2 Thessalonians 2:3b states that the Day of the Lord will not come until the apostasy/rebellion (ἡ ἀποστασία) comes first:
For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first
2 Thessalonians 2:3
The purpose of this article is to succinctly explain what the apostasy/rebellion (ἡ ἀποστασία) is from the biblical text so that believers can discern times and seasons surrounding the return of Jesus.
The place to begin discerning what is the rebellion is by doing a word search of ἀποστασία in the New Testament and the Greek Old Testament. The following passages contain the term ἀποστασία: Joshua 22:22; 2 Chronicles 29:19; 1 Maccabees 2:15; Jeremiah 2:19; and Acts 21:21. In all instances, ἀποστασία refers to rebelling or revolting against God. Thus, “rebellion” is a better translation than “apostasy” because apostasy is simply a transliteration of the Greek ἀποστασία (apostasia).
The verbal cognate of ἀποστασία is ἀποστατέω. A search of ἀποστατέω in the Greek Old Testament reveals that the verb also refers to rebellion, although primarily against kings (Neh 2:19; 6:6; 1 Macc 11:14; 13:16; 2 Macc 5:11). The use of the verb ἀποστατέω strengthens our above understanding of ἀποστασία, confirming that it does, indeed, refer to rebellion. The verb ἀποστατέω is not used in the New Testament.
A search of the noun ἀποστασία and the verb ἀποστατέω reveal two things. First, ἀποστασία refers to rebellion, most likely against God. Second, there are no passages in the Bible that refer to a specific time of rebellion using either ἀποστασία or ἀποστατέω. Thus, we must use the context of 2 Thessalonians 2:1–12 to help us discern its meaning.
According to 2 Thessalonians 2:3b–12, the revelation of the Man of Lawlessness will happen around the same time as the rebellion (click HERE for the identity of the Man of Lawlessness), and both will happen just prior to the return of Jesus. The Man of Lawlessness is opposed to Jesus (2:4, 8) and he deceives all those who are not saved (2:10). As such, it seems logical that the rebellion in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 refers to a great revolt against God and against the coming of Jesus by most, if not all, non-believers in a way never before seen or experienced. This aligns quite well with the rebellion described in Revelation 16:12–14 and 19:19–21.