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A STUDY OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TRIBULATION AND THE DAY OF GOD’S WRATH
I. EACH OCCURS AT A DIFFERENT TIME
II. THE REASON FOR EACH
III. THE LENGTH OF EACH
IV. SATAN DRIVEN AND GOD DRIVEN
I. EACH OCCURS AT A DIFFERENT TIME
In order to understand the differences between the tribulation and the day of God’s wrath we must understand that the day of His wrath is called in many Scripture passages, “the day of the Lord”. How do we know that? Rev. 6:16-17 tells us that the kings of the earth said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of His wrath is come.…”. How did they know that the day of His wrath had come? We read in Rev. 6:12-13, “and I beheld when He had opened the sixth seal, and lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a might wind”. In other words, the kings of the earth knew that the day of God’s wrath had come because they saw and were afraid of the cosmic signs spoken of in this passage.
Let us consider the cosmic disturbances of the sun becoming black and the moon as blood and the stars falling to the earth. We read of these same cosmic events in Joel 2:31, “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come“. Now let us add one more passage to this study and we will see that the cosmic events will occur after the tribulation but before the day of the Lord. We read in Matt. 24:29, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken“.
It is clear that these cosmic events will happen only one time and that they will announce God’s day of wrath. And because they come before the day of the Lord, that the day of the Lord is the day of God’s wrath.
So we have the following sequence of events.
1) The tribulation, followed by
2) The cosmic events that will occur “before”
3) The day of the Lord, i.e. the day of His wrath
II. THE REASON FOR EACH
THE TRIBULATION
We read in Rev. 3:10, “Because thou hast kept the word of My patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth”. The note in the Companion Bible on the word temptation” (“keep thee from the hour of temptation“) reads, “temptation = trial. And the note in the Companion Bible on the word “try” (to try them that dwell upon the earth”) reads, “try = test. Gr peirazo. Here 2:2 and 10”.
So the God given reason for the tribulation is that it will be an hour of trial and testing.
THE DAY OF THE LORD
Now let us consider the day of the Lord. In the section above we read in Rev. 6:16-17, “…..Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him That sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; For the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?”.
Upon whom will this wrath be meted out? That question is answered in Rev. 6:9-11, “And when He had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: and they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?’ And white robes were given unto every one of them”. Then in Rev. 7:13-14 we are told who they are that are given the white robes. “And one of the elders answered saying unto me, ‘What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?’ and I said unto him, ‘Sir, thou knowest;. And he said to me, ‘These are they which came out of the great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb'”.
Immediately after the fifth seal is opened and the cry for vengence is heard, the sixth seal, which represents the day of God’s wrath is opened. In other words, God’s vengeance will be upon those who were responsible for the deaths of the ones who were martyred for the “the word of God” during the tribulation. And that vengeance will be meted, as we saw in the section above, after the tribulation, during the day of the Lord.
III. THE LENGTH OF EACH
THE TRIBULATION
There are many references in the book of Revelation to 3 and 1/2 years or that length of time in months and in days. But let us begin our study of how long the tribulation will be with Dan. 9:27, “And he (the antichrist) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate”. So in the middle of the 70th week of the 70 weeks prophecy, the antichrist will place an abomination on the wing of the temple in Jerusalem.
As we go to Matt. 24:15-16 we will see that our Lord spoke of this abomination. “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place….Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains”. I believe that it is a very logical conclusion that the placing of the abomination is the beginning of the tribulation, as that is when the Lord warns believers to flee.
So we know that the placing of the abomination of desolation on the wing of the temple will be in the middle of the 70th week. That tells us that the tribulation will last 3 and 1/2 years, i.e. the second half of the 70th week.
For the sake of thoroughness let us look at some verses in Revelation which also speak of the length of time of the tribulation. We read in Rev. 11:2, “But the court which is without the Temple leave out, ….for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under for forty and two months“. Forty-two months are, of course, 3 and 1/2 years.
And verse 3 of this chapter reads, “And I will give power unto My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days.…”. 1, 260 days, are 3 and 1/2 years. We read in 12:6, “and the woman (Israel) fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand, two hundred and threescore days”. And again in 12:14 we read, “and to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness into her place where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time…..”, i.e. 3 and 1/2 years.
THE DAY OF THE LORD
We have seen that the day of the Lord will be the time that God avenges the death of the tribulation martyrs. And that the day of His vengeance is the day of the Lord. How long is the day of the Lord?
We read in chapters 17 and 18 of the destruction of Babylon. Babylon is represented by a woman sitting on a beast. This woman is described in verse 6 as being “the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus”. There are several passages that tell us that Babylon represents all that is evil. For example, we read in 18:3 that “all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies”. And in verse 5 we read, “For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities”.
I believe that when we read above that the martyrs of the tribulation prayed for vengeance on those who had killed them, that prayer will be answered, at least in part, by the destruction of Babylon. Because that destruction will be in the day of the Lord, we may know how long the day of the Lord will last by how long it will take for the destruction of Babylon.
