Pilgrim quotes 2 Thes 2:3 in support of a future, individual antichrist:

Quote
2 Thessalonians 2:3 (ASV) "let no man beguile you in any wise: for [it will not be,] except the falling away come first, and the man of sin be revealed...

I tend to think of the great "falling away" as the Jewish apostacy of the first century. It was unbelieving Jews of the generation that rejected and murdered Christ that "filled up the measure" of judgement against them. It was unbelieving Jews whose opposition to the gospel preceded Roman persecution of Christians. In fact it was the Jews who brought the Romans to fight against the gospel (turning Christ over to Pilate and the Apostles over to Roman authorities, etc).

I think that THE antichrist (the man of lawlessness in Thessalonians) could have been the Jewish high priest or chief of the Sanhedrin, and "what restrains him" might have been the Roman government. The Jews were not allowed to put someone to death - they had to bring Jesus to Pilate and the Apostles to Roman governors and officers. The "who" that restrains the Man of Lawlessness might have been one of those Roman officers.

Pure speculation, I admit, but it is based on the phrase in verse 6, " you know what restrains him" and the word now in verse 7 referring to that restraint. At the time 2 Thessalonians was written, this "restrainer" might have been Felix, and "the" Antichrist might have been the chief priest at the time.

I do not see a single future individual as "THE" antichrist.

I don't think the Beast of Revelation is the same person as the man of lawlessness (interesting moniker for this guy, considering Paul's use of the word elsewhere in his writings). And the Apostle John, who coined the term "antichrist" and wrote it's definition in his epistle (1 John 2:18-19), does not use the word "antichrist" in the book of Revelation, where you would think he might have considerable use for the word. The antichrist isn't even mentioned in the book of Revelation (at least not by the term "antichrist"). I tend to think of THE antichrist as a Jewish opponent of the gospel restrained by Rome until that restraint was removed and Rome also became a persecutor of Christians, opposing the gospel as relentlessly as the Jews of Paul's day had done.

Glory to the timeless God of history!

-Robin