Who is the Restrainer 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7?

The identity of the restrainer (katechon/katechōn) mentioned in 2 Thessalonians 2:6–7 has long been a subject of scholarly debate and theological inquiry. The following are the major proposals on the identity of the katechon/katechōn:

Major Proposals on the Identity of the Restrainer

It is interpreted that the neuter participle refers to the Roman Empire and the masculine participle refers to the emperor. However, this view can be rejected on the grounds that the text talks about the rebellion against God, not a civil rebellion, and the text uses apocalyptic categories rather than categories from everyday civil life in the Roman Empire.[1]

The neuter participle refers to the preaching of the gospel, and the masculine participle refers to the apostle Paul, whose preaching of the gospel is to non-Jews.[2] This view presupposes that Paul would have been taken away before the end comes, which is contrary to Paul’s expectation to be alive at the parousia (1 Thess. 4:15, 17).[3] Marshall proposes a modified version of this: that God will allow “the rebel to be manifested only when the present opportunity for preaching and hearing the gospel is brought to an end by the removal of the angelic figure who is now in charge.”[4]

The restrainer is understood as Satan or rebellion. Paul S. Dixon argues that to katechon refers to the mystery of lawlessness already at work, and ho katechōn refers to Satan.[5] Colin R. Nicholl argues that “the fact the rebel’s parousia is ‘by (kata) the working of Satan’ (2 Thess. 2:9-10a) renders Satan a highly implausible restrainer.”[6] Also, it is not clear why his removal would lead to the revelation of the rebel.[7]

God is also viewed as the restrainer.[8] Aus proposes that God restrains the Day of the Messiah because the preaching of the gospel to all people should be accomplished first, and he also proposes the image of “restraining birth” in Isaiah 66:9 as the background for the restrainer in Thessalonians. [9]Further, on the basis of chiastic structure and the emphases of 2 Thess. 2:1–15, Charles E. Powell argues that the restrainer refers to the ministry of the Holy Spirit through the church in order to continue the mission of preaching the gospel.[10] However, these views neglect the fact that neither God nor the Holy Spirit has been taken away from the whole scenario described in 2 Thess. 2:1–12.[11]

The restrainer is also identified as an angel because God uses angelic agency to accomplish God’s purposes in apocalyptic literature.[12] Nicholl suggests that Michael would be the restrainer because Michael could be understood as the celestial restrainer on the basis of Daniel 10–12.[13]

L.J. Lietaert Peerbolte suggests that the function of the restrainer is to hold back the coming of the man of lawlessness, and this function aptly matches with the translation as “to withhold” and thus “withholding power.” [14]  

The 

Holy Spirit is the Restrainer 

Among the various proposals regarding the identity of the restrainer in 2 Thessalonians 2:6–7, the interpretation that identifies the restraining force as the Holy Spirit—or, by extension, God—offers the most theologically coherent and textually consistent explanation. This view accounts for the eschatological and redemptive framework of Pauline thought, in which the continued preaching of the gospel and the restraining of lawlessness are attributed to divine agency. The reference to the removal of the restrainer is best understood not as a complete withdrawal of the Holy Spirit or of God from the world, but as a divine act of permitting the final revelation of the "man of lawlessness" within God’s sovereign timeline. While the text does not identify the restrainer explicitly, the chiastic structure, theological emphases, and the broader Pauline eschatology lend significant support to the interpretation that God—acting through the Holy Spirit and the mission of the church—is the restraining force that holds back the culmination of lawlessness until the appointed time.

Further Readings: 

Eschatology of Paul 

Apocalypticism and Eschatology in the New Testament

Other Readings: 

Who / What is the restrainer in 2 Thessalonians 2:6?

Photo credit:Marija Zaric

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[1] Wanamaker,250; Morris,The First and Second Epistle,225; Richard, First and Second Thessalonians, 337-339; Marshall,196-197. Peerbolte, “The  katechon/katechōn of  2Thess.2:6-7,” 141-142.To see further weakness of this view, refer Nicholl, From Hope,228-229; Best,296.

[2] Wanamaker,250-251; Marshall,198. Morris,The First and Second Epistle,226.

[3] To see further criticism, refer Wanamaekr,250; Nicholl, From Hope,229; Best,297-298.

[4] Marshall,199.

[5] Paul S. Dixon, “The Evil Restraint in 2 Thess2:6,” JETS 33/4(December,1990):445-449.

[6] Nicholl, From Hope,229.

[7] Nicholl, From Hope,229. For further criticism on this view, see Best,300.

[8] Marshall,198; wanamaker,251.

[9] Roger D. Aus, “God’s Plan and God’s Power: Isaiah 66 and the Restraining Factors of 2 Thess 2:6-7,” JBL 96/4 (December:1977):537-553.

[10] Charles E. Powell, “The Identity of the “Restrainer” in 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7,” Bibliotheca Sacra 154 (July-September,1997):320-332.

[11] Nicholl, From Hope,229.

[12] Witherington,221.

[13] Nicholl, From Hope, 232-249; Colin. R. Nicholl, “Michael, The Restrainer Removed (2Thess.21:6-7),”Journal of Theological Studies 51/1 (April, 2000):27-53.

[14]Peerbolte, “The katechon/katechōn of 2 Thess. 2:6–7,” 145.