accounted for, that the followers of antichrist should give into such senseless notions as those of transubstantiation, works of supererogation, c., or into such stupid practices as worshipping of images, praying to saints departed, and paying such a respect to the pretended relics of saints, c., as they do but a spirit of slumber is given them, and eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear, because of their rejection of the Gospel: and

that they should believe a lie that the pope is Christ's vicar on earth, and has power to forgive sins; that the bread and wine in the Lord's supper are transubstantiated into the very body and blood of Christ; with other lying tenets spoken in hypocrisy concerning good works, merit, pardon, penance; c. with a multitude of lying wonders and false miracles, of which their legends are full and this is the first and more near end of strong delusion or efficacious error being sent them; the more remote and ultimate one follows.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And for this cause - Because they choose error, or their hearts love that more than they do truth. The original reason then of their embracing and adhering to the system was not an arbitrary decree on the part of God, but that they did not love the truth. Hence, he gave them up to this system of error. If a man strongly prefers error to truth, and sin to holiness, it is not wrong to allow him freely to evince his own preference.

God shall send them strong delusion - Greek: “energy of deceit;” a Hebraism, meaning strong deceit, The agency of God is here distinctly recognised, in accordance with the uniform statements of the Scriptures, respecting evil; compare Exodus 7:13; Exodus 9:12; Exodus 10:1, Exodus 10:20, Exodus 10:27; Exodus 11:10; Exodus 14:8. Isaiah 45:7. On the nature of this agency, see the notes on John 12:40. It is not necessary here to suppose that there was any positive influence on the part of God in causing this delusion to come upon them, but all the force of the language will be met, as well as the reasoning of the apostle, by supposing that God withdrew all restraint, and suffered men simply to show that they did not love the truth. God often places people in circumstances to develop their own nature, and it cannot be shown to be wrong that He should do so. If people have no love of the truth, and no desire to be saved, it is not improper that they should be allowed to manifest this. How it happened that they had no “love of the truth,” is a different question, to which the remarks of the apostle do not appertain; compare Romans 9:17-18, note; Romans 1:24, note.

That they should believe a lie - This does not affirm that God wished them to believe a lie; nor that He would not have preferred that they should believe the truth; nor that He exerted any direct agency to cause them to believe a lie. It means merely that He left them, because they did not love the truth, to believe what was false, and what would end in their destruction. Can anyone doubt that this constantly occurs in the world? People are left to believe impostors; to trust to false guides; to rely on unfounded information; to credit those who live to delude and betray the innocent; and to follow those who lead them to ruin. God does not interpose by direct power to preserve them. Can anyone doubt this? Yet this is not especially the doctrine of revelation. The fact pertains just as much to the infidel as it does to the believer in Christianity, and he is just as much bound to explain it as the Christian is. It belongs to our world - to us all - and it should not be charged on Christianity as a doctrine pertaining especially to that system.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 11. God shall send them strong delusion — For this very cause, that they would not receive the love of the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness, therefore God permits strong delusion to occupy their minds; so that they believe a lie rather than the truth, prefer false apostles and their erroneous doctrines to the pure truths of the Gospel, brought to them by the well-accredited messengers of God; being ever ready to receive any false Messiah, while they systematically and virulently reject the true one.