Later text
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival.
Intertextuality Pair
2 Thessalonians 2:8 → Isaiah 11:4
Allusion
Earlier text
Isaiah 11:4BSB
but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and with equity He will decide for the lowly of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and slay the wicked with the breath of His lips.
+ 3 more earlier texts
Earlier text
Psalm 33:6BSB
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the stars by the breath of His mouth.
Earlier text
Job 4:9BSB
By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of His anger they are consumed.
Earlier text
Behold, the Name of the LORD comes from afar, with burning anger and dense smoke. His lips are full of fury, and His tongue is like a consuming fire. His breath is like a rushing torrent that rises to the neck. He comes to sift the nations in a sieve of destruction; He bridles the jaws of the peoples to lead them astray.
Significance
Paul's phrase "the Lord Jesus will destroy with the breath of his mouth" clearly alludes to Isaiah 11:4 LXX, which describes the Davidic Messiah who "will destroy the ungodly with the breath of his lips," condensing Isaiah's parallel phrases into one compact expression using the same verb form (anelei). The context of Isaiah 11:1-5 was universally interpreted as messianic prophecy in early Christianity, describing the shoot from Jesse's stump who judges with righteousness and destroys the wicked. Paul's application to Jesus reflects the conviction that Christ is the promised Davidic Messiah, and the ease of victory—no cosmic battle, Christ simply breathes and the enemy is annihilated—emphasizes Christ's absolute supremacy over all opposing powers. By applying to Jesus texts about Yahweh's breath destroying the wicked (cf. Job 4:9; Isaiah 30:27-28; 4 Ezra 13:10-11), Paul affirms Christ's participation in divine identity and provides pastoral comfort that evil's defeat is certain, grounded in Christ's overwhelming power rather than human resistance.
- Found via
- Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
- Reference Type
- Allusion
- Connection Method(s)
- Promise-Fulfillment + Longitudinal Theme
Related Anchor-Text Networks
▸ A Shoot from the Stump of Jesse
Linked Mentions 2