We read in Rev. 18:8, “Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire; for strong is the Lord God Who judgeth her”. There are three other verses that tell us of the destruction of Babylon. Rev. 18:10, “….Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come”. Rev. 18:16-17, “Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls. For in one hour so great riches is come to nought”, And also in Rev. 18:19, ….Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.”
We are told that Babylon will be destroyed in “a day” and “in one hour”. I think it is clear that the day of the Lord will not be longer than one day.
IV. SATAN DRIVEN AND GOD DRIVEN
THE TRIBULATION
Rev. 12 speaks of the woman, i.e. Israel (see verses 1-2 and 5) and a “great red dragon” (vs. 3). Verse 9 tells us who this great dragon is, “and the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world…..”. Then in verses 13-14 we read, “And when the dragon saw that she (Israel) was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent”.
The phrase “a time, and times, and half a time” refers, of course, to the 3 and 1/2 years of the tribulation. This passage tells us that it is Satan who will persecute Israel in the tribulation.
Dan. 7:25, “And he shall speak great words against the MOST HIGH, and shall wear out the saints of the MOST HIGH, and think to change times and laws; and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time”. Again, the phrase, “a time and times and the dividing of time” refers to the 3 and 1/2 years of the tribulation. And of course, the one into whose hand the martyrs will be given is the antichrist who serves Satan.
Dan. 8:23-25, “….a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy People. And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand”. There are several elements of this passage that we should note.
1) The “Prince of princes” is of course, Jesus Christ.
2) The one who will “destroy the holy People” and “magnify himself in his heart” is of course, the antichrist.
3) The phrase “but not by his own power” refers to Satan’s power,and his control of the antichrist.
Dan. 9:26 reads, “…..and the people of the prince that shall come (the antichrist) shall destroy the city and the sanctuary...”.
I have tried to show that the tribulation is a time when Satan, working through the antichrist, will persecute Israel during the 3 and 1/2 years of the tribulation. But what are we to make of such passages as Rev. 8:7 for example. “the first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up”. These things came from heaven and were cast down to earth. Surely Satan was not responsible for those. No, Satan was not responsible for those things. Let us consider some other things that will come down from heaven to earth during the tribulation.
Let us consider the army of locusts in Rev. 9. To begin with let us not confuse this army of locusts with that of Joel 2. In Joel 2 we are told that God will lead that army of locusts. Joel 2:11 reads, “And the Lord shall utter His voice before His army: for His camp is very great” for He is strong that executeth His word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?” This army will march in the day of the Lord and it will be God’s army. In Rev. 9:11 we read that this army of locusts “had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apolyon”, which the Companion Bible note tells us means “destruction” and “destroyer” respectively. Like so many other things in the tribulation, Satan will attempt to copy it so as to deceive people into believing that he is the one to be worshipped and feared.
So the army of locusts of Rev. 9 is the army of Satan and will march in the tribulation. With that in mind let us consider some of the limits put on this army. For example, we read in 9:3 that they were “given power as the scorpions of the earth have power”. But in verse 4 we read that “it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only those men which have not the seal of God on their foreheads”.
Who were those upon which the seal of God was placed? That question is answered in Rev. 7. They were the 12,000 of each of the tribes of Israel that God will protect during the tribulation. We read 7:3 of the angel “saying, ‘Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads’. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel”.
My point is that while it is true that the things that came as a result of the seals being opened and the trumpets being sounded, etc. came from heaven, they were limited in such a way as to not hurt those who had been sealed. In my opinion, that tells us that those things will come from God to counterbalance the miraculous things that the antichrist, through Satan will accomplish. That is to say, many may be deceived by the miraculous works done by Satan through the antichrist, but God does no allow Satan a totally free hand. He protects His own and shows many miracles Himself to those who will accept them.
Another example of this counterbalance of power is seen in Rev. 11 where we read of the two witnesses. We read in Rev. 11:3, “and I will give power unto My two witnesses, and they shall prophecy a thousand and two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth”. We are told quite specifically that these two witnesses are given power from God Himself. What will these two witnesses be sent to do? We read in Rev. 11: 13 of great earthquake at the time they will be raised to heaven after laying in the streets of Jerusalem for 3 and 1/2 days as their enemies beheld them. Then we read that there will be seven thousand killed in this earthquake, but “the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven”. In other words, like the things that come from heaven as the vials are opened and and the trumpets are sounded, the two witnesses will be sent to get some to believe in God and not worship the antichrist.
Another example of this is found in Rev. 14:6, “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people: Saying with a loud voice, ‘Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters”.
My point is that God will allow Satan to try to get people (especially Israel) to worship him, but God will not sit by and do nothing. God will perform His own miracles in order to both protect those He had sealed and get those who will acknowledge the truth to worship Him. In other words, the tribulation is driven by Satan, but God is still working for those who will acknowledge Him.
THE DAY OF THE LORD
I have tried to show in the section above that the tribulation will be driven by Satan through the antichrist. As mentioned above, God’s vengeance will come on those who murdered His martyrs of the tribulation and also on those who committed the other great sins along with Babylon the great.
In other words, while the tribulation will be Satan driven, the day of the God’s wrath, i.e. the day of the Lord, will be driven by God Himself.
This paper was written by Joyce Pollard. If you would like to respond please e-mail at:[email protected]
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