Patience, in this passage, has the meaning of persevering patiently and courageously in hardships. James used the same word when he wrote, “Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord,” as also afterward, speaking of the farmer that waits patiently for the precious fruit of the earth (5:7).

How much we need this patience, to persevere courageously, as we wait for the coming of the Lord. Our world has always been in moral darkness because of sin, but the depth of this darkness is more than ever increasing at a staggering speed. This world openly and arrogantly rejects the Creator God and what He has established. They want to redefine the meaning of words, decide for themselves what is right and what is wrong, and above all, be the masters of their own destiny and do whatever is pleasing for each in his own eyes. We must not be blind to the fact that “the rulers of the darkness of this age,” the “spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12), are actively at work behind the scene in this regard. Both fallen angels and fallen humanity walk in unison toward this goal of a world where the creature is like God, according to Satan’s lie, “I will be like the Most High,” and “you will be like God” (Isa. 14:14; Gen. 3:5). This mystery of lawlessness will soon have full sway when He who now restrains is taken out of the way, and the lawless one revealed afterwards (2 Th. 2:7–8). The Spirit of God who indwells every believer is this Restrainer, and “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4).

If it is dark around us, a glorious prospect is set before us. This is why we are exhorted to establish our hearts, take courage and persevere patiently as we give testimony to the truth—our Lord Jesus Christ—in proclaiming the gospel of peace and in keeping the words of the Lord, because “the coming of the Lord is at hand”!