Thanks.
HOUSE OF EPHRAIM
It's interesting what you say bout the house of Ephraim and the apostasy, because (for reasons that would take long to explain) I believe that the house of Ephraim is the Gentiles in Christ and Paul prophesied both of an apostasy and a worthless shepherd in 2 Thess 2:4.
TEMPLE OF GOD BEING DEFILED
I know that most people believe that the naos (sanctuary of God) mentioned in 2 Thess 2:4 is a physical rebuilt temple in Jerusalem
- but that word naos (sanctuary of God) stops being used in reference to the Jerusalem temple in the verses in the gospels that talk about the tearing of the veil in that sanctuary when Jesus died on the cross.
It's not used in reference to the Jerusalem temple after that.
The word used for the temple
complex in Jerusalem is hieron.
Inside the
hieron was the
naos (sanctuary of God/Holy Place):
ἱερόν hierón (hee-er-on'): [Strongs Greek Dictionary] 02411 (English: Temple):
neuter of 2413; a sacred place, i.e.
the entire precincts, whereas 3485
[naós] denotes the central sanctuary itself (of the Temple in Jerusalem, or elsewhere).
Not surprisingly every time we read about Jesus going into the temple, the word used is
hieron because Jesus was not a priest under Mosaic law and was not allowed to enter
the naos.
The multiple times that the temple
in Jerusalem is mentioned after the death and resurrection of Jesus (mainly in Acts)
only the word hieron is used, and the words "hagios topos" (holy place) are used for when the Jews accused Paul of defiling "this holy place"
-
but not the word naos.
The only times Acts uses the word
naos in reference to the sanctuary of God is where Luke wrote:
Acts 7:48a
But, the Most High does not dwell in a temple sanctuary (Greek: naos) made with (human) hands.
Acts 17:24
The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of Heaven and earth, does not dwell in temple sanctuaries (Greek naos) made with (human) hands.
(Once in the entire New Testament, naos is used for a pagan sanctuary - the shrine of Diana - also in Acts).
The
one time Paul was talking about the temple
in Jerusalem in his letters, the word
hieron is used
- but
every time Paul speaks about the bodies of individual believers or of the church and calls it the temple of God, the word
naos is used.
Paul used the word
naos in 2 Thess 2:4, not the word
hieron.
-- the church & the temple in heaven --
(word used: naós)
1 Corinthians 3:16-17 & 1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:21:21; Revelation 3:12; Revelation 7:15; Revelation 11:19; Revelation 14:15 & Revelation 14:17; Revelation 15:5-6 & Revelation 15:8; Revelation 16:1 & Revelation 16:17; Revelation 21:22
2 Thessalonians 2:4; Revelation 11:1-2.
HOLY CITY
Notice how Revelation 11:19 uses the word
naos for sanctuary (temple) of God but Revelation 11:1-2 also uses the same word - but
Revelation 11:2 is talking about the holy city - and there are no verses in the Revelation where the other cities mentioned in the Revelation are called "the holy city"
("Babylon the Great", or the city "spiritually called Sodom and Egypt", or the cities of the nations which fell when the 7th bowl of wrath was poured out),
but the Revelation calls New Jerusalem "the holy city" three times:
Revelation 21:2; Revelation 21:10; and Revelation 22:19.
So I find it very interesting that you mention that the House of Ephraim will go into apostasy - but the House of Ephraim is not referring to the Jews in Christ, IMO, but to the Gentiles in Christ, and the worthless shepherd IMO is the man of sin of 2 Thess 2:4.
PS: I'm a Gentile Christian. Not Jewish. I'm speaking objectively. Not with prejudice.