In 2Th 2:3 Paul clearly tells us that the Day of Christ will not come unless two things first take place. The apostasia happens followed by the son of perdition being revealed.

2Th 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2Th 2:2 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.
2Th 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;

The word interpreted as a falling away in the King James version is the Greek word apostasia. Bible translators unfortunately have translated this Greek word as the English word Apostasy which means to “fall away” as in falling away from the faith. The word apostasia actually means to physically depart from someone or something. Also the words “that day shall not come” is in italics in English Bible translations because these words are not in Greek text. Apparently the Bible translators were trying to fill in the blanks. However, in this case doing so made the translation more confusing.

This translated passage would better read “Do not let anyone deceive you in any way, because that Day will not come unless first comes the departure, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition”.

All Bible translations that say falling away, rebellion, revolt, or anything similar are just trying to define the word apostasy for you but the context does not suggest the English word apostasy should even be used. One of the best short studies I have seen on this is done by Dr. Gary Gulan. I highly recommend that critics of this departure interpretation read his arguments.

Dr. Guland is not alone in his interpretation. Dr. Andy Woods does a complete study on 2Th 2:3 in this hour-long Video. Dr. Woods also believes that Paul is talking about the departure of the Church in the Rapture. Dr. Thomas Ice and other scholars have come to the same conclusion. The article I linked to and the Woods video will give you all the technical information about the passage. Parsing out all the fine details is over my head so  I will just stick to a few common sense arguments for this not talking about a general apostasy from the faith.

The latter-day idea that there will be a great apostasy from the Christian faith hinges on the dubious translation of the single word apostasia. Also, if apostasia is to interpreted as the scholars I referenced suggest, it could lend overwhelming evidence for a pretribulation Rapture. By saying apostasia means a falling away from the faith, a false end times theology could be being advanced and it could also be degrading another. Should any questionable word have such power?

We were warned that in the last days there would come wolves in sheep clothing, wicked vile people and those embracing false doctrines. However, this is not the same as a general apostasy from the faith. These people might call themselves Christians but they never were in the faith. There certainly is false Christianity that has another gospel then the one once delivered. They probably are even the majority in Christendom. Since the dark ages that seems to be the case. Nevertheless, harlot religions like Roman Catholicism apparently was not the fulfillment of what some think Paul said in this passage or they would not still be looking for some latter-day greater apostasy. The Harlot has been around big time since the dark ages so why define false Christianity in our time or even at a later time as the fulfillment of this great apostasy supposition? If Paul actually meant a departure from the faith in this passage, it has been with us since he died. Then why even list it an observable sign that occurs just before the Day of Christ?

The Church Age is defined by Jesus in the seven letters to the seven churches in Revelation. Five of the visible church types during the Church Age receive correction from Jesus but overcomers are found in all of them. All people born of the Holy Spirit are overcomers. In Revelation we are told that some of the visible Church on earth is near dead or grows lukewarm. We can observe that in history and see it in Christendom today but that never was generally true everywhere on earth and is not likely to become true everywhere on earth before the Rapture. Much of the Church from now until the end can be identified with Philadelphia and Philadelphia is faithful and promised to be kept out of the tribulation. Obviously Philadelphia endures until the Rapture. So we know there is no general apostasy among Bible believers who are waiting for the Lord’s coming.

At what point can we say that this apostasy from the faith is fulfilled? And if we cannot define what becomes general apostasy why would Paul even give it as something we should know? It’s not logical.

The mystery of the Rapture of the Church was revealed by Paul in 1st Thessalonians so it only makes sense that in his second letter to them he is building on what he already taught them. He even says so. The Thessalonians were shaken by a forged letter saying they were already in the tribulation. Therefore, it makes sense for Paul to be reminding them that they could not be in the Day of the Lord because the Church had not departed yet. The context also supports that premises because the following verses tell us that someone is restraining the revealing of Son of Perdition and the most logical conclusion to that is the one doing the restraining is the Holy Spirit within the Church. Therefore, the Day of Christ cannot come before the Rapture of the Church.

The notion that Paul was telling the Thessalonians that there first had to be a falling away from the faith would have made no sense to the people he wrote the letter to. There would have to have been a third letter to the Thessalonians to define what in the world Paul was talking about. The fact that no instruction was needed implies that they understood what Paul was saying. The Rapture Theology had already been defined in Paul’s first letter. How would the Thessalonians even be aware of a general apostasy from the faith in the world? They could not. So why mention it to them without giving any rational explanation about that apostasy?

Throughout the Church Age on earth there are those that departed from true Christianity because they were not of us. However, Christians born of the Spirit do not depart from the faith. Paul obviously was talking to mostly believers and it actually made no sense for Paul to be telling mostly believers that they were not yet in the tribulation because they have not yet observed any general departure from what they believed.

When does such an observable apostasy happen where you can say this apostasy is now fulfilled? There were the Gnostic heretics of the second century but obviously they did not qualify to fulfill what some think Paul is saying. There was the Christian dark ages but obviously that did not qualify as the apostasy. Roman Catholicism with all of its heresy did not qualify. Protestantism with all its liberalism did not qualify. Now there are other heresies and abominations but True Christianity marches on in spite of all the false Christianity.

Are we really to believe that Christians will apostatize from the faith in these last days before the Holy Spirit completes the fullness of the Gentiles that make up His Church? Scripture teaches that when the fullness of the Gentiles comes in the Church age ends.  The great deception comes on the world after the Church is removed and the Antichrist is revealed, not before. If there were a great apostasy before the Antichrist, why would the religious world even need a false Christ to deceive them?

Is this supposed great apostasy coming all over the world at the same time or is it just in the West? I say that because today we see many conversions to the true faith taking place in nations where there is persecution. Is it just the rejection of true Christianity in the Western nations that qualifies to fulfill the supposed apostasy from the faith?

There is a fundamental concept involved here. Does the Holy Spirit lose the ability to draw people to Christ in these last days or does the Church stay on the offensive until Jesus comes? Does the Church display that the gates of hell cannot prevent the gospel from going out? Or is the great commission agenda defeated by Satan so God has to remove the Church. The fundamental concept is who is sovereign?

We  can all weigh the arguments about 2Th 2:3 and decide for ourselves what view makes the most sense. A great apostasy from the faith just before the Antichrist or a Rapture just before the Antichrist? The first view makes it difficult for confessing Christian to even expect to stay saved until the Rapture, but the second view tells us what occurs immediately after the body of Christ is removed. I think it is much more likely that Paul was talking about the departure of the Church in the 2Th 2:3 passage. If that is the case, we need no more proof that the Rapture will take place before the tribulation because Paul in the 2Th 2:3 passage has clearly defined the timing of the departure of the Church for us.